SPATIAL COGNITION AND GENDER Instructional and Stimulus Influences on Mental Image Rotation Performance

Recent research has demonstrated that "sex differences" on mental image rotation (MIR) tasks may be attenuated through manipulations of instructional or stimulus conditions. The interaction of these variables was examined in two experiments. In the first, subjects received instructions that emphasized or de-emphasized the spatial nature of the MIR task. In the second, instructions emphasized the use of MIR abilities in stereotypically "masculine" or "feminine" occupations. The relevant interactions were significant in both experiments. Men performed at higher levels than women in the spatial instruction conditions, but no sex differences were observed under nonspatial instructions. These effects were further shown to be mediated by stimulus type; simpler or more familiar stimuli were less deleterious to the performance of women. These results add to the evidence that instructional and stimulus effects may exacerbate or eliminate sex differences in spatial cognition.     

Personal growth: Rogerian paradoxes

The rationale for personal development work in counsellor training stems directly from Rogers' claim of a selective constructive tendency. The basis for this belief and its implementation in experiential learning shows a number of paradoxes: the model of a growing flower—a rigid, rule-following system—is presented as evidence of the potential for positive change; self-actualisation is claimed to be the power force of life, yet is so fragile that it fails most of us; self-knowing involves finding meanings—a cognitive task—yet personal development programmes are based on non-cognitive knowing. The Rogerian rationale for personal development work is thus fatally flawed.     

Distress tolerance and experiential avoidance in compulsive acquisition behaviours

Compulsive buying (CB) is not only associated with impulse control disorders and specific domains of impulsivity, but is also highly comorbid with negative affect and depression, making it a candidate disorder to be characterised by poor emotion regulation. Despite emerging research supporting an association between distress tolerance and disorders of dysregulated behaviour, no study has investigated distress tolerance in the context of CB. The aim of the current study was to explore the relationship between CB and four specific domains of distress tolerance (appraisal, tolerance, absorption, regulation) and experiential avoidance. In a community‐recruited sample of compulsive buyers (n = 47) and healthy controls (n = 38), CB was significantly associated with each of the domains of distress tolerance (Distress Tolerance Scale). Furthermore, CB was associated with greater experiential avoidance (Acceptance and Action Questionnaire), which was in turn associated with each domain of distress tolerance. Analysis of variance demonstrated significant group differences in all measures. Nonparametric bootstrapping analysis revealed that general psychopathology, impulsivity, and experiential avoidance could not fully account for the relationship between distress tolerance and CB severity. Results suggest that distress tolerance and experiential avoidance may represent therapeutic targets in CB. Limitations and future directions are discussed.     

A review of professor mommy: finding work–family balance in academia

Rachel Connelly & Kristin Ghodsee. (2011). Professor Mommy: Finding Work–Family Balance in Academia. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group. 232 pages, $25.95 List. ISBN: 978‐1442208582.     

Exclusion,intergroup hostility,and religious fundamentalism

The goal of the present study was to examine whether exclusion leads to increased intergroup hostility and stronger fundamentalist religious beliefs. Using Cyberball, we examined how adolescents from different ethnic groups in the Netherlands (of Moroccan, Turkish, and Dutch descent with either Muslim, Christian, or secular beliefs) responded to being included or excluded by ethnic in- and outgroup members. We expected that exclusion by ethnic outgroup members would represent a categorization threat and would result in greater hostility. We hypothesized that exclusion by ethnic ingroup members would represent an acceptance threat and would result in responses that reduce uncertainty and increase one's chances of being accepted by others (e.g., a stronger endorsement of fundamentalist religious beliefs). The results revealed that among all ethnic groups, exclusion by ethnic outgroup members led to more hostility toward the co-players and the co-players' ethnic group than exclusion by ethnic ingroup members. This was mediated by the extent to which people attributed their exclusion to the racist attitudes of their co-players. Among Muslims and Christians, exclusion by ethnic ingroup members led to more support for fundamentalist beliefs. We discuss the theoretical extension that these results provide, and practical issues raised regarding the consequences that may occur through the marginalization of religious and ethnic groups.     

Assessment of Religious and Spiritual Capital in African American Communities

African American faith communities are an important source of social capital. The present study adapted a theory-based social capital instrument to result in religious (e.g., from organized worship) and spiritual (e.g., from relationship with higher power) capital measures. Data from a national sample of 803 African Americans suggest the instruments have high internal reliability and are distinct from general religiosity. Measurement models confirmed factor structures. Religious capital was positively associated with self-rated health status. Religious and spiritual capital were negatively associated with depressive symptoms, but these associations largely became nonsignificant in multivariate models that controlled for demographic characteristics. An exception is for spiritual capital in the form of community participation, which retained a negative association with depressive symptoms. These instruments may have applied value for health promotion research and practice in African American communities.     

Moore-paradoxical belief, conscious belief and the epistemic Ramsey test

Chalmers and Hájek argue that on an epistemic reading of Ramsey??s test for the rational acceptability of conditionals, it is faulty. They claim that applying the test to each of a certain pair of conditionals requires one to think that one is omniscient or infallible, unless one forms irrational Moore-paradoxical beliefs. I show that this claim is false. The epistemic Ramsey test is indeed faulty. Applying it requires that one think of anyone as all-believing and if one is rational, to think of anyone as infallible-if-rational. But this is not because of Moore-paradoxical beliefs. Rather it is because applying the test requires a certain supposition about conscious belief. It is important to understand the nature of this supposition.     

PLATE A–PLATE B: USE OF SEQUENTIAL PRESENTATION IN THE TREATMENT OF FOOD SELECTIVITY

This study examined the effects of sequential presentation of foods on increasing acceptance of novel foods in a 16‐year‐old boy with autism spectrum disorder residing in a short‐term behavioral stabilization unit. The participant ate only 10 foods and one beverage prior to treatment. The intervention involved presenting a plate containing pea‐sized bites of novel foods (Plate A) and a plate containing spoonful‐sized bites of highly preferred foods (Plate B). After the participant consumed a bite from Plate A, he chose a bite from Plate B and was given a preferred beverage. The intervention, involving sequential presentation and establishing operations without the use of escape extinction, was successful in increasing the number of foods eaten from 10 to 24 while not increasing his maladaptive behaviors. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.