Can I Do It? Will I Try? Personal Efficacy,Assigned Goals,and Performance Norms as Motivators of Individual Performance1

This study tested concurrent influences of personal efficacy, assigned goals, and performance norms on individual performance, mediated by personal goals and task‐specific self‐efficacy. Seventy‐seven undergraduate students performed a verbal task in this laboratory experiment that manipulated assigned goal level (low, high) and information about the performance of others (low, high). Relations among variables, including general, domain, and task‐specific self‐efficacy, as well as performance were examined through structural equation modeling. Results demonstrated simultaneous effects of assigned goals and normative information on self‐efficacy, personal goals, and subsequent performance, as well as mediated effects of domain efficacy on performance.     

Transfer effects in implicit memory and consumer choice

Two experiments investigated transfer effects in implicit memory and consumer choice, using a preference judgement task. Experiment 1 examined whether it is possible to obtain priming for unfamiliar food labels. Additionally, it investigated whether the experience of seeing a brand name with a particular product type would benefit subsequent processing of the brand name when linked with a different product type. Experiment 2 examined whether changes in modality between study and test would affect priming for unfamiliar brand names. Both questions are theoretically important, as well as pertaining to practical concerns in the consumer choice literature. Experiment 1 demonstrated significant priming for unfamiliar food labels, and established that priming was unaffected by changing the product type with which the brand name was associated. In Experiment 2, priming on both auditory and visual versions of the preference judgement task was reduced by changes in modality. The results and implications are discussed in relation to consumer choice and current theories of implicit memory. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Meeting the challenges of the new NHS for counselling in primary care: a service manager perspective

This paper addresses the challenge of meeting the requirements of the new NHS in primary care, whilst at the same time protecting conditions for counselling as a creative rather than a mechanical process. In managed teams this tension has to be held without the benefit of a long professional history of change and adaptation. The profession of counselling and psychotherapy in primary care has to rapidly find its place within the new structure and take on board new expectations for a profession that has traditionally enjoyed a high level of clinical autonomy.     

The challenge of measuring immigrant origin and immigration-related ethnicity in Europe

Different European nation-states use the most diverse statistical constructions of foreign origin or ethnic minority populations. Several countries traditionally even shun from producing such data. This makes international comparison a very difficult endeavour. Anyone wanting to perform comparative research on immigrants or (immigrant origin) ethnic minorities in Europe is unavoidably confronted with the most diverse types of national statistical data and has to opt for ad hoc solutions. Attempts at international comparison can thus be very tricky due to data characteristics. It is important that researchers are aware of these problems and do not simply accept data (especially in comparisons) at face value. In this article we embark on a comparative explorative study of the way in which immigrant background and immigration related ethnicity is taken stock of by national statistical institutes in a set of European nation-states.     

Matthews Model of Clinical Reasoning: A Systematic Approach to Conceptualize Evaluation and Intervention

Clinical reasoning is a complex process required for effective therapeutic encounters. Its development is poorly understood. The clinical reasoning process is placed in a historical context based on the occupational therapy literature. An emerging model of clinical reasoning is proposed. This model of clinical reasoning provides a unique perspective in order to compartmentalize the person, environment, and occupation constructs around the person’s life story, connect it directly to the occupational therapy practice framework, and determine treatment priorities, emphasizing a client-centered perspective. A client-centered model of clinical reasoning supports efforts to provide effective intervention.     

Abdominal exercise intensities on firm and compliant surfaces

Muscle activities at 15 sites were compared within a group of healthy young adults to evaluate their relative intensities during six abdominal exercises: partial and full sit-ups on a firm surface (floor) and on an exercise ball that was either stabilized or unstabilized. The most strenuous abdominal exercise overall (i.e., whole body workout) was the full sit-up on a firm surface which included significant muscle activities in the lower extremities. Exercise intensity was also high in the full and partial sit-ups when performed on a ball. The partial sit-up on the floor was the least strenuous of the six exercises. The greatest effect on the abdominal muscles was observed in the partial sit-up on a ball (stabilized and unstabilized). Results suggest that, although abdominal exercises on a ball may be gentler on the hip and lower back, overall exercise intensity is not necessarily lower than that on the floor. Moreover, partial sit-ups, both on the floor and on a ball, also required greater neck muscle activities than full sit-ups. In deciding what type of sit-up to do, exercise surface and different muscular activities between the partial and full sit-ups should be considered.     

Psychological inflexibility in childhood and adolescence: development and evaluation of the Avoidance and Fusion Questionnaire for Youth

The authors describe the development and validation of the Avoidance and Fusion Questionnaire for Youth (AFQ-Y), a child-report measure of psychological inflexibility engendered by high levels of cognitive fusion and experiential avoidance. Consistent with the theory underlying acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), items converged into a 17-item scale (AFQ-Y) and an 8-item short form (AFQ-Y8). A multimethod psychometric approach provides preliminary support for the reliability and validity of the AFQ-Y and AFQ-Y8. In 5 substudies, 3 samples (total N = 1369) were used to establish (a) item comprehension (n = 181), (b) initial item selection (n = 513), (c) final item reduction and development of a short form for research (n = 346), (d) comprehensive psychometric evaluation of the AFQ-Y and AFQ-Y8 (n = 329), and (e) convergent and construct validity for both versions of the AFQ-Y. Overall, results suggest that the AFQ-Y and AFQ-Y8 may be useful child-report measures of core ACT processes.     

Factors Predicting Family Reunification for African American,Latino, Asian and White Families in the Child Welfare System

We examined child, family and system-related factors associated with reunification across African American, Latino, Asian and White families involved in the child welfare system in one large and ethnically diverse California County. Data were obtained from extensive reviews of child welfare case records and multivariate analysis was performed on a wide array of variables not found in previous research. Results indicated that when taking other factors into account, ethnicity was not a strong predictor of reunification. Factors that predicted reunification varied across ethnic groups, with none of the predictors being significant for the Asian group. Implications and suggestions for further research are discussed.     

Interdependence,social motives,and outcome satisfaction in multiparty negotiation

What makes negotiators satisfied with their outcomes? In this study, we examined whether interpersonal interdependence, in the context of multi‐party multi‐issue negotiation, affected negotiators' satisfaction with their individual and group outcomes. We integrated principles from interdependence, social comparison, and social value theories to generate hypotheses about the social‐evaluative nature of satisfaction with negotiation outcomes. Controlling for differences in quality of individual outcomes, we found a positive association between satisfaction and individual outcome and a negative association between satisfaction and group outcome. Relative to those with prosocial social value orientation, negotiators with an individualistic social value orientation were less satisfied with the group outcome, regardless of induced motivational orientation. Neither motivational orientation nor an interaction between motivational orientation and social value orientation were related to satisfaction. We discuss the implications of our results for research on interdependence processes in negotiations and the role of social motives. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.