The evaluation of perpetrators and victims of peer victimization: An extended crossed‐categorization approach

This research uses a crossed‐categorization design for examining the perception of peer victimization. Using vignettes and an experimental design, perpetrator and victim evaluations of Dutch and Turkish‐Dutch early adolescents were examined in terms of ethnic and gender similarities between (1) respondent and perpetrator, (2) respondent and victim, and (3) perpetrator and victim. When the perpetrator was a double‐ingroup member of the respondent (same ethnicity and same gender), perpetrators were evaluated less negatively and victims less positively than when the perpetrator was a single (gender or ethnicity) or double‐outgroup member. Further, when the victim was a double‐ingroup member of the respondent, perpetrators were evaluated more negatively and victims more positively. No perpetrator–victim crossed‐categorization effects were found for perpetrator and victim evaluations. Perceived norms of intervention in the classroom had the expected main effects but did not moderate the crossed‐categorization effects. The usefulness of a crossed‐categorization approach for examining the perception of negative peer behavior is discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Racial and gender science achievement gaps in secondary education

A substantial disparity exists for academic achievement in science between Black and White primary-school children. A similar gap exists between boys and girls. The extent to which secondary education influences these achievement gaps has not been established. The authors report analyses showing how these science achievement gaps change as a function of secondary education. Analyses of data from a large, nationally representative longitudinal study of academic achievement showed that racial disparities and disparities associated with gender continue to increase throughout high school.     

Ethics education in science and engineering: The case of animal research

Conclusion The past one hundred fifty years of debate over the use of animals in research and testing has been characterized mainly byad hominem attacks and on uncritical rejection of the other sides’ arguments. In the classroom, it is important to avoid repeating exercises in public relations and to demand sound scholarship. This paper is a modification of material originally included in the handbook which accompanied the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Seminar “Teaching Ethics in Science and Engineering”, 10–11 February 1993.     

Inter‐category versus intra‐category fit: when social categories match social context

The goal of the research reported in this article was to examine whether social categorization, commonly thought to be a function of accessibility and intra‐category fit, is also sensitive to changes in inter‐category fit. Intra‐category fit refers to the match between a target person's features and stored categorical knowledge, inter‐category fit to the extent to which category memberships and targets' features covary across perceived group members. In Experiments 1, 2, and 3, members of social categories of low, medium, and high accessibility, respectively, were shown in a group discussion. Inter‐category fit was manipulated in three steps. Category salience in memory increased as an additive function of accessibility and inter‐category fit. Experiment 4 replicated the effects of inter‐category fit while intra‐category fit and the information presented for individual discussants were held constant. The present studies are the first to demonstrate an effect of inter‐category fit on a relatively direct measure of spontaneous social categorization. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Looking Philosophical: Stuff,Stereotypes, and Self‐Presentation

Self‐presentation is a complex phenomenon through which individuals present themselves in performance of social roles. The success of such performances rests not just on how well a performer fulfills expectations regarding the role she would play, but on whether observers find her convincing. I focus on how self‐presentation entails making use of material environment and objects: One may “dress for the part” and employ props that suit a desired role. However, regardless of dress or props, one can nonetheless fail to “look the part” owing to expectations informed by biases patterned along commonplace social stereotypes. Using the social role of philosopher as my example, I analyze how the stereotype attached to this role carries implications for how demographically under‐represented philosophers may self‐present, specifically with regard to dress and decoration. I look, in particular, to the alienation from one's material environment that may follow on the frustration of self‐presentation through bias. One pernicious effect of bias, I argue, is the power it has to deform and distort its target's relation to her physical setting and objects. Where comfort and ease in one's material environment can be a significant ethico‐aesthetic good, bias can inhibit access to, and enjoyment of, this good.     

Leadership perceptions,gender, and dominant personality: The role of normality evaluations

Individuals with dominant personality tend to be perceived as leaders, but theory suggests the dominance advantage for leadership might depend upon gender. Role congruity theory (Eagly & Karau, 2002) holds that gender role-incongruence (i.e., dominant personality traits among women) can be a liability, which we propose produces a dominance-gender interaction effect on leadership perceptions. We extend this theory by proposing and testing a novel conceptual mediator of the role congruity effect—perceived normality. Results show dominance predicts perceived transformational leadership, but only for men. This role congruity interaction effect is then explained by perceived normality (mediated moderation). The conditional indirect effect of dominance on leadership through perceived normality is positive for men, but negative for women—consistent with role congruity theory.     

Ethnicity,gender, and evaluations of aggression

In order to investigate some of the ways in which ethnicity and gender influence interpretations of aggression, 363 Anglo and Hispanic university students responded to a questionnaire soliciting their evaluations of aggression in three situations. Consistent with previous research and with the stereotype of machismo, Hispanics, particularly Hispanic males, were more likely to endorse some aggressive behaviors than Anglos. However, the same pattern of gender influences emerged for both ethnic groups. As predicted, males were more aggressive and more supportive of fighting back and punishing an aggressor than females, whereas females were more likely to show self-control about aggression and to endorse restraint. Respondents, particularly males, said that they would behave more aggressively toward a male, and they encouraged a male to behave more aggressively. These results are consistent with the social constructionist view that performance and evaluations of aggression are largely influenced by cultural factors. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

In search of gender bias in evaluations and trait inferences: The role of diagnosticity and gender stereotypicality of behavioral information

Meta-analytic reviews indicate that the gender of a target person has a significant but small impact on evaluators' judgments about this person. The present study examines the extent to which this small effect reflects evaluators' tendencies not to use an evaluatee's gender because they assume that case information about a target is more informative about his or her abilities, knowledge, and traits than is gender. The first study indicates that decreasing the diagnosticity of case information does not increase the tendency for people to be influenced by the target's gender. However, the first and second study illustrate that despite the weak influence of the target's gender, subjects are still using gender stereotypes when making social judgments about the evaluatee. This is evidenced by the impact of the stereotypicality of the case information. This is most clearly seen in Study 2, which illustrates how components of gender stereotypes are influencing judgments.Portions of this research were supported by a University of Minnesota Dissertation Grant. Thanks go to Gail Swenson, Rose Enriques, and Wayne Bylsma for their assistance in the data collection, to my committee members Eugene Borgida (Chairperson), Marti Gonzales, Mark Snyder, Geoffrey Maruyama, Barbara Loken for their suggestions on the first study, and to Cindy Thomsen and Eugene Borgida for their support, encouragement, and consultations.     

Group‐based evaluations for pupil‐on‐teacher violence: The impact of teacher intervention strategy

Although extreme violence to teachers is rare, the fact remains that in the UK, 29% of teachers report having been physically assaulted by a pupil (ATL, 2008a ). The ways in which responsibility for such assaults are attributed can have legal, educational and managerial implications. In the current study, teachers (N = 66), pupils (N = 68) and parents (N = 64) from a large secondary school in the UK read an incident report form outlining an incident depicting a pupil physically assaulting a teacher. The incident report was manipulated such that, prior to being assaulted, the teacher had either separated the assailant pupil from another pupil using a physical or non‐physical intervention. Results revealed that participating parents' and teachers' evaluations of the assailant's parents and the teacher differed from those of pupils in several ways. The results are discussed in terms of group‐based responsibility for deviant behaviour and implications for teacher behaviour in response to pupil on teacher violence. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Adults' evaluations of children caring for a baby: The effects of gender and behavior

In this study adult subjects evaluated the behavior of a 5- or 8-year-old child interacting with his or her baby “sibling.” The adults saw a 5-minute videotape in which the child interacted in a minimal or active fashion with the baby. The eight tapes consisted of all possible combinations of older child and infant sex and behavior style. The adults evaluated the active interaction with the infant very differently than the minimal interaction, but found each behavioral style equally typical of girls and boys in this age range. The active children were seen as more positive, more expressive, more intstrumental, more active, and more tender. The gender of the subject and older child played small roles in some of the evaluations.     

Lone‐Actor Terrorists’ Emotions and Cognition: An Evaluation Beyond Stereotypes

Lone‐actor terrorists are very often presented as emotionally and/or cognitively impaired—yet is it really the case? The present article provides the first rigorous assessment of the hypotheses according to which a high level of negative emotions, especially anger, and a lack of cognitive flexibility and complexity play a role in lone‐actor terrorists’ violent actions. Using a sample of lone‐actor terrorists’ writings, we use the LIWC (a fully automated language use analysis software) to compare terrorists’ cognition and emotion with those of other control groups, most notably nonviolent radical activists. Results strongly support the first hypothesis but clearly refute the second one, suggesting that lone‐actor terrorists are in fact characterized by a specific combination of high‐anger and high‐cognitive complexity. These method and results lay the groundwork for a more systematic and nuanced analysis of the psychology of terrorists, which is currently in a deadlock.     

The myth of science education

It is argued that the manner in which we teach science in the high schools represents an outdated positivistic conception of science. The standard presentation of a year of each of chemistry, biology and physics should be replaced by an integrated science plus history, philosophy, and sociology of science which would take a total of three years to complete. A proper appreciation for the true nature of science is essential to the continued health of the scientific enterprise.     

Self‐Fulfilling Prophecies: The Influence of Gender Stereotypes on Functional Neuroimaging Research on Emotion

Feminist scholars have shown that research on sex/gender differences in the brain is often used to support gender stereotypes. Scientists use a variety of methodological and interpretive strategies to make their results consistent with these stereotypes. In this paper, I analyze functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) research that examines differences between women and men in brain activity associated with emotion and show that these researchers go to great lengths to make their results consistent with the view that women are more emotional than men.     

Studies of Stereotypes: I. The Directionality and Uniformity of Responses to Stereotypes

Abstract

Cattell, R. B. Personality and Motivation: Structure and Measurement. New York: World Book, 1957. Reviewed by J. A. Radcliffe.     

The Effect of Name on Pre‐Interview Impressions and Occupational Stereotypes: The Case of Black Sales Job Applicants

Name is an important, yet under‐researched racial cue that can affect evaluators' opinions, attitudes, and beliefs about minority job applicants. This study examined a two‐way ANOVA interaction between name and sales job type on White sales professionals' pre‐interview impressions of Black applicants. Results indicated a significant interaction between applicant name and sales job type on pre‐interview impressions. For outside sales jobs, Anglicized‐named applicants received more favorable pre‐interview impressions than did ethnic‐named applicants. In addition, pre‐interview impressions of Anglicized‐named applicants were more favorable for outside versus inside sales jobs. Findings, implications, limitations, and future research directions are discussed.     

The rationality of science,critical thinking,and science education

This paper considers two philosophical problems and their relation to science education. The first involves the rationality of science; it is argued here that the traditional view, according to which science is rational because of its adherence to (a non-standard conception of) scientific method, successfully answers one central question concerning science's rationality. The second involves the aims of education; here it is argued that a fundamental educational aim is the fostering of rationality, or its educational cognate, critical thinking. The ramifications of these two philosophical theses for science education are then considered, and a science education which takes reasons in science as its fundamental feature is sketched.It is notwhat the man of science believes that distinguishes him, buthow andwhy he believes it. His beliefs are tentative, not dogmatic; they are based on evidence, not on authority or intuition (Russell 1945, p. 527).I believe ... that all teaching [in science] on the University level (and if possible below) should be training and encouragement in critical thinking (Popper 1970, pp. 52–53).This paper is mainly drawn from other publications. The first section is taken from my (1985); the second from (1988), Chapter 2; and the third from (1988), Chapter 6. Since what appears here are truncated versions of those discussions, I urge interested readers to look to those other works for fuller treatments of the issues here discussed.