“The Friendly Clergy”: Characteristics and Referral

Among the recommendations possible in assessment of clients' religious beliefs is that of referral to the “friendly clergy.” This article delineates guidelines for referral as well as ideal characteristics of that spiritual professional.     

Employment Counseling for Adults With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Issues Without Answers

This article provides an overview of issues employment counselors will face in counseling adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). There is little research on counseling clients with ADHD, and counselors are often ill prepared to provide appropriate services for this growing and underserviced population. Reviewed is the evolution of the ADHD label and its prevalence in adults. Diagnostic criteria are presented, and a selected review of adult outcome and treatment research is provided. Strategies for counseling adults with ADHD about careers are adapted, with caution, from literature on counseling adults with learning disabilities (LD), and specific guidelines for the employment counselor are presented.     

Behavioral and emotional responses to diet‐related support and control among same‐sex couples

Members of 63 lesbian and 72 gay couples reported how frequently their partners engaged in diet‐related social support and control (persuasion and pressure) and how they responded behaviorally and emotionally to such attempts. Although lesbian women received more frequent diet‐related social support than gay men, there were no gender differences in the receipt of diet‐related social control. Results of multilevel models that controlled for body mass index revealed that all participants responded to all types of involvement with guilt and to support and persuasion with appreciation. Responses to pressure differed for lesbian women and gay men and acted as a function of relationship quality. Findings from this study may increase awareness of the importance of same‐sex partners' involvement in eating behaviors.     

Community and Christianity in the Black Church

The authors explore the experience of Christian religion for many African Americans. In response to racial discrimination and prejudice within churches, African Americans developed a Christian tradition with distinct meanings, beliefs and practices. This tradition provides a foundation for social activism within the church, community and American society, as well as community among church members. The recent Black church burnings are discussed with respect to the more traditional Christian African American view of religion. Implications for incorporating the religious traditions of Christian African Americans into counseling practice are explored. (The authors use the term Black church or African American church as a surrogate for Christian African American church throughout the article. The terms Black and African American will also be used interchangeably).     

Social influence techniques during marital conflict

The use of social influence techniques was examined in two studies of marital conflict. In each study, couples discussed two issues in counterbalanced order: one in which the husband wanted change and one in which the wife wanted change. Interactions were coded for the use of influence techniques. Evidence from both studies supported a social role explanation, such that roles based on who wanted change predicted the use of influence, whereas gender did not. Secondary hypotheses based on attribution theory and schema theory were also supported. When discussing areas in which they wanted change in partners, spouses made more partner attributions, were more likely to suggest change, and were more likely to explain their partners’behavior than when discussing areas in which their partners wanted change. However, they were more likely to ask questions to clarify the problem when discussing a change their partners wanted in them than when discussing a change they wanted. The importance of considering social structural variables such as social roles in examining conflict interactions is discussed.     

Phenomenology and Nonconceptual Content

This note aims to clarify which arguments do, and which arguments do not, tell against Conceptualism, the thesis that the representational content of experience is exclusively conceptual. Contrary to Sean Kelly's position, conceptualism has no difficulty accommodating the phenomena of color constancy and of situation-dependence. Acknowledgment of nonconceptual content is also consistent with holding that experiences have nonrepresentational subjective features. the crucial arguments against conceptualism stem from animal perception, and from a distinction, elaborated in the final section of the paper, between content which is objective and content which is also conceived of by its subject as objective.     

AGE DIFFERENCES IN TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION DECISIONS: IMPLICATIONS FOR A CHANGING WORK FORCE

This research investigated age differences in individual adoption and sustained usage of technology in the workplace using the theory of planned behavior. User reactions and technology usage behavior were studied over a 5-month period among 118 workers being introduced to a new software system. At 2 points of measurement, compared to older workers, younger workers' technology usage decisions were more strongly influenced by attitude toward using the technology. In contrast, older workers were more strongly influenced by subjective norm and perceived behavioral control, although the effect of subjective norm diminished over time. These findings were robust, even after controlling for key confounding variables identified in prior organizational behavior research (i.e., income, occupation, and education levels). Theoretical and practical implications for understanding the effects of aging on technology adoption and usage in the workplace are discussed.     

Balm in Gilead: Racism, Religious Involvement, and Psychological Distress Among African-American Adults

Although a long tradition of theoretical and sociohistorical analysis has suggested that religious practices and values help African Americans in coping with the distressing sequelae of racism and discrimination, few studies have examined this issue with systematic, quantitative, empirical data. Our work contributes to the literature by: (a) outlining a series of arguments regarding the potential significance of multiple aspects of religious involvement—attendance at services, church-based social support, and religious guidance in daily life—in dealing with harmful psychosocial effects of recent experiences of discrimination; and (b) testing hypotheses derived from two alternative models of the racism-religion-distress relationship using longitudinal data from a nationwide survey. Results indicate that both religious guidance and religious attendance moderate the effects of racism on psychological distress, while congregational support has a direct (but not interactive) effect on distress, thereby partly offsetting (but not buffering) the negative effects of discrimination.     

MEAN RACIAL-ETHNIC DIFFERENCES IN EMPLOYEE SALES PERFORMANCE: THE MODERATING ROLE OF DIVERSITY CLIMATE

Using data from a sample of 6,130 workers employed in 743 stores of a large, U.S. retail organization, this study assessed whether diversity climate moderated mean racial-ethnic differences in employee sales performance. Findings indicated Whites exhibited significantly higher sales performance than Hispanics but not Blacks, as moderated by diversity climate. As hypothesized, racial-ethnic disparities disfavoring Blacks and Hispanics were largest in stores with less supportive diversity climates and smallest in stores with highly pro-diversity climates. Financial analysis of these interactions revealed sizable increments in sales per hour in response to effective diversity management, with strong organizational bottom-line implications. Limitations of the study and future research needs are noted.