Forgiveness in The Arab and Islamic Contexts

This essay explores the current and historical meaning of forgiveness in Arab and Islamic cultural and religious contexts. It also hopes to encourage further empirical research on this understudied topic in both religious and peacebuilding studies. In addition to the perceived meaning of forgiveness in an Arab Islamic context, this essay examines the links between forgiveness and reconciliation. Relying on religious sources including the Qur'an and Hadith, as well as certain events in Islamic history, the essay identifies various ways to conceptualize and explain the meaning of forgiveness. This theoretical and conceptual segment is followed by a section which explores current perceptions of forgiveness among Arab Muslim teachers in five different communities. The empirical data for this analysis is based on a larger comparative regional study that has been completed through surveys and structured interviews with educators from Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, and Palestinians from the West Bank and Israel. Our study concluded that the teachers' perceptions of forgiveness were mainly derived from religious sources and identities and that Islamic religious discourse provided a solid foundation for framing the meaning of forgiveness.     

Flexible Work Arrangements Availability and their Relationship with Work‐to‐Family Conflict,Job Satisfaction,and Turnover Intentions: A Comparison of Three Country Clusters

The present study explored the availability of flexible work arrangements (FWA) and their relationship with manager outcomes of job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and work‐to‐family conflict (WFC) across country clusters. We used individualism and collectivism to explain differences in FWA availability across Latin American, Anglo, and Asian clusters. Managers from the Anglo cluster were more likely to report working in organisations that offer FWA compared to managers from other clusters. For Anglo managers, flextime was the only FWA that had significant favorable relationships with the outcome variables. For Latin Americans, part‐time work negatively related with turnover intentions and strain‐based WFC. For Asians, flextime was unrelated to time‐based WFC, and telecommuting was positively associated with strain‐based WFC. The clusters did not moderate the compressed work week and outcome relationships. Implications for practitioners adopting FWA practices across cultures are discussed.     

Effects of Visual Representation on Social Influence in Computer‐Mediated Communication

Two experiments investigated if and how visual representation of interactants affects depersonalization and conformity to group norms in anonymous computer‐mediated communication (CMC). In Experiment 1, a 2 (intergroup versus interpersonal) × 2 (same character versus different character) between‐subjects design experiment (N= 60), each participant made a decision about social dilemmas after seeing two other (ostensible) participants’ unanimous opinions and then exchanged supporting arguments. Consistent with the Social Identity model of Deindividuation Effects (SIDE), when the group level of self‐identity was rendered salient in an intergroup encounter, uniform virtual appearance of CMC partners triggered depersonalization and subsequent conformity behavior. By contrast, when the personal dimension of the self was salient, standardized representation tended to reduce conformity. To elucidate the mediation process, Experiment 2 investigated the causal links between depersonalization, group identification, and conformity. The results show that depersonalization accentuated adherence to group norms, both directly and indirectly via group identification.     

Attributional Style and Engagement/Disengagement Responses in the Chinese Workforce

Internal attribution for bad events, along with stable and global attributions, has been regarded as a component of pessimism, a precursor of negative work outcomes. Most evidence in support of this conceptualisation has come from research conducted in individualist cultures. We questioned if internal attribution has the same pessimistic implication in a collectivist culture. Findings from two studies conducted on Chinese employees supported our expectations that the stability and globality dimensions (but not the internality dimension) would predict disengagement responses (such as quitting and being neglectful at work) and lack of engagement responses (such as voicing suggestions and being loyal to the organisation). A reconceptualisation of pessimism in the workplace is therefore necessary. A dimensional, rather than a composite, scoring method is proposed for maintaining the predictive and construct validities of attributional style as an indicator of pessimism.     

Moral Persuasion and the Diversity of Fictions

Narrative representations can change our moral actions and thoughts, for better or for worse. In this article, I develop a theory of fictions' capacity for moral education and moral corruption that is fully sensitive to the diversity of fictions. Specifically, I argue that the way a fiction influences our moral actions and thoughts importantly depends on its genre. This theory promises new insights into practical ethical debates over pornography and media violence.     

The Effects of Applicant Résumé Contents on Recruiters' Hiring Recommendations: The Mediating Roles of Recruiter Fit Perceptions

The résumé is the most commonly used selection tool for organisations. Past studies have demonstrated that recruiter hiring recommendations can be predicted based on the content of applicant résumés. However, the mechanisms underlying the links between résumé contents and hiring recommendations remain unclear. The present study extends previous research by examining the mediating roles of recruiters' multi‐faceted fit perceptions in a field setting. Data were collected from 216 organisational recruiters who participated in campus recruitment at seven universities in Taiwan. The results showed that applicant work experience and educational background increased recruiter hiring recommendations through recruiter perceived person–job (P–J) fit. In addition, applicant work experience predicted recruiter perceived person–organisation (P–O) fit, which in turn enhanced recruiter hiring recommendations.     

Reducing STD/HIV Stigmatizing Attitudes Through Community Popular Opinion Leaders in Chinese Markets

Reducing STDs and HIV/AIDS incidence requires campaigns designed to change knowledge, attitudes, and practices of risky sexual behavior. In China, a significant obstacle to such changes is the stigma associated with these diseases. Thus 1 campaign intervention strategy is to train credible community leaders to discuss these issues in everyday social venues. This study tested the effectiveness of such an approach on reducing HIV/AIDS stigma, across 2 years, from a sample of over 4,500 market vendors, in 3 conditions. Results showed an increasing growth in market communication about intervention messages, and concomitant declines in stigmatizing attitudes, across time, with the greatest changes in community popular opinion leaders, significant changes in intervention nonopinion leaders, and little change in the control markets.     

The practice of psychotherapy and spiritual direction

The author compares and contrasts insight-oriented psychotherapy, supportive psychotherapy, and spiritual direction in relation to goals and methods; management of resistance, transference, and countertransference; and selection criteria. The enhancement of spiritual formation through insight-oriented psychotherapy and supportive psychotherapy is also discussed.     

Prominence of girls and boys in the classroom: Schoolchildren's perceptions

Several studies have revealed teachers' asymmetric perceptions of girls and boys in their classes. The present research examines these effects on schoolchildren's own perceptions of the prominence of male and female peers in school relevant categories. A total of 147 (native born, Jewish middle class) second and sixth graders participated in the study. A questionnaire in two versions was prepared: One formulated in the masculine plural, habitually used in Hebrew as the generic plural for both sexes. The other in both masculine and feminine (optional he/she) plural, also admissible in Hebrew usage. Overall, students judged more boys as prominent, even more so in sixth grade. Subjects also pointed to same-sex peers as prominent. Surprisingly, the sex-optional formulation of the questionnaire did not decrease stereotyping perceptions. Results raise questions about the status of girls in school. Implications for girls' future as achievers in modern society are discussed. Furthermore, the effectiveness of language manipulation in Hebrew regarding sexist vs. nonsexist attitudes is put into question.     

Book reviews

With Faith and Fury. Delos McKown. New York: Promethius Books, 1985. pp 440. $16.95

The Sacred in a Secular Age. Phillip E. Hammond, Editor. University of California Press, 379 pages (p/b) $8.95 (£8.50)