Social Change, Positive Mental Health, and Psychological Androgyny

Recent changes in the timing of life stages, the length of the lifespan, labor force participation, marriage and fertility are described. It is argued that highly-differentiated sex-role orientations are less suited to current conditions than are androgynous orientations, especially for women. If this is true, then developing androgynous sex-role orientations may promote greater adaptability and positive mental health.     

Perceived Peer and Family Relationships,Hopelessness and Locus of Control as Factors in Adolescent Suicide Attempts

ABSTRACT: Thirty hospitalized suicidal adolescents were compared with thirty-four hospitalized nonsuicidal teenagers and thirty-five nonhospitalized coping youngsters (controls) on the extent of their problems, their perceptions of peer and family relationships, degree of hopelessness, and locus of control. Suicidals were found to experience the greatest total number of problems, nonsuicidals the next most, and controls the fewest. Significantly more peer problems differentiated the suicidals from the other two groups, while serious family problems discriminated the three groups from each other. The controls viewed their families as the most well-adjusted, followed by the nonsuicidals, while the suicidals felt their families were the most maladjusted. Suicide attempters experienced a significantly greater degree of hopelessness than all the nonattempters, and significantly more external locus of control than the controls. Some sex differences emerged in the study.     

Examining the Relationships Between Voting Behavior, Intention, Perceived Behavioral Control, and Expectation

The theory of reasoned action (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980) and the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1985) are compared in terms of predictive validity and a comparison between behavioral expectation (BE) and behavioral intention (BI) as the immediate antecedent of behavior is offered. In addition, the relationships between attitude-toward-the-act (Aacf), subjective norm (SN), and perceived behavioral control (PBC) as predictors of BE are examined. Results indicate that the theory of planned behavior is a better predictor of intention than the theory of reasoned action and that BI is a stronger predictor of behavior than BE. The results also suggest that Aact, SN, and PBC are better predictors of BI than of BE and that development of a behavioral plan moderates the Aact-BI-B relations.     

Exposure to Violence, Perceived Peer Relationships, and Corresponding Psychological Sequelae

As children’s exposure to violence (EV) has become more evident, concern for the implications that violence has on children has risen. Consequently, researchers have explored the relationship between exposure and outcomes, as well as potential mediators and moderators. In this study, we (a) examined EV in a sample of children from the Midwestern United States; (b) replicated previous findings that identify a direct relationship between EV and psychological sequelae; and (c) explored the possibility that loneliness mediates the exposure–outcomes relationship. Children (11–14 years) in our sample were exposed to elevated levels of violence in their neighborhoods. Furthermore, children who were directly victimized demonstrated greater levels of behavioral difficulties than children who were not. Although loneliness was not a significant mediator, our findings have laid the groundwork for future research regarding the influence of peer relationships on EV and outcomes.     

Locus of Control Beliefs Mediate the Relationship Between Religious Functioning and Psychological Health

Theistic and spiritually based beliefs and behaviors have been demonstrated to consistently predict physical and mental health, although the psychological processes underlying these relationships are unclear. This study investigated associative relationships and pathways of mediation between religious functioning, locus of control (LOC) and health. The sample consisted of 122 Christians (79 women, 43 men) who were predominately Catholic, ranging in age from 18 to 80 (M = 45.47, SD = 15.0). Participants were recruited from churches in the Western suburbs of Melbourne, Australia, and completed a questionnaire package measuring (1) psychological and physical health, (2) the religious variables of awareness of God, instability and impression management, and (3) God, internal and external LOC domains. Results indicated that awareness of God and internal LOC were associated with better health, whereas external LOC and instability were associated with poorer health. God LOC and impression management were not significantly associated with health. Sobel tests were used to analyse mediation hypotheses. Internal LOC was found to mediate the relationship between awareness of God and better psychological health, and external LOC was found to mediate the relationship between instability and poorer psychological health. These findings are of considerable clinical significance.     

Relationships Between Locus of Control, Coping Strategies and Emotional Well-Being in Persons with Spinal Cord Lesion

Relations between locus of control, coping strategies and emotional well-being in persons with traumatically acquired spinal cord lesion (SCL) were examined. The sample included 132 community-residing adults. Structural equation modelling, including confirmatory factor analysis, was used. A model was hypothesized based on the transactional theory of stress and coping where coping strategies mediated the relation between locus of control and emotional well-being. The model showed acceptable fit to the data and was compared with five alternative models. The alternative models fitted the data less well or were difficult to interpret. In the preferred model, persons indicating internal control reported more coping strategies (Acceptance, Fighting spirit) related to increased well-being, whereas persons indicating external control reported a coping strategy (Social reliance) related to poorer well-being. The findings support the stress and coping framework in medical rehabilitation and illustrate why some persons need coping effectiveness training to enhance emotional adjustment.     

The Relationships Between Hypergender, Gender, and Psychological Adjustment

The purpose of this study was to evaluate how the constructs of hypermasculinity and hyperfemininity correlate with gender-related individual differences in agency, communion, and occupational interests over and above hypergender’s hypothesized associations with psychological symptomatology. Hypermasculinity and hyperfemininity were significantly related to overall symptomatology. Only hyperfemininity was significantly related to one measure of gender-related personality traits (i.e., communion). Exploratory analyses revealed various relationships between gender measures and relative scores of psychological symptomatology. Overall, results indicated that hypergender may represent an independent domain of gender and may be especially useful in delineating the relationships between gender and psychological well-being.     

Social Comparison, Perceived Control, and Occupational Burnout

Deux études transversales ont porté sur 72 officiers des douanes (recherche no. 1) et sur cent officiers de police (recherche no. 2) dans le but d’approfondir la relation entre la direction de la comparaison sociale et des variables comme le burnout, des plaintes relatives à la santé ou la satisfaction liée au travail. La comparaison sociale a été mesurée par la fréquence avec laquelle les sujets disaient se comparer avec des salariés mieux et moins bien lotis sur plusieurs dimensions professionnelles. On a mené des analyses de corrélation plusieurs et de médiation pour mettre à l’épreuve deux hypothèses complémentaires. Premièrement, la comparaison ascendante était supposée être positivement liée au contrôle perçu et à la satisfaction professionnelle, et négativement aux ennuis de santé et au burnout. Deuxièmement, le contrôle perçu devait avoir un impact sur la relation entre la direction de la comparaison et des variables comme le burnout, les plaintes relatives à la santé ou la satisfaction liée au travail. Les résultats des deux études ont partiellement validé ces attentes et montré que seule la composante émotionnelle du burnout, l’épuisement émotionnel, était affectée par la direction de la comparaison sociale et médiatisée par le contrôle perçu. Two cross‐sectional studies were conducted among 72 customs officers (Study 1) and 100 police officers (Study 2) to examine the relationship between the direction of social comparison and outcomes such as occupational burnout, health complaints, and job satisfaction. Social comparison was measured by the frequency at which participants reported that they compared themselves with better‐off and worse‐off employees on several work‐related dimensions. Correlation and mediation analyses were conducted to test two complementary hypotheses. Firstly, upward comparison was expected to be positively related to perceived control and job satisfaction, and negatively related to health complaints and occupational burnout. Secondly, perceived control was expected to mediate the relationship between comparison direction and psychological outcomes such as burnout, health complaints, and job satisfaction. The results of both studies partially supported these predictions and showed that only the emotional component of burnout—emotional exhaustion—was affected by social comparison direction and mediated by perceived control.     

Relationships Between Sex, Sex Role, and Social Influence

A study (N = 60) was conducted to investigate the relationship between sex, the Bern Sex-Role Inventory, and measures of social influence. These influence measures involved self-reports of influence strategies, peer evaluations after group discussions, the Marlowe-Crowne Social-Desirability Scale, and a conformity paradigm. It was found that regardless of the subject's sex, masculine and androgynous persons received more positive peer evaluations than feminine persons. Feminine people regardless of sex were more likely than masculine or androgynous people (p <0.05) to report using tears, emotional alteration, and subtlety in efforts to influence others. It was also found that sex-typed and androgynous persons had higher need for approval scores than cross-sex-typed individuals.     

Relationships Between Job Mobility and Perceived Success of Black Managers

The purposes of this investigation were to determine the role of career mobility and perceived career success by Black managers and to describe common career and personal traits among successful Black managers.     

Perceived Parental Acceptance-Rejection and the Development of Children's Locus of Control

In a study of relationships between locus of control and perceived parental acceptance-rejection as they vary by age, 271 boys and girls from 9 through 11 years of age were administered the Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale, short form, and the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire. A multiple regression/correlation analysis revealed that internality increased significantly with children's age and with children's perceptions of increased parental acceptance. Moreover, age and parenting jointly accounted for 22% of the variance in children's locus of control scores.     

Development of a Projective Measure of Perceived Locus of Control

A procedure for evaluating the internal-external (I-E) control dimension from TAT narratives was developed. Internally and externally oriented Ss, as defined by scores on the forced choice I-E scale, differed significantly in the expected direction in TAT ratings of experienced control. Scores on the projective instrument correlated significantly with scores on the questionnaire, and with the former technique it was possible correctly to categorize 80% of Ss according to I-E scale scores. The newly devised instrument demonstrated adequate discriminant validity.     

Social Values, Conformity, and Dress

This study examined the influence of social values on the importance of various clothing features. A model is hypothesized in which social values lead to differing needs for group identification, affiliation, and conformity, which influence clothing feature importance. In general, social values are associated with a high need for affiliation and group identification, conformity, and a greater emphasis on both the utilitarian and the display aspects of clothing (style and brand name).     

Social Anxiety Disorder and Perceived Criticism in Intimate Relationships: Comparisons With Normal and Clinical Control Groups

Individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD) have difficulties in their romantic relationships, including decreased satisfaction and intimacy, but the reasons for these difficulties are poorly understood. Because fear of negative evaluation is a cardinal feature of SAD, perceived criticism from a romantic partner may play a central role in socially anxious individuals’ relationships. In the present study, we compared levels of perceived, expressed, and observed criticism and reactions to criticism among individuals with SAD and their partners (n = 21), individuals with other anxiety disorders and their partners (n = 35), and couples free of psychopathology (n = 30). Participants rated both global criticism and criticism during a 10-minute problem-solving task, which was also coded for criticism by observers. Individuals with anxiety disorders showed elevated levels of interaction-specific perceived criticism, expressed criticism, and upset and stress due to criticism relative to normal controls; they also reported that the interaction was more stressful. However, there were no group differences on global measures of criticism, and the two anxious groups did not differ on any measures. Findings suggest that the high levels of criticism anxious individuals perceive and their corresponding negative reactions to criticism, though not specific to SAD, may account for some of the relationship difficulties that have been identified in SAD. Results also indicate that anxious individuals may contribute to their relationship difficulties by being highly critical themselves. Overall, our findings point to the need for a clinical focus on decreasing perceived criticism among individuals with anxiety disorders.     

Academic Locus of Control,Self-Esteem,and Perceived Distance From Home as Predictors of College Adjustment

Eighty-eight female college freshmen completed questionnaires designed to assess academic locus of control, self-esteem, and geographical distance from home (actual and perceived) as predictors of college adjustment. Results indicated that an internal academic locus of control, a high level of self-esteem, and a perception that the distance from home was “just right” were related to four dimensions of college adjustment (Personal, Academic, Social, and Attachment). Regression analysis revealed that each predictor variable significantly increased the overall predictive accuracy of college adjustment. No associations, however, were found between actual distance and the various dimensions of college adjustment. Finally, the implications of using multiple predictors of college adjustment are discussed.     

Reciprocal Effects Between Locus of Control and Job Attributes

The purpose of this study was to examine the reciprocal relationships between locus of control and job attributes of a representative sample of 1383 employees in a large Australian city. It was predicted that employees with an internal locus of control would attain jobs higher on skill-utilization, influence and income than those attained by employees with an external locus of control. It was also predicted that jobs involving high skill-utlization, influence and income would induce greater internal control beliefs than those low on skill-utilization, influence and income. Locus of control was measured using Rotter's scale (Rotter, 1966). Reciprocal causation was assessed using two-stage least squares analysis. For the total sample, it was found that locus of control and job attributes were reciprocally determined. However, locus of control was not related to influence when skill-utilization and income were controlled. When the sample was split on the basis of gender and marital status, the predicted relationships between locus of control, skill-utilization and income were found for married men only. For married women, locus of control was neither a determinant of job attributes nor an outcome of job experience. These sub-group differences were interpreted in terms of differences in job tenure, work values and occupational opportunity.     

Locus of Control and Social Support: Clarifiers of the Relationship Between Job Stress and Job Satisfaction

The present study examined the role of social support and locus of control as determinants of job satisfaction and as moderators of the job stress—job satisfaction relationship. Support from a variety of sources focusing on problems at work was found to be stress buffering for internals whereas supervisory support was directly related to job satisfaction for externals. Type of support (integration) was associated with job satisfaction depending on perceptions of locus of control. In addition, different dimensions of locus of control (internal, external-chance, external-powerful others) had differing effects on job satisfaction independent of levels of social support. It is concluded that the buffering effect of social support may be applicable to job stress only when that support is content specific (issues at work) and individuals receiving such support believe they can impact their outcomes (internals on locus of control). The implication of these findings are discussed in terms of practical application in work organizations.     

Dogmatism, Locus of Control of Reinforcement, Importance of Issues, and Relationships to Political Activity

This study examined the cumulative and interaction effects of dogmatism, I-E, and issue salience on political activity. Indexes of the variables were developed from factor-analytic results based on personal, group, and mail interviews with 212 adults in the Detroit area. The three psychological variables were then dichotomized at the median and related to political activity, utilizing multiple regression and a step-wise interaction procedure. The multiple r was .41 ( p <.01) with issue salience contributing the greatest amount of variance. Comparisons to multiple-regression predictions indicated interaction effects with low-issue importance reducing political activity and high-issue importance increasing political activity. Split-half analyses indicated substantial stability in the findings. A broader conceptualization for relating psychological variables to political activity was discussed.