Language Switching and Mexican Americans' Emotional Expression

This study examined the effects of counselor language switching and counselor ethnicity on bilingual Mexican American participants' emotional self‐disclosure. Counselor language (English only and Spanish with English) was crossed with counselor ethnicity (Mexican American and European American) to produce 4 treatment conditions. Judges' observations revealed that the European American counselor who language switched elicited the most emotional expression from participants. Este estudio examinó los efectos que un cambio de idioma por parte del consejero y la etnicidad del consejero tienen sobre la auto‐revelación emocional de los participantes México Americanos bilingües. El idioma del consejero (sólo inglés, y español con inglés) se combinó con su etnicidad (México Americano y Euro Americano) para generar 4 condiciones de tratamiento. Las observaciones de los jueces revelaron que el consejero Euro Americano que cambió de idioma obtuvo el mayor número de expresiones emocionales de los participantes.     

Compound cue processing within the fast and frugal heuristics approach in nonlinearly separable environments

Three experiments investigated whether participants used Take The Best (TTB) Configural, a fast and frugal heuristic that processes configurations of cues when making inferences concerning which of two alternatives has a higher criterion value. Participants were presented with a compound cue that was nonlinearly separable from its elements. The compound was highly valid in Experiments 1 and 2, but invalid in Experiment 3. Participants’ causal mental models were manipulated via instructions: participants were either told that cues acted through the same causal mechanism (configural causal model), through different causal mechanisms (elemental causal model), or the causal mechanisms were not specified (neutral causal model). A high percentage of participants used TTB-Configural when they had a configural causal model and a highly valid compound existed, suggesting that causal knowledge can be incorporated in otherwise very basic cognitive mechanisms to allow fine-grained adaptation to complex task structures.     

Psychometric properties of the Adolescent Sexism Detection (ASD) scale

In this article, it is assumed that gender violence, or violence against women, has mainly a sociocultural basis. A scale (Adolescent Sexism Detection; ASD) to detect sexism in adolescents was developed and its psychometric properties were analysed. 245 adolescents between 14 and 17 years of age participated in the study. As a result of the factor analyses carried out, the hostile and benevolent dimensions of sexism were clearly differentiated. Convergent validity of the scale was confirmed by its high correlations with the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory (ASI). Participants scored higher in benevolent than in hostile sexism, an effect even stronger in female participants. These findings suggest that the ASD scale is a valid instrument to measure sexism among adolescents. The main findings of this study are compared to those obtained in other studies using the ASI. The potential of this scale to appropriately detect sexism among adolescents is discussed.     

Next Generation Sequencing is the Impetus for the Next Generation of Laboratory-Based Genetic Counselors

Next generation sequencing (NGS) is dramatically increasing the number of clinically available genetic tests and thus the number of patients in which such testing may be indicated. The complex nature and volume of the reported results requires professional interpretation of the testing in order to translate and synthesize the meaning and potential benefit to patients, and genetic counselors are uniquely suited to provide this service. The increased need for genetic counselors in this role, coupled with the time required and a limited number of trained and available counselors presents a challenge to current models for making genetic testing available to patients and their healthcare providers effectively and efficiently. The employment of genetic counselors at genetic/genomic laboratories is one model to expand the resources for providing this service. In this article, we briefly review the advent of NGS and its clinical applications, examine the core skills of genetic counselors and delineate the expanding roles and responsibilities of laboratory-based genetic counselors. We also propose changes to the genetic counseling training program curriculum to account for the increasing opportunities for genetic counselors to contribute and thrive within genetic testing laboratories.     

Prior Publication and Redundancy in Contemporary Science: Are Authors and Editors at the Crossroads?

We discuss prior publication and redundancy in contemporary science in the context of changing perceptions of originality in the communication of research results. These perceptions have been changing in the publication realm, particularly in the last 15 years. Presenting a brief overview of the literature, we address some of the conflicts that are likely to arise between authors and editors. We illustrate our approach with conference presentations that are later published as journal articles and focus on a recent retraction of an article that had been previously published as a conference proceedings. Although we do not make definitive pronouncements on the matter—as many concepts are evolving—we do argue that conference papers that contain sufficient details for others to attempt a replication and are indexed in scientific databases such as PubMed, challenge some currently held assumptions of prior publication and originality in the sciences. Our view is that these important issues are in need of further clarification and harmonization within the science publishing community. This need is more evident when we consider current notions of research integrity when it comes to communication to peers. Revisiting long-standing views about what constitutes prior publication and developing a clearer set of guidelines for authors and editors to follow should reduce conflicts in the research environment, which already exerts considerable pressure, especially on newcomers in academia. However, while clearer guidelines are timely, developing them is only part of the challenge. The present times seem to call for deeper changes in the research and publication systems.     

Why study cognition in the wild (and how to test it)?

An animal's behavior is affected by its cognitive abilities, which are, in turn, a consequence of the environment in which an animal has evolved and developed. Although behavioral ecologists have been studying animals in their natural environment for several decades, over much the same period animal cognition has been studied almost exclusively in the laboratory. Traditionally, the study of animal cognition has been based on well‐established paradigms used to investigate well‐defined cognitive processes. This allows identification of what animals can do, but may not, however, always reflect what animals actually do in the wild. As both ecologists and some psychologists increasingly try to explain behaviors observable only in wild animals, we review the different motivations and methodologies used to study cognition in the wild and identify some of the challenges that accompany the combination of a naturalistic approach together with typical psychological testing paradigms. We think that studying animal cognition in the wild is likely to be most productive when the questions addressed correspond to the species’ ecology and when laboratory cognitive tests are appropriately adapted for use in the field. Furthermore, recent methodological and technological advances will likely allow significant expansion of the species and questions that can be addressed in the wild.     

Socio-Cultural Determinants of Physical Activity among Latin American Immigrant Women in Alberta,Canada

Acculturation has been associated with decreased physical activity among immigrants. This study assessed the process of changing physical activity patterns within the context of Latin American immigrant women’s migration experiences to Canada. Using the ecological model of health promotion, we applied a mixed methods research design. Thirty-six Latin American immigrant women, 18 recent (<10 years in Canada) and 18 non-recent (>10 years in Canada), participated. Six focus groups and 14 in-depth individual interviews were conducted. The Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire was administered. Overall, 86 % of the participants reported gaining weight since coming to Canada. Participants reported becoming more sedentary upon arriving in Canada. Only 27.3 % of recent and 41.7 % of non-recent immigrant women were considered sufficiently physically active. Lack of time, resources, social support, and migration stress were identified as key barriers to physical activity. Migration stress associated with social integration barriers strongly influence physical activity among Latin American immigrant women.     

The Effect of Relative Income Concerns on Life Satisfaction: Relative Deprivation and Loss Aversion

Journal of Happiness Studies - Income comparisons are important for individual well-being. We examine the shape of the relationship between relative income and life satisfaction, and test...     

Using Autonomous Teams to Improve Quality of Life of People with Intellectual Disabilities

Applied Research in Quality of Life - This research study tested an intervention, based on autonomous teams and the service co-creation approach, to improve the social inclusion and...     

Perceived emotional intelligence facilitates cognitive-emotional processes of adaptation to an acute stressor

This study examined the influence of perceived emotional intelligence (PEI) and intrusive thoughts on emotional responses following a stressful event. PEI was assessed on 144 participants using the Trait Meta-Mood Scale (TMMS). The TMMS assesses perceived ability to: (1) attend to moods (Attention); (2) discriminate clearly among moods (Clarity); and (3) regulate moods (Repair). The main purpose of this paper was to examine the relationship between PEI, intrusive thoughts, and adjustment to an acute stressor induced experimentally in the laboratory, on two separate days. Finally, we examined the relationship between PEI, Inhibition, and Empathy. Results indicated that Clarity influences emotional responses on Day 1, and Repair affects emotional responses on Day 2 indirectly via intrusive thoughts, which act as a mediator. Significant associations were obtained between the three factors of the TMMS with Empathy and Inhibition. These findings suggest that individuals with higher emotional Clarity and Repair will experience less negative emotional responses and intrusive thoughts after an acute stressor, which enables them to adapt more readily to the experience.