Secrets and Disclosures: How Young Children Handle Secrets

The authors examined the influence of content and verbal cues on young children's understanding of secret information and of its disclosure. Participants were 209 5- and 6-year-old children in an experiment where a puppet, named Zinc, was the protagonist. Children were asked to whom Zinc would disclose a list of pieces of information, some of which are considered secrets. Children could choose between Zinc's friend, a nonfriend, both friend and nonfriend, or nobody. Participants were divided in 2 experiment groups: In the first group a prior verbal cue was given to the participants that some information might be secret, whereas in the second group no prior cue was presented. Results showed that young children, similar to older individuals, differentiated between secrets and nonsecrets partly on the basis of content, and chose to withhold secrets more than nonsecrets or to share secrets more with friends than with nonfriends, following the restrictive self-disclosure pattern. In contrast, young children did not withhold nonsecret information, but they shared it with friends and nonfriends. However, when given verbal cues regarding potential secrecy of the information, young children chose more restrictive disclosure patterns for all types of content.     

Chinese intimacy: Filial piety,autonomy, and romantic relationship quality

Due to its accurate representation of parent–child interaction quality in Confucian-influenced cultures, contemporary filial piety, which refers to general beliefs about how children are expected to behave toward their parents, has drawn increasing attention in academia. However, how filial piety associates with intimate relationships beyond the family setting is less clear. This study examined the relation between dual filial piety (i.e., reciprocal filial piety and authoritarian filial piety) and romantic relationship quality among Chinese youths. We explored a mediational model in which we tested whether dual autonomy (i.e., individuating autonomy and relating autonomy) would help explain how Chinese youths' beliefs in filial piety are linked to the quality of their romantic relationships. A total of 605 youths from Macau (N = 291) and Taiwan (N = 314) who are currently or once romantically involved participated in the study. We employed structural equation modeling to analyze the data. Results showed within-culture invariance regarding the direct and indirect associations between filial piety, autonomy, and romantic relationship quality. Specifically, young people in both Macau and Taiwan who endorsed higher reciprocal filial piety had more individuating autonomy, which in turn contributed to them having higher quality romantic relationships.     

Family Secrets and Family Functioning: The Case of Donor Assistance

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between adult offspring's perception of family functioning and of parental use of topic avoidance to maintain secrecy regarding the use of donor assistance to conceive. A cross‐sectional design was used to study a convenience sample of 69 young adult donor offspring who completed a demographic questionnaire, a topic avoidance scale relative to each of their rearing parents, and the Beavers Self Report Family Instrument. Findings indicated that participants perceived both parents as avoiding the topic of donor assistance more than other topics, mothers as avoiding all topics less than fathers, and topic avoidance was negatively associated with family functioning. Mothers' general topic avoidance was the strongest predictor of family functioning. Parents' disclosing together was predictive of higher family functioning. Implications for practice and future research are suggested.     

Family Secrets: The Case of the Patient Kept in the Dark

The author examines the position of a child from whom important matters in his or her own life or key events in the family have been kept secret, outlines criteria by which the decision whether or not to unveil the secret should be made, and urges colleagues to gather more data and examine further family secrets.     

Shameful secrets and shame-prone dispositions: How outcome expectations mediate the relation between shame and disclosure

Shame may be a deterrent to disclosing secrets to a counselor, and shame-proneness may be associated with generalized tendencies to avoid disclosure of distress. If so, the mechanism explaining these relations might be the expected outcomes about disclosure. College students in the United States (N?=?312) thought of a shameful secret of theirs, and they rated the degree of shame they felt about the secret, their willingness to disclose the secret to a potential counselor, and their expected support from a potential counselor (i.e. outcome expectation). Participants also completed dispositional measures of shame-proneness, generalized outcome expectations about disclosure, and disclosure tendencies. Mediation analyses revealed that participants’ experiences of shame regarding their secrets predicted lower anticipated support from the counselor which predicted lower willingness to disclose the secret. This effect largely replicated at the dispositional level, such that anticipated risks of disclosure mediated the relationship between shame-proneness and disclosure tendencies. These findings suggest that counselor efforts to promote healthy client disclosure could target the client’s outcome expectations about disclosure rather than the client’s degree of shame.     

情绪劳动策略与工作满意度关系的元分析

采用元分析方法探讨情绪劳动策略(包括表层扮演和深层扮演)与工作满意度的关系。经筛选, 共有120篇文献226个独立样本符合元分析标准(N = 79659)。元分析结果发现, 表层扮演与工作满意度有显著负相关, 深层扮演与工作满意度有显著正相关。调节效应检验发现, 不同表层扮演测量工具、文化背景差异、行业类型差异对表层扮演与工作满意度的关系没有显著影响; 不同工作满意度测量工具对表层扮演与工作满意度的关系有显著影响, 表现为单维的JSS工作满意度量表的调节效果高于多维的MSQ量表。不同深层扮演测量工具、不同工作满意度测量工具、文化背景差异对深层扮演与工作满意度的关系有显著影响, 分别表现为深层扮演量表Grandey (2003)、Diefendorff, Croyle和Gosserand (2005)、Brotheridge和Lee (2003)调节效应依次减小, 单维的JSS工作满意度量表的调节效果低于多维的MSQ量表, 东方文化背景的调节效果高于西方; 行业类型的差异对深层扮演与工作满意度关系的影响不显著。     

个人信息的有意隐藏：藏秘及其后果和应对

藏秘在日常生活中十分常见, 但由于秘密的不公开性, 使得藏秘的研究发展缓慢。近年来学界主要关注藏秘的消极影响(如负担感及自我惩罚等), 而对藏秘的积极影响研究(如社会保护及亲社会谎言等)较少。学者们提出了秘密抑制模型、专注模型、持续性思维模型和共享现实理论等来解释消极影响的机制, 并发现通过吐露秘密、发挥创造性、训练情绪标记和自我意识等途径可以应对藏秘的消极影响。未来研究应对藏秘的概念做出更准确统一的界定, 并寻求更精准特定的测量与操纵方式, 探索藏秘的积极结果及影响机制, 深化藏秘的理论研究, 并推动藏秘研究在不同领域的应用。     

伴侣低头行为的影响及其心理机制

低头行为指的是线下社会互动时个体因使用手机而冷落社交对象的行为。目前关于低头行为研究最多的是伴侣低头行为。文章在剖析伴侣低头行为内涵之外,分析了伴侣低头行为带来的影响,并从期望违背理论、社会交换理论和相互依赖理论三个视角阐释伴侣低头行为发生的理论机制。总体上,基于现有研究我们认为未来可以从深化作用机制和探索跨关系研究（亲密关系—亲子关系）两个方面进行伴侣低头行为对亲密关系的研究。     

Differentiating the effects of enacted parental support on adolescent adjustment in Taiwan: Moderating role of relationship intimacy

The moderating effect of relationship intimacy on the relation between enacted parental support and adolescent adjustment was examined. Using a pretest-posttest design, we studied 213 Taiwanese parent-adolescent dyads in which the adolescents were facing a major stressful event, the final school examinations. Analyses showed a significant cross-over interaction of provided parental support and relationship intimacy on change in emotional anxiety. Parental support predicted reduced anxiety when adolescent's perceived relationship with parents was intimate, and increased anxiety when it was distant. Possible underlying mediators that account for the moderating effect are discussed.     

Reciprocal and complementary sibling interactions,relationship quality and socio‐emotional problem solving

Associations between reciprocal and complementary sibling interactions, sibling relationship quality, and children's socio‐emotional problem solving were examined in 40 grade 5–6 children (M age = 11.5 years) from middle class, Caucasian, Canadian families using a multi‐method approach (i.e. interviews, self‐report questionnaires, daily diary checklist, narrative task). Findings demonstrated that reciprocal sibling interactions were positively associated with warmth, mutual esteem, happy daily exchanges, and negatively related to rivalry and dominance, whereas complementary interactions were positively related to upsetting daily exchanges. Further, reciprocal and complementary interactions differed significantly in relation to several relationship qualities, with reciprocal interactions emerging as a significantly stronger correlate of happy exchanges. Only reciprocal interactions were positively correlated with socio‐emotional problem solving. Finally, birth order moderated the negative association of reciprocal interactions with rivalry and dominance and the positive association with socio‐emotional problem solving. In each case, the effect was stronger for younger members of the sibling dyad. Findings are discussed in light of recent theory on the sibling relationship and children's development. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sweetheart, you really make me happy: romantic relationship quality and personality as predictors of happiness among emerging adults

Two studies investigated the predictive ability of romantic relationship quality in happiness above and beyond the influence of personality (Big Five) among emerging adults. Study 1 (n = 221) showed that global romantic relationship quality accounted for 3% of the variance in happiness while controlling for personality. Study 2 (n = 187) replicated this finding by assessing happiness and relationship quality with different scales. Second study also extended the first study in two ways. First, emotional security and companionship emerged as the strongest features of romantic relationship quality that predicted happiness. Second, identity formation moderated the relationship between relationship quality and happiness such that emerging adults were happier when they experienced high quality relationships at high levels of identity formation. Findings across the two studies were discussed in the light of the literature and suggestions for future research were made.     

The company you keep: Fear of rejection in intergroup interaction

People use many cues to infer the likelihood of acceptance or rejection in intergroup interactions. Nearly all prior research has focused on personal cues directly given off by the potential interaction partner (e.g., eye contact and smiling). However, we argue that in the context of intergroup interactions, individuals may be especially sensitive to broader social cues, such as an interaction partner's social network. Across three experiments we explored differences in White participants' evaluations of a smiling Black man presented with a Black or White friend. When this Black man was featured with a Black friend, White participants reported greater rejection concerns and a greater inclination to reject this Black man compared to when he was featured with a White friend (Experiments 1-3) or featured alone (Experiment 2). Furthermore, when participants received a simple intervention designed to buffer against social rejection, the race of the Black man's friend no longer influenced participants' interests in befriending the Black man (Experiment 3). This research demonstrates the power of friendships in interracial interactions and provides evidence for a simple intervention to reduce the weight of rejection concerns in interracial interactions.     

Gender role attitudes,relationship efficacy,and self-disclosure in intimate relationships

Drawing from the intimacy process model and data from 5,042 individuals who remained partnered across Waves 1 and 2 of the German Panel Analysis of Intimate Relationships and Family Dynamics (pairfam), this study examined the contributions of traditional gender role attitudes and relationship efficacy in predicting levels of self-disclosure within an intimate relationship. Independent samples t-tests demonstrated females scored higher than males on self-disclosure and relationship efficacy measures but lower on traditional gender role attitudes. An ordinary least squares regression analysis revealed relationship efficacy was a stronger predictor of self-disclosure compared to traditional gender role attitudes, which were not associated with self-disclosure. The findings suggest attitudes with an interpersonal motivational system may be especially important for setting the intimacy process into motion within an intimate union.     

All you fear is love: The roles of rejection by intimate others

Interpersonal acceptance-rejection theory (IPARTheory) asserts that recollections of parental rejection in childhood tend to result in psychological maladjustment and intimacy problems in later romantic relationships. Informed by IPARTheory, we investigated the association between maternal & paternal rejection, and fear of intimacy by the mediating role of psychological maladjustment in a Turkish sample with 462 mostly young adults. We further explored the moderator role of gender in Model 1 and the moderating roles of both gender and intimate partner rejection in Model 2. Model 1 revealed that adults who had experienced maternal and paternal rejection in childhood tended to be psychologically maladjusted. Consequently, they also tended to have a fear of intimacy, regardless of gender. Model 2 revealed that women who recall having been rejected in childhood by their mothers tended to be psychologically maladjusted and to have a significant fear of intimacy when they also experienced moderate or more than moderate intimate-partner rejection. However, both women and men who experienced paternal rejection in childhood tended to be psychologically maladjusted and to experience a greater fear of intimacy when they perceived any degree of intimate partner rejection. Implications of the results for theory, research, and practice are discussed.     

Committed to succeed: Commitment determines reactions to upward relationship comparisons

Individuals encounter numerous examples of happy relationships in their social networks and through the media; however, it is unclear how comparisons to superior couples affect one's own relationship. We examined individuals' responses to upward relationship comparisons by exposing dating and married participants to highly successful relationships drawn from their own lives (Study 1) and an exemplar given to them (Studies 2–3). We predicted that moderately committed individuals would evaluate their relationship against the superior relationship, and consequently be less motivated to engage in relationship‐maintenance behaviors. In contrast, highly committed individuals would be inspired by the superior relationship and view their relationship more positively. Across all studies, higher commitment yielded more positive responses to upward relationship comparisons than did lower commitment.     

Romantic relationship quality during the COVID-19 pandemic: The longitudinal associations with relationship loneliness and depression

The COVID-19 pandemic created significant strain on both mental health and romantic relationships. Therefore, we examined longitudinal associations between romantic relationship quality, relationship loneliness, and depressive symptoms over 6 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. We surveyed 122 couples (n = 244 individuals) in approximately May, September, and November 2020. Using a dyadic mediation model, findings indicated that relationship quality at Time 1 was positively associated with depression at Time 3 for men, but not for women. A significant indirect effect of relationship quality on depression via relationship loneliness at Time 2 was found for both men and women. Self-mastery, or feeling in control of one's life circumstances, was an important covariate of women's depressive symptoms. Overall, these findings highlight relationship loneliness as particularly salient for mental health and demonstrate the importance of high-quality relationships for promoting well-being during stressful events, such as global pandemics.     

Mindfulness and dream quality: the inverse relationship between mindfulness and negative dream affect

The aim of the study was to examine the relationship of mindfulness to the emotional quality of dreaming. In our questionnaire-based study, comprising the data of 587 undergraduate students we examined the association between trait anxiety, perceived stress, trait mindfulness, negative dream affect and dream anxiety. Our results indicate that mindfulness is inversely related to disturbed dreaming and predicts less severe dream disturbances after controlling for trait anxiety. Moreover, the results of the applied hierarchical regression analysis suggest that mindfulness is associated with reduced dream anxiety by moderating the extent of waking anxiety. Our findings extend previous research relating mindfulness, emotional regulation and sleep quality to the domain of dream research. We suggest that mindfulness is a possible protective factor against dream disturbances.     

Gender is what you look like: Emerging gender identities in young children and preoccupation with appearance

Abstract

Our work examining young children’s strong desire to wear gender-stereotypical clothing suggests that physical appearance may be early reflections of developing gender identities. We test implications of this association between gender and appearance with two studies examining young children’s preoccupation with looking pretty or handsome. Findings revealed that being more attuned to gender information was linked to greater appearance preoccupation. Girls were more preoccupied with their appearances compared to boys. Age was associated with greater appearance preoccupation in two of our three measures. These studies suggest that appearances may reflect developing gender identities, and that gender identity development can influence children’s appearance preoccupation. We suggest that future research examine the stability and generalizability of appearance preoccupation.     

情绪劳动与抑郁及焦虑的关系：情绪耗竭的中介作用

本研究探讨情绪劳动与抑郁、焦虑的关系,着力考察情绪耗竭在二者之间的中介作用。采用情绪劳动量表、情绪耗竭量表和SCL-90对328名零售业员工进行调查。结果表明：表面行为与情绪耗竭、抑郁及焦虑没有显著相关;深度行为对情绪耗竭、抑郁及焦虑有显著的负预测作用;情绪耗竭在情绪劳动与抑郁及焦虑之间起完全中介作用。