Grandiose and vulnerable narcissism: a nomological network analysis

Evidence has accrued to suggest that there are 2 distinct dimensions of narcissism, which are often labeled grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. Although individuals high on either of these dimensions interact with others in an antagonistic manner, they differ on other central constructs (e.g., Neuroticism, Extraversion). In the current study, we conducted an exploratory factor analysis of 3 prominent self-report measures of narcissism (N=858) to examine the convergent and discriminant validity of the resultant factors. A 2-factor structure was found, which supported the notion that these scales include content consistent with 2 relatively distinct constructs: grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. We then compared the similarity of the nomological networks of these dimensions in relation to indices of personality, interpersonal behavior, and psychopathology in a sample of undergraduates (n=238). Overall, the nomological networks of vulnerable and grandiose narcissism were unrelated. The current results support the need for a more explicit parsing of the narcissism construct at the level of conceptualization and assessment.     

When causality does not imply correlation: more spadework at the foundations of scientific psychology

Experimental research in psychology is based on an open-loop causal model which assumes that sensory input causes behavioral output. This model was tested in a tracking experiment where participants were asked to control a cursor, keeping it aligned with a target by moving a mouse to compensate for disturbances of differing difficulty. Since cursor movements (inputs) are the only observable cause of mouse movements (outputs), the open-loop model predicts that there will be a correlation between input and output that increases as tracking performance improves. In fact, the correlation between sensory input and motor output is very low regardless of the quality of tracking performance; causality, in terms of the effect of input on output, does not seem to imply correlation in this situation. This surprising result can be explained by a closed-loop model which assumes that input is causing output while output is causing input.     

Sharing with others and delaying for the future in preschoolers

This study explored age differences in preschoolers’ temporal and social discounting and the association of these abilities. Research indicates that 4-year-olds are sensitive to rewards of differing magnitude (Lemmon & Moore, 2007). However, it is unclear whether preschoolers are able to consider length of time when making a choice to delay (Mischel, Masters, & Grusec, 1969). In this study, 66, 3- and 4-year-olds were presented a delay of gratification task in which length of delay was manipulated. Additionally, they were given a sharing task in which they distributed toys between themselves, a friend, and another peer. Results suggested sensitivity to delay differences only in the oldest group. Furthermore, delay sensitivity was associated with sharing more preferred toys with friends compared to another peer, suggesting that favoring the “self” closer in time overlaps with favoring “another” who is closer socially.     

Modeling multiple risks during infancy to predict quality of the caregiving environment: contributions of a person-centered approach

The primary goal of this study was to compare several variable-centered and person-centered methods for modeling multiple risk factors during infancy to predict the quality of caregiving environments at six months of age. Nine risk factors related to family demographics and maternal psychosocial risk, assessed when children were two months old, were explored in the understudied population of children born in low-income, non-urban communities in Pennsylvania and North Carolina (N = 1047). These risk factors were (1) single (unpartnered) parent status, (2) marital status, (3) mother's age at first child birth, (4) maternal education, (5) maternal reading ability, (6) poverty status, (7) residential crowding, (8) prenatal smoking exposure, and (9) maternal depression. We compared conclusions drawn using a bivariate approach, multiple regression analysis, the cumulative risk index, and latent class analysis (LCA). The risk classes derived using LCA provided a more intuitive summary of how multiple risks were organized within individuals as compared to the other methods. The five risk classes were: married low-risk; married low-income; cohabiting multiproblem; single low-income; and single low-income/education. The LCA findings illustrated how the association between particular family configurations and the infants' caregiving environment quality varied across race and site. Discussion focuses on the value of person-centered models of analysis to understand complexities of prediction of multiple risk factors.     

Mental Contamination in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Associations With Contamination Symptoms and Treatment Response

The most common symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is contamination fear. Feelings of contamination can be provoked through contact with a physical contaminant, referred to as contact contamination (CC), as well as in the absence of one, referred to as mental contamination (MC). Prior research indicates that CC and MC are distinct, and MC may interfere with treatment for CC. However, no study to date has examined how MC may be associated with responses to physical contaminants and treatment response for CC. This study examined the relationships between CC and MC in a sample of individuals with elevated contamination symptoms (N = 88), half of whom met diagnostic criteria for OCD. Participants engaged in three sessions of exposure and response prevention (ERP) for CC and completed self-report measures and behavioral tasks assessing CC and MC at pretreatment, posttreatment, and follow-up. As hypothesized, at pretreatment, MC was positively associated with reactivity to physical contaminants, even after participants washed their hands. ERP for CC was associated with unique changes in CC and MC across self-report and behavioral measures, and greater pretreatment MC predicted greater posttreatment CC, though this effect was evident in only one of two CC measures. Additionally, specificity analyses indicated changes in MC were independent of changes in disgust propensity, a related construct. Pretreatment disgust propensity also predicted treatment outcome, though the addition of pretreatment disgust propensity as a covariate reduced the relationship between pretreatment MC and posttreatment CC to nonsignificance. Results suggest MC plays an important role in the manifestation and treatment of CC symptoms and may represent a manifestation of disgust proneness. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.     

Teachers’ perceptions of middle schoolers’ social concerns: strategies and barriers to supporting students’ social success

Social Psychology of Education - Teachers are often at the forefront of efforts to help students struggling socially at school and their support may be particularly critical during the early...     

Religion,Family, and Career among Graduate Students in the Sciences

Concerns about family life push some students away from a career in science or lead them away from particular career paths within science. Religion has been shown to have an influence on individuals’ values concerning both family and work. This study uses data from a survey of U.S. graduate students in five science disciplines to estimate a structural equation model examining paths between religiosity, work and family values, and intent to pursue different careers within science. The analysis finds that religiosity is positively associated with the importance placed on family and, through this mediator, is associated with a lower intent to pursue research‐focused academic jobs and higher intent to pursue teaching‐focused academic jobs. We discuss the implications of these findings, particularly as the analysis shows that women and some racial and ethnic minority students are more religious than their male and white peers.     

Integrating Career and Mental Health Counseling: Necessity and Strategies

Individuals seeking counseling might not recognize the interconnectedness of health, mental health, work, and life concerns. Counselors, however, need to be mindful that a person's wellness is interwoven with their work, life roles, and health. Research supports the interrelationship of career development and mental health as well as the effectiveness of an integrated approach to mental health and career counseling. An integrated approach from an ecological counseling perspective is proposed for conceptualizing client issues and intervention strategies.     

Child‐Centered Play Therapy: Aggression,Empathy, and Self‐Regulation

The authors conducted a randomized controlled trial to investigate differences among 36 elementary school age children who received 16 sessions of child‐centered play therapy and 35 children who were assigned to a waitlist control group. Pre‐ and postassessments were used to measure children's levels of aggression, self‐regulation, and empathy per parent and teacher report. Results revealed statistically significant positive results for parents and nonstatistically significant results for teachers. Implications and future research are examined.