An Examination and Interrogation of African American Males’ Racial Identity,Prosocial Behaviors and Aggression

Using multiple regression analysis and Pearson’s R, the current exploratory study of 89 African American male adolescents (M = 12.5 years old) examined relationships among REI (i.e., 20 as a socialization product of identity formation processes), prosocial behaviors (i.e., represented as supportive behavioral orientation in response to stress), and aggression (i.e., a reactive coping strategy). Significant relationships among racial public regard, age, and verbal aggression emerged. Older adolescents believed that other people have lower regard for their race, and this predicted an increase in verbal aggression. These findings demonstrate the importance of understanding contextual factors when examining outcomes.     

The effect of spatial frequency information and visual similarity in threat detection

In the current research, we sought to examine the role of spatial frequency on the detection of threat using a speeded visual search paradigm. Participants searched for threat-relevant (snakes or spiders) or non-threat-relevant (frogs or cockroaches) targets in an array of neutral (flowers or mushrooms) distracters, and we measured search performance with images filtered to contain different levels (high and low) of spatial frequency information. The results replicate previous work demonstrating more rapid detection of threatening versus non-threatening stimuli [e.g. LoBue, V. & DeLoache, J. S. (2008). Detecting the snake in the grass: Attention to fear-relevant stimuli by adults and young children. Psychological Science, 19, 284–289. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02081.x]. Most importantly, the results suggest that low spatial frequency or relatively coarse levels of visual information is sufficient for the rapid and accurate detection of threatening stimuli. Furthermore, the results also suggest that visual similarity between the stimuli used in the search tasks plays a significant role in speeded detection. The results are discussed in terms of the theoretical implications for the rapid detection of threat and methodological implications for properly accounting for similarity between the stimuli in visual search studies.     

Localized disruption of Narp in medial prefrontal cortex blocks reinforcer devaluation performance

Neuronal activity regulated pentraxin (Narp) is a secreted protein that regulates α-amino-3-hydroxyl-5-methyl-4-isoxazole-propionate receptors (AMPAR) aggregation and synaptogenesis. Mapping of Narp-positive neurons in brain has revealed it is prominently expressed in several limbic system projection pathways. Consistent with this localization pattern, Narp knockout mice show deficits in using the current value of a reinforcer to guide behavior, a critical function of the limbic system. To help assess whether this behavioral deficit is due to impairment of synaptogenesis during development or in modulating synaptic signaling in the mature brain, we have used a dominant negative Narp viral construct which blocks trafficking of endogenous Narp to axons. Focal injection of this viral construct into the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) of adult mice, a region containing Narp-positive projection neurons, blocked reinforcer devaluation. Thus, these results indicate that Narp released from mPFC neurons plays a key role in mediating synaptic changes underlying instrumental reinforcer devaluation.     

一个参与者眼中的行为遗传学史上的里程碑

行为遗传学的历史,从横切面看,就好似一个由心理学、遗传学、生物学、进化论、人类学、人口学、生物统计、社会学以及法哲学等学科组合成的万花筒。任何一对学科的演进都呈正相关。虽然任何一对学科都不至于相互否定,但是,他们各自独特的历史和人物,又使得每一对学科并不完全相似     

Comparison of Media-Literacy Programs to Strengthen College Women's Resistance to Media Images

This study examined whether, in comparison to no-intervention and video-only intervention control conditions, two distinct media literacy interventions could promote media skepticism and reduce negative body image in a sample of college women ( N = 110). It was expected that an externally oriented ( i.e., feminist sociocultural) media literacy intervention would have its greatest impact on measures related to media skepticism, while an internally oriented ( i.e., cognitive) intervention would have its greatest impact on measures related to negative body image. Contrary to expectations, in comparison to the no-intervention condition, both media literacy interventions were similar in effectiveness to a video-only ("Slim Hopes," Kilbourne, 1995) condition in increasing participants' skepticism about the realism, similarity, and desirability of media that depict a thin ideal of beauty. There were no between-group differences on negative body image at posttest, suggesting that negative attitudes about one's body may require more extensive, longer-term interventions.     

Theory in counselling: Using content knowledge

An underlying theoretical principle of person‐centred counselling is that this approach has no requirements for a content knowledge base in terms of client groups and client issues. This is also the position implicit in UK professional accreditation criteria. Yet counsellors do acquire and do use content knowledge in addition to knowledge of process. Thus professional ethos and professional practice are, it is suggested, at variance.     

Isaiah Shembe, Zulu Religious Leader

Do you want to understand yourself?Look how others behave;Do you want to understand others?Look in your own heart.Willst du dich selber erkennen,so sieh, wie die andern es treiben;Willst du die andern verstehn,blick in dein eigenes Herz.(Schiller)¹This paper deals with some problems encountered by scholars who attempt to study Primal Religions.²It focuses on an examination of the major scholarly literature and some traditions surrounding perceptions of the Zulu religious leader Isaiah Shembe.³It has nine sections: The Problem of Prejudice, Isaiah Shembe: Zulu Prophet or Black Christ?, The Judgement of Shembe's Successors, Literary Norms and Living Traditions, Studying Living Religions, The Role of Primal Experiences, The Importance of Mythology, Getting One's Hands Dirty, and Who was Isaiah Shembe?     

A modification of kendall's tau for measuring association in contingency tables

A coefficient of association is described for a contingency table containing data classified into two sets of ordered categories. Within each of the two sets the number of categories or the number of cases in each category need not be the same.=+1 for perfect positive association and has an expectation of 0 for chance association. In many cases also has –1 as a lower limit. The limitations of Kendall's _a and _b and Stuart's _c are discussed, as is the identity of these coefficients to' under certain conditions. Computational procedure for is given.