They heard a cry: psychosocial resources moderate perception of others' distress

Two studies tested whether psychosocial resources affect perception of another's distress. Participants' had their resources depleted, left unchanged, or boosted by elaborately recalling either someone who had betrayed them, a neutral person, or a close and trusted other, respectively. Participants then listened to disturbing baby cries, and rated how much distress the cries conveyed. As predicted, participants who recalled a betrayal subsequently heard the cries as conveying more distress than did other participants (Study 1). However, recalling a betrayal did not amplify cry ratings if, prior to cry rating, betrayal‐related thoughts and feelings were disclosed (Study 2). The moderating effect of disclosure on cry ratings indicates that boosting resources (disclosure) can counteract the effects of resource depletion (betrayal). Results in both studies remained significant even after controlling for mood. This research is the first to show that social contexts, and emotional disclosure, each affects perception of others' distress. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

No evidence for rule-based processing in the inverse base-rate effect

The inverse base-rate effect in categorization (Medin & Edelson, 1988) arises when participants assign an ambiguous stimulus to a category that occurred less frequently than an alternative category, against the principles of Bayesian decision making. In the experiment reported in this article, rule-based and attention-shifting accounts of the inverse base-rate effect were evaluated. Participants completed a categorization task, known to produce the inverse base-rate effect, under standard conditions, under time pressure, and with a secondary task load. The inverse base-rate effect persisted under severe time pressure and under secondary task load. The results provided no evidence for the role of rule-based processes in producing the inverse base-rate effect. The data from the experiment are compatible with an attention-shifting account.     

Efficacy of a program to encourage walking in VA elderly primary care patients: the role of pain

Pain may be a barrier or a negative outcome of initiating and maintaining an exercise program in elderly patients. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of pain in a program designed to increase walking for exercise in 181 veteran primary care patients (60 - 80 years). Self-reported physical activity (min-walked per week) and pain were assessed at baseline, 6, and 12 months. Walking for exercise increased over time without significant changes in pain. Analyses suggested that baseline pain was not a barrier to initiating or maintaining a walking exercise program, nor did increased walking influence reports of pain. These results suggest that patients can be encouraged to engage in physical activity, even if they are currently suffering from pain.     

The value of observing an autopsy in clergy and pastoral care education

The value of observing an autopsy for clergy and students training to provide pastoral care is that it raises consciousness about death and dying, assists in the participants' healing from loss, provides resources for ministering to the bereaved, builds a network with other professionals responding to death and dying, and evokes viscerally-generated insights into theological questions concerning body and soul, life after death, and concepts of God in relation to death and bereavement.     

Metaphysics, History, And Rational Justification A MacIntyrean Response to Franklin Gamwell's Critique

This article addresses Franklin Gamwell's critique of Alasdair MacIntyre's account of the nature of rational justification. I argue that MacIntyreans have good reasons to take seriously Gamwell's critique, and thus to reformulate MacIntyre's position to make clear that that position does not rest on a denial of all a priori claims. The author outlines such a reformulation, drawing heavily on MacIntyre's account (in his 1990 Aquinas Lecture) of the place of a priori claims within the development of rational traditions of inquiry. When thus rethought, MacIntyre's position grounds a twofold response to Gamwell's critique.