The importance of gestural communication: a study of human–dog communication using incongruent information

We assessed how water rescue dogs, which were equally accustomed to respond to gestural and verbal requests, weighted gestural versus verbal information when asked by their owner to perform an action. Dogs were asked to perform four different actions (“sit”, “lie down”, “stay”, “come”) providing them with a single source of information (in Phase 1, gestural, and in Phase 2, verbal) or with incongruent information (in Phase 3, gestural and verbal commands referred to two different actions). In Phases 1 and 2, we recorded the frequency of correct responses as 0 or 1, whereas in Phase 3, we computed a ‘preference index’ (percentage of gestural commands followed over the total commands responded). Results showed that dogs followed gestures significantly better than words when these two types of information were used separately. Females were more likely to respond to gestural than verbal commands and males responded to verbal commands significantly better than females. In the incongruent condition, when gestures and words simultaneously indicated two different actions, the dogs overall preferred to execute the action required by the gesture rather than that required verbally, except when the verbal command “come” was paired with the gestural command “stay” with the owner moving away from the dog. Our data suggest that in dogs accustomed to respond to both gestural and verbal requests, gestures are more salient than words. However, dogs’ responses appeared to be dependent also on the contextual situation: dogs’ motivation to maintain proximity with an owner who was moving away could have led them to make the more ‘convenient’ choices between the two incongruent instructions.     

The effect of training and breed group on problem-solving behaviours in dogs

Dogs have become the focus of cognitive studies looking at both their physical and social problem-solving abilities (Bensky et al. in Adv Stud Behav, 45:209–387, 2013), but very little is known about the environmental and inherited factors that may affect these abilities. In the current study, we presented a manipulation task (a puzzle box) and a spatial task (the detour) to 128 dogs belonging to four different breed groups: Herding, Mastiff-like, Working and Retrievers (von Holdt et al. in Nature 464:898–902, 2010). Within each group, we tested highly trained and non-trained dogs. Results showed that trained dogs were faster at obtaining the reward in the detour task. In the manipulation task, trained dogs approached the apparatus sooner in the first familiarization trial, but no effect of breed emerged on this variable. Furthermore, regardless of breed, dogs in the trained group spent proportionally more time interacting with the apparatus and were more likely to succeed in the test trial than dogs in the non-trained group, whereas regardless of training, dogs in the working breed group were more likely to succeed than dogs in the retriever and herding breed groups (but not the mastiff-like group). Finally, trained dogs were less likely to look at a person than non-trained dogs during testing, but dogs in the herding group more likely to do so than dogs in the retriever and working but not the mastiff-like breed groups. Overall, results reveal a strong influence of training experience but less consistent differences between breed groups on different components thought to affect problem solving.     

Improving academic attitudes among ethnic minority youth at risk for early school leaving: the interactive effects of cross‐group friendships and ethnic identity

A growing body of research suggests that positive interethnic experiences enhance academic attitudes among ethnic minority youth. A number of studies also show that minority youth with an achieved ethnic identity have better academic attitudes and performance. Integrating these literatures, we aim to verify the combined effects of cross‐group friendships and ethnic identity on academic attitudes among a sample of youth at risk for early school leaving. The results showed that cross‐group friendships had a positive impact on academic attitudes for minority youth, but not for majority youth. However, individual levels of ethnic identity moderated these effects, which held true for minority youth with higher levels of ethnic identity. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Mechanism and materialism in early modern German philosophy

ABSTRACT

The paper focuses on the gradual separation between materialism and mechanism in early modern German philosophy. In Germany the distinction between the two concepts, originally introduced by Leibniz, was definitively stated by Wolff who was the first to provide a definition of the new philosophical term Materialismus, and of the related philosophical sect. In the first part I describe the initial identification of mechanism and materialism in German philosophy between the last decades of the seventeenth century and 1720. Mechanism is here mostly conceived within a monistic metaphysics of body, which refers mainly to Hobbes and to some (unfaithful) interpretations of Spinoza’s pantheism. This tight connection between a mechanical explanation of nature and the Deus sive natura issue leads to a negative judgement on mechanism and its materialistic implications, both charged with a form of more or less explicit atheism. In the second part I describe the gradual emancipation in Germany of mechanism from materialism according to the distinction between a ‘good’ and a ‘bad’ materialism. In the third and final part, I sketch the first appearances of the entry ‘materialism’ in the philosophical encyclopaedias of early modern Germany, pointing out the by-then clear distinction between this metaphysical issue and the mechanical claim.     

Book reviews and notes

GENERAL.

UMMAH OR NATION?: IDENTITY CRISIS IN CONTEMPORARY MUSLIM SOCIETY. By Abdullah Al‐Ahsan. Wiltshire, U.K.: The Islamic Foundation, 1992. 158pp. Np. Pb. ISBN 0–86037–220–0; Hb. ISBN 0–86037–219–7.

GOLDEN ROADS, MIGRATION, PILGRIMAGE AND TRAVEL IN MEDIAEVAL AND MODERN ISLAM. Edited by Ian Richard Netton. London: Curzon Press Ltd., 1993. 193pp. Hb. £35.00; Pb. £16.99. ISBN Hb. 0–7007–0242–3; Pb. 0–7007–0243–1.

REGIONAL.

Africa.

THE ALHAZAI OF MARADI: TRADITIONAL HAUSA MERCHANTS IN A CHANGING SAHELIAN CITY. By Emmanuel Gregoire, edited and translated by Benjamin H. Hardy. Boulder and London: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1992. 185pp. Hb. Np. ISBN 1–55587–278–6.

RELIGION AND PEACE IN MULTI‐FAITH NIGERIA. Edited by Jacob Olupona. Ile‐Ife, Nigeria: Obafemi Awolowo Univ. Press, 1992. 203pp. Pb. £7.50. No ISBN.

IN THE SHADOW OF CONQUEST: ISLAM IN COLONIAL NORTH EAST AFRICA. Edited by Said S. Samatar. New Jersey: Red Sea Press/African World Press, 1992.163pp. Pb. $12.95. ISBN 0–932415–70–9.

EUROPE.

IL RITORNO DELL'ISLAM: I MUSULMANI IN ITALIA. By Stefano Allievi and Felice Dassetto. Rome: Edizioni Lavoro, 1993. 291pp. Pb. Lire 35.000. ISBN 88–7910–541–8.

L'INSTITUT MUSULMAN DE LA MOSQUEE DE PARIS. By Alain Boyer. Paris: Centre des Hautes Etudes sur l'Afrique et l'Asie Modernes, 1992. 141pp. Pb. FF85. ISBN 2–903–182–34–5.

ASYLUM SEEKERS IN THE NETHERLANDS. Edited by Marjolein Brink and Mutiari Pasariboe. Amsterdam: Instituut voor Sociale Geografie, Universiteit van Amsterdam, 1993. 98pp. Pb. DF117.50. ISBN 90–6993–079‐X.

EUROPE AND INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION. By Sarah Collinson. London and New York: Printer for the Royal Institute of International Affairs, 1993. 189pp. Hb. Np. ISBN 1–85567–049–6.

EUROPE'S FRAGMENTED IDENTITIES AND THE FRONTIERS OF CITIZENSHIP. By Soledad Garcia. Discussion papers, no. 45. London: Royal Institute of International Affairs, 1992.26pp. Pb. £5.00. ISSN 0951–4171.

TOLERATION AND INTEGRITY IN A MULTI‐FAITH SOCIETY. Edited by John Horton and Harriet Crabtree. Department of Politics, University of York, 1992. 79pp. Pb. Np. ISBN 0–9519979–0–4.

TURKISH ATHENS: THE FORGOTTEN CENTURIES 1452–1832. By Molly Mackenzie. Reading: Garnet Press, 1993. 148pp. Pb. Np. ISBN 0–86372–143–5.

NOT EASY BEING BRITISH: COLOUR, CULTURE AND CITIZENSHIP. By Tariq Modood. Stoke‐on‐Trent: Trentham Books for Runnymede Trust, 1992. 93pp. Pb. £7.95. ISBN 0–948–080–47–7.

ISLAMIC DA'WAH IN THE WEST: MUSLIM MISSIONARY ACTIVITY AND THE DYNAMICS OF CONVERSION TO ISLAM. By Larry Poston. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992. 220pp. Np. ISBN 0–19–507227–8.

Middle East.

THE ARAB PREDICAMENT: ARAB POLITICAL THOUGHT AND PRACTICE SINCE 1967. By Fouad Ajami. 2nd Edition. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1992. 279pp. Pb. $11.95. ISBN 0–521–43833–0; Hb. $44.95. ISBN 6–521–43243‐X.

THE POLITICS OF PLANTING: ISRADLI‐PALESTINIAN COMPETITION FOR CONTROL OF LAND IN THE JERUSALEM PERIPHERY. By Shaul Ephraim Cohen. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993. 203pp. Pb. $19.50. ISBN 0–226–11274–4.

BALADI WOMEN OF CAIRO. By Evelyn A. Early. London: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1992. 217pp. £29.85. ISBN 1–55587–277–8.

MIXED COURTS OF EGYPT. By Mark Hoyle. London: Graham & Trotwood, 1991. 206pp. Hb. £57.50; $117.00 (including surface postage). ISBN 1–85333–321–2.

CHRISTIAN‐MUSLIM RELA TIONS.

YESTERDAY, TODAY, TOMOROW. By Munawar Ahmad Anees, Syed Z. Abedin and Ziauddin Sardar. London: Grey Seal Books, 1991. 96pp. Pb. £5.95. ISBN 185–6400212.

CHRISTIAN MISSION AND ISLAMIC DA'WAH IN MALAYSIA. By Ghazali Basri. Kuala Lumpur: Nurin Enterprise, 1992. 68pp. Pb. $5.00. ISBN 967–984–0190–0.

THE BOUNDARIES OF GOD: MUSLIMS IN CONTACT WITH NON‐MUSLIMS. Edited by David Bentley. Pasadena, Ca.: Zwemer Institute of Muslim Studies, 1993. 42pp. Np. No ISBN.

THE SEVENTH CENTURY IN WEST‐SYRIAN CHRONICLES INCLUDING TWO SEVENTH‐CENTURY SYRIAC APOCALYPTIC TEXTS. Translated by Andrew Palmer and edited by Sebastian Brock and Robert Hoyland. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 1993. 305pp. Pb. £10.00. ISBN 8–85323–238–5.

SIGNS OF DIALOGUE: CHRISTIAN ENCOUNTER WITH MUSLIMS. By Michael Fitzgerald and Robert Caspar. Zamboanga City, Philippines: Silsilah Publications, 1992. x + 245pp. Pb. Np. ISBN 971–31–0005–0.

DIEU AIME CELUIQUIAIME LES DATTES; DIALOGUE JUDEO‐ISLAMO‐CHRETIEN. By Andrée Ghillet. Paris: Editions l'Harmattan, 1993. 286pp. Pb. FF140. ISBN 2–7384–1667–5.

MUSLIMS AND MISSIONARIES IN PRE‐MUTINY INDIA. By Avril A. Powell. London: Curzon Press, 1993. 339pp. Hb. £30. ISBN 0–7007–0210–5.

ORIENTAL RESPONSES TO THE WEST: COMPARATIVE ESSAYS IN SELECTED WRITERS FROM THE MUSLIM WORLD. By Nasrin Rahimieh. Leiden: Brill, 1990. 124pp. Pb. Np. ISBN 90–04–09177–7.

WOMEN IN SOCIETY ACCORDING TO ISLAM AND CHRISTIANITY. Acts of a Muslim‐Christian Colloquium organized jointly by The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (Vatican City)and The Royal Academy for Islamic Civilization Research Al Albait Foundation (Amman). 24–26 June 1992. Rome, Italy: Vatican Press. 126pp. Pb. Np. No ISBN.     

Books reviews and notes

GENERAL.

ISLAMIC FUNDAMENTALISM. By Youssef M. Choueiri. Themes in Right‐Wing Ideology and Politics Series, ed. Roger Eatwell, University of Bath. London: Pinter Publishers, 1990. 178pp. Hb. £27.50. ISBN 0–86187–923–6.

THE POLITICS OF PAN‐ISLAM: IDEOLOGY AND ORGANIZATION. By Jacob M. Landau. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990. 438pp. n.p. ISBN 0–19–827709–1.

“IHR ALLE ABER SEID BRÜDER”: FESTSCHRIFT FÜR A.Th. Khoury ZUM 60. GEBURTSTAG (“BUT ALL OF YOU ARE BROTHERS”: FESTSCHRIFT FOR A.Th. Khoury ON THE OCCASION OF HIS 6OTH BIRTHDAY). Ludwig Hagemann and Ernst Pulsfort (Hg.). Würzburger Forschungen zur Missions und Religionswissenschaft Abt. 2, Religionswissenschaftliche Studien 14. Würzburg: Echter; Altenberge: Telos‐Verlag, 1990. 640pp. Pb., n.p. ISBN 3–429–01303–8 (Echter); Hb., n.p. ISBN 3–429–01304–6 (Echter).

ORIENTALISM, ISLAM AND ISLAMISTS. Edited by Asaf Hussain, R. Olson & J. Qureshi. Brattleboro, Vermont: Amanda Books, 1984. 300pp. Pb.$9.95.

HERETIC AND HERO: Muhammad and the Victorians. By Philip C. Almond. Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1989. 107pp. Hb. DM48.00. ISBN 0340‐ 6792.

THE ISLAMIC LAW OF PERSONAL STATUS. By Jamal J. Nasir. Arab and Islamic Laws Series. London: Graham & Trotman, 1990 (2nd edition). 358pp. Pb. £29.00, $55.00. ISBN 1–85333–280–1.

THE STATUS OF WOMEN UNDER ISLAMIC LAW. By Jamal J. Nasir. Arab and Islamic Laws Series. London: Graham & Trotman, 1990. 151pp. Pb. £29.50, $56.00. ISBN 1–85333–281‐X.

AN OVERVIEW OF MODERN ARABIC LITERATURE. By P. Cachia. Islamic Surveys no. 17. Edinburgh: University Press, 1990. 241pp. Hb., n.p. ISBN‐0‐ 7486–0132–5.

ENIGMATIC SAINT: Ahmad IBN Idris AND THE IDRISI TRADITION. By R.S. O'Fahey. London: Hurst and Company, 1990. 261pp. Hb. £25.00. ISBN 1–85065–087‐X.

ISLAM: THE STRAIGHT PATH. By John L. Esposito. New York. Oxford: OUP, 1988. viii + 230pp. Pb. £6.95. ISBN 0–19–504399–5.

CALLIGRAPHY AND ISLAMIC CULTURE. By Annemarie Schim‐mel. London: I.B. Tauris, 1990. xiv + 264pp. Pb. £14.95. ISBN 1–85043–187–6.

A POPULAR DICTIONARY OF SIKHISM. By W. Owen Cole and P. Singh Sambhi. London: Curzon Press and Glenn Dale: The Riverside Company, 1990. 163pp. Pb. £4.50. ISBN 0–70O7–0202–4.

SUNSHINE AT MADINAH. By Zakaria Bashier. Leicester: Islamic Foundation, 1990. 232pp. Pb., n.p. ISBN 0–86037–196–4.

ISLAMISCHER INTERNATIONALISMUS IM 20. JAHRHUNDERT (SLAMIC INTERNATIONALISM IN THE 20TH CENTURY). By Reinhard Schulze. Social, Economic and Political Studies of the Middle East, Vol.XII. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1990. 509pp. Hb. DF187.00, $93.50. ISBN 90–04–08268–7.

THE LANTERN OF THE PATH. By Ja'far Al‐Sadiq. London: Zahra Trust, 143pp. Pb. £6.95. ISBN 1–85230–062–0.

ISLAMIC BANKING. Edited and translated by Habib Shirazi. London: Butterworths, 1990. 104pp. Hb., n.p. ISBN 0–406–10035–7.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF ISLAMIC LIBRARY COLLECTIONS IN WESTERN EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA. By Stephan Roman. London: Mansell, 1990. 259pp. Hb. £40.00. ISBN 0–7201–2065–9.

LIVING RELIGIONS: AN ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF THE WORLD'S FAITHS. By Mary Pat Fisher and Robert Luyster. London: I.B. Tauris, 1990. 367pp. Hb. £19.95. ISBN 1–85043–299–6.

LE HAREM POLITIQUE: LE PROPHETE ET LES FEMMES (THE POLITICAL HAREM: THE PROPHET AMD WOMEN). By Fatima Mernissi. Paris: Albin Michel S.A., 1987. 294pp. Pb. FF98.00. ISBN 2–226–02941–9.

SULTANES OUBLIÉES: FEMMES CHEFS D'ÉTAT EN ISLAM (FORGOTTEN SULTANAS: WOMEN HEADS OF STATE IN ISLAM). By Fatima Mernissi. Paris: Albin Michel S.A., 1990.290pp. Pb. FF 120.00. ISBN 2–226–03954–6.

REGIONAL.

Africa.

L'ISLAM AU FÉMININ: SOKHNA MAGAT DIOP CHEIKH DE LA CONFREREIE MOURIDE (SENEGAL). (FEMININE ISLAM: SOKHNA MAGAT DIOP SHAIKH OF THE MOURIDE (SENEGAL). By Christian Coulon and Odile Reveyrand. Bordeaux: Institut d'Études Politiques, Université de Bordeaux, 1990. 41pp. FF35.00. ISBN 2–908065–02–9. ISSN 0298–8879.

Asia.

ISLAMISIERUNG IN PAKISTAN 1977–1984: UNTERSUCHUNGEN ZUR AUFLÖSUNG AUTOCHTONER STRUKTUREN (ISLAMIZATION IN PAKISTAN 1977–1984: INVESTIGATIONS CONCERNING THE DISSOLUTION OF AUTOCHTONOUS STRUCTURES). By S. Jamal Malik. Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner Verlag, 1989. xvii, 475pp. DM90.00. ISBN 3–515–05389–1.

CHRISTIAN MISSION AND ISLAMIC DA'WAH IN MALAYSIA. By Ghazali Basri with a foreword by Abdul Rahman I. Doi. Kuala Lumpur: Nurin Enterprise, 1990. 72pp. Pb.,$5.00. ISBN 967–984–0190–0.

PAKISTAN: A POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC HISTORY SINCE 1947. By Omar Noman. London: Kegan Paul Int., 1990. 238pp. Pb. £7.95. ISBN 0–7103–0389–0.

COMMUNITY AND CONSENSUS IN ISLAM: MUSLIM REPRESENTATION IN COLONIAL INDIA, 1860–1947. By Farzana Shaikh. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989. 255pp. Hb.£27.50; $44.50. ISBN 0–521–36328–4.

Europe.

ISLAM — EEN NIEUW GELOOF IN NEDERLAND (A NEW RELIGION IN THE NETHERLANDS). Edited by P. Reesink. Baarn: Ambo, 1991. 263 pp. ISBN 90–263–1022–7.

ONTMOETING VAN MOSLEMS EN CHRISTENEN — GRENSVERLENGGENDE VERKENNINGEN (ENCOUNTERS WITH MUSLIMS AND CHRISTIANS—EXPLORING THE EXTENSION OF BOUNDARIES). Edited by Jan van Lin. Hilversum: Gooi & Sticht, 1990. 128 pp. Pb. ISBN 90–304–0533–3.

DE MOSKEE IS OM DE HOEK — ONTMOETING MET ISLAMTTISCHE JONGEREN ( THE MOSQUE IS AROUND THE CORNER — ENCOUNTERS WITH MUSLIM YOUTH). By Trees Andree, Ariane van Ddk & Kartn de Jonge. s'‐Gravenhage: Boekencentrum B.V., 1990. 159 pp. ISBN 90–239–0036–7.

MOSLEMS IN NEDERLAND — MINDERHEDEN EN RELIGIE IN CULTURELE SAMENLEWING (MUSLIMS IN THE NETHERLANDS — MINORITIES AND RELIGION IN – CULTURAL SOCIETY). By W.A.R. Shadid & P.S. van Koningsveld. Alphen aan den Rijn: Samson Stafleu, 1990. 159 pp. ISBN 90–14–03476–7.

DISTORTED IMAGINATION: LESSONS FROM THE RUSHDIE AFFAIR. By Ziaddin Sardar and Merryl Wyn Davies. London: Grey Seal Books, 1990. 303pp. Hb., £14.95. ISBN 1–85640‐ 000‐X.

SCHOOLS OF FAITH: RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS IN A MULTICULTURAL SOCIETY. Edited by Commission for Racial Equality. London: Commission for Racial Equality, 1990.22pp. Pb. £2.00. ISBN 1–85442–037–2.

Middle East.

THE WRATH OF JONAH: THE CRISIS OF RELIGIOUS NATIONALISM IN THE ISRAELI‐PALESTINIAN CONFLICT. By Rosemary R. Ruether and Herman J. Ruether. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1989. xxi, 277pp. Pb. $19.95. ISBN 0–06–066837–7.

AL‐INTILIJINSIYYA AL‐^CARABIYYA: AL‐MUTHAQQAFDN WA AL‐SULTA (THE ARAB INTELLIGENSIA: INTELLECTUALS AND AUTHORITY). Edited by Sa^cd Al‐D in Ibrahim. ^cAmman: Montada al‐Fikr al‐^cArabi (Amman: Arab Thought Forum), 1988. 584pp. (Arabic).

AL‐BU^CD AL‐DINI FI AL‐SIYASA AL‐AMRIKIYYA TUJAH AL‐SIRA^C AL‐ARABI AL‐SAHYUNI: DIRASA FI AL‐HARAKA AL‐MASIHIYYA AL‐USULIYYA AL‐AMRIKIYYA (THE RELIGIOUS DIMENSION IN AMERICAN POLICY TOWARDS THE ARABZIONIST CONFLICT: A STUDY OF THE AMERICAN CHRISTIAN FUNDAMENTALIST MOVEMENT). By Yūsuf Al‐Hasan. Bayrūt: Markaz Dirasat al‐Wahda al‐^cArabiyya (Beirut: Centre for Arab Unity Studies), 1990. 222pp. (Arabic).

AL‐SAHWA AL‐ISLAMIYYA WA HUMUM AL‐WATAN AL‐^CARABI (THE ISLAMIC AWAKENING AND THE WORRIES AND CONCERNS OF THE ARAB COUNTRIES). Edited by Sa^cd Al‐Din Ibrahim. ^cAmman: Muntada al‐Fikr al‐^cArabi (Amman: Arab Thought Forum), 1988. 412pp (Arabic).

PITY THE POOR NATION: LEBANON AT WAR. By Robert Fisk. Oxford: OUP, 1991. 662pp. Pb. £6.99. ISBN 0–19–285235–3.

MUSADDIQ AND THE STRUGGLE FOR POWER IN IRAN. By Homa Katouzian. London: I.B. Tauris, 1990. 305pp. Hb. £24.95. ISBN 1–85043–210–4.

POLITICS OF PARTITION: KING ABDULLAH, THE ZIONISTS AND PALESTINE 1921–1951. By Avi Shlaim. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990. 465pp. Pb. £7.95. ISBN 0–19–285223‐X.

BA'TH V BA'TH: THE CONFLICT BETWEEN SYRIA AND IRAQ 1968–1989. By Eberhard Kienle. London: I.B.Tauris, 1990. 238pp. Hb. £29.95. ISBN 1–85043–192–2.

MODERNITY AND TRADITION: THE SAUDI EQUATION. By Fouad Al‐Farsy. London: KPI Ltd, 1990. 337pp. Hb. £45.00. ISBN 0–7103–0395–5.

CHRISTIAN‐MUSLIM RELATIONS.

THE RISE OF HUMANISM IN CLASSICAL ISLAM AND THE CHRISTIAN WEST. By George Makdisi. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1990. 431pp. Hb. £45.00. ISBN 0–85224–630–7.

POUR UN REGARD CHRÉTIEN SUR L'ISLAM. By Robert Caspar. Religions en Dialogue. Collection dirigée par Dennis Gira. Paris: Centurion, 1990. 206pp. PD.135FF. ISBN 2–227–36303–7.

COUPLES ISLAMO‐CHRÉTIENS: PROMESSE OU IMPASSE (MUSLIM‐CHRISTIAN COUPLES: HOPE OR IMPASSE). By Daisy Benturqui ET AL. Lausanne: Editions du SOC, 1990. 107pp. Pb., n.p.

THE CHALLENGE OF THE SCRIPTURES: THE BIBLE AND THE QURAN. Muslim‐Christian Research Group. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 1989. 104pp. Pb., n.p. ISBN 0–88344–650–2.     

Phone follow up to families of COVID-19 patients who died at the hospital: families' grief reactions and clinical psychologists' roles

A proportion of persons affected by coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) die and do so in extraordinary circumstances. This can make grief management extremely challenging for families. The Clinical Psychology unit of an Italian hospital offered a bereavement follow-up call to such families. This study aimed to explore the families' experiences and needs collected during these calls, and the role that the psychologists played through the call. A total of 246 families were called over 3 months. Multiple qualitative methods included: (i) written reports of the calls with relatives of patients who died at the hospital for COVID-19; (ii) qualitative semi-structured interviews with psychologists involved in the calls; (iii) observation of psychologists' peer group discussions. A thematic analysis was conducted. Six themes emerged: without death rituals, solitary, unexpected, unfair, unsafe, coexisting with other stressors. Families' reactions were perceived by psychologists as close to a traumatic grief. Families' needs ranged from finding alternative rituals to giving meaning and expressing different emotions. The psychologists played both a social-institutional and a psychological-human role through the calls (e.g., they cured disrupted communication or validated feelings and choices). This study highlighted the potential of traumatic grief of families of COVID-19 victims, and provided indications for supporting them within the space of a short phone call.     

Turning the gender tables: evidence of students’ awareness of a reversal in gender status between academic and occupational contexts

Social Psychology of Education - This study investigates young people’s awareness of gender differences in achievement and their reversal between educational and occupational contexts. Girls...     

Parental bonding and personality disorder: the mediating role of alexithymia

This study explored whether alexithymic features mediate the effect of perceived adverse parenting during childhood on being diagnosed with a PD in adulthood. Two hundred sixty-five psychiatric outpatients were evaluated with the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI), the Structured Interview for DSM-IV Personality, the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders, the Clinical Global Impression scale, and the Global Assessment of Functioning scale. The statistical model for mediation proposed by Baron and Kenny (1986) was employed to detect whether the TAS scores account for the relation between PBI scores and a PD diagnosis. The results indicated that although altered parental bonding (and specifically, excessive maternal protection) may enhance the risk of PD, its effect is completely mediated by the alexithymic feature Difficulty Describing Feelings to Others (DDF), after controlling for gender, age, educational level, type, severity and age of onset of Axis I disorders. Therefore, this study suggests that the presence of DDF accounts for the effect of maternal overprotection as a risk factor for PD.