Selective and faithful imitation at 12 and 15 months

Research on imitation in infancy has primarily focused on what and when infants imitate. More recently, however, the question why infants imitate has received renewed attention, partly motivated by the finding that infants sometimes selectively imitate the actions of others and sometimes faithfully imitate, or overimitate, the actions of others. The present study evaluates the hypothesis that this varying imitative behavior is related to infants' social traits. To do so, we assessed faithful and selective imitation longitudinally at 12 and 15 months, and extraversion at 15 months. At both ages, selective imitation was dependent on the causal structure of the act. From 12 to 15 months, selective imitation decreased while faithful imitation increased. Furthermore, infants high in extraversion were more faithful imitators than infants low in extraversion. These results demonstrate that the onset of faithful imitation is earlier than previously thought, but later than the onset of selective imitation. The observed relation between extraversion and faithful imitation supports the hypothesis that faithful imitation is driven by the social motivations of the infant. We call this relation the King Louie Effect: like the orangutan King Louie in The Jungle Book, infants imitate faithfully due to a growing interest in the interpersonal nature of interactions. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at http://youtu.be/qlnIof1k-u8 .     

Religiosity,coping, and suicidality within the religious Zionist community of Israela thematic qualitative analysis

The relationship between religion and mental health has been the subject of extensive research, particularly in recent years. The issues of coping and suicidality have also been widely studied. Significantly, however, how religious people cope with harsh life situations is an area which has been overlooked. The present study based on 18 semi-structured interviews, analyses have members of the Religious Zionist community in Israel cope with harsh life situations. Although the study confirms the conclusions of previous research – in general religion creates a buffer to suicide – the results showed a relatively low impact of religiosity on coping: in general these religious interviewees found it difficult to access their religiosity during harsh life situations. The paper suggests a range of explanations, for example the complexity of personal and collective identities which characterise this group, or – more significantly – the possibilty that religious coping is not actually absent but is only available in a second, later stage of coping.     

Obtaining guilty knowledge in human intelligence interrogations: Comparing accusatorial and information-gathering approaches with a novel experimental paradigm

Substantial research has assessed interrogations seeking to obtain a criminal confession, and consequently much has been learned regarding the potential problems with confession evidence. However, an increasing focus on counter-terrorism, and therefore intelligence interrogations, reveals an obvious gap in the literature. Intelligence interrogations are primarily focused on collecting information from individuals as opposed to a confession linked to an alleged event, and little of the extant psychological literature can speak directly to such a scenario. The current research developed an experimental paradigm to test interrogation approaches in an intelligence-gathering context, providing a method for gathering empirical data on human intelligence collection. In the first implementation of this paradigm, accusatorial and information-gathering interrogation strategies were tested using a procedure high in psychological realism. Results indicate that an information-gathering approach yields more relevant information than an accusatorial approach and leads to more diagnostic impressions by third party observers.     

Audiographic communication for distance counselling: a feasibility study

To explore the feasibility of conducting counselling or therapy that involves image making via the Internet, and simultaneously to identify new issues to consider when implementing online counselling services, 10 people selected for their relevant expertise were invited to use an audiographic telecommunication system and to comment on it. Content analysis of focus group discussions and interviews yielded the following significant issues: (a) concerns about technical failure, (b) relevance for people with disabilities, (c) the need for clinical procedures and communication guidelines, and (d) lack of shared physical presence. The co-researchers considered this form of distance delivery to be viable, and identified parameters that would ensure safe and ethical delivery. Implications for practice and future development are discussed.     

Major depression,chronic minor depression,and the five‐factor model of personality

Fifty‐eight outpatients with major depression completed the NEO Personality Inventory at intake (time 1) and after up to three months of anti‐depressant treatment (time 2). Within this group, 26 patients met additional Research Diagnostic Criteria for chronic minor depression. Repeated‐measures analyses revealed significant decreases in Neuroticism scores, and significant increases in Extraversion and Conscientiousness scores, from time 1 to time 2 for both patient groups. In addition, despite similar symptom severity at time 2, the patients with major depression+chronic minor depression scored significantly higher on the Angry Hostility facet of Neuroticism and significantly lower on Agreeableness than those with major depression alone. We suggest from these findings that Angry Hostility and low Agreeableness may represent a trait vulnerability in individuals with chronic minor depression that persists even following remission of the major depressive state, and that this may help to explain their high rates of relapse and recurrence. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Losing Control: The effects of educational restructuring on waking and dream life

This paper focuses on the restructuring of the educational system in England over the last 14 years. It proposes that frequent changes to the system have resulted in negative emotions for many teachers which in turn have implications for the children's well-being. One of the negative feelings reported by teachers in subjective studies of their working experiences is a loss of control of the content and methodology of their work. This feeling re-emerges in school-related anxiety dreams, the content of which was studied in a sample of 10 teachers and four headteachers. The article raises issues for managers, suggesting that they need to ensure that the spiritual and emotional lives of the teachers are safeguarded in order to protect those of the children.     

A test of the four-factor model of impulsivity-related traits

In a recent article, Whiteside and Lynam [Person. Indiv. Diff. 30 (2001) 669] proposed a new model for understanding personality pathways to impulsive behavior. Their UPPS model maintains that there are four personality dimensions that are related differentially to impulsive behaviors: urgency, sensation seeking, (lack of) premeditation, and (lack of) perseverance. The purpose of the current study was to provide validation for this model and to test some of the specific hypotheses offered by Whiteside and Lynam. The sample used in this study consisted of 481 individuals who completed mailed surveys at age 20 and an in-depth laboratory protocol at age 21. Zero-order correlations and multiple regression analyses were used to examine the relations between the four personality traits and various forms of externalizing behaviors, several types of internalizing psychopathology, and intelligence. Results revealed that the four traits were differentially related to various behaviors and forms of psychopathology consistent with many of Whiteside and Lynam's predictions. Therefore, the UPPS model does appear to offer a novel and useful way of understanding behaviors and forms of psychopathology considered to be characterized by some form of impulsivity.