A Comparison of Models for Interstate Wars and for Individual Violence

ABSTRACT— It is assumed that violence is functional at both individual and societal levels. A model developed for violent individuals is compared with a proposed model for interstate wars. In both domains, the data are consistent with the assumption that violence is functional. At the societal level, the contingencies of training are provided by official staff and require reasonably well-socialized soldiers. At the individual level, reinforcers are provided by victims, and aggressors are usually socially incompetent. In the societal model, decision makers receive reinforcers for initiating and winning wars. The combat soldiers' behavior is somewhat paradoxical. Soldiers are thought to remain in harm's way out of love for their buddies. The actual reinforcers for their combat behavior are unknown.     

Evaluation of evidence for sufficiency, for necessity, and for necessity-and-sufficiency

We report two experiments with 120 undergraduate subjects. The tasks presented clearly articulated hypotheses concerning necessity, sufficiency, and necessity-and-sufficiency, together with possible combinations of treatment conditions, and required subjects to judge whether, according to the hypotheses, the relevant outcomes will occur, will not occur, or might occur. The patterns of responses reveal how subjects understand the extensions of the concepts, i.e. what each hypothesis permits, requires, and excludes. Only necessity-and-sufficiency hypotheses generally led to logically adequate responses, and the most typical error for both necessity hypotheses and sufficiency hypotheses was to treat them as extensionally equivalent to necessity-and-sufficiency. This error tendency was more evident for necessity than for sufficiency hypotheses. Further, although responses to both necessity hypotheses and sufficiency hypotheses were affected by the complexity of the hypothesized conditions, responses to necessity-and-sufficiency hypotheses were not. We argue that the results are not a function of a response bias but reflect differences in the way the hypotheses are understood. Implications for the causal attribution literature are discussed.     

Comparisons of the Psychometric characteristics of the adaptive behavior inventory for children for different subgroups of children

Psychometric characteristics of the Adaptive Behavior Inventory for Children (ABIC) are analyzed through five statistical procedures (internal consistency, item difficulty, correlations of item-total correlations, concurrent validity, and construct validity) using data on 436 elementary age children from three racial-ethnic and two social class groups. Data from these five statistical procedures are reported for nine demographic characteristics: children's race, social class, sex, age, birth order, health, family size, family structure, and urban acculturation. Few systematic differences are apparent on internal consistency, correlation of item-total correlations, and construct validity. Some differences are apparent on item difficulty and concurrent validity. On item difficulty the ABIC scores are higher for middle-SES, older, first- or second-born children, and from families whose structures are more typical. Regarding concurrent validity, lower correlations are noted for Mexican American and Black, for more healthy, and for less acculturated children. ABIC-achievement correlations generally are too low to be of practical value. The results are interpreted in terms of possible test bias on the ABIC.     

Inferential procedures for correlation coefficients corrected for attenuation

A model and computational procedure based on classical test score theory are presented for determination of a correlation coefficient corrected for attenuation due to unreliability. Next, variance-covariance expressions for the sample estimates defined earlier are derived, based on application of the delta method. Results of a Monte Carlo study are presented in which the adequacy of the derived expressions was assessed for a large number of data forms and potential hypotheses encountered in the behavioral sciences. It is shown that, based on the proposed procedures, confidence intervals for single coefficients are reasonably precise. Two-sample hypothesis tests, for both independent and dependent samples, are also accurate. However, for hypothesis tests involving a larger number of coefficients than two—both independent and dependent—the proposed procedures require largens for adequate precision. Results of a preliminary power analysis reveal no serious loss in efficiency resulting from correction for attenuation. Implications for practice are discussed.Support for the research reported in this article was provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. The authors acknowledge with thanks the constructive comments of the editor and three anonymous reviewers.     

基于认知加工过程的数学训练方案述评

数学训练方案（Modules for Math）是加拿大心理学家J.P.Das提出的促进数学学习的训练方案。该方案的理论基础是基于Luria神经三级网络的PASS（计划-注意-同时性加工-继时性加工）模型以及Vygotsky主张以言语内化方式进行自我学习的教育原则。数学训练方案包括模式转换;学习数轴;数一数;模仿、画路径和估算;数字记忆广度等五个训练模块,通过大约五十多个活动任务实现一般认知加工的促进,同时迁移到数学学习的课程中。数学训练方案今后将结合行为实验与认知神经影像学数据,证实训练的效果及变化。     

Comparison of classical and modern methods for measuring and correcting for acquiescence

Likert-type self-report scales are frequently used in large-scale educational assessment of social-emotional skills. Self-report scales rely on the assumption that their items elicit information only about the trait they are supposed to measure. However, different response biases may threaten this assumption. Specifically, in children, the response style of acquiescence is an important source of systematic error. Balanced scales, including an equal number of positively and negatively keyed items, have been proposed as a solution to control for acquiescence, but the reasons why this design feature worked from the perspective of modern psychometric models have been underexplored. Three methods for controlling for acquiescence are compared: classical method by partialling out the mean; an item response theory method to measure differential person functioning (DPF); and multidimensional item response theory (MIRT) with random intercept. Comparative analyses are conducted on simulated ratings and on self-ratings provided by 40,649 students (aged 11–18) on a fully balanced 30-item scale assessing conscientious self-management. Acquiescence bias was explained as DPF and it was demonstrated that: the acquiescence index is highly related to DPF; balanced scales produce scores controlled for DPF; and MIRT factor scores are highly related to scores controlled for DPF and the random intercept is highly related to DPF.     

The Responsibility of Men for the Oppression of Women

ABSTRACT Feminist writers arguing that women are oppressed have pointed to men as the oppressors. They have, however, directed little attention to the question of the extent to which men are morally responsible for this oppression, a question which is of special concern for male feminists. Seven categories of men potentially responsible for the oppression of women are identified here; four are argued to be individually responsible for oppressing women and three not. The question of whether men are collectively responsible for the oppression of women is addressed, and three main difficulties are revealed in the endeavour to establish that they are. It is argued that one who is in no way responsible on an individual basis for oppressing women cannot be responsible by sole virtue of being a male. The result has implications for the status of men in the feminist movement.     

Toward a meaningful spirituality for people of color: lessons for the counseling practitioner

This article attempts to capture a significant aspect of the counseling process for people of color: the spiritual dimension. It is argued that spirit and spirituality are relevant dimensions that should be integrated in counseling because spirituality is a key ingredient in the cultural upbringing and socialization of many people of color. Further, religious and spiritual beliefs are affected by experiences of racism and oppression, which then affects psychological coping. Reflective guidelines are offered to understand the essence of spirituality and cultural diversity, and lessons for the practitioner are recommended.     

Task-defined associations are mode specific for selection of relevant dimension but mode independent for selection of location mapping

When compatible and incompatible mappings of a location-relevant task are mixed, or a location-relevant task is mixed with a task for which stimulus location is irrelevant, the benefit of the compatible mapping is eliminated for physical locations and enhanced for location words. Two experiments examined the influence of presenting the location information for the mixed conditions in different stimulus modes (physical location or word). Experiment 1 showed that the effects of mixing location-relevant and location-irrelevant tasks on the spatial compatibility and Simon effects are reduced when the location information is presented in different modes for the two tasks. Experiment 2 showed, in contrast, that the mode distinction had little influence on the effects of mixed compatible and incompatible mappings for location-relevant tasks: The compatibility effect was eliminated for physical locations and enhanced for words, as when there is no mode distinction. Thus, when location is relevant for one task and colour for the other, the task-defined associations of locations to responses are mode specific, but when location is relevant for both tasks, the associations are mode independent.     

Task-defined associations are mode specific for selection of relevant dimension but mode independent for selection of location mapping

When compatible and incompatible mappings of a location-relevant task are mixed, or a location-relevant task is mixed with a task for which stimulus location is irrelevant, the benefit of the compatible mapping is eliminated for physical locations and enhanced for location words. Two experiments examined the influence of presenting the location information for the mixed conditions in different stimulus modes (physical location or word). Experiment 1 showed that the effects of mixing location-relevant and location-irrelevant tasks on the spatial compatibility and Simon effects are reduced when the location information is presented in different modes for the two tasks. Experiment 2 showed, in contrast, that the mode distinction had little influence on the effects of mixed compatible and incompatible mappings for location-relevant tasks: The compatibility effect was eliminated for physical locations and enhanced for words, as when there is no mode distinction. Thus, when location is relevant for one task and colour for the other, the task-defined associations of locations to responses are mode specific, but when location is relevant for both tasks, the associations are mode independent.     

Goodness of fit tests for probabilistic measurement models

General goodness of fit tests for probabilistic response models are developed. The tests are applicable in psychophysics, in the theory of choice behavior and in mathematical learning theories. The necessary and sufficient constraints that a measurement model puts on the response probabilities are used for testing this model. In addition, representation theorems for some models are proved and the goodness of fit to experimental data is considered.     

A proof for Rhiel's range estimator of the coefficient of variation for skewed distributions

In this research study is proof that the coefficient of variation (CV(high-low)) calculated from the highest and lowest values in a set of data is applicable to specific skewed distributions with varying means and standard deviations. Earlier Rhiel provided values for d(n), the standardized mean range, and a(n), an adjustment for bias in the range estimator of micro. These values are used in estimating the coefficient of variation from the range for skewed distributions. The d(n) and an values were specified for specific skewed distributions with a fixed mean and standard deviation. In this proof it is shown that the d(n) and an values are applicable for the specific skewed distributions when the mean and standard deviation can take on differing values. This will give the researcher confidence in using this statistic for skewed distributions regardless of the mean and standard deviation.     

Accounting for the fear of schizophrenia

Research over the last three decades has demonstrated that a substantial minority of both professional and lay people have negative and rejecting attitudes towards the mentally ill. We argue that these attitudes may, in part, be a function of a tendency to perceive the mentally ill as somehow inherently dangerous and liable to violence. The evidence for the association between schizophrenia and violence suggests that although people with schizophrenia may be somewhat more likely to act violently than members of the general public, the magnitude of the differential is not sufficient to explain the perceived association. Alternative explanations for the correlation are therefore considered. Specifically, the influences of the media, errors in information processing and the process of stereotyping in accounting for the development of a perceived association between schizophrenia and violence are examined. Finally, the implications for enhancing the acceptance of people with schizophrenia into the community are discussed.     

Procedures for performing meta-analyses of the accuracy of tools for binary classification

The assessment of accuracy in binary classification tools must take into account two non-independent rates: true positives and false positives. A variety of indices have been proposed. They have been estimated for tests employed for early detection or screening purposes. We summarize and review the main methods proposed for performing a meta-analysis that assesses the accuracy of this type of tools. They are applied to the results from 14 studies that report estimates of the accuracy of the AUDIT. The method of direct aggregation does not allow the use of meta-analytic procedures; the separate estimation of sensitivity and specificity does not acknowledge that they are not independent; the SROC method treats accuracy and threshold as fixed effects and has limitations to deal with the potential role of covariates. The Normal Bivariate (NB) model and the Hierarchical Summary ROC (HSROC) model are statistically rigorous and can deal with the covariates properly. They allowed analyzing the association between the gender composition of the sample and the way the test AUDIT behaves in the example.     

Implications of evidence-based practice for community health

Evidence-based practice, developed in clinical medicine, is being applied to community health programs. Barriers to implementation of evidence-based practice noted in clinical medicine are likely to exist in community health settings and may be complicated by the nature of community health programs. These barriers include accessibility and availability of relevant data, social and political considerations of program decision-making, and conflicting expectations for evaluation research. This paper discusses barriers to both amassing evidence for practice and using evidence for decision-making in community health. The potential for conflict between practice goals set by evidence-based thinking and those set by community health organizations is also discussed. Implications for evaluations of community health programs are raised and recommendations for improving access to and use of evaluation information are made.     

Proposal for Centers for the Study of Biblical Psychotherapy

This paper describes the need for a Biblically based psychotherapy to replace a psychotherapy dominated by Greek mythology. Centers for Biblical Psychotherapy are proposed and sample curriculae are discussed.     

Attributions for affluence

There have been very few psychological studies on explanations for wealth, though there have been a number of studies on explanations for poverty and attributions for success and failure. Previous research on explanations for poverty has indicated that people attributed poverty primarily to societal influences, personal responsibility and fate, and that various demographic factors are associated with different patterns in the explanation for poverty. It was hypothesized that attributions for wealth are of the same kind as those for poverty, but that the salient demographic variables are associated in significantly opposite ways. This study attempted to assess which demographic variables, notably Sex, Education and Voting Pattern, were related to explanations of wealth in Britain. Vote appeared to be a very important variable, with Conservatives rating positive Individualistic explanations, and Labour voters Societal explanations, as most important in explaining wealth. Factor analysis supported the a priori classification of the explanations for wealth. The results are discussed in terms of the psychology of explanations, political socialization and fiscal measures.     

A test of inclusion which allows for errors of measurement

A test which allows for errors of measurement is derived for the hypothesis that all the members of a population who possess a certain skill are a sub-set of the members who possess another skill. Formulae are given for one particular case when two questions are used for each skill, and for when three questions are used for each skill. An illustrative example is given for the two-question case. The authors are indebted to M. L. Turner for his assistance in the initial stages of development of the test.     

Memory for Conversation

Memory for conversation is treated as a source of coherence in social encounters and its connections with social competence are tested in a study of problemsolving conversations. As predicted, accurate recall is found to correlate positively with social competence and negatively with social anxiety. Partners have better memory for their own contributions than for each other's, and this difference is exacerbated by topic importance. Differences in recall are also found for differing amounts of involvement in the conversations. Results are explained in terms of resource allocation during conversation.