Preventing prejudice and improving intergroup attitudes: A meta-analysis of child and adolescent training programs

This article reports the results of a meta-analysis of 81 research reports containing 122 intervention–control comparisons of structured programs to reduce prejudice or promote positive intergroup attitudes in children and adolescents. Overall, the analysis revealed a mean effect size of d = 0.30, indicating low to moderate intervention effects. From the great variety of different approaches, interventions based on direct contact experiences along with social-cognitive training programs designed to promote empathy and perspective taking showed the strongest effect sizes. In addition, effects varied according to the program participant's social status (higher effects for majority groups), the target out-group (lower effect sizes for ethnic vs. disabled and aged out-groups), and the type of outcome assessment (higher effects for cognitive vs. affective and behavioral measures of intergroup attitudes). The discussion considers several limitations including the lack of implementation and follow-up research as well as future direction of research on promoting intergroup relations.     

Relation of depression to perceived social support: results from a randomized adolescent depression prevention trial

Theorists posit that certain behaviors exhibited by depressed individuals (e.g., negative self-statements, dependency, reassurance seeking, inappropriate or premature disclosures, passivity, social withdrawal) reduce social support, yet there have been few experimental tests of this hypothesis. Using data from a randomized depression prevention trial (N = 253) involving adolescents (M age = 15.5, SD = 1.2), we tested whether a cognitive behavioral group intervention that significantly reduced depressive symptoms relative to bibliotherapy and educational brochure control conditions through 2-year follow-up produced improvements in perceived parental and friend social support and whether change in depressive symptoms mediated the effect on change in social support. Cognitive behavioral group participants showed significantly greater increases in perceived friend social support through 1-year follow-up relative to bibliotherapy and brochure controls, but there were no significant effects for perceived parental support. Further, change in depressive symptoms appeared to mediate the effects of the intervention on change in perceived friend support. Results provide experimental support for the theory that depressive symptoms are inversely related to perceived social support, but imply that this effect may be specific to friend vs. parental support for adolescents.     

A six-district study of educational change: direct and mediated effects of the child development project

A comprehensive elementary school program, the Child Development Project, was conducted in two schools in each of six school districts over a three-year period. Two additional schools in each district served as a comparison group. The program attempts to create a 'caring community of learners' in school and classroom through classroom, schoolwide, and parent involvement components. The classroom component includes student collaboration, a literature-based approach to reading, and a student-centered approach to classroom management. Classroom observation, student questionnaire, teacher questionnaire, and test data were collected in a baseline year and in each of the three years of program implementation. Results showed positive student results in the five program schools that made significant progress in implementation. Schools that progressed in implementation showed gains – relative to their comparison schools – in students' personal, social, and ethical attitudes, values, and motives. Significant effects on academic achievement were found only in two schools with a performance-based assessment and a highly consistent local reform mandate. Modeling analyses indicated that student sense of community was an important mediating variable for almost all dependent variables – indicating that the program produced positive effects to the degree that it was successful in establishing a caring community in the school.     

青少年偏差行为的同伴选择和影响效应:基于纵向社会网络的元分析

以22篇纵向社会网络分析研究文献(30项独立样本研究,27746个被试)为对象,使用元分析技术探讨青少年偏差行为的同伴选择和同伴影响效应假设。结果发现:(1)同伴选择和同伴影响效应都显著,但同伴影响效应显著大于同伴选择效应;(2)青少年发展阶段在同伴选择和同伴影响过程中存在显著的调节效应。在同伴选择过程中,青少年早期阶段不显著,而中、晚期阶段显著;在同伴影响过程中,青少年早、中期显著,晚期阶段不显著。(3)偏差行为类型在同伴选择和同伴影响效应中的调节效应不显著。(4)网络数量在同伴影响过程中存在显著的调节效应,随着网络数量增加同伴影响效应越可能成立。结论,中晚期青少年会基于偏差行为相似性选择朋友,早中期青少年会受朋友的影响而产生偏差行为。     

Mediating effects of negative emotions in parent–child conflict on adolescent problem behavior

Hierarchical regression analyses were used to study four types of negative emotions (rage, resentment, perceived threat, and self‐blame) as possible mediators of the effect of parent–child conflict on internalizing (psychosomatic symptoms and social withdrawal) and externalizing (violent aggression and deviance) behavior in 724 adolescents. After controlling for demographic variables, the results showed that for both parents conflict had a positive main effect on internalizing and externalizing behavior. Of the four types of negative emotions, rage was the strongest mediator to mediate the effect of conflict on violent aggression, and resentment was the strongest mediator to mediate the effect of conflict on psychosomatic symptoms, social withdrawal, and deviant behavior. Implications and limitations of the study are discussed, and suggestions for future research are offered.     

A meta-analysis of linguistic markers of extraversion: Positive emotion and social process words

Past literature has shown that extraversion is related to the use of positive emotion and social process words. However, the strength of the relationships varies substantially across studies. In this research, we conducted a meta-analysis (k = 37, N = 82,132) to estimate the overall effect size of the two linguistic correlates of extraversion. In addition, we tested potential moderators including demographic variables (e.g., age and gender) and communication contexts (e.g., synchronous vs. asynchronous, public vs. private). Our random effects models revealed a small correlation between extraversion and positive emotion words (r = 0.069, 95% CI = [0.041, 0.096]), and a small correlation between extraversion and social process words (r = 0.077, 95% CI = [0.044, 0.109]). In addition, the strength of the relationship between extraversion and positive emotion words varies across communication contexts, while the relationship between extraversion and social process words remains consistent across contexts. Our results suggest that positive emotion words and social process words are linguistic correlates of extraversion, but they are small in magnitude.     

Effects of positive youth development programs on school, family, and community systems

A review of efforts at social system change in 526 universal competence-promotion outcome studies indicated that 64% of the interventions attempted some type of microsystemic or mesosystemic change involving schools, families, or community-based organizations in an attempt to foster developmental competencies in children and adolescents. Only 24% of the reports provided quantitative data on the change that occurred in targeted systems. However, studies containing the necessary information produced several mean effect sizes that were statistically significant, and ranged from modest to large in magnitude. These data indicate that attempts to change social systems affecting children and adolescents can be successful. Future work should measure more thoroughly the extent to which the systemic changes that are targeted through intervention are achieved, and investigate how such changes contribute to the development and sustainability of the outcomes that might be demonstrated by participants of competence-promotion programs. The authors wish to thank David Wilson for supplying the macros used to calculate study level effect sizes and Mark Lipsey for supplying the SPSS macros used to weight effect sizes and calculate mean effects across studies. This study was supported in part by a grant from the William T. Grant Foundation (#2212) awarded to the first and last authors.     

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.     

Effectiveness of school-based prevention and intervention programs for children and adolescents with emotional disturbance: A meta-analysis

The present study evaluated the effectiveness of school-based prevention and intervention programs for children and adolescents at-risk for and with emotional disturbance. Published outcome studies (k = 29) from December, 1988, to March, 2006, including 1405 children and adolescents were reviewed. Each investigation was coded on several variables describing the child, parent, and teacher samples, as well as reported outcome results. The overall mean weighted effect size was 1.00 at post-test and 1.35 at follow-up. Mean weighted ESs were 0.42 for between-subjects design studies, 0.87 for within-subjects design studies, and 1.87 for single-subject design studies. Prevention programs yielded a mean weighted ES of 0.54 and intervention programs produced a mean weighted ES of 1.35. Findings for specific outcome foci are presented and implications are discussed.     

The effects of knowledge of child development and social-emotional maturity on adolescent attitudes toward parenting

This study investigated the relationship between the combined effect of knowledge of child development and level of social-emotional maturity, and the extent to which this relationship affects adolescent attitudes toward parenting. The analysis of the data (multiple regression and canonical analysis) suggested that there were significant relationships among these variables. In general, the relationships indicated that subjects' negative attitudes toward parenting were associated with lack of knowledge of child development and low levels of social-emotional maturity, while subjects' positive attitudes toward parenting were associated with knowledge of child development and high levels of social-emotional maturity. The joint impact of knowledge of child development and social-emotional maturity factors on attitudes toward parenting accounted for 51% of the variation among the variables.     

The role of personality in adolescent career planning and exploration: A social cognitive perspective

Social cognitive career theory (SCCT) recognises the importance of individual differences and contextual influences in the career decision-making process. In extending the SCCT choice model, this study tested the role of personality, social supports, and the SCCT variables of self-efficacy, outcome expectations and goals in explaining the career readiness actions of career planning and exploration. The authors surveyed 414 Australian high school students in Years 10, 11 and 12. Career exploration was associated with goals and social supports, whereas career planning was associated with self-efficacy, goals, personality and an interaction term for goals and social support that indicated that levels of planning were highest when social support and goals were highest. Implications for parents, teachers and guidance counsellors as well as recommendations for future research directions are discussed.     

A meta-analysis of burnout with job demands, resources, and attitudes

A meta-analysis was conducted on job demands, resources, and attitudes and their relation with burnout in regard to the COR theory. The version of the Maslach Burnout Inventory used was explored as a moderator of the aforementioned variables. Results suggest that higher demands, lower resources, and lower adaptive organizational attitudes are associated with burnout. In particular, results of the current study show stronger relations than previous meta-analysis (Lee & Ashforth, 1996) have suggested. The scale type also provided some evidence of moderation, with stronger effects found in samples that utilized the MBI-HSS. Implications of the findings in relation to the COR theory and future research directions to clarify the relation between job demands, job resources, organizational attitudes and burnout are discussed.     

Differentiated associations between childhood maltreatment experiences and social understanding: A meta-analysis and systematic review

The extreme parenting experiences encountered by children who are physically abused or neglected place them at increased risk for impaired socio-emotional development. There is growing evidence that maltreated children may apprehend interpersonal encounters in different ways from children without such traumatic histories. This systematic review examines the links between childhood physical abuse and neglect and various constituent skills of social understanding (including emotion recognition and understanding, perspective taking, false belief understanding, and attributional biases) in 51 empirical studies. The review incorporates a meta-analysis of 19 studies on emotion recognition and understanding in this population. This showed an overall negative effect of maltreatment, but moderation analyses revealed that significantly stronger effects were found for measures of emotion understanding rather than recognition, and for younger rather than older age groups. The broader review also reveals a complex and differentiated profile of social understanding among maltreated children. Directions for future research that addresses individual differences in children’s experiences, both within and outside the maltreatment context, are discussed.     

Measuring self-serving cognitive distortions: A meta-analysis of the psychometric properties of the How I Think Questionnaire (HIT)

The How I Think Questionnaire (HIT; Barriga et al., 2001) is a self-report measure of self-serving cognitive distortions. This study used meta-analytic methods to analyse: (i) the reliability of the HIT scores across samples; (ii) the variability in reliability estimates; and (iii) the convergent and criterion-group validity of the HIT scores. Results showed an excellent reliability of the total HIT scores: mean alpha = .93, 95% CI [.92, .94]; k = 29, N = 8,186. Heterogeneity of total HIT was mainly explained by type of population. The reliabilities of the four subscale scores were also adequate. Moreover, the HIT has strong convergent validity and is able to discriminate between offenders and control participants. Limitations of the current literature are discussed.     

A meta-analysis of the published research on the affective, cognitive, and behavioral effects of corporal punishment

The present study is a meta-analysis of the published research on the effects of corporal punishment on affective, cognitive, and behavioral outcomes. The authors included 70 studies published between 1961 and 2000 and involving 47,751 people. Most of the studies were published between 1990 and 2000 (i.e., 53 or 68%) and were conducted in the United States (65 or 83.3%). Each of the dependent variables was coded, and effect sizes (ds) were computed. Average unweighted and weighted ds for each of the outcome variables were .35 and .20 for affective outcomes, .33 and .06 for cognitive outcomes, and .25 and .21 for behavioral outcomes, respectively. The analyses suggested small negative behavioral and emotional effects of corporal punishment and almost no effect of such punishment on cognition. Analyses of several potentially moderating variables, such as gender or socioeconomic status, and the frequency or age of first experience of corporal punishment, the relationship of the person administering the discipline, and the technique of the discipline all had no affect on effect size outcome. There was insufficient data about a number of the moderator variables to conduct meaningful analyses. The results of the present meta-analysis suggest that exposure to corporal punishment does not substantially increase the risk to youth of developing affective, cognitive, or behavioral pathologies.     

A social cognitive explanation of situational and individual effects on moral sensitivity

Models of moral decision making describe the process as beginning with the recognition of moral content in the decision environment. This recognition ability, or moral sensitivity, represents a key input to moral decision making. Adopting a social cognitive perspective, this paper studies the degree to which moral sensitivity is explained in terms of moral schema activation. In a single experiment, two situational factors (moral content priming and issue moral intensity) and two individual characteristics (moral identity and need for cognition) are tested for their effects on moral sensitivity. Results support the social cognitive explanation of moral sensitivity. The moral schema's propensity for activation, development, and accessibility significantly influence the ability to recognize moral issues in the decision environment.     

The effects of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on recurrence of depressive episodes, mental health and quality of life: A randomized controlled study

Depression is characterized by a large risk of relapse/recurrence. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a recent non-drug psychotherapeutic intervention to prevent future depressive relapse/recurrence in remitted/recovered depressed patients. In this randomized controlled trial, the authors investigated the effects of MBCT on the relapse in depression and the time to first relapse since study participation, as well as on several mood states and the quality of life of the patients. 106 recovered depressed patients with a history of at least 3 depressive episodes continued either with their treatment as usual (TAU) or received MBCT in addition to TAU. The efficacy of MBCT was assessed over a study period of 56 weeks. At the end of the study period relapse/recurrence was significantly reduced and the time until first relapse increased in the MBCT plus TAU condition in comparison with TAU alone. The MBCT plus TAU group also showed a significant reduction in both short and longer-term depressive mood and better mood states and quality of the life. For patients with a history of at least three depressive episodes who are not acutely depressed, MBCT, added to TAU, may play an important role in the domain of relapse prevention in depression.     

The social context of adolescent suicide attempts: interactive effects of parent, peer, and school social relations

An ecological developmental model of adolescent suicidality was used to inform a hierarchical logistic regression analysis of longitudinal interactions between parent, peer, and school relations and suicide attempts. Reanalyzing data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, it was found that parent relations were the most consistent protective factor, and among boys with prior suicide attempts, school relations augmented the effects of parent relations when peer relations were low. Results indicated the need to understand suicidal behavior as a component of interactive social processes in the design of clinical interventions.     

Social influences on cognitive processing in enacted social support: effects on receivers’ cognitive appraisals,emotion, and affiliation

Background and objectives. Social support is linked with psychological health, but its mechanisms are unclear. We examined supporters’ influence on recipients’ cognitive processing as a mechanism of effects of support on outcomes associated with depression.

Design/methods. 2?×?2 between-subjects experiment. 147 participants (1) experienced a negative event (false feedback); (2) received social support modeling one of two contrasting cognitive processing modes (abstract/evaluative or concrete/experiential); (3) generated explanations for the event, later coded for processing mode and internal/external causal attribution; and (4) reported on emotion, perceptions of self and future, and social affiliation. To examine relational effects, half of participants were led to perceive the supporter as similar to themselves via a shared birthday manipulation.

Results. Support condition influenced participants’ processing mode and causal attributions as predicted. Abstract/evaluative support led to more positive emotion and self-perceptions, and less pessimistic expectancies for the future than concrete/experiential support. Perceived similarity moderated effects on beliefs about an upcoming social interaction, magnifying positive affiliation outcomes of abstract/evaluative versus concrete/experiential support.

Conclusions. Processing modes that are generally maladaptive at the intrapersonal level may be adaptive (and vice versa) when they are interpersonally influenced, and perceived similarity may facilitate interpersonal effects of processing mode on affiliation.     

Access to institutional resources as a measure of social exclusion: relations with family process and cognitive development in the context of immigration

Few studies have examined how experiences associated with being an undocumented immigrant parent affects children's development. In this article, the authors apply social exclusion theory to examine how access to institutional resources that require identification may matter for parents and children in immigrant families. As hypothesized, groups with higher proportions of undocumented parents in New York City (e.g., Mexicans compared to Dominicans) reported lower levels of access to checking accounts, savings accounts, credit, and drivers' licenses. Lack of access to such resources, in turn, was associated with higher economic hardship and psychological distress among parents, and lower levels of cognitive ability in their 24-month-old children.