Predictors of effective formal mentoring: Is the mentor’s commitment all that matters?

The present research explores how the intersection of motivation and ability contributes to mentoring success. Extending the motivation-aptitude model of performance to mentoring effectiveness and building on socioanalytic theory, we examined whether mentor commitment and other mentor attributes impacted supervisors’ evaluation of mentors’ effectiveness. Using self-report and third-party rating data from a sample of 102 mentors and 14 supervisors from a multinational organization, support was found for our hypotheses. Consistent with our theorizing about the importance of supplementing mentor commitment with important aptitudes, the results of the multilevel analyses showed that mentor commitment did not translate to mentoring effectiveness as rated by one’s supervisor when mentors lacked getting along (i.e., self-monitoring and political skill) or getting ahead (learning goal orientation and strategic outlook) attributes.     

Coping and quality of life after tumor surgery: personal and social resources promote different domains of quality of life

Personal and social resources facilitate the adaptation to critical life events. The present study investigates whether general self-efficacy beliefs and received social support elevate cancer patients' physical, emotional, and social well-being directly, or whether these effects are rather mediated by active or meaning-focused coping. Gastrointestinal, colorectal, and lung cancer patients were approached at 1 month and at 6 months after surgery (N=175). Structural equation models indicate that self-efficacy at 1 month after surgery exerted a positive direct effect on all three domains of health-related quality of life at 6 months after surgery, but indirect effects through active and meaning-focused coping were also observed. Initial received support elevated later emotional well-being, but not the other two quality of life domains. This effect was not mediated by coping. Results suggest the development of interventions to increase optimistic self-beliefs and coping skills in tumor-surgery patients.     

‘They will not control us’: Ingroup positivity and belief in intergroup conspiracies

This research examined the role of different forms of positive regard for the ingroup in predicting beliefs in intergroup conspiracies. Collective narcissism reflects a belief in ingroup greatness contingent on others’ recognition. We hypothesized that collective narcissism should be especially likely to foster outgroup conspiracy beliefs. Non‐narcissistic ingroup positivity, on the other hand, should predict a weaker tendency to believe in conspiracy theories. In Study 1, the endorsement of conspiratorial explanations of outgroup actions was positively predicted by collective narcissism but negatively by non‐narcissistic ingroup positivity. Study 2 showed that the opposite effects of collective narcissism and non‐narcissistic ingroup positivity on conspiracy beliefs were mediated via differential perceptions of threat. Study 3 manipulated whether conspiracy theories implicated ingroup or outgroup members. Collective narcissism predicted belief in outgroup conspiracies but not in ingroup conspiracies, while non‐narcissistic ingroup positivity predicted lower conspiracy beliefs, regardless of them being ascribed to the ingroup or the outgroup.     

The impact of a rural or urban context in eating awareness and self‐regulation strategies in children and adolescents from eight European countries

Complex relationships exist between eating behaviour and personal and environmental factors. Rural and urban geographic contexts seem to play a role in eating behaviour, and therefore deserve a deeper study. A healthy eating behaviour and the conditions that promote it are a major issue in the promotion of adolescent health. The study aims to investigate the associations between the area of residence (urban vs. rural), self‐regulation strategies (TESQ‐E) and eating behaviours among children and adolescents. A total of 11,820 adolescents (50.6% girls) participated in the study, with a mean age of 13.30 years (SD= 2.13). Nine countries (The Netherlands, United Kingdom, Poland, Portugal, Denmark, Romania, Germany, Finland and Belgium) completed a questionnaire in the school context, asking about the use of self‐regulation strategies, eating behaviour awareness/care and sociodemographic questions such as age, gender and residential area. Both areas of residence (urban vs. rural) are associated with eating awareness/care in Romania and Portugal, controlling for age, gender and self‐regulation strategies. In some European countries at least, and most probably around the world, health promotion should focus on an ecological approach that includes the understanding of the effect of both environmental factors and personal skills on eating behaviour/awareness.     

Support for collective action against refugees: The role of national,European, and global identifications,and autochthony beliefs

To understand recent anti-refugee protests in Europe, we examined how different levels of inclusiveness of group identities (national, European, and global) are related to intentions to protest among native Europeans. We focused on the mediating role of autochthony (a belief that the first inhabitants of a territory are more entitled) and the moderating role of threat. Survey data from 11 European countries (N = 1,909) showed that national identification was positively associated with autochthony, and therefore, with the intention to protest against refugees. In contrast, global identification was related to lower protest intentions via lower autochthony. These paths were found only among Europeans who perceived refugees as a threat. European identification was not related to the endorsement of autochthony or to collective action. These findings indicate why and when majority members are willing to participate in collective action against refugees, and underscore the importance of global identification in the acceptance of refugees.     

Well, slap my thigh: expression of surprise facilitates memory of surprising material

Two studies examined the general prediction that one's emotional expression should facilitate memory for material that matches the expression. The authors focused on specific facial expressions of surprise. In the first study, participants who were mimicking a surprised expression showed better recall for the surprising words and worse recall for neutral words, relative to those who were mimicking a neutral expression. Study 2 replicated the results of Study 1, showing that participants who mimicked a surprised expression recalled more words spoken in a surprising manner compared with those that sounded neutral or sad. Conversely, participants who mimicked sad facial expressions showed greater recall for sad than neutral or surprising words. The results provide evidence of the importance of matching the emotional valence of the recall content to the facial expression of the recaller during the memorization period. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2008 APA, all rights reserved).     

Reciprocal relations among job demands, job control, and social support are moderated by neuroticism: A cross-lagged analysis

This study investigated whether neuroticism moderates the relations among social support (from coworkers and supervisors) and work strain characteristics (i.e. job demands and job control). A full cross-lagged panel analysis was used to test whether social support predicts job demands and control or whether job demands and job control predict support among individuals with high and low neuroticism. Workers (N =  247; 42.1% men) of five occupations filled out questionnaires twice, with a time gap of 1 month. Work characteristics (job demands, job control, and social support) together with age and gender were included in a two-group path model with neuroticism as a moderator. Neuroticism moderated relations between social support and work strain characteristics: among individuals with high neuroticism, high job demands predicted low support from supervisors and low job control predicted low support from supervisors. Among individuals with low neuroticism, high support from supervisors predicted high job control.     

The Face of the Chameleon: The Experience of Facial Mimicry for the Mimicker and the Mimickee

This research addressed three questions concerning facial mimicry: (a) Does the relationship between mimicry and liking characterize all facial expressions, or is it limited to specific expressions? (b) Is the relationship between facial mimicry and liking symmetrical for the mimicker and the mimickee? (c) Does conscious mimicry have consequences for emotion recognition? A paradigm is introduced in which participants interact over a computer setup with a confederate whose prerecorded facial displays of emotion are synchronized with participants’ behavior to create the illusion of social interaction. In Experiment 1, the confederate did or did not mimic participants’ facial displays of various subsets of basic emotions. Mimicry promoted greater liking for the confederate regardless of which emotions were mimicked. Experiment 2 reversed these roles: participants were instructed to mimic or not to mimic the confederate’s facial displays. Mimicry did not affect liking for the confederate but it did impair emotion recognition.     

Perceptions of Divine Figures Among Polish People Struggling with Homelessness or Alcohol Addiction

This study aimed to investigate antecedents of positive perceptions of divine agents and the optimistic assumption that the world is meaningful, basically good and trustworthy, as found in Polish men and women who struggle with homelessness or alcohol addiction. In the largely understudied groups of people who were homeless (n = 111) or alcohol addicted (n = 120), we confirmed that communal orientation is a consistent precursor of beliefs in supernatural agents such as God, the Devil and angels, as well as positive perceptions of both God and guardian angels. The antecedents of basic trust varied across participant groups. However, among them were positive attitudes toward God, communal orientation, and a deferring problem-solving style. Additionally, we found asymmetric links between perceptions of divine agents and both duration of addiction and duration of therapy in the addicted group. The former was related to a less positive perception of guardian angels and less perceived collaboration with God, whereas the latter was linked to a more positive perception of angels and more collaboration with God in problem-solving. We discuss the significance of a positive concept of divine beings for people who are homeless or alcohol addicted.