Our neoliberal fantasies? A preliminary test of research trends in leading journals in work and organizational psychology

Prior to engaging in a substantive discussion on the supposed influence of neoliberalism on research in work and organizational psychology (WOP), it is important to verify the empirical basis of the trends advanced by Bal and Dóci (Neoliberal ideology in work and organizational psychology, European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology [Online First Publication, 2018]). To this end, we content analysed 745 abstracts of empirical studies published in leading WOP journals during the years 2006–2007 and 2016–2017. Results of our content analysis do not support the hypothesized trends towards more instrumentality and individualism in WOP research, suggesting that Bal and Dóci’s (2018) portrayal of the WOP literature does not provide a solid basis for discussion. On the basis of our findings, we conclude with recommendations to broaden the scope of WOP research to also include macro-level, societal issues.     

The psychological experiences of foster mothers of adolescent children

The present study explored the psychological experiences of foster mothers who were fostering adolescents abandoned by their biological parents and whose parents had passed away. A purposive sample of 20 foster mothers (age range 25 to 83 years) was informants. They completed semi-structured interviews on their experiences of providing care to foster children. Thematic analysis of the data revealed the following themes: structure of the support system, crisis management, relationships management, and resilience with spirituality as coping mechanisms. Foster parenting of adolescent children requires qualities of perseverance, love, humility, and faith in carers.     

Dissociation between medial frontal negativity and cardiac responses in the ultimatum game: Effects of offer size and fairness

In the present study, we examined the role of fairness and offer size on brain and cardiac responses in the ultimatum game (UG). Twenty healthy volunteers played the role of responder in a computerized version of the UG in which the fairness and size of the offers were systematically varied. Both fairness and size of the offer influenced the acceptance rates in a predictable way, leading to fewer accepted unfair and low offers. Only unfair high, but not unfair low offers were accompanied by a medial frontal negativity. An unexpected stronger cardiac deceleration to fairer offers was found, which was not affected by the size of the offers. Cardiac and electrocortical measures showed a different relation with performance, and both measures were correlated only modestly. This dissociation between cardiac responses and brain potentials is discussed in terms of a possible differential sensitivity to effects of stimulus probability and violation of the social rules.     

Feedback type as a moderator of the relationship between achievement goals and feedback reactions

The aim of the current study is to shed new light on the inconsistent relationship between performance‐approach (PAp) goals and feedback reactions by examining feedback type as a moderator. Results of a field experiment (N = 939) using a web‐based work simulation task showed that the effect of achievement‐approach goals was moderated by feedback type. Relative to individuals pursuing mastery‐approach goals, individuals pursuing PAp goals responded more negatively to comparative feedback but not to task‐referenced feedback. In line with the hypothesized mediated moderation model, the interaction between achievement goals and feedback type also indirectly affected task performance through feedback reactions. Providing employees with feedback is a key psychological principle used in a wide range of human resource and performance management instruments (e.g., developmental assessment centres, multi‐source/360° feedback, training, selection, performance appraisal, management education, computer‐adaptive testing, and coaching). The current study suggests that organizations need to strike a balance between encouraging learning and encouraging performance, as too much emphasis on comparative performance (both in goal inducement and in feedback style) may be detrimental to employees' reactions and rate of performance improvement.     

Impossibility Results for Infinite-Electorate Abstract Aggregation Rules

Following Lauwers and Van Liedekerke (1995), this paper explores in a model-theoretic framework the relation between Arrovian aggregation rules and ultraproducts, in order to investigate a source of impossibility results for the case of an infinite number of individuals and an aggregation rule based on a free ultrafilter of decisive coalitions.     

Preferential Semantics using Non-smooth Preference Relations

This paper studies the properties of eight semantic consequence relations defined from a Tarski-logic L and a preference relation ? . They are equivalent to Shoham’s so-called preferential entailment for smooth model structures, but avoid certain problems of the latter in non-smooth configurations. Each of the logics can be characterized in terms of what we call multi-selection semantics. After discussing this type of semantics, we focus on some concrete proposals from the literature, checking a number of meta-theoretic properties and elaborating on their intuitive motivation. As it turns out, many of their meta-properties only hold in case ? is transitive. To tackle this problem, we propose slight modifications of each of the systems, showing the resulting logics to behave better at the intuitive level and in metatheoretic terms, for arbitrary ? .     

Approaching the religious patient in forensic psychiatry,with special focus on ethnic minority patients

ABSTRACT

Ethnic minority patients are overrepresented in Danish forensic psychiatry and knowledge is needed on how these patients are approached in relation to religious and cultural issues. The aim of this study was to investigate how psychiatrists in Danish forensic psychiatry approach religious ethnic minority patients. The study revealed positive approach towards religious ethnic minority patients. However, unless religion features as part of the illness, the tendency is to not incorporate the patients’ religiosity in treatment. The study finds that the hospital chaplain is regarded by the psychiatrists as an important part of the ward and expressed the desire for a more formal cooperation with religious specialists to be developed. Finally, the study finds that religious practices such as Ramadan, common prayer, and Islamic edicts on food and unlawful touch are areas where more knowledge is needed, especially in relation to anxiety, potential stress, and conflict situations.     

Impaired Memory Retention and Decreased Long-Term Potentiation in Integrin-Associated Protein-Deficient Mice

Previously, we have demonstrated that integrin-associated protein (IAP) mRNA level is approximately fourfold higher in rats showing good retention performance (600 sec) than rats showing poor retention performance (<80 sec) in an inhibitory avoidance learning paradigm. In the present study, we have used the gene-targeted IAP-deficient mice to further investigate the role of IAP involved in memory formation and hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP) in vivo. Results revealed that there was a significant impairment in memory retention and a significant reduction in the magnitude of LTP in IAP-deficient mice when compared with the wild-type and heterozygote mice, whereas the wild-type and heterozygote animals did not show marked differences on these measures. Furthermore, the impairment in retention performance of IAP-deficient mice was not due to different sensitivities of these animals to the electric shock. When we examined locomotor activity and rotarod treadmill performance, no differences were observed among these three groups of animals either. Western blot analysis confirmed the lack of IAP protein in IAP-deficient mice, whereas IAP expression was similar in both the wild-type and heterozygote controls. These results together demonstrate that IAP plays an important role in the process of memory formation and synaptic plasticity in mice.     

Adaptive Logic Characterizations of Input/Output Logic

We translate unconstrained and constrained input/output logics as introduced by Makinson and van der Torre to modal logics, using adaptive logics for the constrained case. The resulting reformulation has some additional benefits. First, we obtain a proof-theoretic (dynamic) characterization of input/output logics. Second, we demonstrate that our framework naturally gives rise to useful variants and allows to express important notions that go beyond the expressive means of input/output logics, such as violations and sanctions.