Further explorations in empowerment theory: An empirical analysis of psychological empowerment

Developed empowerment theory and replicated previous research on citizen participation and perceived control. Few investigators have designed studies that specifically test empowerment theory. This research further extends a theoretical model of psychological empowerment that includes intrapersonal, interactional, and behavioral components, by studying a large randomly selected urban and suburban community sample and examining race differences. Results suggest that one underlying dimension that combines different measures of perceived control may be interpreted as the intrapersonal component of psychological empowerment, because it distinguishes groups defined by their level of participation in community organizations and activities (behavioral component). The association found between the intrapersonal and behavioral components is consistent with empowerment theory. Interaction effects between race groups and participation suggest that participation may be more strongly associated with the intrapersonal component of psychological empowerment for African Americans than for white individuals. Implications for empowerment theory and intervention design are discussed. The authors express appreciation to Steven Rosenstone who was the Principal Investigator for the Detroit Area Study from which the data for our study is based. We also thank Deborah A. Salem and the anonymous reviewers for their thoughtful comments on earlier drafts of this paper.     

Residential and community treatment services utilized by a sample of youth with severe emotional disturbances

Analyzed case records to determine the costs and service usage patterns for a group of 25 youth randomly selected from the case load of a regional mental health agency. Study participants had extensive histories of publicly supported psychiatric hospitalizations. An average of 36.2 contacts per youth (905 total contacts) with human services providers were documented. Approximately 2 out of every 5 contacts resulted in out-of-home placements. The estimated cost of providing services to the 25 youth exceeded 3 million dollars. The types and costs of treatment services provided to study participants are discussed.     

Parents as therapeutic agents: The usefulness of filial therapy in a community mental health center

Filial Therapy, a program training parents as play therapists for their own children, has been found an effective part of the functioning of a child unit in a community mental health center. The basic philosophy and principles of Filial Therapy are identified. The use of parents as therapists is viewed as consistent with the growth of the community mental health movement and the concept of treating the context in which the child resides. The structure and flexibility of this model are delineated to provide the reader with a basis to introduce Filial Therapy in his/her own setting.     

Parenting cognitions and treatment beliefs as predictors of experience using behavioral parenting strategies in families of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

We tested a model of mothers' parenting efficacy and attributions for child ADHD behaviors as predictors of experiences with behavioral treatment. The model proposed that mothers' beliefs regarding the acceptability and effectiveness of behavioral strategies would intervene between mothers' cognitions about parenting and child behavior and their treatment experiences. Participants were 101 mothers of 5- to 10-year-old children (82% male) with ADHD. Mothers reported their parenting efficacy and attributions for child behavior, and then received a single session of treatment teaching 2 behavior management strategies. Then, mothers reported their beliefs regarding the acceptability and effectiveness of these strategies. A follow-up phone interview 1 week later assessed mothers' experiences in using the behavioral strategies. The overall model fit the data. Attributions of child ADHD behavior as more pervasive, enduring, and within the child's control were related to seeing behavioral treatment as more acceptable, but neither attributions nor treatment acceptability predicted treatment experience. However, mothers with higher parenting efficacy viewed the behavioral strategies as more likely to be effective, and this pathway significantly predicted positive treatment experience. Implications for understanding the variables that contribute to parental decision-making and treatment participation for childhood ADHD are considered.     

Perceptual load modulates the processing of distractors presented at task-irrelevant locations during the attentional blink

The distribution of attention in both space and time is critical for processing our dynamic environment. Studies of spatial attention suggest that the distribution of attention is decreased when the perceptual load of a task increases, resulting in decreased processing of task-irrelevant distractors. Studies of the attentional blink (AB) suggest that the temporal distribution of attention also influences distractor processing, such that distractor processing increases during the AB relative to outside the AB (Jiang & Chun, 2001). Two experiments are reported in which the extent to which the difficulty of the first target task (T1) modulates the processing of task-irrelevant distractors during the AB was tested. To investigate this issue, both the first and second target tasks (T1 and T2) required identifying a central stimulus that was flanked by low-load or high-load distractors. Consistent with previous studies of the AB, there was evidence of more distractor processing during the AB than outside the AB. Critically, however, the interference caused by distractors presented simultaneously with T2 during the AB was reduced when T1 perceptual load was high relative to when it was low. These results suggest that increasing T1 perceptual load decreases distractor processing during the AB and that perceptual processes influence both the temporal and spatial distribution of attention.     

Self-Consciousness and Strategic Self-Presentation

ABSTRACT People who are publicly self-conscious have been characterized as being especially concerned about their social identities and oriented toward gaining approval and avoiding disapproval. In two experiments, it was found that “pure publics” (i.e., those high in public and low in private self-consciousness) were the most concerned about matching their deeds and words. These subjects presented themselves to a partner consistently with their publicly known, prior performance on a supposedly valid test of social sensitivity. However, they presented themselves in a uniformly positive manner if the test could be dismissed as invalid and/or if their performance was unknown. In contrast, subjects low in public or high in private self-consciousness did not display these strategic patterns and presented themselves positively in all cases. Pure publics are thus the most likely to engage in patterns of self-presentation that have been shown to maximize approval and minimize disapproval in social interactions.     

Four Pillars of Internet Research Ethics with Web 2.0

The proliferation of social media and web 2.0 applications (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, blogs, etc.) in the previous 5 years has created a new social research opportunity, with over an estimated 552 million active daily users on Facebook (Facebook Press 2012). As with all research, boundaries must be set out to create valid and accurate data, keeping ethical practices at the forefront of the data gathering process. The lack of standardized practices requires an in-depth look into the use of such methods, with focus on four major areas: 1) security for the individual, 2) anonymity, 3) safety and 4) use of mined data and information gathered by either passive or active means.