Leadership in entrepreneurial organizations: context and motives

Although organizational contexts have an influence on leadership, and some of their characteristics may facilitate (through weak structures) or inhibit (through strong structures) the leaders' behaviors, the extent of their influence has rarely been studied. Indeed, research of the influence of some types of contexts (entrepreneurial vs. non-entrepreneurial) on the emergence of certain variables (leaders' motives) is even scarcer. This paper analyses this influence in 40 companies, interviewing their leaders to obtain a qualitative register of their motives, and administering questionnaires to members of their respective management teams. The hypothesis considered was that, in 'weak' contexts (entrepreneurial), the leaders' motives would be more salient than in 'strong' contexts (non-entrepreneurial). The results largely confirm this hypothesis with respect to behaviors that are directly related to three main motives (power, affiliation and achievement). These results are discussed, and practical suggestions are provided for future research.     

Group and individual change in the treatment of drug addictions: a follow-up study in therapeutic communities

The pre-post treatment change of 112 patients in two therapeutics Spanish communities is described. The Addiction Severity Index (ASI) was used at intake and at the end of the treatment program. Results of the treatment program were evaluated by applying composite scores (CS) of the ASI, and the evolution of each patient was evaluated using the Reliable Change Index (RCI). 69.7% of the sample completed treatment, and 30.3% dropped out prematurely. At intake, the percentage of people who could improve in the different areas of the ASI ranged between 35.1% for alcohol consumption and 95.3% for family relationships. At the follow-up, the percentage of subjects who showed significant statistical improvements in the different areas varied between 7.9% in family relations and 66.7% in alcohol consumption. The percentage of patients who deteriorated was less than 10% for all variables. Implications for further research and clinical practice are commented upon.     

Effects of perceptual grouping on positive and negative priming

The effects of perceptual grouping/segregation of targets and distractors by means of colour on positive and negative priming were examined in two experiments. In Experiments 1 and 2 we examined whether grouping of target and distractors by means of common colour in the prime display affected positive and negative priming, or whether these effects depend on prime–probe contextual similarity in colour. In addition, we examined the effects of the predictability of target colour in the prime and the probe displays across the experiments using mixed (Experiment 1) or blocked procedures (Experiment 2). The pattern of results was similar in both experiments, indicating that the positive priming effect was determined by target repetition and enhanced by perceptual segregation of target from distractors in the prime display. The negative priming effect was determined by grouping the target and distractors by common colour in the prime display. The results of the present experiments are consistent with inhibition-based models of negative priming.     

Pointing following in dogs: are simple or complex cognitive mechanisms involved?

Animal Cognition - Domestic dogs have proved to be extremely successful in finding hidden food following a series of human social cues such as pointing (an extended hand and index finger indicating...     

Validation of a job expectancy questionnaire with secondary students

This study presents the validity and reliability analysis of a questionnaire that assesses the importance of some general job features, for the diagnosis of youths' expectations and priorities concerning a future job. The results show an 8-factor structure with a very good fit to the theoretical structure of the questionnaire, and reliability for the entire questionnaire and for the factor sub-scales is also quite satisfactory. The analysis of the sub-scale scores reveals that youths' most important factor is Self-actualization, whereas the Manual dimension is the least important one.     

Development of a questionnaire to assess user satisfaction of a penal mediation program (CSM-P)

The aim of the present study is to elaborate an instrument (CSM-P), valid for victims and aggressors, to assess satisfaction of individuals participating in a penal mediation program (VOM). The instrument was administered to a sample of 213 subjects, randomly chosen from the pool of participants in a VOM program of Catalonian Justice Department. Data analysis of the questionnaire shows an internal consistency of .88 (Cronbach's alpha). The dimensionality of the questionnaire is structured in a single factor that accounts for 61.45% of the variance. The instrument has proven its utility for assessing the satisfaction of the participants in a penal mediation program. Validation of the instrument in similar populations should be performed and it should be adapted to other contexts where assessing user satisfaction in a mediation program is necessary.     

Initial Encounters of Young Men and Women: Impressions and Disclosure Estimates

The purpose of this study was to explore the expectation that, in conversations between unacquainted men and women, men would disclose more than women and would create a positive impression in so doing. In 8-min, relatively unstructured conversations, both men and women (N=301) perceived themselves and their partners as disclosing approximately the same amount. For both sexes, the more their partners disclosed, the more favorably they rated their partners on social attractiveness and positive attributes. Moreover, both sexes believed that the more they disclosed themselves, the more positively their partners evaluated them. However, the strength of this relationship was significantly stronger for men than for women. Neither sex conformed to the expectation that men should disclose more, but both may have believed to some extent that their partners were evaluating them in accord with this expectation.     

Explaining the persistence of false memories: a proposal based on associative activation and thematic extraction

This study aimed to analyse the effect of retention intervals on associative and thematic false memories. Two experiments, using two types of critical items that were either associatively or thematically related to studied material, were conducted. In both experiments, one group of participants performed a recognition test immediately after the presentation of lists, and another group performed the task one week later. In Experiment 1, the recognition test consisted of pairs of items with four response alternatives (both items had been presented, only the left item had been presented, only the right item had been presented or none of the items had been presented). Critical items were also manipulated so that they were either presented in or absent from the list. In Experiment 2, a standard recognition test that differed in the mode of presentation was used: self-paced or speeded response. Both experiments showed that associative critical items were more recognised than thematic critical items in the immediate condition. However, whereas associative critical items decayed after a one-week delay, thematic critical items were similarly recognised at both retention intervals. The findings of the present study suggest that each type of process – associative and thematic – behave differently over time.     

Recording vocalizations with Bluetooth technology

We propose a method for capturing vocalizations that is designed to avoid some of the limiting factors found in traditional bioacoustical methods, such as the impossibility of obtaining continuous long-term registers or analyzing amplitude due to the continuous change of distance between the subject and the position of the recording system. Using Bluetooth technology, vocalizations are captured and transmitted wirelessly into a receiving system without affecting the quality of the signal. The recordings of the proposed system were compared to those obtained as a reference, which were based on the coding of the signal with the so-called pulse-code modulation technique in WAV audio format without any compressing process. The evaluation showed p < .05 for the measured quantitative and qualitative parameters. We also describe how the transmitting system is encapsulated and fixed on the animal and a way to video record a spider monkey’s behavior simultaneously with the audio recordings.