Collective induction without cooperation? Learning and knowledge transfer in cooperative groups and competitive auctions

There is strong evidence that groups perform better than individuals do on intellective tasks with demonstrably correct solutions. Typically, these studies assume that group members share common goals. The authors extend this line of research by replacing standard face-to-face group interactions with competitive auctions, allowing for conflicting individual incentives. In a series of studies involving the well-known Wason selection task, they demonstrate that competitive auctions induce learning effects equally impressive as those of standard group interactions, and they uncover specific and general knowledge transfers from these institutions to new reasoning problems. The authors identify payoff feedback and information pooling as the driving factors underlying these findings, and they explain these factors within the theoretical framework of collective induction.     

An analysis of a cross-cultural personality inventory: the IPIP Big-Five factor markers in Croatia

In this article, we describe the factor structure in both self-reports and peer ratings of the items in a cross-cultural Big-Five inventory in Croatia. Using 2 versions of an inventory developed from the International Personality Item Pool (IPIP; Goldberg, 1999), this is one of the first cross-national analyses of these IPIP measures. A large sample of university students (N = 519) used the translated Croatian version of the 100-item IPIP Big Five inventory to describe themselves, and they were also described by 515 of their acquaintances on the same instrument. In separate analyses of both self-reports and peer ratings, the 100-item and 50-item versions of these IPIP measures showed clear Five-factor orthogonal structures that were nearly identical to the American structure. These factors were strongly related on a one-to-one basis with those derived from a Croatian translation of Goldberg's (1992) bipolar rating scales.     

A meta-analysis of empirical studies of weight-based bias in the workplace

For nearly 30 years researchers have investigated how bodyweight affects evaluative workplace outcomes, such as hiring decisions and performance appraisals. Despite this, no meta-analytic review has been undertaken to quantify the negative impact that bodyweight has on such outcomes. The results of this meta-analytic study suggest that in relation to non-overweight individuals in the workplace, overweight individuals may be disadvantaged across evaluative workplace outcomes (d = −.52). Further, differences in magnitude of the effects of weight-based bias were found for hiring (d = −.70) and performance (d = −.23) outcomes.     

Revisiting dispersion in count data item response theory models: The Conway–Maxwell–Poisson counts model

Count data naturally arise in several areas of cognitive ability testing, such as processing speed, memory, verbal fluency, and divergent thinking. Contemporary count data item response theory models, however, are not flexible enough, especially to account for over- and underdispersion at the same time. For example, the Rasch Poisson counts model (RPCM) assumes equidispersion (conditional mean and variance coincide) which is often violated in empirical data. This work introduces the Conway–Maxwell–Poisson counts model (CMPCM) that can handle underdispersion (variance lower than the mean), equidispersion, and overdispersion (variance larger than the mean) in general and specifically at the item level. A simulation study revealed satisfactory parameter recovery at moderate sample sizes and mostly unbiased standard errors for the proposed estimation approach. In addition, plausible empirical reliability estimates resulted, while those based on the RPCM were biased downwards (underdispersion) and biased upwards (overdispersion) when the simulation model deviated from equidispersion. Finally, verbal fluency data were analysed and the CMPCM with item-specific dispersion parameters fitted the data best. Dispersion parameter estimates indicated underdispersion for three out of four items. Overall, these findings indicate the feasibility and importance of the suggested flexible count data modelling approach.     

The Ethical Orientation of Russian Entrepreneurs

Ethics has been a significant concern in the management literature and recent efforts have investigated ethical orientations across culture. However, little, if any, work has looked at ethical orientations among entrepreneurs and managers in the transforming Russian economy. This study surveyed the ethical orientations of Russian owner-managers ( n =194) involved in entrepreneurial and privatisation activities. A cross-cultural comparison to US normative responses found no difference in Machiavellian orientation in general, though female Russian entrepreneurs perceived themselves as more likely to engage in opportunistic behaviour. Additionally, Russian entrepreneurs in general perceived themselves as more ethically rigid. These respondents also felt Russian organisations fostered more interpersonally collective but structurally opportunistic organisational climates.     

Understanding and Removing the Effects of Performance Cues on Behavioral Ratings

Previous research has demonstrated that performance information (e.g., prior supervisor ratings) can bias behavioral ratings. However, research has not fully explored the effects of performance cues on raters' memory. In addition, no studies have attempted to eliminate this performance cue effect. This study addressed these deficiencies by collecting both free recall and recognition memory measures while testing an unstructured free recall intervention. Results indicate that performance cues do affect the recall of performance relevant behaviors from memory. Contrary to expectations, free recall did not prove to be an effective intervention. Implications of these findings for future attempts to remove the performance cue effect are discussed.     

Sergei Bulgakov,Philosophy of Economy. The World as Household

Studies in East European Thought -     

Le « test par CDD » comme frein au fonctionnement des entreprises

In France, in order to evaluate job applicants, some employers use short term contract before recruiting on a long term contract. The present study aims to compare companies having this practice and others. More precisely, we will appreciate the level of recruitment difficulties and the degree of fundamental error of attribution according companies. Results indicate that companies having “test by CDD” have more recruitment difficulties and more fundamental error of attribution to explain these failures.     

Time course of information processing during scene perception: The relationship between saccade amplitude and fixation duration

The present study focuses on two aspects of the time course of visual information processing during the perception of natural scenes. The first aspect is the change of fixation duration and saccade amplitude during the first couple of seconds of the inspection period, as has been described by Buswell (), among others. This common effect suggests that the saccade amplitude and fixation duration are in some way controlled by the same mechanism. A simple exponential model containing two parameters can describe the phenomena quite satisfactorily. The parameters of the model show that saccade amplitude and fixation duration may be controlled by a common mechanism. The second aspect under scrutiny is the apparent lack of correlation between saccade amplitude and fixation duration (Viviani, ). The present study shows that a strong but nonlinear relationship between saccade amplitude and fixation duration does exist in picture viewing. A model, based on notions laid out by Findlay and Walker's () model of saccade generation and on the idea of two modes of visual processing (Trevarthen, ), was developed to explain this relationship. The model both fits the data quite accurately and can explain a number of related phenomena.