Conditional or Unconditional Forgiveness? An Instrument to Measure the Conditionality of Forgiveness

Among the beliefs and concepts people hold about the nature of forgiveness, their notions of conditionality and unconditionality have not received sufficient study. The concept of conditional forgiveness posits that before forgiveness can be granted, the offender must take certain steps and meet specific conditions. From an unconditional forgiveness concept, the victim can forgive independently of the behavior of the wrongdoer. Hence, the aim of our study has been to develop a strong psychometric instrument to measure the beliefs people hold about the conditionality of forgiveness. This article presents the development and validation of a tool to measure these beliefs. Study 1 comprised 181 participants, whereas 492 conformed Study 2 and 109 took part in Study 3. Internal consistency and validity were analyzed. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted, along with correlational analysis to test convergent validity, stability, and prediction capability. Results show a two-dimensional structure of the Conditional–Unconditional Forgiveness Scale, indicating the appropriateness of this tool to assess beliefs about the conditionality of forgiveness. The belief in the unconditional nature of forgiveness showed positive and significant correlations with all the measurements of offense-specific forgiveness. On the other hand, the belief that forgiveness should be conditional showed lower correlations with all the forgiveness measurements. Not only the ultimate level of forgiveness the subjects experienced but also their emotional experience of the process can be very different depending on their views of forgiveness, among them their beliefs about conditionality.     

The use of diabetes-specific perceived control and health belief measures to predict treatment choice and efficacy in a feasibility study of continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion pumps

Abstract

In the course of a feasibility study of continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion pumps, 382 insulin-requiring diabetic patients were offered a choice of CSII, intensified conventional treatment or conventional treatment. Two hundred and eighty-six (75%) patients completed newly developed diabetes-specific measures of health beliefs and attributions before any change of treatment regimen. The scales were useful predictors of patients' choice of treatment. Furthermore, they were useful in predicting efficacy of treatment in terms of glycosylated haemoglobin measures of diabetes control after one year of treatment in the study. The implications of the findings for introducing patients to new forms of treatment are discussed.     

Co-occurrence of non-suicidal self-injury and impulsivity in extreme weight conditions

The aims of the present study were to determine the prevalence of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) in different eating disorder (ED) groups and morbid obesity, and to investigate whether NSSI in different ED/obesity groups co-occur with impulsivity. We assessed 535 individuals (365 ED and 170 obese patients) by means of a single item assessing lifetime NSSI and the Barratt Impulsivity Scale, which measures different dimensions of impulsivity. The results showed that 19.1% of the ED patients engaged in at least one act of NSSI during their life-time. NSSI was more prevalent in Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder, Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified compared to Anorexia Nervosa, Restrictive type and morbid obesity. Finally, ED/obese patients who engaged in NSSI scored significantly higher on the attentional, motor and non-planning subscales than patients without NSSI. The implications of these findings for the treatment of NSSI in binge/purging ED patients are discussed.     

Knowledge and question asking

The ability and the motivation for question asking are, or should be, some of the most important aims of education. Unfortunately, students neither ask many questions, nor good ones. The present paper is about the capacity of secondary school pupils for asking questions and how this activity depends on prior knowledge. To examine this, we use texts containing different levels of information about a specific topic: biodiversity. We found a positive relationship between the amount of information provided and the number of questions asked about the texts, supporting the idea that more knowledgeable people ask more questions. Some students were warned that there would be an exam after the reading, and this led to a diminishing number of questions asked, and yet this still did not significantly improve their exam scores. In such a case, it seems that reading was more concerned with immediacy, hindering critical thinking and the dialog between their previous ideas and the new information. Thus, question asking seems to be influenced not only by the amount of knowledge, but also by the reader's attitude towards the information.     

Modulatory influence of dopamine receptors on consolidation of object recognition memory

The role of dopamine receptors in regulating the formation of recognition memory remains poorly understood. Here we show the effects of systemic administration of dopamine receptor agonists and antagonists on the formation of memory for novel object recognition in rats. In Experiment I, rats received an intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of vehicle, the selective D1 receptor agonist SKF38393 (1.0 and 5.0mg/kg), or the D2 receptor agonist quinpirole (1.0 and 5.0mg/kg) immediately after training. In Experiment II, rats received an injection of vehicle, the dopamine receptor antagonist SCH23390 (0.1 and 0.05 mg/kg), or the D2 receptor antagonist raclopride (0.5 and 0.1mg/kg) before training, followed by an injection of vehicle or the nonselective dopamine receptor agonist apomorphine (0.05 mg/kg) immediately after training. SKF38393 at 5mg/kg produced an enhancement of novel object recognition memory measured at both 24 and 72 h after training, whereas the dose of 10mg/kg impaired 24-h retention. Posttraining administration of quinpirole did not affect 24-h retention. Apomorphine enhanced memory in rats given pretraining raclopride, suggesting that the effect was mediated by selective activation of D1 receptors. The results indicate that activation of D1 receptors can enhance recognition memory consolidation. Importantly, pharmacological activation of D1 receptors enhanced novel object recognition memory even under conditions in which control rats showed significant retention.     

Assessment of depressive symptoms in old visually-impaired people: a study of the Geriatric Depression Scale

This study has two main purposes: (a) to assess the functioning of the Geriatric Depression Scale in its Spanish version in old visually-impaired people, and (b) to assess the relevance of measuring depressive symptoms within a comprehensive assessment of psychological adjustment related to vision impairment in that population. Respondents were 329 people affiliated to the ONCE who were a representative sample of the target population. The assessment of the first goal let us to establish two cut-off points, and led to new methodological developments that combine Item Response Theory and Classical Test Theory. The results indicated that the scale is particularly useful in the target population and that it is very relevant in the assessment of psychological adjustment related to visual impairment in old people.     

Relational framework improves transitive inference across age groups

Transitive inference is a complex task, conducive to the use of multiple strategies. We investigated whether transitive inference accuracy can be improved by biasing strategy choice towards a proposition-based approach that relies on the extraction of relations among stimuli. We biased strategy choice by using familiar stimuli with known relations that tap prior knowledge. Semantic information led to increased accuracy for younger and older adults, and increased awareness of stimulus relations. Increased age was associated with reduced awareness. Awareness accounted for the variability in performance accuracy to a greater extent than age, as aware older and younger adults showed similar accuracies on all conditions. The current work indicates that age differences in performance can be minimized by providing semantically meaningful stimuli that bias participants to use a relational proposition-based approach.     

A New Unified Treatment Approach for Emotional Disorders Based on Emotion Science

ABSTRACT— Research on the nature of emotional disorders points toward a common set of diatheses (underlying psychological vulnerabilities) and functionally (but not superficially) similar expression of pathological emotional responding (e.g., Barlow, 2002 ). Successful drug treatments for different emotional disorders are very similar, with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or related compounds in wide use. Successful psychological treatments, on the other hand, are currently specifically targeted to each individual disorder. Distilling common principles among existing empirically supported psychological treatments, and giving attention to new findings on emotion regulation and dysregulation from emotion science, we propose and describe a new unified psychological treatment for emotional disorders.     

Risk and protective factors at school: Reducing bullies and promoting positive bystanders' behaviors in adolescence

Identifying protective factors present at schools located in neighborhoods with high structural violence is fundamental to help prevent the perpetuation of violence . Therefore, the aim of this study was to observe how some school micro‐system variables, such as school environment and interpersonal relationships that adults establish with adolescents, may lead to bullying behaviors or, on the contrary, to positive bystander behavior in the bully‐victim dynamic. The sample was composed of 5,774 adolescents from 71 schools located in violent neighborhoods in Lima (Peru). 31.9 per cent of the sample experienced verbal violence and the prevalence of cyberbullying was 24.6%. Boys were more prone to experience both types of bullying than girls, although no differences were seen in the probability of becoming aggressors during early and late adolescence. The protective model showed that a positive atmosphere based on a supportive environment with clear rules encouraged adults at school to show more support and to provide more orientation in bullying situations, thus promoting a positive bystander behavior between peers. Opposite results were observed in the risk model. Actions at the micro‐system school level are discussed to enhance protective factors and reduce risk factors.     

Meaningful and Psychologically Rewarding Occupations: Characteristics and Implications for Occupational Therapy Practice

The differences between meaningful and psychologically rewarding occupations were investigated. Fifty-two individuals from the United States and South Africa participated in the research, which was conducted using the Experience Sampling Method. Participants were cued at random, five times per day for 7?days. Each time when cued, they documented the types of occupations in which they were participating, associated mood, and perceived meaning of the occupations. Meaningful and psychologically rewarding occupations were similar: Both were physically stimulating and connected participants with other people. There were differences between U.S. and South African participants regarding perceived meaning of occupations and associated mood.