Developing the Cyber Victimization Experiences and Cyberbullying Behaviors Scales

The reported prevalence rates of cyber victimization experiences and cyberbullying behaviors vary. Part of this variation is likely due to the diverse definitions and operationalizations of the constructs adopted in previous research and the lack of psychometrically robust measures. Through 2 studies, the authors developed (Study 1) and evaluated (Study 2) the cyber victimization experiences and cyberbullying behaviors scales. Participants in Study 1 were 393 (122 boys, 171 girls) and in Study 2 were 345 (153 boys, 192 girls) 11–15-year-olds who completed measures of cyber victimization experiences, cyberbullying behaviors, face-to-face victimization experiences, face-to-face bullying behaviors, and social desirability. The 3-factor cyber victimization experiences scale comprised threat, shared images, and personal attack. The 3-factor cyberbullying behaviors scale comprised sharing images, gossip, and personal attack. Both scales demonstrated acceptable internal consistency and convergent validity.     

Counting Chicks Before They Hatch: Female Cowbirds Can Time Readiness of a Host Nest for Parasitism

ABSTRACT— Here we show that demands associated with brood parasitism have favored sophisticated cognitive abilities in female brown-headed cowbirds. We discovered that cowbirds can use the rate at which eggs are added to a nest across days to assess the readiness of the nest for incubation, which would allow them to synchronize laying with the host and avoid nests where incubation has most likely commenced. In three experiments, cowbirds investigated and laid eggs in artificial nests that differed in the number of eggs they contained. Across days, we added eggs to nests at different rates to simulate differences in the timing of reproduction of the hosts. Cowbirds avoided a nest if the number of eggs that had been added was less than the number of days that had elapsed. The ability of females to remember egg number and compare changes in egg number across days allows them to select nests most suitable for parasitism.     

Does feigning amnesia impair subsequent recall?

Defendants who are accused of serious crimes sometimes feign amnesia to evade criminal responsibility. Previous research has suggested that feigning amnesia might impair subsequent recall. In two experiments, participants read and heard a story about a central character, described as “you,” who was responsible for the death of either a puppy (Experiment 1) or a friend (Experiment 2). On free and cued recall tests immediately after the story, participants who had feigned amnesia recalled less than did participants who had recalled accurately. One week later, when all participants recalled accurately, participants who had previously feigned amnesia still performed worse than did participants who had recalled accurately both times. However, the participants who had formerly feigned amnesia did not perform worse than did a control group who had received only the delayed recall tests. Our results suggest that a “feigned amnesia effect” may reflect nothing more than differential practice at recall. Feigning amnesia for a crime need not impair memory for that crime when a person later seeks to remember accurately.     

Should persuasion be affective or cognitive? The moderating effects of need for affect and need for cognition

Three experiments tested the hypothesis that need for affect and need for cognition influence receptivity to affect- and cognition-based persuasive messages. Experiment 1 found that an affective message elicited more positive attitudes among individuals high in need for affect and low in need for cognition, whereas a cognitive message elicited more positive attitudes among individuals low in need for affect and high in need for cognition. Experiment 2 found that individual differences in need for affect influenced receptivity to an affect-based (but not cognition-based) message, whereas individual differences in need for cognition influenced receptivity to a cognition-based (but not affect-based) message. Experiment 3 found that individual differences in need for affect were associated with increased recognition of information from an affect-based (but not cognition-based) message, whereas individual differences in need for cognition were associated with increased recognition of information from a cognition-based (but not affect-based) message. Overall, the studies point to the importance of individual differences in need for affect and need for cognition in understanding how individuals respond to different types of persuasive messages.     

Was that a man? Sex identification as a function of menstrual cycle and masculinity

The accuracy of female perceivers on a face sex‐categorization task was investigated as a function of perceivers' menstrual cycle and target facial qualities. Regularly ovulating female participants completed a sex‐categorization task twice, once during ovulation (high fertility) and once during menstruation (low fertility). Perceivers made more errors in identifying male than female faces at both testing sessions. Fewer errors were made in identifying male targets rated high on masculinity, but only during periods of high fertility. For female targets accuracy was negatively associated with masculinity and positively associated with attractiveness ratings, at both high and low fertility testing sessions. Results are discussed in terms of adaptive person construal. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assessment of vocational guidance: the Berufsbilder test

The object of this study is to assess informative possibilities of some technical indicators of the Test of Photos of Professions (BBT--Berufsbilder test), a projective method to clarify professional inclination, proposed by Martin Achtnich. This psychological evaluation technique is composed of 96 photos of professionals, performing various types of activities. The test subject classifies the photos into three groups: positive (agreeable), negative (disagreeable) and indifferent (neutral). Among those chosen positively, five preferences are chosen and a story is developed that includes them, an activity that is requested two times during the Vocational Guidance process: in the beginning (or middle) and at the end of the intervention. In this study, 160 stories were created by 80 youths, between 15 and 20 years of age, in public and private schools in a mid-sized Brazilian city. The stories were compared in three analytical categories: protagonist, professional conflict and resolution. The results were submitted to Wilcoxon nonparametric statistical analysis (p < .05), significant and relevant indicators of resolution being found in the process of occupational choice. This technical resource was shown, from this empirical evidence, to be promising for use in evaluation of intervention processes of Vocational Guidance.     

Structure of the Experience of Work and Life Circumstances Questionnaire among South African employees in the financial services and health sectors

This study sought to validate the Experience of Work and Life Circumstances Questionnaire (WLQ) in South Africa. Respondents were 393 employees within the financial services (n = 238) and health sector (n = 155). Results from the exploratory factor analysis indicated the WLQ to be a unidimensional measure. The goodness-of-fit statistics following confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) indicated a well-fitting measurement model for the WLQ. The WLQ appears to yield reliable and valid scores for use in South African work settings.     

A state of high anxiety: how non‐supportive interviewers can increase the suggestibility of child witnesses

The present study examined the effects of state and trait anxiety on 8–11 years old children's susceptibility to misleading post‐event information. Participants' state and trait anxiety were measured, after which they watched an extract from a children's movie. They were then individually interviewed using either a supportive or a non‐supportive style. During the interviews, the children were asked 14 questions about the movie, seven of which were control and seven contained misleading information. After the interview, their state anxiety was measured again. Results showed that participants interviewed in a non‐supportive style were more likely to provide incorrect answers to misleading questions. Furthermore, participants who scored highly on both trait and post‐interview state anxiety measures more often responded incorrectly to misleading questions. Also, pre‐to post‐interview changes in state anxiety were correlated with more incorrect responses to misleading questions. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.