Individual differences in motivated social cognition: the case of self-serving information processing

Three experiments examined the hypothesis that people show consistency in motivated social cognitive processing across self-serving domains. Consistent with this hypothesis, Experiment 1 revealed that people who rated a task at which they succeeded as more important than a task at which they failed also cheated on a series of math problems, but only when they could rationalize their cheating as unintentional. Experiment 2 replicated this finding and demonstrated that a self-report measure of self-deception did not predict this rationalized cheating. Experiment 3 replicated Experiments 1 and 2 and ruled out several alternative explanations. These experiments suggest that people who show motivated processing in ego-protective domains also show motivated processing in extrinsic domains. These experiments also introduce a new measurement procedure for differentiating between intentional versus rationalized cheating.     

Individual differences in social desirability are associated with white-matter microstructure of the external capsule

Humans tend to present themselves in a positive light to gain social approval. This behavioral trait, termed social desirability, is important for various types of social success. Surprisingly, investigation into the neural underpinnings of social desirability has been limited and focused only on interindividual differences in dopamine receptor binding. These studies revealed reduced dopamine receptor binding in the striatum of individuals who are high in trait social desirability. Interestingly, high dopamine signaling has been associated with low white-matter integrity, irrespective of social desirability. Based on these findings, we hypothesized that a positive association exists between trait social desirability and the white-matter microstructure of the external capsule, which carries fibers to the striatum from the prefrontal cortex. To test this hypothesis, we collected diffusion tensor imaging data and examined the relationship between fractional anisotropy of the external capsule and participants’ social desirability—our analysis revealed a positive association. As a second exploratory step, we examined the association between social desirability and white-matter microstructure throughout the whole brain. Our whole-brain analysis revealed associations within multiple major white-matter tracts, demonstrating that socially desirable behavior relies on connectivity between distributed brain regions.     

Individual differences in the phenomenological impact of social stigma

In an attempt to define stigmatization from the perspective of stigmatized group members, the author focused on the development and validation of a stigmatization scale. The scale's content validity was established with the assistance of experts in the field. European American, African American, and Native American students from 5 different U.S. universities completed the Stigmatization Scale. The construct validity of the scale was suggested by its convergence with similar measures of social alienation and its divergence from measures of personal subjective well-being. The finding that both the African American and Native American students reported significantly higher stigmatization scores than did the European Americans indicated the scale's known-groups validity. African American students at a predominantly Black university reported lower stigmatization than did African American students at a predominantly White university, suggesting the scale's malleability to context.     

Individual differences in the social facilitation effect: A review and meta-analysis

The present study reviews the social facilitation literature and identifies two overarching responses to social presence: negative-apprehensive and positive-self-assured. These responses correspond to two general orientations toward the social environment described in current personality literature: a negative orientation, comprised of neuroticism and low self-esteem; and a positive orientation, comprised of extraversion and high self-esteem. A meta-analysis reveals that social presence is associated with performance impairment for negatively oriented individuals, and with performance improvement for positively oriented individuals. Additional analysis reveals that personality is a more substantial moderator of the effect of social presence than is task complexity. The results of this study open a new avenue in the research on social facilitation, encouraging a closer inspection of the meaning that various individuals attribute to social presence.     

Age differences in emotional reactivity: the sample case of sadness

Past studies have suggested that the intensity of subjective reactions to emotion-arousing stimuli remains stable, whereas the magnitude of autonomic reactions declines with age. The goal of the present studies was to investigate whether this evidence will generalize to newly edited films dealing with age-relevant themes such as the loss of loved ones. In Study 1, greater self-reported sadness was found in older than in younger adults in response to all films. Findings of Study 2, which were based on an independent sample, replicated those of Study 1. In addition, 6 indicators of autonomic nervous system activity were assessed. Young and old adults did not differ in their autonomic reactions to the films. This evidence suggests that when older people are exposed to stimuli featuring themes that are relevant to their age group, they show greater subjective and physiological reactions than would be expected on the basis of past research.     

Individual differences in children's understanding of social evaluation concerns

Recent research suggests that children's understanding of self‐presentational behaviour—behaviour designed to shape social evaluation—is a function of both cognitive and motivational variables. Furthermore, the motivational factors involved are likely to reflect individual differences in the salience of concerns about social evaluation. The present research represents a first effort to determine whether measures of such differences are indeed associated with the understanding of self‐presentational behaviour. In a first experiment, a teacher rating measure of self‐monitoring was found to be positively associated with the understanding of self‐presentational motives. In a second experiment, a more narrowly specified self‐report measure of public self‐consciousness was found to have a similar association with the understanding of self‐presentation, with no such association found for private self‐consciousness. These preliminary results make it clear that our formulations of development in social cognition must indeed include a consideration of individual differences in motivational orientations. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Individual differences and cross-situational consistency of dyadic social behavior

A new theoretical analysis of individual differences and cross-situational consistency of behavior is proposed. The authors hypothesized that the social behavior of mice (Mus musculus) is determined by individual differences among animals in behavior emitted (i.e., actor effects), in behavior elicited from social partners (partner effects), and by unique responses of one animal to another (relationship effects). Each effect represents a distinct facet of individual differences with different psychological meaning; likewise, the cross-situational consistency of each effect has a distinct psychological meaning. Individual differences in behavior emitted were observed, and these actor effects were consistent longitudinally. Individual differences in behavior elicited from social partners were observed, and these partner effects were also consistent longitudinally. Unique responses to specific social partners also determined behavior but were inconsistent longitudinally. The theoretical importance of reconceptualizing the concepts of individual differences and cross-situational consistency in behavior is discussed. ((c) 2005 APA, all rights reserved).     

Individual differences in rate of affect change: studies in affective chronometry

Three studies explored individual differences in rate of affect change. Participants watched affect-inducing videos and reported their affect twice in 20 min. Individual differences in rate of affect change emerged independently of initial affect intensity and stress appraisals, revealing 2 affect-change profiles. Positive affect augmenters (extraverts, emotionally stable participants, and those with high negative mood regulation expectancies) showed slow rates of positive and rapid rates of negative affect decay. Negative affect augmenters (introverts, neurotics, and participants with low negative mood regulation expectancies) showed slow rates of negative and rapid rates of positive affect decay. These findings expand the literature on affective style, have adaptational implications, and highlight future research directions.     

Psychopathic personality traits and cognitive dissonance: Individual differences in attitude change

In a study using a classic cognitive dissonance paradigm, 164 undergraduate participants were induced to deceive a fellow student; half were directly instructed to lie whereas the other half were politely requested but not instructed to lie. Participants were assessed for psychopathic traits using the Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised: Short Form and the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale, and for Machiavellianism using the MACH-IV. As predicted, participants low in psychopathic traits exhibited classic cognitive dissonance effects following their lie whereas participants high in psychopathic traits did not. Results for Machiavellianism were nonsignificant. These results indicate that cognitive dissonance effects in an induced compliance paradigm are reduced or eliminated among individuals with high levels of psychopathic traits.     

Individual differences in event memory: A case for nonstrategic factors

Individual differences in event free recall (episodic memory) and in item generation fluency (semantic memory) were investigated during the course of three studies. The findings suggested that, in addition to two specific factors, an episodic and a semantic factor, performance on both kinds of memory tasks had some dependency on a general factor. A case is made for interpreting all three factors as nonstrategic factors.     

Individual differences in boys' and girls' timing and tempo of puberty: modeling development with nonlinear growth models

Pubertal development is a nonlinear process progressing from prepubescent beginnings through biological, physical, and psychological changes to full sexual maturity. To tether theoretical concepts of puberty with sophisticated longitudinal, analytical models capable of articulating pubertal development more accurately, we used nonlinear mixed-effects models to describe both the timing and tempo of pubertal development in the sample of 364 White boys and 373 White girls measured across 6 years as part of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development. Individual differences in timing and tempo were extracted with models of logistic growth. Differential relations emerged for how boys' and girls' timing and tempo of development were related to physical characteristics (body mass index, height, and weight) and psychological outcomes (internalizing problems, externalizing problems, and risky sexual behavior). Timing and tempo are associated in boys but not girls. Pubertal timing and tempo are particularly important for predicting psychological outcomes in girls but only sparsely related to boys' psychological outcomes. Results highlight the importance of considering the nonlinear nature of puberty and expand the repertoire of possibilities for examining important aspects of how and when pubertal processes contribute to development.     

Individual social capital and the implementation of entrepreneurial intentions: The case of Russia

The current research hypothesized that individual social capital facilitates the implementation of one's intention to start a business. The research samples were drawn from a sample of 2061 adult respondents: a sub‐sample of 269 adults who stated their intention to start their own business during the next two years (‘intenders’) and a matching sub‐sample of 270 who said they did not intend to do so (‘non‐intenders’). The study shows that the ‘intenders’ possessed greater individual social capital. These resources had a positive indirect impact (through increased perceived behavioural control and attitude) on their intention to start their own business.     

Individual differences and developmental change in the ERN response: implications for models of ACC function

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has been associated with conditions precipitating an increase in effortful processing or increased attention, including the presence of conflicting information and the detection of errors. The error-related negativity (ERN), an electrocortical response, has been used as a marker for these conditions. The ERN amplitude however is subject to developmental change across the lifespan as well as being sensitive to individual differences in personality, affect, and autonomic responsivity. In this review, we examine the implications of such influences for a standard ACC model of conflict processing, and outline the need of any model of ACC function to include mechanisms that allow for the integration of neurovisceral and cognitive domains.     

Qualitative differences among gender-stereotyped toys: Implications for cognitive and social development in girls and boys

Although it has been suggested that the early play experiences of girls and boys may contribute to gender differences in cognitive and social development, empirical support for this hypothesis is limited. This paper reports the development of a system of toy classification and may permit a more programmatic investigation of this problem. One hundred adult subjects rated 50 children's toys on 12 “functional” dimensions. Results showed that these toys could be reliably described according to multidimensional similarities and that toys considered appropriate for girls differed in many ways from those considered appropriate for boys. Thus this system may allow us to test more systematically the hypothetical relationship between sex-typed toy play and the development of differential cognitive and/or social skills in girls and boys.     

Individual differences in rates of change in cognitive abilities of older persons

The authors examined change in cognitive abilities in older Catholic clergy members. For up to 6 years, participants underwent annual clinical evaluations, which included a battery of tests from which summary measures of 7 abilities were derived. On average, decline occurred in each ability and was more rapid in older persons than in younger persons. However, wide individual differences were evident at all ages. Rate of change in a given domain was not strongly related to baseline level of function in that domain but was moderately associated with rates of change in other cognitive domains. The results suggest that change in cognitive function in old age primarily reflects person-specific factors rather than an inevitable developmental process.     

Individual differences in motor development during early childhood: An MEG study

In a previous study, we reported the first measurements of pre‐movement and sensorimotor cortex activity in preschool age children (ages 3–5 years) using a customized pediatric magnetoencephalographic system. Movement‐related activity in the sensorimotor cortex differed from that typically observed in adults, suggesting that maturation of cortical motor networks was still incomplete by late preschool age. Here we compare these earlier results to a group of school age children (ages 6–8 years) including seven children from the original study measured again two years later, and a group of adults (mean age 31.1 years) performing the same task. Differences in movement‐related brain activity were observed both longitudinally within children in which repeated measurements were made, and cross‐sectionally between preschool age children, school age children, and adults. Movement‐related mu (8–12 Hz) and beta (15–30 Hz) oscillations demonstrated linear increases in amplitude and mean frequency with age. In contrast, movement‐evoked gamma synchronization demonstrated a step‐like transition from low (30–50 Hz) to high (70–90 Hz) narrow‐band oscillations, and this occurred at different ages in different children. Notably, pre‐movement activity (‘readiness fields’) observed in adults was absent in even the oldest children. These are the first direct observations of brain activity accompanying motor responses throughout early childhood, confirming that maturation of this activity is still incomplete by mid‐childhood. In addition, individual children demonstrated markedly different developmental trajectories in movement‐related brain activity, suggesting that individual differences need to be taken into account when studying motor development across age groups.