The relationship between religiosity and health-risk factors in geriatrics

Background: This study investigates the relationship between religion and alcohol use, sedentary life style, and tobacco use. A survey of 990 noninstitutionalized persons 62 years of age and older was completed. Five life-style questions, three religious questions, and patient demographic information were studied. Results and conclusions were clear. Persons who are married, above the poverty level, non-white, and male are more likely to use alcohol. Subjects with sedentary life styles are more likely to be older, single, non-white, and female. Smokers are more likely to be below the poverty line and non-white. Finally, the relationship between religion and health risks seems minimal, possibly because of a selection bias.     

Late adolescent perceptions of parent religiosity and parenting processes

The current investigation examined the relations between adolescent reports of parent religiosity and parenting processes, using both a dimensional and a typological conceptualization of parenting. Self-report data were collected from 357 late adolescents. Partial correlations indicated that parent religiosity was associated with both parenting dimensions and parenting styles in conceptually expected directions. Regression analyses provided evidence that the dimensional conceptualization of parenting explained additional variability in perceived parental religiosity above and beyond parenting style effects. Findings suggest that a dimensional conceptualization of parenting processes extends the literature on parent religiosity because it yields more nuanced information about how parental religiosity may be related to differentiated parenting behaviors. Potential therapeutic implications of the findings are discussed.     

The relationship between intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity and competitive anxiety

ABSTRACT

The present study examined the relationship between religiosity and competitive anxiety in college athletes and whether there were differences in competitive anxiety for intrinsically religious and extrinsically religious individuals. College athletes (N?=?95) from three separate sports from the NCAA completed a questionnaire that included the Age-Universal I/E Scale, the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 Revised, open-ended questions on habits related to religion, and demographic items. Results revealed no significant relationship between intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity and competitive anxiety. Extrinsically religious athletes had higher somatic anxiety than intrinsically religious athletes. The majority of participants (77%) reported praying before games primarily for comfort. Athletes turn to religion to calm their nerves but it is important to understand that their approach to religion may relate to increased anxiety. This information is useful for sport practitioners and coaches as they seek to help their athletes seek an intrinsic approach to religion in sport.     

Cultural differences in the relationship between parenting and children's behavior

Parent and teacher data for 14,990 children from the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth were used in multilevel analyses to examine the relationship between ethnicity, children's aggression and emotional problems, and parenting. Using parent and teacher report, relationships between ethnicity and child behavior were present but modest. The association between parental harshness and child aggression differed between ethnic groups and across informants. Using teacher report of outcomes, parental harshness was positively related to child aggression in European Canadian families but negatively related in South Asian Canadian families. For all ethnic groups, parental harshness was positively related to children's aggression when parent report of outcomes was used, but relationships varied in strength across ethnic groups. The relationship of parental harshness with child emotional problems did not differ across groups, irrespective of informant. The results are discussed within the context of an ecological model of parenting.     

Affordances can invite behavior: Reconsidering the relationship between affordances and agency

The concept of agency has been central to ecological approaches to psychology. Gibson, one of the founders of this movement, made room for this concept by arguing against the mechanistic conceptions in psychology. In his view, the environment is not a collection of causes that pushes the animal around, but consist of action possibilities, which he coined affordances. In making their way in the world, animals regulate their behavior with respect to these possibilities. Reed later developed this ecological conception of agency, following Gibson in conceiving of affordances as action possibilities. However, drawing upon industrial design, architecture, and phenomenology, we argue that affordances are not mere action possibilities but that they can also invite behavior. We suggest a mutualist perspective on invitations, suggesting that they depend on the animal-environment relationship in multiple dimensions. The implications of this new conception of affordances for the ecological account of agency are explored.     

The relationship between negative parenting and child and maternal temperament

The purpose of the present study was to examine how negative parenting, namely coercive and abusive parenting, relates to maternal and child temperamental characteristics, based on Belsky’s model of parenting. In addition to the unique effects of child temperamental characteristics (approach, perceptual sensitivity, soothability, persistence, and reactivity), we investigated how child temperamental characteristics play a moderating role between maternal temperamental characteristics (negative affect, effortful control, extraversion and orienting sensitivity) and negative parenting. Participants were 209 mothers of preschool children (M_age = 50.01 months, SD = 5.75) from 48 child care centers across the capital city of Turkey. Two sets of hierarchical regression analyses showed that coercive parenting was predicted by child reactivity, perceptual sensitivity, maternal negative affect, and effortful control. In addition, maternal SES and negative affect were related to abusive parenting. Furthermore, interaction between maternal extraversion and child’s persistence predicted coercive parenting. For children with high levels of persistence, maternal extraversion levels did not make any difference in the level of abusive parenting. However, for children with low levels of persistence, mothers who had high levels of extraversion were more likely to display coercive parenting. Consistent with Belsky’s model, both child and maternal characteristics were related to parenting. While both maternal and child characteristics were associated with coercive parenting, only maternal negative effect was associated with abusive parenting.

     

Conceptualising the relationship between shopper religiosity,perceived risk and the role of moral potency

The primary aim of this paper is to conceptualise the influence of shopper religiosity on perceived risk and the moderating role of moral potency when purchasing religiously questionable products from retailers. An extensive review of extant literature was undertaken, drawing together the General Theory of Marketing Ethics and the concept of moral potency, in a retail context. A conceptual model is developed that provide the basis for future inquiry. The model elucidates the complex relationships between the dimensions of religiosity and social and psychological risk and then explains the moderating role of moral potency. The model offers a strong psychological explanation of how a shoppers' religion may increase their perceptions of risk in a purchase situation. The model also argues that risk perceptions may be heightened (or lessened) as a result of the shoppers' personal responsibility, confidence and courage. Retail managers may choose to implement this model in order to better predict shopper adoption behaviour of new religiously questionable products. The model allows for future empirical examinations across multiple shopping contexts and may be employed to estimate levels' demand for new products based on the extent of religiosity, moral potency and risk. The role of religion within retailing and shopping behaviour is emergent. Extant retailing literature has previously overlooked the role of religion as an antecedent to risk and the role of moral potency in moderating that relationship. This is the first paper to highlight these gaps and propose a testable model. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The relationship between religiosity/spirituality and well-being in gay and heterosexual Orthodox Jews

Numerous studies have demonstrated positive relationships between religiosity/spirituality and emotional well-being. Little research exists, though, on these relationships in Orthodox Jewish and gay populations. Therefore, data from two studies focusing on heterosexual Orthodox Jews (Study 1, 52 females, 18 males) and gay Orthodox Jews (Study 2, 191 males) are presented. The studies assessed religiosity, spirituality, and well-being using validated self-report measures. In Study 1, religiosity and spirituality were generally positively correlated with well-being. In Study 2, spirituality was positively correlated with well-being, while religiosity entered into a complex pattern of relationships. For gay Orthodox Jews, religiosity may not have the same associations with well-being that it does for heterosexual Orthodox Jews, although spirituality may provide an alternative pathway for emotional benefits.     

The longitudinal and bidirectional association between parenting stress and couples' relationship quality

This study examined the longitudinal and bidirectional association between parenting stress and relationship quality, and whether the associations differed between married and cohabiting couples, using cross‐lagged panel models (CLPM) and random‐intercept cross‐lagged panel models (RI‐CLPM). Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Well‐being Study, the findings indicated that the RI‐CLPM model provided a better fit to the data compared to the CLPM model for mothers and fathers. The RI‐CLPM results showed high levels of stability in parenting stress and relationship quality over time, that parenting stress was associated with higher levels of relationship quality for both parents, and that the between‐person effect was similar for married and cohabiting couples. This study highlighted the importance of accounting for between‐ and within‐person variability.     

Does surgency moderate the relationship between parenting and children's aggression in middle childhood?

Parenting and child temperament have both been linked to aggression among children. This study explores the moderating effects of children's surgency and sex and paternal/maternal parenting practices on aggressive behaviour in middle childhood. We analyse whether the moderating effects observed fit a Diathesis-Stress, Differential Susceptibility or Vantage Sensitivity model. Participants were 203 school children aged 7–8 years (M = 92.42 months, SD = 3.52) from southern Spain. Maternal inconsistency and coercion and paternal hostility and indulgence, had a direct effect on children's aggressive behaviour. The effects of maternal hostility and anticipatory problem solving on children's aggression were moderated by surgency (Diathesis-Stress), as was the effect of paternal coercion on aggression (Vantage Sensitivity). Children's sex was not found to moderate any effect. It therefore seems that not all children are equally sensitive to the influence of parenting on their aggression levels, and that this influence depends on their temperament.

Highlights

• This study explores the moderating effects of children's surgency and sex and paternal/maternal parenting practices on aggressive behavior.
• Children's surgency moderated the effect of maternal hostility and anticipatory problem solving on children's aggression, with both effects fitting a Diathesis-Stress model.
• Children's surgency moderated the effect of paternal coercion on children's aggression, with this effect fitting a Vantage Sensitivity model.

     

Reconsidering the Relation between Regret and Responsibility

Recently Connolly, Ordóñez, and Coughlan challenged the view that regret is partly determined by perceived responsibility for the regretted outcome [Connolly, T. Ordóñez, L. D., & Coughlan, R. (1997). Regret and responsibility in the evaluation of decision outcomes.Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 70, 73–85]. In a series of experiments they manipulated whether actors arrived at an outcome through their own decision or through a “computer assignment” over which they had no influence. This decision agency manipulation did not affect their “regret measure.” We show in two experiments that this null-effect is due to the fact that regret was measured by means of a general happiness assessment. In the present research we replicated the basic design of their experiments and also found no effects of decision agency on the happiness assessment. However, the results showed the predicted effects of decision agency when regret was directly measured. Moreover, a measure of disappointment seemed to indicate the opposite effect: People are more disappointed when a negative outcome is caused by a computer assignment than when caused by their own choice. The role of regret and disappointment in decision making is discussed.     

Maternal parenting as a mediator of the relationship between intimate partner violence and effortful control

The current study examined the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV), maternal parenting behaviors, and child effortful control in a diverse sample of 705 families living in predominantly low-income, rural communities. Using structural equation modeling, the authors simultaneously tested whether observed sensitive parenting and/or harsh-intrusive parenting over the toddler years mediated the relationship between early IPV and later effortful control. Results suggest that parenting behaviors fully mediate this relationship. Although higher levels of IPV were associated with both higher levels of harsh-intrusive parenting and lower levels of sensitive supportive parenting, only sensitive supportive parenting was associated with later effortful control when both parenting indices were considered in the same model.     

The relationship between parenting styles and young adults' self-concepts and evaluations of parents.

In the present study, 123 college students were surveyed in order to assess their self-concepts, evaluations of parents, and perceptions of their parents' parenting styles. Notably, the students' self-concepts were found to vary directly with perceived level of parental warmth, but did not vary as a function of their parents' level of restrictiveness. Fathers and mothers were found to be rated more highly if they were perceived as being warm and permissive rather than hostile and restrictive. Finally, opposite-sex parents' level of warmth also correlated with how each parent was evaluated. Some explanations for these findings are offered.     

Reconsidering theological exchange between China and the West

ABSTRACT

By reviewing the Chinese theological publications in the twentieth century, especially during the 1920s–1930s and after the 1980s, this article aims to show that it is not a zero-sum game between the translation of western theological works into Chinese and the publication of original Chinese theological works. The selection of the western works for translation exhibited a certain creativity from the Chinese side, and in turn, the translated works also inspired original Chinese theological works. In the twenty-first century, the Chinese studies of Christianity developed rapidly. Many Chinese Christian theologians published pro-actively in western languages. Due to the recognition of the importance of Christianity in contemporary China and the awareness of the global context for Christian theology, there was a growing interest among western theologians in non-western Christian theology, including Chinese Christian theology. The exchange and collaboration between Chinese and western theologians were particularly prominent on global and public issues.     

The mediating role of values between personality and religiosity

The aim of this work was to examine the relationships between Eysenck’s personality traits (psychoticism, extraversion and neuroticism), Schwartz’s values, and religiosity. To this purpose a sample of Italian teenagers (N = 343; mean age 15.43, SD = 1.023) were asked to fill out a battery of questionnaires and, a structural equation model was tested, where the mediating role of Schwartz’s values between personality traits, and religiosity was accurately analysed. Results showed that all personality traits considered had relevant direct and/or indirect effects on religious experience, mediated by values.     

Parent–child attachment as a mediator of the relationship between parenting style and gelotophobia among adolescents

Fear of being laughed at and family interaction are highly related. Parental over‐control and over‐protection influence children's excessive anxiety over being laughed at. Conversely, parental attachment is an important index of the parent–child relationship and is closely correlated to children's gelotophobia. However, is it the style of parenting or the outcome of parenting (i.e. attachment) that influences a child's gelotophobia? To answer this question, the present study analysed the relationships between gelotophobia, perceived parenting of children and parent–child attachment, as well as the mediating role of attachment between parenting and children's gelotophobia, using a sample of 373 high‐school students. The results show that being highly communicative and close attachment completely weakened the negative correlation between warm, caring parenting and the child's gelotophobia; moreover, being highly communicative and close attachment, together with over‐protective and over‐controlling parenting, influence children's gelotophobia. In sum, this study indicates that parent–child attachment has a direct and indirect influence on perceived parental care and protection and children's fear of being laughed at.     

The prospective relationship between child personality and perceived parenting: Mediation by parental sense of competence

This study examined the prospective relationship between childhood Big Five personality characteristics and perceived parenting in adolescence. In addition, we investigated whether this relationship was mediated by parental sense of competence, and whether associations were different for mothers and fathers. For 274 children, teachers reported on children’s Big Five personality characteristics at Time 1, mothers and fathers reported on their sense of competence at Time 2, and the children (who had now become adolescents) rated their parents’ warmth, overreactivity and psychological control at Time 3. Mediation analysis revealed both direct and indirect effects. No differences in associations were found for perceived parenting of mothers and fathers. This study demonstrates that child personality in late childhood is significantly related to perceived parental warmth, overreactivity and psychological control in adolescence. In addition, parental sense of competence mediates the relationship between child conscientiousness and perceived parental warmth, overreactivity and psychological control.     

Impulsivity and religiosity

The Junior I₆ Impulsiveness Inventory and the Attitude Towards Religion scale ASC4B were administered to 569 schoolchildren aged 11–17 yr. Positive Attitude scores were found to be inversely related to both impulsiveness and venturesomeness. This finding supports the theory that impulsivity is related to toughmindedness and supports the value of the independent operationalization of impulsiveness and venturesomeness in the discussion of social attitudes. However, while the Imp(ulsiveness) scale behaves as predicted by Eysenck's theory, the behaviour of the Vent(uresomeness) scale is more problematic. It is suggested that future research on the nature of impulsivity and its relationship with social attitudes might benefit from considering the two components of the Vent scale, namely risk-taking and sensation-seeking, separately.     

Examining the relationship between family context and children’s physical activity beliefs: The role of parenting style

Objectives

Previous research studies examining parental influences on children’s physical activity (PA) have focused primarily on parents’ own PA behavior, as well as their PA-related beliefs and socially supportive behaviors. The present study, although aligned with this mainstream parental influence research, was grounded in a broader child development perspective to examine the influence of parenting style on children’s PA beliefs and quality of parent-child communication.

Method

Self-report questionnaires were administered to 173 children ranging in age from 9 to 12 years to assess their perceptions of parenting style, parent-child communication patterns, as well as their own perceptions of fitness competence, value, and goal orientation.

Results

Children’s constellation of beliefs and attitudes regarding PA as well as their perceptions of the parent-child communication process did vary as a function of the type of parenting style they perceived their parents to use. High challenge parenting style was linked to higher perceived fitness competence and value on the part of the children. High support parenting style was linked to more positive perceived parent-child communication patterns.

Conclusion

Parenting style may be a critical underlying family process variable that impacts children’s development of a positive constellation of beliefs about PA. Future work is needed to link parenting style and children’s PA beliefs to their PA behavior.     

The distressed (Type D) personality mediates the relationship between remembered parenting and psychological distress in cardiac patients

Objective: Both the distressed (Type D) personality (i.e. the combination of negative affectivity and social inhibition traits) and dysfunctional parenting styles are associated with anxiety and depression. As parenting styles have been related to personality development, dysfunctional parenting styles may also be associated with Type D personality. We examined whether remembered parenting was associated with anxiety and depression in cardiac patients and whether Type D personality mediated this relationship.

Methods: Our sample comprised 435 patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and 123 patients with congestive heart failure (CHF). Patients completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Type D Scale (DS14), and Remembered Relationship with Parents (RRP¹⁰) scale.

Results: Remembered parenting was significantly associated with higher anxiety and depression levels and Type D personality. In multivariable linear regression analyses, Type D personality accounted for 25–29% of the variance in anxiety and 23–46% of the variance in depression, while remembered parenting was no longer significantly associated with these domains. Sobel tests and bootstrapping indicated that Type D personality mediated the relationship between remembered parenting and anxiety and depression.

Conclusion: Type D personality mediated the relationship between remembered parenting and anxiety and depression in both PCI and CHF patients.