Effects of Psychosocial Resources on Elite Soldiers' Completion of a Demanding Military Selection Program

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of three psychosocial resources (social support, mattering, and self-efficacy), together and separately, on soldiers' completion of a physically challenging military program when controlling for the possible mediating effects of stress. A total of 380 male soldiers entering Special Forces Assessment and Selection Course served as subjects. Results showed that the psychosocial resources were significantly and positively related to the program completion. Expected stress and cognitive stress did not mediate this effect. Of the three psychosocial resources, only the effect of self-efficacy was statistically significant. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

Lamenting the Golden Age: Love,Labour and Loss in the Collective Memory of Scientists

Abstract

Academic science is often described as having a moral economy underpinned by curiosity, creativity and a love of the subject. It is also described as having a political economy tied to national programmes for socio-economic growth. According to many writers, in recent decades those moral and political economies have become disconnected through greater managerial, audit and commercial practices pervading the academy. Classic ideals of professional norms and ethos have been eroded in these new economically incentivised environments. Biomedical scientists working at a major UK university echoed these sentiments, lamenting a lost ‘golden age’ of science characterised by intellectual freedom, serendipitous discovery and a love of doing science. In practice, their lamentation serves as a myth and expresses a key tension in pursuing science as a job and as a vocation. Playing a performative role in scientists' own self-understanding, the myth not only underwrites scientific identity, but also supports research management by demarcating ‘science’ from the practices that manage, measure and commercialise it. The ‘golden age’ emerges as a significant explanatory narrative in contemporary science. It embodies a moral economy that is detached from its institutional contexts, and thus unable to resolve the inequalities and tensions produced through the political economy that relies on it.     

Basis of recency and frequency judgements of novel faces: Generalised strength or episode-specific memories?

Evidence for generalised and episode-specific strength in judgements of recency and frequency of novel faces was investigated in two experiments. Novel faces (created using an identikit program) were presented either once or three times in either of two study sets, separated by a 4 minute (Experiment 1) or 24 hour (Experiment 2) delay. In Experiment 2, the study–test phases were preceded by a familiarisation phase in which faces were presented either with or without an occupational label (some faces were not familiarised). In both experiments, judgements of recency were consistent with greater reliance on generalised strength (an amalgamation of recency and frequency of presentation), although there was some evidence for a contribution of episode-specific information. Familiarisation had opposite effects on judgements of recency and frequency, with familiarised faces judged as having been studied more frequently (three times), but less recently (yesterday) than unfamiliarised faces. The latter result is consistent with participants discounting generalised strength when episode-specific information is inadequate.     

Understanding concussion in socio-cultural context: A media analysis of a National Hockey League star's concussion

ObjectivesSport psychology researchers have yet to explore the socio-cultural context of concussion. The aim with this study was to explore the contribution of one socio-cultural context (i.e., sport media) toward understanding the construction of meaning(s) of a sport celebrity's concussion and the implications for sport psychology.DesignA qualitative approach was used to explore concussion as a socio-cultural issue shaped by cultural narratives (i.e., news media). The meanings and implications for how sport concussion is understood and “constructed” through a key media incident were of interest.MethodAn ethnographic content analysis (see Altheide, 1996) of the mediation of the National Hockey League's (NHL) star player Sidney Crosby's concussion from January 1, 2011 (when the concussion occurred) to June 30, 2011 (end of the NHL season) was undertaken on North American news data.ResultsThe ethnographic content analysis of 68 articles revealed that Crosby's concussion and its associated meanings were constructed within a central narrative: a culture of risk and its impact on athletes. Multiple meanings of concussion within the risk narrative emerged depending on three sub-narratives: (a) Crosby's concussion as a cautionary tale, (b) Crosby's concussion as a political platform, and (c) concussion as ambiguous.ConclusionsThe culture of risk narrative raises awareness of the physical risks, physiological effects and the politics of concussion. These cultural meanings do not acknowledge/include the psychological implications/effects of concussion. This study furthers understandings of sport concussion within a socio-cultural context.     

A green Augustine: On learning to love nature well

Augustine of Hippo has expressed a vision of beauty in nature that could, if better known, encourage traditional Christians and secular ecologists to affirm the ground they have in common. For Augustine the ideal would be to see nature as God sees it, feeling deeply both its beauty and its impermanence, loving nature without clinging to it. With such clear seeing would come love and the motivation for sustained and skillful action. This paper discusses Augustine's paradigm and what blocks us from seeing it, and then frames principles for an authentically Augustinian response.     

Working memory and literacy as predictors of performance on algebraic word problems

Previous studies on individual differences in mathematical abilities have shown that working memory contributes to early arithmetic performance. In this study, we extended the investigation to algebraic word problem solving. A total of 151 10-year-olds were administered algebraic word problems and measures of working memory, intelligence quotient (IQ), and reading ability. Regression results were consistent with findings from the arithmetic literature showing that a literacy composite measure provided greater contribution than did executive function capacity. However, a series of path analyses showed that the overall contribution of executive function was comparable to that of literacy; the effect of executive function was mediated by that of literacy. Both the phonological loop and the visual spatial sketchpad failed to contribute directly; they contributed only indirectly by way of literacy and performance IQ, respectively.     

Genetic and environmental structure of Cloninger's temperament and character dimensions

The multivariate genetic and environmental structure of Cloninger's Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) was investigated in a sample of 617 pairs of adolescent and young adult twins from Japan. Additive genetic factors accounted for 22% to 49% of the variability on all TCI temperament scales. Although the theory predicts lower heritability for the character scales, all character subscales had a substantial genetic contribution, and nonshared environmental influences accounted for the remainder. Multivariate genetic analyses showed that several subscales used to define one dimension shared a common genetic basis with subscales defining others. Using the degree of shared genetic influence as the basis to rearrange the TCI subscales into new dimensions, it was possible to create genetically independent scales. The implications for personality measurement, theory, and molecular genetic research are discussed.     

The relationship between the Big Five personality factors and burnout: a study among volunteer counselors

In the present study of 80 volunteer counselors who cared for terminally ill patients, the authors examined the relationship between burnout as measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory (C. Maslach, S. E. Jackson, & M. P. Leiter, 1996) and the 5 basic (Big Five) personality factors (A. A. J. Hendriks, 1997): extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and intellect/autonomy. The results of 3 separate stepwise multiple regression analyses showed that (a) emotional exhaustion is uniquely predicted by emotional stability; (b) depersonalization is predicted by emotional stability, extraversion, and intellect/autonomy; and (c) personal accomplishment is predicted by extraversion and emotional stability. In addition, some of the basic personality factors moderated the relationship between relative number of negative experiences and burnout, suggesting that personality may help to protect against known risks of developing burnout in volunteer human service work.