Conservatism and Perceptions of Poverty: An Attributional Analysis1

Attribution theory was used to relate causal explanations for poverty to affect and behavioral intentions. In Experiment 1, student subjects rated 13 causes of poverty on importance, the attribution of controllability, blame, affects of pity and anger, and judgments of help-giving (personal help and welfare). Two individual differences, conservatism and the belief in a just world, were also assessed. A principal components analysis categorized the causes into three types: individualistic, societal, and fatalistic. Conservatism correlated positively with a belief in the importance of individualistic causes, controllability, blame, and anger, and it correlated negatively with perceptions of the importance of societal causes, pity, and intentions to help. No systematic effects of the belief in a just world emerged. A structural equation analysis revealed that personal help is emotionally determined, whereas welfare judgments are directly related to attributions of responsibility and political ideology. Experiment 2 revealed a similar pattern of results using a nonstudent sample.     

Teaching the History of Counseling: Training the Next Generation

The authors describe a teaching activity using a poster-session format to teach first-year counseling psychology doctoral students the history of counseling. Evaluative data suggest that the format was an effective and powerful tool to teach beginning counseling psychology students the history of the profession. The implications of the evaluative feedback are discussed in terms of teaching and preparing the next generation of counselors.     

Caring for a Family Member With Cancer: Past Communal Behavior and Affective Reactions1

An important recent development in the caregiving literature is an increased focus on the role played by the interpersonal relationship between caregiver and care recipient. In this study, a prediction derived from communal relationship theory (Clark & Mills, 1979, 1993; Mills & Clark, 1982) was tested in a sample of patients with recurrent cancer and their family caregivers. Specifically, it was hypothesized that if a relationship had been communal in the past (i.e., characterized by mutual demonstrations of concern for and responsiveness to one another's needs), positive feelings about helping one's partner should continue even when one partner's needs far outweigh those of the other. Consistent with this hypothesis, results indicated that caregivers whose relationship with the patient before illness onset had been characterized by relatively infrequent communal behaviors evidenced more symptoms of depression that did those whose relationship had been characterized by more frequent communal behaviors. In addition, the effects of prior communal behavior on depressed affect were both mediated and moderated by feelings of burden. Caregivers who recalled relatively few communal behaviors in their past relationship felt more burdened by their caregiving role, and burden in turn predicted greater depressive symptomatology. Implications for early identification of caregivers at risk for becoming distressed are discussed.     

The Relationship Between Religious and Psychospiritual Measures and an Inflammation Marker (CRP) in Older Adults Experiencing Life Event Stress

Journal of Religion and Health - Inflammation, often measured by C-reactive protein (CRP), is thought to be related to a number of debilitating illnesses as we age, including cardiovascular...     

Relationships Between Trauma,Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms,Dissociative Symptoms,and Lifetime Heroin Use Among Individuals Who Abuse Substances in Residential Treatment

This study explored the relationships between trauma, posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, dissociation, and lifetime heroin use among inpatient clients who abused substances. Results indicate important implications for practice and directions for future research.     

Spiritual Struggles and Health: Assessing the Influence of Socioeconomic Status

Growing evidence suggests that spiritual struggles may play a major role in explaining the relationship between religion and health. Even so, there are significant gaps in the literature. More specifically, researchers do not know enough about how spiritual struggles arise in the first place. This study has two major goals. The first is to see whether socioeconomic status is associated with spiritual struggles. The second is to see whether spiritual struggles are associated with physical health. A conceptual model is tested that contains the following core hypotheses: (1) individuals with lower levels of educational attainment are more likely to encounter chronic economic difficulties; (2) people who experience ongoing financial strain are more likely to live in rundown neighborhoods; (3) people who live in dilapidated neighborhoods will be more angry than their well‐to‐do counterparts; (4) people who are more angry will, in turn, be more likely to experience spiritual struggles; and (5) greater spiritual struggles will be associated with more symptoms of physical illness. Data from a recent nationwide survey (N = 2,146) provide empirical support for each hypothesis.     

Volunteer Work,Religious Commitment,and Resting Pulse Rates

Research indicates that greater involvement in volunteer activities is associated with better health. We aim to contribute to this literature in two ways. First, rather than rely on self-reports of health, measured resting pulse rates serve as the dependent variable. Second, an effort is made to see if religious commitment moderates the relationship between volunteering and resting pulse rates. Data that come from a recent nationwide survey (N = 2265) suggest that volunteer work is associated with lower resting pulse rates. The results also reveal that the relationship between engaging in volunteer work and resting pulse rates improves among study participants who are more deeply committed to religion.