Unmitigated Communion and Adjustment to Breast Cancer: Associations and Explanations1

The goal of this study was to examine the implications of unmitigated communion (a focus on others to the exclusion of the self) for adjustment to breast cancer and to explain any observed relations. Cognitive adaptation theory was the primary explanatory framework adopted. Unmitigated communion was cross‐sectionally associated with poor mental and physical functioning among women newly diagnosed with breast cancer. Prospectively, unmitigated communion predicted a decline in a couple of indicators of mental and physical functioning over 3 months. Unmitigated communion was inversely associated with indicators of cognitive adaptation: low self‐esteem, poor body image, less optimism, and greater reliance on external control. Unmitigated communion also was associated with more negative interactions with network members and a decline in support over time. The decline in body image over time had the greatest potential to explain links of unmitigated communion to poor adjustment to disease.     

The linkages of cognitive processes, stress propensity, affect, and strain: experimental test of a cognitive model of the stress response

This research examined a model of the stress response that includes cognitive-affective stress propensity, cognitive-affective processes, experienced affective reactions, subjective stress, and strain constructs. Using partial least squares analysis, this model was found to provide a good fit with the data. Moderated multiple regression analyses found support for the hypothesized moderating effects of individual stress propensity on the relationships of stressors with cognitive-affective processes. The research and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

The effects of alcohol and the salience of aggressive cues on triggered displaced aggression

Alcohol increases the aggression-augmenting effects of provocation. Theories of alcohol and aggression suggest that impaired cognitive processing induced by acute intoxication leads individuals to process aggression-inducing social cues differently depending on whether they are high or low in salience. We examined the effects of intoxication and aggressive cue salience within the triggered displaced aggression paradigm. An ethnically diverse sample of 74 primarily young adult participants (40 men and 34 women; M=23.28, SD=3.14 years) were recruited from the university community and surrounding area. All participants were provoked by an experimenter, randomly assigned to a 2 (alcohol condition: alcohol vs. placebo) x 2 (trigger salience: high vs. low salience) between-subjects design, and then given the opportunity to aggress against the undeserving triggering agent. As expected, intoxication combined with a salient triggering cue elicited the most displaced aggression among all conditions. These results provide the first evidence that the effect of alcohol on triggered displaced aggression is moderated by the salience of the triggering event.     

Slurs, Snubs, and Queer Jokes: Incidence and Impact of Heterosexist Harassment in Academia

Previous research has suggested that overt hostility against sexual minorities is associated with decrements in their well-being. However, subtler forms of heterosexism and their potential effects have been overlooked, heterosexuals have not been asked how they fare in a heterosexist environment, and no research has examined whether women and men might respond differently to heterosexism. Data from 3,128 northwestern US university students (representing all sexual orientations) address these gaps. Approximately 40% reported experiences of heterosexist harassment (HH) in the past year, and those who encountered both ambient and personal HH reported worse psychological and academic well-being than those who encountered no HH. Similar patterns of findings held for sexual minorities and heterosexuals, and for women and men. This paper is based on a presentation given at the American Psychological Association Convention in Toronto, Ontario in August 2003.     

Unmitigated communion and health among adolescents with and without diabetes: the mediating role of eating disturbances

The authors examined the implications of unmitigated communion--a focus on others to the exclusion of the self--for psychological and physical health among adolescents with (n = 132) and without (n = 131) diabetes times/during a 1-year period. Unmitigated communion predicted greater psychological distress and lower levels of competence cross-sectionally and longitudinally, controlling for sex, pubertal status, and communion. Health status moderated some longitudinal relations, such that relations held only for adolescents with diabetes. In addition, unmitigated communion was associated with poor metabolic control and predicted a deterioration in metabolic control over the year for adolescents with diabetes. Unmitigated communion also was associated with disturbed eating behavior cross-sectionally and longitudinally, and disturbed eating behavior explained some of the relations of unmitigated communion to psychological but not physical health outcomes.     

A Linguistic Comparison of Letters of Recommendation for Male and Female Chemistry and Biochemistry Job Applicants

Letters of recommendation are central to the hiring process. However, gender stereotypes could bias how recommenders describe female compared to male applicants. In the current study, text analysis software was used to examine 886 letters of recommendation written on behalf of 235 male and 42 female applicants for either a chemistry or biochemistry faculty position at a large U.S. research university. Results revealed more similarities than differences in letters written for male and female candidates. However, recommenders used significantly more standout adjectives to describe male as compared to female candidates. Letters containing more standout words also included more ability words and fewer grindstone words. Research is needed to explore how differences in language use affect perceivers’ evaluations of female candidates. This research was supported by National Institute of Mental Health Grant #1R01MH071749 to the first author and a University of Arizona grant from the College of Science Millennium Report Oversight Committee awarded to the third author.     

Social interactions and cardiovascular reactivity during problem disclosure among friends

The authors examined the relations of social interactions with cardiovascular response in the context of two friends disclosing a problem. They also examined the relations of the sex composition of the dyad and partner gender-related traits (communion/agency) with social interactions. Same-sex and opposite-sex dyads (N = 79) came to the lab. One friend disclosed a real-life problem while the partner provided support; cardiovascular response was monitored. Women provided more emotional support than men, and this sex difference was due to women's higher levels of communion. Agency was linked with greater advice, whereas unmitigated communion was linked with greater negative interactions. Negative interactions predicted slower diastolic blood pressure (DBP) recovery, whereas advice predicted slower heart rate (HR) recovery. Sex composition of dyad moderated some of these effects.     

The relationship between executive function and verbal memory in Parkinson's disease

A growing body of evidence suggests that the various cognitive symptoms found in Parkinson's disease (PD) are secondary to executive dysfunction. Studies addressing this possibility for memory impairment specifically have not included measures of working memory nor have they ruled-out potential mediating variables such as overall level of cognitive impairment or depression. The purpose of this study was to include measures of these variables in determining the relationship between multiple aspects of executive function and delayed verbal recall in 32 idiopathic PD patients. Results were consistent with the original hypothesis and further suggest that working memory is a key factor in recall memory and may mediate the relationship between other executive measures and recall in PD.     

Does time fly when you're counting down? The effect of counting direction on subjective time judgment

We show that counting downward while performing a task shortens the perceived duration of the task compared to counting upward. People perceive that less time has elapsed when they were counting downward versus upward while using a product (Studies 1 and 3) or watching geometrical shapes (Study 2). The counting direction effect is obtained using both prospective and retrospective time judgments (Study 3), but only when the count range begins with the number “1” (Study 2). Furthermore, the counting direction affects peoples' attitude toward the product, their likelihood of using it again, and their purchase intentions. We test several plausible accounts for the counting direction effect, including task difficulty, numerical anchoring, and arousal. We find preliminary evidence that downward counting feels shorter because it is more arousing than upward counting.     

An application of caricature: How to improve the recognition of facial composites

Facial caricatures exaggerate the distinctive features of a face and may elevate the recognition of a familiar face. We investigate whether the recognition of facial composites, or pictures of criminal faces, could be similarly enhanced. In this study, participants first estimated the degree of caricature necessary to make composites most identifiable. Contrary to expectation, an anticaricature was found to be best, presumably as this tended to reduce the appearance of errors. In support of this explanation, more positive caricature estimates were assigned to morphed composites: representations that tend to contain less overall error. In addition, anticaricaturing reduced identification for morphed composites but enhanced identification for individual composites. Although such improvements were too small to be of value to law enforcement, a sizeable naming benefit was observed when presenting a range of caricature states, which appeared to capitalize on individual differences in the internal representation of familiar faces.