Sex role socialization and the development of achievement motivation in black preschool children

The effect of sex role socialization practices on the achievement motivation (Nach) of black preschool children of differing social-class levels was examined. A factor analysis of the Katz Sex Role Socialization Scale revealed several factors. These varied in their effect on two types of achievement motivation. In general, the hypothesis that nontraditional sex role training leads to higher achievement motivation for girls, and that traditional sex role training leads to higher achievement motivation for boys, received support. The importance of treating sex role socialization as multidimensional was stressed.This study is part of a doctoral dissertation by the senior author.     

A procedure for obtaining young children’s reports of olfactory stimuli

Young children (ages 2 to 5) have proved to be difficult subjects for obtaining valid reports of their ratings of olfactory stimuli. Thirty-six preschoolers were tested on benzaldehyde (a pleasant odor) and on dimethyl disulfide (an unpleasant odor) using a smiling or frowning face as a response format. The results showed the ability of young children to discriminate between pleasant and unpleasant odors.     

Pastoral excellence and Pastoral Theology: A slight shift of paradigm and a modest polemic

The existence of Pastoral Theology as a discipline is problematic. The possibility of becoming a discipline is discussed as requiring a shift from a clinical/therapeutic to an ecclesial paradigm as its center. The shift would foster a valuing of the pastor as an interpreter of human existence, attention to the need for a pastoral hermeneutic, and an appreciation for particularity. The field needs to attend its intellectual tasks and to assess the debits/credits of its relations to secular disciplines.     

“Master your Johnson”: Sexual rhetoric in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Maxim</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Stuff</Emphasis> magazines

This article reports the results of a content analysis of sexual rhetoric in editorial photographs (N=994) in 2001 issues of Maxim and Stuff magazines. Goffman’s (1979) classifications of gender in advertisements were used to examine how this new generation of “lad” magazines uses images to provide readers with cues about sexuality and sexual practice. The findings reveal that both magazines construct sexuality in similar ways. However, as expected, the overall message about sexuality in the photos is different for men than for women. Women are more likely than men to be portrayed as sex objects, such as the common practice of photographing them in contorting or demeaning positions. Both magazines also depict white people as sexier than other races and assume heterosexuality.     

I and thou in dialogue: Becoming more relational in couple therapy

Couple therapists have the unique and challenging opportunity of helping people find deeper connection in their intimate relationships. These clinicians apply therapeutic models and interventions designed to help couples. However, many of these models are derived from theoretical, scientific, and sociocultural traditions that conceptualize human phenomena as individualistic and reductionistic, and the language in these theories may not match clients' experiences, which include deeply relational phenomena such as love and loss. We review how Western scientific and sociocultural traditions have shaped conceptualization of problems and clinical intervention in couple therapy. In contrast, we provide an alternative, strongly relational framework for couple therapy that draws upon philosophical perspectives asserting that relational, rather than individual, experience is fundamental in human interaction. These ideas provide relational language which can influence how couple therapy is viewed and enacted. Specifically, we discuss how a strongly relational approach changes how therapists understand and intervene with conflict, abuse, love, and deception. This relational framework can help couples in their own goals to become more unified. Implications for the therapeutic relationship, interventions, and scholarship are provided.