Callings and work engagement: moderated mediation model of work meaningfulness, occupational identity, and occupational self-efficacy

Scholarly interest in callings is growing, but researchers' understanding of how and when callings relate to career outcomes is incomplete. The present study investigated the possibility that the relationship of calling to work engagement is mediated by work meaningfulness, occupational identity, and occupational self-efficacy--and that this mediation depends on the degree of perceived person-job fit. I examined a highly educated sample of German employees (N = 529) in diverse occupations and found support for 2 of the 3 hypothesized mediators-work meaningfulness and occupational identity--after controlling for the relation of core self-evaluations to work engagement. Contrary to expectations, the mediated relations of callings to work engagement were not conditional upon the degree of person--job fit. The findings are considered in terms of the pathways through which callings may relate to work engagement and other career development outcomes.     

Together, slowly but surely: the role of social interaction and feedback on the build-up of benefit in collective decision-making

That objective reference is necessary for formation of reliable beliefs about the external world is almost axiomatic. However, Condorcet (1785) suggested that purely subjective information--if shared and combined via social interaction--is enough for accurate understanding of the external world. We asked if social interaction and objective reference contribute differently to the formation and build-up of collective perceptual beliefs. In three experiments, dyads made individual and collective perceptual decisions in a two-interval, forced-choice, visual search task. In Experiment 1, participants negotiated their collective decisions with each other verbally and received feedback about accuracy at the end of each trial. In Experiment 2, feedback was not given. In Experiment 3, communication was not allowed but feedback was provided. Social interaction (Experiments 1 and 2 vs. 3) resulted in a significant collective benefit in perceptual decisions. When feedback was not available a collective benefit was not initially obtained but emerged through practice to the extent that in the second half of the experiments, collective benefits obtained with (Experiment 1) and without (Experiment 2) feedback were robust and statistically indistinguishable. Taken together, this work demonstrates that social interaction was necessary for build-up of reliable collaborative benefit, whereas objective reference only accelerated the process but--given enough opportunity for practice--was not necessary for building up successful cooperation.     

A prototypicality validation of the Comprehensive Assessment of Psychopathic Personality model (CAPP)

Cooke and colleagues recently developed the lexically based model of psychopathy named the Comprehensive Assessment of Psychopathic Personality (CAPP, Cooke, Hart, Logan, & Michie, 2004). The current study was the first to evaluate aspects of the validity of a translated version of the CAPP model, which comprises 33 symptoms from six domains of personality functioning. Prototypicality ratings from 796 Norwegian community residents, forensic mental health professionals, and corrections professionals were obtained. Most CAPP symptoms were evaluated as highly prototypical of psychopathy by all three groups. Symptoms from the Self, Dominance, and Attachment domains were perceived as more prototypical than those from the Behavioral domain. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) indicated that two CAPP domains were unidimensional whereas evidence of unidimensionality was somewhat weaker for the other domains, but improved substantially after removal of problematic symptoms. Overall, the findings support the content validity of the CAPP model. This may have relevance to the current considerations regarding reformulation of the criteria for Antisocial Personality Disorder in DSM-V.     

Migranten in sozial schwachen Stadtteilen von Berlin

Background

The aim of the present study was to compare psychological distress and substance use between migrant and non-migrant populations in a socially deprived area of Berlin.

Methods

A population-based random sample stratified for age (18?C57?years) and gender (50% female) was retrieved from the registration office. A total of 143 persons were included in the study. The participation rate was 48.5% when contact was established. Psychological distress was assessed using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) with its four subscales, somatic symptoms, anxiety/insomnia, social dysfunction and severe depression. Substance use was quantified using the Alcohol Use Identification Disorder Test (AUDIT) and the Fagerstr?m Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND).

Results

Of the study population 51.3% were first or second generation migrants and lived more often in single households. Migrants had lower educational levels and lower employment rates. The mean scores of migrants and non-migrants did not differ on any of the subscales somatic symptoms, anxiety/depression, social dysfunction or severe depression of the GHQ-28. Non-migrants showed significantly higher risks regarding alcohol use.

Discussion

The present study did not reveal any differences regarding symptom profiles in the spectrum of anxiety and depression between non-migrants and migrants who lived in a socially deprived area. Migrants may compensate higher social risk profiles with lower risks regarding alcohol use. Larger samples have to inform on possible differences regarding smoking and other substances.     

Early signs of memory impairment among multiple sclerosis patients with clinically isolated syndrome

The study investigates primary and secondary verbal memory and motor/executive functions (response inhibition and strategy shifting ability) in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS). We studied 44 CIS patients and compared them to 49 patients with relapsing remitting MS (RR-MS) displaying mild disability and to a large cohort of age- and education level-matched healthy volunteers(n=230). Results showed that both CIS and RR-MS patients evidenced a disproportionate impairment in the immediate and delayed recall of the second (as compared to the first) of two short narratives of the Logical Memory WMS-III subtest, and reduced performance on the Memory for Digits-Forward. Performance of either group on the executive tasks was not impaired, showing evidence of a reversed speed-accuracy trade-off. Illness duration emerged as a significant predictor of memory and executive task performance. Clinical, psychoemotional, and brain imaging findings were also examined as potential correlates of memory deficits and disease progression among CIS patients. These findings may signify early-onset decline of specific cognitive functions in CIS, which merits regular follow-up assessments and monitoring of psychoemotional adaptation and everyday functioning.     

Graph theory of tower tasks

The appropriate mathematical model for the problem space of tower transformation tasks is the state graph representing positions of discs or balls and their moves. Graph theoretical quantities like distance, eccentricities or degrees of vertices and symmetries of graphs support the choice of problems, the selection of tasks and the analysis of performance of subjects whose solution paths can be projected onto the graph. The mathematical model is also at the base of a computerized test tool to administer various types of tower tasks.     

Psychoedukation bei Personen mit erh?htem Psychoserisiko

Background

So far only few studies are available which have evaluated the effectiveness of psychoeducation for individuals at risk of psychosis in the early initial prodromal state (EIPS) whereas the benefit of psychoeducation in psychotic patients has been repeatedly confirmed. Thus the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of psychoeducation in individuals with increased risk of psychosis in the EIPS.

Method

A total of 128 help-seeking outpatients in the EIPS participated in a randomized controlled multicentre trial of 12 months of either psychoeducation as part of an integrated psychological intervention (IPI) or supportive counseling (SC). The time to transition to psychosis at 12-month and 24-month follow-up as well as the social adjustment at baseline, time of transition or post-treatment by means of the social adjustment scale (SAS?II) were assessed.

Results

The IPI was superior to SC in preventing progression to psychosis at 12-month (3.2% versus 16.9%, p?=0.008) and 24-month follow-up (6.3% versus 20.0%, p?=0.019). Both treatments resulted in significant pre-post improvements in SAS?II with no significant differences between the two groups.

Conclusions

Psychoeducation as part of an integrated intervention is effective for preventing the onset of psychosis over a 24-month time period in people in an EIPS. Moreover patients at risk of developing first episode psychosis seem to benefit from a specific psychoeducational intervention in the context of other treatments as well as from SC.     

Schmerzmanagement bei fortgeschrittener Demenz

Typischerweise liegen bei geriatrischen Patienten mehrere Erkrankungen gleichzeitig vor, die sich wechselseitig in ihrem Verlauf, aber auch in ihrer symptomatischen Auswirkung, beeinflussen. Dies gilt besonders für Zusammentreffen chronischer Schmerzen mit einer Demenz.