Implementation intentions for physical activity in supportive and unsupportive environmental conditions: An experimental examination of intention–behavior consistency

The primary objective of this investigation was to examine the joint influences of intention strength, executive control resources (ECRs) and implementation intentions on physical activity performance in differentially supportive environmental conditions. In two studies, participants were randomly assigned to implementation intentions or control conditions. Individual differences in ECRs, intention strength and physical activity behavior were measured at baseline in the laboratory; follow-up physical activity was measured via an online questionnaire 7 days after the baseline laboratory session. Study 1 was conducted under activity-supportive environmental conditions (i.e., warm weather, little precipitation), whereas Study 2 was conducted under non-supportive environmental conditions (i.e., cold weather, moderate precipitation). In Study 1, a two-way interaction between ECR and intention strength was observed, such that those with relatively stronger ECR demonstrated stronger intention–behavior relationships than those with relatively weaker ECR; this effect was invariant across experimental conditions. In Study 2, a significant 3-way interaction was observed, such that those with lower ECRs showed greater intention–behavior correspondence in the experimental group compared to the control. Together these findings suggest that the beneficial effects of implementation intentions on intention–behavior correspondence for physical activity may be more potent under challenging environmental conditions, and that they may be of special benefit for those with initially low ECRs.     

Factors Relating to Managerial Stereotypes: The Role of Gender of the Employee and the Manager and Management Gender Ratio

Purpose  

Several studies have shown that the traditional stereotype of a “good” manager being masculine and male still exists. The recent changes in the proportion of women and female managers in organizations could affect these two managerial stereotypes, leading to a stronger preference for feminine characteristics and female leaders. This study examines if the gender of an employee, the gender of the manager, and the management gender ratio in an organization are related to employees’ managerial stereotypes.     

Attitude towards Christianity and New Age beliefs among undergraduate students in Slovenia: a study in implicit religion

This study examines two conflicting hypotheses regarding the association between traditional religiosity and new age belief: the “worldview hypothesis” suggesting a positive association between these two sets of beliefs; and the “functional alternative hypothesis” suggesting a negative association between these two sets of beliefs. A sample of 1209 undergraduate students attending the University of Maribor, Slovenia, completed the Francis Scale of Attitude towards Christianity as a measure of traditional religiosity and the Lavri? Scale of New Age Belief, alongside a measure of frequency of church attendance. The data demonstrated a positive correlation between attitude towards Christianity and new age belief, even after taking into account different levels of church attendance. These findings support the worldview hypotheses in favour of the functional alternative hypothesis.     

Online communication and social well‐being: how playing World of Warcraft affects players' social competence and loneliness

This study was designed to examine the effects of playing the online game World of Warcraft (WoW) on adolescents' social competence and loneliness, and to investigate the underlying mechanisms of the Internet‐affected social compensation hypothesis. The hypothesis states that being online affects adolescents' social competence as a result of a variety of communication partners and identity experiments online. A survey was conducted among 790 high school students. There appeared to be no direct effect between playing WoW and adolescents' social competence and loneliness. We did find an indirect effect via variety of communication partners. Adolescents who play WoW vary more in their communication partners, leading to an increase of social competence and a decrease of loneliness.     

Reliability and construct validity for scale of rejection of Christianity

A sample of 16 male and 30 female undergraduates completed the Greer and Francis Scale of Rejection of Christianity. The data support the internal consistency reliability and construct validity of the scale for this sample.     

Inhibitory control gains from higher-order cognitive strategy training

The present study examined the transfer of higher-order cognitive strategy training to inhibitory control. Middle school students enrolled in a comprehension- and reasoning-focused cognitive strategy training program and passive controls participated. The training program taught students a set of steps for inferring essential gist or themes from materials. Both before and after training or a comparable duration in the case of the passive controls, participants completed a semantically cued Go/No-Go task that was designed to assess the effects of depth of semantic processing on response inhibition and components of event-related potentials (ERP) related to response inhibition. Depth of semantic processing was manipulated by varying the level of semantic categorization required for response selection and inhibition. The SMART-trained group showed inhibitory control gains and changes in fronto-central P3 ERP amplitudes on inhibition trials; whereas, the control group did not. The results provide evidence of the transfer of higher-order cognitive strategy training to inhibitory control and modulation of ERPs associated with semantically cued inhibitory control. The findings are discussed in terms of implications for cognitive strategy training, models of cognitive abilities, and education.     

Closing the Gap in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Youth Suicide: A Social–Emotional Wellbeing Service Innovation Project

Objective

The suicide rate for Queensland's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people is over four times that of their non‐Indigenous counterparts, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children (under 15) dying by suicide at 12 times the non‐Indigenous rate. There is a need for interventions that are culturally validated and community‐endorsed. The aim of this article is to describe the design and implementation of a group‐based intervention, as well to report the results of the various qualitative and quantitative measures.

Method

Sixty‐one Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons aged 11–21 years completed a social–emotional wellbeing (SEWB) program at headspace Inala. Data were available through to 2‐month follow‐up for 49 participants. The program was designed and delivered in collaboration with the local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.

Results

There was a statistically significant decrease in suicidal ideation experienced by the participants after completing the program. Qualitative measures indicated that participants experienced improved understanding of holistic health and an increased number of coping skills.

Conclusions

Not only was this the first evaluated intervention in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth to ever report a decrease in individual suicidality, the program was carefully designed and implemented in consultation with community in a culturally sensitive manner and thus provides an invaluable framework for future SEWB work.     

The Promise and Pitfalls of Facebook Advertising: a Genetic Counselor’s Perspective

Facebook advertising is a powerful tool for increasing the outreach and recruitment of research participants. We describe our experience as genetic counselors within the context of an internet-based research study, recruiting subjects for a Parkinson disease (PD) biomarker study.     

Assessing ASD in Adolescent Females with Anorexia Nervosa using Clinical and Developmental Measures: a Preliminary Investigation

The aim of this study was to use standardised, clinical assessment tools to explore the presence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) symptoms in a sample of adolescent females with Anorexia Nervosa (AN), receiving either day-patient or inpatient treatment for their eating disorder and to determine whether any such symptoms were present during the early developmental period, a requirement for a diagnosis of ASD. Using a cross-sectional design, 40 females aged between 12 and 18 were recruited from inpatient and day-patient eating disorder services. All participants had a diagnosis of AN and were assessed for symptoms of ASD using the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, 2nd edition (ADOS-2). If participants scored at or above clinical cut-off on the ADOS-2, their parents were asked to complete the Developmental, Dimensional and Diagnostic Interview, short version (3Di-sv). Of the 40 participants assessed, 21 scored above cut-off on the ADOS-2. When developmental history was obtained, only four participants scored above cut-off on all sub-scales of the 3Di-sv, thus meeting full research criteria for ASD. This study suggests that 10% of adolescents with AN from inpatient or day-patient settings may have diagnosable ASD, while a further 40% may show symptoms of ASD, which may arise from the ill-state of AN or are not supported by parental report.     

The Psychometric Properties of the Serbian Translation of the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity: A Study among Eastern Orthodox Christians

The Serbian translation of the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity was developed and tested among a sample of 222 students attending Niš University who self-identified as Eastern Orthodox. The data supported the internal consistency, reliability, and construct validity of this instrument, and commended it for further use in contributing to comparative empirical research within the psychology of religion.