Arbitration: Semi-judicial process or negotiation?

Arbitration is usually described as a semi-judicial, evaluative process, where the parties to a dispute surrender their responsibility for its resolution to a disinterested third party. The arbitrator is expected to listen impartially to the arguments of both sides and, on the basis of the evidence put forward, decide the issue between them. This paper questions the validity of the typical image of arbitration and suggests that a more comprehensive understanding can be developed if it is viewed in the context of different models of negotiation. It is argued that the arbitrator is likely to have at least two contrasting roles: (1) that of manager of the process of concession-convergence, when the issues in dispute are relatively straightforward; and (2) that of joint negotiator with the parties, constructing a framework for a future detailed resolution of the dispute, when the issues are more complex. The parties, on the other hand, are likely to be differentiated according to their previous experience of arbitration. While the more experienced participants may be able to make skilful strategic use of the procedures, the inexperienced are likely to be adversely affected by the evaluative/judicial public image of arbitration.     

The Structure of Problem and Positive Behavior Among American Indian Adolescents: Gender and Community Differences

Using Problem-Behavior Theory as a framework, the latent structure of problem and positive behaviors was examined within a sample of 1,894 American Indian adolescents. Support was found for a two-factor second-order structure in which problem behaviors (antisocial behavior, alcohol use, drug use, and risky sexual behavior) and positive behaviors (school success, cultural activities, competencies, and community-mindedness) represented two relatively uncorrelated aspects of behavior. Hierarchical multiple regressions demonstrated that the positive behaviors construct contributed significant incremental construct validity in the statistical prediction of psychosocial outcomes, over and above the problem behaviors. In addition, the fit of the structure was examined across gender and the four participating communities. The importance of the inclusion of positive behaviors is discussed from the standpoint of both prevention/promotion activities and the communities' perceptions. Further recommendations are made for deeper understandings of community concerns and strengths in conducting preventive/promotive research efforts.     

Visibility of an afterimage alone and in the presence of,one or two additional afterimages

The total time for which a circular afterimage is visible has been found to be increased by the presence of one or two additional afterimages. This increased’ visibility, which has been called “facilitation, ” is greater the nearer the afterimages are to one another, being optimum at .25 deg and declining to zero at 2.0 deg separation.     

The effect of size,retinal locus,and orientation on the visibility of a single afterimage

Unitary and fragmentary visibilities of the afterimage of a small rectangular bar were measured at three retinal loci. Unitary visibility was higher for fovea] than for parafoveal viewing, whereas fragmentation was greater the longer the bar. A model for estimating the size of receptors has been applied and gives the mean size of a “functional unit” to be 1.5 deg in the fovea and 3–4 deg parafoveally. Unitary visibility has been shown to be higher for vertical and horizontal bars than for obliquely oriented bars. Explanations for this result have been suggested in terms of the distribution, size, and selectivity of cortical orientation selective units.     

Tracing enhances problem-solving transfer,but without effects on intrinsic or extraneous cognitive load

People can make pointing gestures and tracing actions with the index finger with little or no conscious effort. From the perspective of cognitive load theory, such “biologically primary” gestures and actions might help people learn “biologically secondary” concepts and skills requiring extended cognitive effort, such as reading, science, or mathematics. Studies on tracing or tracing and pointing have yielded mixed findings regarding hypothesized effects on intrinsic and extraneous cognitive load. The present study investigated whether computer-based instructions to trace elements of worked examples on angle relationships would affect school students' (N = 106) self-reports of intrinsic and extraneous cognitive load, as well as problem-solving transfer test performance. The tracing effect on transfer posttests seen in prior studies was replicated, but cognitive load hypotheses were not supported. Implications for educational practice and future research are discussed.     

Spirituality and mental health status among Northern Plain tribes

Spirituality measures often show positive associations with preferred mental health outcomes in the general population; however, research among American Indians (AIs) is limited. We examined the relationships of mental health status and two measures of spirituality – the Midlife Development Inventory (MIDI) and a tribal cultural spirituality measure – in Northern Plains AIs, aged 15–54 (n?=?1636). While the MIDI was unassociated with mental health status, the tribal cultural spirituality measure showed a significant relationship with better mental health status. Mental health conditions disproportionately affect AIs. Understanding protective factors such as cultural spirituality that can mitigate mental health disorders is critical to reducing these health disparities.     

Domain-Based and Overall Life Satisfaction for Youth with Chronic Conditions: The Role of Personal,Interpersonal, and Environmental Factors Over a One-Year Period

This paper examined the differential influences of personal, interpersonal, and environmental level factors on domain-based and overall life satisfaction over one year for youth with chronic health conditions. Baseline and Time 2 follow-up data were used from a study examining quality of life for a sample of 439 youth with chronic conditions, aged 11 to 17 years. The Brief Multidimensional Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale measured youths’ life satisfaction in five domains (i.e., satisfaction with self, family life, friendships, school experiences, where one lives) and in overall life. Six multivariate linear regression analyses were performed, each exploring relations of the hypothesized correlates at baseline with one aspect of life satisfaction at follow-up controlling for youth gender, age, household income, and the corresponding aspect of life satisfaction at baseline. Factors at all three levels were found to be important to some aspect of life satisfaction. Emotional well-being played a notable role in life satisfaction across multiple domains and in overall life satisfaction. Family-related factors were also significantly related to life satisfaction across several domains. Social support from close friends and teachers and the school environment were important to specific domains of life satisfaction. Classmate social support emerged as a key factor related to overall life satisfaction. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.     

On the automatic nature of the task-appropriate processing effect in event-based prospective memory

This research tested competing predictions about the cognitive processes underlying the task-appropriate processing effect in prospective memory. Participants had to press a designated key whenever a word from the semantic category of animals or from the structural category of palindromes occurred in an ongoing lexical decision task. The availability of attentional resources was manipulated by varying the effort to the ongoing task in terms of speed or accuracy. In the task-appropriate semantic prospective memory task, performance was robust against the speed versus accuracy instructions. In the task-inappropriate structural prospective memory task, performance declined under speed instructions that detracted attentional resources. Accordingly, a facilitating effect of task-appropriate processing was observed under speed instructions but not accuracy instructions. The results support the notion that the task-appropriate processing effect is due to a larger contribution of automatic cue detection to prospective memory performance under task-appropriate than task-inappropriate conditions.