Contemporary Worldviews: Personal and Policy Implications12

In the past several decades, changes in industrial societies have presented a host of issues, worldwide in scope, around which individual attitudes may form: technological growth, population expansion, environmental quality, global resources, differing societal goals, etc. This study (N= 325) was conducted to identify and assess the major attitude/belief constellations surrounding these issues and to examine their psychological basis and implications for risk perception and societal decision-making procedures. Results supported the hypotheses that assessed contemporary worldviews are related in predictable ways to (a) the pexceived risk associated with selected technologies, (b) preferences for the manner in which societal decisions should be made, and (c) a coherent set of psychological variables. Discussion focuses on policy implications of differing contemporary worldviews and on future directions and applications of this line of research.     

Evolutionary biology and personality psychology: Implications of genetic variability

Biological considerations raise an important set of issues for psychology: what behavioral attributes of the species are genetically based, what are the mechanisms by which genetic influences affect behavior, what are the evolutionary antecedents of genetically-based attributes, and what are their consequences? This article examines a subset of these issues by exploring some potential consequences of extant genetic variability for personality functioning, social interaction and the current genetic evolution of our species. Behavior genetics provides a methodology for discovering genetically-influenced behavioral variation. Five disparate areas (socialization, personality development, personality assessment, interactionism and assortative mating) are examined in which findings from behavior genetics can guide research and theory in personality psychology. Relationships between organismic and social parameters are emphasized. The final section combines these five areas by placing them within the broader context of theory-building in psychology.     

On Turkey Identification

As human relations skills are more widely taught and used, they are inevitably misused as well, often by some particularly fowl aggressors. This article is intended as a brief self-defense course identifying those who undergo this strange, but usually temporary, metamorphosis into “turkeys.” It provides a rough categorization of subspecies with their identifying characteristics and a proposal for return to personhood.     

Using computer conferencing to formulate a computer simulation of transitive behavior

The activities of a group engaged in simulation modeling via computer conferencing are described, and the model which resulted from those activities is briefly outlined. The phenomena which were modeled were initially described in a series of studies by Trabasso and his colleagues. These studies centered upon exhibition of transitive choices by children and adults, and supported the hypothesis that the choices were guided by formation of “linear arrays“ of the choice objects.     

Observing Behavior Topography in Delayed Matching to Multiple Samples

The Psychological Record - This study examined relations between eye movements and accuracy scores in a delayed matching-to-sample procedure with multiple sample stimuli. Four adult humans...     

Non‐standard work schedules and retention in the entry‐level hourly workforce

Non‐standard work schedules involve work outside the Monday–Friday daytime hours. Although research has heavily studied the health and family effects of such schedules, few studies have investigated their relationship to retention. We draw from Maertz and Campion's discussion of motivational forces that influence turnover to propose that employees on non‐standard schedules are more likely to quit their employer because of general job dissatisfaction and because of normative pressures from family and/or friends. Specifically, we hypothesized that employees on day shifts or weekday only schedules would remain with their employer longer than those who work on nonday shifts or on the weekends. We also hypothesized that perceived employment mobility would moderate the effects of non‐standard schedules on retention length. Hypotheses were tested among 3,178 retail employees who worked five different distinct shift arrangements and different weekday/weekend schedules. Cox regression analyses indicated that, as hypothesized, employees working nonday shifts or schedules including weekends remained with their employer for a shorter duration of time than employees not on such schedules. Perceived mobility moderated the schedule–turnover relationship, though not in the hypothesized manner. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings for work schedule assignment and retention strategies.