The emotional symbolism of two English e-sounds: /i/ as in "cheap" is pleasant and /I/ as in "chip" active

This article aligns the symbolism of the long (/i/) and short (/I/) e sounds in English with the two dimensions of emotional space-Pleasantness and Activation. On the basis of this alignment, the four quadrants of emotional space are labelled Cheerful (high /i/, high /I/), Cheerless (low /i/, low /I/), Tough (low /i/, high /I/), and Tender (high /i/, low /I/). In four phases, data from over 50 samples (mainly, poetry, song lyrics, and names) were plotted and compared in terms of their use of the two e sounds. Significant and meaningful differences among samples were discovered in all phases. The placement of samples in quadrants was additionally informative. Data samples including many long e sounds (/i/) tended to be more Pleasant and those including many short e sounds (/I/) tended to be more Active.     

Discrimination and Puerto Rican children's and adolescents' mental health

Two studies of Puerto Rican youths' development on the U.S. mainland examined the consequences of perceived racial/ethnic discrimination on mental health. In Study I, children were found to have a low likelihood of perceiving discrimination, whereas in Study 2, nearly half of the adolescent sample reported perceiving racial/ethnic discrimination. Although both groups scored high on multiple indicators of mental health, perceiving discrimination and worrying about discrimination were negatively associated with some dimensions of self-esteem and positively associated with depression and stress. Adolescents were aware of negative stereotypes about Puerto Ricans, and nearly half of them related discriminatory instances. Results suggest that both perceiving discrimination and anxiety regarding discrimination can serve as risk factors for the mental health of this population.     

The role of interference in memory span

In two experiments, we investigated the possibility that susceptibility to proactive interference (PI) affects performance on memory span measures. We tested both younger and older adults (older adults were tested because of the suggestion that they are differentially susceptible to PI). We used two different span measures and manipulated testing procedures to reduce PI for these tasks. For older adults, span estimates increased with each PI-reducing manipulation; for younger adults, scores increased when multiple PI manipulations were combined or when PI-reducing manipulations were used in paradigms in which within-task PI was especially high. The findings suggest that PI critically influences span performance. We consider the possibility that interference-proneness may influence cognitive behaviors previously thought to be governed by capacity.     

The Effect of Social Context on Gender Self-Concept

In this study we re-examine the role of genderwithin the self-concept and challenge the assumptionthat our gender self-concept is static and consistentacross contexts. We used the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) to measure masculinity and femininityacross six contexts. These six contexts were interactingwith same sex friends, interacting with other sexfriends, interacting at home, work, and school, and interacting in a social context where one doesnot know many people. Two hundred twenty-three femalesand 52 males from a large public university in theSoutheast participated in the study. A majority of the participants (76%) were Caucasian with 10%being Hispanic, 4% Asian, and 4% African American.Multivariate analyses of variance provided strongevidence for differences across contexts for both males and females. The results indicated that we aredynamic beings and those characteristics associated withgender are dynamic as well.     

Work and Pregnancy: Individual and Organizational Factors Influencing Organizational Commitment,Timing of Maternity Leave,and Return to Work

The authors surveyed 86 pregnant women (73%White, 8% Asian, 7% African American, 6% Hispanic, and1% Native American) to examine individual andorganizational factors associated with organizationalcommitment and planned timing of their maternity leavesand return to work after childbirth. Women whoseorganizations offered guaranteed jobs after childbirthplanned to work later into their pregnancies and toreturn to work sooner after childbirth. Women whoperceived supportive work-family cultures were morecommitted to their organizations and planned to returnmore quickly after childbirth than women who perceived less supportive cultures. Also, women with lesstraditional attitudes toward parenting planned to worklater into their pregnancies and return to work soonerafter childbirth.     

Founders and Foundresses: Revising the History, of a Kenyan Independent Church

The Roho, or Holy, Spirit churches of Nyanza Province in Western Kenya spring from a charismatic Christian movement that emerged among the Luo during the colonial era. This article uses life narratives of active Roho participants to counter-balance existing historical literature which draws heavily on colonial records. Oral sources call into question the ‘top-down’ paradigm of schism that has dominated the discussion of African independent Christianity and emphasize the role of women in the evolution and expansion of the Roho church. This article also traces the gradual transformation of women’s involvement from the early years when—incorporating indigenous patterns of female spirit mediumship—women acted as soldiers and pastors to the present condition of Western-style institution and limited leadership opportunities for women.