Social influence modulates the neural computation of value

Social influence--individuals' tendency to conform to the beliefs and attitudes of others--has interested psychologists for decades. However, it has traditionally been difficult to distinguish true modification of attitudes from mere public compliance with social norms; this study addressed this challenge using functional neuroimaging. Participants rated the attractiveness of faces and subsequently learned how their peers ostensibly rated each face. Participants were then scanned using functional MRI while they rated each face a second time. The second ratings were influenced by social norms: Participants changed their ratings to conform to those of their peers. This social influence was accompanied by modulated engagement of two brain regions associated with coding subjective value--the nucleus accumbens and orbitofrontal cortex--a finding suggesting that exposure to social norms affected participants' neural representations of value assigned to stimuli. These findings document the utility of neuroimaging to demonstrate the private acceptance of social norms.     

Psychopathy as Predictor and Moderator of Multisystemic Therapy Outcomes among Adolescents Treated for Antisocial Behavior

Objective

The aim of the present study was to determine whether psychopathic traits act as a predictor and/or moderator of the effectiveness of Multisystemic Therapy (MST).

Method

The sample included N?=?256 adolescents (188 boys and 68 girls) referred for conduct problems, randomized to MST or Treatment As Usual (TAU). The mean age was 16 years (SD?=?1.31). Assessments were carried out before and immediately after treatment (6 months later). Three psychopathic traits (callous/unemotional traits, narcissism, and impulsiveness) were assessed with parent reports. Adolescents and parents were informants on externalizing problems.

Results

MST was more effective than TAU in decreasing externalizing problems for the “lower callous/unemotional” and “lower narcissism” group, but not for the “high callous/unemotional” and “high narcissism” group (moderators). Impulsiveness was found to predict more post-treatment externalizing problems rated by adolescents (predictor), but not more post-treatment externalizing problems rated by parents.

Conclusions

These findings point out the clinical relevance of adequately assessing psychopathic traits in adolescents referred for treatment of antisocial behaviour, and identifying those adolescents who show high levels of these traits. It is important to tailor MST specifically to meet the needs of juveniles with high levels of callous/unemotional traits and high levels of narcissism to obtain the same level of effectiveness as with juveniles scoring lower on these traits.     

A Multicultural Application of Attachment Theory with Immigrant Families: Contextual and Developmental Adaptations

This article explores attachment theory from a multicultural perspective to highlight adaptive considerations for immigrant families. The specific considerations of the theory reviewed are (1) attachment sensitivity based on social and cultural context and (2) the effect of maturation on families’ developmental needs and how this can be integrated within context. A case conceptualization of a Bosnian immigrant family living within the United States will highlight potential variations in the adaptation process. How therapists can support in providing culturally-sensitive applications of attachment theory to promote family relationships will be discussed.     

Armed and attentive: Holding a weapon can bias attentional priorities in scene viewing

The action-specific perception hypothesis (Witt, Current Directions in Psychological Science 20: 201–206, 2011) claims that the environment is represented with respect to potential interactions for objects present within said environment. This investigation sought to extend the hypothesis beyond perceptual mechanisms and assess whether action-specific potential could alter attentional allocation. To do so, we examined a well-replicated attention bias in the weapon focus effect (Loftus, Loftus, & Messo, Law and Human Behaviour 1, 55–62, 1987), which represents the tendency for observers to attend more to weapons than to neutral objects. Our key manipulation altered the anticipated action-specific potential of observers by providing them a firearm while they freely viewed scenes with and without weapons present. We replicated the original weapon focus effect using modern eye tracking and confirmed that the increase in time looking at weapons comes at a cost of less time spent looking at faces. Additionally, observers who held firearms while viewing the various scenes showed a general bias to look at faces over objects, but only if the firearm was in a readily usable position (i.e., pointed at the scenes rather than holstered at one’s side). These two effects, weapon focus and the newly found bias to look more at faces when armed, canceled out one another without interacting. This evidence confirms that the action capabilities of the observer alter more than just perceptual mechanisms and that holding a weapon can change attentional priorities. Theoretical and real-world implications are discussed.     

Attachment to God,Spiritual Coping,and Alcohol Use

We examined the effect of emotional God attachment on undergraduates' alcohol use generally and for coping purposes and whether spiritual coping styles (collaborative, deferring, and self-directing) drive this effect. As hypothesized, people who feel secure in their emotional relationship with God use significantly more deferring, more collaborative, and less self-directing coping styles than people who feel anxious-ambivalent in their emotional relationship to God. Anxious-ambivalents use significantly more deferring, more collaborative, and less self-directing coping than people who feel disengaged from God (avoidants). Secures use alcohol significantly less than anxious-ambivalents, who use alcohol significantly less than avoidants. The effect of God attachment on general alcohol use was mediated by the use of self-directing (but not deferring or collaborative) spiritual coping style.     

Unpacking the Racial Disparity in Crime from a Racialized General Strain Theory Perspective

ABSTRACT

Criminologists have long theorized the relationship between race and crime using traditional criminological theories, suggesting that Blacks simply experience more factors conducive to crime than Whites. Race scholars have criticized this “add and stir” approach and, instead, argue for race-based explanations. Racialized General Strain Theory (RGST) is the first traditional approach to address this call to action. To date, however, little research has fully assessed RGST’s propositions. Using the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, we find mixed support for RGST. Findings also suggest racial differences in experiences and responses to strain are much more complicated than originally theorized.     

The Role of Effort–Reward Imbalance for Reservists on a Military Deployment

The present study extended the effort–reward imbalance (ERI) model (Siegrist, 1996b Siegrist, J. 1996b. “Soziale Krisen und Gesundheit [Social crises and health]”. In Gesundheitspsychologie [Health psychology] Edited by: Krohne, H. W., Schmidt, L., Netter, P. and Schwarzer, R. Vol. 5, Göttingen, , Germany: Hogrefe.  [Google Scholar]), first by differentiating between separate reward components, second by including intrinsic reward, and third by additionally predicting a non-health outcome (i.e., turnover intention) in a military context. Regression analyses of 789 reservists found financial and esteem reward to moderate the impact of extrinsic effort on depressive symptoms, whereas only financial reward moderated the effort turnover intentions relationship. Results supported the usefulness of the extended ERI model in the military context. Relevant areas for future research on the military effort–reward perspective are discussed.     

Action-specific effects underwater

Action-specific effects on perception are apparent in terrestrial environments. For example, targets that require more effort to walk, jump, or throw to look farther away than when the targets require less effort. Here, we examined whether action-specific effects would generalize to an underwater environment. Instead, perception might be geometrically precise, rather than action-specific, in an environment that is novel from an evolutionary perspective. We manipulated ease to swim by giving participants swimming flippers or taking them away. Those who estimated distance while wearing the flippers judged underwater targets to be closer than did participants who had taken them off. In addition, participants with better swimming ability judged the targets to be closer than did those with worse swimming ability. These results suggest perceived distance underwater is a function of the perceiver's ability to swim to the targets.     

Assessing research on workplace violence, 2000–2012

Since the highly publicized U.S. Postal violence cases in the 1980s, workplace aggression and workplace violence have been the source of much public discussion and concern. Yet, the topic has only recently received sustained empirical attention—most of which has come from the organizational management and business fields. This article provides a review of the empirical research literature on workplace violence in several databases from 2000 to 2012. Our review uncovers that different occupational domains have different experiences with workplace violence, while some occupations are subject to distinct types of violence by unique aggressors. Directions for future theoretical and empirical research are highlighted.     

“Nowhere does it say that in the Bible”

For lesbian women who marry in South Africa, religion is both a source of great opposition to their relationships and a tool that they can use to negotiate their belonging with family and friends, after deciding to exercise their citizenship through marriage. This article draws from qualitative research conducted in South Africa to explore the relationship between sexuality and religion in the context of legal same-sex marriage. Though religion has been previously implicated in the maintenance of oppressive regimes, such as colonialism and apartheid, it has also been one of the primary voices against such injustices. The article concludes by suggesting that lesbian women use their own understandings of religion and sexuality to actively participate in the formation of new opportunities for social, legal, and spiritual citizenship.