Determining the number of factors to retain: Q windows-based FORTRAN-IMSL program for parallel analysis

Parallel analysis (PA; Horn, 1965) is a technique for determining the number of factors to retain in exploratory factor analysis that has been shown to be superior to more widely known methods (Zwick & Velicer, 1986). Despite its merits, PA is not widely used in the psychological literature, probably because the method is unfamiliar and because modern, Windows-compatible software to perform PA is unavailable. We provide a FORTRAN-IMSL program for PA that runs on a PC under Windows; it is interactive and designed to suit the range of problems encountered in most psychological research. Furthermore, we provide sample output from the PA program in the form of tabled values that can be used to verify the program operation; or, they can be used either directly or with interpolation to meet specific needs of the researcher.     

POETIC NATURALISM: SEAN CARROLL,SCIENCE, AND MORAL OBJECTIVITY

Physicist Sean Carroll has developed a new theory of the fundamental nature of reality, which he calls “Poetic Naturalism,” with the stated goal of developing a theory of what is real that is consistent with the findings of natural science. Carroll claims to prove that morality cannot be seen as objectively true. This essay argues that Carroll's conclusion is not convincing; there is no good reason to reject moral objectivity within a purely naturalistic worldview.     

Applying a creativity framework to animal cognition

In the field of creativity, psychologists typically only study humans and biologists or ethologists usually focus either on animal problem solving or consider creativity to be an evolutionary adaptation. Yet a fuller application of creativity principles to animal behavior may both shed insight into animal cognition and expand current notions of creativity. We propose a framework for animal creativity based both on animal behavior research and creativity theories. The framework proposes different creative capabilities required for each level—i.e., one does not have to complete level 2 to reach level 3, however one does have to possess higher creative abilities. The first level is the simple ability to recognize novelty. Next is observational learning, which raises questions about imitation, intention of behavior, and the cultural transmission of creative behaviors. At the peak is creating a tool or a behavior with the specific understanding that is new and different.     

无均值结构的潜变量交互效应模型的标准化估计

潜变量交互效应建模研究近年来有两项重要进展, 一是提出了潜变量交互效应模型的标准化估计及其计算公式; 二是发现无均值结构模型可以取代传统的有均值结构模型, 建模大为简化。但标准化估计是在传统的有均值结构模型中建立的, 在简化的模型中同样适用吗？本文在无均值结构模型的框架内, 给出了潜变量交互效应模型的标准化形式、计算公式和建模步骤, 并通过模拟研究比较了极大似然和广义最小二乘两种估计方法、配对乘积指标和全部乘积指标两种指标类型, 结果表明, 在计算交互效应的标准化估计时, 应当使用配对乘积指标建模, 并且首选极大似然估计。     

Pain Intensity,Psychological Inflexibility,and Acceptance of Pain as Predictors of Functioning in Adolescents with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Preliminary Investigation

Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) is a chronic rheumatic disease associated with pain and maladjustment. This study investigated whether pain, acceptance of pain, and psychological inflexibility uniquely predicted functional disability, anxiety, general quality of life (QOL), and health-related quality of life (HQOL) among adolescents with JIA. Twenty-three adolescents with JIA and pain were recruited from a pediatric rheumatology clinic. Participants completed self-report measures pertaining to the key study variables. A series of multiple regression analyses demonstrated that higher pain uniquely predicted higher functional disability. Greater psychological inflexibility uniquely predicted higher anxiety, lower general QOL, and lower HQOL. Increases in acceptance of pain were found to be uniquely related to increases in general QOL. These data confirm prior findings that pain impacts functioning, and provide preliminary findings that psychological inflexibility and acceptance may be important targets of psychological intervention for youth with JIA and pain to improve functioning and QOL.     

Visual recognition memory across contexts

In two experiments, we investigated the development of representational flexibility in visual recognition memory during infancy using the Visual Paired Comparison (VPC) task. In Experiment 1, 6- and 9-month-old infants exhibited recognition when familiarization and test occurred in the same room, but showed no evidence of recognition when familiarization and test occurred in different rooms. In contrast, 12- and 18-month-old infants exhibited recognition irrespective of testing room. Thus, flexibility across a change of room was observed at a younger age than flexibility across a change of background that has previously been seen with the VPC procedure (Robinson & Pascalis, 2004). To determine if limitations in representational flexibility across a change of background could be overcome by experiences during encoding, in Experiment 2, 6-, 9-, 12- and 18-month-old infants were familiarized with a picture on multiple backgrounds. At all ages, infants showed recognition across a change in background at test. These findings indicate that dissociating an item from its context during encoding may be an important factor in understanding the representational flexibility of visual recognition memory in infancy. Developmental changes in representational flexibility are likely driven by changes in the functional maturity of the hippocampal formation, and experience.     

Beyond procedure's content: the role of accessibility experiences and personal uncertainty in procedural justice judgements

Procedural justice concerns play a critical role in economic settings, politics, and other domains of human life. Despite the vast evidence corroborating their relevance, considerably less is known about how procedural justice judgments are formed. Whereas earlier theorizing focused on the systematic integration of content information, the present contribution provides a new perspective on the formation of justice judgments by examining the influence of accessibility experiences. Specifically, we hypothesize that procedural justice judgments may be formed based on the ease or difficulty with which justice-relevant information comes to mind. Three experiments corroborate this prediction in that procedures were evaluated less positively when the retrieval of associated unfair aspects was easy compared to difficult. Presumably this is because when it feels easy (difficult) to retrieve unfair aspects, these are perceived as frequent (infrequent), and hence the procedure as unjust (just). In addition to demonstrating that ease-of-retrieval may influence justice judgments, the studies further revealed that reliance on accessibility experiences is high in conditions of personal certainty. We suggest that this is because personal uncertainty fosters systematic processing of content information, whereas personal certainty may invite less taxing judgmental strategies such as reliance on ease-of-retrieval.     

Shared service centers and professional employability

This paper presents case study evidence of evolutionary changes in business support functions resulting in a fundamental hollowing out of the professional space over time and distance, creating the ‘hourglass’ profession. In an IT-enabled, boundaryless world, many professional activities can now be undertaken, in the manner of the Martini slogan, ‘any time, any place, anywhere’.This paper aims:

• ? 

  To investigate the shared service center as an emerging organizational form with the potential to drive fundamental change in the nature and location of professional work.

• ? 

  To explore the impact of these changes for individual professional workers, and to highlight the need for a greater focus on individual employability as the driver of an overall career trajectory.