The hidden sides of self-esteem: Two dimensions of implicit self-esteem and their relation to narcissistic reactions

Implicit, or nonconscious, self-esteem is often assumed to involve a unidimensional evaluation of the self. Our studies demonstrate that implicit self-esteem is in fact multifaceted and can be divided into at least two dimensions, which we term self-liking and self-attractiveness. Among participants for whom narcissistic thoughts and feelings were experimentally activated, we found that the two dimensions of implicit self-esteem were differentially associated with self-reported narcissism (Study 1) and feelings of aggressiveness (Study 2). In particular, narcissistic reactions were predicted by the combination of a high level of implicit self-attractiveness and a low level of implicit self-liking. These findings add to the growing understanding of the complexities of implicit self-esteem.     

Scientist-administrators at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development as contributors to the scientific enterprise

At the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), as in other government research supporting agencies, scientist-administrators who are "program staff" work to accomplish their organization's set of research priorities using established mechanisms for supporting research. At the same time, the definition of their work is given to their interpretation, which, in turn, is guided by their understanding of their scientific discipline and their commitment to it. The tension that may arise between the organization-guided role and the science-guided role is more apparent than real because the major responsibility of "program staff" within the Institute is to cultivate a grant portfolio addressing scientific issues relevant to the mission of the Institute and exemplifying the most advanced research concepts and methodologies. When the overlap between the mission of the Institute and the direction of science is small, the push to increase it leads to new and imaginative solutions that benefit both the Institute and the science.     

The resolution of two paradoxes by approximate reasoning using a fuzzy logic

Summary The method of approximate reasoning using a fuzzy logic introduced by Baldwin (1978 a,b,c), is used to model human reasoning in the resolution of two well known paradoxes.It is shown how classical propositional logic fails to resolve the paradoxes, how multiple valued logic partially succeeds and that a satisfactory resolution is obtained with fuzzy logic.The problem of precise representation of vague concepts is considered in the light of the results obtained.     

“I Didn’t Expect to Learn as Much as I Did”: Rewards of Caregiving in Young Adulthood

While much attention is given to unpaid caregivers in midlife, there is a notable gap in the literature regarding young adults in family caregiving roles. Although two out of 5 family caregivers are between the ages of 18 and 40, we know relatively little about these younger relatives providing support to ill and disabled family members. Understanding the experiences of this under-researched population is critical to effective social service provision for this new wave of caregivers. In addition, the challenges associated with caregiving are well documented, yet examining the positive aspects of caregiving is necessary to provide a balanced picture of caregiving. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the gains experienced by family caregivers in young adulthood. In-depth telephone interviews were conducted with a diverse sample of 22 individuals who were (or had previously been) caregivers while in young adulthood. Analysis of the data resulted in identification of four themes concerning gains experienced by young adult caregivers: a strengthening of family relationships, character growth, personal satisfaction in the care provided, and material benefit. This study sheds some understanding on rewards experienced by a subgroup of family caregivers who has received little attention—young adult caregivers.     

Metaphors can give life meaning

Conceptual metaphor theory offers a perspective on how and when people find meaning in life. Whereas life’s meaning can be difficult to grasp, metaphor compares life to a relatively more concrete and structured concept. Supporting this account, American adults (Study 1) and German undergraduates (Study 2) who framed life as a journey reported more meaning in life. The journey metaphor was particularly beneficial for individuals with low levels of perceived coherence in life (Study 2). Study 3 further explored this pattern of moderation: An accessible metaphor, compared to other life framings, benefited participants who lack a strong meaning framework. Study 4 focused on the mechanism behind metaphor’s influence. Participants who imagined events from their life journey perceived stronger interrelatedness among those events as measured with an analog spatial organization task. Perceived interrelatedness in turn predicted meaning in life, particularly for individuals with a strong preference for well-structured knowledge. Finally, participants who applied their own metaphor to life expressed greater meaning (Study 5), especially those high in personal need for structure (Study 6). An internal meta-analysis of these findings provides cumulative evidence for metaphor’s influence on perceived meaning in life and reveals moderating features of the individual.     

Glucose levels are not associated with common features-derived prototype memory abstractions

Elevated glucose levels are associated with increased recall on declarative memory tasks. No previous studies have examined such a relationship using a common features-derived prototype memory abstraction task. 20 participants volunteered, 10 each in an experimental group who were given 40 g of glucose to drink and a control group given an artificially sweetened beverage after fasting. Analysis indicated that common features-derived prototype memory abstractions seem resistant to glucose fluctuations.     

Significance of violence in stories of young children

Stories told by 72 5-yr.-old children were scored for themes of violence and correlated with their mothers' reports of aggressive or fearful behaviors. Values for the entire sample were not significant. However, when data for Hispanic children were removed from the sample the correlation of violent stories to ratings of children's aggression was significant (r = .27) and for a count of violent words r = .30. The correlation of violent words to fearfulness was .28 and for girls only .35. The count of violent words was also correlated with African-American children's ratings of fearfulness (r = .64).     

Methods of data collection,perceptions of risks and losses,and motivation to give truthful answers to sensitive survey questions

Two experiments examined survey respondents' concerns about risks and losses when answering sensitive questions in a survey. In Experiment 1 subjects watched one of eight different versions of a videotaped staged interview of a woman being asked about abortion and drunk driving. Experiment 2 was an actual survey interview about women's health issues, including abortion. In Experiment 2, a large proportion of the sample had a recent abortion for which validation information from the clinic was available. Results of both experiments indicate that, when responding to questions about sensitive topics, survey respondents are concerned about risks and losses other than those covered by standard confidentiality assurances and that these other concerns affect truthful reporting. Experiment 1 showed the importance of privacy in surveys of sensitive behaviours. The experiments suggest that under some circumstances interviewer‐administration of sensitive questions may produce data as good as or better than self‐administration. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Make America gracious again: Collective nostalgia can increase and decrease support for right-wing populist rhetoric

Democracies across the globe are shaken by a new class of populist right-wing politicians. A defining element of right-wing populism is a preference for antagonistic rhetoric to describe opponents. Three studies connect support for right-wing populist rhetoric to collective nostalgia for the past. Importantly, the results show that collective nostalgia can both increase and decrease support for right-wing populist antagonistic rhetoric, depending on how the past is conceptualized. Nostalgia for a past characterized by political incorrectness is associated with increased support, whereas nostalgia for the past's greater decorum is associated with decreased support for right-wing populism. Studies 1 and 2 show this with vignettes. Study 3 measures support for Trump and the GOP in the 2018 midterm elections. Although right-wing populism is often seen as the result of a wave of nostalgia, our results show that this link can be disconnected and even reversed.