The Reliability and Validity of Big Five Inventory Scores With African American College Students

The reliability and validity of scores on the Big Five Inventory (BFI; O. P. John, E. M. Donahue, & R. L. Kentle, 1991) were examined in a sample of 336 African American college students. Results indicated moderate reliability and structural validity for BFI scores. Additionally, BFI subscales had few meaningful correlations with self‐esteem and social desirability. La fiabilidad y la validez de los resultados del Inventario “Big Five” (BFI; O. P. John, E. M. Donahue, y R. L. Kentle, 1991) se examinan en una muestra de 336 estudiantes universitarios afro‐americanos. Los resultados indican una fiabilidad moderada y una validez estructural para los resultados del BFI. Adicionalmente, las subescalas del BFI tuvieron pocas correlaciones importantes con el auto‐estima y el deseo social.     

Taking consciousness seriously: A defense of Cartesian dualism

International Journal for Philosophy of Religion -     

Criminal attitudes to violence: Development and preliminary validation of a scale for male prisoners

Two studies report on the development and preliminary psychometric properties of a new scale measuring criminal attitudes to violence. In Study 1, the responses of a mixed sample of male prisoners were used to select 20 scale items from a larger pool. The final scale (the Criminal Attitudes to Violence Scale; CAVS) was designed so that it had a single‐factor structure and was uncorrelated with a measure of social desirability bias. It demonstrated high internal reliability, and a strong relationship to a self‐report measure of physical aggression. Significant differences were found in CAVS mean scores for various offence history comparisons, such as whether or not the offender was currently on sentence for a violent conviction. In the second study, most results from the first study were replicated with an independent sample of male prisoners. Further, compared to another scale measuring attitudes to aggression [the EXPAGG Instrumental subscale; Archer and Haigh, 1997b], the CAVS was a better predictor of general attitudes to crime. Mean CAVS scores were again significantly higher for current violent offenders than those on sentence for other types of offences. Lastly, the CAVS was moderately predictive of estimated risk of reconviction and re‐imprisonment. Overall these results suggest that this scale measures the construct of attitudes to criminal violence, which partially overlaps two other constructs: attitudes to aggression and attitudes to crime. Aggr. Behav. 30:484–503, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Emergence, Probability, and Reductionism

Abstract. Philosopher‐theologian Bernard J. F. Lonergan defines emergence as the process in which “otherwise coincidental manifolds of lower conjugate acts invite the higher integration effected by higher conjugate forms” (Insight, [1957] 1992, 477). The meaning and implications of Lonergan's concept of emergence are considered in the context of the problem of reductionism in the natural sciences. Examples are taken primarily from physics, chemistry, and biology.     

Co‐sleeping: Help or hindrance for young children's independence?

This study investigated the relationship between sleep arrangements and claims regarding possible problems and benefits related to co‐sleeping. Participants were 83 mothers of preschool‐aged children. Data were collected through parent questionnaires. Early co‐sleepers (who began co‐sleeping in infancy), reactive co‐sleepers (children who began co‐sleeping at or after age one), and solitary sleepers were compared on the dimensions of maternal attitudes toward sleep arrangements; night wakings and bedtime struggles; children's self‐reliance and independence in social and sleep‐related behaviours; and maternal autonomy support. The hypothesis that co‐sleeping would interfere with children's independence was partially supported: solitary sleepers fell asleep alone, slept through the night, and weaned earlier than the co‐sleepers. However, early co‐sleeping children were more self‐reliant (e.g. ability to dress oneself) and exhibited more social independence (e.g. make friends by oneself). Mothers of early co‐sleeping children were least favourable toward solitary sleep arrangements and most supportive of their child's autonomy, as compared to mothers in other sleep groups. Reactive co‐sleepers emerged as a distinct co‐sleeping sub‐type, with parents reporting frequent night wakings and, contrary to early co‐sleepers, experiencing these night wakings as highly disruptive. Implications for parents and pediatricians are discussed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Kevin Corcoran (ed.), Soul,Body and Survival

International Journal for Philosophy of Religion -     

Consideration Set Overvaluation: When Impossibly Favorable Ratings of a Set of Brands Are Observed

Consumers often focus on the characteristics of one brand and consider insufficiently the characteristics of other brands. Singular evaluation processes often result in judgments of a focal brand that are more extreme than warranted. This research investigates the extent to which this extremity effect generalizes to a consideration set consisting of multiple brands. Three experiments show that a set of favorably regarded brands is perceived as more favorable than would be possible if the salience manipulation had no effect. In Experiment 1, participants overestimated the likelihood that the best brand in the market was included in the presented set. In Experiment 2, the average rank assigned to the brands in the presented set was inflated. Extreme judgments were observed regardless of whether the focal set of brands was offered by a specialty store with a high‐quality reputation or by a general merchandise store with a low‐quality reputation. In Experiment 3, extreme intentions to buy now from the focal store were reduced when a comparative (vs. singular) judgment task was performed, but only when the need for cognitive closure was low as opposed to high. The results suggest that singular evaluation processes lead to consideration set overvaluation regardless of which particular favorably regarded brands happen to be included in the set.     

Die Rolle positiver Emotionen in der frühen Sozialisation

Emotions are vital characteristics of the evolved human nature. Expression and function of emotions, however, vary substantially depending on socio-cultural contexts. This paper focuses on two strategies concerning the expression of positive emotionality in early mother-child interactions. Western middle class families emphasize the expression of positive emotions in early social interactions from early infancy. Positive emotionality is associated with personal autonomy and individual uniqueness. In traditional farmer families in the non-western world emotional control is emphasized from birth. Emotional inexpressiveness is part of a socialization strategy that is oriented towards hierarchical relatedness. The early socialization experiences have measurable effects on emotion regulation of 1-year-old children. The confrontation of different cultural models in multicultural societies is inherently fraught with confliction. These implications are discussed.     

Competitive anxiety in young athletes: differentiating somatic anxiety, worry, and concentration disruption

The age-appropriate Sport Anxiety Scale-2 (SAS-2; Smith, Smoll, Cumming, & Grossbard, 2006) was used to assess levels of cognitive and somatic anxiety among male and female youth sport participants. Confirmatory factor analyses with a sample of 9-14 year old athletes (N=1038) supported the viability of a three-factor model of anxiety involving somatic anxiety, worry, and concentration disruption previously demonstrated in high school and college samples. Tests for factorial invariance revealed that the three-factor model was an equally good fit for 9-11 year olds and 12-14 year olds, and for both males and females. Gender and age were modestly related to anxiety scores. Worry about performing poorly was highest in girls and in older athletes, whereas boys reported higher levels of concentration disruption in competitive sport situations. Implications for emotional perception and for the study of competitive anxiety in young athletes are discussed.