The effects of stressors and coping resources on anxiety and peripheral narrowing

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine possible mechanisms which might help explain why individuals with high life stress and/or low coping resources are at greater risk for incurring athletic injuries. The effects of life events, daily hassles (DH), and coping resources (CR) on state anxiety and peripheral vision narrowing during a stress condition were examined. Subjects were 74 recreational athletes who completed the Life Events Survey, Daily Hassles Scale (DHS), Vulnerability to Stress Questionnaire (CR), and state portion of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Peripheral vision was measured alone during baseline and while simultaneously performing a Stroop Color-Word Test accompanied by distracting noise during the stress condition. State anxiety was assessed during baseline and the stress condition. Analyses of covariance revealed that high negative life events (NLE) (p = .01) were related to greater peripheral narrowing during the stress condition. High TLE (p = .01) and DH (p = .005) were related to elevated state anxiety during the stress condition. The peripheral vision TLE main effect (p = .03) and the state anxiety interactions of NLE × CR and DHS × CR (ps = .05) approached significance. High CR tended to reduce perceived state anxiety during the stress condition for high NLE and DH subjects compared to similar subjects with low CR. Thus, partial support was offered for the mechanisms proposed in the Andersen and Williams (1988) stress-injury model. The results are discussed in terms of future research needs.     

Competitive Fighting between Mice with Different Hereditary Backgrounds

It was hypothesized that Piaget's argument on behalf of the reorganization of cognitive processes would gain empirical support from a color/form, matching similar objects problem for 52 (29 boys, 23 girls) 6-year-olds from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds. The instrument had 32 frames, each of which had three red or blue objects, some of regular and some of irregular shape. After color or form dominance for each child was established, frames were presented in which the dominant dimension could be chosen only through cognitive reorganization. Indications of cognitive reorganization for form-processing children included switching to color choices when all three objects were of identical shape, taking significantly (p < .05) greater time to make a choice for irregularly shaped objects, and having judges find indications of the use of parts of irregularly shaped objects for matches in verbal explanations by each child.     

The development of work discussion groups in educational settings

This paper describes the application and development of the work discussion method within educational settings. In the first section of the paper, I outline some key contextual factors that are important to consider when setting up work discussion groups within schools. A number of case examples are then described, illustrating a range of central issues that can emerge. By developing a deeper understanding about the meaning of behaviour and the emotional factors that impact on teaching and learning, I hope to demonstrate how work discussion groups can help teachers to develop their capacity to manage the challenges of their work, role and relationships with pupils. More broadly, I hope to illustrate how these groups can help to promote a learning environment for all, in which development and growth is promoted at a personal, professional and whole school level.     

Client and therapist variability in clients' perceptions of their therapists' multicultural competencies

This study examined therapist differences in their clients' ratings of their therapists' multicultural competencies (MCCs) as well as tested whether therapists' who were rated as exhibiting more MCCs also had clients who had better therapy outcomes (N = 143 clients and 31 therapists). All clients completed at least 3 sessions. Results demonstrated that therapists accounted for less than 1% of the variance in their clients' Cross-Cultural Counseling Inventory–Revised (CCCI-R; T. D. LaFromboise, H. L. K. Coleman, & A. Hernandez, 1991) scores, suggesting that therapists did not differ in terms of how clients rated their MCCs. Therapists accounted for approximately 8.5% of the variance in therapy outcomes. For each therapist, their clients' CCCI-R scores were aggregated to provide an estimate of therapists' MCCs. Therapists' MCCs, based on aggregate CCCI-R scores, did not account for the variability in therapy outcomes that were attributed to them. Additionally, clients' race/ethnicity, therapists' race/ethnicity, or the interaction of clients'–therapists' race/ethnicity were not significantly associated with clients' perceptions of their therapists' MCCs.     

Social cognitive influences on Mexican Americans’ career choices across Holland’s themes

This study examined several propositions of social cognitive career theory ( [Lent et al., 1994] and [Lent et al., 2000]) with a sample of 393 Mexican American college students. It was hypothesized that person input (i.e., age) and background contextual variables (i.e., Anglo orientation, Mexican orientation, familism, instrumentality, and expressivity) would predict career self-efficacy across Holland’s (1997) six RIASEC types. In addition, we examined the proposed relations between career self-efficacy, career interests, and career choice goal across the six RIASEC areas. Our results indicated that (a) Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional career models were similar across gender and university affiliation groups, (b) gender differences were found in the Realistic career model, (c) institutional affiliation differences were found in the Investigative career model, and (d) the models were a good fit to the data. Implications for future vocational research and career interventions are discussed.     

How do depressed and healthy adults interpret nuanced facial expressions?

This study investigates the discrimination accuracy of emotional stimuli in subjects with major depression compared with healthy controls using photographs of facial expressions of varying emotional intensities. The sample included 88 unmedicated male and female subjects, aged 18-56 years, with major depressive disorder (n = 44) or no psychiatric illness (n = 44), who judged the emotion of 200 facial pictures displaying an expression between 10% (90% neutral) and 80% (nuanced) emotion. Stimuli were presented in 10% increments to generate a range of intensities, each presented for a 500-ms duration. Compared with healthy volunteers, depressed subjects showed very good recognition accuracy for sad faces but impaired recognition accuracy for other emotions (e.g., harsh, surprise, and sad expressions) of subtle emotional intensity. Recognition accuracy improved for both groups as a function of increased intensity on all emotions. Finally, as depressive symptoms increased, recognition accuracy increased for sad faces, but decreased for surprised faces. Moreover, depressed subjects showed an impaired ability to accurately identify subtle facial expressions, indicating that depressive symptoms influence accuracy of emotional recognition.     

Two ways,two steps

Joseph Ratzinger’s theology of religions is structured around a basic choice between “the two ways” of “a personal understanding of God” and “a mysticism of identity.” After clarifying misunderstandings about a possible “third way,” this article examines Ratzinger’s treatment of the two ways with the help of Roman A. Siebenrock’s observation that Ratzinger’s thought proceeds in two steps, the first highlighting differences, the second seeking integration. In the first step, Ratzinger defends the personal understanding of God on the basis of the primacy of love, the inviolable dignity of the human person, and the real distinction between good and evil. In the second step, Ratzinger shows considerable openness toward “interreligious ecumenism” between the two ways, emphasising the decisive importance of the mystical and apophatic aspect of religion. A similar dynamic is seen in the treatment of prayer, although in this case the second step remains underdeveloped. Ratzinger is cautious about multireligious prayer and pessimistic about interreligious prayer. Nonetheless, neither is unconditionally rejected, and the door is left open for further developments and discussion. This article suggests that interreligious families, missionary situations and prayers to saints could provide examples of acceptable instances of interreligious prayer.     

Aging and the perceptual organization of 3-D scenes

In the current study, the authors investigated whether the ground dominance effect (the use of ground surface information for the perceptual organization of scenes) varied with age. In Experiment 1, a scene containing a ground, a ceiling, and 2 vertical posts was presented. The scene was either in its normal orientation or rotated to the side. In Experiment 2, a blue dot was attached to each post, with location varied from bottom to top of the posts. In Experiment 3, a scene similar to that in Experiment 1 was presented in different locations in visual field. Observers judged which of the 2 objects (posts in Experiments 1 and 3, blue dots in Experiment 2) appeared to be closer. The results indicated that both younger (mean age = 22 years) and older observers (mean age = 73 years) responded consistently with the ground dominance effect. However, the magnitude of the effect decreased for older observers. These results suggest a decreased use of ground surface information by older observers for the perceptual organization of scene layout.     

Stress and Coping Among Displaced Bosnian Refugees: An Exploratory Study

Traumatic experiences associated with the recent war in Bosnia (1992–1995) have impacted the lives of many Bosnian refugees and displaced people. Approximately 25% of Bosnians were forced to leave their homes and resettle in other areas of Bosnia or abroad. In this study, 82 displaced Bosnians living in the area of Tuzla, Bosnia, and 53 refugees living in the San Francisco Bay area completed the same questionnaire in the Bosnian language. The study describes war-related stress and the association of marital status, anxiety, depression, and sensitivity levels. Furthermore, being single, having lower anxiety ratings, finding and adapting to a new environment easily, and moving on with their lives indicated better self-reported health. Findings also revealed that being divorced or separated, better self-reported health, and lower anxiety, depression, and sensitivity ratings were predictors of more effective coping.