An Unwillingness to Act: Behavioral Appropriateness, Situational Constraint, and Self-Efficacy in Shyness

ABSTRACT Three reasons for the failure to demonstrate social skills were examined in an attempt to integrate social skills deficit and dysfunctional cognition approaches to self-labeled shyness To assess social skills knowledge, the willingness to demonstrate such knowledge, and self-efficacy expectations for enacting social behaviors, 40 shy and 40 nonshy adults were asked to judge the appropriateness of situated behaviors and indicate whether they characteristically enacted and felt capable of producing them Results suggested that shys may be unaware of the appropriateness of some behaviors in some situations, however, shys and nonshys more often agree on behavioral appropriateness standards Compared to nonshys, shys are less likely to enact social behaviors and tend to have low self-efficacy It was suggested that shys' self-awareness of characteristic responses and low self-efficacy expectations may contribute to failures to demonstrate social skills knowledge     

Evidence for terror management theory: I. The effects of mortality salience on reactions to those who violate or uphold cultural values

On the basis of terror management theory, it was hypothesized that when mortality is made salient, Ss would respond especially positively toward those who uphold cultural values and especially negatively toward those who violate cultural values. In Experiment 1, judges recommended especially harsh bonds for a prostitute when mortality was made salient. Experiment 2 replicated this finding with student Ss and demonstrated that it occurs only among Ss with relatively negative attitudes toward prostitution. Experiment 3 demonstrated that mortality salience also leads to larger reward recommendations for a hero who upheld cultural values. Experiments 4 and 5 showed that the mortality salience effect does not result from heightened self-awareness or physiological arousal. Experiment 6 replicated the punishment effect with a different mortality salience manipulation. Implications for the role of fear of death in social behavior are discussed.     

Rater bias in the EASI temperament scales: a twin study

Under trait theory, ratings may be modeled as a function of the temperament of the child and the bias of the rater. Two linear structural equation models are described, one for mutual self- and partner ratings, and one for multiple ratings of related individuals. Application of the first model to EASI temperament data collected from spouses rating each other shows moderate agreement between raters and little rating bias. Spouse pairs agree moderately when rating their twin children, but there is significantly rater bias, with greater bias for monozygotic than for dizygotic twins. MLE's of heritability are approximately .5 for all temperament scales with no common environmental variance. Results are discussed with reference to trait validity, the person-situation debate, halo effects, and stereotyping. Questionnaire development using ratings on family members permits increased rater agreement and reduced rater bias.     

Acupuncture and emotion: the influence of acupuncture anesthesia on the sensory and emotional components of pain

Objective indices (heart rate, perspiration quantity, finger plethysmograph curves, and facial expression) and subjective indices (sensory and emotional subject reports) were recorded for 25 young Chinese adults (16 men, 9 women) during and after the simultaneous application of a strong pain stimulus and either foot classical (alloneural points Tsusanli and Yanglingchuan) or hand classical (alloneural points Hegu and Neiguan) acupuncture. Both forms of acupuncture were equally effective, showing that stimulation of the same nerve is not essential for pain relief. Acupuncture assuaged the emotional, but not the sensory, response to the painful stimulation.     

The development of structural complexity in the child's concept of family: the effect of cognitive stage, sex, and intactness of family

Twenty-eight boys and 28 girls at each of the Piagetian preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational cognitive stages were given an interview focusing on their concepts of family. Half of each group were from intact families, and half were from divorced families. Interviews were scored for two structural aspects of the concept of family: conceptual level, and use of dimensions that structure the concept. The complexity of children's concepts was strongly related to cognitive stage and, to a lesser degree, to sex. Frequency of use of concept dimensions was strongly affected by general developmental level, though not specifically cognitive stage, and by intactness of family, but to a lesser degree by sex. Specific information is provided on the effect of these factors on perceptions of family composition, parental roles, and breadth of family activities.     

Predicting Contraceptive Efficacy: A Discriminant Analysis of Three Groups of Adolescent Women1

The relationship of knowledge and attitudes to adolescent contraceptive efficacy was investigated in a multivariate study, with demographic and sexual history variables covaried. Subjects were unmarried, sexually active 15- to 19-year-old women. Two studies were conducted: one using a large and representative sample and the second using a smaller, high socioeconomic status sample that is more typical of samples generally used in earlier research. Subjects were classified as effective, ineffective, or nonusers of contraception, based on both frequency of use and effectiveness of the method(s) they used. Two discriminant function analyses were performed to determine (a) whether knowledge and attitudes contributed to discrimination among the groups over and above discrimination attributable to demographic and sexual history variables, and (b) which variables distinguished ineffective users from both other groups. The results of both studies indicate that attitudes, particularly attitudes toward contraception, are strong predictors of patterns of contraceptive use. Ineffective users were distinguished from nonusers by their greater knowledge of contraception, and from both other groups by their greater sexual activity and more positive attitudes toward intercourse. The discussion focuses on the theoretical implications of the results, the usefulness of the effective/ineffective/nonuser categorization, and applications of these findings to design of interventions.     

DISTRACTION: ITS UTILIZATION AND EFFICACY WITH CHILDREN UNDERGOING DENTAL TREATMENT

We investigated the utilization and efficacy of distraction in reducing the anxious and disruptive behavior of 4 children undergoing dental treatment. During the distraction procedure, the children were shown a poster and told a story about it during dental treatment. They earned a prize if they attended to the poster and story and could correctly answer questions about them following each intervention visit. The children's disruptive behavior was assessed via direct observation, and results were analyzed within a multiple baseline design. The children exhibited high levels of anxious and disruptive behavior across baseline visits, regardless of the length of time in treatment or number of visits. Anxious and disruptive behavior decreased upon introduction of the intervention for all children. This was accompanied by the children meeting the criterion for correct answers on the distraction quiz. However, 2 of the children demonstrated an increase in their anxious and disruptive behavior across intervention visits. Results are discussed in terms of the need to evaluate treatment strategies that promote maintenance as well as initial changes.     

Determinants of Mediator Behavior: A Test of the Strategic Choice Model1

The present study simulated an organizational dispute to test 12 hypotheses about mediator behavior that were derived from the strategic choice model of mediation. This model is based on the assumption that mediators have four basic strategies to resolve disputes: (a) integrate, which involves a search for mutually acceptable outcomes; (b) press, which involves lowering one or both parties' aspirations; (c) compensate, which involves offering positive benefits in exchange for concessions; and (d) inaction, which involves letting the parties handle the dispute by themselves. The major proposition of the model is that two factors, the mediator's assessment of the likelihood of a mutually acceptable agreement and the mediator's concern for the parties' aspirations, interact to predict mediator behavior. Nine of the 12 hypotheses derived from the model were supported. Pressing by mediators occurred most when mediators had a low estimate of the likelihood of agreement in combination with a low concern for the parties' aspirations. Compensating occurred most when mediators had a low estimate of the likelihood of agreement in combination with a high concern for the parties' aspirations. Inaction occurred most when the mediators' estimate of the likelihood of agreement was high and their concern for the parties' aspirations was low. Integrating occurred most when the mediators had a high concern for the parties' aspirations.     

Preventive group psychotherapy for at-risk infants and their mothers

There is increased evidence that infants who receive poor quality social stimulation from their primary caregiver are at risk for later developmental difficulties. This paper describes a preventive intervention for mother-infant dyads exhibiting impaired patterns of social interaction. An impaired relationship with the primary caregiver has been found to be associated with social and emotional deficits in early childhood as well as with significant psychopathology in adulthood. The intervention consisted of group treatment of mothers and their infants. Each group session has 4 subsections which, together, were directed towards improving the mothers' ability to relate in a stimulating and nurturant manner to their children. Types of intervention included didactic instruction, modeling, and interpretation of the infant's behavior. Qualitative data suggested that the group intervention has positive effects on the mother-infant dyads.