Do examples of failure effectively prepare students for learning from subsequent instruction?

Studies on the productive failure (PF) approach have demonstrated that attempting to solve a problem prepares students more effectively for later instruction compared to observing failed problem-solving attempts prior to instruction. However, the examples of failure used in these studies did not display the problem-solving-and-failing process, which may have limited the preparatory effects. In this quasi-experiment, we investigated whether observing someone else engaging in problem solving can prepare students for instruction, and whether examples that show the problem-solving-and -failing process are more effective than those that only show the outcome of this process. We also explored whether the perceived model–observer similarity had an impact on the effectiveness of observing examples of failure. The results showed that observing examples effectively prepares students for learning from instruction. However, observing the model's problem-solving-and-failing process did not prepare students more effectively than merely looking at the outcome. Studying examples were more effective if model–observer similarity was high.     

“You Need to Stop Talking About This!”: Verbal Rumination and the Costs of Social Support

This study examined whether the type of support individuals receive when they are verbally ruminating affects their cognitive rumination (brooding), anxiety, and relationship satisfaction; 233 young adults were randomly assigned to be the subject, 233 others the confederate. The confederate was trained to provide “good support” or “poor support” to the subject who talked about a topic he/she had been verbally ruminating about recently. When individuals verbally ruminated and received poor support, they became more anxious and dissatisfied with the friendship. When individuals received good support, they were more satisfied with their friendship, but their anxiety was not significantly reduced. In addition, verbal rumination was directly associated with more brooding after the conversation, regardless of the type of support provided.     

An investigation of the relationship between cognitive reactivity and rumination

Teasdale’s (Teasdale, J.D. (1988). Cognitive vulnerability to persistent depression. Cognition and Emotion, 2, 247–274) differential activation hypothesis refers to the ease with which maladaptive cognitive processes are triggered by mild dysphoria as cognitive reactivity. Supporting this model is evidence of a differential association between sad mood and dysfunctional cognitions in formerly depressed and never-depressed individuals and the finding that cognitive reactivity predicts depression recurrence in remitted depressives. The Leiden Index of Depression Sensitivity–Revised (LEIDS-R; Van der Does, A.J.W., Williams, J.M.G. (2003). Leiden Index of Depression Sensitivity–Revised (LEIDS-R). Retrieved September 4, 2007, from http://www.dousa.nl/publications_depression.htm#LEIDS) is a recently developed self-report measure that provides clinicians and researchers with a time-efficient means by which to assess cognitive reactivity. This study investigated the relationship between cognitive reactivity (indexed by the LEIDS-R) and depressive rumination in a nonclinical sample (N = 324). As predicted, partial correlations between the LEIDS-R (subscale and Total scores) and the Ruminative Response Scale (RRS; Nolen-Hoeksema, S., and Morrow, J. (1991). A prospective study of depression and posttraumatic stress symptoms after a natural disaster: The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 61, 115–121) were significant after controlling for current depressive symptoms. A subsample of participants (n= 130) was administered a structured interview to determine current and past depression diagnostic status. Recovered depressed individuals scored more highly on the LEIDS-R Total and LEIDS-R Rumination subscale; however, the groups did not differ on the remaining subscales. Regression analyses indicated that (across all participants) LEIDS-R Total made a unique contribution to the prediction of depression over and above trait level of depressive rumination. Overall, the LEIDS-R is a time-efficient self-report index of cognitive reactivity that demonstrates promise in distinguishing recovered and never-depressed individuals.     

On the immunity of perceptual implicit memory to manipulations of attention

In four experiments, we examined the effect of manipulating study phase attention in a Stroop task on the extent of repetition priming in the lexical decision task (LDT). Experiment 1 replicated the immunity of the LDT to division of attention reported by Szymanski and MacLeod (1996), using a standard Stroop configuration. Response times to previously encountered words were identical regardless of whether the participants were required to read the words or name the color in which they were presented. Experiment 2 demonstrated that implementing the Stroop manipulation across separate visual objects reduced but did not eliminate priming of unattended words, provided the words remained in the attended region of the stimulus display. When this constraint was removed in Experiment 3, priming of unattended words disappeared. Experiment 4 demonstrated statistically equivalent priming for attended and unattended words when the Stroop manipulation remained in the same visual object but attention was directed to a single letter of the word. In all four experiments, the Stroop manipulation had a clear effect on recognition. These results qualify claims that the LDT might be immune to manipulations of study phase attention and suggest that the LDT has a lower threshold level of attention at encoding than do other standard implicit tests of memory.     

Environmental,Social, and Psychological Experiences of Asian American Undergraduates: Examining Issues of Academic Persistence

A total of 160 Asian Americans (55 Chinese, 13 Filipino, 27 Japanese, 32 Korean, 15 Pacific Islander, and 18 Vietnamese) completed a series of standardized instruments assessing their environmental, social, and psychological experiences as undergraduates. The purpose of this study was threefold: to provide a composite of student experiences; to investigate the interrelationships of comfort in the university environment, social support, and self‐beliefs; and to examine the influence of these constructs on the academic persistence decisions of Asian American undergraduates. Overall, social support variables were the strongest predictors of academic persistence. Research‐derived implications for university personnel and professional counselors are provided.     

Psychometric characteristics of the Parenting Scale in a Vietnamese sample

The Parenting Scale (PS) is a well‐established instrument for measuring discipline practices in Western populations. However, whether the PS is a valid and reliable measure in Eastern populations is not known. Thus, this study examined the psychometric properties of the PS in a sample of 433 Vietnamese parents of children aged 2–7 years. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) examined the commonly used Reitman et al.'s two‐factor and Rhoades and O'Leary's three‐factor solutions. Neither factor structure fit the data. An exploratory factor analysis identified a 12‐item one‐factor and 14‐item two‐factor solutions that overlapped substantially with established factor structures. The one‐factor solution reflected Lax/Overreactive parenting and the two‐factor solution consisted of Lax/Overreactive and Hostile subscales. The factor structures were confirmed via multigroup CFA. Internal consistencies were acceptable and ranged between .70 and .85. Each factor was positively associated with parent anger, dysfunctional cognitions about child behaviour, and externalising child behaviour problems. However, when entered simultaneously in a regression, Hostile discipline was not uniquely associated with child behaviour. Overall, results support the potential utility of the 12‐item one‐factor PS as a measure of dysfunctional parenting practices for Vietnamese parents.     

Reducing Disparities in Cancer Screening and Prevention through Community‐Based Participatory Research Partnerships with Local Libraries: A Comprehensive Dynamic Trial

Reduction of cancer‐related disparities requires strategies that link medically underserved communities to preventive care. In this community‐based participatory research project, a public library system brought together stakeholders to plan and undertake programs to address cancer screening and risk behavior. This study was implemented over 48 months in 20 large urban neighborhoods, selected to reach diverse communities disconnected from care. In each neighborhood, Cancer Action Councils were organized to conduct a comprehensive dynamic trial, an iterative process of program planning, implementation and evaluation. This process was phased into neighborhoods in random, stepped‐wedge sequence. Population‐level outcomes included self‐reported screening adherence and smoking cessation, based on street intercept interviews. Event‐history regressions (n = 9374) demonstrated that adherence outcomes were associated with program implementation, as were mediators such as awareness of screening programs and cancer information seeking. Findings varied by ethnicity, and were strongest among respondents born outside the U.S. or least engaged in care. This intervention impacted health behavior in diverse, underserved and vulnerable neighborhoods. It has been sustained as a routine library system program for several years after conclusion of grant support. In sum, participatory research with the public library system offers a flexible, scalable approach to reduce cancer health disparities.     

A Relational Approach to Genetic Counseling for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer

Ethical issues arise for genetic counselors when a client fails to disclose a genetic diagnosis of hereditary disease to family: they must consider the rights of the individual client to privacy and confidentiality as well as the rights of the family to know their genetic risk. Although considerable work has addressed issues of non-disclosure from the client’s perspective, there is a lack of qualitative research into how genetic counselors address this issue in practice. In this study, a qualitative approach was taken to investigate whether genetic counselors in Australia use a relational approach to encourage the disclosure of genetic information from hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC) clients among family members; and if so, how they use it. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with 16 genetic counselors from selected states across Australia. Data collection and analysis were guided by a basic iterative approach incorporating a hybrid methodology to thematic analysis. The findings provide indicative evidence of genetic counselors employing a relational approach in three escalating stages––covert, overt and authoritative––to encourage the disclosure of genetic information. The findings lend credence to the notion that genetic counselors envision a form of relational autonomy for their clients in the context of sharing genetic information, and they depart from individualistic conceptions of care/solely client-centered counseling when addressing the needs of other family members to know their genetic status.     

Religiosity and attitudes towards professional mental health services: analysing religious coping as a mediator among Mexican origin Latinas/os in the southwest United States

In this study, we examined the relationship between religiosity and attitudes towards professional mental health services. We further examined whether internal religious coping and external religious coping mediated both relationships. Results indicated a significant association with religiosity and negative attitudes towards mental health services, as well as external religious coping and internal religious coping. Results also showed a nonsignificant association with both religious coping and negative attitudes towards mental health services. Finally, external religious coping mediated the relationship between religiosity and negative attitudes towards mental health services for men but not for women.