Applying imagined contact to improve physiological responses in anticipation of intergroup interactions and the perceived quality of these interactions

This experiment (N = 49) is the first to show that imagined contact can buffer anticipatory physiological responses to future interactions, and improve the quality of these interactions. Participants imagined a positive interaction with a person with schizophrenia, or in a control condition, a person who did not have schizophrenia. They then interacted with a confederate whom they believed had schizophrenia. Participants in the imagined contact condition reported more positive attitudes and less avoidance of people with schizophrenia, displayed smaller anticipatory physiological responses, specifically smaller changes in interbeat interval and skin conductance responses, and had a more positive interaction according to the confederate. These findings support applying imagined contact to improve interactions with people with severe mental illnesses.     

Dentists' voice control: effects on children's disruptive and affective behavior

Voice control, a punishment technique based on loud commands, has been used widely in pediatric dentistry. This study examined whether (a) loudness is a necessary component of the technique, (b) voice control actually reduces children's disruptive behavior, and (c) after treatment, children's negative affect increases. Subjects were forty 3 1/2- to 7-year-olds who posed potential behavior problems and who were scheduled for cavity restoration. Children were assigned randomly to either loud- or normal-voice groups. Children who were assigned to either group but who were not disruptive formed a nonexperimental control group. Prior to and after treatment, children reported their feelings using the Self-Assessment Mannequin. Disruptive behavior was scored using the Behavior Profile Rating Scale. Results indicated that, following loud, but not normal voice commands, children reduced their disruptive behavior (p less than .004) and self-reported lower arousal (p less than .09) and greater pleasure (p less than .10). Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Mixed-effects logistic regression for estimating transitional probabilities in sequentially coded observational data

This article demonstrates the use of mixed-effects logistic regression (MLR) for conducting sequential analyses of binary observational data. MLR is a special case of the mixed-effects logit modeling framework, which may be applied to multicategorical observational data. The MLR approach is motivated in part by G. A. Dagne, G. W. Howe, C. H. Brown, & B. O. Muthén (2002) advances in general linear mixed models for sequential analyses of observational data in the form of contingency table frequency counts. The advantage of the MLR approach is that it circumvents obstacles in the estimation of random sampling error encountered using Dagne and colleagues' approach. This article demonstrates the MLR model in an analysis of observed sequences of communication in a sample of young adult same-sex peer dyads. The results obtained using MLR are compared with those of a parallel analysis using Dagne and colleagues' linear mixed model for binary observational data in the form of log odds ratios. Similarities and differences between the results of the 2 approaches are discussed. Implications for the use of linear mixed models versus mixed-effects logit models for sequential analyses are considered.     

Romantic love and sexual desire in close relationships

Drawing on recent claims in the study of relationships, attachment, and emotion, the authors hypothesized that romantic love serves a commitment-related function and sexual desire a reproduction-related function. Consistent with these claims, in Study 1, brief experiences of romantic love and sexual desire observed in a 3-min interaction between romantic partners were related to distinct feeling states, distinct nonverbal displays, and commitment- and reproductive-related relationship outcomes, respectively. In Study 2, the nonverbal display of romantic love was related to the release of oxytocin. Discussion focuses on the place of romantic love and sexual desire in the literature on emotion.     

The distinct contributions of age of acquisition and word frequency in auditory word perception

We report two studies of the distinct effects that a word's age of acquisition (AoA) and frequency have on the mental lexicon. In the first study, a purely statistical analysis, we show that AoA and frequency are related in different ways to the phonological form and imageability of different words. In the second study, three groups of participants (34 seven-year-olds, 30 ten-year-olds, and 17 adults) took part in an auditory lexical decision task, with stimuli varying in AoA, frequency, length, neighbourhood density, and imageability. The principal result is that the influence of these different variables changes as a function of AoA: Neighbourhood density effects are apparent for early and late AoA words, but not for intermediate AoA, whereas imageability effects are apparent for intermediate AoA words but not for early or late AoA. These results are discussed from the perspective that AoA affects a word's representation, but frequency affects processing biases.     

Modeling the antecedents of proactive behavior at work

Using a sample of U.K. wire makers (N = 282), the authors tested a model in which personality and work environment antecedents affect proactive work behavior via cognitive-motivational mechanisms. Self-reported proactive work behaviors (proactive idea implementation and proactive problem solving) were validated against rater assessments for a subsample (n = 60) of wire makers. With the exception of supportive supervision, each antecedent was important, albeit through different processes. Proactive personality was significantly associated with proactive work behavior via role breadth self-efficacy and flexible role orientation, job autonomy was also linked to proactive behavior via these processes, as well as directly; and coworker trust was associated with proactive behavior via flexible role orientation. In further support of the model, the cognitive-motivational processes for proactive work behavior differed from those for the more passive outcome of generalized compliance.     

Exploring the Effects of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy on the Irrational Beliefs and Self-Determined Motivation of Triathletes

The present study addresses proposals that Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) can influence self-determined motivation. Triathletes received REBT education, followed by either Rational Emotive Personal-Disclosure Mutual-Sharing (REPDMS) or Personal-Disclosure Mutual-Sharing. Measurements of irrational beliefs and self-determined motivation were collected prior to REBT (baseline), during the REBT education period, and after the REPDMS session (postintervention). An ABC single-case design was adopted, allowing for statistical and visual analysis of data over time and between groups. Findings indicate that REBT led to decreased irrational beliefs and increased self-determined motivation. REPDMS appeared to have no influence on irrational beliefs over and above REBT education.