The structure of Bryant's Empathy Index for children: a cross-validation study

The present study examined the structure of Bryant's Empathy Index (BEI) using different samples for conducting exploratory and confirmatory analyses. The BEI was administered to a sample of 2714 children (mean age 11.12, SD = 1.59). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses showed a three-factor structure: Feelings of Sadness, Understanding Feelings and Tearful Reaction. The results revealed both the multidimensionality of the instrument and appropriate fit indices for the model proposed. Although these results were very similar to those reported in other studies with a Spanish population, the analyses were conducted in a more robust way: with a larger sample and using polychoric correlations and cross validation estimation.     

An additional antecedent of empathic concern: valuing the welfare of the person in need

Two experiments examined the role of valuing the welfare of a person in need as an antecedent of empathic concern. Specifically, these experiments explored the relation of such valuing to a well-known antecedent--perspective taking. In Experiment 1, both perspective taking and valuing were manipulated, and each independently increased empathic concern, which, in turn, increased helping behavior. In Experiment 2, only valuing was manipulated. Manipulated valuing increased measured perspective taking and, in part as a result, increased empathic concern, which, in turn, increased helping. Valuing appears to be an important, largely overlooked, situational antecedent of feeling empathy for a person in need.     

Culture,method, and the content of self-concepts: Testing trait,individual–self-primacy,and cultural psychology perspectives

Three theoretical perspectives on cultural universals and differences in the content of self-concepts were tested in individualistic (United States, n = 178; Australia, n = 112) and collectivistic (Mexico, n = 157; Philippines, n = 138) cultures, using three methods of self-concept assessment. Support was found for both trait perspectives and the individual–self-primacy hypothesis. In contrast, support for cultural psychology hypotheses was limited because traits and other personal attributes were not more salient, or social attributes less salient, in individualistic cultures than collectivistic cultures. The salience of some aspects of self-concept depended on the method of assessment, calling into question conclusions based on monomethod studies.     

Differential effects of instructions and consequences on human conditional discrimination performance

Two studies evaluated the differential behavioral effects of instructions and feedback in matching-to-sample procedures. In Experiment 1, 20 college students received true or false instructions and trial-by-trial or delayed feedback in three phases. In a fourth, final phase the instructions remained the same, but feedback changed from trial-by-trial to delayed, or from delayed to trial-by-trial. In Experiment 2, half of another 20 participants received true instructions during three phases, followed by false instruction in a fourth phase; the other half of the participants received false instructions during three phases, followed by true instructions in the fourth phase. Feedback sequences were as in Experiment 1. The results of both experiments revealed historical effects of instructions and feedback. Most participants demonstrated strong instructional control, overriding the control by contingencies. These results suggest that the present procedure offers optimal possibilities to make the differential effects of instructions and feedback on human behavior clearly identifiable when conditional discrimination tasks are used.     

Protective Role of Spirituality from the Perspective of Indian College Students with Suicidal Ideation: “I am here Because God Exists”

Spiritual beliefs are found to be having a significant effect during times of struggles and trials in peoples’ lives. India being a multi-religious society, it is imperative to establish the relevance of spirituality in the lives of the college students with suicidal ideation. The current study therefore utilized focus group methodology to explore the Indian female college students’ perceptions on the protective role of spirituality as a factor contributing to their positive adaptation in times of adversity. Twenty students participated in the discussion. The results interestingly surfaced themes supporting the significance of them on how individuals rely on spiritual beliefs and the possible implications of the need to address it for positive adaptation. Most of the participants analogically stated the themes emerged as “something to stay afloat in the rough sea of life’s realities.”     

Can small lesions induce language reorganization as large lesions do?

Shift of the cortical mechanisms of language from the usually dominant left to the non-dominant right hemisphere has been demonstrated in the presence of large brain lesions. Here, we report a similar phenomenon in a patient with a cavernoma over the anterolateral superior temporal gyrus associated with epilepsy. Language mapping was performed by two complementary procedures, magnetoencephalography, and electrocorticography. The maps, indicated right temporal lobe dominance for receptive language and left frontal lobe dominance for expressive language. These results indicate that a small lesion, associated with epilepsy, may produce selective shifting of receptive language mechanisms as large lesions have been known to produce.     

On Fundamental Differences between Dependent and Independent Meanings

In “Function and Concept” and “On Concept and Object”, Frege argued that certain differences between dependent and independent meanings were inviolable and “founded deep in the nature of things” but, in those articles, he was not explicit about the actual consequences of violating such differences. However, since by creating a law that permitted one to pass from a concept to its extension, he himself mixed dependent and independent meanings, we are in a position to study some of the actual consequences of his having done so. To make certain of Frege’s ideas about the inviolability of logical form more tangible, I describe a string of very interrelated consequences that his attempt to transform dependent meanings into independent meanings actually brought in its wake.     

Student Explanations in the Context of Computational Science and Engineering Education

Creating explanations is an important process for students, not only to make connections between novel information and background knowledge, but also to be able to communicate their understanding of any given topic. This article explores students’ explanations in the context of computational science and engineering, an important interdisciplinary field that enables scientists and engineers to solve complex problems. Specifically, this study explores: (a) students’ approaches to create written explanations of programing code and (b) the relationship between students’ explanations and their ability to do computer programing. Students wrote in-code comments for 3 MATLAB^® worked-examples, which were qualitatively analyzed using a coding scheme. Different approaches to self-explain were identified using hierarchical cluster analysis, and differences in students’ ability to do computer programing were identified using analysis of variance. The resulting approaches to self-explain were: original solution, mechanistic, principle-based, limited, and goal-based. The findings suggest that experienced students wrote simple in-code comments to self-explain, but students with lower ability to do computer programing wrote more comprehensive explanations, as they may take this as a learning opportunity.     

Posttraumatic stress severity is associated with coping motives for alcohol use among in-patient and community recruited adolescents

Background and Objectives: A growing body of work suggests individuals with more severe post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) are at higher risk for developing problematic alcohol use outcomes. Extending work from the adult literature, the present study was the first to examine the extent to which PTSS is related to drinking motives for alcohol use in both clinical and non-clinical samples of adolescents.

Design: Hierarchical regression analyses were used to predict coping motives for alcohol use from PTSS, above and beyond demographic variables, alcohol use frequency, and other alcohol use motives.

Methods: Trauma-exposed adolescents before entering treatment (Sample 1 n?=?41) and recruited from the local community (Sample 2 n?=?55) self-reported on PTSS and alcohol use motives.

Results: PTSS positively predicted coping motives for alcohol use after controlling for age, gender, and alcohol use frequency.

Conclusions: The current study highlights the need to consider both PTSS severity, as well as underlying cognitive mechanisms (e.g., motives), to better understand the etiology of problematic alcohol use among trauma-exposed youth. Future work focused on clarifying the trajectory of alcohol use motives and problems as a function of PTSS is needed.