The Crystallization of Contemporary Racial Prejudice across the Lifespan

The conventional wisdom is that racial prejudice remains largely stable through adulthood. However, very little is known about the development of contemporary racial attitudes like symbolic racism. The growing crystallization of symbolic racism through the lifespan is tested using two data sets that measure the stability, consistency, and predictive validity of symbolic racism in samples ranging in age from young adults to the elderly. The results provide evidence that the crystallization of symbolic racism generally takes on a curvilinear trajectory across the lifespan, showing that it is already largely crystallized by voting age, that it continues to crystallize still further through adulthood and that it begins to decline in coherence in late adulthood. The results generally provide evidence confirming early speculations of symbolic racism theorists concerning the crystallization of symbolic racism across the lifespan and are discussed in terms of different theoretical perspectives on the relationship between aging and attitudes more generally.     

Why Do White Americans Oppose Race‐Targeted Policies? Clarifying the Impact of Symbolic Racism

Measures of symbolic racism (SR) have often been used to tap racial prejudice toward Blacks. However, given the wording of questions used for this purpose, some of the apparent effects on attitudes toward policies to help Blacks may instead be due to political conservatism, attitudes toward government, and/or attitudes toward redistributive government policies in general. Using data from national probability sample surveys and an experiment, we explored whether SR has effects even when controlling for these potential confounds and whether its effects are specific to policies involving Blacks. Holding constant conservatism and attitudes toward limited government, SR predicted Whites' opposition to policies designed to help Blacks and more weakly predicted attitudes toward social programs whose beneficiaries were racially ambiguous. An experimental manipulation of policy beneficiaries revealed that SR predicted policy attitudes when Blacks were the beneficiary but not when women were. These findings are consistent with the claim that SR's association with racial policy preferences is not due to these confounds.     

The UWBQ-I: An Adaption and Validation of a Measure of Instigated Incivility

Purpose

The purpose of this research was to adapt and validate a multidimensional instigated incivility scale. Previously, instigated incivility research has used unidimensional scales, measures designed for specific occupations (e.g., nursing), item subsets of larger scales, or scales designed for experienced incivility that assumes a change of referent will not impact the scale. This research formally validates the change of referent from experienced incivility to instigated incivility, and offers a scale designed for wide range of occupations with demonstrated advantages over a popular unidimensional scale.

Design

Study 1 proposes a second-order factor structure of the measure. Surveying a sample of 472 individuals, the study confirms the measure’s ability to predict additional variance in interpersonal deviance over a previous measure of instigated incivility, as well as provide greater detail relating to a multi-faceted personality dimension (narcissism). Study 2 uses a unique sample of 642 participants and expands the nomological network of the scale by demonstrating the correlational and predictive relationships to a network of related constructs identified by past research.

Findings

The results of Study 1 identify that the multidimensional factor structure of UWBQ-I remains intact when changed from an experienced incivility scale. Regression and dominance analyses demonstrate that the UWBQ-I provides additional variance accounted for over Blau and Andersson’s (2005) scale, capturing a larger portion of the instigated incivility construct domain. Additionally, the advantages of a multidimensional framework are identified by relating the scale sub-facets to equally specific dimensions of narcissism. Study 2 further supported the validation of the UWBQ-I by replicating a large network of relationships that have been previously identified in incivility research.

Implications

Considerably less research has been dedicated to instigated than to experienced incivility research. The present studies offer a scale that may contribute to increased research by providing more specific relationships between facets of incivility and constructs such as personality. Greater understanding of the detailed relationships may help researchers further identify antecedents and consequences and aid practitioners in developing interventions to understand and quell instigated incivility in the workplace.

Originality

Although research has used a scale such as this, the validity of the scale has never been demonstrated. This research establishes the appropriateness of the past use of such scales and also offers researchers a standard, validated measure to incorporate in a broad range of occupations for future incivility research.

     

Middle School Teachers' Perceptions of Computer-Assisted Reading Intervention Programs

Middle schools often turn to computer-assisted reading intervention programs to improve student reading. The questions guiding this study are (a) in what ways are computer-assisted reading intervention programs utilized, and (b) what are teachers' perceptions about these intervention programs? Nineteen secondary reading teachers were interviewed regarding their perceptions of one of three programs. Emerging themes fell into three major categories: teaching experiences, program use, and technology. Findings focused on the need for programs to engage students in actual reading, to move instruction beyond a decoding focus, to provide books that match student interests, and to increase motivation to read.     

Expectancy-value constructs and expectancy violation as predictors of exercise adherence in previously sedentary women.

This prospective study examined effects of expectancy of exercise benefits, value of benefits, expectancy violation, and self-efficacy (SE) on exercise behavior and study dropout in sedentary women (n=86). SE predicted exercise for study completers but did not predict study dropout. After 6 and 12 weeks, participants evidenced expectancy violations, particularly for fitness and weight. Initial value, expectancy, and Expectancy X Value did not predict exercise for study completers, but dropouts had higher initial positive expectancies than did completers. Expectancy violations produced in Weeks 1-6 did not predict exercise in Weeks 7-12 in study completers, but dropouts in Weeks 7-12 had higher expectancy violations for weight in Weeks 1-6 than did completers. Follow-up revealed that study dropouts stopped exercising. Identifying individuals with high initial expectancies and expectancy violations may improve health behavior intervention and research.     

Minor Studies of Aggression: V. Strength of Frustration-Reaction as a Function of Strength of Drive

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relative effectiveness of two methods of presenting visualized instruction to Ss and to determine the effectiveness of different types of visuals in facilitating S achievement of different educational objectives. Five hundred twenty Ss participated in the study; each received a pretest, participated in his respective instructional presentation, and received four criterial tests. Analysis indicated that (a) the method of presenting visualized instruction determines the type of visualization most effective in facilitating S achievement of different educational objectives; (b) for facilitating S achievement of certain objectives, color in visuals is an important instructional variable; and (c) not all visuals are equally effective in facilitating S achievement of different educational objectives.     

Randomized controlled trial evaluating the effectiveness of a web-based stress management program among community college students

Background and Objectives: This study evaluated the effectiveness of a web-based stress management program among community college students that focused on increasing perceived control over stressful events. Design: Students (N = 257) were randomly assigned to a Present Control Intervention or a Stress-information only comparison group. Methods: Primary outcomes were perceived stress and stress symptoms; secondary outcomes were depression and anxiety. Self-report measures were completed online at preintervention, postintervention, and three-week follow-up. Intervention effects were estimated using linear mixed models. Seventy-five percent of the sample (n = 194) completed the pretest and comprised the intent-to-treat sample. Results: Participants in the intervention group reported significant increases in present control, and significant decreases in all four primary and secondary outcome measures from baseline to postintervention and follow-up. Within-group effect sizes were small to medium at postintervention (mean d = –.34) and follow-up (mean d = –.49). The mean between-group effect size on the four outcome measures was d = .35 at postintervention but d = .12 at follow-up, due to unexpected decreases in distress in the comparison group. Conclusions: Our online program is a cost-effective mental health program for college students. Limitations and future direction are discussed.     

Cognitive Function in Parkinson's Disease: Association with Anxiety but Not Depression

To reexamine the relationships of depression, anxiety and cognitive impairment in Parkinson's disease (PD), 27 patients with idiopathic PD received two measures of depression, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). Contrary to some earlier studies, measures of depression, even those that separated mood from somatic symptoms, were not correlated with any measure of cognitive performance. By contrast, measures of anxiety were signifiantly and negatively correlated with all RBANS indexes. Because anxiety and depression are partially overlapping psychiatric disorders, inconsistent reports concerning the relationship of depression and cognition in PD may have arisen because different studies included varying proportions of depressed patients who were also highly anxious.