Fanaticism That May Lead to a Nuclear Holocaust: The Contributions of Scientific Counseling and Psychotherapy

The author considers some of the fanatical beliefs that may possibly lead to a nuclear holocaust in the not-too-distant future, shows how dangerous these ideas are, and suggests that one of the best ways to minimize this kind of absolutistic and dogmatic thinking is through the psycho-educational approach pioneered by scientific counseling and psychotherapy.     

PERCEIVED FAIRNESS OF LAYOFFS AMONG INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE BEEN LAID OFF: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY

This longitudinal study examined 3 layoff-specific (explanation, correctability, and severance benefits) and 2 person-centered (negative affectivity and prior organizational commitment) variables as predictors of layoff victims' judgments of layoff fairness, willingness to endorse the terminating organization, desire to take the previous employer to court, and willingness to commit to future employers. In addition, this study assessed how reemployment moderated these relationships. The results highlighted the importance of receiving an explanation from organizations about how and why layoffs were conducted. Explanation was associated with higher perceived fairness of the layoff, higher willingness to endorse the terminating organization, and less desire to sue that organization, even after reemployment. Four predictor-outcome relationships were moderated by reemployment status.     

Acronym Soup: How Many Do You Know?

The human services field is so fill of acronyms that it is a wonder we all understand each other. How many do you know?     

Group and Multilateral Marriage: Definitional Notes, Glossary, and Annotated Bibliography

The purpose of this note is to define the phenomenon under current study in the Multilateral Relations Study Project and differentiate it from certain other related but different sociological phenomena. Confusion in the area of alternative family structures is all but universal, even among professionals and researchers. While definitions that are overly rigid may reduce the value of study, most research and journalism in this area has been characterized by serious imprecision that has reduced rather than added to understanding.     

Race and Cognitive-Ability Test Performance: The Mediating Effects of Test Preparation, Test-Taking Strategy Use and Self-Eff icacy

Test-taking strategy use, cognitive-ability test preparation, and test-taking self-efficacy were examined as possible mediators of the relationship between race and cognitiveability test performance. We hypothesized that African Americans would report using fewer test-taking strategies and less test preparation when compared to White Americans. In addition, we proposed that Afiican Americans would report lower levels of test-taking self-efficacy when faced with a cognitive-ability test. It was expected that these 3 variables would mediate the relationship between race and cognitive-ability test performance. Using a sample of 170 college students, results indicated that African Americans reported using more ineffective test-taking strategies, reported participating in more cognitiveability test preparation, and reported higher levels of test-taking self-efficacy when compared to White Americans. A portion of the difference in performance on a cognitiveability test between African Americans and White Americans could be attributed to the use of ineffective strategies and test preparation.