Validation d’une Échelle de Frustration des Besoins Psychologiques au Travail (EFBPT)

The purpose of the three present studies was to adapt in French in the work context a questionnaire developed by Bartholomew, Ntoumanis, Ryan, and Thøgersen- Ntoumani (2011) designed to assess thwarting of the needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Exploratory (Study 1) and confirmatory analyses (Study were conducted among French workers. These studies demonstrated an acceptable internal consistency and confirmed the three-factor structure of the questionnaire (i.e., EFBPT). In addition, the construct validity of the scale was also corroborated in Study 3.     

Identifying Profit-producing Salesforce Members

Abstract

A procedure for estimating a salesperson's long-run profit performance is proposed. Based on historical personnel and accounting data, it takes into account the flows of revenues and costs that a company is likely to experience when a “typical” salesperson of a prespecified profile is kept on territory. In the reported case study, salesmen with a degree in liberal arts (and to some extent in the sciences) and previous non-sales experience could be identified as the best long-run profit producers. The results showed important differences with the conclusions of a more conventional analysis which emphasized short-run sales performance.     

Molecular dynamics simulations of the size effect of titanium single-crystal nanopillars orientated for double prismatic slips

An inverse “smaller is stronger” trend is predicted on the basis of molecular dynamics simulations of α-titanium (Ti) single-crystal nanopillars orientated for double prismatic slips when the nanopillars are less than 7?nm wide. This trend is attributed to a significant increase in the surface energy due to the nucleation and propagation of edge dislocations on the surface of the pillars.     

Testing Strengths-Based Interventions: A Preliminary Study on the Effectiveness of a Program Targeting Curiosity, Gratitude, Hope, Humor, and Zest for Enhancing Life Satisfaction

The study compares the impact of character strengths-based positive interventions in a sample of 178 adults. An experimental group that trained strengths of the Values-in-Action classification that typically correlate highly with life satisfaction (curiosity, gratitude, hope, humor, and zest) was compared in its gain in life satisfaction with a group that trained strengths that usually demonstrate low correlations with life satisfaction (appreciation of beauty and excellence, creativity, kindness, love of learning, and perspective) and a wait-list control group. If pre and post measures in life satisfaction were compared, the group with the strengths most correlated with life satisfaction improved significantly (statistically) in their satisfaction in comparison to a control group. This could be interpreted as support for the idea that primarily those strengths that correlate highly with life satisfaction should be addressed in strengths-based interventions. When asked for subjective ratings of well-being after the interventions concluded, participants in both intervention groups indicated gains above that of a wait-listed control group. Further analyses underscore the special role of self-regulation in facilitating success in the interventions. Overall, the data underline the potential of strength-based interventions for improving human well-being.     

The Influence of Goal Orientation and Risk on Creativity

Employees' creative performance has been found to play a vital role in the continued existence and growth of organizations. Many individual differences (e.g., openness to experience) are significantly related to creative output, but the importance of individuals' goal orientation on creative performance under high or low risk situations has been overlooked. To address this gap in the literature, we studied the relationship between risk and creativity, and investigated whether an individual's goal orientation enhances (i.e., learning orientation) or diminishes (i.e., avoid or prove orientation) the relationship between risk and creative performance. The hypotheses were tested in a laboratory environment using undergraduate subjects. Results showed a positive relationship between risk and creativity. The findings also supported the idea that individuals low in avoid orientation cultivate more creative outputs under high rather than low risk conditions. Limitations, future research, and implications are addressed.     

Moral Clarity in Narratives Elicits Greater Cooperation than Moral Ambiguity

In disciplines such as moral psychology and media theory, investigations of moral clarity versus ambiguity in narratives are increasingly important. Untested mechanisms have been proposed for how moral clarity and ambiguity might affect audiences. Based on literature regarding joint action and coordinated experiences, we reason that morally clear narratives elicit coordinated responses across audience members, which should increase within-group cooperation. By contrast, we reason that morally ambiguous narratives elicit divergent, uncoordinated responses across audience members, and this experience decreases cooperation. We conducted three independent studies (one using short text narratives, one using feature-length films, and one using morally and emotionally neutral stimuli). Results indicate that moral clarity is indeed associated with subsequently higher levels of group cooperation than moral ambiguity, and the effect cannot be attributed to changes in affect or moral priming.     

阅读中的眼跳目标选择问题

读者在阅读中面临如何选择眼跳落点位置的问题。研究者在有词间空格的字母文字中(如英语和德语)发现人们倾向于将眼跳落在词中心偏左的位置,这个位置被称为偏好注视位置(preferred viewing location,PVL)。中文文本并没有空格来标记词边界信息,这使得中文阅读的眼跳目标选择机制更加复杂。近年来,研究者从中央凹—副中央凹动态调节的角度研究了阅读中眼跳目标选择的机制。结果发现在中文阅读中眼跳目标选择受到中央凹和副中央凹信息加工的共同影响,而副中央凹的加工直接决定了眼跳落点位置。     

词汇获得年龄在物体和动作图画命名中的不同作用

本研究目的是考察词汇获得年龄(早与晚)这一因素对物体图画和动作图画命名是否产生了不同的影响。采用物体图画和动作图画命名任务,发现:(1)相比于物体图画命名,动作图画命名的反应时更长,表明动词的产生更为复杂。(2)在物体图画命名任务中,与晚获得词相比,早获得的词产生速度更快;相比而言,在动作图画命名中,晚获得词比早获得词的反应时更短,反应速度更快。基于分析和讨论,我们认为Ao A效应可能发生在图画命名过程中的词汇水平,而非概念水平或反应输出阶段。