Human affection exchange: VI. Further tests of reproductive probability as a predictor of men's affection with their adult sons

The authors examined the communication of affection in men's relationships with their fathers. Drawing from Affection Exchange Theory, the authors advanced four predictions: (a) heterosexual men receive more affection from their own fathers than do homosexual or bisexual men, (b) fathers communicate affection to their sons more through supportive activities than through direct verbal statements or nonverbal gestures, (c) affectionate communication between fathers and sons is linearly related to closeness and interpersonal involvement between them, and (d) fathers' awareness of their sons' sexual orientation is associated with the amount of affection that the fathers communicate to them. Participants were 170 adult men who completed questionnaires regarding affectionate communication in their relationships with their fathers. Half of the men were self-identified as exclusively heterosexual, and the other half were self-identified as exclusively homosexual or bisexual. The results supported all predictions substantially.     

Human affection exchange: II. Affectionate communication in father-son relationships

The father-son dyad might be the most socially significant male-male relationship in the life course, yet its negative qualities have been the sole focus in most research on the relationship. One communicative aspect that has received little scholarly attention is the expression of affection between fathers and sons, despite the strong correlation of affectionate communication with positive involvement, closeness, and relational satisfaction for fathers and sons. In 2 studies, the authors tested hypotheses about father-son affection that were derived from affection exchange theory (K. Floyd, in press). Results indicated that U.S. men are more affectionate with biological sons than with stepsons or adopted sons and that they are more affectionate with their biological sons than their biological sons are with them.     

Norwegian short-form of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale

A tutorial example demonstrates the effects of social desirability bias on fictional multiculturalism and mental health data and how bias can be moderated by parital correlations using social desirabiliry measures of different degrees of validity. The 33-item Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability scale was translated from English to Norwegian and presented to 117 university students and 124 non-students. Using psychometric criteria, and a "seed-crystal" method accretion, a 10-item Norwegian short-form of the Marlowe-Crowne scale was produced.     

“I Love You,Man”: Overt Expressions of Affection in Male Male Interaction

Despite the importance of affectionatecommunication for relational development andmaintenance, individuals expressing affection incur anumber of risks, including possible misinterpretation ofthe expressions as sexual overtures. These risks appear to bemagnified in the male-male relationship, where overtexpressions of affection may be all but prohibited bynormative expectancies. The present study examines expectancies for appropriate male-maleaffection. Although empirical research supports the ideathat overt affection is considered less appropriate inmale-male relationships than in relationships with women, it also suggests that three variablesmay moderate this expectancy: relationship type,emotional intensity of the context, and privacy level ofthe context. An experimental procedure with 140 men (approximately 95% caucasian) confirmed themoderating effects of these variables.     

Managing Attitudes Toward High Achievers: The Influence 0f Group Discussion

For a variety of cultural, contextual, and interpersonal reasons, individual achievement often meets with potentially demotivating resistance from the group. In groups of between three and seven members, 397 psychology and social work students, in East and Northern Australian cities (Newcastle and Darwin), indicated their attitudes toward high achievers before, during, and after a group consensus task. In each location, and at both individual and group levels of analysis, initially slightly pro-achiever attitudes, following discussion of the issues, became polarized. Such changes, across diverse settings and groups, indicate that group discussion may be a robust tool, both for empowering teams and encouraging support for individual initiative.     

The double standard of aging and the social situation: Judgments of attractiveness of the middle-aged woman

Two hundred male and 200 female undergraduates judged pictures of middle-aged women and middle-aged men for their immediate emotional appeal. Pictures had been selected to be of middle attractiveness and to represent individuals who appeared to be between 35 and 55 years old. Subjects made judgments under one of the following social conditions: in private, or in small groups which were all male, all female, or half male and half female. Social condition and subjects' sex affected judgments significantly, and there were some significant complex interactions between these two variables and the sex of the stimulus picture. Male and female subjects privately judged middle-aged women to be more attractive than middle-aged men, but the effect was reversed when judgments were made publicly in groups. As predicted, members of all-male groups judged middle-aged women to be considerably less attractive than middle-aged men. Members of all-female groups, and both the men and the women in mixed-sex groups, judged middle-aged women to be only slightly less attractive than middle-aged men.The authors wish to thank Linda Andrews, Dayna Buskirk, Anne Grealy and Lori Monda for their assistance.     

Parent's report of stress and articulation oscillation as factors in a preschooler's dysfluencies

Recently, one focus of research on dysfluency and stuttering seems to be on the preschooler. One goal of such research should be to determine what factors in the child's language system and what factors in the social environment may put the child at risk for developing dysfluencies and stuttering. The following is a parent's account of the occurrence of dysfluencies in a preschooler. Emphasis is on a language phenomenon that might be labeled “articulation oscillation” and on apparent social environmental stress.     

Internal Consistency and Test-Retest Stability of the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form in African American Older Adults

The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) is one of the most widely used self-rated mood questionnaires for older adults. It is highly correlated with clinical diagnoses of depression and has demonstrated validity across different patient populations. However, the reliability of the GDS among African American older adults remains to be firmly established. In a baseline sample of 401 African American adults age 51 and over, the GDS-15 item short form demonstrates good internal consistency (KR20 = .71). Stability over a 15-month interval in a retest sample of 51 adults is deemed adequate (r = .68). These findings support the use of the GDS-15 item short form as a reliable mood questionnaire among African American older adults.     

Psychopathology of Adolescent Social Phobia

Sixty-three adolescents with social phobia and 43 with no psychiatric disorders were compared across a number of clinical variables. In addition to clinically impairing social fear, adolescents with social phobia had significantly higher levels of loneliness, dysphoria, general emotional over-responsiveness and more internalizing behaviors than normal controls and 57.1% of socially phobic adolescents had a second, concurrent diagnosis, 75% of which were other anxiety disorders. In addition, adolescents with social phobia were significantly less socially skilled. Though similar in some respects to childhood social phobia, adolescent social phobia has a unique clinical presentation. The importance of developmental differences on the development of age-appropriate interventions is discussed.     

The Performance of Albino Mice in the Maze Situation with Stimulation of the Vestibular Sense as Motivation and its Relative Absence as Reinforcement

Changes in choices of preferred playmates by 3- and 4-year-old children were observed over the course of a school year. All of the children in this study participated in planned, fully mainstreamed, same-age preschool classes. Sociometric assessments were obtained from all children without disabilities in October, February, and May of the school year; peer nominations of three “best friends” were obtained at the beginning and end of the school year. The 3-year-old children showed a general decline in the ratings given to all of their peers over the course of the school year. Four-year-old children showed significant preferences for same-sex peers without disabilities as playmates. The implications of these findings for integrated programs are discussed.