Some aspects of the interpersonal phenomenology of heterosexual dyads with respect to sex-role stereotypes

A technique based upon recently developed Boolean calculi for interpersonal phenomenology was used to study sex-role attributions within 59 heterosexual dyads. The interpersonal and intrapersonal variables studied include perceived similarity, validation of self-concept, expectations of agreement, feelings of being understood, predictions that the partner expects agreement, understanding, accurate perception of understanding/misunderstanding, and accurate perception of expectations on agreement/disagreement. All variables were studied in relation to each member of the dyad and in relation to male and female sex-role stereotypes. Analyses of all variables are consistent with two conclusions: (1) Phenomenal disparity in a relationship is more likely to be generated around male sex-role stereotypes than around female sex-role stereotypes; (2) phenomenal disparity in a relationship is most likely to occur in connection with counter-sex-role attributions to the female. Increased uncertainty regarding counter-sex-role attributions about women and lowered validation of self-concept for women who adopt counter-sex-role attributes are shown to contribute to these effects. These conclusions are seen as a reflection of an asymmetry which seems to be consistent in the literature: Counter-sex-role choices and attitudes seem to be less discordant for males than for females in this culture. Evidence of this asymmetry is discussed.     

In Godlessness We Distrust: Using Social Psychology to Solve the Puzzle of Anti‐atheist Prejudice

Most people believe in a god of some sort. Nonetheless, there are hundreds of millions of atheists in the world, and they face considerable discrimination and prejudice. This is a puzzling form of prejudice: Atheists do not form a coherent group, they are individually inconspicuous, and they are not, in general, oppositional or threatening. Recent research in social, evolutionary, and cultural psychology, however, offers suggestions for solving the puzzle of anti‐atheist prejudice, in terms of both uncovering its psychological causes and also suggesting interventions for reducing it. Antipathy towards atheists derives specifically from moral distrust – to many people, belief in a watchful, moralizing god is seen as a uniquely powerful and perhaps necessary component of morality. Without religious belief, atheists are viewed as moral wildcards who cannot be trusted. This unique basis in turn implies specific ways in which distrust of atheists might be ameliorated.     

Significance of violence in stories of young children

Stories told by 72 5-yr.-old children were scored for themes of violence and correlated with their mothers' reports of aggressive or fearful behaviors. Values for the entire sample were not significant. However, when data for Hispanic children were removed from the sample the correlation of violent stories to ratings of children's aggression was significant (r = .27) and for a count of violent words r = .30. The correlation of violent words to fearfulness was .28 and for girls only .35. The count of violent words was also correlated with African-American children's ratings of fearfulness (r = .64).     

A microprocessor-based psychopathology laboratory: I. Why bother?

The greater than usual need for stimulus control, closed-loop design to control for organic state variables, and the acquisition of complex data on thought disorders makes on-line microprocessors especially important in psychopathology research.     

A microprocessor-based psychopathology laboratory: II. Research goals and design prerequisites

The design of a microprocessor-based psychopathology laboratory is influenced by (1) special procedures in many experimental paradigms and (2) some theoretical considerations about psychopathological data. In terms of design prerequisites, these are summarized as flexibility and power to control a spectrum of experiments, large data-processing capacity, ability to provide clinically relevant data on short notice, mobility, and simplicity of operation and programming.     

Using equivalence-based instruction to teach piano skills to children

The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effects of equivalence-based instruction (EBI) on learning to play individual notes and simple songs on the piano. Participants were 4 typically developing children and 4 children with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). They were exposed to a series of auditory–visual matching-to-sample procedures using musical stimuli. Following training, participants were tested on the emergence of novel untrained relations and generalization in the form of playing two songs on a keyboard. Results suggest that the EBI was effective in teaching piano playing skills with both typically developing children and children with ASD. The success of this procedure is indicative of the wide-ranging applications of EBI to novel and creative domains.     

Multiphase mixed-effects models for repeated measures data

Behavior that develops in phases may exhibit distinctively different rates of change in one time period than in others. In this article, a mixed-effects model for a response that displays identifiable regimes is reviewed. An interesting component of the model is the change point. In substantive terms, the change point is the time when development switches from one phase to another. In a mixed-effects model, the change point can be a random coefficient. This possibility allows individuals to make the transition from one phase to another at different ages or after different lengths of time in treatment. Two examples are reviewed in detail, both of which can be estimated with software that is widely available.