Priming a natural or human-made environment directs attention to context-congruent threatening stimuli

Research suggests that attention is attracted to evolutionary threats (e.g., snakes) due to an evolved “fear-module” that automatically detects biological threats to survival. However, recent evidence indicates that non-evolutionary threats (e.g., guns) capture and hold attention as well, suggesting a more general “threat-relevance” mechanism that directs attentional resources toward any potential danger in the environment. The current research measured how selective attentional resources were influenced both by the type of threat (e.g., snake vs. gun) and by the context in which the threat was encountered. Participants were primed with either natural or human-made environments to assess how these contexts influence attention to evolutionary and non-evolutionary threats, as measured by a spatial-cueing task. The results indicate that whether biological or non-biological threats receive greater attentional processing is determined by the context in which they are encountered.     

“So wat do u want to wrk on 2day?”: The Ethical Implications of Online Counseling

Internet counseling is an area of rapid expansion in the field of applied psychology. Internet counseling or psychotherapy involves a variety of activities such as psychoeducation, individual therapy, and automated self-help interventions delivered via the Internet. Although other professional societies such as the National Association of Social Workers, the American Counseling Association, and the National Board of Certified Counselors have tackled the issues of Internet counseling ethics head on, the American Psychological Association has been conspicuously absent from this debate. Yet online therapy clinics are operating, and intervention efficacy is being studied. This discussion provides an overview of online counseling modalities, details the ethical concerns associated with each, and offers suggestions for the ethical practice of online counseling.     

How to stop binge drinking and speeding motorists: Effects of relational-interdependent self-construal and self-referencing on attitudes toward social marketing

How can marketers stop speeding motorists and binge drinking? Two experiments show that the beliefs consumers have about the degree to which they define themselves in terms of their close relationships (i.e., relational-interdependent self-construal (RISC)) offer useful insights into the effectiveness of communications for two key social marketing issues—road safety (Study 1, New Zealand sample) and alcohol consumption (Study 2, English sample). Further, self-referencing is a mechanism for these effects. Specifically, people who define themselves in terms of their close relationships (high-RISCs) respond most favorably to advertisements featuring a dyadic relationship (two people), and this favorable response is mediated by self-referencing. In contrast, people who do not include close relationships in their sense of self (low-RISCs) respond most favorably to self-reference advertisements featuring solitary models. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Effect of Movement Amplitude and Target Diameter on Reaction Time

Siegel’s (1977) interpretation that his reaction time results were solely a function of response factors (movement amplitude and target diameter) was discussed and criticized. It was argued that Siegel’s interpretation was inappropriate because stimulus factors (eccentric and visual angle) and response factors were confounded. It was also argued that the surprising U-shaped relation between reaction time and movement amplitude was probably the result of the confounding between stimulus and response factors.     

The Learning of Programmed- and Feedback-Based Processes Controlling the Production of a Positioning Response in Two Dimensions

Two experiments were conducted to investigate the learning of the programmed- and feedback-based processes controlling the production of a slow, self-paced positioning response in two dimensions (direction and extent) in the horizontal plane. Both experiments had two phases: an acquisition phase of 60 trials with KR, followed by a KR withdrawal phase of 20 trials. In Experiment 1, one group (N=15) had visual feedback about the ongoing movement and the other group (N=15) did not. In Experiment 2, one group (N=15) practiced initiating the response in the criterion direction and moving the criterion extent, whereas, the other group (N=15) practiced initiating the response in the criterion direction and moving randomly varied extents. The results of Experiment 1 indicated that the learning of a programmed-based process is a gradually acquired freedom from visual feedback. Experiment 2 revealed that a programmed-based process can be learned independent of a feedback-based process.     

Perceptions of adolescent bullying: Attributions of blame and responsibility in cases of cyber‐bullying

Cyber‐bullying (where victims are targeted via online social networking or other electronic means) has gained increased attention in research and the broadcast media, but previous research has not investigated attribution of blame in such cyber‐bullying events. This experiment hypothesized that participants would assign higher ratings of blame to bullying perpetrators when the bullying situations were depicted as having highly foreseeable outcomes (vs. unforeseeable outcomes), and as occurring in school (vs. online). In addition, a significant interaction was predicted between outcome foreseeability and bullying situation, with highly foreseeable in‐school events being rated as the most predictable and attributable to the bully's actions. One‐hundred sixty‐three participants completed surveys containing demographic items, items regarding their past experiences of victimization, and one of four randomly‐assigned vignettes detailing a bullying situation (which participants rated). While hypotheses regarding outcome foreseeability were supported, no cyber‐bullying vs. in‐school main effects (or corresponding interaction effects) were detected. Implications for future research and practice, as well as study limitations, are discussed.     

Treatment approaches and offending behavior programs: Some critical issues

This paper discusses what is known about effective methods of program delivery in offender rehabilitation programs and how this impacts on the integrity of correctional programs. Drawing on literature from both psychotherapy and adult education, it is concluded that collaborative and client-centred approaches are likely to be associated with the highest levels of effectiveness, and that there is a need to support these methods of delivery through the development of practice guidelines that can be used by both program providers and supervisors.     

Love in therapy: A qualitative study of how clients perceive their therapists’ emotions

Relevant literature on attachment theory has explored the importance of emotional experience inside the therapeutic setting, highlighting that the active engagement of the therapist with the client is necessary in the process of change. However, less is known about the clients’ perception of the therapists’ emotional expression during a session. In this qualitative study, we used narrative thematic analysis to examine 10 semi-structured interviews with clients in an enriched systemic therapy approach. Focusing on the similarities of clients’ experiences, what emerged from the interviews were specific ‘perceived emotions’ and the related facial expressions of the therapists that were given attention by the clients. Based on our findings, six emotional themes were identified and are considered prominent: (i) ‘excitement’, (ii) ‘calmness’, (iii) ‘affection’, (iv) ‘empathy’, (v) ‘anger’ and (vi) ‘sadness’. Also, the analysis revealed two distinct functions of the expression of the therapist’s emotions: (i) they are an essential part of the therapeutic relationship and, (ii) they provide clients with alternative ways of experiencing emotions and motivate them to change. Therapists are invited to recognize the importance of their own emotional and facial expression in therapy considering it a form of self-disclosure. Suggestions for further research are also provided.