Women with diarrhoea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome show an increased pressure response to 35% carbon dioxide stress challenge

The responses to inhalation of 35% carbon dioxide (CO(2)) as a stressor were compared in female irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients and healthy controls to assess potential differences in cardiovascular, neuroendocrine and behavioural responses to stress. A total of 22 women (12 patients with ROME II defined diarrhoea-predominant IBS and 10 aged-matched controls) were challenged with a single vital capacity breath of 35% CO(2) (with 65% oxygen). Beat-to-beat blood pressure and heart rate were recorded prior to, during and after the inhalation. Serum cortisol concentration and behavioural ratings were measured pre- and post-inhalation. A typical pattern of responses to CO(2) was observed, characterised by a reduction in heart rate and increases in serum cortisol and anxiogenic symptoms; however, these responses did not differ between groups. Both groups also demonstrated an increase in systolic blood pressure; however, this response was significantly enhanced in IBS patients compared to healthy controls (P < 0.05). These findings demonstrate that females with diarrhoea-predominant IBS have an exaggerated pressor response to 35% CO(2) stress challenge, suggesting a more stress-responsive sympathetic nervous system.     

Not all group hypnotic suggestibility scales are created equal: individual differences in behavioral and subjective responses

To examine the influence of hypnotic suggestibility testing as a source of individual differences in hypnotic responsiveness, we compared behavioral and subjective responses on three scales of hypnotic suggestibility: The Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility, Form A (HGSHS: A; Shor, R. E., Orne, E. C. (1962). Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility. Berlin: Consulting Psychologists Press); the Carleton University Responsiveness to Suggestion Scale (CURSS; Spanos, N. P., Radtke, H. L., Hodgins, D. C., Stam, H. J., Bertrand, L. D. (1983b). The Carleton University Responsiveness to Suggestion Scale: Normative data and psychometric properties. Psychological Reports, 53, 523-535); and the Group Scale of Hypnotic Ability (GSHA; Hawkins, R., Wenzel, L. (1999). The Group Scale of Hypnotic Ability and response booklet. Australian Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, 27, 20-31). Behavioral and subjective responses to the CURSS were significantly different than those on the HGSHS: A and GSHA. More participants were classified as "low suggestible" on the CURSS and they reported subjective experiences more similar to everyday mentation. Attitudes and expectancies of participants who received the GSHA were less predictive of responding, but rates of responding and subjective experiences were similar on the GSHA and the HGSHS: A. Discussion focuses on implications for the use of group hypnotic suggestibility scales.     

Man Smart,Woman Smarter? Getting to the Root of Gender Differences in Self‐handicapping

Research in self-handicapping has consistently demonstrated a robust yet puzzling gender difference in the use of behavioral self-handicaps. Women not only are less likely to use behavioral self-handicaps when such opportunities present themselves, but are also more punitive in their evaluations of others who utilize these types of handicaps. For years, the literature has considered several possible explanations for these consistent gender differences, with little success. The present work highlights our recent efforts suggesting that the personal value placed on effort, as indexed by the 'Worker scale' ( McCrea, Hirt, Hendrix, Milner, & Steele, 2008 ), is an important mediator of these gender differences in both the use of and evaluation of others' use of behavioral self-handicaps. Discussion centers on the implications of the present results for gaining a better understanding of the motivations and tradeoffs that underlie the use of this self-defeating strategy.     

Spatial representations elicit dual-coding effects in mental imagery

Spatial aspects of words are associated with their canonical locations in the real world. Yet little research has tested whether spatial associations denoted in language comprehension generalize to their corresponding images. We directly tested the spatial aspects of mental imagery in picture and word processing (Experiment 1). We also tested whether spatial representations of motion words produce similar perceptual-interference effects as demonstrated by object words (Experiment 2). Findings revealed that words denoting an upward spatial location produced slower responses to targets appearing at the top of the display, whereas words denoting a downward spatial location produced slower responses to targets appearing at the bottom of the display. Perceptual-interference effects did not obtain for pictures or for words lacking a spatial relation. These findings provide greater empirical support for the perceptual-symbols system theory ( Barsalou, 1999, 2008 ).     

Classroom discourse and the distribution of student engagement

Research in the social psychology of achievement motivation stresses the contribution of the classroom motivational context to problems of student engagement among low achieving students. This analysis contributes to that literature through a focused analysis of English and language arts instruction during the middle school years. Using data from the Partnership for Literacy Study the author investigates the relationship between classroom evaluation during question and answer sessions and two forms of student engagement, participation in classroom discourse, and student effort on classroom and homework assignments. When teachers focus on provoking student thought and analysis, and postpone evaluation during question and answer sessions by engaging in dialogic instruction, levels of student effort are more evenly distributed among students. Moreover, the relationship between levels of initial achievement and student effort is weaker in classrooms where teachers incorporate elements of dialogic instruction into question and answer sessions. However, dialogic instruction had no effect on the distribution of participation in classroom discourse itself.     

Gender differences in preadolescent children's online interactions: Symbolic modes of self-presentation and self-expression

Preadolescent children who did not know one another interacted in a multiuser domain (MUD), an online site designed to facilitate identity exploration and peer interaction. Each child participated in two separate sessions, one with a same-sex and one with an opposite-sex peer. Children created characters that reflected real-life properties of themselves, such as gender and interests in popular culture. Boys in same-sex pairs interacted with one another through action, rapid changes, and playful exchanges. Girls in same-sex pairs interacted primarily through written dialogue. In mixed pairs, boys wrote more and engaged in less playful exchanges, and girls wrote fewer and increased their actions. The results suggest that boys and girls have their own unique play styles with same-sex peers, but will moderate those patterns during late childhood to communicate with peers of the opposite sex.     

Never on Sunny Days: Lessons from Weekly Attendance Counts

Congregational attendance data are abundant, accessible, and relevant for religious research. Weekly attendance histories provide information about worshippers, congregations, and denominations that surveys cannot capture. The histories yield novel measures of commitment, testable implications of rational choice theory, and compelling evidence that attendance responds strongly to changes in the opportunity cost of time.     

Employment counseling and organizational ethical values

Employment counseling is commonly used in companies to assist employees with various personal and professional challenges that are confronted in the workplace. Such guidance could affect the degree to which employees believe a company proactively supports an ethical orientation; the purpose of this study was to explore this issue. A self‐report survey was used to collect data from 105 working students who were attending business classes at the University of Wyoming. Results suggested that perceptions of organizational ethical values were higher among students who were employed in companies that offered employment counseling than were the perceptions of those working in companies that did not offer employment counseling.