VALUE SYSTEMS OF STUDENTS IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA AND AUSTRALIA

The Rokeach Value Survey was administered to 12 groups of indigenous respondents fluent in the English language and enrolled in tertiary institutions and training programmes in Papua New Guinea (over 1,100 subjects). Average value systems of these respondents were compared with those of three Australian student groups (secondary and tertiary). Marked differences were found in the relative importance assigned to particular values. Values assigned relatively high importance by the Papua New Guinea groups were discussed in relation to lower-order safety and security needs that may become salient in a developing country, and in terms of the traditional culture and the history of Papua New Guinea, especially the missionary influence, the extended family and wantok (”one-talk”) systems, possible expatriate influence on occupational roles, and present concern with emerging nationhood. Values assigned relatively high importance by the Australian groups were discussed in relation to higher-order needs that might become prepotent in a more affluent society. Factor analyses indicated that all 12 groups in Papua New Guinea were fairly similar in their average value systems.     

Experimental disorientation in the horizontal plane

Twenty-eight subjects were examined on a visual matching task for their ability to maintain an orientation with respect to a particular direction in the horizontal plane following a voluntary rotary body movement through 180 degrees. Each subject was examined with respect to eight different directions.

Numerous gross errors occurred when visual information was reduced to the display of an arrow indicating a direction and a second arrow manipulated by the subject. The magnitude and distribution of the errors suggest that, under the conditions of this experiment, visual information as to direction in the horizontal plane is analysed according to the two horizontal dimensions defined by the sagittal and coronal planes of the head. In correcting for the rotary body movement, failure may occur with respect to either or both of these two dimensions. The frequency of a failure to make any correction at all (i.e. 180-degree errors) is consistent with independent failure in each of the two horizontal dimensions.

Failure is markedly more frequent in the fore-aft dimension than in the left-right dimension. It is suggested that this may be explained in terms of the ambiguous spatial significance of vertical disposition on the retina and the possibility of contamination between the two systems of conceptual analysis which identify the vertical and the fore-aft dimensions of visual space.

It is demonstrated that when minimal “landmarks” are provided they tend to be utilized as reference points in attempts to maintain orientation, even when the subject is aware that the “landmarks” are misleading. Such a use of “landmarks” does not suppress the previously mentioned mechanism of dimensional orientation.

The relevance of these results to normal human orientation is discussed.     

Construction of a tape-controlled system of presenting visual-spatial and visual-temporal stimulus patterns for use in cross-modal and intramodal matching tests

A technique of tape construction is described for use in the generation and control of all combinations of auditory-temporal, visual-temporal, and visual-spatial stimulus patterns. This technique allows the development of a set of nine tasks for testing cross-modal and intramodal matching.     

Allergic disorders and attention deficit disorder in children

It has been suggested that children with attention deficit disorder-hyperactivity (ADDH) are likely to show allergic disorders, and that both ADDH and allergic disorders may share a common biological background. In a large sample of children from the general population we found no association between parent, teacher, and self-reports of ADDH behaviors and a history of allergic disorders (asthma, eczema, rhinitis, and urticaria) at ages 9 or 13 years. Similarly, reports of ADDH behaviors at age 13 years were not related to level of atopic responsiveness by skin test or serum IgE levels. Our findings call into question the hypothesis that there is a relationship between ADDH and allergic disorder.The Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Research Unit is supported by the Health Research Council of New Zealand, and involves several departments of the University of Otago. The authors are indebted to the many people whose contributions made this study possible, and in particular the members of the sample and their parents.     

HOW DIAGRAMS CAN IMPROVE REASONING

Abstract— We report an experimental study on the effects of diagrams on deductive reasoning with double disjunctions, for example:
Raphael is in Tacoma or Julia is in Atlanta, or both. Julia is in Atlanta or Paul is in Philadelphia, or both. What follows?
We confirmed that subjects find it difficult to deduce a valid conclusion, such as
Julia is in Atlanta, or both Raphael is in Tacoma and Paul is in Philadelphia.
In a preliminary study, the formal of the premises was either verbal or diagrammatic, and the diagrams used icons to distinguish between inclusive and exclusive disjunctions. The diagrams had no effect on performance. In the main experiment, the diagrams made the alternative possibilities more explicit. The subjects responded faster (about 35 s) and drew many more valid conclusions (nearly 30%) from the diagrams than from the verbal premises. These results corroborate the theory of mental models and have implications for the role of diagrams in reasoning.     

Body Without End: Biological Mutualism and the Body of Christ

This article argues that the ecological turn towards biological mutualism enlivens our understanding of the eschatological promise contained in Christ’s resurrected and ascended body. I examine the implications of proposing that Christ’s body was not only incarnate as microbiome, but also rose and ascended as microbiome. First, I analyse contemporary approaches to Christology’s relation to creation and Andrew Davison’s theological exploration of mutualism. I then respond via Irenaeus’ defence of Christ’s bodily resurrection and ascension as promise for all flesh. By reading Irenaeus in light of the mutualistic body, we enrich our understanding of this promise: of fruitfulness for all creation, of fullness for human nature, and that fleshly life is no ultimate barrier to union with God. Finally, I propose that this reading also offers renewed insight into the Eucharist: this promise and its implications are also made manifest at the heart of the church, Christ’s body on earth.     

Building and sustaining work engagement – a participatory action intervention to increase work engagement in nursing staff

This study evaluated whether a participatory action research intervention with nursing staff on acute care older people National Health Service wards in the United Kingdom was effective for increasing work engagement. Mediation analyses between job resources (social support, influence in decision-making), job demands, work-related needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness), and work engagement explored the presumed psychological mechanisms underlying the intervention. A non-randomized, matched control group, pretest, post-test design involved three intervention and five control wards. A significant decrease in relatedness, and a borderline significant decrease in competence, was observed in the intervention group compared to the control group, with no effect on work engagement (N = 45). Work-related needs mediated between resources and work engagement, supporting the job demands-resources model and self-determination theory as an underlying explanatory theory. Intervention implementation was difficult, highlighting the need for participant and organizational readiness for change, and strong management support. This is the first known study to apply participatory techniques to increase work engagement in nursing staff and explore the underlying explanatory psychological mechanisms, offering a novel means of taking work engagement research forward. Crucially, it highlights the challenges involved in intervention research and the importance of including evaluations of intervention implementation alongside statistical evaluations to avoid erroneous conclusions.     

The development of generosity and moral cognition across five cultures

Morality is an evolved aspect of human nature, yet is heavily influenced by cultural environment. This developmental study adopted an integrative approach by combining measures of socioeconomic status (SES), executive function, affective sharing, empathic concern, theory of mind, and moral judgment in predicting sharing behavior in children (N = 999) from the age of 5 to 12 in five large‐scale societies: Canada, China, Turkey, South Africa, and the USA. Results demonstrate that age, gender, SES, culture, and social cognitive mechanisms explain over 20% of the variance worldwide in children's resource allocation. These findings are discussed in reference to standard cultural comparisons (individualist/collectivist), as well as the degree of market integration, and highlight continuities and discontinuities in children's generosity across urban contexts.