College Women's Likelihood to Report Unwanted Sexual Experiences to Campus Agencies: Trends and Correlates

The present study examined college women's likelihood to report sexual victimization to the police, a friend, the counseling center, their resident advisor, or on a survey (N = 300). In comparison to other forms of reporting, women perceived themselves to be most likely to report victimization on a survey. Women also indicated a higher likelihood to report to friends rather than to other agencies. Likelihood to report on a survey did not vary as a function of history of sexual victimization; however, women with a victimization history indicated a lower likelihood to report to all agencies compared to women without a victimization history. Correlates of women's likelihood to report were also documented.     

Mediators of Posttraumatic Mental Health in Sexual Assault Survivors

The development of posttraumatic growth (PTG) and the relationship between PTG and distress outcomes in sexual assault is an important area of investigation. Recent research suggests that some forms of cognitive processing might be critical in the development, maintenance, and resolution of posttraumatic mental health among sexual assault survivors. The objective of this study was to examine factors associated with posttraumatic mental health among sexual assault survivors. Seventy-three participants who experienced sexual assault completed measures of trauma symptoms, PTG, changes in outlook, cognitive processing, and support and coping. Results revealed that significant levels of posttraumatic symptomatology and low levels of PTG were reported 3 years following sexual assault. A weak relationship was found between symptoms of distress and growth. Contrary to predictions, only ratings of hope and brooding rumination were mediators of the relationship between posttraumatic symptoms and PTG. Reflective rumination was not related to the development of PTG.     

Functions of parahippocampal place area and retrosplenial cortex in real-world scene analysis: An fMRI study

We used functional MRI to investigate several hypotheses concerning the functions of posterior parahippocampal cortex and retrosplenial cortex, two regions that preferentially activate to images of real-world scenes compared to images of other meaningful visual stimuli such as objects and faces. We compared activation resulting from photographs of rooms, city streets, cityscapes, and landscapes against activation to a control condition of objects. Activation in posterior parahippocampal cortex, including parahippocampal place area, was greater for all scene types than objects, and greater for scenes that clearly convey information about local three-dimensional (3-D) structure (city streets and rooms) than scenes that do not (cityscapes and landscapes). Similar differences were observed in retrosplenial cortex, though activation was also greater for city streets than rooms. These results suggest that activation in both cortical areas is primarily related to analysis or representation of local 3-D space. The results are not consistent with hypotheses that these areas reflect panoramic spatial volume, an artificial versus natural category distinction, an indoor versus outdoor distinction, or the number of explicit objects depicted in a scene image.     

What makes an angry face look so … angry? Examining visual attention to the shape of threat in children and adults

Threatening facial expressions like anger can signal potential danger. Past research has established that both adults and children have an attentional bias for angry faces, visually detecting their presence more quickly than happy or neutral faces. More recent research has suggested that specific features of angry faces (such as the downward-pointing “V” shaped brow) are the effective stimulus in their rapid detection. However, research examining this issue has only been done with adults. In the current research, we examine the detection of the features of the downward-pointing “V” in both adults and preschool children using a touchscreen visual search procedure. In two experiments, both adults and children detected the downward-pointing “V” more quickly than an upward-pointing “V”. As the first evidence that young children exhibit the same superior detection of the features of threatening facial expressions that adults do, this research provides important support for the existence of an evolved attentional bias for threatening stimuli.     

The combined effect of ratee's bodyweight and past performance information on performance judgments

Few studies have examined how various biases operate in combination to influence performance judgments. Along these lines, the current study used experimental methods to test four competing models of the combined influence of ratee's bodyweight and past performance information on performance judgments. Results were consistent with an additive model, such that ratee's bodyweight and information about ratee's past performance combined independently to affect performance judgments. Consistent with a double disadvantage effect, the least favorable performance judgments were made for an overweight ratee with poor previous performance. Finally, mixed evidence was obtained for the interaction of ratee's bodyweight and perceptions of ratee's physical attractiveness, such that high‐perceived attractiveness buffered against the otherwise negative performance ratings associated with overweight status.     

Order in Chaos: Security Culture as Anarchist Resistance to the Terrorist Label

To be a terrorist in the twenty-first century is to occupy an incomparable deviant status in the state's eyes.The United States government has labeled and treated anarchists as potential terrorists for over a century. Since 2001, the U.S.-led “War on Terror” officially sanctioned warrantless surveillance and confinement as a legitimate social control strategy to counter terrorism. This is a sociological study of resistance to the terrorist label in an anarchist community in a post-9/11 world. Security culture is a form of collective resistance that functions as a protective mechanism against the panoptic gaze that the terrorist label authorizes. This study suggests that the authority to wield the terrorist label in a post-9/11 context is a powerful form of social control, affecting members' consciousness, movements, and interactions in everyday life, but does not diminish their capacity for resistance. Rather, it amplifies antipathy toward the state.     

An Exploratory Evaluation of the Cognitive-Active Gender Role Identification Continuum

Individual beliefs and expectations regarding gender roles influence interpersonal behavior. If family therapists ignore or avoid discussions regarding gender roles, change may ultimately be inhibited. The Cognitive-Active Gender Role Identification Continuum (CAGRIC) is a framework that may facilitate a therapist's discussion of gender roles and the ways in which gender role expectations impact their clients’ relationships. Using data from the 2002 International Social Survey Program module on “Family and Changing Gender Roles,” this study examines the gender role classifications proposed by the CAGRIC model and the influence of gender role beliefs and behaviors on relationship satisfaction. Data from Australia, Brazil, Israel, Japan, Russia, Spain, and the United States are used to test the clustering and congruence hypotheses of the CAGRIC model. Results suggest support for the clustering hypothesis of the model, especially in Western countries.     

Shame in Physician–Patient Interactions: Patient Perspectives

This study estimated the extent to which shame is elicited in physician–patient interactions and examined the emotional and behavioral reactions of patients to such interactions. A large adult sample (N = 915) reported on their shame-provoking experiences in interactions with physicians through an anonymous survey. Half of all respondents (n = 456) recalled one or more interactions with a physician that left them feeling ashamed, with significantly more women (59%) than men (39%) reporting this. Forty-five percent of those reporting such experiences stated they terminated treatment with, avoided, or lied to their physician to avoid experiencing further shame. However, 33% believed the shame-provoking interaction provoked useful behavioral changes, and 46% were, on balance, grateful to the physician. Women, relative to men, reported that the interaction led to more negative emotional and behavioral consequences. The type of health issue involved in the interaction also was associated with differential outcomes. Thus, it appears that inducing shame in medical contexts is widespread and may well have both positive and negative effects.