The consequences of job crafting: a three-wave study

This longitudinal study examined the consequences of job crafting on two important employee outcomes: psychological capital (PsyCap) as a work-related personal resource and work engagement as an indicator of employee well-being. The study also tested the reverse causation effects of PsyCap and work engagement on job crafting. It used a three-wave, three-month panel design to survey 940 employees from three European countries working in a broad range of economic sectors and occupations. The results of the cross-lagged longitudinal structural equation modelling demonstrated that job crafting predicted PsyCap and work engagement over time. No reverse causation effects were found. Overall, this study shows that when individuals proactively build a resourceful and challenging work environment for themselves, it can lead to diverse positive outcomes that are crucial to employee health and well-being. Employees should therefore be encouraged and be given the opportunity to craft their own jobs.     

Regret intensity, diurnal cortisol secretion, and physical health in older individuals: evidence for directional effects and protective factors

Two studies were conducted to examine the associations between life regrets and health-relevant variables among older adults. Study 1 explored whether intense experiences of regret would be associated with a health-relevant biological process (i.e., diurnal cortisol secretion) and acute physical problems (N = 183). In Study 2, a group of 103 older adults was followed over a period of 3 months, and changes in cold symptoms and sleep problems were examined. Study 2 incorporated an experimental manipulation, targeted at engaging participants in adaptive social- cognitive processes through writing. The results of Study 1 showed intense life regrets to be associated with a larger volume and a steeper morning rise of cortisol secretion and with higher levels of acute physical symptoms. Study 2 demonstrated that levels of regret intensity generally declined only in the experimental group, whereas certain aspects of regret intensity remained stable in the control group. In addition, the intervention evidenced a beneficial effect on the association between initial regret intensity and increased sleep problems over time.     

Examining the Test Of Memory Malingering Trial 1 and Word Memory Test Immediate Recognition as screening tools for insufficient effort

Assessing effort level during neuropsychological evaluations is critical to support the accuracy of cognitive test scores. Many instruments are designed to measure effort, yet they are not routinely administered in neuropsychological assessments. The Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM) and the Word Memory Test (WMT) are commonly administered symptom validity tests with sound psychometric properties. This study examines the use of the TOMM Trial 1 and the WMT Immediate Recognition (IR) trial scores as brief screening tools for insufficient effort through an archival analysis of a combined sample of mild head-injury litigants ( N = 105) who were assessed in forensic private practices. Results show that both demonstrate impressive diagnostic accuracy and calculations of positive and negative predictive power are presented for a range of base rates. These results support the utility of Trial 1 of the TOMM and the WMT IR trial as screening methods for the assessment of insufficient effort in neuropsychological assessments.     

A Note on Comparing the Estimates of Models for Cluster-Correlated or Longitudinal Data with Binary or Ordinal Outcomes

When using linear models for cluster-correlated or longitudinal data, a common modeling practice is to begin by fitting a relatively simple model and then to increase the model complexity in steps. New predictors might be added to the model, or a more complex covariance structure might be specified for the observations. When fitting models for binary or ordered-categorical outcomes, however, comparisons between such models are impeded by the implicit rescaling of the model estimates that takes place with the inclusion of new predictors and/or random effects. This paper presents an approach for putting the estimates on a common scale to facilitate relative comparisons between models fit to binary or ordinal outcomes. The approach is developed for both population-average and unit-specific models.     

Interaction of attention and temporal object priming

Within a 3 × 3 matrix of 90° corner junctions, detection of a Kanizsa-type square is facilitated when the target display is preceded by a 40-Hz flickering premask of 3 × 3 crosses, with four crosses synchronously oscillating at the subsequent target location. To examine whether this ‘synchrony-priming’ effect is influenced by, or dependent on, visuo-spatial attention, a spatial-cueing manipulation was introduced. Observers were presented with a visual or acoustic cue which indicated the likely target quadrant. The main finding was that synchrony priming was larger for invalidly, compared with validly, cued locations, and that the priming effect was figural, rather than spatial, in nature (i.e., confined to points associated with the completed boundary, rather than extending to the inner region, defined by the synchronous premask elements). This pattern of effects argues that target processing is expedited not by attracting spatial attention to the primed location, but by the prime expediting (figure-specific) target encoding, as a result of which the target position gains a processing and selection advantage relative to non-primed locations.     

Bauer S, Kordy H (Hrsg) (2009) E-Mental-Health – Neue Medien in der psychosozialen Versorgung Springer, Berlin, 350?S., ISBN-10: 354075735X, EUR?34,95

Buchbesprechungen

Bauer S, Kordy H (Hrsg) (2009) E-Mental-Health – Neue Medien in der psychosozialen Versorgung Springer, Berlin, 350 S., ISBN-10: 354075735X, EUR 34,95     

Going beyond the specifics: Generalization of single actions, but not temporal order, at 9 months

We examined generalization in 9-month-old infants after a 24-h delay using deferred imitation. Infants flexibly applied their knowledge of sequence actions across changes in props even though they had no opportunity for immediate imitation.     

Changing “us” and hostility towards “them”—Implicit theories of national identity determine prejudice and participation rates in an anti-immigrant petition

National identity definitions determine who belongs to the national ingroup (e.g., “us Germans”) versus the “foreign” outgroup prone to hostile outgroup bias. We conducted five studies in two countries investigating if viewing the ingroup's national identity as fixed exacerbates the perceived divide between ingroup and outgroup and thus increases anti-immigrant hostility, while a malleable view blurs the divide and reduces anti-immigrant hostility. In a Prestudy (58 participants), an Implicit Theory of National Identity Scale was developed. In Studies 1 (154 participants) and 2 (390 participants), our scale predicted individuals’ prejudice and participation rates in a hypothetical referendum and a real petition against immigrants. In Studies 3 (225 participants) and 4 (225 participants), experimental evidence was obtained. Leading participants to believe that the definition of “a true compatriot” changes over time (rather than remaining the same) resulted in lower levels of prejudice and participation rates in an anti-immigrant petition.     

Security of attachment and quality of mother-toddler social interaction in a high-risk sample

The quality of children's social interactions and their attachment security with a primary caregiver are two widely studied indices of socioemotional functioning in early childhood. Although both Bowlby and Ainsworth suggested that the parent-child interactions underlying the development of attachment security could be distinguished from other aspects of parent-child interaction (e.g., play), relatively little empirical research has examined this proposition. The aim of the current study was to explore this issue by examining concurrent relations between toddler's attachment security in the Strange Situation Procedure and quality of mother-child social interaction in a high-risk sample of toddlers characterized by prenatal cocaine exposure and low levels of maternal education. Analyses of variance suggested limited relations between attachment security and quality of social interaction. Further research examining the interrelations among various components of the parent-child relationship is needed.