Perceptions by the aged of crime, criminals, and the criminal justice system

A general fear of crime victimization led to modified activities in the community and feelings of relative safety in their own area for 132 elderly respondents on a 24-item questionnaire. They held sympathetic views of crime perpetrators as disadvantaged victims of society themselves, but came to the unlikely conclusions that more police control and harsher prison sentences are needed.     

False memories of childhood experiences

We conducted two experiments to investigate if college students would create false memories of childhood experiences in response to misleading information and repeated interviews. In both experiments we contacted parents to obtain information about events that happened to the students during childhood. In a series of interviews we asked the students to recall the parent-reported events and one experimenter-created false event. In the second experiment we varied the age at which we claimed the false event occurred. In both experiments we found that some individuals created false memories in these circumstances and in the second experiment we found no effect of age of attempted incorporation. In the second experiment we also found that those who discussed related background knowledge during the early interviews were more likely to create a false recall. Generalizations to therapy contexts are discussed.     

Abusive supervision,leader-member exchange,and moral disengagement: A moderated-mediation model of organizational deviance

This paper draws from social exchange theory and social cognitive theory to explore moral disengagement as a potential mediator of the relationship between abusive supervision and organizational deviance. We also explore the moderating effect of leader-member exchange (LMX) on this mediated relationship. Results indicate that employees with abusive supervisors engaged in moral disengagement strategies and subsequently in organizational deviance behaviors. Additionally, this relationship was stronger for those higher in LMX. Important implications for management research and practice are discussed.     

Hope as empowerment model: A client-based perspective on the process of hope development

Abstract

Research on the relationship of client hope to successful therapy outcome underlines the need to discover the processes and conditions when hope flourishes. Snyder’s Hope Theory has been applied to psychotherapy but client subjective experiences are needed to illuminate nuances in the process. The present study examined the trajectory of hope development in psychotherapy using interviews with 18 counseling clients, analyzed using grounded theory methodology. Findings were synthesized into a dynamic model titled hope as empowerment model (HEM) that shares features of Snyder’s Hope Theory. HEM introduces patterns of particular salience to psychotherapy. The compatibility of client preferences with therapist input raised faith in the process of counseling and, in turn, hope in a positive outcome. A number of conditions, including the flexibility of client role preferences and the directiveness of hope-inspiring therapeutic strategies, influenced the nature and strength of client hope. Implications for therapy and positive psychology are considered.     

Differential acquisition of lever pressing in inbred and outbred mice: comparison of one-lever and two-lever procedures and correlation with differences in locomotor activity

Recent progress in mouse genetics has led to an increased interest in developing procedures for assessing mouse behavior, but relatively few of the behavioral procedures developed involve positively reinforced operant behavior. When operant methods are used, nose poking, not lever pressing, is the target response. In the current study differential acquisition of milk-reinforced lever pressing was observed in five inbred strains (C57BL/6J, DBA/2J, 129X1/SvJ, C3H/HeJ, and BALB/cJ) and one outbred stock (CD-1) of mice. Regardless of whether one or two levers (an "operative" and "inoperative" lever) were in the operant chamber, a concomitant variable-time fixed-ratio schedule of milk reinforcement established lever pressing in the majority of mice within two 120-min sessions. Substantial differences in lever pressing were observed across mice and between procedures. Adding an inoperative lever retarded acquisition in C57BL/6J, DBA/2J, 129X1/SvJ, and C3H/HeJ mice, but not in CD-1 and BALB/cJ mice. Locomotor activity was positively correlated with number of lever presses in both procedures. Analyses of durations of the subcomponents (e.g., time to move from hopper to lever) of operant behavior revealed further differences among the six types of mice. Together, the data suggest that appetitively reinforced lever pressing can be acquired rapidly in mice and that a combination of procedural, behavioral, and genetic variables contributes to this acquisition.     

Expressions of life meaning among college students

This study examined the views of 132 undergraduate students (35 men, 97 women) regarding what they considered to be contributing factors to a worthwhile or meaningful life. They rated, on a 5-point Likert scale, their agreement with each of 40 statements. Cluster analysis yielded three clusters which best described the data. One cluster comprised a religious group, and the other two clusters were nonreligious, with one having characteristics of both the religious and nonreligious cluster.     

Resolution of conflicts between internal and external information sources on a time reproduction task: the role of perceived information reliability and attributional style

Erroneous knowledge of results (KR) that conflicts with other internal or external information sources is preferentially used and misguides performance on motor and mental timing tasks. Buekers et al. [J. Motor Behavior 26 (1994) 27] hypothesized that KR is used preferentially because participants deem it to be the most reliable information source. We tested this hypothesis in two experiments. We manipulated subjective reliability of information and information content and demonstrated that both reliability and content are assessed and used. In a third experiment we examined whether attributional style affected the use of internal and external information. While KR was present, attributional style was unrelated to performance. However, when erroneous KR was withdrawn, participants who scored high in internal attributional style or high in controllability showed more accurate performance. Whereas evaluation of information quality is explicit, information provided by the KR, whether accurate or not, may influence both implicit and explicit aspects of the tasks.     

The success of Caucasian mothers in guiding adolescents

The purpose of this study was to determine how 391 Caucasian American mothers of 10- to 14-year-olds viewed their assets and limitations as parents and to find out how 352 adolescents perceived the parenting performance of their mothers. Both generations completed the Parent Success Indicator. It was found that the amount of time mothers spent talking to, and doing things with, their adolescent children had the greatest impact on how both generations rated mother success.     

Local and global contextual constraints on the identification of objects in scenes.

Objects likely to appear in a given real-world scene are frequently found to be easier to recognize. Two different sources of contextual information have been proposed as the basis for this effect: global scene background and individual companion objects. The present paper examines the relative importance of these two elements in explaining the context-sensitivity of object identification in full scenes. Specific sequences of object fixations were elicited during free scene exploration, while fixation times on designated target objects were recorded as a measure of ease of target identification. Episodic consistency between the target, the global scene background, and the object fixated just prior to the target (the prime), were manipulated orthogonally. Target fixation times were examined for effects of prime and background. Analyses show effects of both factors, which are modulated by the chronology and spatial extent of scene exploration. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for a model of visual object recognition in the context of real-world scenes.