Affect networks: a structural analysis of the relationship between work ties and job-related affect

The relationship between organizational networks and employees' affect was examined in 2 organizations. In Study 1, social network analysis of work ties and job-related affect for 259 employees showed that affect converged within work interaction groups. Similarity of affect between employees depended on the presence of work ties and structural equivalence. Affect was also related to the size and density of employees' work networks. Study 2 used a 10-week diary study of 31 employees to examine a merger of 2 organizational divisions and found that negative changes in employees' affect were related to having fewer cross-divisional ties and to experiencing greater reductions in network density. The findings suggest that affect permeates through and is shaped by organizational networks.     

Is sexual-aggressive vocal communication related to asymmetric mechanisms in the brain?

In Mongolian gerbil males, a reliable asymmetric relationship has been discovered between a stereotyped ultrasonic vocalizattion and the volume of a discrete nucleus within the preoptic-anterior hypothalamic area, the sexually dimorphic area, pars compacta (SDApc). The steroid-sensitive ultrasonic, emitted at high levels during courtship interactions, is associated with the absence of aggressive encounters and appears to be necessary for the formation and maintenance of pair-bonds with females. Interactions between unfamilliar, non-pair-bonded adult male and estrous female gerbils result in male aggression, reduction of male ultrasonic calling, and disruption of normal female dartmale follow sociosexual sequences. Castration further reduces ultrasonic calling, inhibits normal sociosexual sequences, and increses aggression in interaction between unfamiliar compared to pair-bonded individuals. Bothg brain structure and lateralization of vocal function in males depend on the action of sex steroids during sexual differentiation and in adulthood. Thus, the gerbil provides a new model to study steroid-dependent lateralization of brain mechanisms of vocal behavior mediating aggressive-sexual relationships. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

The Social Language of Time: The Time Perspective–Social Network Connection

Time perspective (TP) is a pivotal cognitive process through which people perceive, interpret, and negotiate their physical and social worlds. This study identifies unique patterns in the quality of social relationships that were associated with different TP dimensions. Low support and high conflict with family characterized past-negative TP. Large networks and high support from family distinguished past positive TP. Large networks with more support and companionship from friends/acquaintances typified present hedonistic TP. Having highly supportive significant others was associated with high future TP. Multidimensional time perspective is an essential cognitive process influencing human social behavior.     

‘Lyin' Ted’, ‘Crooked Hillary’, and ‘Deceptive Donald’: Language of Lies in the 2016 US Presidential Debates

Language in the high‐stakes 2016 US presidential primary campaign was contentious, filled with name‐calling, personal attacks, and insults. Language in debates served at least three political functions: for image making, to imagine potential realities currently not in practice, and to disavow facts. In past research, the reality monitoring (RM) framework has discriminated accurately between truthful and deceptive accounts (~70% classification). Truthful accounts show greater sensory, time and space, and affective information, with little evidence of cognitive operations. An RM algorithm was used with Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count software to code candidates' language. RM scores were significantly higher in fact‐checked truth statements than in lies, and debate language in the 2016 primaries was as deceptive as fact‐checked lies. In a binary logistic regression model, one RM criterion, cognitive processes, predicted veracity using computerized RM, classifying 87% of fact‐checked truth statements but only 28% of fact‐checked lie statements (63% classification overall).Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rational social and political polarization

Philosophical Studies - Public discussions of political and social issues are often characterized by deep and persistent polarization. In social psychology, it’s standard to treat belief...     

Philosophers on drugs

Synthese - There are some philosophical questions that can be answered without attention to the social context in which evidence is produced and distributed. Abstracting away from social context is...     

Searching for and finding meaning in collective trauma: results from a national longitudinal study of the 9/11 terrorist attacks

The ability to make sense of events in one's life has held a central role in theories of adaptation to adversity. However, there are few rigorous studies on the role of meaning in adjustment, and those that have been conducted have focused predominantly on direct personal trauma. The authors examined the predictors and long-term consequences of Americans' searching for and finding meaning in a widespread cultural upheaval--the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001--among a national probability sample of U.S. adults (N=931). Searching for meaning at 2 months post-9/11 was predicted by demographics and high acute stress response. In contrast, finding meaning was predicted primarily by demographics and specific early coping strategies. Whereas searching for meaning predicted greater posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms across the following 2 years, finding meaning predicted lower PTS symptoms, even after controlling for pre-9/11 mental health, exposure to 9/11, and acute stress response. Mediation analyses suggest that finding meaning supported adjustment by reducing fears of future terrorism. Results highlight the role of meaning in adjustment following collective traumas that shatter people's fundamental assumptions about security and invulnerability.