Social Dominance and the Cultural Politics of Immigration

We argue that conflict over immigration largely concerns who bears the burden of cultural transaction costs, which we define as the costs associated with overcoming cultural barriers (e.g., language) to social exchange. Our framework suggests that the ability of native‐born citizens to push cultural transaction costs onto immigrant out‐groups serves as an important expression of social dominance. In two novel studies, we demonstrate that social dominance motives condition emotional responses to encountering cultural transaction costs, shape engagement in cultural accommodation behavior toward immigrants, and affect immigration attitudes and policy preferences.     

On Making Reparation to the Analyst's Idolized Countertransference: Commentary on Paper by Dana Amir

Dana Amir's paper, “The Chameleon Language of Perversion,” provides an opportunity to consider the discourse of perversion on two fronts: as a stalled mode of representation in the articulation of desire (Freud, 1905 Freud, S. 1905. Three essays on the theory of sexuality. Standard Edition, 7: 136–248.  [Google Scholar]) and as an elusive harbinger of normative discourse in the psychoanalyst's countertransference. By drawing us into the intricacies of perverse communication, her paper invites us to elaborate a relational perspective on perversion that accounts for both qualities of discourse. I use clinical vignettes to argue that by holding the double meaning of countertransference, as discourse that aims for affect to be contained and represented and as a way of knowing endowed by the analyst's occupation of normative discourse, the relational analyst may coax perversion from inert scene into the domain of object representation, making reparation to the idolized countertransference (Khan, 1989) so as to vest chameleon language with intersubjective capacity for recognition and meaning.     

Perceived stress and everyday memory complaints among older adult women

Abstract

Memory complaints among older adults are often influenced by depression and anxiety, but the association of stress to memory complaints has received little attention. We examined the associations of perceived stress, life events, and activity level to everyday memory complaints among healthy older women, while controlling for the influence of depression and anxiety. Participants (N=54) completed self-report questionnaires on memory complaints, perceived stress, recent life events, activity level, depression, and anxiety. Partial correlation analyses indicated that higher levels of perceived stress were associated with higher levels of memory complaints when controlling for the influence of depression and anxiety, but that life events and activity level were not related to memory complaints. This study highlights that perceived stress, like depression and anxiety, is a psychological factor that influences the appraisal of cognitive ability; however, larger and more heterogeneous samples will be needed to better understand the multifactorial nature of memory complaints in older adulthood.     

An Evolutionary Perspective on Family Studies: Differential Susceptibility to Environmental Influences

An evolutionary perspective of human development provides the basis for the differential‐susceptibility hypothesis which stipulates that individuals should differ in their susceptibility to environmental influences, with some being more affected than others by both positive and negative developmental experiences and environmental exposures. This paper reviews evidence consistent with this claim while revealing that temperamental and genetic characteristics play a role in distinguishing more and less susceptible individuals. The differential‐susceptibility framework under consideration is contrasted to the traditional diathesis‐stress view that “vulnerability” traits predispose some to being disproportionately affected by (only) adverse experiences. We raise several issues stimulated by the literature that need to be clarified in further research. Lastly, we suggest that therapy may differ in its effects depending on an individual's susceptibility.     

Modeling Attitudes Toward Science: Development and Validation of the Credibility of Science Scale

We present the Credibility of Science Scale (CoSS), an efficient 6-item scale demonstrating excellent reliability and validity. CoSS scores exhibit criterion validity in predicting beliefs across a host of contemporary science topics, over and above previously documented predictors (Study 2). Further, we present evidence for the convergent and discriminant validity of the instrument, which correlates as expected with several variables previously implicated in scientific belief (e.g., political ideology, religious identity, conspiracist thinking; Study 2) and also with measures of cognitive ability (Study 3). Finally, we discuss possible uses of the CoSS as a tool for understanding science-related beliefs, behavior, and communication.     

Test of Alternative Hypotheses Explaining the Comorbidity Between Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Conduct Disorder

There is significant comorbidity between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct disorder (CD). The conclusions of studies that examined the causes of comorbidity between ADHD and CD conflict, with some researchers finding support for the three independent disorders model and others finding support for the correlated risk factors model. We tested these models and eleven alternative hypotheses using the same analytical approach. The participants were 110 monozygotic twin pairs and 181 dizygotic twin pairs recruited from the Colorado Learning Disabilities Research Center Twin Study. The three independent disorders model did not fit the data, whereas the correlated risk factors model fit the data well. Several other comorbidity models fit the data as well as or better than the correlated risk factors model. The results suggest that correlated risk factors are a better explanation for the comorbidity between ADHD and CD than a third, independent ADHD+CD subtype.     

Working memory for item and temporal information in younger and older adults

Two experiments examined age differences in mechanisms hypothesized to affect activation of item and temporal information in working memory. Activation levels were inferred from the ability to reject n-back lures matching items in different temporal positions. Information with the least decay had a performance advantage over less recent information, but was susceptible to the same temporal context errors found in all adjacent-to-target lure positions. Lures most distant from the current item showed a performance rebound. The pattern of increased magnitudes of age effects at adjacent-to-target positions indicated a reduction in older adults' working memory for temporal context information above and beyond item memory declines. Results overall support the emphasis on context information as a critical factor in working memory and cognitive aging.     

Self-Presentation of Beliefs About Gender Discrimination and Feminism

This study examined whether college students' expressed beliefs about gender discrimination and feminism are due to concerns about self-presentation rather than an accurate reflection of their beliefs. Fifty-eight women and 45 men (82% Caucasian) completed scales measuring their beliefs about gender discrimination and feminism and responded to scenarios about hypothetical court cases involving discrimination. Participants were told their personal views would be either shared publicly or remain private during a small group discussion. Results showed that men expressed more belief in gender discrimination and feminism in the public groups compared to men in private groups and women. Responses to hypothetical court cases also showed some evidence of self-presentation. Implications for changes in self-identity and behavior toward incidents of gender discrimination are discussed.     

A systems analysis of a failure to test the effectiveness of waiting-list group therapy.

This nonexperimental effectiveness study attempted to evaluate the utility of a brief waiting-list group. The setting was a university clinic providing treatment for an inner-city population. Health delivery and staff dynamics made it difficult to conduct clinical research in this treatment-oriented setting. The nonrandom design allowed for patient choice, with few clients attending more than two group sessions, thus decreasing its impact. Managed-care pressures decreased staff cooperation with our research objectives, resulting in very low return rates in testing and follow-up data. A social systems analysis, highlighting staff and institutional ambivalence, is used to understand the failure to adequately test the effectiveness of waiting-list group therapy. Recommendations are offered to investigators who contemplate conducting clinical research with limited resources.