Discrimination learning and stimulus generalization by impulsive and reflective children

The proposition that impulsive children inhibit expressive behavior less than reflective children was investigated by providing third grade impulsive and reflective boys with either differential or nondifferential forms or successive discrimination training prior to tests for stimulus generalization. Consistent with specific predictions derived from Spence's theory on the roles of excitation and inhibition, it was found that: (a) Reflectives acquired the discrimination more rapidly, (b) reflectives achieved a higher level of discriminative performance, (c) impulsives exhibited more variable response reates during the nonreinforced stimulus, and (d) the type of training interacted with the child's conceptual tempo to determine the elevation and shape of the post-discrimination generalization gradients. The results provide support for the construct validity of the Matching Familiar Figures Test of reflectivity-impulsivity.     

Lump detection in simulated human breasts

Sixteen observers palpated silicone models of human breasts containing lumps 1.6-12.1 mm in diameter. Detectability depended on the size of the lump, producing a systematic psychometric function. In eight observers who participated in three or more sessions, performance improved with practice, with most improvement occurring within one or two 26-trial sessions. Three-week retention measures disclosed no appreciable decrease in performance, but a significant correlation was found between the number of lumps detected and duration of trial (p < .01). There was no difference in performance between four observers who used their preferred hands and four observers who used their nonpreferred hands. These data establish that examination of breast models for the detection of lumps simulating cancer is a task amenable to experimental analysis.     

Balancing the ledger: An application of Nagy's theories to the study of continuity and change among generations

This study uses an interpretive interview method to examine the micro-processes of generational continuity and change among a group of social activists. Boszormenyi-Nagy's theory of responsibility between generations, alternative models outside the family, and choice are used to explain the instances of change. Implications for research and practice are addressed.     

Redefining the Meaning of Negative History in Times of Sociopolitical Change: A Social Creativity Approach

This article explores the role negative history plays in political discourse on crisis management and how times of sociopolitical change in turn influence the strategies that can be employed to write a positive historical charter. Choosing Germany as a case study, we analyzed how political leaders negotiate Germany's narrative and political role during the European “refugee crisis” in speeches (n = 332) held between 2015 and 2018. Applying a combination of corpus-based and qualitative narrative analysis, we found that the context of a crisis is used to attach new meaning to Germany's role in World War II. By focusing on the lessons learned from history and pointing out the parallels between the current crisis and sociopolitical developments that took place 80 years ago, Germany is presented as the ideal advocate for a free and united Europe, a narrative that legitimizes its advancingly dominant role within the EU and beyond. The analysis demonstrates how times of change can facilitate social creativity strategies for nations whose past is dominated by negative history, with implications for the theory of identity management.     

Social status and friendship in peer victimization trajectories

Background/Objective: Most studies have evaluated victimization at a single time point, making it difficult to determine the impact of the time during which an individual is victimized. This longitudinal study aims to examine the differences in the levels of social status (social preference and perceived popularity) and friendship in peer victimization trajectories, and to analyse if there were changes over time in the levels of social status and friendship in each trajectory. Method: The final sample was composed of 1,239 students (49% girls) with ages between 9 and 18 (M = 12.23, SD = 1.73), from 22 schools in southern Spain. Peer nominations were collected. Results: The General Linear Model results associated the highest levels of social preference, perceived popularity and friendship with the sporadic victimization profile and the lowest levels of these dimensions with the stable profile. Conclusions:The results are discussed based on important personal aspects of stable victimization that confirms social rejection, unpopularity, and the low social support that victimization causes. This contribution is discussed in terms of health and social welfare in adolescence.     

Immigration Enforcement Policies and the Mental Health of US Citizens: Findings from a Comparative Analysis

We examined the differential impact of having a family member, friend, or co-worker/community member detained or deported on the mental health of US citizens. In 2019, a sample of 3446 adult participants of White, Black, and Latinx racial/ethnic descent were recruited to complete an online questionnaire. Participants completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 to screen for anxiety, depression, and psychological distress. Analyses were restricted to US citizens (n = 3282). Multivariable logistic and linear regressions were conducted to examine the mental health of US citizens who reported personally knowing a migrant who has been detained or deported and by their relationship to the migrant, overall and among Latinxs only. Among US citizens, 32% reported personally knowing someone who has been detained or deported. In multivariable analyses, US citizens who personally knew a detained or deported migrant were more likely to report anxiety, depression, and greater psychological distress. Associations were more pronounced among those who reported having a family member detained or deported. US-citizen Latinxs with social ties to migrants who have been detained or deported were especially more likely to report poor mental health than White and Latinx participants who did not personally know a migrant who has been detained or deported. It is critical that policy makers consider the potential mental health harms on migrants and its own citizens when designing policies targeting migrant communities.     

Cognitive complexity of social images revealed by Jewish Israeli adolescents relating to drawings of Jews and Arabs

The present study examined age‐related differences among Israeli youth regarding the complexity of their mental images of Jews and Arabs, two groups that are adversaries in the Middle East conflict. The participants, 494 Jewish children and adolescents ranging from 8–16 years old each, drew two human figures, one Jewish and one Arab, and then attributed a forename and a profession to each drawn image. Four complexity variables were scored as follows: image complexity (number of items included in the figure), embellishments (number of items added to the drawing and in the space around the figure), image name, and image profession. Overall, participants depicted members of their in‐group as more complex. However, early adolescence was found to be a critical age at which differences emerged. The findings suggest that introducing complexity to social representations in early adolescence may facilitate prevention of negative associations related to outgroups and enhance intervention to reduce stereotypes, prejudice, and racism.     

Emotional adjustment in victims and perpetrators of cyberbullying and traditional bullying

Given the rise in cyberbullying among secondary education students and the importance of certain psychological adjustment variables for the comprehension of this type of violent behavior, both in bullies and in victims, the purpose of the present study was to analyse the emotional adjustment of those involved in cyber- and traditional bullying. The adjustment variables studied were self-concept, perceived stress, loneliness, depressive symptomatology, social anxiety, life satisfaction, and emotional intelligence. Using a sample of 1318 adolescents (47% boys), aged between 11 and 17 years, four groups were established to compare victims and cybervictims (uninvolved students, traditional victims, cybervictims, and traditional–cybervictims). The analysis of variance showed that students who performed the same role (bully or victim) in both contexts (at school and online). In particular, those who suffered traditional or cyberbullying or both conjointly presented lower scores in physical and social self-concept, life satisfaction, emotional clarity, and emotion regulation, as well as higher scores in perceived stress, loneliness, depression, and social anxiety. In bullies—traditional, cyberbullying or both simultaneously—higher scores were observed in perceived stress, loneliness, depressive symptomatology, fear of negative assessment, avoidance, and general social anxiety, and lower scores in the dimensions of academic and family self-concept, life satisfaction, emotional clarity, and emotion regulation. In general, the findings indicate that students who were involved in bullying situations, both victims and bullies, presented more damaged emotional profiles than those who are uninvolved, especially students who performed the same role (bully or victim) in both contexts (at school and online).

     

Empathy theory and practice: a survey of psychologists and counselors

Psychologists and counselors completed a questionnaire devised by the authors to explore the relationships between their extent of endorsement of empathy definitions, their use and views of empathy, and their identification with theories of psychotherapy. Results from 565 respondents suggested that those who identified with humanistic/experiential and psychodynamic theories seemed to have similar views of how empathy is defined and viewed and reported that they use empathy more than those with other theoretical inclinations. These findings suggest that there is some consistency between theoretical identification and definition, as well as reported use and views of empathy.     

Glucocorticoid involvement in memory formation in a rat model for traumatic memory

Contextual fear conditioning under training conditions involving high stressor intensities has been proposed as an animal model for traumatic memories. The strength of memory for this task has been related to the intensity of the conditioning stressor and post-training corticosterone values. However, administration of a glucocorticoid receptor (GR) antagonist only attenuated memory for this task in rats conditioned at a moderate shock intensity (0.4 mA), but failed to influence conditioning in rats trained at a high shock intensity (1 mA). Here, we further questioned whether interfering with glucocorticoid action at the time of training might be effective in influencing contextual fear conditioning in rats trained under different shock intensities. Rats were subcutaneously injected with the glucocorticoid synthesis inhibitor metyrapone (50, 100 mg/kg) 90 min before being trained in the contextual fear conditioning task, at either 0.4 or 1 mA shock intensities. The results showed that metyrapone, in a dose-dependent manner: (i) attenuated long-term expression of contextual fear conditioning, both in 0.4- and 1 mA-trained rats; and (ii) efficiently prevented increased plasma corticosterone concentration. In addition to further supporting a facilitating role of glucocorticoids in memory consolidation, these findings suggest a critical involvement of these hormones in the formation of traumatic memories.