Is regret for inaction relatively self‐enhancing?

Previous accounts of regret suggest that people report greater regret for inaction than for action because the former is longer lasting and more painful than the latter. We suggest instead that the tendency for people's greatest regrets to concern inaction more than action may be due to the relatively self‐enhancing nature of regrets for inaction. In Study 1 we asked people to think about their greatest recent regret and to code it as being due to action or inaction. In Study 2 participants described their greatest regret from across their entire life. In both studies we observed an inaction effect only amongst individuals high in self‐esteem (HSE). In Study 2 we found that the inaction effect was confined to HSE people whose greatest regret was personal in nature. These results support the claim that regret for inaction is relatively self‐enhancing and suggest that the inaction effect found in real‐life regrets may be due, in part at least, to the self‐enhancement goals of HSE individuals. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Measuring the Ethical Propensities of Accounting Students: Mach IV versus DIT

This study responds to Bay and Greenberg's (Bay, D.D. and Greenberg, R.R. (2001). The relationship of the DIT and behavior: A replication. Issues in Accounting Education 10(3): 367–380) call to investigate alternative psychometric instruments to measure ethical behavior other than the heavily relied upon Defining Issues Test. The Mach IV scale (Christie, 1970) has been cited in more than 500 published psychological studies; however, it has not been used extensively in the accounting ethics research. This study provides some preliminary evidence on the use of the Mach IV scale in an accounting ethics context. Similar to ethics studies in other academic disciplines, results across two dependent measures indicate accounting students high in Machiavellianism are more likely to view questionable ethical behavior as acceptable. The research findings also indicate that the Machiavellian construct appears to be a better predictor of ethical propensities in comparison to the commonly used Defining Issues Test. The paper concludes with a discussion on how these reported research findings impact the accounting profession and accounting education.     

Time pressure and group performance: Exploring underlying processes in the Attentional Focus Model

The Attentional Focus Model (Karau & Kelly, 1992) predicts that time pressure should lead group members to focus on a restricted range of task-relevant cues and to adopt task completion as their major interaction objective. Although this prediction has been supported in several studies (e.g., Karau & Kelly, 1992; Kelly, Jackson, & Hutson-Comeaux, 1997; Kelly & Karau, 1999; Parks & Cowlin, 1995), the exact processes that underlie information restriction have not been specified. We propose that two processes are involved. Specifically, the restriction of information may occur because time pressure affects the way in which information is initially encoded or attended to before a group enters its decision-making phase, or because group members filter out what they judge to be less important information during group discussion and decision making. We assessed both of these processes within a decision-making experiment where time pressure was manipulated prior to learning information that would be used to perform a task. Recall of information learned prior to group discussion did not differ by time pressure condition, arguing against an encoding process. In contrast, interaction data demonstrated information restriction by group members, arguing for a filtering process. Thought listings collected 1 min into the group discussion in some groups also supported a filtering process, as did questionnaire data. Implications of these findings for the Attentional Focus Model and for effective group decision making are discussed.     

A Standard of Care for the Assessment of Suicide Risk and Associated Treatment: The Florida State University Psychology Clinic as an Example

The Florida State University has established a set of guidelines to be used as a standard of care for suicide. This standard of care guides therapists through a suicide risk assessment that focuses on key variables related to suicidal behavior that are among the best predictors of completed suicide. This standard of care includes necessary components of suicide risk assessment, critical steps to follow to ensure the safety of suicidal patients, treatment recommendations, and guidelines for minimizing the legal risk of the therapist. Though this standard of care was developed in a research and training clinic, these principles may be applied to all clinicians offering psychological services to patients, regardless of the nature of the clinic or setting.     

Internet dependence in the collegiate population: the role of shyness.

Low sensation seeking and loneliness have been associated with collegiate Internet dependence. In an attempt to further explicate the factors associated with collegiate Internet dependence, interpersonal shyness (both online and in face-to-face [FTF] interactions) was explored. An online questionnaire was used to assess Internet dependency and shyness. The results demonstrated the predicted interaction such that shyness level for nondependents did not differ online or in FTF interactions. However, dependents' shyness was greater in FTF interactions relative to online interpersonal exchanges. The results were discussed in terms of how various Internet resources (e.g., e-mail, chat rooms, and instant messages) can be used to ameliorate shyness and how such negatively reinforced behavior could foster dependence.     

Social exchange styles: Measurement,validation, and application

Drawing on evolutionary psychology, social exchange styles were conceptualized in terms of two dimensions of individual differences in approaching exchange relationships: Benefit‐seeking and cost‐vigilance. In Study 1, a principal components analysis of the Social Exchange Styles Questionnaire (SESQ) in 156 undergraduates confirmed the presence of two dimensions that were very similar to the expected dimensions: Equitable alliance building (EAB) and vigilant alliance management (VAM). The SESQ scales showed good internal consistency and construct validity. Multiple regressions confirmed that social exchange styles were distinct from other personality variables. In Study 2, multilevel modelling conducted on 45 small work groups demonstrated that EAB positively predicted members' subjective performance, while VAM positively predicted objective performance. Theoretical questions and future research directions are discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy: A Positive Perspective

Through his development of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT), Albert Ellis was a major contributor to the development of cognitive behaviour therapy. This article reviews key aspects of REBT, the distinction between unhealthy and healthy emotions, and the role irrational and rational beliefs play in relation to these emotions. As with other areas of psychology, the focus of REBT over the years has been dominated by negative emotional experiences. In an attempt to address this and further develop REBT, the present article reviews recent claims from the realm of social psychology that positive illusions promote mental health. Consequently, it is proposed that a similar dichotomy of healthy and unhealthy positive emotions also exists, and a basic framework for working with this positive dichotomy is introduced.     

Accountability for others,perceived resources,and well being: Convergent restricted non‐linear results in two samples

This two‐sample investigation examined the influence of perceived resources on the form and magnitude of the relationships between accountability for others (AFO) and job tension and job satisfaction. Employing resource theory, we hypothesized that the non‐linear relationship between AFO and job tension would surface only for individuals high in perceived resources, whereas the association between these constructs would be positive and linear for individuals low in perceived resources. A similar relationship was hypothesized for AFO and job satisfaction in which the non‐linear effect would arise for individuals high in perceived resources, and negative linear effects would emerge for those low in perceived resources. Data from two samples (N= 201; N= 182) provided support and replication for the hypotheses. Implications of the results and directions for future research are discussed.