Socially Shared Regulation in Collaborative Groups: An Analysis of the Interplay Between Quality of Social Regulation and Group Processes

This study extends prior research on both individual self-regulation and socially shared regulation during group learning to examine the range and quality of the cognitive and behavioral social regulatory sub-processes employed by six small collaborative groups of upper-elementary students (n = 24). Qualitative analyses were conducted based on videotaped observations of groups across a series of three mathematics tasks. Variation in the quality of social regulation as a function of group processes (positive and negative socioemotional interactions, collaborative and non-collaborative interactions) was also considered. Findings suggested that the synergy among the social regulatory processes of planning, monitoring, and behavioral engagement was important for differentiating quality variation between groups. Positive socioemotional interactions and collaboration also appeared to facilitate higher quality social regulation. Implications for comprehensively supporting high quality social regulation, alongside positive socioemotional interactions and collaboration, in small group contexts are discussed.     

Attitude and knowledge changes in collegiate dancers following a short-term, team-centered prevention program on eating disorders

Eating knowledge, nutritional knowledge, and psychological changes among female collegiate dancers were examined before and after a 4-wk. team-centered program on sport nutrition, exercise, and disordered eating consequences. Collegiate female dancers from two NCAA Division I institutions participated in a control (n = 19; M age = 19.1 yr., SD = 1.0) or intervention (n = 21; M age = 19.2 yr., SD = 1.2) group. Measures were administered to both groups before and after intervention to assess eating disorders, depression, and nutritional and disordered eating knowledge. There was a statistically significant increase in scores on nutritional and overall eating disorder knowledge in the intervention group compared to the control group. Mean scores on depression, drive for thinness, body dissatisfaction, and maturity fears decreased in the intervention group.     

Group‐Based Shame and Guilt: Emerging Directions in Research

Research on the role of emotion in social identity, group processes, and intergroup conflict is burgeoning. This paper examines recent research on group‐based shame and guilt and describes important themes in this research. Guilt and shame are distinguished by different appraisals and motivations in intergroup contexts. Group‐based shame is associated with threats to group‐image and motivations to protect and repair that image. In contrast, group‐based guilt is associated with efforts to repair and apologize for ingroup wrongdoing. Current research is expanding in several important directions. First, the scope of emotions is expanding beyond that of shame and guilt to consider the roles of emotions such as ingroup‐directed anger in situations that may also provoke group‐based shame and guilt. Second, people’s motivations to avoid feeling group‐based shame and guilt are becoming better understood, particularly in relation to different aspects of social identification. Finally, we argue that dynamic processes in emotion expression and experience, particularly due to the relation between perpetrator and victim groups, are an important future direction in research on group‐based shame and guilt.     

The Costs of Accepting Gender Differences: The Role of Stereotype Endorsement in Women's Experience in the Math Domain

Two studies were designed to examine the costs of stereotype endorsement for women's self-perceptions, career intentions, and susceptibility to stereotype threat in the math domain. Study 1, a survey of women majoring in math-related fields, revealed that women who believe that status differences between the sexes are legitimate were more likely to endorse gender stereotypes about women's math abilities, which in turn predicted more negative self-perceptions of math competence and less interest in continuing study in one's field. In Study 2, women who tended to endorse gender stereotypes were found to be more susceptible to the negative effects of stereotype threat on their math test performance. The implications of these results for research on stereotype endorsement and women's math achievement are discussed.     

Gender Identification Moderates Stereotype Threat Effects on Women's Math Performance

This research applies a social identity perspective to situations of stereotype threat. It was hypothesized that individuals would be more susceptible to the performance-inhibiting effects of stereotype threat to the extent that they are highly identified with the group to which a negative stereotype applies. A quasi-experimental study with male and female college students revealed that individual differences in gender identification (i.e., importance placed on gender identity) moderated the effects of gender identity relevance on women's (but not men's) math performance. When their gender identity was linked to their performance on a math test, women with higher levels of gender identification performed worse than men, but women with lower levels of gender identification performed equally to men. When gender identity was not linked to test performance, women performed equally to men regardless of the importance they placed on gender identity.     

The influence of Mayan education on middle school students in Guatemala

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of Mayan education on the academic achievement of Indian and Ladino middle school students (N = 353) in Guatemala. This study also examined changes in ethnic identity achievement and the effects of changes in ethnic identity achievement on gains in self-esteem and other-group attitudes. Superior gains in academic skills for both Ladino and Indian students attending Mayan schools were found. The results also suggested that those students who increased their ethnic identity scores during their first year of middle school also increased their other-group attitudes. These results are discussed in terms of the benefits of Mayan education and ethnic identity achievement for both Indian and Ladino students.     

The Approach and Avoidance Function of Guilt and Shame Emotions: Comparing Reactions to Self-Caused and Other-Caused Wrongdoing

Although theory suggests that guilt motivates approach tendencies and shame motivates avoidance tendencies, research has not always supported these relationships. The present study examined the degree to which shame and guilt are uniquely predictive of avoidance and approach motives, respectively, for both self-caused and other-caused wrongdoings. Results revealed that shame and guilt are more highly correlated for self-caused compared to other-caused wrongdoings. This greater blending of shame and guilt in response to self-caused acts makes it somewhat more difficult to distinguish between different unique motivational correlates of these two emotions. However, in response to other-caused wrongdoings, shame uniquely predicted avoidance tendencies (distancing from the event), whereas guilt uniquely predicted approach tendencies (repairing the event). The implications for research on motivation, emotion, and social relations are discussed.

A Worksite smoking cessation intervention involving the media and incentives

This study evaluated an attempt at 38 workplaces to help employees stop or reduce their levels of smoking. In past research, worksite support groups, in combination with a media smoking cessation program and self-help manuals, were found to be effective in helping employees quit smoking. Unfortunately, recidivism was found at the follow-up evaluations. The present study replicated the results of the previous worksite smoking cessation program with support groups, a television intervention, and self-help manuals. At this postpoint, 42% of employees provided groups plus incentives were abstinent compared to only 15% who were only provided self-help materials. An important difference in this study was that there were also monthly follow-up support groups and incentives. Work settings can be a source of stress and conflict, which can precipitate relapse. At a 12-month follow-up, 26% of those participants who were provided support and incentives were abstinent compared to 16% who were only provided the self-help materials.     

Inglehart's Materialism-Postmaterialism Concept: Clarifying the Dimensionality Debate Through Rokeach's Model of Social Values1

This paper addresses an ongoing debate concerning the dimensionality of Inglehart's (1971, 1977, 1981, 1990) concept of materialism-postmaterialism. According to Inglehart, this concept is unidimensional, distinct from the traditional left-right political belief continuum, and central to explaining the changes taking place in the values of advanced industrial societies. To date, the debate has sought answers in different item sets, factor analytic solutions, and rotations. This paper approaches the problem through psychological models of social values. Materialism-postmaterialism, it is argued, involves a prioritizing of values from two orthogonal value orientations which have grown out of the work of Rokeach (1973): national strength and order and international harmony and equality.