Myopic perception of having a deadline in negotiations: An anchoring effect due to question order

In negotiations, people tend to perceive a deadline as more detrimental to themselves than to their opponents. This phenomenon is termed myopic perception. The present research proposes that myopic perception can be understood as a result of an anchoring effect due to the question order used in probing the perception of a deadline. When people estimate deal prices before rating the influence of a deadline, their judgements are anchored on their negotiation outcomes, making their perception egocentric, which leads to myopic perception. As a result, myopic perception was hypothesized to be reduced by reversing the above question order to change the respondents' judgement anchor from negotiation outcomes to negotiation procedures. In Study 1, myopic perception disappeared when participants rated the general influence of a deadline before estimating deal price in a negotiation scenario. In Study 2, pairs of participants negotiated under a tight deadline. Myopic perception of a deadline was manipulated before the negotiation. Dyads without myopic perception had a smaller discrepancy in reservation price. However, myopic perception had no effect on impasse rates or final deal prices. The results are discussed with respect to behavioural forecasting and practical implications of myopic perception.     

Peacebuilding in Indonesia: Christian–Muslim Alliances in Ambon Island

This article aims to examine two major issues: (1) religious roots of reconciliation and forgiveness, which are often unfortunately forgotten in the academic discussion of peacebuilding and peace policy-related issues, and (2) Christians' and Muslims' attempts to quell interreligious violence and prevent renewed outbreaks in the conflict zone of Ambon of the Moluccas (Maluku) in eastern Indonesia. More specifically, it discusses the role of Ambonese Christian and Muslim leaders in the process of interreligious peacemaking and reconciliation. A comparative study of conciliation within Islam and Christianity, the piece investigates factors underlying Christian–Muslim collaboration for establishing peaceful settlement in the region. Unlike most previous analyses and studies, which have tended to undermine the contribution of religion in the conflict settings of Ambon, the article shows that religious identities, discourses, and actors have contributed to and also enhanced the chances for peace and reconciliation. Why and how Ambonese Christian and Muslim leaders were willing to unite to fight against religious extremism and eagerly pursue pacification becomes the central question of this article.     

The others: Universals and cultural specificities in the perception of status and dominance from nonverbal behavior

The current study analyzes trans-cultural universalities and specificities in the recognition of status roles, dominance perception and social evaluation based on nonverbal cues. Using a novel methodology, which allowed to mask clues to ethnicity and cultural background of the agents, we compared impression of Germans, Americans and Arabs observing computer-animated interactions from the three countries. Only in the German stimulus sample the status roles (employee vs. supervisor) could be recognized above chance level. However we found significant correlations in dominance perception across all countries. Significant correlations were only found for evaluation between German observers and observers from the other two countries. Perceived dominance uniformly predicted the assignment of status-roles in all cultures. Microanalysis of movement behavior further revealed predictive value of specific nonverbal cues for dominance ratings. Results support the hypothesis of universalities in the processing of dominance cues and point to cultural specificities in evaluative responses to nonverbal behavior.     

Executive control within strategic deception: a window on early cognitive development?

Recently it has been claimed that the difficulty young children have with tests of strategic deception may be due to limitations in executive control rather than lack of insight into mental concepts. In the studies reported here we asked how reducing the executive demands of one measure of strategic deception, the windows task (J. Russell, N. Mauthner, S. Sharpe, & T. Tidswell, 1991), would affect performance. Study 1 demonstrated that both providing an artificial response medium and having children play in partnership enabled 3-year-olds to adopt a successful strategy. Study 2 examined whether social or executive factors accounted for the good performance of children when they played in partnership. Study 3 ruled out the possibility that the effectiveness of the artificial media was a result of reducing social intimidation-the manipulations were effective even in the presence the opponent. These results argue for executive factors playing a substantial role in the development of strategic deception.     

Validation of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3 among a random sample of Jordanian women

Measuring the impact of westernization on body image is an important element in understanding body dissatisfaction and eating disorders in countries undergoing cultural transitions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3, a measure of societal and media impacts on body image, in a non-western population. Factor analyses identified the same four subscales found in the original validation with high Cronbach's alpha coefficients and Guttman split-half coefficients, and low item cross-loadings. Furthermore, mean score comparisons by demographic variables on each subscale indicated that subscale scores were only affected by age. The results suggest that the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3 is a valid and reliable instrument for Jordanian women. The high level of validity and reliability for this population lends support for the possible use of this scale in other non-western populations after appropriate pretesting.     

Vocational maturity and its relationship to Holland's theory of vocational choice

The major purpose of this study was to determine the relationship of vocational maturity with Holland's theory of vocational choice. Specifically, Holland's constructs of consistency, differentiation, and congruency, along with demographic factors of sex and age were examined in relation to vocational maturity. Subjects were students enrolled in high- and midconsistency level programs in two post-secondary institutions. Holland's Occupational Finder, Canadian Classification and Dictionary of Occupations, and Dictionary of Occupational Titles were used to determine program selection, and the Vocational Preference Inventory and the Career Maturity Inventory Attitude Scale were used to identify personality type and vocational maturity. Congruency and age related significantly to vocational maturity. Significant differences also occurred within both personality and program typologies.     

USING STATISTICAL PROCESS CONTROL TO MAKE DATA-BASED CLINICAL DECISIONS

Applied behavior analysis is based on an investigation of variability due to interrelationships among antecedents, behavior, and consequences. This permits testable hypotheses about the causes of behavior as well as for the course of treatment to be evaluated empirically. Such information provides corrective feedback for making data-based clinical decisions. This paper considers how a different approach to the analysis of variability based on the writings of Walter Shewart and W. Edwards Deming in the area of industrial quality control helps to achieve similar objectives. Statistical process control (SPC) was developed to implement a process of continual product improvement while achieving compliance with production standards and other requirements for promoting customer satisfaction. SPC involves the use of simple statistical tools, such as histograms and control charts, as well as problem-solving techniques, such as flow charts, cause-and-effect diagrams, and Pareto charts, to implement Demings management philosophy. These data-analytic procedures can be incorporated into a human service organization to help to achieve its stated objectives in a manner that leads to continuous improvement in the functioning of the clients who are its customers. Examples are provided to illustrate how SPC procedures can be used to analyze behavioral data. Issues related to the application of these tools for making data-based clinical decisions and for creating an organizational climate that promotes their routine use in applied settings are also considered.     

Benedict XVI and Islam: Indonesian Public Reactions to the Regensburg Address

This paper examines the responses of the Indonesian public sphere in the reform era to Pope Benedict XVI's call for interfaith dialogue in his speech made in Regensburg on 12 September 2006. It explores five op-ed (opinion and editorial) columns published by Indonesian newspapers (Republika, Harian Pikiran Rakyat, The Jakarta Post and Gatra), a piece posted by the online Wahid Institute, and an interview posted online by Eramuslim. Not only do the arguments contained in these pieces offer a glimpse into the ‘battle’ between opinions in the public realm in Indonesia, but they also portray the relationship between Muslims and Christians in the country. This paper will present the Muslim responses to the Pope's speech and the ‘reassertion’ of his original message conducted by two Catholic priest-intellectuals.