Health of entrepreneurs versus employees in a national representative sample

Prior research has found entrepreneurs to experience significantly higher job control and job demands compared with employees. This suggests that entrepreneurs have so‐called active jobs and thus may benefit from positive health consequences. The present research compared entrepreneurs' health with employees' health in a national representative sample with regard to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision (ICD‐10) diagnoses of somatic diseases, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM‐IV) diagnoses of mental disorders, blood pressure, well‐being (life‐satisfaction) as well as behavioural health indicators (sick days, physician visits). Entrepreneurs showed significantly lower overall somatic and mental morbidity, lower blood pressure, lower prevalence rates of hypertension, and somatoform disorders, as well as higher well‐being and more favourable behavioural health indicators. The results are discussed with regard to the active job hypothesis and recommendations for future research are provided.     

Mindset effects on information search in self‐evaluation

Research on mindset theory (Gollwitzer & Bayer, 1999 ) observed that people in an implemental mindset show an orientation towards positive illusionary self‐evaluations, whereas people in a deliberative mindset opt for accurate self‐evaluations. In the present study, we tested whether these self‐evaluative orientations and the associated search for certain types of self‐relevant information (feedback) are moderated by low versus high self‐views. With high self‐view participants we observed the hypothesized mindset effects on information search, but we obtained the reverse pattern for low self‐view participants. The latter finding points to self‐defensiveness in low self‐view individuals. Implications are discussed in terms of the consequences of accurate versus positive illusionary self‐evaluations for the successful control of goal pursuits, and individual differences in mindset effects. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Helping Behavior as a Subtle Measure of Discrimination Against Lesbians and Gay Men: German Data and a Comparison Across Countries1

To unobtrusively assess attitudes toward lesbians and gay men, the wrong‐number technique was used in a field experiment in Germany. The results are compared to studies using the same paradigm in Switzerland, Great Britain, and the United States. This approach gives a realistic picture of intercultural differences in social behavior against lesbians and gay men. Across studies, the results indicated that homosexuals are less likely to receive help than are heterosexuals. The variation of this effect between countries closely corresponded to the ranking of attitudes toward homosexuality assessed in survey studies. Contrary to survey studies, however, women showed only marginally less negative attitudes toward gay persons than men, when actual helping behavior was used as an attitude index.     

Sensitivity and bias under conditions of equal and unequal academic task difficulty

We conducted an experimental analysis of children's relative problem-completion rates across two workstations under conditions of equal (Experiment 1) and unequal (Experiment 2) problem difficulty. Results were described using the generalized matching equation and were evaluated for degree of schedule versus stimulus control. Experiment 1 involved a symmetrical choice arrangement in which the children could earn points exchangeable for rewards contingent on correct math problem completion. Points were delivered according to signaled variable-interval schedules at each workstation. For 2 children, relative rates of problem completion appeared to have been controlled by the schedule requirements in effect and matched relative rates of reinforcement, with sensitivity values near 1 and bias values near 0. Experiment 2 involved increasing the difficulty of math problems at one of the workstations. Sensitivity values for all 3 participants were near 1, but a substantial increase in bias toward the easier math problems was observed. This bias was possibly associated with responding at the more difficult workstation coming under stimulus control rather than schedule control.     

Ein gemeinsames Modell für neurotische und Borderline-Hysterien

Hysteria is conceived here as result of a failed attempt of separation. It concerns a progressive defence formation, which uses positive oedipal forms of sexualization. With the introduction of the concept of "Early Triangulation" it is possible to develop a psychodynamical uniform model for the manifold forms of female and male hysteria, and which deals with common factors and difference in malignant and benign forms. Using the triangulation hypothesis the connection between pregenital and oedipal phenomena of hysteria can be shown and the main hysterical symptom conversion can be recognized in its material-related function.     

Fluent Reading as the Improvement of Stimulus Control: Additive Effects of Performance-Based Interventions to Repeated Reading on Students' Reading and Error Rates

The impact of adding performance-based interventions to a skill-based intervention on oral reading fluency was examined with 3 elementary students identified as having difficulty with reading. Two performance-based interventions were combined with the skill-based intervention Repeated Reading (RR) to create the three instructional packages investigated. The packages included Repeated Readings (RR), Repeated Readings with Performance Feedback (RR/FB), and Repeated Readings with Performance Feedback and Contingent Reward (RR/FB/REW). Results suggested that Repeated Reading (RR) alone led to the greatest increase in reading fluency for participants with the highest reading rates and lowest error rates at baseline. In contrast, the participant who exhibited the lowest reading rate and highest error rate benefited the most when Repeated Readings was offered in conjunction with Performance Feedback (RR/FB) or Performance Feedback plus Contingent Reward (RR/FB/RW). Implications for blending skill- and performance-based interventions to develop stimulus control over fluent reading and future research directions are discussed.     

Assessment and prediction in an ecological system: Application of the general linear model to the response-class concept

This study investigated the extent to which observed frequencies of covarying responses could be utilized in the prediction of classroom behavior. Five behavior categories were observed daily over a 12-week period in the regular classroom settings of four fifth-grade and two fourth-grade male students. For each subject, stepwise regression analyses were conducted to determine which behaviors accounted for the largest proportions of variance in a single response category. The proportions of variance explained in the behavior categories of the subjects ranged from 8.9 to 75.4%. Further, response categories serving as predictor variables, as well as the number of predictor variables entered into the equations, differed across subjects. These results are discussed in terms of their implications for behavioral assessment and treatment application.