DANCING WITH KARL PETERS

Abstract. Dancing with the Sacred by Karl Peters provides a coherent and at times moving portrait of the religious naturalist position. I highlight three broad issues that are raised by the kind of religious naturalism that Peters develops: (1) the meaning of the term natural, (2) the nature of God in Peters's naturalistic framework, and (3) the question of eschatology. In each area, I believe that Peters's work raises many questions that need to be addressed and also provides openings for further dialogue.     

An Open Trial Targeting Food Cue Reactivity and Satiety Sensitivity in Overweight and Obese Binge Eaters

Data suggests that individuals who binge eat are more responsive to food cues in the environment and less sensitive to satiety cues. The aim of this open trial was to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and initial effectiveness of a novel treatment grounded in Schachter’s externality theory targeting food cue reactivity and satiety responsiveness with obese adults who binge eat. Treatment was provided in groups, and utilized appetite monitoring, cue-exposure treatment, in vivo exercises, self-monitoring, and coping skills. Twenty-eight overweight and obese adults who binge eat (82% female; mean age = 47.5 years [SD = 12.8]; BMI = 38.9 [SD = 10.3]; 79% White non-Hispanic) participated in a 4-month group-based treatment program. Assessments were conducted at baseline, posttreatment, and 3-month follow-up time points. Results indicated that this treatment was well accepted and had high retention at posttreatment. Initial effectiveness showed significant decreases in BMI, and improvements in loss of control and overeating episodes, food responsiveness, and power of food. The majority of results were maintained at the 3-month follow-up time point. This open trial provides preliminary evidence for the feasibility, acceptability, and initial effectiveness of this treatment on both eating disorder symptoms and weight in obese adults who binge eat. Because these data are preliminary, further treatment development and randomized controlled studies are needed.     

Social psychophysics: Using psychophysics to answer “social” questions with PsychoPro

Complex social stimuli (like faces) can be studied using a methodology typically reserved for studying lights, tones, and colors: psychophysics. Given that psychophysics examines how humans detect and respond to stimuli in their environment, we can extend that to the study of how humans detect social stimuli in the environment. Using psychophysical methodology to answer “social” questions provides another dimension of experimental manipulation and control to the diverse array of methodologies already used by social psychologists. In this article, we review psychophysical methodology, provide a rationale for social psychophysics, describe an easy-touse software program called PsychoPro, for collecting psychophysical data, and present data collected using this program to examine racial thresholds that provide evidence for a cognitive gating mechanism for racial information that impacts face processing (MacLin & MacLin, 2007, in press; MacLin, MacLin, & Peterson, 2008).     

Minimally Sufficient Research

ABSTRACT— Psychology would be improved if researchers stopped using complicated designs, procedures, and statistical analyses for the sole reason that they are able to do so. The present article reviews some of the classic studies in psychology, all of which are breathtakingly simple. The notion of minimally sufficient research is suggested as an ideal worth following. More generally, questions should dictate research methods and statistical analyses, not vice versa.     

Eating behavior in obese BED, obese non-BED, and non-obese control participants: A naturalistic study

Laboratory studies have shown considerable differences between the eating behavior, particularly binge eating behavior, of participants with and without binge eating disorder (BED). However, these findings were not replicated in two field experiments employing ecological momentary assessment (EMA) in which obese BED and obese non-BED participants reported comparable binge eating behavior. In the current study, we examined differences in binge eating with an innovative assessment scheme employing both EMA and a standardized computer-based dietary recall program to avoid some of the limitations of past laboratory and field research. Obese BED, obese non-BED, and non-obese control participants reported significant differences in eating patterns, loss of control, overeating, and binge eating behavior. Of particular importance was the finding that BED participants engaged in more overeating and more binge eating episodes than non-BED participants. These findings suggest that the use of EMA in combination with dietary recall may be a relatively objective and useful approach to assessing binge eating behavior. The findings further suggest that individuals with BED are observably different from those without the disorder, which may have implications for eating disorder diagnoses in DSM-V.     

We Preach Christ Crucified: Rejecting the Prosperity Gospel and Responding to Feminist Criticism Using Luther's Second Theology of the Cross

Abstract :  This article affirms that Luther's theology of the cross should serve as a counterpoint to ideologies like the prosperity gospel that encourage adherents to amass personal wealth while remaining indifferent to the suffering of others. To employ Luther's theology of the cross responsibly, however, one must take into consideration the feminist critique that it potentially encourages passive suffering and abuse, especially on the part of women in abusive situations who are told to 'bear their cross' and simply endure what they suffer. A second theology of the cross implicit in Luther's writings, one that portrays God not as the cause of suffering but as the healing power that brings life out of suffering and death that already exists, provides the basis for a rejection of the prosperity gospel while meeting (at least partially) the concern of feminist critics.     

A Conceptual Toolkit for Intensive Early Behavioral Intervention Teachers

Intensive early behavioral intervention (IEBI) for children with autism requires effective team work involving professional therapists, parents, teachers and others. It is important for all team members to employ a common conceptual and procedural vocabulary so that communication among them is clear, unambiguous, and effective. This article outlines the rationale of a small and practical vocabulary or conceptual toolkit that we have found useful in working with teachers and families in designing, implementing, and analyzing the details of behavioral programs to help autistic children learn to speak and understand language. Special attention is given to a heuristic device called the language matrix. Illustrative data describing the course of generative language acquisition by a child with autism taught according to the language matrix approach are included.     

The dynamic relationship between performance feedback, trust, and conflict in groups: A longitudinal study

Moderate task conflict has generally been associated with higher group performance, and relationship conflict associated with lower performance. Past studies have most often discussed their findings as though differences in level of intragroup conflict cause differences in group performance—rather than testing the additional possibility that reported group conflict is a reaction to feedback on past group performance. This paper explores the dynamic relationships between intragroup conflict and performance with a longitudinal design. Results from 67 groups suggest that initial performance feedback to groups can have significant consequences for future team interaction. We find evidence to suggest that, (a) negative initial group performance feedback results in later increases in both task and relationship conflict, but that (b) groups with high early intragroup trust are buffered from experiencing the worst of future relationship conflict.