On the last Jews in Iraq and Iraqi national identity: a look at two recent Iraqi novels

After 2003, Iraqi literature, particularly the novel, rediscovered the now extinct Jewish community in Iraq. The Jews were the first major community in Iraq to be completely erased. Writing about the Jews served to underline the pluralism of Iraqi society in the past and to admonish against a similar fate awaiting other small communities in Iraq today. This article will focus on two recent Iraqi novels, written by two of Iraq’s prominent novelists, in which Jews are at the centre of the narratives: ‘Ali Badr’s “Haris al-Tabagh” (The Guardian of the Tobacco Shop), 2008 and Khdair al-Zaydi’s “Atlas ‘Azran al-Baghdadi” (‘Azran al-Baghdadi’s Atlas), 2015a. These are not only ordinary Jews, they are the last Jews of Iraq and Baghdad. As such, I will argue, they are doomed by the writers to serve as symbols for something exceeding their lives (and deaths) as individuals or Jews. The novels thus are more about Iraqi national identity after 2003 than about the last Jews. By choosing “the last of the Jews” as a protagonist the authors signal a pessimistic end to the illusion of sustaining a version of a pluralistic and accommodating Iraqi national identity.     

Seeking help for non-suicidal self-injury: A social network analysis approach

Individuals who self-injure have consistently reported less perceived social support; yet, little is actually known about the support they seek out from others specifically for non-suicidal self-injury. The goal of this study was to explore characteristics of support networks of those who self-injure. Twenty-three percent reported not seeking support for self-injury, while the remaining reported smaller social networks than typical. Most participants sought help infrequently, and when they did, found supporters to be only moderately helpful. Network characteristics were found to relate to self-injury behavior and patterns emerged regarding supporters in the networks. Implications for advocacy and education are provided.     

Globalised violence,community psychology and the bombing and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq

In this article, I first set out a conceptualisation of globalised violence. I then reflect upon how psychology networks in general and community psychology networks in particular appear to have positioned themselves publicly in relation to the violence of the recent bombing and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq. I ask whether networks of Community Psychologists are able/willing to publicly position themselves in regards to these specific events and the levels of globalised violence in general. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparing acceptance and rejection in the classroom interaction of students who stutter and their peers: A social network analysis

PurposeRecent work has reported adverse effects of students’ stuttering on their social and emotional functioning at school. Yet, few studies have provided an in-depth examination of classroom interaction of students who stutter (SWS). The current study uses a network perspective to compare acceptance and rejection in the classroom interaction between SWS and their peers in secondary education.MethodsThe sample comprised 22 SWS and 403 non-stuttering peers (22 classes) of secondary education in Flanders (Belgium). Students' nominations regarding three acceptance and three rejection criteria were combined. Social network analysis offered procedures that considered direct and indirect interaction between all classmates.ResultsWe found few significant differences: SWS and their peers were distributed similarly across positive and negative status groups. Both considered and were considered by, on average, six or seven classmates as ‘a friend', who they liked and could count on, and nominated or were nominated by one or two classmates as ‘no friend', somebody who they disliked and could not count on. On average, SWS and their classmates also did not differ in terms of structural position in the class group (degree, closeness and betweenness), reciprocated rejection, and clique size. However, SWS do tend to be slightly more stringent or more careful in nominating peers, which led to fewer reciprocated friendships.ConclusionOur results suggest that SWS are quite accepted by peers in secondary education in Flanders. Such positive peer interaction can create a supportive and encouraging climate for SWS to deal with specific challenges.     

Children's understanding of the war in Iraq: views from Britain and Bosnia

Sixty‐one children (aged 9–17) from the United Kingdom (31) and Bosnia (30) were interviewed about the war in Iraq. Significant differences emerged in their views of the war. The Bosnian children were more affected by the Iraq War, more aware of who is involved in it, had different views about its causes, viewed the consequences of the war with greater gravity, and expressed a greater desire to end war and have peace. Two factors which might account for these differences – recent Bosnian history and the nature of media representations of the war in the two countries – are discussed.     

Locating religion in victory-making: the 1973 war discourse in Egypt

Most of the literature on the Arab–Israeli war in 1973 takes material gains and military advances as measurements that indicate victory or defeat. Accordingly, based on the magnitude of weaponry used and the associated tactics employed, scholarly works declare Egypt or Israel the winner. This article moves away from such ‘materialistic’ accounts of the war’s conclusion by exploring a similarly significant victory-maker: the use of the discourse of religion. By looking at previously untapped official and semi-official texts from the war’s onset through the eight years of President Anwar Sadat’s rule, the article finds this discourse to be composed of three thematic structures. These structures cohere into patterns that facilitated an account of the war as a massive and unquestionable Egyptian ‘victory’. The study also addresses how the interplay of language and religion was so closely attuned to the broader context that included the use of authoritarianism in politics and in the media as well as a so-called Islamic revival. Rather than supposing that the religious references in this discourse may have been in some way truthful, I show that it relied on a set of intentional falsehoods.     

‘I'm not a war monger but…’: Discourse Analysis and Social Psychological Peace Research

The present paper argues for a discourse analytic approach to social psychological peace research and demonstrates the potential of such an approach through a re‐specification of the concept of attitudes to war. This is illustrated through an analysis of a series of televised debates broadcast in the UK in February–March 2003 in the build‐up to the formal outbreak of the Iraq War. Analysis draws attention to the importance of rhetorical context and function, the inseparability of attitude object and evaluation and the formulation of evaluations as specific or general. Findings are discussed in the context of recent calls for methodological pluralism in social psychological peace research with a suggestion that matters of epistemology stand prior to methodology. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Retracted:Making sense of war: using the interpretation comparison model to understand the Iraq conflict

The current research addressed the issue of how people use the past to compare and interpret the present. Using the logic of the Interpretation Comparison Model (ICM) we examined two factors (distinctness of past events and ambiguity of target event) that may influence how people make sense of a real world event (the Iraq War) within the context of past events (World War II and Vietnam). Extending earlier ICM studies, we used new manipulations and measures to examine the impact of these two factors. Results show that higher levels of (manipulated as well as measured) distinctness lead to contrastive evaluations about the Iraq War (and involved politicians) as a function of past wars. Lower levels of distinctness lead to assimilative evaluations, but only when the meaning of the target stimulus was somewhat ambiguous. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Understanding spirit possession in the Philippines: a social representations approach

ABSTRACT

Where there are diverse professionals and curers dealing with possession, differences in representations exist. This study uses social representations theory as a frame to examine both the representational overlaps and differences in possession among various Filipino health professionals and the lay distinctly socialised in Western biomedical and psychological lenses and in local religious and traditional folk beliefs. Themes were extracted from 12 individual interviews. Results showed five representational themes, namely: possession as sinakluban, as a vulnerability, as a disease, as kulam, and as being chosen. Findings were discussed in relation to the interface among religion, indigenous beliefs, psychopathological frame, and the Western biomedical model.     

Retraction statement: Making sense of war: Using the interpretation comparison model to understand the Iraq conflict

The following article from the European Journal of Social Psychology, “Making sense of war: Using the interpretation comparison model to understand the Iraq conflict” by Stapel, D. A., and Marx, D. M., published online on 23 August 2006 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), has been retracted by agreement between the co‐author, the journal Editor in Chief, Tom Postmes, and John Wiley and Sons Ltd. The retraction has been agreed upon following the results of an investigation into the work of Diederik A. Stapel ( https://www.commissielevelt.nl/ ). The Levelt Committee has determined that this article was likely to have contained data that were fabricated by Diederik A. Stapel. The co‐author was unaware of his actions and not in any way involved. REFERENCE Stapel, D. A., & Marx, D. M. (2007). Making sense of war: Using the interpretation comparison model to understand the Iraq conflict. European Journal of Social Psychology 37(3), 401–420.     

被动性社交网站使用与自尊和自我概念清晰性:有调节的中介模型

为探讨被动性社交网站使用对自尊和自我概念清晰性的影响及其作用机制,在社会比较理论和乐观的保护性作用的视角下,采用问卷法对1208名大学生进行调查。结果表明:(1)被动性社交网站使用对自尊没有直接的预测作用,但能通过上行社会比较的中介作用负向预测自尊;(2)被动性社交网站使用不仅能够直接负向预测自我概念清晰性,还能通过上行社会比较的中介作用对其产生影响;(3)上行社会比较的中介效应受到乐观的调节,相对于乐观水平高的个体,间接效应在乐观水平低的个体中更为显著;(4)此外,在乐观水平高的个体中,上行社会比较对自尊的负向预测作用以及上行社会比较在被动性社交网站使用与自尊之间的中介作用都不显著,但是上行社会比较对自我概念清晰性的负向预测作用以及上行社会比较在被动性使用与自我概念清晰性之间的中介作用仍然显著。研究结果有助于揭示被动性社交网站使用行为对自尊以及自我概念清晰性的影响及其作用机制,对维护与促进个体自我概念健康发展有一定启示意义。     

Some contributions of a psychological approach to the study of the sacred

ABSTRACT

This paper examines some of the contributions psychology is making to the study of the sacred and its role in human functioning. The focus here is not on the ontological reality of the sacred, but rather perceptions of the sacred. We suggest that psychological theory and research on this topic offers: a clarification of the meaning of the sacred; new knowledge about sanctification – the process through which people come to perceive the sacred in daily life; a response to criticisms about the scientific study of the sacred; a sharper perspective on the meanings of religion and spirituality; a method for measuring sanctification; knowledge about the ways perceptions of the sacred predict important aspects of human behavior, and; an understanding of the sacred as a product of psychological, social, institutional, cultural, and situational forces. We conclude that the sacred represents a vital phenomenon of interest for religious and spiritual study.     

Self‐Harm Focus Leads to Greater Collective Guilt: The Case of the U.S.‐Iraq Conflict

Collective guilt from harm one's group has caused an out‐group is often undermined because people minimize or legitimize the harm done (i.e., they generate exonerating cognitions). When a group action has harmed both the in‐group and an out‐group, focusing people on “self‐harm”—ways in which the in‐group has harmed itself—may elicit more collective guilt because self‐harm is less likely to be exonerated. In Study 1, American participants who focused on how the invasion of Iraq had harmed the United States expressed greater collective guilt over harm inflicted on the people of Iraq than those who focused on Iraqi suffering. Study 2 showed that this effect is due to reductions in exonerating cognitions among people focused on self‐harm. We consider the implications of these findings for intergroup reconciliation, particularly in situations where two groups have been involved in open conflict.     

Social network analysis: A methodological introduction

Social network analysis is a large and growing body of research on the measurement and analysis of relational structure. Here, we review the fundamental concepts of network analysis, as well as a range of methods currently used in the field. Issues pertaining to data collection, analysis of single networks, network comparison, and analysis of individual-level covariates are discussed, and a number of suggestions are made for avoiding common pitfalls in the application of network methods to substantive questions.     

The terror management function of Orthodox Jewish religiosity: a religious culture approach

Terror management theory proposes that humans, able to envision their inevitable death, develop worldviews opposing this debilitating fear. One TMT implication of considerable interest is its connection with the formation of religious belief. Taking a religious culture approach, this study measured the effect of death reminders on self-reported religiosity among 131 Orthodox Jews, and examined if Baal Teshuva—“returnees” differed from individuals born into Orthodox Judaism. Results showed that death reminders had a varied effect—both Baal Teshuva and those with intra-Orthodox religious change reported higher levels of intrinsic religiosity, while those without change reported lower. Explanations for these intra-faith differences relate to attachment theory and possible “Compensation” among those with religious change.     

Comparing two perceived characteristics of autobiographical memory: Memory detail and accessibility

Four samples of participants recalled autobiographical memories. While some evidence emerged from regression analyses suggesting that judgements of the amount of detail contained in each memory and judgements of the ease with which events could be recalled were partially independent, the analyses generally showed that these judgements were similarly predicted by various event characteristics (age, typicality, self-importance, emotional intensity at event occurrence, rehearsal types). Co-occurrence frequency data yielded similar conclusions, showing that while ease ratings and detail ratings occasionally diverged, they were more often consistent with each other. Finally, the data also suggested that events that prompted emotional ambivalence were not judged to be more easily recalled, or to contain more detail, than non-ambivalent events.