Trait Self‐Esteem Moderates the Effect of Initiator Status on Emotional and Cognitive Responses to Romantic Relationship Dissolution

ABSTRACT We hypothesized that the effect of initiator status on post breakup distress would vary as a function of trait self‐esteem, such that individuals with low self‐esteem would experience more distress after being rejected by their partners, whereas, among individuals with high self‐esteem, initiator status would not predict distress. We used a prospective design in which university students (N=66) were assessed for emotional responses following the dissolution of their real‐life romantic relationships, as well as a laboratory design in which students (N=190) imagined breaking up with their partners. As predicted, participants with lower trait self‐esteem exhibited greater distress after experiencing or imagining a romantic rejection than after ending or imagining themselves ending their relationships. Conversely, distress experienced by those with high trait self‐esteem did not differ as a function of who ended the relationship. Implications for understanding self‐esteem processes and the effects of romantic rejection are discussed.     

The personality correlates of adults who had imaginary companions in childhood

Two studies showed that adults who reported having an imaginary companion as a child differed from adults who did not on certain personality dimensions. The first yielded a higher mean on the Gough Creative Personality Scale for the group who had imaginary companions. Study 2 showed that such adults scored higher on the Achievement and Absorption subscales of Tellegen's Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire. The results suggest that some differences reported in the developmental literature may be observed in adults.     

Adult attachment and feedback‐seeking patterns in relationships and work

Adults with different attachment orientations rely on different areas of life to maintain self‐views. This paper reports two studies that examine the link between attachment and feedback‐seeking patterns in interpersonal and competence‐related domains. Participants in Study 1 imagined receiving feedback from a friend. Participants in Study 2 completed dyadic tasks and were promised feedback from interpersonal‐ and competence‐relevant sources. Across both studies, secure individuals consistently chose the most positive feedback. Individuals high in attachment avoidance sought negative feedback over positive, although dismissing‐avoidant individuals sought positive hypothetical feedback about autonomy. Study 2 further suggested that highly avoidant individuals were more open to negative feedback than positive feedback and than were secure individuals. Moreover, individuals high in attachment anxiety failed to seek positive interpersonal feedback but pursued interpersonal over competence feedback. Results highlight the role of feedback‐seeking in maintenance of positive or negative self‐views for adults with different attachment orientations. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

College students' intentions to seek help for suicidal ideation: accounting for the help-negation effect

Prior research has identified a negative association between suicidal ideation and help-seeking, a phenomenon called "help-negation." Help-negation has been documented to occur for both professional and nonprofessional sources of help. In this study help-seeking attitudes, stigma concerns, and perceptions of social support were examined as possible mediators of help-negation. Data were collected from a nonclinical sample of college undergraduates at a midwestern university (N = 321). Findings provided partial support for the mediation hypotheses. Help-seeking attitudes and stigma were significant predictors of help-seeking intentions (β = .34 and β = -.17, p < .05, respectively), but did not mediate help-negation for professional sources. Perceptions of social support, on the other hand, fully mediated help-negation for nonprofessional sources (β = .27, p < .05).     

Gender Differences in the ABC’s of the Birds and the Bees: What Mothers Teach Young Children About Sexuality and Reproduction

Sexuality education is heavily gendered at adolescence. This study uses data from a national web survey of 631 U.S. mothers of 3 to 6 year old children to test whether similar gender differences exist in what mothers teach their young children about sexuality and reproduction. We test (a) whether mothers will report talking more with daughters or sons about sexuality related issues, and (b) whether mothers will report greater comfort talking about such issues with daughters or sons. We find (a) that mothers talk more to daughters than sons about romantic relationships, reproductive bodies, and morality, but not about sexual abuse or intercourse/pleasure. We find (b) mixed results regarding mothers’ comfort in talking with daughters or sons about sexuality.     

Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (CBT) for Panic Disorder: Relationship of Anxiety and Depression Comorbidity with Treatment Outcome

Research evaluating the relationship of comorbidity to treatment outcome for panic disorder has produced mixed results. The current study examined the relationship of comorbid depression and anxiety to treatment outcome in a large-scale, multi-site clinical trial for cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) for panic disorder. Comorbidity was associated with more severe panic disorder symptoms, although comorbid diagnoses were not associated with treatment response. Comorbid generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) were not associated with differential improvement on a measure of panic disorder severity, although only rates of comorbid GAD were significantly lower at posttreatment. Treatment responders showed greater reductions on measures of anxiety and depressive symptoms. These data suggest that comorbid anxiety and depression are not an impediment to treatment response, and successful treatment of panic disorder is associated with reductions of comorbid anxiety and depressive symptoms. Implications for treatment specificity and conceptual understandings of comorbidity are discussed.     

Who's Posting Facebook Faux Pas? A Cross‐Cultural Examination of Personality Differences

This study examines culture and personality differences in student reports of the likelihood that they would post various types of information on their Facebook profiles. As predicted those high on conscientiousness, agreeableness, and emotional stability proved significantly less likely to report posting problematic content (e.g., substance abuse, sexual content) on their profile. Those who scored high on Compulsive Internet Use indicated a greater likelihood to post such profile information. Consistent with our expectations, our cross‐cultural analysis revealed that US students were more inclined than German students to post problematic information to their Facebook site. Implications of these results and recommendations for future research are discussed.     

Once a French Speaker,Always a French Speaker? Bilingual Children's Thinking About the Stability of Language

Despite early emerging and impressive linguistic abilities, young children demonstrate ostensibly puzzling beliefs about the nature of language. In some circumstances monolingual children even express the belief that an individual's language is more stable than her race. The present research investigated bilingual children's thinking about the relative stability of language and race (Kinzler & Dautel, 2012). Five‐to six‐year‐old bilingual children were asked to judge whether a target child who varied in race (White or Black) and language (English or French) would grow up to be an adult who maintained the target child's race or her language. Similar to many monolingual children, a heterogeneous group of bilingual children on average chose the language‐match. Yet French‐English bilingual children were relatively more likely to choose the race‐match, especially when tested in their non‐dominant language. Specific experience with relevant languages, and communicating in a non‐dominant language, may contribute to children's developing metalinguistic success and their thinking about social categorization.     

Exploring Societal and Ethical Views of Nanotechnology REUs

Little previous research has examined attitudes about societal and ethical issues (SEI) among interns participating in research experience for undergraduate programs (REUs) in nanotechnology, thus neglecting an important population for understanding the burgeoning views of the next generation of nanotechnology researchers. This study surveyed a sample of interns (N?=?85) participating in the National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network’s (NNIN) REU program during the summer of 2012. Our questions focused on interns’ experiences with education on ethical issues, as well as their attribution of responsibility for considering ethical issues, motivations to talk about ethical issues, and comfort level of discussing ethical issues with faculty, mentors, lab staff, and other REU students. Among key findings was that lab culture related to the extent to which REU interns felt comfortable discussing ethical issues. In addition, those who reported more discussions about ethical issues with their mentors were more likely to consider themselves as responsible for considering ethical issues. We conclude with recommendations and future research directions.