Correlation and explaining variance: To square or not to square?

Despite previous articles dating back 80 years, the questions of whether and when to square correlations continue to puzzle and confuse researchers. In this editorial, I point out that correlations can serve two independent purposes: they can be measures of effect size in themselves and their function as regression coefficients can be used to estimate proportion of variance in one measure for which another measure accounts. Using examples relevant to intelligence researchers, I show that the answer to the question of whether or not to square a correlation is ‘it depends.’ It depends on the purpose and it depends on the underlying theoretical model of the causal association between the variables.     

Learning lyrics: To sing or not to sing?

According to common practice and oral tradition, learning verbal materials through song should facilitate word recall. In the present study, we provide evidence against this belief. In Experiment 1, 36 university students, half of them musicians, learned an unfamiliar song in three conditions. In the sung-sung condition, the song to be learned was sung, and the response was sung too. In the sung-spoken condition, the response was spoken. In the divided-spoken condition, the presented lyrics (accompanied by music) and the response were both spoken. Superior word recall in the sung-sung condition was predicted. However, fewer words were recalled when singing than when speaking. Furthermore, the mode of presentation, whether sung or spoken, had no influence on lyric recall, in either short- or long-term recall. In Experiment 2, singing was assessed with and without words. Altogether, the results indicate that the text and the melody of a song have separate representations in memory, making singing a dual task to perform, at least in the first steps of learning. Interestingly, musical training had little impact on performance, suggesting that vocal learning is a basic and widespread skill.     

Whistleblowing of bullying in professional football: To report or not to report?

Only recently has research begun to focus on workplace bullying within organizations outside of traditional white-collar industries, such as professional football. While this is an important development, there remains a lack of understanding around the reporting of bullying in professional sport. In this paper, the authors explore how the professional football workplace shapes perceptions of whistleblowing and unearths individual perceptions around reporting bullying behavior. We used a phenomenological approach to gain rich experiential data from eighteen male professional football players in the UK. Interview data were analyzed in accordance with the principles of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Two superordinate themes were identified from the analysis, (a) professional football’s influence on whistleblowing, and (b) the challenges of reporting bullying. These themes highlighted that the unique, institutionalized nature of professional football interacts with participants’ ability to report bullying behavior. The participants’ accounts revealed divergent perceptions around how professional football shapes the degree to which players feel they can report bullying behavior. It was apparent that the authoritarian, often abusive and intimidatory nature of professional football significantly impacts whistleblowing. Our findings demonstrate the importance of workplace context when exploring the reporting of bullying behavior. They also demonstrate the need to address organizational culture and differentiate bullying education programs to alternative workplaces.     

To cross or not to cross: Impact of visual and auditory cues on pedestrians’ crossing decision-making

The controlled study of pedestrians’ crossing decision-making is relevant to the search for better safety conditions for this class of vulnerable road users. Several risk factors have been identified in the literature related to the crosswalks’ surrounding environment, the socio-demographic characteristics of the pedestrians crossing the road and the place where the crosswalks are inserted, as well as situational variables, such as speed and distance of the approaching vehicle during the crossing. In this work, the roles of visual and auditory cues in crossing decisions were analysed, comparing different speeds and distances, and taking into consideration different speed patterns of the approaching vehicle, aiming to identify what can affect pedestrians’ crossing behaviour. Experiments were performed in a virtual environment. Participants were presented with 10 different stimuli featuring a vehicle approaching with different speeds and movement patterns, combined with 2 auditory conditions: one concerning a vehicle with a gasoline combustion engine and another one with no sound cues. Participants were tasked with indicating the moment they decided to cross the street when they thought it was safe to do so by pressing a response button. Percentage of crossings, response time (RT), and time-to-passage (TTP) were recorded and subsequently analysed. The results showed that lower speeds and higher distances lead to higher percentages of crossings and RTs. The auditory condition did not significantly affect participants’ responses, leading to the conclusion that participants’ crossing decision was especially based on their visual perception of the movement characteristics of the approaching vehicle, particularly its speed and distance. These results may have relevance for the development of communication strategies between the vehicles, especially the automated ones, and pedestrians.     

To reverse or not to reverse: when is an ambiguous figure not ambiguous?

The role of bottom-up processes in our perception of reversible figures was examined. In Experiment 1 the overlapping squares figure and nonsense reversible figures were used. The effects of adapting subjects for differing durations to an unambiguous version of the figure before presentation of the traditional reversible figure were determined under conditions of varying precision of fixation. In Experiment 2 the research was expanded to other examples of reversible figures. In both experiments, results with two dependent measures (the subject's first percept and the number of reversals reported) were generally consistent with the interpretation of bottom-up processes underlying the adaptation effects. However, the crucial role of stimulus and procedural variables and the differential sensitivity of the two dependent measures was demonstrated.     

To know or not to know: an application of Bion’s K and –K to child treatment1

The authors discuss an application of Bion’s conceptualisation of thinking and non-thinking states (K and –K links) to the treatment of a nine-year-old girl. The authors consider Bion’s interrelated concepts such as K and –K, container/contained, maternal reverie, and the development of thinking through alpha function to be highly applicable to child treatment. The afore-mentioned conceptual elements are used to elucidate case material over two consecutive hours. A K link is established between therapist and patient, the fragility of which link is then demonstrated by its deterioration into a –K link. Complex issues about knowing and not knowing are central in this girl’s clinical presentation. She was conceived through in vitro fertilisation (IVF), and subsequently diagnosed with cerebral palsy. The authors consider the emotional impact of this origin story and how the parents relate to it. The authors discuss how parents sometimes cope with perceived losses by wishing to shield or protect their children. This can have repercussions for children’s efforts to know (K) and not to know (?K). The fear that emotional knowledge will be too painful to bear can interfere with ‘learning from experience’. Bion’s premise that the purpose of analysis is the growth of the mind is synonymous with the child analyst’s goal of fostering development and understanding impediments to development.     

To act or not to act? Student-athlete perceptions of social justice activism

Issues related to social justice and activism have always permeated sports, but recently, due to the high profile cases of several elite-level athletes (i.e., Colin Kaepernick, Megan Rapinoe), these issues have become much more prominent in the contemporary sporting climate. Even though these highly visible actions are publicized in today’s media environment, little is known about how collegiate student-athletes perceive engaging in social justice activism. Therefore, the current study surveyed 2,092 collegiate student-athletes on their attitudes toward activism engagement using a theory of planned behavior framework with particular attention paid to how gender and ethnicity/race influenced these relationships. A series of MANOVAs indicated that female student-athletes, in relation to male student athletes, and student-athletes of color, in comparison to White student-athletes, held higher perceptions on most of the subscales related to activism. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated attitudes, perceived behavioral control, and subjective norms were significant predictors of athletes’ intention to engage in activism. In addition, interactions of the three predictors with race and gender influenced the final regression model indicating the strength of each predictor was impacted by athlete race and gender. Future research directions and implications for programming in relation to study findings are discussed.     

To reason or not to reason: is autobiographical reasoning always beneficial?

Autobiographical reasoning has been found to be a critical process in identity development; however, the authors suggest that existing research shows that such reasoning may not always be critical to another important outcome: well-being. The authors describe characteristics of people such as personality and age, contexts such as conversations, and experiences such as transgressions, which may hinder adaptive reasoning. They also propose alternatives to autobiographical reasoning for managing challenging events and constructing the life story, which include different kinds of meaning-making than those primarily focused on in the current literature.     

To plan or not to plan? Goal achievement or interrupting the performance of mundane behaviors

The present experiment investigated cognitive and behavioral effects of planning (i.e. forming implementation intentions) on goal pursuit during the performance of mundane behaviors. Participants received the goal to collect a coupon halfway the hall from the lab to the cafeteria. Later, they were also given the task to go from the lab to the cafeteria. Thus participants had to attain a new goal by interrupting a mundane behavior. Some participants enriched their goal with implementation intentions, others did not. Results showed that participants who formed implementation intentions were more effective in goal pursuit than the control group. Importantly, the data suggest that the effects of planning on goal completion are mediated by a heightened mental accessibility of environmental cues related to the goal completion task. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

To reach or not to reach? Perception of body effectivities by young infants

Two experiments compared 6‐month‐old infants as they reach for an object. All were proficient reachers but with different levels of sitting ability. The object was presented at various distances, within and beyond reach of the infant. In the first experiment, the scaling of perceived reachability in infants with different postural abilities (i.e. non‐sitter, near‐sitter, and sitter infants) was explored. The second experiment investigated the role of proprioception in the scaling of perceived reachability by non‐sitter and sitter infants. In general, results suggest that perceived reachability is calibrated in relation to the degree of postural control achieved by the infant. Infants demonstrate a sense of their own situation in the environment as well as a sense of their own body effectivities. Both determine the execution, or non‐execution, of reaching for a distal object by young infants. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

To share or not to share? Explaining willingness to share in the context of social distance

Sharing can help make goods available to many people who would otherwise have no access to them. In the effort of motivating more people to participate in the sharing economy, it is useful to know the variables that influence the willingness to share (WTS). Our study aims to identify these variables. Applying field theory, we conducted an experiment based on nonmonetary sharing situations. Complementing existing research directed towards users of goods, we focused on the providers of goods, thus broadening the understanding of sharing contexts. We demonstrate that WTS can be explained by several variables. In particular, a low social distance increases individuals' WTS their belongings with others. Product involvement is also a predictor of whether or not people are willing to share. In contrast, consumer characteristics such as materialism, altruism, and interpersonal trust have no impact on sharing intentions. Our findings provide significant implications for consumer research and for the marketing of sharing organizations.     

To believe or not to believe? The joint impact of faultlines and pro-diversity beliefs on diplomats’ performance

Diversity faultlines can have a detrimental impact on team performance. To test whether this impact depends on leaders’ and members’ pro-diversity beliefs, we examined 41 leaders and 219 members of teams working for the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Findings indicated that the negative impact of diversity faultlines on team performance was weakest when leaders and members held strong pro-diversity beliefs. However, we did not find support for the assumed two-way interactions between faultline strength and leaders’ or members’ pro-diversity beliefs or the mediating effect of Leader-Member Exchange. Our results highlight the joint impact of leaders’ and members’ pro-diversity beliefs for attenuating the negative consequences of diversity faultlines on team performance.     

To achieve or not to achieve? Comparative mindsets elicit assimilation and contrast in goal priming

Goal priming typically leads to goal‐consistent behavior. This uniform pattern is surprising given other types of priming effects, which have been found to be more variable. On the basis of previous research on judgment priming effects, we predicted that a comparative mindset to focus on similarities versus differences also affects the direction of goal priming. Two studies show that assimilation to a primed goal results if participants focus on similarities, whereas a focus on differences leads to contrast. In Study 1, participants induced to focus on similarities behaved more neatly after being primed with neatness rather than the goal to be carefree. For participants induced to focus on differences, the opposite pattern emerged. In Study 2, a similarity focus led to assimilation to an achievement prime, whereas a difference focus resulted in contrast. These findings highlight the importance of comparative processes in goal striving and demonstrate that assimilative goal‐priming effects are less invariable than existing research suggests. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.