Interpersonal perception in cross-group interactions: Challenges and potential solutions

This review provides a framework for theorising about the processes that give rise to interpersonal perception during encounters between two individuals who belong to different groups. Consistent with a dyadic approach, interpersonal perception is considered a function of the unique and combined effects of the perceptions and behaviours of both partners involved in the interaction. A model is presented in which negative expectancies give rise to feelings of anxiety and behavioural displays of anxiety, both of which in turn influence interpersonal judgements. Factors that vary at the level of the perceiver, target, and the interaction are examined as moderators of interpersonal perception. Lastly, given that the study of interpersonal perception within cross-group dyadic encounters is relatively new, several strategies that show promise for improving interpersonal perception are discussed. Turning towards the future this article concludes by discussing how research and theory outside the domain of intergroup relations can be used to develop innovative methods for improving perception processes.     

社会阶层信号及其对人际水平社会互动的影响

社会阶层信号是指个体据以感知和判断他人社会阶层的一切线索, 人们通过加工这些微妙的线索便能判断出他人的社会阶层, 而他人的社会阶层在很大程度上决定着人们在人际水平的社会互动行为。以穿着打扮、面部特征和说话特点为例, 说明社会阶层信号对个体判断他人阶层的影响, 在此基础上围绕社会交换、社会公平和社会认同这三个动机视角归纳了社会阶层信号对人际水平社会互动的不同影响。针对社会阶层信号本身, 将来有必要探讨社会阶层信号功能弱化的问题; 由于社会阶层信号与社会阶层这一概念的相关度较高, 未来研究有必要阐述二者的联系与区别; 鉴于目前少有研究考察第三方的社会阶层信号如何影响人际水平社会互动的问题, 探索互动中第三方社会阶层信号的影响及其机制将会是对社会阶层心理学研究的一个重要推进。     

社会关系模型（SRM）——个体差异研究的新策略

在文化、社会和人际互动情境下研究行为已经成为人格研究的趋势之一。社会关系模型（SocialRelationModel）源自人际知觉研究领域,它能够分析成对数据,在人际互动关系中分离出行为者效应、目标效应和关系效应。这种研究理念和研究策略不仅契合在社会关系背景下研究人格的理论取向,而且能为实现这一取向提供更为精当的分析方法和研究工具。文章通过介绍社会关系模型的含义、方法和应用,以期为研究人格差异的稳定性与变化性问题提供新的视野和思路     

The Inescapability of Ethics and the Impossibility of “Anything Goes”: A Constructivist Model of Ethical Meaning Making

A constructivist model of ethical meaning making is developed. The effort begins by distinguishing three versions of constructivist theory—personal construct psychology, radical constructivism, and social constructionism. Then, the following four premises of an integrated constructivist perspective are presented: (a) People are informationally closed systems, (b) people are active meaning makers, (c) people are social beings, and (d) people construe epistemologically and ontologically. These premises are used to examine and counter criticisms that portray constructivism as endorsing an “anything goes” relativism. This clears a space for the development of a constructivist model of ethical meaning making, outlined in the final section of the article. This model is rooted in personal construct psychology, but is also influenced by radical constructivism and social constructionism.     

The research/practice gap in psychotherapy: From discovering reality to making sense

It is widely accepted that a discontinuity or gap exists between clinical research and practice: research findings are not often reflected in the work which clinicians do. This is considered unsatisfactory and many suggestions have been made to bridge this gap. This paper is aimed to show that perception of such a discontinuity between research and practice flows from a way of thinking, an epistemology of realism or objectivity. From the perspective of a different epistemology, namely constructivism, no such gap exists. These two ways of thinking are contrasted in the paper and it is shown how adoption of a constructivist epistimology in research can circumvent some of the problems traditionally ascribed to the supposed research/practice gap.     

Normative Influences on Secondary Disturbance: The Role of Social Expectancies

A “new wave” within psychotherapy has introduced the concept of acceptance into people's emotional repertoires. Accepting unpleasant emotional states has been demonstrated as an important pathway towards reducing secondary disturbances and improving emotional and psychological functioning. What is often overlooked, however, is whether this move towards acceptance is reinforced within the social and cultural contexts in which people experience their emotional states. Our research has begun to explore the contribution that normative influences make to secondary disturbance, specifically the perception that feeling happy is a desired state, and that experiencing and expressing negative emotions is undesirable and unacceptable to others. We review evidence here that these perceived “social expectancies” are associated with increased negative emotionality and depression, and reduce well‐being. Furthermore, we highlight that the effects of social expectancies are more apparent in Australia than Japan, consistent with the view that a higher premium is placed on happiness within Australia. We also review experimental evidence that social messages that reinforce these social expectancies serve to increase secondary disturbances. The implications of taking a social perspective on emotion regulation and dysfunction, and specifically implications for promoting happiness and acceptance in the field, are discussed.     

Some aspects of the interpersonal phenomenology of heterosexual dyads with respect to sex-role stereotypes

A technique based upon recently developed Boolean calculi for interpersonal phenomenology was used to study sex-role attributions within 59 heterosexual dyads. The interpersonal and intrapersonal variables studied include perceived similarity, validation of self-concept, expectations of agreement, feelings of being understood, predictions that the partner expects agreement, understanding, accurate perception of understanding/misunderstanding, and accurate perception of expectations on agreement/disagreement. All variables were studied in relation to each member of the dyad and in relation to male and female sex-role stereotypes. Analyses of all variables are consistent with two conclusions: (1) Phenomenal disparity in a relationship is more likely to be generated around male sex-role stereotypes than around female sex-role stereotypes; (2) phenomenal disparity in a relationship is most likely to occur in connection with counter-sex-role attributions to the female. Increased uncertainty regarding counter-sex-role attributions about women and lowered validation of self-concept for women who adopt counter-sex-role attributes are shown to contribute to these effects. These conclusions are seen as a reflection of an asymmetry which seems to be consistent in the literature: Counter-sex-role choices and attitudes seem to be less discordant for males than for females in this culture. Evidence of this asymmetry is discussed.     

人心难读：冲突中的预测偏差及其心理机制

冲突事件是指当事某方采取的行动可能对另一方造成直接且明显的伤害、进而导致紧张关系的事件。拒绝他人请求、反驳他人观点、与他人一起参与竞争等皆有可能诱发冲突。有效的冲突管理有助于减少冲突带来的消极影响,发挥冲突潜在的积极影响。但是,广泛存在的预测偏差严重妨碍了冲突管理。因此,欲解决冲突管理的难题,必须探究人类在冲突中的预测偏差。现有研究多着眼于非冲突中的预测偏差,采取信息驱动的视角,将预测偏差的主要原因归结为人受限于认知上的不足,因而认为预测偏差是一种错误,主要关注其消极影响。然而,现有研究忽视了冲突中的预测偏差的独特性。冲突中,预测偏差可能受人的自我保护动机和避免人际伤害动机驱动自上而下地产生,并具有一定的适应性。 基于对现有研究的总结,本项目旨在突破当前的理论困境,探讨冲突事件中预测偏差的独特规律及其心理机制与后果,具体而言包括四大目标：(1)聚焦冲突事件中的预测偏差,并以对应的非冲突事件作为对照,揭示预测偏差在冲突中独特的表现形式,提出冲突事件的“偏差放大效应”,即与非冲突事件相比,在冲突事件中,预测偏差的程度会被放大,例如反驳他人者对他人的体验产生较大的错误预测,而赞同他人者则相对能更准确地预测他人的体验;(2)从动机性认知视角探讨“偏差放大效应”的心理成因,揭示“负性驱动机制”,即人因为担忧冲突事件的负性结果,出于自我保护的目的而在注意、知觉、思维等认知加工环节把冲突事件的潜在结果加工得更加消极,作最坏的打算以应对冲突;(3)考察“负性驱动机制”下预测偏差导致的后果,如使人采取回避行为,具体表现为人际退缩和不作为等;(4)设计有效的去偏差方案,以直接和间接两种方式改变预测者的动机,进而改变其认知加工,减弱预测偏差。 通过完成以上目标,本项目将构建解释冲突事件中预测偏差的理论模型。该理论模型立足于动机性认知的视角,从现象层面揭示“偏差放大效应”,将负性偏差理论拓展到人际过程中;从机制层面突破信息驱动视角的局限,揭示动机性认知在人际互动中的指导作用;从思想层面基于生态理性观辩证分析预测偏差的适应性作用,促使研究者重新审视“何为理性”。该模型弥补了以往研究忽视动机对预测偏差的影响这一不足,并将预测偏差和负性偏差、动机性认知等理论结合起来,形成了更完整的理论框架。本项目有助于推动对预测偏差的全面理解,发展行为决策理论,帮助公众和社会治理者准确预测他人,提升冲突管理能力,提高决策质量。     

Interpersonal feedback: a social relations perspective

The social relations model (SRM; Kenny, 1994) is a statistical model for studying interpersonal perception and behavior that can be meaningfully applied to the group therapy situation. It consists of four primary components that correspond to (a) the general emotional or attitudinal climate of the group, (b) the perspective of the perceiver providing the feedback, (c) the group's consensual view of the target who receives the feedback, and (d) the unique relationship between the perceiver and the target. Because of its rigor and specificity, the components of the SRM may serve as a heuristic for thinking about interpersonal feedback in group therapy. A case example is used to demonstrate how an SRM perspective could guide therapists' ways of conceptualizing feedback.     

Correlates of Functional Impairment in Treatment-Seeking Survivors of Mass Terrorism

This study sought to identify variables associated with functional impairment in persons exposed to terrorism. A sample of adults who sought treatment for psychological distress related to the 2001 World Trade Center attack completed standardized self-report measures of PTSD symptoms, expectancies of ability to regulate negative moods, interpersonal problems, and social-occupational impairment. A multiple regression analysis found that PTSD numbing symptoms, beliefs about the ability to regulate negative moods, feelings of social discomfort and expectations of being disliked, income level, and relationship status significantly predicted 58% of the variance in social-occupational impairment. The results suggest that treatments targeting PTSD numbing symptoms as well as maladaptive expectations about social interactions and one’s ability to manage negative affect may have utility for persons adversely affected by mass violence.     

Androgyny and Adjustment in Later Life: Living in a Veterans' Home

This study builds on literature that suggests that interaction with friends in later life is important to the well-being of older adults and other research that argues that androgynous individuals may have a greater range of social skills with which to further their adjustment. We apply these arguments to later life through interviews from a pilot sample of 27 residents in a state-operated veterans' home. Findings suggest that women, who often hold high expectations for the interpersonal domain, are more likely to experience adjustment problems than are men. Men, who may have lower expectations for friendship and intimacy, seem less likely to report dissatisfaction, regardless of gender characteristics. A typology of adjustment and androgyny in later life is developed.     

Call for Papers: National Conference in Sales Management

This article combines a constructivist grounded theory approach with a focus on structuration theory to propose a new mental model for understanding motivation in the context of solving complex problems in contemporary business-to-business (B2B) settings. This study uses the interpretative tradition of qualitative research to conduct in-depth interviews of 24 B2B sales professionals and subsequently analyze their lived experiences. Findings indicate that intrinsic motivation stems attitudinally from a need to foster an identity of helping customers, introducing a concept called “interpersonal identification” with customers. That identity motivates the development of more cognitively intense sales proposals using a more holistic proposal development process – referred to herein as “systems-savvy selling.” While interpersonal relationships have long been components of B2B relationships, this study challenges laypeople’s stereotypes of salespeople who use interpersonal relationships to improve business outcomes. Instead, systems-savvy selling helps salespeople build interpersonal relationships and use business outcomes as feedback to strengthen interpersonal relationships and their identification with customers. Unexpectedly, it also finds that dual-role sales managers, who have roles both in selling and managing, confront a paradox of self versus others when managing systems-savvy selling processes. By sampling within an industry in which the research team benefits from significant expertise, the constructivist grounded theory approach relying on semistructured, in-depth interviews used herein leverages the research team’s expertise while controlling for industry-level effects.     

Effective Assertive Behavior in the Workplace: Responding to Unfair Criticism

A social rules perspective was employed to identify the elements of socially appropriate responses to unfair criticism in the workplace. Women generally endorsed for themselves response strategies based on stronger obligation and softer rights components, while men endorsed responses based on stronger personal rights expression and weaker obligation components. In support of the utility of a social rules approach to operationalizing context-specific expectations, behavioral responses based on gender and status-specific rules were evaluated as more effective on task, relationship, and self-respect dimensions than were rights-only, rights-plus-empathy, or submissive strategies. Results are discussed in terms of the development of a context-specific model of interpersonal competence and implications for interpersonal skills and assertion training.     

Social change,political beliefs,and everyday expectations in hungarian society

The sudden political shift in Hungary from state socialism to democracy concealed the much slower pace of change in economics and civil society. Distrust and suspicion evolved towards politics and politicians. Liberalism became the major political ideology but it lacked consistency and a firm social basis. A permanent social deprivation was experienced since the inception of the transition period, which gave rise to hidden socialist expectations supporting strong state intervention into housing, employment, education, health care. There is a strong social basis in Hungary for any political aspiration that introduces nationalism into political discourse. Inconsistencies between cognitive elements of diverse political ideologies were revealed along with a strong drive for consistency among intellectuals, who were the leading forces in the transition process. The authors of this article argue that there will be no successful transition without the development of new patterns of thought and social skills replacing helplessness, intolerance and aggression. His major research areas include Hungarian national identity, political socialization, political and ideological attitudes. His major research areas cover social mobility under state socialism, political sociology and perception of social injustice from a cross-national perspective.     

民族接触减弱民族本质论：文化认同与文化相似性的中介作用

采用问卷法,以911名少数民族和汉族大学生为被试,探讨了民族接触减弱民族本质论及其机制问题。研究1检验了民族接触与民族本质论、民族交往态度的关系,结果表明,少数民族被试的民族接触与民族本质论存在显著负相关,汉族被试存在负相关但不显著;研究2检验了少数民族被试的本民族文化认同和与汉族文化的相似性感知在民族接触和民族本质论之间的中介作用。结果表明,文化认同和文化相似性完全中介了民族接触和民族本质论之间的负相关。文章认为民族接触可以通过增加民族之间文化相似性感知、降低内群体的文化认同而减弱民族本质论信念。最后讨论了本研究在理论和实践方面的贡献,以及存在的局限性。     

A review of multiracial malleability: Identity,categorization, and shifting racial attitudes

The majority of social perception research to date has focused on perceptually obvious and prototypical representations of social categories. However, not all people belong to social categories that are easily discernable. Within the past decade, there has been an upsurge of research demonstrating that multifaceted identities (both one's own and perceptions of others' identities) influence people to think about social categories in a more flexible manner. Here, we specifically review research on multiracial identity and perceptions of multiracial individuals as 2 domains where researchers have documented evidence of the flexible nature of social identities and social categorization. Integrating frameworks that argue race is a dynamic and interactive process, we provide evidence that studying multiracial perceivers and targets helps reveal that race changes across situations, time, and depending on a number of top‐down factors (e.g., expectations, stereotypes, and cultural norms). From the perspective of multiracial individuals as perceivers, we review research showing that flexible identity in multiracial individuals influences the process of social perception driven by a reduced belief in the essential nature of racial categories. From the perspective of multiracial individuals as targets, we review research that top‐down cues influence the racial categorization process. We further discuss emerging work that reveals that exposure to multiracial individuals influences beliefs surrounding the categorical (or noncategorical) nature of race, itself. Needed directions for future work are discussed.     

Time estimation and expectancies

The purpose of this research was to examine the influence of different types of expectancies on time estimation behavior. In Experiment 1, subjects were led to expect that a given number of trials would occur in a music perception task. In Experiment 2, expectancies concerning the duration of a given waiting period were varied. Results of both experiments indicated that the confirmation/violation of expectancies exerted a significant im acton4urationjudgments. When subjects received more/fewer trials than expected or waited for a duration-that-waslonger/shorter than expected, the total duration of these time spans was over- and underestimated, respectively. Conversely, time estimates were relatively accurate whensubjects' expectancies were confirmed. The results of Experiment 1 further revealedthat reaction time responses within-the-music perception task were also systematically influenced by the expected amount of activity. Results are discussed in terms of a framework that emphasizes the role of anticipatory attending on time estimation behavior.     

Determinants of perceived social support: interpersonal transactions, personal outlook, and transient affective states

During the last decade, the study of social support has relied heavily on recipients' reports of perceived support. However, such reports of support may reflect not only actual supportive interpersonal transactions but also the recipients' own personal and perceptual dispositions and comparatively transient mood states. This study examines these factors' independent effects on perceived support. Interpersonal transactions of social support were assessed in a longitudinal panel design using reports from 486 adult male respondents and their significant others (mostly wives). Using structural modeling techniques (LISREL VI), an unfolding series of statistical analyses were performed. The results provide strong support for a model in which recipients' perception of support is determined significantly and strongly by actual interpersonal transactions as reported by significant others, moderately by the recipients' negative outlook bias, and weakly by their anxiety and depression as indicators of their poor mental health. The implications of the results for future research are discussed.     

Attitudes in social context: A social identity perspective

Research on attitudes and attitude phenomena occupies a central place in social psychology, but tends to focus mainly on cognitive, intra-individual, and interpersonal dimensions. The normative, group membership, and identity dimensions of attitudes tend to attract less attention. This article approaches attitudes from the perspective of research on group processes, intergroup relations, and social identity, and conceptualises attitudes and attitude phenomena in terms of their group normative properties and dynamics. Our perspective is explicitly framed and focused by contemporary social identity theory—a theory that has a great deal to contribute to attitude research, but often does not talk directly about attitudes. We discuss attitudinal influence and change, how people perceive normative attitudes, and how attitudes relate to action.