Locational uncertainty moderates affective congruency effects in the evaluative decision task

Affective congruency effects are often investigated using the evaluative decision task. It was predicted that uncertainty about the location of stimulus presentation moderates the strength of affective congruency effects in this task. In line with this hypothesis, effects of affective congruency were observed in two experiments only if locational uncertainty about the target location required participants to distribute their attention evenly over the visual field. Inducing certainty about the target location allowed participants to narrow their attentional focus and to suppress the influence of irrelevant distractor words. The results suggest that affective congruency effects in the evaluative decision task are not exclusively based on automatic processes, but also depend on a strategic and flexible allocation of attention.     

From Autocracy to Empowerment: Teams with Shared Leadership Perceive their Coaches to be Better Leaders

Sports coaches often fear that empowering the players in their team would undermine their own leadership status. To investigate the legitimacy of this perception, we mapped the leadership structure within 64 sports teams (N = 840). The results highlight that the perceived leadership quality of the coaches is positively related to the density of their team's leadership networks (i.e., the average leadership qualities of all players). This finding held for task, motivational, social, and external leadership. The best coaches are thus the ones who adopt a shared leadership approach and who strengthen the leadership quality of their players.

Lay Summary

Sports coaches often feel that empowering the players in their teams undermines their own leadership status. This study investigates the legitimacy of this perception within 64 sports teams. Our findings provide evidence for the opposite view; by creating and developing leaders in their teams, coaches are perceived as better leaders themselves.     

Testing the Mental Model Theory of Propositional Reasoning

Johnson-Laird, Byrne, and Schaeken (1992) present a theory of propositional reasoning by mental models. The present study provides a comprehensive test of the predictions of that theory for the difficulty of simple disjunctive and conditional inferences. The results are largely consistent with the complex pattern of predictions. They are discussed in the light of recently proposed modifications of the original theory.     

Search Strategies in Practice: Testing the Effect of Inherent Variability on Search Patterns

Abstract

To execute a motor solution to a given task, individuals search through the space of movement possibilities guided by information that arises from the interaction with task and environment. Through this search, individuals seek to avoid inappropriate solutions through local minima in the task space. The processes that lead to some but not all individuals avoiding local minima and finding solutions is not yet understood. Based on the tenets of ecological psychology for perception and action, we examined in two experiments the hypothesis that the incapacity to differentiate errors (performance of an inappropriate solution) from inherent variability would interfere with the perception of properties of the task space and result in a longer time performing an inappropriate solution for the task before exploration of other solutions. Inherent variability was shown to be a direct predictor of the changes in the search strategies. Also, we found that the specifics of the search patterns could predict the performance in the task. Thus, the pattern of motion through the task space affords perception of specific properties of this space guiding individuals in the evolving dynamics of exploration or exploitation.     

Structural Validity and Generalisability of a Referent Cognitions Model of Turnover Intentions

A model proposed and empirically tested by Aquino, Griffeth, Allen, and Hom (1997 ) using employees of a hospital in the northeastern United States was replicated in samples of Korean factory workers from two divisions of a large organisation. Results in both samples suggested that the relationships among model variables and relationships with withdrawal cognitions replicated quite closely. Results also suggested that the way people are treated in an organisation by their supervisors exerts a powerful effect on their turnover‐related responses. Most importantly, the results of this study in combination with the earlier results from Aquino et al. (1997 ) highlight the impact of employee expectations of future job advancement on turnover‐related responses. Employees who perceive that their present situation will improve are more satisfied with their present outcomes and their supervisors. They are also less likely to consider quitting even when being unsatisfied with their present situation. Un modèle proposé et testé empiriquement par Aquino, Griffeth, Allen, and Hom (1997 ) sur des employés d’un hôpital du nord des Etats‐Unis a été réutilisé auprès de plusieurs échantillons de travailleurs d’une usine coréenne appartenant à deux divisions d’une grande organisation. Les résultats sur les deux échantillons montrent que les relations entre les variables du modèle et les relations avec les cognitions défaillantes reproduisent de très près ceux du modèle original. Les résultats montrent aussi que la façon dont les salariés sont traités dans une organisation par leurs supérieurs a de fortes retombées sur leurs réponses concernant les démissions. Plus important encore, les résultats de cette étude en concordance avec ceux initiaux obtenus par Aquino et al. (1997 ), soulignent l’impact des attentes des employés à propos de leur avancement dans leur futur emploi sur leurs réponses concernant les démissions. Les employés qui perçoivent que leur situation présente va s’améliorer sont plus satisfaits de leur rémunération présente et de leurs supérieurs. Ils sont aussi moins enclins à envisager de démissionner même s’ils sont insatisfaits de leur situation présente.