Searching for the High-I

This paper questions the nature and existence of the ego and I from a Western and Eastern viewpoint, which has been a question for 2,500 years when the Buddha rejected the Brahman idea of ātman. The answer for an ego depends partly on the state of consciousness; the existence of the Western objectifying ego is undeniable in ordinary consciousness, but not in extraordinary consciousness with no objectifying. The subtle question remains about the existence of an I that is distinct from the ego and that is best represented by most meditative or contemplative states. Here a subjectified, witnessing, consciousness-maintaining I still seems to exist. This may be called the “High-I,” which appears to provide for all states of consciousness a constancy and awareness not provided by the ego. This finding has implications for psychology and religion as well as philosophy.     

Caste,class and culture: A case study

This case study is concerned with the deteriorating relationship between an Indian doctor who comes from a wealthy, high-caste Brahmin family from Calcutta, and an English girl from a middle-upper-middle class family from Dorset. She is a graduate in English and is a “budding” novelist. They have known each other for several years and have often lived together. Despite the fact that they have decided to become engaged, and are planning to get married shortly, their relationship has turned sour, and she has walked out on him. The study examines the nature of their relationship, the irreconcilable cultural differences that separate them. The case is viewed almost entirely from the doctor's perspective because of her unwillingness to meet with him.     

The Association Between Elevated Maternal Panic-Like and Depression Symptoms and Separation-Related Interpretive Biases in Offspring

We explored the association between maternal panic-like and depression symptoms with the offspring’s separation-related interpretive bias in a community sample. Separation anxiety has been found to be a precursor of panic disorders; therefore we focused on children and adolescents’ (aged 7–14 years) interpretive bias tapping into separation concerns using a story-based task. We collected self-reports and maternal reports of the levels of separation anxiety in the offspring. To assess maternal panic-like symptoms, we measured interoceptive and agoraphobic fears; as they have been found to increase the likelihood of experiencing panic disorders. The results showed that elevated levels of maternal interoceptive fears and agoraphobia co-occurring with depression were associated with an interpretive bias that related to separation anxiety concerns in children and adolescents. Offspring whose mothers experienced elevated panic-like symptoms together with depression did not show an interpretive bias linked to generalized anxiety concerns, suggesting the bias is content specific. The clinical significance of these findings stems from giving insight as to what extent separation interpretive biases would be influenced by maternal mental health variables, as these biases could constitute a vulnerability factor for later psychopathology. Further research is merited to address the findings with a longitudinal approach.     

Father involvement and marital relationship during transition to parenthood: differences between dual and single-earner families

Research into the process of becoming mother or father shows very conclusively that this important life transition is accompanied by both a decrease in marital quality and a more traditional division of labour. In this paper these changes are analyzed with special emphasis on the relationships between them and exploring the role played in this process by the mother's work status. Results showed a significant link between the development of marital quality and violated expectations regarding father involvement on childrearing. Dual-earner families were characterized by a specific pattern of changes, with greater stability than single-earner families in marital and parental roles during transition to parenthood and a significant role played by spouse support as a partner, but not as a parent.     

Evidence for hypodescent and racial hierarchy in the categorization and perception of biracial individuals

Individuals who qualify equally for membership in two racial groups provide a rare window into social categorization and perception. In 5 experiments, we tested the extent to which a rule of hypodescent, whereby biracial individuals are assigned the status of their socially subordinate parent group, would govern perceptions of Asian-White and Black-White targets. In Experiment 1, in spite of posing explicit questions concerning Asian-White and Black-White targets, hypodescent was observed in both cases and more strongly in Black-White social categorization. Experiments 2A and 2B used a speeded response task and again revealed evidence of hypodescent in both cases, as well as a stronger effect in the Black-White target condition. In Experiments 3A and 3B, social perception was studied with a face-morphing task. Participants required a face to be lower in proportion minority to be perceived as minority than in proportion White to be perceived as White. Again, the threshold for being perceived as White was higher for Black-White than for Asian-White targets. An independent categorization task in Experiment 3B further confirmed the rule of hypodescent and variation in it that reflected the current racial hierarchy in the United States. These results documenting biases in the social categorization and perception of biracials have implications for resistance to change in the American racial hierarchy.     

What Applied Social Psychology Theories Might Contribute to Community Bushfire Safety Research After Victoria's “Black Saturday”

From 1900 to 2008, bushfires in Australia claimed 552 lives. Partly in response to disastrous fires in 1967 and 1983, a national community bushfire safety policy emerged, summarised as “prepare, stay and defend, or leave early.” On 7 February 2009, “Black Saturday,” Victoria experienced Australia's worst‐ever day of bushfires: 173 people died as a result and more than 2,000 homes were destroyed. Three investigations in the aftermath of the fires indicated significant shortcomings in the effectiveness of current approaches to community bushfire safety generally. We examine whether application of social psychological theories from the fields of health promotion and injury prevention might play a role in improving community bushfire safety. We review four theoretical approaches: the theory of planned behaviour, the extended protection motivation theory, the extended parallel process model, and the terror management health model. We conclude that there is good evidence supporting the general utility of each of these theories as predictive of health‐promoting behaviour. Furthermore, there are sound reasons to conclude that they hold promise for addressing important problematic issues in community bushfire safety practice.     

RATIONAL-EMOTIVE DISPUTING AND THE FIVE-FACTOR MODEL: PERSONALITY DIMENSIONS OF THE ELLIS EMOTIONAL EFFICIENCY INVENTORY

This study investigates the relationship between three types of disputes used in Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), and the five personality domains of the Five Factor Model of Personality. A sample of 194 subjects was assessed for the use of three categories of REBT disputes using the Ellis Emotional Efficiency Inventory (EEEI), and for the Big Five personality dimensions using the NEO-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI). Disputing against “awfulizing” was found to correlate inversely with Neuroticism. Disputing against “self-downing” was found to correlate positively with both Extraversion and Conscientiousness. Disputing against “low frustration tolerance” was found to correlate positively with Agreeableness and Openness. Implications for REBT practice and research are discussed.     

A Cognitive Therapy Approach to Increasing Father Involvement by Changing Restrictive Masculine Schemas

Cognitive therapists may be able to help fathers increase their involvement with their children by identifying and changing restrictive masculine schemas that interfere with men's parenting roles. In this paper, we (a) discuss the development of restrictive masculine schemas, (b) explain how these schemas may affect men's involvement in fathering roles, (c) offer a cognitive therapy approach for enhancing father involvement, and (d) illustrate the approach with a case example.     

Effects of cooperative learning on peer relations,empathy, and bullying in middle school

Although researchers have developed prevention programs to reduce bullying, the results are mixed, and this may be due to a degree of uncertainty in their theoretical foundation. In particular, these programs share an emphasis on empathy as a personal attribute that can be enhanced among students through the application of specific curricula that will, in turn, contribute to a reduction in bullying behavior. However, the link between empathy and bullying is unclear, as is the ability of bullying prevention programs to actually impact student empathy. In this study, we used a cluster randomized trial (N = 15 middle schools, 1,890 students, 47.1% female, 75.2% White) to evaluate the impact of cooperative learning on bullying, and we evaluated whether these effects were mediated by empathy and peer relatedness. Our results indicated that cooperative learning can significantly reduce bullying, and that some of this effect is transmitted via enhancements to affective empathy. Cooperative learning also demonstrated significant positive effects on cognitive empathy, but this did not have an effect on bullying. We also found that the effects of cooperative learning on cognitive and affective empathy were mediated by improvements in peer relatedness. These findings add a degree of clarity to the literature, and also represent the first time, as far as we are aware, that an antibullying program has been found to have significant effects on both cognitive and affective empathy.