Reviving the Past for the Future?: The (In)compatibility between Confucianism and Democracy in Contemporary China

The issue of (in)compatibility between Confucianism and modern democracy, particularly in China, has attracted much debate over the decade. This article singles out the particular notion of Minben 民本, which is at the center of the argument for a ‘Confucian democracy’, and argues that it is fundamentally different from modern democracy. However, this does not mean that Confucianism could not be connected with modern democracy. The important question is: what exactly does it mean to ‘connect’ Confucianism to the modern society? The author argues that only by being disconnected with political power could there be meaningful ‘Confucian democracy’ today in China.     

The counselor perspective on the use of directives in counseling in China: Are directives different in China as in the United States?

Eight Chinese counselors were interviewed about their use of directives in counseling. They typically believed that directives can be beneficial in counseling Chinese clients. They used directives to extend the influence of counseling beyond sessions, meet client needs and expectations, and fit their own personality and orientation. In terms of conditions that need to be met for directives to be helpful, they identified client factors such as readiness, communication styles, past experience, and insight; the counselor factor of ability to communicate directives; and the therapeutic relationship. They emphasized the importance of clients acquiring a new perspective as a result of directives. Cultural factors in using directives are discussed.     

高校教练家长式领导行为与运动员精神:有中介的调节效应

采用家长式领导行为问卷、运动价值观问卷、运动动机问卷和运动员精神问卷,对495名高校高水平运动员进行调查,以探讨教练家长式领导行为对高校高水平运动员的运动员精神的影响,及其内在的作用机制。结果表明:(1)家长式领导行为对运动员精神有显著的正向影响,运动动机在其中具有部分中介作用;(2)运动价值观在家长式领导行为与运动动机之间具有正向的调节作用,即运动价值观得分越高,这种正向关系也越强;(3)运动价值观对家长式领导行为与运动员精神关系的调节作用,是部分地通过运动动机为中介而产生。     

Expressive writing promotes self‐reported physical,social and psychological health among Chinese undergraduates

The present study examines the efficacy of expressive writing among Chinese undergraduates. The sample comprised of 74 undergraduates enrolled in a 9‐week intervention (35 in experimental class vs. 39 in control class). The writing exercises were well‐embedded in an elective course for the two classes. The 46‐item simplified Chinese Self‐Rated Health Measurement Scale, which assesses psychological, physical and social health, was adopted to measure the outcome of this study. Baseline (second week) and post‐test (ninth week) scores were obtained during the classes. After the intervention on the eighth week, the self‐reported psychological, social and physical health of the experimental class improved. Psychological health obtained the maximum degree of improvement, followed by social and physical health. Furthermore, female participants gained more psychological improvement than males. These results demonstrated that the expressive writing approach could improve the physical, social and psychological health of Chinese undergraduates, and the method can be applied in university psychological consulting settings in Mainland China.     

When Is Silence Golden? A Meta-analysis on Antecedents and Outcomes of Employee Silence

Journal of Business and Psychology - Recent research on employee silence has grown rapidly, but findings remain quantitatively unsynthesized. This paper presents a comprehensive meta-analysis of...     

The Effects of Parental Labor Migration on Children’s Mental Health in Rural China

Applied Research in Quality of Life - Utilizing data from the China Education Panel Survey, we investigated the effects of parental migration and its duration on children’s mental health in...     

国内近十年来意识和无意识关系研究的新成就

近十年来,国内掀起了从自然科学途径进行意识和无意识对比研究的新热潮,尤其在实验范式的引进、修正、完善和模型建构方面,做出了中国学者自己的贡献。错误记忆、内隐时间及不注意视盲等新领域的触及代表了国内学者在意识研究内容上的丰富。“钢筋水泥”、“意识涌现”及“车站监视室”等模型的提出,代表了中国学者在意识研究理论方面的创新。当前国内意识研究与国外基本同步,但存在着“研究领域泛化,神经机制探讨有限,跨学科整合力度有待深化”的问题。     

Associations between psychological characteristics and indicators of metabolic syndrome among Chinese adults

Current knowledge about the relationship between psychological characteristics and metabolic syndrome (MetS) components is limited in Asian populations. The purpose of this study is to investigate linkages between physiological markers of MetS and life satisfaction, hostility, and depression in Chinese adults. Secondary analyses were conducted using cross-sectional data from parents of randomly selected middle school students participating in a pilot study in Qingdao, China. Among 440 parents who consented to participate (237 women, 203 men), 368 provided valid responses in all three categories of psychological characteristics, and only those subjects were included in these analyses. General linear models and logistic regressions were run separately by gender, controlling for covariates. Among women, life satisfaction was inversely associated with triglyceride levels (p = .04), LDL-C (p < .01), risk of hypertriglyceridemia (OR[.53], p < .01), HDL-C (OR[.78], p = .03), and MetS (OR[.52], p = .03). No associations were found between life satisfaction and any psychological characteristics among men. Among women, hostility was positively associated with triglyceride level (p = .04) and risk of hypertriglyceridemia (OR[2.12], p < .05). Among men, hostility was positively associated with waist circumference (p = .04), waist-hip ratio (p < .05), and fasting plasma insulin (p < .01). Depression was not associated with any physiological measurement in either gender. These findings indicate that relationships exist between certain psychological characteristics and physiological indicators of MetS among Chinese adults, although there may be important differences between genders.     

Perception of emotional expression in musical performance

Expression in musical performance is largely communicated by the manner in which a piece is played; interpretive aspects that supplement the written score. In piano performance, timing and amplitude are the principal parameters the performer can vary. We examined the way in which such variation serves to communicate emotion by manipulating timing and amplitude in performances of classical piano pieces. Over three experiments, listeners rated the emotional expressivity of performances and their manipulated versions. In Experiments 1 and 2, timing and amplitude information were covaried; judgments were monotonically decreasing with performance variability, demonstrating that the rank ordering of acoustical manipulations was captured by participants' responses. Further, participants' judgments formed an S-shaped (sigmoidal) function in which greater sensitivity was seen for musical manipulations in the middle of the range than at the extremes. In Experiment 3, timing and amplitude were manipulated independently; timing variation was found to provide more expressive information than did amplitude. Across all three experiments, listeners demonstrated sensitivity to the expressive cues we manipulated, with sensitivity increasing as a function of musical experience.     

Relationship influences on teachers' perceptions of academic competence in academically at-risk minority and majority first grade students

This study examined the associations among child demographic variables, teacher perceptions of parent-teacher and student-teacher relationship quality, and teacher perceptions of children's academic abilities in an ethnically diverse sample of 607 academically at-risk first grade children. Relative to relationships with African American children and parents, teachers rated their relationships with White and Hispanic children and parents more positively. Measures of relationship quality added unique variance to teachers' perceptions of children's abilities, controlling for parent educational level and measured ability. Relationship variables fully mediated the association between African American status and teachers' perceptions of children's abilities. Implications of the findings for teacher in-service and professional development and for parent involvement programs are discussed.