Visual search for schematic emotional faces risks perceptual confound

Several studies have used a visual search task to demonstrate that schematic negative-face targets are found faster and/or more efficiently than positive ones, with these findings taken as evidence that negative emotional expression is capable of guiding attentional allocation in visual search. A common hypothesis is that these effects should be disrupted by face inversion; however, this has not been consistently demonstrated, and raises the possibility of a perceptual confound. One candidate confound is the feature of "closure" (see Wolfe & Horowitz, 2004) caused by the down-turned mouth adjacent to edge of the face. This was investigated in the present series of experiments. In Experiment 1, the speed advantage for upright negative faces was replicated. In Experiment 2, the effect was not disrupted with inversion, and an efficiency advantage emerged, suggesting that perceptual features could be causing the advantage. In Experiment 3, speed and efficiency effects were seen when this perceptual characteristic remained but face features were scrambled. Taken together, these findings suggest that visual search using schematic faces containing a curved-line mouth feature cannot provide a valid test of guided search by negative facial emotion unless this confound is controlled.     

Beliefs About God and Mental Health Among American Adults

This study examines the association between beliefs about God and psychiatric symptoms in the context of Evolutionary Threat Assessment System Theory, using data from the 2010 Baylor Religion Survey of US Adults (N = 1,426). Three beliefs about God were tested separately in ordinary least squares regression models to predict five classes of psychiatric symptoms: general anxiety, social anxiety, paranoia, obsession, and compulsion. Belief in a punitive God was positively associated with four psychiatric symptoms, while belief in a benevolent God was negatively associated with four psychiatric symptoms, controlling for demographic characteristics, religiousness, and strength of belief in God. Belief in a deistic God and one’s overall belief in God were not significantly related to any psychiatric symptoms.     

Der Fall Ludwig Tessnow (1872–1939)

The journeyman carpenter Ludwig Tessnow was sentenced to death for four murders by the Greifswald jury court in 1902. The death sentence was upheld during the retrial in 1906 but was later commuted to life imprisonment. According to the unanimous opinion of psychiatric experts Tessnow committed the crimes while in a state of mental incompetence caused by epileptic twilight states. The court, however, ignored this mitigating circumstance in its decision-making process. Seen from a historical perspective, the case is of forensic psychiatric interest because this criminal trial clearly shows the conflicts in competence which arose in the nineteenth century between judges and medical experts when mental competence had to be assessed. It also allows some insight into how mentally ill offenders were dealt with at the beginning of the twentieth century when the influence of public opinion was (and still is) a noteworthy element of prejudgement which was additionally consolidated by the established system of jury courts. The Tessnow case reveals by way of example the usual practice of official consignment of mentally disordered offenders to hospitals at the end of the nineteenth century until the Nazi era. New particulars of the Tessnow findings adequately verified that Tessnow had not been executed in the Greifswald prison as mistakenly believed. It could be proved that Ludwig Tessnow was admitted to the LandesheilanstaltStralsund (state mental hospital in Stralsund) where he became a victim of the Nazi euthanasia program.     

Seeing the unseen: ostracism interventionary behaviour and its impact on employees

This article outlines the development and validation of the ostracism interventionary behaviour (OIB) scale. Based on in-depth interviews with employees, leaders, and content experts in addition to 603 survey respondents from Canada and the United States, 3 dimensions emerged to describe the ways in which leaders confront workplace ostracism-related cues and a measure was created to assess them. These refer to the ability for leaders to foster an inclusive workgroup dynamic and enact effective third-party interpersonal interventions through displays of (1) social awareness, (2) proactivity, and (3) harmony-seeking behaviour. In addition to possessing convergent and discriminant validity, the OIB scale demonstrated criterion-related validity through its relation with perceived workplace ostracism and well-being. Furthermore, evidence supported the scale’s test–retest reliability and predictive validity over and above leader–member exchange. Overall, the measure was found to be both reliable and valid, with important implications for the effective management of instances of ostracism at work.     

Development and Pilot Testing of a Decision Aid for Genomic Research Participants Notified of Clinically Actionable Research Findings for Cancer Risk

Germline genomic testing is increasingly used in research to identify genetic causes of disease, including cancer. However, there is evidence that individuals who are notified of clinically actionable research findings have difficulty making informed decisions regarding uptake of genetic counseling for these findings. This study aimed to produce and pilot test a decision aid to assist participants in genomic research studies who are notified of clinically actionable research findings to make informed choices regarding uptake of genetic counseling. Development was guided by published literature, the International Patient Decision Aid Standards, and the expertise of a steering committee of clinicians, researchers, and consumers. Decision aid acceptability was assessed by self-report questionnaire. All 19 participants stated that the decision aid was easy to read, clearly presented, increased their understanding of the implications of taking up research findings, and would be helpful in decision-making. While low to moderate levels of distress/worry were reported after reading the booklet, a majority of participants also reported feeling reassured. All participants would recommend the booklet to others considering uptake of clinically actionable research findings. Results indicate the decision aid is acceptable to the target audience, with potential as a useful decision support tool for genomic research participants.     

Ethics and Confidentiality for Psychologists in Academic Health Centers

Psychologists in academic health centers (AHC) face important ethical issues including confidentiality when working with a multidisciplinary team, sharing of information through the electronic health record, obtaining informed consent in a fast-paced healthcare environment, cultural competency in the medical setting, and issues related to supervision and training. The goal of this paper is to describe ethical issues for psychologists in AHCs in the context of case examples, and to consider ethical decision-making tools to enhance clinical care. Considerations for best practices in integrated care settings will be discussed, and the APA Ethical Standards will be referenced throughout.