“Sinking Into the Ground”: The Development and Consequences of Shame in Adolescence

Although in recent years the developmental antecedents and clinical consequences of shame have received increased theoretical and research attention, little is yet known about shame's development after early childhood or its role in developmental psychopathology. This article reviews the literature on shame and on adolescence and suggests that attention to the role of shame in adolescent development is warranted for several reasons. Social-cognitive, physical, and interpersonal changes associated with adolescence may each be associated with normative increases in shame during adolescence. In addition, several lines of evidence converge to suggest that shame may be implicated in some of the important gender-related shifts in self-esteem and developmental psychopathology that occur over the adolescent years.     

Adolescents' Possible Selves and Their Relationship to Global Self-Esteem

Recent research indicates that adolescent girls'self-esteem is lower than that of boys, and adolescence has been identified as a particularly problematic period for female self-esteem. However, many studies use global self-esteem measures that mask important differences within the domains of self-concept that contribute to self-esteem. Further, some self-esteem measures assess components of male self-esteem but overlook aspects of female self-esteem. The possible selves approach was used to identify categories of adolescent male and female self-concept that correlate with self-esteem. Subjects were 212 high-school students. The sample was primarily (96%)Caucasian. Results indicate that female self-esteem is related to perceived likelihood of hoped-for and feared possible selves in multiple domains, whereas male self-esteem is related only to the likelihood of one domain of hoped-for possible selves.     

Cultural Beliefs About Social Influence Strategies of Mexican Immigrant Women and Their Heterosexual Partners

The present study examined cultural beliefsregarding the use of influence strategies inheterosexual relationships of 40 Mexican immigrantcouples in stable relationships. Although over 75% ofparticipants had completed seven or more years of education,men were more likely to have completed high school thanwomen. Over half the sample (55%) reported familyincomes of $300 or less per week; 23% reported incomes in excess of $400 a week. During a structuredinterview respondents were asked to indicate their levelof agreement on a 4-point Likert scale with 24statements about influence tactics used by women and men in heterosexual relationships. Culturalconsensus analyses revealed a common cultural modelshared by the sample about which strategies men andwomen use to influence their partners. Results suggest that influence strategies are believed similarfor men and women. Direct and indirect strategies areperceived as used by both partners; bilateral strategiesare believed more likely to be used than unilateral strategies. These findings suggest that Mexicanimmigrant women in stable partnerships endorse normsthat support the use of relatively equivalent power inpartner relationships. The use of positive Mexican cultural norms to promote health protectivebehaviors such as condom use and other less risky sexualbehaviors is discussed.     

A predictive model for psychological reactions to crime in Italy: an analysis of fear of crime and concern about crime as a social problem

In this study a model for predicting fear of crime (FC) and concern about crime as a social problem (CC) in Italy has been built, using three sets of independent variables concerning: (a) the sociodemographic and criminal victimization domain; (b) the psychosocial domain; and (c) the mass media. A secondary analysis on data gathered by the Observatory of the North‐West (N = 3262, a mail panel that is representative of the Italian population over 18) has been performed. Results showed that FC and CC are related yet distinct constructs: FC is less widespread than CC, and has different predictors. FC predictors are sociodemographic, psychosocial and, above all, victimization variables; whereas mass media and psychosocial variables predict CC. Results were compared with the literature on the topic. Implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Exposure to internet pornography among children and adolescents: a national survey.

Estimates suggest that up to 90% or more youth between 12 and 18 years have access to the Internet. Concern has been raised that this increased accessibility may lead to a rise in pornography seeking among children and adolescents, with potentially serious ramifications for child and adolescent sexual development. Using data from the Youth Internet Safety Survey, a nationally representative, cross-sectional telephone survey of 1501 children and adolescents (ages 10-17 years), characteristics associated with self-reported pornography seeking behavior, both on the Internet and using traditional methods (e.g., magazines), are identified. Seekers of pornography, both online and offline, are significantly more likely to be male, with only 5% of self-identified seekers being female. The vast majority (87%) of youth who report looking for sexual images online are 14 years of age or older, when it is developmentally appropriate to be sexually curious. Children under the age of 14 who have intentionally looked at pornography are more likely to report traditional exposures, such as magazines or movies. Concerns about a large group of young children exposing themselves to pornography on the Internet may be overstated. Those who report intentional exposure to pornography, irrespective of source, are significantly more likely to cross-sectionally report delinquent behavior and substance use in the previous year. Further, online seekers versus offline seekers are more likely to report clinical features associated with depression and lower levels of emotional bonding with their caregiver. Results of the current investigation raise important questions for further inquiry. Findings from these cross-sectional data provide justification for longitudinal studies aimed at parsing out temporal sequencing of psychosocial experiences.     

Online "predators" and their victims: myths, realities, and implications for prevention and treatment

The publicity about online "predators" who prey on naive children using trickery and violence is largely inaccurate. Internet sex crimes involving adults and juveniles more often fit a model of statutory rape--adult offenders who meet, develop relationships with, and openly seduce underage teenagers--than a model of forcible sexual assault or pedophilic child molesting. This is a serious problem, but one that requires approaches different from those in current prevention messages emphasizing parental control and the dangers of divulging personal information. Developmentally appropriate prevention strategies that target youths directly and acknowledge normal adolescent interests in romance and sex are needed. These should provide younger adolescents with awareness and avoidance skills while educating older youths about the pitfalls of sexual relationships with adults and their criminal nature. Particular attention should be paid to higher risk youths, including those with histories of sexual abuse, sexual orientation concerns, and patterns of off- and online risk taking. Mental health practitioners need information about the dynamics of this problem and the characteristics of victims and offenders because they are likely to encounter related issues in a variety of contexts.     

Can word formation be understood or understanded by semantics alone?

Arguments concerning the relative role of semantic and grammatical factors in word formation have proven to be a wedge issue in current debates over the nature of linguistic representation and processing. In the present paper, we re-examine claims by Ramscar [Ramscar, M. (2002). The role of meaning in inflection: Why the past tense does not require a rule. Cognitive Psychology, 45, 45-94.] that it is semantic rather than grammatical factors that influence the choice of regular or irregular past tense forms for English verbs. In Experiment 1, we first replicated Ramscar's (2002) experiment, which showed semantic influences on choice of past tense inflection. A novel verb, splink, was introduced in a semantic context that was reminiscent of an existing regular or irregular rhyme verb: blink or drink. Participants favored the past tense form (splinked or splank) that matched that of the semantically similar verb. In Experiment 2, we introduced novel verbs in a context suggesting that they were grammatically derived from nouns (i.e., denominals). Some current symbolic processing models propose that regular past tense forms should be preferred for such forms. When Ramscar's (2002) original contexts for derivational verbs were re-tested in this condition, we replicated his failure to find a preference for regular past tense forms. However, when the contexts were modified to make the grammatical process more salient, we did find a preference for regular past tense forms, suggesting that the derivational status might have been ambiguous in the original materials. In Experiment 3, we tested whether acceptability ratings for regular or irregular past tense forms of grammatically derived verbs could be explained by semantic distance metrics or by ratings of noun-to-verb derivational status. Ratings of semantic distance and grammatical derivation were orthogonal factors in Experiment 3. Only derivational status predicted acceptability ratings for regular past tense forms. Taken together, the present results suggest that semantic factors do not explain the regularization of irregular verbs in derivational contexts, although semantic factors can affect the choice of past tense forms in certain circumstances.     

A follow-up study of girls with gender identity disorder

This study provided information on the natural histories of 25 girls with gender identity disorder (GID). Standardized assessment data in childhood (mean age, 8.88 years; range, 3-12 years) and at follow-up (mean age, 23.24 years; range, 15-36 years) were used to evaluate gender identity and sexual orientation. At the assessment in childhood, 60% of the girls met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria for GID, and 40% were subthreshold for the diagnosis. At follow-up, 3 participants (12%) were judged to have GID or gender dysphoria. Regarding sexual orientation, 8 participants (32%) were classified as bisexual/homosexual in fantasy, and 6 (24%) were classified as bisexual/homosexual in behavior. The remaining participants were classified as either heterosexual or asexual. The rates of GID persistence and bisexual/homosexual sexual orientation were substantially higher than base rates in the general female population derived from epidemiological or survey studies. There was some evidence of a "dosage" effect, with girls who were more cross-sex typed in their childhood behavior more likely to be gender dysphoric at follow-up and more likely to have been classified as bisexual/homosexual in behavior (but not in fantasy).