Exploring Individual Differences in the Experience of Anger in Sport Competition: The Importance of Cognitive,Emotional, and Motivational Variables

As anger is one of the most commonly experienced emotions in sport competition, this study aims to explore the individual differences in anger. A multisport sample of 269 athletes completed self-report measures of anger and several cognitive, motivational, and emotional variables. The results revealed significant differences in approach and avoidance motivation, anger rumination, thought suppression, antisocial behavior toward teammates and opponents, and self-control among athletes with different levels of anger. In addition, antisocial behavior toward opponents and teammates, anger rumination, challenge appraisals, and self-control predicted anger levels and significantly discriminated between athletes with low and high trait anger.     

A Study of the Ethical Dilemmas Experienced by School Psychologists in Portugal

This study examines the ethical dilemmas and difficulties encountered by Portuguese school psychologists. As part of a larger survey, participants were asked about ethical issues faced in daily practice and asked to describe ethical incidents. Of the 477 respondents, 274 reported 441 ethically troubling or challenging situations. Responses were coded into a six-category system based on the code of ethics of Portuguese psychologists. Most of the reported dilemmas concerned privacy and confidentiality principles (53%). Results are discussed in light of relevant literature and international findings. Implications for the development of the profession and future research are provided.     

Development and Psychometric Properties of the Self-Representation Questionnaire for Adolescents (SRQA)

Given the lack of validated measures of adolescents’ self-representation, in this paper we present the development process and psychometric properties of a new self-representation questionnaire for adolescents (SRQA), aged 12–16 year old. We examined SRQA factor structure through two studies. In the first study, 32 attributes (16 positive and 16 negative), previously validated in three studies, were administered to 239 adolescents (M = 13.8; SD = 1.28). An exploratory factor analysis showed that 21 attributes (13 positive and 8 negative) were organized in five factors: instrumental, social, emotional, intelligence, and physical appearance. In the second study, these 21 attributes were administered to 232 adolescents (M = 13.8; SD = 1.23). A confirmatory factor analysis supported the SRQA five factor model (Model fit: χ ²/df ratio = 2.392; CFI = .90; RMSEA = .08). Internal consistency was acceptable, ranging between .60 and .85. Girls displayed higher scores in the instrumental and social factors, whereas boys presented higher scores on the physical appearance factor. In line with previous research, results regarding age differences were inconsistent: while in Study 1 results suggested that as, age increases, adolescents’ intelligence self-representation becomes more negative, in Study 2 no age differences were found. Concurrent validity of the SRQA was explored through correlations with the Teacher Report Form, filled out by the adolescents’ homeroom teachers. Results revealed significant negative correlations between two dimensions of self-representation (i.e., instrumental and intelligence) and several dimensions of adolescents’ internalizing and externalizing problems, providing evidence of concurrent validity for the SRQA.     

Doddering but dear … even in the eyes of young children? Age stereotyping and prejudice in childhood and adolescence

This study aims to explore age prejudice, and to examine age stereotyping in children and adolescents by adopting the Stereotype Content Model (SCM) as a theoretical framework. It was hypothesised that children are socialised into adopting an ambivalent representation of old age (socialisation hypothesis) and that this cognitive bias becomes weaker in adolescence due to greater cognitive maturity (developmental hypothesis). By analysing representative data from Portugal (European Social Survey; N = 2367), it was ascertained that the ambivalent age stereotype (higher evaluations of warmth than competence for older people) is indeed a shared social representation of older people in Portuguese society. A total of 103 Portuguese children (6–10 year olds) and adolescents (11–15 year olds) were then sampled from a local school and responded to age‐appropriate measures assessing age prejudice as well as age stereotypes. Contrary to previous studies, the findings do not provide evidence for the existence of age prejudice because both children and adolescents reported positive feelings towards older people. However, the socialisation hypothesis was corroborated by showing that the ambivalent old age stereotype was already present in childhood. Contrary to the stipulated developmental hypothesis, the magnitude of this cognitive bias was very similar in adolescence.     

Justice for whom, exactly? Beliefs in justice for the self and various others

The present studies examine why people think the world is more just to themselves than to others generally. Beliefs in justice for the self were uniquely associated with psychological adjustment, consistent with the theoretical motive to believe in justice for the self (Studies 1 and 2). However, this "justice motive" did not appear to affect the relative strength of justice beliefs. Instead, self-other differences in justice beliefs appeared to reflect objective assessments of the justice received by various demographics. Undergraduates believed the world to be more just to themselves than to others but not their undergraduate peers specifically (Study 1). Participants of both genders believed the world to be more just to men, and to themselves, than to women (Study 2). Women did not exempt themselves individually from injustice but believed, similar to men, that undergraduate women receive as much justice as men (Study 3).     

Validity study of the Moral Judgment Test in Physical Education: development and preliminary validation

Teaching ethical behavior is an aspect of physical education. The purpose of the study was to present the construction and to estimate validity of a test which assesses physical education students' moral judgment, the Moral Judgment Test in Physical Education. The sample comprised 281 male and female participants (95 in Grades 7 to 9, 92 in Grades 10 to 12, and 94 university students), who completed Lind's Moral Judgment Test and the Moral Judgment Test-PE version. The validity of the latter was assessed using four criteria of Lind's moral theory. Analysis indicated that the Moral Judgment Test-PE had adequate construct validity and correlated positively, although relatively weakly, with the original test, so the new version has sufficient construct validity to be used in physical education.     

Philosophical dialogues as paths to a more ‘positive psychology’

Although family support programmes have been in place for several decades in Greece very little attention has been paid to evaluating the effectiveness of such endeavours, the techniques that influence their outcomes and the receptiveness to their messages. The purpose of this paper is to give an overview of research findings collected during the first qualitative research phase of a community mental health promotion project. The research was conducted in order to delineate programme outcomes and the characteristics that had an impact on the participants' lives. The 3‐month family support programme intended to introduce ‘philosophical dialogues’ as means to developing personal and communal understandings of what makes life worth living. The programme was developed and implemented on Crete under the auspices of a non‐profit community organization appropriately named ‘The Lyceum for Women’. The features of the programme that contributed and enhanced the participants' tendencies to become not passive targets but active partners and stakeholders in the process will be clarified, as will the conceptualization and approach. Of the 45 evaluation protocols that were analysed the following themes were most important for the participants: ‘Group as‐a‐whole process’—the sense of sharing and development understandings in a ‘parea’ (in‐group); ‘relational outcomes’—feeling of belonging, ‘reciprocated kindness’, and giving of self to others; personal and emotional outcomes‐self‐efficacy and empowerment; knowledge outcomes‐learning about positive emotions and enjoying the simple things in life; and group facilitator outcomes‐sharing stories, ‘gives of self to the community’. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The New Paradigm in The Light of Ancient Hermetic Teachings

The information explosion we are witnessing nowadays not only entails a convergence of scientific discipline borderlines, but also means that teachings from long gone eras are becoming ever more clear. This study shows that the teachings of Hermes Trismegistus are only rendered truly comprehensible through the findings of postmodern science. A closer look at the Hermetic axioms reveals that they communicate significant scientific knowledge, although their terminology is reflective of the era in which they were created. These ancient concepts show essential differences from what classical physics teaches, much rather correlating with the results of quantum physics.     

Testing Developmental Pathways to Antisocial Personality Problems

This study examined the development of antisocial personality problems (APP) in young adulthood from disruptive behaviors and internalizing problems in childhood and adolescence. Parent ratings of 507 children’s (aged 6–8 years) symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, and anxiety, were linked to self-ratings of adolescents’ (aged 14–16 years) symptoms of depression, substance use, conduct problems, and somatic problems, to predict self-ratings of APP in young adulthood (age 20–22 years). The findings suggested a hierarchical development of antisocial behavior problems. Despite being positively associated with conduct problems in adolescence, neither internalizing problems nor substance use added to the prediction of APP in young adulthood from conduct problems in adolescence. The developmental pathways to APP in young adulthood did not differ by gender.