When birds of a feather flock together and when they do not: status composition, social dominance orientation, and organizational attractiveness

Although similarity-attraction notions suggest that similarity--for example, in terms of values, personality, and demography--attracts, the authors found that sometimes demographic similarity attracts and sometimes it repels. Consistent with social dominance theory (J. Sidanius & F. Pratto, 1999), they demonstrated in 3 studies that when prospective employees supported group-based social hierarchies (i.e., were high in social dominance orientation), those in high-status groups were attracted to demographic similarity within an organization, whereas those in low-status groups were repelled by it. An important theoretical implication of the findings is that social dominance theory and traditional similarity-attraction notions together help explain a more complex relationship between demographic similarity and attraction than was previously acknowledged in the organizational literature.     

Attributions of HIV Onset Controllability,Emotional Reactions,and Helping Intentions: Implicit Effects of Victim Sexual Orientation1

A vignette methodology was used to investigate the effects of systematically manipulating HIV onset controllability and victim sexual orientation on (a) participant attributions about a victim (i.e., perceptions of victim control, responsibility, and blame); (b) participant emotional reactions (anger and sympathy) toward a victim; and (c) participant helping intentions toward a victim. Weiner's (1980a, 1980b, 1995 ) attributional helping model was tested to determine whether participant anger and sympathy mediated the onset controllability/helping intentions relationship. A total of 399 undergraduate psychology students completed the survey. Statistically significant effects were found for HIV onset controllability and victim sexual orientation on participant attributions, emotional reactions, and helping intentions. Theoretical and practical implications of the study are addressed.     

Differential effects of pretraining influences on readiness to change

Training and development are integral to organizational change but are difficult to accomplish effectively in dynamic and complex work environments. Such environments can lead to nonoptimal training conditions that reduce individuals' readiness to change and training effectiveness. On the basis of the transtheoretical model of change (J. O. Prochaska, C. C. DiClemente, & J. C. Norcross, 1992), the authors examined pretraining influences (choice, social support, and motivation to learn) on readiness to change under nonoptimal training conditions. They examined specific dimensions of readiness to change rather than a global readiness to change construct. Participants were 183 driving under the influence (DUI) offenders participating in a court-mandated, alcohol-related Weekend Intervention Program. Perceived choice to attend training, social support, and motivation to learn affected readiness to change when individuals were resisting, considering, acting on, or maintaining behavior or attitude change. These effects were also dependent on age. Results suggest how training effectiveness could be improved when trainees are least likely to learn.     

The Interaction of Extraversion and Anxiety Sensitivity on Social Anxiety: Evidence of Specificity Relative to Depression

Neuroticism and extraversion have been linked to the etiologies and course of anxiety and mood disorders, such that neuroticism is broadly associated with numerous disorders and extraversion is most strongly associated with social anxiety and depression. While previous research has established the broad associations between temperament and emotional disorders, less is known about the specific, proximal factors that are associated with them, and very few studies have situated these risk factors into a larger etiological model that specifies how they may relate to one another. The current study examined the interaction of extraversion and anxiety sensitivity (AS) in predicting social anxiety symptoms in a large, diagnostically diverse clinical sample (N = 826). Symptoms were assessed with self-report and dimensional interview measures, and regression analyses were performed examining the main effects and interaction of extraversion and AS (examining both total and lower-order components) on social anxiety. Results showed that at higher levels of AS, the inverse relationship between extraversion and social anxiety was stronger, and the social concerns component of AS is responsible for this effect. This interaction was also observed with regard to depression symptoms, but the interaction was not present after accounting for shared variance (i.e., comorbidity) between depression and social anxiety symptoms. Clinical and theoretical implications of the results are discussed.     

Externalising behaviour from infancy to mid-adolescence: Latent profiles and early predictors

The overall aim of the current study was to identify typical trajectory classes of externalising behaviour, and to identify predictors present already in infancy that discriminate the trajectory classes. 921 children from a community sample were followed over 13 years from the age of 18 months. In a simultaneously estimated model, latent class analyses and multinomial logit regression analyses suggested a five-class solution for developmental patterns of externalising problem behaviours: High stable (18% of the children), High childhood limited (5%), Medium childhood limited (31%), Adolescent onset (30%), and Low stable (16%). Six risk factors measured at 18 months significantly discriminated among the classes. Family stress and maternal age discriminated the High stable class from all the other classes. The results suggest that focusing on enduring problems in the relationship with the partner and partners' health may be important in preventive and early intervention efforts.     

Effects of Adlerian Play Therapy on Reducing Students' Disruptive Behaviors

This randomized controlled study examined the effectiveness of Adlerian play therapy (AdPT) with 58 elementary school students (48% Latino, 33% European American, 19% African American) exhibiting disruptive classroom behaviors. Teachers and raters blinded to treatment group assignment reported that children in the experimental group demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in behavior problems and that AdPT demonstrated moderate to large treatment effects. Teachers also reported a statistically significant reduction in stress in their relationships with students receiving AdPT.     

Employees’ Adaptability and Perceptions of Change-Related Uncertainty: Implications for Perceived Organizational Support,Job Satisfaction,and Performance

Purpose

The literature on organizational change has increasingly recognized that characteristics of change recipients influence their reactions to workplace change. Yet little is known about the influence of employees’ adaptability and change-related uncertainty on their interpretation of organizational actions. We examined these antecedents and the mediating role of perceived organizational support as explanations for employees’ job satisfaction and performance.

Design/Methodology/Approach

A survey was administered to material handling employees from two organizations. Employees completed measures of individual adaptability, uncertainty experienced regarding changes in the workplace, support received from the organization, and job satisfaction. Performance data were collected from the records of one organization.

Findings

Results from both samples support the role of perceived organizational support as a mediator of the relationship between employees’ adaptability and perceptions of change-related uncertainty and employees’ satisfaction and performance.

Implications

Change is a frequent occurrence in today’s workplace; thus, improving employee satisfaction and performance requires the consideration of change-related perceptions and individuals’ dispositions relevant to change. The present study offers insights regarding how organizations may help improve perceptions of organizational support by reducing perceived uncertainty as well as identifying employees who may need assistance to adapt to workplace changes.

Originality/Value

Despite practitioners’ expressed interest, there is scant research examining employees’ adaptability and change-related uncertainty. We provide the first evidence explaining how and why these variables impact important workplace outcomes and extend existing theory by identifying appraisals of the organization (and not the self) as a mechanism explaining stressor–strain relationships.     

Analogue Mental Transformations in 3‐Year‐Olds: Introducing a New Mental Rotation Paradigm Suitable for Young Children

Until now, a successful application of the mental rotation paradigm was restricted to children 5 years or older. By contrast, recent findings suggest that even infants can perform mental rotation. Unlike the methods used in infant studies (looking time), our new research paradigm allows for the measurement and interpretation of reaction times. Kindergartners (aged 3–6 years) were presented with a stimulus configuration on a touchscreen and asked to bring a rotated stimulus into an upright position using the shortest path. Mean reaction time (RT) increased linearly with angular disparity. The ensuing linear trend was significant not only for the entire sample but also for the youngest age group analysed separately. To exclude the possibility that linearity was due to movement planning, 3‐year‐olds had to manually rotate a stimulus about the same trajectory without the need for a corresponding mental transformation in a second experiment. Here, no linear trend was observed. These results are interpreted as evidence for an analogue mental transformation in 3‐year‐olds, equal to the transformation processes in older children's and adults' mental rotation. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.