Psychoeducational Intervention Program about Posttraumatic Growth for Japanese High School Students

This study evaluates the effect of a psychoeducational intervention about posttraumatic growth (PTG) among Japanese adolescents. Study 1 examined whether those who learned about changes related to stress would report higher growth than those who did not. Study 2 examined whether those who learned about PTG perceived more growth than those who learned about negative changes or those who did not learn about potential changes. Findings from both studies indicated that PTG was higher in those who received the intervention program than those who did not. These studies demonstrate the potential effectiveness of a psychoeducational intervention program in fostering adolescents’ perceptions and understanding of their personal growth following stressful experiences. Implications are that the knowledge about not only stress reactions or coping but the possibility of PTG can be integrated into the health education.     

Gender‐Based Judgments of Traffic Violations: The Moderating Influence of Car Type1

This paper reports the findings of a study investigating interpretations of driver behavior during a traffic accident. Using authentic road‐accident reports including figurative depictions of the accident and a photograph of the car involved, participants were asked to make judgments of the driver's carelessness and aggression before and during the accident. Contextual factors were manipulated by altering the type of car driven (following Davies, 1999) and the sex of the driver. Results showed that car type influenced the allocation of cause of the accident, with drivers of a BMW being described as having acted more aggressively, and drivers of Smart Cars having been depicted as acting more carelessly, despite the actions of both drivers being held constant. In addition, the actions of the female driver were interpreted as more attributable to driver carelessness than driver aggression or external factors. Results are discussed with reference to car‐type stereotypes. Ways in which such biased interpretations could influence how drivers respond to other road users in real‐life situations are suggested.     

The supramodal brain: implications for auditory perception

ABSTRACT

The perceptual brain is designed around multisensory input. Areas once thought dedicated to a single sense are now known to work with multiple senses. It has been argued that the multisensory nature of the brain reflects a cortical architecture for which task, rather than sensory system, is the primary design principle. This supramodal thesis is supported by recent research on human echolocation and multisensory speech perception. In this review, we discuss the behavioural implications of a supramodal architecture, especially as they pertain to auditory perception. We suggest that the architecture implies a degree of perceptual parity between the senses and that cross-sensory integration occurs early and completely. We also argue that a supramodal architecture implies that perceptual experience can be shared across modalities and that this sharing should occur even without bimodal experience. We finish by briefly suggesting areas of future research.     

The Use of Family History Questionnaires: An Examination of Genetic Risk Estimates and Genetic Testing Eligibility in the Non-responder Population

The use of mailed family history questionnaires (FHQs) has previously been established to be an effective method for obtaining family history information for the triage of patients for genetic counseling and genetic testing of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome; yet only 53% of patients complete their FHQ within 6 months from the date of mailing (Armel et al. Journal of Genetic Counseling, 18(4):366–378, 2009). Although literature exists evaluating why women may not attend genetic counseling, no data are currently available examining genetic risk or genetic testing eligibility in the population of patients not returning their FHQ (non-responders). Concern exists that if non-responders are not followed-up for the purpose of triage for genetic counseling, individuals at high-risk for a hereditary cancer syndrome may be missed. This article explores the demographics of the non-responder population to assess genetic risk estimates for mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes and genetic testing eligibility as compared to a responder population of patients who completed a mailed FHQ. A total of 430 pedigrees were obtained, 215 from non-responders and 215 from responders. Results of this study indicate that 69% of non-responders were either unreachable by telephone (42%), declined an appointment (19%), or were previously seen in another center for a genetic counseling visit (8%). Additionally, results indicate that non-responders are less likely to be eligible for genetic testing (40%) as compared to responders (57%) (p = 0.0004). Together these data shed light on a population of patients for which limited information exists and suggest that we question how and to what extent clinics should pursue non-responders, particularly in light of global reductions in health care funding.     

Empirical study of Kanji as archetypal images: understanding the collective unconscious as part of the Japanese language

Chinese characters originated as a semiotic system independent from spoken language and in the Japanese language they function non-phonetically with speakers exhibiting right-hemispheric advantage in their processing. We tested the hypothesis that Chinese characters are archetypal images and therefore part of our collective unconscious memory. Our study builds on the first empirical study of archetypal memory of Rosen et al. (1991) which demonstrated that archetypal symbols presented matched with their correct meaning were better learned and recalled. In a series of three experiments we used 40 Chinese characters instead of the archetypal symbols used by Rosen, et al. (1991). The results provided empirical evidence that Chinese characters matched with their correct meaning were significantly better recalled than the ones that were mismatched. Thus, we demonstrated that there appears to be unconscious knowledge of the meaning of the Chinese characters which was triggered as a result of priming when the characters were correctly matched with their meaning. On this basis, we suggest that Chinese characters exhibit the same cognitive qualities as archetypal symbols. Thus, in the Japanese language an archetypal image is integrated non-phonetically into the system of language and signifies the concept independent from the phonetic signifier and is equal to it.     

Willingness to date across race: differences among gay and heterosexual men and women

Willingness to date members of other races was examined among 200 men with same-sex dating preference (n = 100) and opposite-sex dating preference (n = 100), and 200 women with same-sex dating preference (n = 100) and opposite-sex dating preference (n = 100) who were randomly selected from an Internet dating web site. Overall, results indicated a greater willingness among gay participants than heterosexual participants to date people of other races. A 2 (Sex) x 2 (Sexual Orientation) analysis of variance showed an interaction, with lesbian women more willing to date other races than gay men, while among heterosexual participants men were more willing than women to date other races. The role of mate selection theory, and the importance of the status afforded various races in U.S. society, were applied to interpret people's willingness to date other races.     

The Disappearance of Adulthood

In 1982, Neil Postman wrote The Disappearance of Childhood. In that work, Postman recounted the invention of childhood in the modern world and its demise at the hands of, among other things, the electronic media (principally television). In Postman’s view, television had transformed education into ‘edutainment.’ The implications of this loss were devastating. Taking up where Postman left off I wish to reexamine his claim and amend and update his thesis by suggesting that, after the latest electronic turn, we now live in societies where a meaningful conception of adulthood is disappearing. It is disappearing, in part, because of an impoverished conception of citizenship. Yet it is additionally undermined because, claims to the ascendancy of the ‘knowledge worker’ notwithstanding, the fundamental connection between education and employment is unraveling. In this climate, the purposes of education are constantly queried and scrutinized as its telos is redefined by criteria external to the practice of education: cost-effectiveness, value-for-money, and so on. I suggest that only be reclaiming a meaningful conception of adulthood can education be defended and only by so doing can individuals hope to understand the world around them.