Gender differences in social support and physical health

A large body of prospective data has accumulated linking social support to health, and most social scientists agree that low levels of support are associated with poor physical and mental health. Unfortunately, most of the research has been limited to White men. When women and people of color are included in the designs, the relationships between social support and physical health are more complicated. Prospective population-based studies provide evidence that low support is associated with increased risk of mortality in women. However, in several studies, results indicated that, for specific age groups, women with high social support have increased risk of mortality. Factors that may contribute to the observed gender differences in the social support-physical health relationship are discussed. Future research should include adequate numbers of women and more sophisticated measures of social support to move the field forward.     

The violence of prediction: The uneasy relationship between social science and social policy

Neither the suggestion that certain categories of people be prevented from childbearing nor the suggestion that involuntary commitment of mental patients be made easier is justified by scientific analysis. Assertion that the high rate of violence in the United States is “caused by” inadequate socialization of biologically susceptible children raised by single parents is unjustified by available data. Similarly, results of recent studies predicting violence among the mentally ill provide only minimal implications for social policy. The problem of false positives continues, in both domains, to be a serious one, and the values, biases, and social constructions of “experts” will continue to influence their interpretation and presentation of available facts.     

Gender differences in the link between intimate partner physical violence and depression

Studies show that, in violent relationships, both partners suffer from higher levels of depression than in non-violent relationships. Most of these studies were based on samples of battered women. Very little research has examined the depression levels of women who physically assault a marital or dating partner or men who assault or are victims of female assaults. Moreover, the association between intimate partner physical violence and depression does not provide a theoretical framework or an explanation for the differences in depression levels of male and female perpetrators and victims. This article presents a preliminary, yet empirically grounded, foundation for explaining research findings on depression levels for males and females in three “Dyadic Types” of intimate partner physical violence: Male-Only, Female-Only, and Both Violent. The theoretical framework involves identifying the relation of intimate partner physical violence to be of greater male than female concern with status enhancement and greater female than male concern with risk reduction, and how these play out in each of the Dyadic Types.     

Sex differences in judgments of physical attractiveness: a social relations analysis

Men and women rated the physical attractiveness of other men and women who were sitting nearby and were rated by them in return. They also provided meta-perceptions of how they thought those others rated them. Attractiveness ratings were partly a function of both the target being rated and the perceiver providing the ratings regardless of the sex of the perceiver or target, but the highest levels of consensus occurred when men judged the attractiveness of women and the highest levels of idiosyncrasy occurred when men rated other men. Meta-perceptions were also idiosyncratic; some believed that they were consistently considered attractive, whereas others thought they were seen as unattractive. People were aware of what others thought of them and, in particular, women's meta-perceptions were highly related to men's judgments of them. People agree about others' attractiveness, and those who are attractive to others know they are pretty or handsome.     

Nature of relations between the physical and social microenvironment of the two-year-old child

Previous research has demonstrated that high levels of noise, crowing or person traffic pattern in infants' homes are associated with less involved and less responsive caregiving by parents. Based on these previous findings two questions were investigated in the present research. First, does the same pattern of relations appear with older toddlers; second, are these patterns unique to the specific dimensions of noise, crowding and traffic pattern? Subjects were 56 2-year-old toddlers. Based upon repeated home observations the physical and social environments fo the toddlers' homes were assessed using codes from the Purdue Home Stimulation Inventory. Analysis of the interrelation between the phychology and social microenvironments of these toddlers was based upon canonical correlation. Congruent with preovious research, interpretation of the canonical structure revealed that high levels of noise, crowding or traffic pattern in the home were associated with lower caregiver attentiveness and responsivity. Results also indicated that this pattern was unique to the specific physical environment dimensions of noise, crowding and traffic pattern. Implications of these results for alternate care settings are discussed.     

Adulthood age differences in causal attributions for cognitive, physical, and social performance

Past research has revealed an unflattering pattern of attributions for the performance of the elderly. More specifically, poor performance by the elderly is attributed to internal and stable factors such as inability, whereas poor performance by the young is attributed to external and unstable factors such as bad luck. In the present study, 42 young (M age = 19.18 years) and 39 elderly (M age = 74.90 years) men and women made causal attributions for their own or for another person's hypothetical performance in the cognitive, physical, and social domains. When attributions for the same performance by young and elderly adults were compared, the results presented an unflattering view of the elderly, similar to the pattern in previous research. In contrast, when attributions for good versus poor performance by the elderly were compared, a more favorable picture emerged: The elderly were more likely to be given credit for their good performance than to be blamed for their poor performance. These findings give reason to question the pervasiveness of the negative view of the elderly that has been presented in previous studies.     

Gender differences in the relationship between language and social competence in preschool children

The present study examined gender differences in the relation between language and social competence in 268 children aged 18 to 35 months. Correlational and regression analyses demonstrated that the association between expressive language and social ability was significantly stronger in boys than in girls.     

Gender differences in the relationship between young children's peer-related social competence and individual differences in theory of mind

In this study, the author examined the relationship between theory-of-mind understanding and preschool-aged children's peer-related social competence. One hundred eleven 3- to 5-year-old children (48 boys, 63 girls) participated in 2 theory-of-mind tasks designed to assess their understanding of false belief. Teachers rated children's peer-related social behavior in terms of prosocial behavior, aggressive or disruptive behavior, and shy or withdrawn behavior. Results indicated that, after controlling for age, theory-of-mind understanding significantly predicted aggressive or disruptive behavior for boys and prosocial behavior for girls. Theory-of-mind understanding also was related to lower scores of shy or withdrawn behavior for boys. Results are discussed in terms of the gender differences in the factors contributing to early peer competence.     

Daily relations between social perceptions and physical activity among college women

ObjectivesThere is a need to develop more effective physical activity (PA) promotion programs for college women. Theory and evidence suggest that perceptions of the social environment play a role in college women’s PA, though little is known about how these perceptions are associated with PA at the day level. The goal of this study was to examine relations between changes in college women’s daily social perceptions and objectively assessed PA over seven days.DesignDaily diary method.MethodCollege women (n = 80, M_Age = 20, M_BMI = 23.1 kg/m²) wore Fitbit wristbands and completed daily self-reports of (1) the quantity and perceived intensity of their social interactions (positive/negative), and (2) the occurrence of social comparisons (based on appearance/health/status) for seven days.ResultsMultilevel models showed daily variability in predictors and outcomes (ps < 0.0001), as well as relations between within-person changes in social perceptions and PA. Increases in negative interactions (particularly those with friends) were consistently associated with decreases in daily PA, whereas increases in positive interactions showed limited relations (srs = −0.22-0.34). Days with health comparisons were days with greater PA for women who had stronger overall interest in comparisons, but were days with less PA for women with weaker overall interest (srs = 0.22–0.33). PA did not differ between days with vs. without appearance comparisons.ConclusionsSocial perceptions show meaningful day-to-day variability and relations with college women’s daily PA, and specific associations may be useful for improving tailored interventions for college women.     

大学生社会化辅导的必要性——大学生与社会人员的差异研究

毕业生走向社会,适应与否,会严重影响到大学生的心理健康。而作为其影响因素——人性哲学观的不同会对大学生的社会化尤其是就业产生很大的影响,本文使用Wrighsman的人性哲学量表调查了苏州部分学校的大学生和社会一些参与工作的人员,发现大学生与参加工作的社会人员在独立性、人性的理性与意志力、人性的复杂几个方面存在显著的差异,这可能是我们在大学生走向社会前给其辅导的内容之一。大学教育者在大学生走向社会前应该对其进行社会化方面的辅导,了解作为学生与社会可能存在的差异,提前做好心理准备,以减少其由于社会化不良带来的各种负面影响。     

Personality and social skill differences between adults with and without siblings.

Differences in personality and social skills of 146 adults with 1 or more siblings and 51 adults without siblings were investigated to examine the importance of family structure for individual personality development. Participants completed the Social Skills Inventory (SSI; R. E. Riggio, 1989), which measures social and emotional sensitivity, expressivity, and control, and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ; H. J. Eysenck & S. B. G. Eysenck, 1975), which measures the personality factors of Extraversion-Introversion, Neuroticism-Stability, and Psychoticism. Results revealed only a marginal difference between individuals with and without siblings in Neuroticism, and no differences in various social skills or overall social competence. Possible explanations for the lack of differences in social skills between adults with and without siblings are discussed.