Deciphering Subjective Trajectories for Life Satisfaction Using Self‐versus‐Normative Other Discrepancies,Self‐esteem and Hope

Drawing on temporal and social comparison perspectives, we examined sources of the widespread belief that life gets better and better over time by determining how young adults evaluate their past, present and anticipated future life satisfaction (LS) relative to beliefs about normative others. We assessed whether patterns of subjective LS trajectories based on self‐versus‐normative other discrepancies varied as a function of self‐esteem and whether such patterns were accounted for by hope, encompassing goal‐related cognitions and motivations. University participants (n = 394) completed measures of their own and normative others' past, present and anticipated future LS, as well as self‐esteem and hope scales. Results from latent growth curve analyses demonstrated that high‐self‐esteem and low‐self‐esteem individuals perceived normative others' LS as progressing on a similar upward subjective temporal trajectory; however, high‐self‐esteem individuals perceived self‐improvement from past to present LS and self‐consistency from present to future LS relative to others. Low‐self‐esteem individuals perceived self‐consistency from past to present LS and self‐improvement from present to future LS relative to others. These associations were accounted for by hope. This research highlights the utility of combining temporal and social comparison perspectives for understanding how people envision their LS unfolding over time. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Children's attributions for peer victimization: A social comparison approach

A social comparison framework was used to examine the relations between children's attributions for victimization and adjustment. In Study One, 192 nine-to ten-year-old children were asked why someone may pick on them. Results revealed attributions reflecting five causes of victimization that could be reliably sorted by direction of social comparison: (a) jealous peer (downward), (b) mutual antipathy (horizontal), (c) being different from each other (horizontal), (d) personal behavior (upward) and (e) being uncool (upward). Children's responses were used to create an attribution measure that was administered to 206 eight-to eleven-year-old children. Results were consistent with the social comparison hypothesis such that peer jealousy was uniquely associated with lower levels of loneliness and greater acceptance whereas personal behavior and not being uncool were correlated with greater loneliness and lower perceived acceptance and self-esteem. Findings supported the usefulness of a social comparison framework for understanding associations among attributions and adjustment.     

The ‘Right’ Side of Creativity: Creative Personality and Social Risk-Taking Predict Political Party Affiliation

Factors that predict political party affiliation are of particular importance in research due to the wider implications in politics and policy making. Extending this line of work, the idea that creativity predicts party affiliation was tested using 2 conceptualizations of creativity: creative personality and creative ideation. Participants (N = 406) based in the United States completed measures of creativity, socio-political attitudes, and domain specific risk-taking, and indicated their party affiliation. Results revealed a significant link between creative personality and political party affiliation. Furthermore, in addition to the socio-political attitudes, this link was explained, in part, by individuals’ social risk-taking. Specifically, individuals with higher scores on creative personality were more likely to affiliate to the Democratic party, whereas the reverse was true for affiliation to the Republican party. This article provides new insights into factors that predict political party affiliation and presents wider social implications of the findings.     

MANIPULATING SLOT MACHINE PREFERENCE IN PROBLEM GAMBLERS THROUGH CONTEXTUAL CONTROL

Pathological and nonpathological gamblers completed a task that assessed preference among 2 concurrently available slot machines. Subsequent assessments of choice were conducted after various attempts to transfer contextual functions associated with irrelevant characteristics of the slot machines. Results indicated that the nonproblem gambling group, but not the problem gambling group, increased their responding toward the slot initially trained as greater than following the initial training procedure, then decreased their responding toward that slot following the reversal phase.     

Applying Psychological Type Theory to Cathedral Visitors: A Case Study of Two Cathedrals in England and Wales

ABSTRACT

This study uses Jungian psychological type theory to profile visitors to Chester Cathedral in England and St Davids Cathedral in Wales. Psychological type theory offers a fourfold psychographic segmentation of visitors, distinguishing between introversion and extraversion, sensing and intuition, thinking and feeling, and judging and perceiving. New data provided by 157 visitors to Chester Cathedral, considered alongside previously published data provided by 381 visitors to St Davids Cathedral, demonstrated that these two cathedrals attract more introverts than extraverts, more sensers than intuitives, and more judgers than perceivers, but equal proportions of thinkers and feelers. Comparison with the population norms demonstrated that extraverts and perceivers are significantly underrepresented among visitors to these 2 cathedrals. The implications of these findings are discussed both for maximizing the visitor experiences of those already attracted to these cathedrals and for discovering ways of attracting more extraverts and more perceivers to explore these cathedrals.     

The Relationship Between Family-of-Origin Experience and Current Family Violence: A Test of Mediation by Attachment Style and Mental Health Symptom Distress

The purpose of this study was to examine whether the presence of substance abuse, physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, and mental illness in the home or family-of-origin is predictive of variance in current family violence perpetration. Additionally, a secondary purpose of this study was to examine whether mental health symptom distress and attachment style mediated the relationship between the presence of traumatic experiences in one's family-of-origin and current family violence perpetration. The results suggested that difficult family-of-origin experiences may predict variance in current family violence indirectly through mental health symptom distress and anxious attachment.     

Caregiver-conducted experimental functional analyses of inappropriate mealtime behavior

The purpose of the current study was to replicate the use of parents as therapists for experimental functional analyses of inappropriate mealtime behavior with multiple participants while measuring procedural integrity. Clear functions were identified, and high percentages of procedural integrity were obtained.     

Using stimulus variation to increase reinforcer efficacy of low preference stimuli

Recent research findings suggest that low preference stimuli can be effective reinforcers. This study compared responding to high preference and low preference stimuli under continuous reinforcement. Results demonstrated that responding was greater when a high preference stimulus was presented. Other research findings suggest that stimulus variation increases the potency of reinforcers perceived to be of high preference. This study extended this line of research by evaluating whether stimulus variation would increase the potency of low preference stimuli. Results demonstrated that when three low preference stimuli were presented in a varied fashion, responding corresponded with the levels obtained when a high preference stimulus was presented. Furthermore, a varied reinforcer presentation of low preference stimuli was found to increase and maintain high percentages of correct responding and on‐task behavior to levels equal to those obtained with a high preference stimulus during a discrete trial preparation. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Atomangst

Utilizing complex statistical analyses, namely latent growth modeling, the long-term development of worries among peace movement supporters is examined. Data originate from a 7-wave German longitudinal study started in 1985 with the then on average 14-year-old subjects. Waves were interspersed at 3? year intervals. Activists are assumed to have lower (self-related) microworries (H1) and higher macroworries (concerned with larger entities; H2) than non-activists at the onset of the study. Non-activists who appraised the threat of nuclear war as high in 1985 are assumed to report worse mental health than their activist age mates 21 years later (H3). Activists are assumed to express relatively more macroworries than non-activists in mid-adulthood (H4). All four hypotheses were confirmed. Results are interpreted as evidence for the psychoanalytic argumentation by Leith?user that fear of global threats is likely to be displaced into personal anxiety if not coped with in the form of ??identifying participation?? in political action, suggesting that refraining from acting out against a perceived sociopolitical threat is a long-term risk for a positive mental-health trajectory.