The Psychological and Spiritual Efficacy of Confession

Several aspects of confession are discussed. A distinction is made between personal narrative and confession in the analytic setting, focusing on the emergence of the psychogenic secret: that secret which is hidden from the analysand's ego consciousness. Such an unconscious secret can lead to emotional and psychological guilt and distress. The transference is seen as an essential dynamic for psychologically efficacious confession.     

Can You Keep a (Genetic) Secret? The Genetic Privacy Movement

This paper reviews the literature on genetic privacy, especially since 1995 and the first proposal for national genetic privacy legislation. Since that time, a majority of states have passed some form of genetic privacy legislation, and efforts to pass federal legislation are ongoing. Such new laws, however, remain untested in the courts and their effects are unclear. If they fail to provide additional protections against discrimination for most people, their most significant impact may be in their ability to either diminish or enhance the power of genetic information and to influence the way individuals view themselves and others. How does “genetic exceptionalism”—the idea that genetic information is different from other types of medical information—relate to “genetic essentialism”—the idea that we are to a large extent shaped by our genes? Anthropological views on genetics and personhood bring a new perspective to this ongoing debate. Implications for counseling practices are also explored.     

The ‘Collective Pierre Rivière’: Using collective biography and ambling conversational methods to interrogate and re-present pivotal moments from the Pierre Rivière narratives

Collective biography is a research strategy that works at the level of bodily and emotional knowledge and moves beyond individualized versions of the subject, towards subjects-in-process and subjects-in-relation (Davies and Gannon, 2006). In this paper we, the authors, reflect upon and describe our experiences of using collective biography practices as a way of interrogating and writing our way into ‘pivotal moments’ within the Pierre Rivière texts (both book and film). The collective writing about ‘pivotal moments’ that our research group generated during workshops held at a university, exploring the ‘Pierre Rivière’ narratives have then been further reworked into a reflective, layered account, through an ambling conversational process.     

Still no phonological typicality effect on word reading time (and no good explanation of one, either): a rejoinder to Farmer, Monaghan, Misyak, and Christiansen

In this brief rejoinder, we respond to Farmer, Monaghan, Misyak, and Christiansen (2011). We argue that the data still do not support the claim that reading time is affected by the phonological typicality of a word for its part of speech. We also question Farmer et al.'s claim that interleaving syntactic structures in an experiment modifies grammatically based syntactic expectations.     

Global social identity and global cooperation

This research examined the question of whether the psychology of social identity can motivate cooperation in the context of a global collective. Our data came from a multinational study of choice behavior in a multilevel public-goods dilemma conducted among samples drawn from the general populations of the United States, Italy, Russia, Argentina, South Africa, and Iran. Results demonstrate that an inclusive social identification with the world community is a meaningful psychological construct that plays a role in motivating cooperation that transcends parochial interests. Self-reported identification with the world as a whole predicts behavioral contributions to a global public good beyond what is predicted from expectations about what other people are likely to contribute. Furthermore, global social identification is conceptually distinct from general attitudes about global issues, and has unique effects on cooperative behavior.     

Everyday antiracism in interpersonal contexts: Constraining and facilitating factors for ‘speaking up’ against racism

Everyday conversations among non‐Indigenous Australians are a significant site in which racism towards Indigenous Australians is reproduced and maintained. This study explores the possibilities of everyday antiracism by asking how people negotiate racist discourses in interpersonal contexts. Twelve first year psychology students (10 female, 2 male, aged 18–50) who had completed a compulsory Indigenous studies course were recruited as participants. Semi‐structured interviews were thematically analysed for the constraints and facilitators for responding to racism in everyday contexts. As constraints against speaking up, participants offered ‘social expectations to fit in’, ‘fear of provoking aggression and conflict’, assessments of ‘the type of relationship’, whether they ‘could make a difference’ and the ‘type of racism’. As a facilitator for speaking up, participants reported they were confident in challenging erroneous statements when they felt well informed and authoritative about the facts. The research suggests that everyday antiracism requires a preparedness to deal with possible discomfort and ‘bad feeling’ which participants reported avoiding. The paper concludes with suggestions for stimulating critical thinking and intergroup dialogue in relation to everyday antiracism. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Experiences and perspectives of African American, Latina/o, Asian American, and European American psychology graduate students: A national study

A national, Web-based survey of 1,219 African American, Latina/o, Asian American, and European American psychology graduate students revealed both similarities and differences in experiences and perspectives. Mentoring was found to be the strongest predictor of satisfaction across groups. Academic supports and barriers, along with perceptions of diversity within the academic environment, were also important predictors of satisfaction. Students of color perceived less fairness of representation of their ethnic group within psychology than European American students, and a greater linkage between aspects of the graduate school experience and their ethnicity. Limitations of the study and implications for future research and action are discussed.     

Ownership and object history

Appropriate behavior in relation to an object often requires judging whether it is owned and, if so, by whom. The authors propose accounts of how people make these judgments. Our central claim is that both judgments often involve making inferences about object history. In judging whether objects are owned, people may assume that artifacts (e.g., chairs) are owned and that natural objects (e.g., pinecones) are not. However, people may override these assumptions by inferring the history of intentional acts made in relation to objects. In judging who owns an object, people may often consider which person likely possessed the object in the past--such reasoning may be responsible for people's bias to assume that the first person known to possess an object is its owner.