Self-disclosure: Intimate and nonintimate disclosures to parents and best friends as a function of bem sex-role category

Thirty-two androgynous, traditional, and undifferentiated males and females (N/it=192) completed a 6-item self-disclosure questionnaire containing 30 intimate and 30 nonintimate items. The targets were father, mother, and best male and female friends. Analyses of both intimate and nonintimate items indicated that amount of self-disclosure was related to sex role and not gender. Typical male-female differences in self-disclosure were not found because (a) androgynous males disclosed at significantly higher levels than traditional and undifferentiated males to most targets; (b) undifferentiated males and females disclosed significantly less than their androgynous and traditional counterparts. Intimate self-disclosure by androgynous males to father, and nonintimate disclosure by androgynous females to father, were particularly high. Both findings suggest a unique role for fathers in the development of androgynous persons. Androgynous females reported higher disclosure to best male friend than to mother. This is counter to the traditional female pattern and is interpreted as representing a greater degree of distancing from mother and openness to peers.The order of the authors' names was randomly determined. Both contributed equally.     

Modelling Trends in Ordered Correspondence Analysis Using Orthogonal Polynomials

The core of the paper consists of the treatment of two special decompositions for correspondence analysis of two-way ordered contingency tables: the bivariate moment decomposition and the hybrid decomposition, both using orthogonal polynomials rather than the commonly used singular vectors. To this end, we will detail and explain the basic characteristics of a particular set of orthogonal polynomials, called Emerson polynomials. It is shown that such polynomials, when used as bases for the row and/or column spaces, can enhance the interpretations via linear, quadratic and higher-order moments of the ordered categories. To aid such interpretations, we propose a new type of graphical display—the polynomial biplot.     

Spirituality and Religion: Neglected Factors in Preventing Veteran Suicide?

The Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act, enacted in 2015, aimed to increase access to treatment for U.S. military veterans; however, poor attendance at aftercare and high rates of treatment refusal suggest that, even when treatment is accessible, it may not be acceptable. Often, it is difficult to acknowledge the need for help and to commit to treatment. The stigma of mental illness diminishes the self-respect of individuals with mental health problems and may be especially acute for veterans because of the centrality of resilience in military culture. This stigma also can jeopardize current employment or prospects for future employment. This paper proposes a partial answer to the question, “What more might be done to engage and effectively treat veterans who are at high risk of suicide?” The meaning of spiritual and/or religious expression in human development, well-being, and social functioning has long been of great interest to theorists in disciplines as diverse as sociology, theology, and psychology. Some empirical studies have further suggested that certain religious and/or spiritual beliefs, practices, and/or affiliations may be protective against suicide. This paper (a) summarizes these perspectives, (b) considers how clinical inquiry into the role of religion and/or spirituality in the lives of veterans at high risk of suicide fits into the suicide prevention program of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and (c) offers specific recommendations to practitioners.     

Validation of an automated 16PF administration procedure

Examined the effects of a computer-based administration procedure on reliability and validity of a personality questionnaire. Utilizing a counterbalanced repeated-measures design, Form A of the 16PF was administered to 80 undergraduates who had been randomly assigned to either computer-computer, computer-booklet, booklet-computer, or booklet-booklet administration conditions. Subjects also completed a self-report anxiety measure before and after each administration of the 16PF. Multivariate analyses revealed no significant differences in score reliability, validity, or self-reported anxiety among the four administration conditions. Small yet significant differences were noted with respect to ratings of the assessment experience. Subjects in the two groups which were exposed to both administration formats rated the computer procedure as more positive in comparison to the booklet format. Due to the student sample, replication of these findings with treatment-seeking clients is needed.     

Interest in entering helping activities and self-disclosure to three targets on the Jourard self-disclosure scale.

Jourard's 40-item Self-disclosure Questionnaire was administered to 50 students in a training and selection program for a quasi-counseling position and 52 randomly selected students. Subjects indicated past disclosures to three target persons, parents, best friend, and stranger. Results indicated: highest disclosures were reported to best friends, lowest to strangers; subjects interested in the quasi-counseling position reported more disclosure than subjects not interested in this position; females reported more disclosure than males only to strangers.     

Hurt feelings and four letter words: Swearing alleviates the pain of social distress

Methods for alleviating physical pain are increasingly found to attenuate social pain. Recent evidence suggests that swearing may attenuate sensitivity to physical pain. This study examined whether swearing similarly attenuates two consequences of social distress: social pain and exclusion‐induced hyperalgesia. Sixty‐two people wrote about an autobiographical experience of exclusion or inclusion. Then they repeated a swear or neutral word for 2 minutes followed by measures of social and physical pain. Excluded non‐swearers reported feeling more social pain and greater sensitivity to physical pain compared with included non‐swearers. Excluded swearers reported less social pain than excluded non‐swearers and no heightened sensitivity to physical pain. The findings suggest that social and physical pain are functionally similar and that swearing attenuates social pain.     

Homelessness in the US and Germany: a cross‐national analysis

A public opinion survey was administered by telephone to nationally representative samples in the US and Germany to assess prevalence of homelessness as well as attitudes, opinions and knowledge regarding homelessness. Lower prevalence rates were found in Germany as compared with the US. German respondents demonstrated higher levels of general compassion, greater support for the public rights of the homeless, a greater tendency to view the homeless as trustworthy, and were more likely to view economic factors and less likely to view personal failings as integral to the problem of homelessness. Respondent age, gender, and political affiliation predicted many public opinion variables. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Deceiving Mirror. Altered Body Perception and Alexithymia in a Group of Sports Adolescents and Adults

Recent literature emphasizes an altered perception of the body in subjects practicing sport to pursue an ideal body image. Sometimes such bodily misperception is associated with the inability to recognize and express emotions, and addiction to sport. This research investigates the relationship between body image and alexithymia in a group of 363 sportive adolescents and adults, including 78 males and 285 females, aged 11 to 68?years. Participants completed the Anamnestic Data Questionnaire, Body Uneasseness Test, and Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). Results highlight differences between adolescents and adults, especially about externally oriented thinking, concern for body image, and compulsive self-monitoring.