Upward spirals of positive emotion and coping: Replication, extension, and initial exploration of neurochemical substrates

The broaden-and-build theory (Fredrickson, 1998, 2001) predicts that positive emotions broaden the scopes of attention and cognition, thereby facilitating the building of personal resources and initiating upward spirals toward increasing emotional well-being. This study attempts to replicate and extend previous empirical support for this model. Using a sample of 185 undergraduates, we assessed whether positive affect and broad-minded coping, interpersonal trust, and social support reciprocally and prospectively predict one another over a two-month period, and whether this upward spiral might be partially based in changes in dopaminergic functioning. As hypothesized, PA and positive coping did mutually build on one another, as did PA and interpersonal trust. Contrary to expectation, PA did not demonstrate an upward spiral relation with social support. Results suggest further study of the relationship between PA and changes in dopamine metabolite levels over time is warranted.     

Approaching math increases math = me and math = pleasant

In two studies, we examined the effect of extensive practice in approaching math on implicit identification with math, implicit math attitudes, and behavior during a math test. The results from Study 1 demonstrated that women trained to approach math showed more identification with and positive implicit attitudes toward math than women trained to avoid math. Notably, this latter pattern of findings was only evident for women low in initial identification with this field. The results from Study 2 replicated these findings by showing that women who were initially low in math identification and trained to approach math showed more implicit identification with math and attempted more items on a math test than women trained to respond to math in a neutral way. The implications of these findings for current theorizing on the gender gap in women’s representation in math related careers are discussed.     

Identification with Religion: Cross‐National Evidence from a Social Psychological Perspective

Why is religion a more central social identity for some people than for others? Previous studies focus on explaining individual differences in religious affiliation and religiosity, often using the term “identification” in reference to these concepts. Yet, few scholars operationalize—let alone attempt to explain—identification with religion in social psychological terms, i.e., as a construct that captures the subjective psychological centrality of one's religious identity. After underscoring the benefits of exploring religious identification using cross‐national data, we employ an original data set composed of nationally representative surveys in three European countries to model religious identification in two ways: importance (independent strength of attachment) and prominence (prioritization of one's religious identity relative to the others one holds). We document substantial variation in the degree to which individuals define themselves on the basis of their religious identity. We then test predictions drawn from existing theories to model these two measures. Our results extend current understandings of what shapes psychological attachment to religion and raise new questions for future theorization and analysis.     

The Short Dark Triad (SD3): Adaptation and Psychometrics among At-Risk Male and Female Youths

The dark triad is a term used to describe a constellation of three socially harmful personality traits: Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism. The main aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Short Dark Triad (SD3) scale, a brief measure of the dark triad, among a sample (N = 412) of male (n = 200) and female (n = 212) at-risk Portuguese youths. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed the three-factor structure of the SD3 obtained an adequate fit, and measurement invariance across gender was demonstrated, although two items per dimension had to be removed. The Portuguese version of the SD3 scale demonstrated satisfactory psychometric properties, specifically the properties of internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and known-groups validity, which overall justifies its use among this population. Findings are discussed in terms of the use of the SD3 scale with male and female at-risk youths.     

Self–other differences in multiattribute decision making: Compensatory versus noncompensatory decision strategies

When making decisions where options involve multiple attributes, a person can choose to use a compensatory, utility maximizing strategy, which involves consideration and integration of all available attributes. Alternatively, a person can choose a noncompensatory strategy that extracts only the most important and reliable attributes. The present research examined whether other‐oriented decisions would involve greater reliance on a noncompensatory, lexicographic decision strategy than self‐oriented decisions. In three studies (Mturk workers and college students), the difference in other‐oriented versus self‐oriented decisions in a medical decision context was explained by a subsample of participants that chose the death minimizing operation on all 10 decisions (Study 1) and a subsample of participants who self‐reported that they used a strategy that minimized the chance of death on every decision (i.e., a lexicographic mortality heuristic; Study 2). In Study 2, tests of mediation found that self‐reported use of the mortality heuristic completely accounted for the self–other effect on decisions. In Study 3, participants were more likely to report prospectively that they would adopt the mortality heuristic when making decisions for others than for themselves, suggesting that participants were not mistakenly inferring a lexicographic decision strategy from their past behavior. The results suggest that self–other effects in multiattribute choice involve differential use of compensatory versus noncompensatory decision strategies and that beyond this group difference, individual differences in the use of these strategies also exist within self‐oriented and other‐oriented decisions.     

Development and validation of the HIV Medication Readiness Scale

Excellent medication adherence (>95%) is required for optimal HIV treatment success. This study aimed to develop and validate a brief scale to assess psychological readiness for successfully starting and adhering to HIV medications. HIV-positive men and women (N = 142) from an HIV outpatient clinic completed the proposed HIV Medication Readiness Scale (HMRS) prior to starting HIV medications. The 10-item HMRS demonstrated high internal consistency (alpha = .90), test-retest reliability (r = .83), and sensitivity to change following a standardized 4-session psychoeducational intervention designed to increase readiness for successful adherence. Predictive validity was supported by higher readiness scores on the day starting HIV medications, predicting higher treatment adherence at 1-month follow-up. The HMRS is a brief, easy-to-use, clinically relevant tool that can assist in identifying people living with HIV at high risk of nonadherence, who might benefit from tailored readiness counseling prior to initiating HIV medications.     

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.     

The double-anchoring theory of lightness perception: a comment on Bressan (2006)

Recently, a double-anchoring theory (DAT) of lightness perception was proposed (P. Bressan, 2006), which offers explanations for all the data explained by the original anchoring theory (A. Gilchrist et al., 1999), as well as a number of additional lightness phenomena. Consequently, DAT can account for an unprecedented range of empirical results, potentially explaining everything from the basic simultaneous contrast display to subtle variations of the Gelb effect. In this comment, the authors raised 4 concerns that demonstrate serious theoretical and empirical difficulties for DAT.