Are the Questions of Metaphysics More Fundamental Than Those of Science?

When pursued naturalistically, metaphysics may seem forced to navigate a narrow path. So that it may be a worthwhile enterprise, it must have claim to discovery of a distinctive set of objective truths. Yet it must also avoid potential competition or conflict with the results of scientific theories. In response to this problem, some naturalistic metaphysicians have argued that properly understood, metaphysics is aimed at a set of truths distinct from those of science. Metaphysicians investigate a realm of truths more fundamental than those of even fundamental science. This paper examines what is required both in science and metaphysics for a theory to count as a fundamental theory. Several criteria are presented which suggest that metaphysics does not investigate a realm more fundamental than that of science.     

Perceived fit with an academic environment: Attitudinal and behavioral outcomes

Because person–organization fit relates to important outcomes, and because fit is a time-dependent process, there exists a need to model longitudinal data related to fit. In a multi-university sample (N = 1174), we tested hypotheses concerning person–organization fit and various behavioral and attitudinal outcomes; correlations between changes in these variables over time, and the correlates of these changes. Using autoregressive modeling and latent growth curve modeling, results indicated that academic fit leads to academic satisfaction, which in turn leads to turnover intent, and to a lesser extent GPA and class absenteeism. Changes in academic fit correlated highly with similar changes in satisfaction and GPA and with opposite changes in turnover intent. Academic satisfaction did not correlate with subsequent organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) as predicted; changes across these domains were significantly related, but were small. Consistent with our hypotheses, Realistic interests correlated negatively with changes in academic fit and satisfaction. Investigative interests were correlated positively with changes in fit and initial satisfaction levels. We conclude by discussing implications, limitations, and future research concerning the longitudinal analysis of person–organization fit.     

Changes in Attitudes Toward Women's Roles: Predicting Gender-Role Traditionalism Among College Students

National college student data derived from the 1996 Cooperative Institutional Research Program Freshman Survey and the 2000 College Student Survey were used to assess longitudinal changes in gender-role traditionalism across 4 years of college. Applying the Input–Environment–Outcome model to blocked stepwise regression analyses, the predictive value of students' precollege characteristics and predispositions, and various college environments and experiences, were assessed for men and women. Findings indicated that students' levels of traditionalism declined during college. Although men and women tended to change similarly on this dimension, women held more egalitarian views than did men at college entry and 4 years later. Regression results pointed to the relevance of peers, academic engagement, women's studies courses, and diversity experiences for students' gender-role attitudes 4 years after college entry.     

Nonlinear Associations Between Co-Rumination and Both Social Support and Depression Symptoms

Co-ruminating about one's problems appears to involve both beneficial self-disclosure and harmful rumination, suggesting that moderate levels may be the most adaptive. This study used nonlinear regression to determine whether moderate levels of self-reported co-rumination in relationships with a sibling, parent, friend, and romantic partner are linked to the highest levels of self-perceived social support and lowest levels of self-reported depression symptoms in 175 emerging adults (77% female; M = 19.66 years). As expected, moderate co-rumination was associated with high social support across all four relationship types, but, somewhat unexpectedly, high levels of co-rumination were also associated with high social support. As predicted, moderate levels of co-rumination with friends and siblings were associated with low levels of depression. Contrary to hypotheses, high levels of co-rumination were associated with high depression within romantic relationships. Co-rumination with a parent did not have a linear or quadratic association with depression. These findings suggest that high co-ruminating in supportive relationships and to a lesser extent low co-ruminating in unsupportive relationships are maladaptive interpersonal processes but that co-rumination's relation to depression depends on the co-ruminating partner. Psychotherapies for depression may target these maladaptive processes by supporting clients' development of balanced self-focused negative talk.     

PTSD symptoms among tsunami exposed mothers in Sri Lanka: the role of disaster exposure,culturally specific coping strategies,and recovery efforts

Background and objectives: Women in Sri Lanka have been uniquely exposed to a complex and protracted set of stressors stemming from a civil war conflict spanning over 25 years and the tsunami which struck Southeast Asia in 2004. This study investigates coping strategies and their association with trauma-related symptoms of tsunami-exposed mothers in Sri Lanka at two time points.

Design: Data for this study come from surveys administered in two waves of data collection to investigate both mothers’ and adolescent children’s post-tsunami mental health in early 2005, three months after the tsunami struck, and again in 2008, three years later.

Methods: Latent-variable structural equation modeling was used to test the study hypotheses among 160 tsunami-affected mothers in the Polhena village, Matara district, Sri Lanka.

Results: Among the various coping strategies examined, the use of cultural rituals as well as inner psychological strength was associated with lower levels of posttraumatic stress symptoms. In contrast, passive religious beliefs were associated with greater posttraumatic stress levels.

Conclusions: The results of this study reveal the differential associations of various coping strategies including rituals used by mothers exposed to the tsunami in Sri Lanka and their posttraumatic stress symptom levels.     

Inconsistent handedness and saccade execution benefit face memory without affecting interhemispheric interaction

Individuals who consistently use their dominant hand for most tasks exhibit poorer memory than individuals whose handedness is relatively inconsistent, but consistent-handers' memory can be enhanced by making repetitive saccadic eye movements before attempting retrieval. One account of these effects is that inconsistent handedness and saccade execution are associated with increased interhemispheric interaction, which putatively facilitates retrieval. We tested this account by having participants classify faces as famous or novel. Faces were presented in the left and right visual fields simultaneously (bilaterally) or in one field only (unilaterally). As in prior studies, famous faces were classified more quickly and more accurately given bilateral presentation, but novel faces were not. These bilateral gain effects indicate that interhemispheric interaction specifically facilitates famous-face recognition, and therefore larger gains may reflect greater interhemispheric interaction. However, neither inconsistent handedness nor saccade execution increased the size of bilateral gain. Inconsistent handedness and saccade execution (the latter for consistent-handers only) did increase face-classification accuracy, but the increases were not specific to famous-face recognition, and, in fact, were somewhat stronger for novel-face identification. These results extend the beneficial mnemonic effects of inconsistent handedness and saccade execution to faces, but indicate that these benefits are not caused by increased interhemispheric interaction.     

Picture Perfect: The Relationship between Selfie Behaviors,Self-Objectification,and Depressive Symptoms

Sex Roles - Social media use has been linked to depression, although there is evidence that how one uses social media matters. Self-objectification may influence social media-related behaviors,...