Wittgenstein's rule-following paradox: How to resolve it with lessons for psychology

Four assumptions about rule-learning in mathematics continue to be central to psychology—mathematical rules are clear and exact, their applications are well defined, their learning is typically through social experiences, whose mechanisms are causal. All four are contradicted in Wittgenstein's analysis of the rule-following paradox (RFP) one of whose essential features is the normativity of mathematical rules. Although RFP is alive well in 21st century philosophy, it has received scant attention in psychology. My argument is in four parts—a brief review of rule-learning in psychology under the four assumptions; a substantial review of RFP in which they are invalidated; a confirming re-analysis in Piaget's developmental epistemology (DE) with its research-program for an empirically based interpretation of normativity; and four implications for psychology about the limits of causal models, constructivism and rules, rules and networks, novelty as inherent in mental functioning throughout human development.     

An Exploratory Study of Integrative Personality Pathology Systems and the Interpersonal Circumplex

Normative and pathological personality traits are theoretically associated with interpersonal behavior patterns and difficulties. However, little is known about relations between dimensional personality systems that integrate pathological and normative traits and social functioning. The current study explores the projections of scales from two integrative frameworks, the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Pathology and the Schedule for Nonadaptive and Adaptive Personality, onto interpersonal circumplex traits and problems. The DAPP and the SNAP demonstrated similar overall validity in predicting the interpersonal domain. Results suggest a novel framework for understanding personality—interpersonal behavior relations by categorizing scales according to their: a) minimal, b) non-specific, c) specific, and d) differential relations to interpersonal traits and problems with important implications for future research relating clinical constructs to interpersonal behavior as well as clinical assessment and behavioral predictions based on SNAP and DAPP scales.     

Work-Family Conflict and Work-Related Withdrawal Behaviors

This survey study explored the effects of work-to-family conflict and family-to-work conflict on withdrawal behaviors at work (family interruptions at work, lateness to work, and absenteeism) among both members of 359 dual-earner couples. Using a systems theory framework, regression analyses revealed significant individual-level and crossover effects for both types of work-family conflict on withdrawal behaviors. Theoretical and practical implications of the study of work-family conflict crossover effects on withdrawal behaviors at work are discussed.     

Imbalances in the knowledge about infancy: The divide between rich and poor countries

Over 90% of the world's infants are born in low‐income or “developing” countries, and these countries bear a disproportionate burden in terms of health and social problems. In this article we compare the contributions of richer and poorer countries to knowledge about infancy. We surveyed articles on infancy from 12 international journals dealing with psychological aspects of childhood and infancy and found that 94% of articles surveyed were written from Europe or North America. We suggest that the imbalance in knowledge about infancy is serious and that efforts must be made to increase collaborative research between poor and rich countries. ©2003 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.     

The Relationship of Recruiting Sources and Pre-Hire Outcomes: Examination of Yield Ratios and Applicant Quality

The study reported in this paper examined the relationship between 5 recruiting sources (college placement offices, newspaper advertisements, employee referrals, direct applicants, and job fairs) and several important but neglected pre-hire outcomes (e.g., percentage of qualified applicants generated, percentage of applicants who were hired). As hypothesized, applicants who applied directly for jobs and those who were referred by current employees were more likely to receive job offers and to become employees than were applicants recruited via other sources. Unexpectedly, recruiting sources were not related to the measures of applicant quality used in this study.     

The Relationship Between Religion and Happiness Among German Students

A sample of 331 students completed German editions of the Oxford Happiness Inventory and the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity, together with the short form Revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. These data provide no evidence for a relationship between religiosity and happiness among German students, contrary to the conclusions of recent studies that have employed the same indices in the UK and in the USA.     

Personality and Spirituality: Christian Prayer and Eastern Meditation Are Not the Same

A random sample of 1,033 adults in an Australian community survey completed a form containing the abbreviated Revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire together with questions about the practice of prayer and Eastern meditation. While prayer was associated with low psychoticism scores, Eastern meditation was associated with high psychoticism scores.     

A Comparison of the Psychometric Properties of the 16PF4 and 16PF5 Among Male Anglican Clergy

Cattell's latest version of the 16PF (16PF5) was completed by a random sample of 580 male Anglican clergy whose names and addresses were provided by the Church Commissioners' payroll. These data demonstrated the robustness and reliability of the new instrument for this specialist population compared to the poor psychometric qualities of the 16PF4 as judged by the same criteria.