Cognitive-Social Sources of Wellbeing: Differentiating the Roles of Coping Style,Social Support and Emotional Intelligence

Social support and coping are reliably associated with wellbeing during adolescence, but it is unclear whether relationships between these constructs and affect are inter-related or independent. Emotional intelligence (EI) also correlates with greater wellbeing, but the key processes supporting the association are likewise uncertain. This study aimed to compare support and coping as predictors of wellbeing and stress using structural equation modeling to test alternate latent factor models. It also aimed to test how EI, measured as an ability, might influence the constructs. Data were collected from 203 Israeli high-school students. Modeling suggested that social support was a stronger influence than coping style on wellbeing, although avoidance coping made a unique contribution to lower wellbeing. EI was associated with social support, but not coping or outcome. It is concluded that social support is critical for wellbeing, over and above coping, consistent with theoretical perspectives that emphasize the importance of social engagement in adolescence. Ability EI appears to have only a modest influence on emotional functioning during adolescence.     

Implicit sequence learning based on instructed task set

How does the way we code and control actions influence automatic skill acquisition processes? Wenke and Frensch (2005) showed that instructions can lead participants to code spatial responses based on color. Here, we tested in 3 experiments to what extent response labeling and instruction-based response coding can determine what is learned in implicit sequence learning. Instructions mapped 4 gray shape stimuli to 1 of the 4 keys each in a serial reaction task, referring to the keys in terms of either their color or their spatial location. In Experiments 1 and 2 we found that people in the color instruction conditions used color for action control and acquired sequence knowledge containing color: They were susceptible to irrelevant stimulus colors at transfer and could transfer color sequence knowledge to a new arrangement of response positions and fingers, whereas participants who had received spatial instructions could not. Implicit sequence learning was thus surprisingly flexible. Depending on whether an arbitrary nonspatial response feature was used or not used to explain the stimulus-response mappings, we either found or did not find evidence that this feature became part of action control and sequence learning. Furthermore, Experiment 3 suggested that response position might become part of the sequence knowledge even if instructions do not emphasize this response feature. Together, the findings suggest that implicit sequence learning is based on action control, which in turn strongly, but not entirely, depends on which response features are used to explain the stimulus-response mappings in the instructions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).     

Instruction-based task-rule congruency effects

In the present study, we investigated the functional characteristics of task sets that were never applied before and were formed only on the basis of instructions. We tested if such task sets could elicit a task-rule congruency effect, which implies the automatic activation of responses in the context of another task. To this end, a novel procedure was developed that revealed instruction-based task-rule congruency effects in 2 experiments. Although the effect seems quite general (Experiment 1), it still necessitates the formation of a task set, as it cannot be induced by the mere maintenance of instructions in declarative working memory (Experiment 2). We conclude that a task set representing only key features of an upcoming task can be formed on the basis of instructions alone to such a degree that it can automatically trigger a response tendency in another task. Implications of our results for the impact of instructions on performance in general and for the occurrence of task-rule congruency effects in particular are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).     

On paradoxes and the experience of duality

Abstract

Opposing attitudes, emotions, or perceptions of self and other that set the stage for experiences of duality influence our interactions and self–other schemas. The experience of duality that has been conceptualised as “conflict,” “self state,” and “paradox" in psychoanalytic theory has been extensively considered, particularly in terms of its manifestation in transference–countertransference relations and in the analytic material from patients' experiences. They have not, however, been compared and contrasted as entities that lead to similar kinds of experience. Scant attention has been paid, moreover, to paradox as a mental organisation that underlies certain experiences of duality. The concept of paradox has thus been emphasised and developed in this paper.     

Instruction-based response activation depends on task preparation

An increasing number of studies have demonstrated that a response in one task can be activated automatically on the basis merely of instructed stimulus–response (S–R) mappings belonging to another task. Such instruction-based response activations are considered to be evidence for the formation of S–R associations on the basis of the S–R mappings for an upcoming, but not yet executed, task. A crucial but somewhat neglected assumption is that instructed S–R associations are formed only under conditions that impose a sufficient degree of task preparation. Accordingly, in the present study we investigated the relation between task preparation and the instruction-based task-rule congruency effect, which is an index of response activation on the basis of instructions. The results from two experiments demonstrated that merely instructed S–R mappings of a particular task only elicit instruction-based response activations when that task is prepared for to a sufficient degree. Implications are discussed for the representation of instructed S–R mappings in working memory.     

Cyber Bullying Among Teenagers in Israel: An Examination of Cyber Bullying,Traditional Bullying,and Socioemotional Functioning

In this study, the relationships between cyber bullying and involvement in traditional bullying, with reference to social support and gender differences, was examined. Social support plays an important role in empowering victims of cyber bullying and has a significant influence on children and teenagers’ well-being. A sample made up of 458 Israeli junior high students (242 female, 216 male) in the age range of 11 to 13 completed 4 questionnaires. Results indicated that there is an overlap between involvement in cyber bullying and involvement in traditional bullying. The findings indicate that girls were more likely to be cyber victims than boys and that boys were more likely to be cyber bullies than girls. Examination of the relationships between gender and social support variables such as friends, family, and others, shows that girls who were cyber victims reported having more support in all 3 types than cyber bullied boys. These findings can serve as a basis for prevention and intervention programs to cope with cyber bullying.     

The Role of Career Aspiration,Self-Esteem,Body Esteem,and Gender in Predicting Sense of Well-being Among Emerging Adults

During emerging adulthood, one’s sense of well-being undergoes many rapid changes. Although emerging adults often present considerable energy, creativity, and hopefulness, both in higher education classrooms and workplaces, they often experience a decrease in well-being due to experience confusion, stress encounters, and difficulties in transitioning to adulthood. The authors examined four noteworthy key socioemotional factors that may be linked to emerging adults' sense of well-being: career aspiration, self-esteem, body esteem, and gender. Three hundred 20- to 29-year-old university students participated in the study. Results showed that well-being was correlated positively with self-esteem and body esteem, and body esteem was correlated negatively with gender (men scored higher). Regression analyses revealed that for both men and women, self-esteem and body esteem predicted well-being. Nevertheless, when the gender was analyzed separately, career aspiration predicted well-being only for men, whereas body esteem predicted well-being only for women. The study findings illuminates the importance of generating preventive measures in childhood and adolescence, through reinforcing skills such as resilience and self-esteem with the aim of passing through emerging adulthood with as little harm as possible to the sense of well-being.     

The shielding function of task sets and its relaxation during task switching

The goal of the presented experiments was to investigate the dynamic interplay of task shielding and its relaxation during task switching. Task shielding refers to the finding that single task sets in terms of 2-choice categorization rules help shielding against distraction from irrelevant stimulus attributes. During task switching, this shielding should temporarily be relaxed to prevent the perseveration of the previous task, on the downside making the system more vulnerable toward the intrusion of irrelevant information. Participants had to switch between a digit and a letter categorization task. An irrelevant stimulus feature (Experiment 1: color, Experiment 2: font) varied randomly, orthogonal to the task. The presence or absence of an interaction of the irrelevant feature (switch vs. repetition) and the response (switch vs. repetition) was taken as evidence for the absence or presence of task shielding, respectively. Replicating previous results, irrelevant feature and response did not interact on task repetitions, indicating successful shielding. On task switches, however, the irrelevant feature interacted with the response, supporting the assumption that task shielding is temporarily relaxed during task switching.     

Cyberbullying Victimization in Adolescents as Related to Body Esteem,Social Support,and Social Self-Efficacy

ABSTRACT

The authors examined cyberbullying victimization in the context of issues of key importance to youth: body esteem, social support, and social self-efficacy. Research has found that traditional peer-bullying victimization is significantly correlated with low body esteem in Western societies, especially pertaining to weight (R. Puhl & J. Luedicke, 2012 Puhl, R., & Luedicke, J. (2012). Weight-based victimization among adolescents in the school setting: Emotional reactions and coping behaviors. Journal of Youth & Adolescence, 41, 27–40. [Google Scholar]). Studies have also found a relationship among bullying victimization, appearance-related bullying, low body esteem, and psychosocial difficulties among youth (L. E. Park, R. M. Calogero, A.F. Young, & A. Diraddo, 2010 Park, L. E., Calogero, R. M., Young, A. F., & Diraddo, A. (2010). Appearance-Based Rejection Sensitivity predicts Body Dysmorphic Disorder symptoms and cosmetic surgery acceptance. Journal Of Social & Clinical Psychology, 29, 489–509. [Google Scholar]). However, the emergence of cyberbullying, characterized by its own special features (P. K. Smith et al., 2008 Smith, P. K., Mahdavi, J., Carvalho, M., Fisher, S., Russell, S., & Tippett, N. (2008). Cyberbullying: Its nature and impact in secondary school pupils. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 49, 376–385. [Google Scholar]), has raised a salient need to explore the relationship between cyber victimization and body esteem, no less important with social framework, because both are key components in adolescents' lives that may be associated with cyberbullying victimization. The authors examined these relationships among 204 Israeli adolescents 14–16 years old. The results indicate a noteworthy prevalence (45%) of cyber victims. Cyber victimization is significantly correlated with low body esteem and low social support and social self-efficacy. Low body esteem and low social support predicted the probability of being a cyber victim. The results extend the knowledge about potential personal and social risk factors for cyber victimization during adolescence. Implications for specific intervention programs are discussed.