Marital commitment,communication and marital satisfaction: An analysis based on actor–partner interdependence model

Marital commitment and satisfaction are known to be closely related, but only limited research has examined the asymmetric interaction patterns between spouses. In this paper, the authors study 400 Chinese couples and find that communication mediates the relationship between marital commitment and marital satisfaction. Using the actor–partner interdependence model, they find that wives and husbands show asymmetric associations for marital commitment, communication and satisfaction. Specifically, compared with husbands, wives are more attuned to the path from marital commitment to marital satisfaction via communication. Implications and limitations are discussed.     

Reducing faking on personality tests: Testing a new faking‐mitigation procedure in a U.S. job applicant sample

Faking has remained a major concern for organizations using self‐report personality measures for selection. Scholars recenlty developed a new middle‐warning faking‐mitigation procedure. The present replication study was the first field test in the United States using 193 applicants for an entry‐level position in a New York‐based consulting firm. Results replicated most of Fan et al.'s findings including (a) the middle‐warning significantly lowered fakers' personality scores over retesting, whereas the control message had little influence on nonfakers; (b) the above warning effect carried over to personality scales that were not retested; and (c) the persistent tendency of potential fakers rising to the top of personality score distribution was weakened. In addition, applicants' perceptions were not being negatively affected by the warning.     

Trait compassion is associated with the neural substrate of empathy

Individual differences in the personality trait Agreeableness underlie humans’ ability to interpret social cues and coordinate effectively with others. However, previous investigations of the neural basis of Agreeableness have yielded largely inconsistent results. Recent evidence has demonstrated that Agreeableness can be divided into two, correlated subdimensions. Compassion reflects tendencies toward empathy, sympathy, and concern for others, while Politeness reflects tendencies toward compliance and refraining from aggression and exploitation. The present study seeks to clarify the neural substrates of Agreeableness by examining whether structural differences in the brain show distinct associations with Compassion and Politeness. Results of a meta-analysis of fMRI studies examining empathy were used to generate hypotheses about the brain regions and networks that underlie trait Compassion. Results of a large-scale structural neuroimaging investigation (N = 275) were largely consistent with the meta-analysis: Compassion was positively correlated with gray matter volume in the bilateral anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and anterior insula (AI). Further, these differences appear to be associated with Compassion specifically, as opposed to Politeness, suggesting that these two traits have at least partially distinct neuroanatomical substrates.     

Combining gesture with verbal instruction promotes problem-solving skills among young children attempting difficult tasks

Extensive research shows that caregivers’ speech and gestures can scaffold children’s learning. This study examines whether caregivers increase the amount of spoken and gestural instruction when a task becomes difficult for children. We also examine whether increasing the amount of instruction containing both speech and gestures enhances children’s problem-solving. Ninety-three 3- to 4-year-old Chinese children and their caregivers participated in our study. The children tried to assemble two jigsaw puzzles (with 12 pieces in one and 20 in the other); each puzzle was attempted in three phases. The order in which the puzzles were to be solved was randomized. In Phases 1 and 3, the children tried to solve the puzzles alone. In Phase 2, the children received instruction from their caregivers. The children assembled a smaller proportion of the 20-piece puzzle than of the 12-piece one, suggesting that the 20-piece puzzle was more difficult than the 12-piece one. The caregivers produced more spoken and gestural instruction for the 20-piece than for the 12-piece puzzle. The proportion of the instruction employing both speech and gesture (+InstS+InstG) was significantly greater for the 20-piece puzzle than for the 12-piece puzzle. More importantly, the children who received more instruction with +InstS+InstG performed better in solving the 20-piece puzzle than those who received less instruction of the same type. Those who did not receive +InstS+InstG instruction performed less successfully in Phase 3. However, the facilitating effect of instruction with +InstS+InstG was not found with the 12-piece puzzle. Our findings suggest that adults should incorporate speech and gesture in their instruction as frequently as possible when teaching their children to perform a difficult task.     

The Mediating Effects of Self-Esteem and Trait Anxiety Mediate on the Impact of Locus of Control on Subjective Well-Being

Sense of control plays an important role in the psychological well-being of an individual. This study aims to investigate the impact of locus of control on subjective well-being (SWB). Participants include 400 undergraduates (214 men and 186 women) from four universities in China. Data were collected using the Adult Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Locus of Control Scale, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Trait Anxiety Scale, and SWB measures. Results suggested that locus of control, trait anxiety, and self-esteem were significantly correlated with SWB. Structural equation modeling results indicated that trait anxiety and self-esteem partially mediated the impact of locus of control on SWB. Moreover, bootstrap test revealed significant paths from locus of control to SWB through trait anxiety and self-esteem. Therefore, locus of control, trait anxiety, and self-esteem have significant impacts on SWB. Moreover, trait anxiety and self-esteem have a mediating effect on the impact of locus of control on subjective well-being.     

Direct and Indirect Effects of Self-efficacy on Depression: The Mediating Role of Dispositional Optimism

In this study, we aimed to explore the impact of self-efficacy on depression – specifically, to test and verify the mediating role of dispositional optimism between the two variables. Five hundred and thirty-five undergraduates from two universities were recruited and given a Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, Revised Life Orientation Test, and Self-Rating Depression Scale. Results indicated that there are indeed significant relationships among self-efficacy, dispositional optimism, and each identified dimension of depression; structural equation modeling showed that the relationship between self-efficacy and depression is partially mediated by dispositional optimism. To this effect, we concluded that to develop and improve students’ self-efficacy will reduce their levels of depression, which may have implications in college counseling.     

Travelling backwards and forwards in time: culture and gender in the episodic specificity of past and future events

There is considerable evidence that, when recalling past events, Westerners exhibit greater episodic specificity than East Asians and women exhibit greater episodic specificity than men. Yet it is unknown whether the same cultural and gender differences are true for future events. In the present study 209 European American and Chinese young adults were asked to recall past personal events and imagine future personal events occurring in varied time periods (i.e., 1 week, 1 year, 10-15 years). Regardless of time period, European Americans consistently produced more specific details than Chinese for future events than they did for past events, and women produced more specific details than men for both past and future events. These findings provide additional support for the constructive-episodic-simulation hypothesis, and shed new light on the influence of culture and gender on episodic thinking.     

从《存在与时间》到《哲学论稿》:海德格尔前后期思想关系疏解

<哲学论稿>是海德格尔在30年代的重要手稿,与晚期思想关系密切.如何解说<哲学论稿>与前期代表作<存在与时间>的关系,成为疏通海德格尔前后期思想联系的关键.这个疏通工作把Befragtes的问题作为引导性问题,以之为追问的线索,考察了两个问题:一、以此在为Befragtes如何决定了<存在与时间>必须以此在的生存现象学描述为主体内容;而直接"从Ereignis而来"如何决定了<从Ereignis而来>向哲学的投稿贡献是Ereignis的自行发生成文?二、是否借助一个Befragtes或以什么存在者为Befragtes在多大程度上决定了思想成文时的结构?     

The association between infants' self-regulatory behavior and MAOA gene polymorphism

Self-regulatory behavior in early childhood is an important characteristic that has considerable implications for the development of adaptive and maladaptive functioning. The present study investigated the relations between a functional polymorphism in the upstream region of monoamine oxidase A gene (MAOA) and self-regulatory behavior in a sample of Chinese infants at 6 months of age. Self-regulation was assessed by observing infants' behavior of orienting visual attention away from a threatening event in the laboratory situation. The results indicated that regulatory behavior was associated with the functional MAOA gene polymorphism in girls, but not boys. Girls with 4/4 genotypes displayed significantly higher regulation than girls with 3/3 and 3/4 genotypes. The present study provided evidence for gender differences on the role of MAOA gene polymorphism in socioemotional functioning in the early years.