bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Predictors of Performance in Software Training: Attitudes toward Computers versus Attitudes toward Working with Computers
Authors: Jawahar I. M. , Elango B.
Published: August 2011

Research investigating the influence of attitudes toward computers and learning to use computers has reported contradictory results. After briefly reviewing relevant research, two possible explanations for the inconsistent results are offered, and one of those explanations is empirically tested. Results indicate weak support for the behavioral intentions model of Ajzen and Fishbein (1980) as attitudes toward working with computers are only a marginally better predictor of learning to use computers than the more general attitudes toward computers.
Medical Students' Personal Values and Their Career Choices a Quarter-Century Later
Authors: Hojat Mohammadreza , Brigham Timothy P. , Gottheil Edward , Xu Gang , Glaser Karen , Veloski J. Jon
Published: August 2011

A longitudinal study of 391 physicians tested two hypotheses regarding personal values and career choices: that higher preference for social values would be associated with physicians' being more interested in “people-oriented” rather than “technology-oriented” specialties and that higher preference for economic values would be associated with expectations of high income. The physicians (344 men, 47 women) were graduates of Jefferson Medical College in 1974 and 1975 who completed the Allport-Vernon-Lindzey Study of Values during medical school. Analysis showed that physicians currently in the “people-oriented” specialties scored significantly higher on the Social Value scale than their peers in “technology-oriented” specialties. A moderate but statistically significant correlation was found between scores on the Economic Value scale and expectations of higher income. The findings suggest that physicians' personal values are relevant to their career decisions such as specialty choice and expectations of income. The findings have implications with regard to two major issues in the evolving health care system, namely, the distribution of physicians by specialty and cost containment.
Self-Differentiation within Couples
Authors: Kosek Robert B.
Published: August 2011

Sex differences and similarities among spouses on differentiation of self were evaluated for 108 heterosexual couples who completed the Differentiation of Self Inventory 2 of Skowron. Four scores on self-differentiation were assessed, emotional reactivity, emotion cutoff, “I” position, and fusion with others. Significant sex differences were found on all subscales. Women tended to express their state of emotionality by engaging with their partners via emotional reactivity, whereas men tended to express their state of emotionality by disengaging from their partners. Women scored lower on adherence to their convictions or beliefs than their spouses. Moreover, the results were not supportive of similarities of self-differentiation among spouses as posited by Bowen.
Development and Preliminary Validation of the Stereotypic Beliefs Inventory
Authors: Van Ommeren Mark H. , Ishiyama F. Ishu
Published: August 2011

This paper describes the development and preliminary validation of a Stereotypic Beliefs Inventory, a measure of individual differences in the extent to which English-speaking Canadians hold Stereotypic beliefs about cultural or ethnic outgroups. A Stereotypic belief is the belief that members of cultural or ethnic outgroups differ systematically in specific personality characteristics from members of cultural or ethnic ingroups. This scale is the only currently available measure of ethnic stereotyping that has been shown to be unaffected by socially desirable responses in Canada.
Concurrent Validity of the Relationship with Father Inventory
Authors: Zazzaro Jane A. , Lassiter Kerry S. , Baldo Tracy B.
Published: August 2011

The present investigation examined the concurrent validity of the Relationship with Father Inventory, by administering this inventory and the Parental Bonding Instrument in counterbalanced order to 846 adults. As expected, mean scores across measures were similar to previously published data for adults; however, women reported more paternal protection during childhood and less coalition and emotional attachment to father in adulthood than men. Scores on Relationship with Father Inventory's Emotional Attachment and Coalition with Father scales correlated significantly with scores on the Care and Protection scales of the Parental Bonding Instrument.
Relationship between Family Income and Achievement in English of Children from Single- and Two-Parent Families
Authors: Cherian V. I. , Malehase M. C.
Published: August 2011

To study the relationship between financial conditions in the home and scholastic achievement of 234 Standard 7 pupils (103 boys, 131 girls), a questionnaire was given to the children who were chosen at random from 34 Junior Secondary Schools in the Mankweng Education Circuit of South Africa. Pearson correlation coefficient and analysis of variance showed no relationship between financial conditions at home and scholastic achievement of children from single-parent and two-parent families.
Reasons for Missing Class
Authors: Dillon Kathleen M.
Published: August 2011

College students and faculty evaluated the reasonableness of 48 circumstances for missing class. For 46% of the items, students and faculty showed significant differences with faculty more strongly disagreeing with the items' reasonableness. In addition, many faculty indicated that a pattern of using such reasons could affect their willingness to work with students independently or to write letters of reference. Only 39% of the faculty, however, indicated they would confront a student about the legitimacy of these reasons.
Interaction of Cognitive Balance and Mood Induction on Self-Descriptions: A Q Methodological Approach
Authors: Schell Kraig L.
Published: August 2011

Predictions based on cognitive balance and mood induction theories were used to investigate how participants reacted to positive or negative feedback on a Q-sorting task. Positive and negative feedback was presented by giving some participants positive and negative adjectives with which to describe themselves, while giving a third group of participants neutral adjectives. The effect of the feedback was assessed by correlating self-descriptions with reference to their current self, how they remembered being in the past, and how they wanted to be in the future. These correlations were then compared across groups. The mean correlations between the current self-description and other self-descriptions were significantly lower for the positive and negative groups than they were for the control group. These findings appear to support the concept of cognitive balance and also indicate a possible chronological basis for balancing self-descriptions across a life span.
Coping Strategies for People Who Care for a Relative with Chronic Mental Illness
Authors: Winefield Helen R.
Published: August 2011

To study the coping strategies in use by family members (N = 36) who had remained involved with and supportive of their mentally ill relative, we used both a checklist of questions about relevant coping behaviours and group discussions about caregivers' methods of taking care of themselves. Results invite further exploration.
Prison Suicide Rates by State
Authors: Lester David
Published: August 2011

Prison suicide rates by state for 1984–1993 were significantly associated with the suicide rates of the general population of the states.
African University Students' Responses to Two Questions about Interracial Dating
Authors: Mwamwenda Tuntufye S.
Published: August 2011

To examine the view of African university students (76 women, 63 men) toward interracial dating. There was an overwhelming preference for dating black men and women; however, the difference in mean preference for kissing either a black or white person was nonsignificant.
Background for and Development of a Brief Adult Behavioral Classification Project Inventory
Authors: Marullo Sam , Dreger Ralph Mason
Published: August 2011

An abridgement of the Adult Behavioral Classification Project Inventory (AdBCP) was accomplished. The creation and development of the full-scale Inventory is described in Phase I. In Phase II, the participant pool was divided into half, and each half of the data set was subjected to both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses with a factor control of 11 of the strongest factors in the original data set. Items identifying these factors had to have at least |.35| factor structure weights, leaving a 42-item instrument, the Brief AdBCP Inventory. Predicting from the first half to the second half by confirmatory factor analysis resulted in a fair confirmation of the factor structure. A rough norm table is offered based on the factor scores of the first half of the participants' records.
Patient Impairment Lexicon: A Psychometric Analysis
Authors: Klewicki Lisa L. , Bjorck Jeffrey P. , Leucht Christopher A. , Goodman Michael
Published: August 2011

Growth in managed care has magnified the needs for assessment of treatment efficacies and standardized communication regarding treatment needs. Addressing both needs requires a common terminology describing the scope of treatable mental health impairments. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV provides a common categorical language for describing clinical disorders, but its categories are not discrete and do little to facilitate communication regarding specific treatment needs. Goodman, Brown, and Deitz developed a Patient Impairment Lexicon intended to address these limitations. The current vignette study provided initial psychometric assessment of this nomenclature, specifically examining interrater reliability, temporal stability, and content validity. Findings are discussed with respect to both applications in managed care and psychometric research.
Comparison of Japanese and American College Students on Collectivism and Social Context of Decision-Making
Authors: Arikawa Hiroko , Templer Donald I.
Published: August 2011

American college students ( n = 63) scored higher on a Social Context Scale of decision-making than Japanese students ( n = 50). The American students also scored higher on the Collectivism Scale, but the difference was not significant. These findings were not expected and were discussed both in terms of American and Japanese societal characteristics and a new conceptualization of collectivism and individualism as not mutually exclusive so individualism may coexist within the parameters of a more pervasive collectivistic culture.
Latin American, Asian, and American Cultural Differences in Perceptions of Spousal Abuse
Authors: Gabler Michelle , Stern Steven E. , Miserandino Marianne
Published: August 2011

College students (20 Latin American exchange students, 18 Asian exchange students, and 20 students born in the United States) participated in a study of the effects of culture on attitudes and perceptions of spousal abuse. Subjects completed a 23-item questionnaire developed to ascertain subjects' attitudes about spousal abuse, retaliatory behaviors, and the legal implications of those behaviors. Analyses showed many significant differences in attitudes towards and perceptions of spousal abuse. This suggests that attitudes and perceptions of spousal abuse are culturally related.
Vocational Interests and Career Indecision among Psychosis-Prone College Students
Authors: Poreh Amir M. , Schullen Carol
Published: August 2011

This study investigated the relationship between scores on scales that purport to measure psychosis-proneness and scores on vocational interests, identity, and differentiation scales in a sample of 233 college students who completed the Perceptual Aberration and Magical Ideation scales, the Strong Campbell Interest Inventory, and the Career Decision Scale. The present findings are consistent with prior work indicating a sex-related association of scores on measures of psychosis-proneness and vocational interests. A positive correlation between scores on vocational indecision and measures of psychosis-proneness was also found, suggesting that both men and women who score high on psychosis-proneness find it difficult to formulate long-term career goals. Finally, there was no significant correlation between scores on measures of psychosis-proneness and Holland's Vocational Differentiation Index. Present results are discussed in light of previously reported sex differences among psychosis-prone adults and diagnosed schizophrenics. The implications of the findings for vocational counselors are also addressed.
Gender and the Barnum Effect: A Reinterpretation of Piper-Terry and Downey's Results
Authors: Layne Christopher
Published: August 2011

The Barnum Effect refers to people's acceptance of high baserate, bogus feedback. Typically, sex is not significantly associated with such acceptance, but recently Piper-Terry and Downey found that undergraduate women accepted such feedback from friends more than men. They concluded that the women in their sample did this because they wanted to help, i.e., avoid embarrassing, their friends; however, this explanation is flawed for two reasons. First, there are other ways to be helpful that would lead to the opposite result; for example, bluntly honest feedback might be helpful and followed by lower acceptance of feedback. In addition, an alternative hypothesis holds that men and women accept bogus feedback because they are rational. Compared with men, women reveal their reactions and personalities more clearly and thus rationally rate their friends' feedback on personality as more accurate.
Perceptions of Employees' Participation Programs in Union and Nonunion Settings
Authors: Buda Richard
Published: August 2011

A study was conducted to compare the perceptions of executives who manage organizations that have unions versus those that do not. 254 respondents indicated on a survey of organizational practice to what extent they observed activities indicative of success concerning employees' participation, work teams, total quality, core competencies, and human capital strategies. Analysis indicated that executives who manage firms affiliated with unions rated significantly higher items representing employees' participation, core competencies, work teams, and human capital strategies. No differences were found for the dimension of total quality. Results and implications are discussed.
African- and Euro-American Samples Differ Little in Scores on Death Anxiety
Authors: Thorson James A. , Powell F. C. , Samuel V. T.
Published: August 2011

Samples of 293 students of European heritage and 102 students of African heritage completed the Revised Death Anxiety Scale. Euro-Americans were more concerned with the uncertainty associated with death and with the loss of being, while African Americans expressed greater anxiety over the pain associated with dying, but there was no significant mean difference in total scores for the groups.
Nonattendance at a General Hospital Psychological Clinic in South Africa
Authors: Pillay A. L. , van Der Veen M. B. W. , Guilfoyle M. C. G.
Published: August 2011

Over a 10-yr. period 11.6% of the 3738 patients referred to a general hospital's psychological clinic in South Africa did not attend their first appointments. Patients who had engaged in suicidal behaviours and those with somatoform symptoms were the predominant nonattenders, while those with depressive symptoms had the lowest nonattendance rate.
Predictors of Success within a Behavior Modification Program among Male Adolescents
Authors: Anolik Steven A. , Stevens Ronald
Published: August 2011

48 adolescents placed into a short-term diagnostic group home with a behavior modification program in place were studied. Each subject was administered the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children–Ill and the Screener version of the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test. Assessment data were used to predict the subjects' conduct within the behavioral program as a method of strengthening pretreatment recommendations for planning. Analysis showed that verbal and mathematical skills were significant predictors of the criterion behaviors. These results support the use of cognitive assessment as valid methods of predicting the behavior of teenagers within residential behavior modification programs.
Teachers' Attitudes toward Statistics
Authors: Onwuegbuzie Anthony J.
Published: August 2011

Wise's 1985 Attitude Toward Statistics scale was used to obtain normative data for 222 teachers enrolled in graduate classes in statistics and research methods. Comparisons with norms from other studies in which the scale was used indicated that these teachers had less positive attitudes toward the field of statistics and the course than did graduate students in psychology. In addition, the teachers had less positive attitudes toward the field of statistics than did undergraduate students from a variety of disciplines. These differences in attitudes ranged from .55 to .87 standard deviations, indicating moderate to large effect sizes. Recommendations for research include replicating the study.
Response Difficulty: Response Rate Relation and Sex of Subjects
Authors: Armus Harvard L. , Miller Wendy S.
Published: August 2011

Past research on the relation between response effort and response rate in humans has not considered the effect of subjects' sex. Subjects (22 men and 23 women) were asked to pull a trigger repeatedly when the force required to pull the trigger was varied for each subject at 5, 10, 15, or 20 lb. At the lower force requirements, combined, women made more responses than at the combination of the two higher force requirements. For men, however, this relation was reversed. Possible implications of these findings are discussed.
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Dementia
Authors: Croake James W. , Pursley Michael , Hardin Joe G. , Michalski Joseph P.
Published: August 2011

Comparison of Trail-making Parts A and B and the Shipley Conceptual Quotient of 18 index patients ( M age = 29 years) and 18 controls indicated no dementia for the index patients.
Differential Prediction of Maladjustment Scores with the Snyder Hope Subscales
Authors: Cramer Kenneth M. , Dyrkacz Lisa
Published: August 2011

The present study examined the relation between two Snyder Hope subscales (Agency: goal motivation; Pathways: goal planning) and adjustment problems (a composite of seven MMPI–2 clinical scales). Each of 354 university students completed both the Hope Scale and the MMPI–2. Whereas scores on Hope, Agency, and Pathways subscales were each negatively related to the maladjustment composite score, the relation was significantly stronger for the Agency than for the Pathways subscale. For individual clinical scales, the Agency subscale offered better prediction than the Pathways subscale for all selected clinical scales except Hysteria and Psychopathic Deviate. The Agency subscale also offered better prediction than the Hope Scale for Psychaesthenia and Schizophrenia. Applications for health professionals and directions for research are discussed.
Relational Closeness and Production of Excuses in Events of Failure
Authors: Yun Kimo Ah
Published: August 2011

According to Weiner's motivational model of attribution, a person failing to perform an expected action will often respond by producing excuses to account for the behavior. These excuses can be assessed along three dimensions of locus (internal/external), control (controllable/uncontrollable), and stability (stable/unstable). A person responsible for a failure is more likely to produce a perceived “good” excuse (external, uncontrollable, unstable) than a “bad” one (internal, controllable, and stable); however, the research upon which this finding is based has only been tested with participants lacking prior relationships. As such, our understanding of this phenomenon could be blurred. In this study, participants (224 women, 174 men, Mage = 19.6 yr) were apportioned into relationally close and distant conditions and asked to produce an excuse for a failure in which they were the causal element. Three dependent variables of locus, control, and stability were tested. As predicted, participants in the distant condition produced more perceived “good” excuses than those in the close condition.
Students' Self-Disclosure in the College Classroom
Authors: Myers Scott A.
Published: August 2011

This study examined how college students (61 men, 72 women) differed in the breadth and the depth of self-disclosure when interacting with their instructors and their classmates as inferred from responses to the 25-item Self-disclosure Questionnaire of Jourard. For each item, respondents indicated the Breadth (the number of topics) and the Depth (the intimacy of the topic). Students reported a higher Breadth of self-disclosure with their classmates than with their instructors on 9 of the 25 items, but there were no significant differences for Depth of students' self-disclosure. These findings suggest that students are more apt to self-disclose with classmates rather than instructors but the self-disclosure may not be intimate.
Characteristics of APA Division 40 Fellows and ABPP Diplomates in Clinical Neuropsychology
Authors: Ryan Joseph J. , Lopez Shane J.
Published: August 2011

Diplomate and Fellow status in clinical neuropsychology reflect professional competency and a record of significant contributions to the field. This present study provides a snapshot of the pathways to these distinctions and focuses on the educational history and demographic description of ABPP Diplomates and APA Division 40 Fellows. Identification of degree-granting institutions of these psychologists provides distal outcome data for training programs. Both credentials were identified as midcareer markers, as attainment of either required over 12 years of postdoctoral experiences. The pool of Fellows is significantly older than the Diplomates, but these data are confounded as 53 individuals hold both a diploma and Fellow status. Women were underrepresented in both groups. In regard to degree specialty, clinical psychology was the most prevalent degree program represented; however, the groups appear to be permeable to psychologists who received formal training in other subspecialties.
Feedback on Ability in Counseling, Self-Efficacy, and Persistence on Task
Authors: Lane Eric J. , Daugherty Timothy K. , Nyman Scott J.
Published: August 2011

Self-efficacy in counseling varied with randomly manipulated feedback on ability, such that the 29 college students who received negative feedback on their ability reported lower self-efficacy than those 16 who received positive feedback. Persistence on task, however, was not related to the type of feedback received.
The Process of Achieving Group Uniformity
Authors: Kugihara Naoki , Sato Seiichi , Soejima Akiko
Published: August 2011

The present study examined the effects of group size and percentage of the subjects starting with majority behavior upon the process of achieving behavioral uniformity. Four groups of 12 and five groups of 24 subjects were formed. The starting points at the beginning of the experiments were set to 50%, 67%, and 83%. Each subject was given a B5 size card having different colors on the front and the back and showed either side of the cards to others. Subjects shared the goal of achieving uniformity by selecting one of two color options. Analysis indicated that group size did not affect time to complete unanimity and a logistic function was found between the transition probability and the rate of diffusion. According to a Markov model, subjects do not react to the past history of the group. We found that the transition probability was dependent upon not only the percentage of individuals at a given moment but also the initial value in the beginning. This means that the transition probability was influenced by past history.
Comparison of Two College Entrance Examination Tasks
Authors: Knudson Ruth E.
Published: August 2011

115 high school juniors were required to write a composition after reading an essay or just to write one without reading. Students were instructed in writing a summary, a synthesis, and an argument to prepare them to write a composition for the task which required reading an essay. Writing samples were collected before the study started and after instructions for each kind of writing, i.e., a summary, a synthesis, and an argument. When the first writing sample's scores were the covariate, the pretest mean was higher for writing in response to a topic without reading an essay than on the pretest for writing after reading an essay. Scores significantly improved following instruction in writing a summary for the task which required writing in response to reading an essay; however, scores declined significantly in response to instruction in writing a synthesis when the task required no essay reading.
HIV/AIDS Prevention through Changing Risky Sexual Behavior among Heterosexual College Students: A 1990's Bibliography
Authors: Livingston Mary M.
Published: August 2011

This paper's supplement provides a noncritically evaluated listing of 126 references concerning AIDS prevention among college students. College counselors' and other mental health workers' access to information can be facilitated through a bibliography of relevant literature regarding approaches and their effectiveness in changing risky sexual behaviors.
The Relationship of Coping Style to Dysphoria, Anxiety, and Anger
Authors: Whatley Sherry L. , Foreman April C. , Richards Steven
Published: August 2011

This study examines Problem-focused Coping and Emotion-focused Coping, as measured by the Revised Ways of Coping Checklist, in relation to Dysphoria, Anxiety, Anger, Social Support, and course grades in psychology. Women university students ( N = 245) were assessed two times six weeks apart. Problem-focused Coping was significantly negatively correlated with scores on the Center for Epidemiological Studies–Depression scale and with scores on the Self-rating Anxiety Scale at both time periods. Emotion-focused Coping was significantly positively correlated with scores on these scales and with scores on the State-Trait Anger scale at both times. Emotion-focused Coping was significantly negatively correlated with scores on the Social Support Questionnaire at both times and significantly negatively correlated with grades.
Authoritarian and Socially Restrictive Attitudes toward Mental Patients in Mental Health Volunteers and Nonvolunteers
Authors: Rousseau Annie , de Man Anton F.
Published: August 2011

31 French-Canadian mental health volunteers and 43 nonvolunteers participated in a study of the relationship between Authoritarian and Socially Restrictive attitudes toward mental patients and the variables of volunteer status, age, sex, education, having a mentally ill family member, Locus of Control, Extraversion, Psychoticism, Neuroticism, and Social Desirability. Bivariate and partial (Social Desirability effects removed) correlations suggested that scores on Authoritarian and Socially Restrictive attitudes are higher among older, less educated, less extraverted men and women who are not volunteers. Although volunteers compared to nonvolunteers had lower scores on Authoritarian and Socially Restrictive attitudes, they did not differ in terms of age, having a mentally ill family member or scores on Locus of Control, Extraversion, Psychoticism, Neuroticism, and Social Desirability; however, volunteers were better educated.
Relation of Tolerance of Ambiguity to Global and Specific Paranormal Experience
Authors: Houran James , Williams Carl
Published: August 2011

We examined the relationship of tolerance of ambiguity to severe global factors and specific types of anomalous or paranormal experience. 107 undergraduate students completed MacDonald's 1970 AT-20 and the Anomalous Experiences Inventory of Kumar, Pekala, and Gallagher. Scores on the five subscales of the Anomalous Experiences Inventory correlated differently with tolerance of ambiguity. Global paranormal beliefs, abilities, experiences, and drug use were positively associated with tolerance of ambiguity, whereas a fear of paranormal experience showed a negative relation. The specific types of anomalous experiences that correlated with tolerance of ambiguity often involved internal or physiological experience, e.g., precognitive dreams, memories of reincarnation, visual apparitions, and vestibular alterations. We generally found no effects of age or sex. These results are consistent with the idea that some paranormal experiences are misattributions of internal experience to external (‘paranormal’) sources, a process analogous to mechanisms underpinning delusions and hallucinations.
Testing Durkheim's Theory of Suicide in Hungary
Authors: Lester David
Published: August 2011

Measures of domestic social integration which have been found to account for the time-series suicide rate in Hungary quite well also accounted for the time-series suicide rates of each province and for villages, towns, and cities.
Locus of Control and Persuasion, Social Influence, and Conformity: A Meta-Analytic Review
Authors: Avtgis Theodore A.
Published: August 2011

This study is a meta-analytic review of studies on the average effect size for internal and external locus of control with persuasability, social influence, and conformity. Most research indicates that those who score higher on external locus of control tend to be more easily persuaded, socially influenced, and conforming than those who score as internal in locus of control. Therefore, it was hypothesized that people who score as external in locus of control will be more persuaded and more socially influenced and they conformed more than those scoring higher as internal in locus of control. A test of homogeneity indicated no significant differences among results of the studies included in this analysis. The average correlation was .37 for the relationship between scores of internal and external locus of control measured by various generalized locus of control measures with scores on persuasion, social influence, and conformity.
Sex Differences over Age Groups in Self-Posed Smiling in Photographs
Authors: Otta Emma
Published: August 2011

The present study was designed to investigate self-posed smiling behavior in photographs as a function of both sex and age. The photographs of 1,171 Brazilian middle-class people, taken in a wide variety of informal social settings were examined. Only 25 7% of the girls and 25.0% of the boys of 2- to 5-yr.-age group were seen smiling in the photographs. Older children, adolescents, and adults were much more expressive than young children. Furthermore, significantly more females were seen smiling than males. Females also smiled more expansively than males. Finally, smiling was less frequent among middle-aged and older groups, especially among males. The present study replicated the sex difference in self-posed smiling behavior consistently reported by American researchers examining college yearbook photographs. Further, the results are consistent with the hypothesis that, besides being associated with emotional experience, smiling has a strong social motivation.
Betrayal Trauma in Adolescent Inpatients
Authors: Atlas Jeffrey A. , Ingram Dawn M.
Published: August 2011

For 34 hospitalized adolescents sexual distress was associated with histories of abuse by family members as compared to nonabuse or abuse by others, while posttraumatic stress was not.
Dimensions of the Center of Epidemiological Studies–Depression Scale for People with Arthritis from the UK
Authors: Barlow Julie H. , Wright Chris C.
Published: August 2011

The aim of this study was to investigate the factor structure and to conduct an item analysis of the Center for Epidemiological Studies–Depression Scale (CES–D) among people with arthritis from the UK. This 20-item self-report scale was designed by Radloff in 1977 to measure depressive symptomatology in the general population. Data were drawn from a national study and collected through self-administered questionnaires mailed to participants, each of whom had a confirmed diagnosis of arthritis. Reliability and structure of the scale were examined using standard item analysis, internal consistency (Cronbach alpha), and principal components analysis. A four-dimensional structure was identified: Self-worth, Depressed Affect, Positive Affect, and Somatic Disturbance; three items loaded on two factors and were excluded from consideration. Comparisons with previous studies indicated some differences in the subscales and showed that, in this sample, two subscales might be artifacts of measurement. In samples of people with arthritis from the UK, use of the total score may not reflect accurate depressive symptomatology and the subscale scores should be used with caution.
Consistency of Felons' Written and Oral Responses for Scoring the Environmental Deprivation Scale
Authors: Chubick Jennifer D. , Witherspoon Arnold D. , Rider Cecilia Y. , Chaffin Kellie L.
Published: August 2011

32 male parolees and probationers were administered the questionnaire form of the Environmental Deprivation Scale followed by the standard oral interview for the purpose of comparing written responses with oral responses usually necessary to score the scale. Pearson correlations were .89 between written and oral responses and .97 for rater-rater agreement for scoring the questionnaire form. These results suggest that a reliable score for the scale can be obtained from an antisocial population without the extensive training and time required to administer behavioral interviews. Therefore, substituting group testing in place of one-on-one interviews may broaden the utility of the scale.
Depersonalization in Kindergarten Teachers in Relation to Rejection of Help by Fellow Teachers and Emotional Support from Family
Authors: Cheuk Wai Hing , Wong Kwok Sai
Published: August 2011

The present study investigated the external validity of a model describing the reactions of spurned helpers by examining the relation of spurning with burnout among kindergarten teachers. A second objective was to explore whether emotional support from one's family could reduce the negative effects of feeling spurned on burnout. 48 kindergarten teachers in Macau responded to a questionnaire measuring feeling spurned, emotional support from family, and depersonalization. Analyses indicated the effects of feeling spurned on depersonalization and also the benefit of emotional support; however, no evidence was obtained for the proposed buffering effect of emotional support.
Relating Values and Personality Traits
Authors: Herringer Lawrence G.
Published: August 2011

Measures of traits of Goldberg's five factor model were correlated with value domain scores from the Rokeach Value Survey for a sample of 65 undergraduate students. Specific values were significantly related to scores on Openness (Conformity, Self-direction, Maturity, Altruism), Conscientiousness (Security, Achievement, Maturity, Altruism), Agreeableness (Achievement, Altruism), and Neuroticism (Conformity). The results underscore the commonalities between traits and values and raise questions about their respective conceptualizations.
AIDS Awareness of Secondary School Pupils in the Northern Province of South Africa
Authors: Peltzer Karl , Cherian Lily , Cherian Varghese I.
Published: August 2011

This study investigated AIDS awareness in secondary school pupils (mainly Northern Sotho and Xitsonga) in the Northern Province of South Africa. The randomly chosen sample included 622 Standard 9 pupils (254 boys and 368 girls) in the age range of 17 to 24 years ( M of 19.3), who were administered a questionnaire on awareness of AIDS and socioeconomic status. Over 72% of the questions about AIDS were correctly answered, which suggests a fair amount of accurate information about AIDS; however, 18% were of the opinion that “AIDS does not exist” and 19% that “there is a cure for AIDS.” Analysis of variance indicated no relationships for sex, age, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status with correct answers.
Relationship between the Wide Range Achievement Test 3 and the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test
Authors: Smith Teresa D. , Smith Billy L.
Published: August 2011

The present study examined the relationship between the Wide Range Achievement Test 3 and the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test for a sample of children with learning disabilities in two rural school districts. Data were collected for 87 school children who had been classified as learning disabled and placed in special education resource services. Pearson product-moment correlations between scores on the two measures were significant and moderate to high; however, mean scores were not significantly different on Reading, Spelling, and Arithmetic subtests of the Wide Range Achievement Test 3 compared to those for the Basic Reading, Spelling, and Mathematics Reasoning subtests of the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test. Although there were significant mean differences between scores on Reading and Reading Comprehension and on Arithmetic and Numerical Operations, magnitudes were small. It appears that the two tests provide similar results when screening for reading spelling, and arithmetic.
Conceptions of Learning: Views of Undergraduate Mathematics Students
Authors: Mji Andile
Published: August 2011

The objective was to explore how 94 Year 1 university students conceptualise learning mathematics. Scores on nine items indicated that students adopted different approaches depending on the demands of the learning task at hand.
The Effect of Agential Distance on Attribution for a Positive Outcome
Authors: Kanekar Suresh , Dhir Vidyut Lata
Published: August 2011

The hypothesis that attribution of causality and praiseworthiness for a positive outcome would be differentially affected by agential distance was not supported by the experimental data. Over-all judgments were marginally more positive for the distal rather than proximal agent.
Amount of Information on Case Illustrations in Self-Help Psychology Books
Authors: Forest James J.
Published: August 2011

40 books on self-help psychology were examined in a 2 × 2 multivariate analysis of covariance design for the number of case illustrations, number of lines of text about case illustrations, and average number of lines per case illustration. The covariate was pages per book and the independent variables were status of the book (bestseller or nonbestseller) and decade of publication (1970–1979 or 1980–1989). It was hypothesized that bestsellers would contain more case illustrations and lines of text describing case illustrations than nonbestsellers. Case illustrations per book in nonbestsellers increased significantly in number over the two decades when compared to bestsellers.
Self-Defeating Personality and Attachment Revisited
Authors: McCutcheon Lynn E.
Published: August 2011

The present study showed for 98 adult men and 104 adult women that those who described their adult romantic attachments as secure were significantly less likely to have characteristics of the self-defeating personality than those who described their adult attachments as avoidant ( p < .001) or anxious-ambivalent. The present results were consistent with those of two earlier studies with college-age subjects.
Sex Differences in Health Attitudes and Choice of Health Behaviors
Authors: Welsh M. Cay , Robinson Tracey L. , Lindman Linda S.
Published: August 2011

College students (82 men, 166 women) were assessed on a variety of physical fitness measures and completed questionnaires regarding health behaviors and attitudes. The men's health behaviors focused on physical activity while women's focused on dietary changes for better health.
Life after a Myocardial Infarction—The Wives' Point of View
Authors: Arefjord Kjersti , Hallaråker Eli , Havik Odd E. , Mæland John Gunnar
Published: August 2011

37 wives of patients with myocardial infarction (MI) were interviewed after the index MI to examine the consequences with regard to quality of marital relationship, symptoms of distress, worries and concerns and to evaluate the long-term outcome from the wives' personal point of view. The interviews were done at three times: during hospitalisation, three months after discharge, and 10 years post index MI. Our findings suggest relatively minor and time-limited adjustment problems concerning marital relationship and symptoms of distress. In a long-term perspective, only a few lasting changes were found. On the other hand, the wives' subjective assessment of the long-term effects of the infarct within different domains of life indicated that the illness episode had a comprehensive negative influence on their quality of life. In accordance with this, the majority reported that the myocardial infarction was still not a closed episode.
Helpfulness of Information Sources in the Selection of a Nursing Home
Authors: Lawrence Frances C. , Moser E. Barry , Prawitz Aimee D. , Collier Michael W.
Published: August 2011

857 family members reported that visits and personal investigation at nursing homes as well as information from various people were more helpful than printed materials in selecting a nursing home.
Cultural Estrangement Revisited: A Contemporary Adaptation with Reference to Gender, and to Ethnic and Racial Foci
Authors: Juni Samuel
Published: August 2011

Cultural estrangement was originally formulated as a measure of alienation, and operationalized as the extent to which one's opinions differ from those of primary and secondary identifcation groups. In the original empirical measure, four items measured the consistency of one's opinions with those of relatives, friends, coreligionists, and co-citizens, respectively. This study added three items deemed salient to group identity in contemporary society: gender, ethnicity, and race. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability data are presented for the original and modified versions of the scale, supporting the new scale format. Differentials among the correlations are discussed with regard to the role of friendships within the context of alienation. It is argued that the basic construct may well be reconceptualized as entailing cultural independence or emancipation instead of estrangement.
Sex Differences in Algebra by Senior Secondary School Students in Transkei, South Africa
Authors: Grewal Ajmer S.
Published: August 2011

No sex difference in algebra achievement for a sample of 311 Standard 10 (Grade 12) students (140 boys and 171 girls) from 10 senior secondary schools in the Umtata district of Transkei, South Africa, was observed.
The Changing Face of MMPI Practice
Authors: Downey Ronald G. , Sinnett E. Robert , Seeberger William
Published: August 2011

To assess the status of changing MMPI practice a questionnaire was sent by mail to 368 licensed psychologists in Kansas with a 40% response rate ( N = 147). The modal respondent had 14.2 yr. of experience. Virtually all reported that they currently used the MMPI: 37.0% reported using the MMPI, 80.1% MMPI-2, and 40.4% MMPI-A. A majority (67.6%) used computerized scoring with local scoring used by three out of four respondents. Computerized administration was used by 15.9% and computerized interpretation by 43.8%. Most used both High Point Codes (91%) and Elevation (84.7%) for interpretations. Two of three respondents thought that the High Point Codes and Elevations for the MMPI and MMPI-2 are related. The results of this survey of current practice suggest that many practitioners may be making false assumptions about the nature of the MMPI-2 and MMPI-A and their relationships with the original MMPI. If the MMPI is to retain its hard-fought presence as a diagnostic, forensic, and selection tool, we must pay greater attention to these issues.
Family Environment Scale Predictors of Academic Performance
Authors: King Alan R.
Published: August 2011

Relationships between high school and college academic performance and Family Environment Scale scores were examined within a sample of 346 college students. Low high-school grade point averages (GPA<2.5) were two to four times as common among students with high Conflict, or low Expressiveness, Cohesion, or Recreation scores. Moral–Religious subscale scores were also associated with favorable high school academic performance as well as increased college classroom attendance. Control variables included the Beck Depression Inventory, Shipley Institute of Living Scale, and reports of parental divorce or bereavement histories. A primary objective was achieved in providing simple guidelines for the identification of students at high risk for psychosocial problems using the Family Environment Scale.
Personality and Defenses: A Cross-Cultural Study of Psychiatric Patients and Healthy Individuals in Nicaragua and Sweden
Authors: Sundbom Elisabet , Jacobsson Lars , Kullgren Gunnar , Penayo Ulises
Published: August 2011

This study examined cross-cultural variability in personality and defenses among Nicaraguan and Swedish healthy individuals, patients with borderline personality disorder and schizophrenic disorders by means of the projective perceptual Defense Mechanism Test. The over-all aim was to test the hypothesis proposed by Anthony Marsella of ‘severity related cross-cultural variability’ suggesting that differences in symptom profile or personality patterns between cultures are most pronounced among healthy individuals and less so among individuals with severe mental disorders as they are perceived as more universal and less culturally determined. The over-all results showed that cross-cultural differences were in accordance with the proposed hypothesis. In addition, there were significant intracultural differences between the different diagnostic groups in both countries. The conclusion is that the Defense Mechanism Test and Partial Least Squares analysis seem to be powerful methods for personality assessment and potentially for cross-cultural research, and culture-specific norms in the Defense Mechanism Test must be employed.
The Kindness Scale
Authors: Comunian Anna Laura
Published: August 2011

This study explored the development of the Kindness Scale of 25 items chosen to be related to four developmental stages. The construct of kindness was defined in terms of Kohlberg's developmental stages of moral judgment. Data were collected from 191 male and 216 female subjects 13 to 60 years of age. The scale evidenced acceptable test-retest reliability and internal consistency and construct-related validity. For example, there was acceptable construct validity with the hypothesized four stages and high internal consistency for responses to the subscale for each stage. There were differences in scores between males and females in early adolescence, which disappeared by late adolescence. The Kohlbergian stages were identified and assessed on the scale which allows study of affective cognitive development.
Modeling Precognitive Dreams as Meaningful Coincidences
Authors: Houran James , Lange Rense
Published: August 2011

50 college students completed the Anomalous Experiences Inventory, the AT-20 measure of tolerance of ambiguity, and a frequency of dream recall questionnaire. Using path analysis we show that precognitive dreams can be modeled as accidental ‘hits' with increased dream recall and the interpretation of such hits as ‘meaningful coincidences' seems facilitated by a belief in the paranormal. As predicted, both factors are affected by tolerance of ambiguity, which provides the flexibility required to store and recall ambiguous dream information while simultaneously allowing dream recallers to assume a paranormal origin of their ‘precognitive’ dreams. Moreover, the fit of the proposed model did not depend on sex or age. Alternative models that provided a better fit to the data validated the roles of tolerance of ambiguity and belief in the paranormal in eliciting experiences of precognitive dreaming, but frequency of dream recall was not confirmed as a crucial factor.