The Resurgence of Anti-Semitism on American College Campuses

Few American college campuses have witnessed the number and intensity of anti-Semitic incidents reported at San Francisco State University, Columbia University, and the University of California at Irvine (2000–2005), however, dozens of American campuses every year experience at least some manifestation of this ugly problem, which is now undoubtedly national in scope. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) documents nearly 100 anti-Semitic incidents on American college campuses in 2005 alone. Most incidents are probably not reported to the ADL. The United States Commission on Civil Rights monitors anti-Semitic incidents on college campuses and will continue to do so.     

DELEGITIMIZING JEWS AND ISRAEL IN IRAN'S INTERNATIONAL HOLOCAUST CARTOON CONTEST

In 2006, the Iranian government-aligned newspaper Hamshahri sponsored The International Holocaust Cartoon Contest. The stated aim of the contest was to denounce “Western hypocrisy on freedom of speech,” and to challenge “Western hegemony” in relation to Holocaust knowledge. This government-backed initiative was a clear attempt to export the Iranian regime's anti-Zionist agenda. Using qualitative thematic analysis and Social Representations Theory, this article provides an in-depth qualitative analysis of the cartoons submitted to the contest in order to identify emerging social representations of Jews and Israel. Three superordinate themes are outlined: (i) “Constructing the ‘Evil Jew’ and ‘Brutal Israel’ as a Universal Threat;” (ii) “Denying the Holocaust and Affirming Palestinian Suffering;” (iii) “Constructing International Subservience to ‘Nazi-Zionist’ Ideology.” Although the organizers of the International Holocaust Cartoon Contest claimed that their aims were anti-Zionist, this article elucidates the overtly anti-Semitic character of the contest and its cartoons. It is argued that the cartoons exhibit a distorted, one-sided version of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and of Jewish history, and may therefore shape viewers' beliefs concerning Jews and Israel in fundamentally negative ways, with negative outcomes for intergroup relations and social harmony.     

Achievement motivation among urban adolescents: Work hope, autonomy support, and achievement-related beliefs

Drawing upon expectancy value, hope, and self-determination theories, this study explores the contributions of work-based beliefs and autonomy support as predictors of adaptive achievement-related beliefs. Two hundred and one urban high school students who were enrolled in a work-based learning program completed measures of work hope, autonomy support, and achievement beliefs. Results from the full canonical correlation model revealed that work hope, career planning, and autonomy support shared 37.5% of the variance with achievement-related beliefs. Moreover, work hope and teacher autonomy support further contributed unique variance in explaining these beliefs. The findings contribute to the theoretical knowledge base concerning the value of work-based learning in fostering academic motivation among adolescents.     

Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Relations Among Children's Trust Beliefs,Psychological Maladjustment and Social Relationships: Are Very High as Well as Very Low Trusting Children at Risk?

Four hundred and thirty-four children enrolled in school years 5 and 6 in the United Kingdom were administered measures of trust beliefs in peers/best friends and psychosocial functioning (internalized maladjustment, self-perceived social acceptance, social preference, and social exclusion) across an 8-month period (mean age = 9 years − 9 months at Time 1). The relation between children's trust beliefs in peers or trust beliefs within best friend dyads and measures of psychosocial functioning conformed to a quadratic pattern. Compared to children in the middle range of trust beliefs, children with very low trust beliefs and those with very high trust beliefs in peers and/or within best friend dyads displayed higher internalized maladjustment, lower self-perceived social acceptance, higher social exclusion, and lower social preference. The relation between the trust beliefs and internalized maladjustment was asymmetrical, with children who held very low trust beliefs being comparatively more disadvantaged.     

Beliefs about Memory as a Mediator of Relations between Metacognitive Beliefs and Actual Memory Performance

The goal of the present study was to investigate relationships between personal beliefs about memory, metacognitive beliefs, and actual memory performance. One hundred thirty-seven participants' (aged 20 to 60 years) metacognitive beliefs were measured using the Metacognition Questionnaire (MCQ-30), memory beliefs were measured using the Personal Beliefs about Memory Instrument (PBMI), and an episodic memory task was used to measure actual memory performance, memory predictions, and postdictions. Younger adults had lower scores on the positive beliefs subfactor of the MCQ-30, higher scores on retrospective change and control subfactors of the PBMI, and outperformed middle-aged adults on recall and recall postdiction. Path analysis showed that individuals' beliefs about memory mediate the relationship between metacognitive beliefs and actual memory performance. Specifically, low lack of confidence (or less worry) in one's own memory and attentional capabilities was related to higher memory performance and positive personal beliefs regarding specific memory ability mediated relationship.     

The moderating role of positive beliefs about worry in the relationship between stressful events and worry

Some theorists suggest that worry is elevated by positive beliefs when stressful events occur. Although several cross-sectional studies have revealed an association between positive beliefs and worry, few longitudinal studies have been conducted on this topic. Moreover, the effect of positive beliefs as a moderator on worry when stressful events occur has not been investigated. Against this background, the present study conducted a two-wave longitudinal survey to examine the moderating role of positive beliefs. One hundred and ninety-four college students voluntarily completed questionnaires. Hierarchical regression analysis showed a prospective relationship between the experience of stressful events and the subjective report of worry. Moreover, this relationship was moderated by an interaction with positive beliefs; stressful events were a stronger predictor of the extent of worry for individuals with a high level of positive beliefs than for those with a low level of positive beliefs. The moderating role of positive beliefs suggests that the level of positive beliefs amplifies the threat of worry caused by stressful events.     

The Influence of American Urban Culture on the Development of Normative Beliefs About Aggression in Middle-Eastern Immigrants

The effects of a community's culture on children's and adolescents' normative beliefs about the appropriateness of aggression were examined. One hundred forty-seven high school students and 103 fourth graders participated in a survey of normative beliefs; 69 high school and 44 elementary school students were of Middle-Eastern background. Although there were no differences in the beliefs of immigrant and nonimmigrant fourth graders, adolescents born in the United States were more accepting of aggression than those who immigrated from the Middle East. Moreover, adolescents who immigrated to the U.S. at age 12 or later were less accepting of aggression than those who immigrated prior to age 12.     

Marital Status and Health Beliefs: Different Relations for Men and Women

Although relations between marital status and health have been substantiated, the results of relatively few studies suggest how or why marriage is associated with health. To understand how marriage and health are associated, this study was designed to examine the role of health beliefs. Two thousand two hundred and six (2,206) adults who participated in the New Jersey Family Health Survey provided information about their marital status, proactive health beliefs, and proactive health behaviors. Results indicated that being married (vs. single) was positively associated with men's proactive health beliefs, whereas marriage did not appear to influence women's proactive health beliefs positively. Significant relations between participants' reports of proactive health beliefs and proactive health behaviors were found. Findings are discussed in terms of the importance of understanding the complex nature of associations between social relationships and health.     

Can Rachman's indirect pathways be used to un-learn fear? A prospective paradigm to test whether children's fears can be reduced using positive information and modelling a non-anxious response

This study investigated whether children's fears could be un-learned using Rachman's indirect pathways for learning fear. We hypothesised that positive information and modelling a non-anxious response are effective methods of un-learning fears acquired through verbal information. One hundred and seven children aged 6-8 years received negative information about one animal and no information about another. Fear beliefs and behavioural avoidance were measured. Children were randomised to receive positive verbal information, modelling, or a control task. Fear beliefs and behavioural avoidance were measured again. Positive information and modelling led to lower fear beliefs and behavioural avoidance than the control condition. Positive information was more effective than modelling in reducing fear beliefs and both methods significantly reduced behavioural avoidance. The results support Rachman's indirect pathways as viable fear un-learning pathways and supports associative learning theories.     

Resolving the theory of planned behaviour's 'expectancy-value muddle' using dimensional salience

The theory of planned behaviour is one of the most widely used models of decision-making in the health literature. Unfortunately, the primary method for assessing the theory's belief-based expectancy-value models results in statistically uninterpretable findings, giving rise to what has become known as the 'expectancy-value muddle'. Moreover, existing methods for resolving this muddle are associated with various conceptual or practical limitations. This study addresses these issues by identifying and evaluating a parsimonious method for resolving the expectancy-value muddle. Three hundred and nine Australian residents aged 18-24 years rated the expectancy and value of 18 beliefs about posthumous organ donation. Participants also nominated their five most salient beliefs using a dimensional salience approach. Salient beliefs were perceived as being more likely to eventuate than non-salient beliefs, indicating that salient beliefs could be used to signify the expectancy component. The expectancy-value term was therefore represented by summing the value ratings of salient beliefs, an approach that predicted attitude (adjusted R2?=?0.21) and intention (adjusted R2?=?0.21). These findings suggest that the dimensional salience approach is a useful method for overcoming the expectancy-value muddle in applied research settings.     

Feedlot veterinarians' moral and instrumental beliefs regarding antimicrobial use in feedlot cattle

This cross‐sectional survey research study examined the role moral beliefs play in predicting behavioural beliefs and attitudes and the role that subjective norms play in predicting moral beliefs. Using a self‐administered questionnaire, one hundred and three feedlot veterinarians completed measures of behavioural beliefs, referent others, perceived constraints and moral beliefs regarding recommendations to use antimicrobials in four situations (i.e. acutely sick cattle, chronically sick cattle, at‐risk cattle and high‐risk cattle). Regression analysis and F‐tests indicate moral beliefs as contributing significant increases in R² to models predicting behavioural beliefs regarding antimicrobial use in each situation. In addition, subjective norms contribute a significant increase in R² in models predicting moral beliefs in each of the four situations. The results indicate the effects of moral beliefs on behavioural beliefs are somewhat contingent on the condition; that is the level of risk associated with treating cattle with antimicrobials, the level of risk of not doing so, and the effectiveness of the antimicrobial in situations such as acute illness or being at‐risk of illness. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

They Killed Our Lord: The Perception of Jews as Desecrators of Christianity as a Predictor of Anti-Semitism

Drawing on religious coping theory, we examined whether the appraisal that Jews desecrate Christian values (the stressor) is linked to anti-Semitic attitudes (the response). Further, we considered whether religious ways of understanding and dealing with this stressor (religious coping) mitigate or exacerbate the ties between religious appraisals of Jews and anti-Semitic responses. College students completed measures of desecration, anti-Semitism, and religious ways of coping with appraisals of Jews as desecrators of Christianity. Greater desecration was associated with greater anti-Semitism, after controlling for demographic variables and dispositional measures (e.g., particularism, pluralism, church attendance, Christian orthodoxy, fundamentalism, and authoritarianism). Religious coping in ways that emphasized expressions of Christian love were associated with lower anti-Semitism; ways of coping that emphasized being punished by God and Jews as demonic were tied to greater anti-Semitism. Perceptions of Jews as desecrators were predicted by higher levels of authoritarianism and religious orthodoxy, less closeness to Jews, greater exposure to messages of desecration, and less exposure to messages that counter the perception of desecration.     

The Role of Teachers' Social-Emotional Competence in Their Beliefs About Peer Victimization

One hundred fifty preservice teachers and 25 in-service teachers were surveyed to examine whether mental representations of relationships, confidence about managing bullying, empathy toward victims, and emotional expressiveness were associated with their peer victimization-related beliefs. Teachers' confidence about managing bullying was positively associated with their prosocial peer beliefs. In addition, the belief that the distress that children experience as a result of being victimized should be dismissed was negatively related to teachers' positive representations. Teachers' reports of positive emotional expressiveness were negatively related to normative, assertive, avoidance, and dismissive victimization-related beliefs and positively related to prosocial peer beliefs. In contrast, teachers' reports of negative emotional expressiveness were negatively related to prosocial peer beliefs and avoidance victimization-related beliefs. In-service teachers reported slightly higher positive expressiveness than preservice teachers did. Minority teachers reported higher scores for positive expressiveness, empathy, and lower negative classroom expressiveness than nonminority teachers did. Implications of these findings for practice are discussed.     

MİLLİ İNKILAP AND THE THRACE INCIDENTS OF 1934

While anti-Semitism had been manifested in Europe since the Middle Ages, the emergence of the Nazi regime raised that phenomenon to a new level. Some publications supported by Nazi Germany tried to effect public opinion in Turkey regarding “scientific” anti-Semitism. The authors of this study support the view that this ideology has not been able to achieve broad support from the Turkish nation or its government. Nevertheless, anti-Semitism did reach Turkey through foreign publications. The specific anti-Semitic events that occurred in the Thrace Region of Turkey in 1934 and the anti-Semitic Milli ?nk?lap (National Revolution), which had a pivotal role in those events, were inspired by Nazi Germany. Nevertheless, Germany does not seem to have played an active role during the events. This article will examine the issues of the openly anti-Semitic Milli ?nk?lap, published from 1 May 1934 to 1 July 1934 and try to compare the influence of Julius Streicher's infamous Der Stürmer on the ideology and content of Milli ?nk?lap.     

Sex-role expectations changes by fathers for their sons

One hundred nineteen white father-son pairs served as subjects in an effort to examine the impact on sex-role redefinitions of boys' behavior as a result of shifting cultural attitudes toward androgyny. Two major questions were addressed: a) Do fathers' general sex-role beliefs influence their attitudes about sex roles they would like their sons to hold? and b) Do fathers' desires for the sex role attitudes they would like their sons to hold influence the attitudes their sons actually hold? A strong, positive relationship between fathers' and sons' sex-role beliefs and expectations emerged, especially among fathers of adolescent boys. The results are discussed in terms of the fathers' role in shaping their sons' beliefs.     

GENDER IDENTITY AND ADVERSARIAL SEXUAL BELIEFS AS PREDICTORS OF ATTITUDES TOWARD SEXUAL HARASSMENT

The present study replicates the work of Konrad and Gutek (1986) within a college sample and extends their work by examining the impact of gender identity and adversarial sexual beliefs as predictors of attitudes toward sexual harassment. One hundred seven college students indicated specific aspects of their direct experiences with sexual harassment and then completed several attitudinal measures. Endorsement of adversarial sexual beliefs and experience with sexual harassment significantly predicted negative (less tolerant) attitudes toward sexual harassment for male respondents. Strong gender group identity and the endorsement of adversarial sexual beliefs significantly predicted negative (less tolerant) attitudes toward sexual harassment for female students. Implications for the focus of intervention strategies within an academic environment are discussed.     

Prayer as a cause of recovery from illness

This research aimed to examine the developmental trajectory of the beliefs about the power of prayer to aide recovery from illness. One hundred and sixty children and young adults divided in four age groups participated in the study. Participants were interviewed with vignettes presenting two sick individuals who differed in terms of prayers that they received from their friends in order to recover from their illness. The results showed that children and pre-adolescents strongly believe in the power of prayer to recover from illness while only about half of the university students share this belief. Thus, contrary to the framework theory approach, children, adolescents, and young adults did not replace these beliefs (as naive explanations), with the scientific explanations. Instead, they continue to hold these beliefs in parallel to their scientific explanations.     

Between- and within-person level motivational precursors associated with career exploration

Career exploration is a critical process for child and adolescent development leading people toward suitable work and developing a vocational identity. The present study examined the role of motivational precursors, namely work valences and personal agency beliefs, in explaining in-breadth and in-depth career exploration. Given the dynamic nature of motivation, we teased apart the between-person differences and within-person variabilities in motivational precursors to examine how they are independently associated with career exploration. Two hundred one high school students comprised the sample and were surveyed three consecutive years. Results revealed that work valences and agency beliefs were associated with career exploration at both the between- and within-person level. Further, when individuals exhibited greater level of agency beliefs and positive valences, they were more likely to exhibit more in-depth exploration one year later. Implications for career guidance are discussed.     

When Trust Fails: The Relation Between Children’s Trust Beliefs in Peers and their Peer Interactions in a Natural Setting

One hundred and forty-nine 8–11 year-old children (86 males; M?=?9 years - 4 months and SD?=?7 months) from the UK were administered the Trust Beliefs in Peers scale and were observed in the playground over one school year. Quadratic relations were found between trust beliefs in peers and peer interaction, which varied by gender. Compared to girls with the middle range of trust beliefs, girls with very low beliefs and those with very high beliefs (a) were less accepted/more rejected by the peer group (i.e., lower group interaction, and greater negatively received bids), (b) showed greater indirect aggression (engaged in and received), (c) showed greater non-engagement (i.e., being alone), and (d) showed greater concomitant distress. Compared to children with the middle range of trust beliefs, children with those extreme trust beliefs in peers demonstrated greater direct aggression (engaged in and received) and showed passive behavior (for boys only). The findings supported the conclusion that children, primarily girls, who trust peers too little and those who trust too much are at risk for psychosocial maladjustment.     

A Psychoanalytic View of Racial Myths in a Nazi Propaganda Film: Der Ewige Jude (The Eternal Jew)

This paper describes the emotional appeal of propaganda utilizing concepts from psychoanalysis, small group psychology, and psychohistory. The film propagandist attempts to exploit irrational emotional responses to visual scenes and commentary to change attitudes, values, and behavior in a mass setting. A link between shared unconscious fantasies and myth is offered as an explanatory concept to explain propaganda's wide emotional appeal. The German Nazi anti-Semitic film, Der Ewige Jude, serves as the case example of the exploitation of such fantasies in a mass setting for a political end.