Can fixed views of ability boost performance in the context of favorable stereotypes?

Prior research has demonstrated that stereotypes affect negatively stereotyped groups in part through the implied immutability of group members’ abilities. Accordingly, a belief that ability is malleable through effort and hard work has been shown to boost the performance of negatively stereotyped groups. We predicted, however, that among favorably stereotyped groups, a belief that ability is fixed would reinforce the immutability of the group differences upon which stereotype-induced social comparisons are made [Walton, G. M., & Cohen, G. L. (2003). Stereotype lift. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 39, 456–467] and result in enhanced performance. We found experimental support for these predictions in two favorably stereotyped groups in math: Asians (Study 1) and men (Study 2). Perceived difficulty of the math test helped explain the performance effects in Study 2. Implications of schooling emphasizing innate ability for exacerbating achievement gaps are discussed.     

Making Gender Comparisons More Meaningful: A Call for More Attention to Social Context

We challenge researchers to consider sex and gender as a marker for possible social contextual differences. Disappointed by both philosophical and empirical attempts to find coherence in research making gender comparisons, we selectively review studies showing both context-specific similarities between women and men where overall comparisons found differences as well as context-specific differences where general patterns of similarity existed. These examples cut across embedded levels of social context, ranging from those immediately proximal to the individual (interpersonal) to organizational and broad societal structures. They suggest that seemingly identical contexts can have sweepingly different impacts on women and men and that effective social interventions be gender-sensitive.     

The role of social support on the disclosure of everyday unpleasant emotional events

Talking about unpleasant events has important implications for coping with distress, but the literature has not thoroughly addressed the role of social support on the decision to disclose these events. The authors hypothesized that perceptions of the availability of social support and satisfaction with support received regarding an event would be positively related to the disclosure of the event, and participants’ sex, emotional disclosure tendencies, depression symptoms, and global perceptions of support would moderate these relations. College students (N = 365) reported on 2,001 unpleasant emotional events that they personally experienced in the past week. Multilevel modeling analyses revealed that the perceived availability of support for an event predicted the degree of disclosure of that event, even while controlling for its intensity. Event disclosure predicted satisfaction with the support received for the event, controlling for event intensity and available support. This latter relation was moderated by the participants’ global perceptions of social support, such that the disclosure–satisfaction relation was stronger for individuals who perceived relatively less global social support. These findings suggest that characteristics of the social-support network ought to be considered as an important factor relevant to the decision to disclose everyday unpleasant events.     

Finding The “Self” in Self-Regulation: The Identity-Value Model

Many psychological theories suggest a link between self-regulation and identity, but, until now, a mechanistic account that suggests ways to improve self-regulation has not been put forth. The identity-value model (IVM) connects the idea from social psychology that aspects of identity such as core values and group affiliations hold positive subjective value to the process-focused account from decision making and behavioral economics that self-regulation is driven by a dynamic value integration across a range of choice attributes. Together, these ideas imply that goal-directed behaviors that are identity relevant are more likely to be enacted because they have greater subjective value than identity-irrelevant behaviors. A central hypothesis, therefore, is that interventions that increase the degree to which a target behavior is perceived as self-relevant will improve self-regulation. In addition, identity-based changes in self-regulation are expected to be mediated by changes in subjective value and its underlying neural systems. In this article we define the key constructs relevant to the IVM, explicate the model and delineate its boundary conditions, and describe how it fits with related theories. We also review disparate results in the research literature that might share identity-related value as a common underlying mechanism of action. We close by discussing questions about the model, the answers to which could advance the study of self-regulation.     

The Jerusalem of Jesus: space and Pentecostal-evangelical branding in Orlando’s Holy Land Experience and Eureka Spring’s Holy Land Tour

Jerusalem, Israel, holds a special place as a holy pilgrimage destination for devotees of Christianity and other religions, although travel to the holy sites of Jerusalem is costly and can be difficult for many. For evangelical Protestants (and especially Pentecostals), the significance of Jerusalem – as the place where Christ the Messiah lived and accomplished his works – can be mobilised and channelled (decentralised) by creating sites which participate in the spiritual ‘power’ of Jesus Christ. Spiritual ‘power’ in this sense is not dependent on recorded miracles or canonisation by a central religious authority, but in the creation of spaces which through various strategies effectively evoke for their Protestant consumers the ‘authenticity’ of Jesus’ Jerusalem, and thus the ‘power’ and ‘reality’ of Christ. This paper examines the spatial strategies and branding of two such sites, the Holy Land Experience (Orland, Florida) and the Holy Land Tour (Eureka Springs, Arkansas).     

Healing and Hope in the Midst of Devastation: reflections on Katrina in the Aftermath of September 11

This article reflects on Hurricane Katrina within the background and context of 9/11. Included are other tragedies experienced in the School of Medicine when, combined with 9/11, laid the foundation for our continued working through Katrina.     

Counseling Canadian Indigenous Peoples: The Therapeutic Alliance and Outcome

The aim of this study was to determine whether client therapeutic alliance ratings and client symptom severity were predictors of counseling outcomes among Canadian Indigenous clients. Participants included 179 Canadian Indigenous clients who completed an outcome measure at the 1st and last sessions and an alliance measure at both the 2nd and 3rd sessions. Results indicated that higher client alliance ratings at Sessions 2 and 3 and baseline client symptom severity were significant predictors of outcome. El objetivo de este estudio fue determinar si las valoraciones del cliente de la alianza terapéutica y la severidad de los síntomas del cliente fueron indicadores de los resultados de la consejería entre clientes indígenas canadienses. Los participantes incluyeron 179 clientes indígenas canadienses que completaron una medida de resultados en la primera y última sesión, además de una medida de la alianza en la segunda y tercera sesión. Los resultados indicaron que unas valoraciones del cliente más altas de la alianza en las sesiones 2 y 3 y la severidad preliminar de los síntomas del cliente fueron indicadores significativos del resultado.