Social desirability in personality inventories: Symptoms,diagnosis and prescribed cure

An analysis of social desirability in personality assessment is presented. Starting with the symptoms, Study 1 showed that mean ratings of graded personality items are moderately to strongly linearly related to social desirability (Self Deception, Impression formation, and the first Principal Component), suggesting that item popularity may be a useful heuristic tool for identifying items which elicit socially desirable responding. We diagnose the cause of socially desirable responding as an interaction between the evaluative content of the item and enhancement motivation in the rater. Study 2 introduced a possible cure; evaluative neutralization of items. To test the feasibility of the method lay psychometricians (undergraduates) reformulated existing personality test items according to written instructions. The new items were indeed lower in social desirability while essentially retaining the five factor structure and reliability of the inventory. We conclude that although neutralization is no miracle cure, it is simple and has beneficial effects.     

Daily Versus Major Life Events as Predictors of Symptom Frequency: A Replication Study

Predictions of physical symptomatology by daily life events and by major life events were compared, replicating and expanding work reported by De-Longis, Coyne, Dakof, Folkman, & Lazarus (1982). Analyses of daily, prospective data collected on 79 married men for 90 days demonstrated that daily, undesirable events were better predictors of symptom frequencies than either past, major life events or daily, desirable events. These results, similar to those found by DeLongis et al. (1982), were further explored by examining “healthy” subjects versus subjects with prior medical conditions. Undesirable daily events were a much stronger predictor of physical symptoms in the healthy group than in the prior medical conditions group.     

Future Time Orientation and Relationships With the Opposite Sex

This study is an examination of future time orientation (FTO) and relationship satisfaction. Undergraduate students (N = 244) from Middle East Technical University were given a general FTO scale developed by T. Gjesme (1979) and a scale developed by this study's researcher to measure FTO in terms of romantic relationships. Participants were asked to rate their relationship satisfaction on a 9-point Likert-type scale. Although a general FTO was adaptive in terms of romantic relationships, a high concern for future commitment to a romantic relationship had a negative effect on reported relationship satisfaction. Research implications and suggestions for future studies are discussed.     

Self-Monitoring and Future Time Orientation in Romantic Relationships

The author examined the relationship between self-monitoring and participant's gender, and future time orientation in romantic relationships (FTORR) and tested the concurrent validity of the FTORR scale in this respect. One hundred seventy-three undergraduate students from Middle East Technical University were given M. Snyder's (1974) self-monitoring scale and B. Öner's (2000b) FTORR scale. Low self-monitoring participants had a more extended future time orientation (FTO) than high self-monitoring participants in terms of romantic associations.     

不同列队呈现方式下反馈对目击证人辨认自信心的影响

采用辨认后反馈范式研究不同队列呈现方式下反馈对目击证人辨认自信心的影响。结果发现：（1）所有辨认者中,反馈组被试自信心显著高于控制组被试的自信心;反馈方式与辨认选择的交互作用显著,辨认选择与列队呈现方式的交互作用显著;（2）积极辨认者中,反馈组被试的自信心显著高于控制组被试的自信心;正确辨认被试的自信心显著高于错误辨认被试的自信心。结果表明：目击辨认中存在辨认后反馈效应;积极辨认者中辨认自信心可以作为辨认准确性的一个参考指标。     

What works in secondary schools? A systematic review of classroom-based body image programs

Governments, schools, and curriculum authorities are increasingly recognizing that body image during adolescence is a public health issue that warrants attention in the school setting. After 30 years of eating disorder prevention research, and given the current interest in this area, it seems timely to review the research on interventions to improve body image in schools. We reviewed universal-selective, classroom-based programs that have been conducted since the year 2000, among adolescents, and found 16 eligible intervention programs. Seven of these programs were effective in improving body image on at least one measure, from pre to post test, though effect sizes were small (d = 0.22–0.48). These effective programs were conducted among younger adolescents 12.33–13.62 years, and included activities focusing on media literacy, self esteem, and the influence of peers. Implications for school personnel and curriculum authorities are discussed, and we provide recommendations for a strategic approach to future research in this area.     

Corruption and Internal Fraud in the Turkish Construction Industry

The purpose of this paper is to develop an understanding about the internal fraud and corruption problem in the Turkish construction industry. The reasons behind the internal fraud and corruption problem as well as the types of prevention methods were investigated; and as a result various recommendations were made. To this end, a risk awareness questionnaire was used to understand the behavioral patterns of the construction industry, and to clarify possible proactive and reactive measures against internal fraud and corruption. The type of fraud experienced by Turkish construction companies was also surveyed in the questionnaire. The questionnaire was sent to 89 firms; and depending on the collected data, certain recommendations for construction industry professionals were provided.     

行政职业能力测验阅读理解能力考查体系研究

本研究对行政职业能力测验中的阅读理解分测验考查何种能力要素进行了深入探讨.研究一首先通过文献法初步概括出行政职业能力测验阅读理解的能力考查体系,进而使用出声思维的方法对该考查体系进行验证和补充,最后通过专家调查论证方法对其进行最终确定.结果表明,行政职业能力测验阅读理解考查了6种能力,分别是提取信息能力、理解意义能力、理解细节能力、分析结构能力、概括能力及推断能力,其中提取信息能力和理解意义能力是基础.在此基础上,研究二使用该能力框架选取合适的行政职业能力测验阅读理解题目,组成一套阅读理解测验,并借助认知诊断方法,通过专家标定测验的Q矩阵,利用实测数据对研究一构建的能力考查体系的完备性进行了验证.     

MAX EITINGON'S RISE AND DECLINE: THE BERLIN YEARS

Max Eitingon's main achievement was the foundation of the Berlin psychoanalytic Poliklinik that served both as an outpatient center and a training institute. Another area of his responsibility was the Verlag, the International Psychoanalytic Press. By 1926, he occupied several leading positions, including presidency of the International Psychoanalytical Association and editorship of the major psychoanalytic journal of the time. The basis of his power was his personal relationship with Freud, as well as his monetary wealth, which he put into the service of the Freudian cause. By 1932, he had suffered an overall setback, however, with the Berlin Institute losing its best teachers, the Verlag barely escaping bankruptcy, and the journal's editorship returning to Vienna.     

Mentalization in children and mothers in the context of trauma: An initial study of the validity of the Child Reflective Functioning Scale

This study examined the validity of the Child Reflective Functioning Scale (CRFS: Ensink, Target, & Oandason, 2013, Child reflective functioning scale scoring manual: for application to the Child Attachment Interview. London, UK: Anna Freud Centre – University College London), a measure designed to assess reflective functioning (RF) or mentalization during middle childhood. Participants were 94 mother–child dyads divided into two subgroups; 46 dyads where children had histories of intrafamilial (n = 22 dyads) or extrafamilial (n = 24 dyads) sexual abuse, and a community control group composed of 48 mother–child dyads. RF of children and their mothers was assessed using videotaped and transcribed data gathered using the Child Attachment Interview and the Parent Development Interview (PDI: Slade, Aber, Bresi, Berger, & Kaplan, 2004, The parent development interview‐Revised. New York, NY: The City University of New York). The findings indicate that the CRFS proved reliable, with excellent intraclass correlation coefficients for general RF, as well as RF regarding self and others. Significant differences in RF were found between sexually abused children and the control group, and also between children who had experienced intrafamilial and extrafamilial sexual abuse. This provides support for the discriminant validity of the CRFS. Furthermore, maternal RF was associated with child RF. Both abuse and maternal RF made significant contributions to predicting children's RF regarding themselves, but child sexual abuse was the only variable that made a significant contribution to explaining variance in children's RF regarding others.