Passion at work and workers' evaluations of job demands and resources: a longitudinal study

Vallerand et al. developed a dualistic model of passion where two types of passion are proposed: harmonious and obsessive passion. They generally predict adaptive and less adaptive outcomes, respectively. In this study, we examine whether the type of passion that employees hold toward work influences their evaluations of job demands and resources. We hypothesized that a harmonious passion for work would lead to positive evaluations of job control and support in the workplace as well as to low levels of work overload. In contrast, we hypothesized that an obsessive passion for work would lead to evaluations of work overload and to low levels of job control and support. The results of a longitudinal study supported our hypothesis.     

Co-occurrence of non-suicidal self-injury and impulsivity in extreme weight conditions

The aims of the present study were to determine the prevalence of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) in different eating disorder (ED) groups and morbid obesity, and to investigate whether NSSI in different ED/obesity groups co-occur with impulsivity. We assessed 535 individuals (365 ED and 170 obese patients) by means of a single item assessing lifetime NSSI and the Barratt Impulsivity Scale, which measures different dimensions of impulsivity. The results showed that 19.1% of the ED patients engaged in at least one act of NSSI during their life-time. NSSI was more prevalent in Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder, Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified compared to Anorexia Nervosa, Restrictive type and morbid obesity. Finally, ED/obese patients who engaged in NSSI scored significantly higher on the attentional, motor and non-planning subscales than patients without NSSI. The implications of these findings for the treatment of NSSI in binge/purging ED patients are discussed.     

Family Survivors of Homicide: I. Symptoms,Syndromes, and Reaction Patterns

As more and more mental health clinicians become involved in the criminal justice system, family therapists will see increasing numbers of crime victims in their caseloads, and some of these families will have lost loved ones to murder. Part I of this two-part article describes the common and atypical symptoms, syndromes, and reaction patterns shown by families who have experienced the murder of a loved one. Part II will present a practical model for treating family survivors of homicide that incorporates cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, family systems, and existential components. Throughout, the emphasis is on therapists being equipped with a sufficiently broad range of clinical tools to treat these survivors flexibly, effectively, competently, and compassionately.     

Family Survivors of Homicide: II. Practical Therapeutic Strategies

As more and more mental health clinicians become involved in the criminal justice system, family therapists will see increasing numbers of crime victims in their caseloads, and some of these families will have lost loved ones to murder. Part I of this two-part article described the common and atypical symptoms, syndromes, and reaction patterns shown by families who have experienced the murder of a loved one. Part II presents a practical model for treating family survivors of homicide that incorporates cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, family systems, and existential components. Throughout, the emphasis is on therapists being equipped with a sufficiently broad range of clinical tools to treat these survivors flexibly, effectively, competently, and compassionately.     

Creativity and Confucianism Among American and Korean Educators

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in creative styles and Confucian ideas between Koreans and Americans and to examine the relationship between creativity and Confucianism. A total number of 579 educators (227 American and 352 Korean) participated in this study. Eastern-Western Perspective Scale was used to measure participants’ level of Confucianism and the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking-Figural was used to measure participants’ level of creative potential. The results indicate that Koreans have strikingly more Confucian ideals than Americans, whereas Americans have more creative strengths and are more adaptively creative than Koreans. The results also indicate higher levels of Confucianism relate to lower levels of creativity. The Confucian elements that show negative relationships with creativity are suppression of expression, gender inequality, gender role expectations, and filial piety.     

Statistical decision theory and evolution

Two recent articles by Geisler and Diehl use Bayesian statistical decision theory to model the co-evolution of predator and prey in a simple, game-like environment. The prey is characterized by its coloration. The predator is characterized by the chromatic sensitivity of its visual system and its willingness to attack. The authors demonstrate how the coloration of prey and the perceptual system of the predator co-evolve, converging to a Nash equilibrium for both species.     

The impact of self-efficacy and implementation intentions-based interventions on fruit and vegetable intake among adults

This study tested the effect of interventions designed for people who do not eat yet the recommended daily fruit and vegetable intake (FVI) but have a positive intention to do so. Adults (N?=?163) aged 20–65 were randomised into four groups: implementation intentions (II group), self-efficacy (SE group), combination of II?+?SE group) and a control group receiving written information on nutrition. Study variables were measured at baseline, post-intervention and at 3-month follow-up. At follow-up, compared to the control group, FVI increased significantly in the II and II?+?SE groups (1.5 and 1.9 servings per day, respectively). Most psychosocial variables significantly increased compared to the control group, with the exception of SE for vegetable intake (VI). Moreover, at 3-month follow-up, change in FVI was mediated by changes in fruit intake (FI) intention and VI action planning. In conclusion, II interventions were efficient to increase FVI, with or without consideration for the development of SE. Thus, future studies should favour the adoption of this approach to bridge the intention–behaviour gap for FVI.     

Sequential difficulty effects during execution of memory strategies in young and older adults

This study aimed at uncovering factors influencing execution of memory strategies and at furthering our understanding of ageing effects on memory performance. To achieve this end, we investigated strategy sequential difficulty (SSD) effects recently demonstrated by Uittenhove and Lemaire in the domain of problem solving. We found that both young and older participants correctly recalled more words using a sentence-construction strategy when this strategy followed an easier strategy (i.e., repetition strategy) or a harder strategy (i.e., mental-image strategy). These SSD effects were of equal magnitude in young and older adults, correlated significantly with Stroop performance in both young and older adults and correlated with N-back performance only in young adults. These findings have important implications for furthering our understanding of memory strategy execution and age-related variations in memory performance, as well for understanding mechanisms underlying SSD effects.     

Identity specific adaptation with composite faces

A composite face, made from the top half of a celebrity face and the bottom half of an unfamiliar face, appears to be a single, “new” face (e.g., Young, Hellawell, & Hay, 1987). Composite faces were used within the face identity aftereffect (FIAE) paradigm, in which prolonged exposure to a face reduces sensitivity to it (adaptation). Adaptation occurred both with an intact face and with composites containing its upper half, but only when composites were explicitly recognized during the adaptation phase. Unrecognized composites produced no adaptation. These findings imply that the FIAE is a relatively high-level perceptual effect, given that identical stimuli either did or did not produce adaptation depending on whether or not they were recognized. They also suggest a perceptual locus for the “composite face effect”.