Moderating effects of three coping strategies and self-esteem on perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms: A minority stress model for Asian international students

This study examined 3 coping strategies (reflective, suppressive, and reactive), along with self-esteem, as moderators of the relation between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. International students (N = 354) from China, India, Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong provided data via an online survey. The role of perceived general stress was statistically controlled. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated a significant direct effect of perceived discrimination, a significant 2-way interaction of perceived discrimination and suppressive coping, and a significant 3-way interaction of perceived discrimination, reactive coping, and self-esteem in predicting depressive symptoms. An increased tendency to use suppressive coping appeared to strengthen the association between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. In contrast, the association between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms was not significant when reactive coping was infrequently used, but only for students with relatively high self-esteem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved).     

Bayesian generic priors for causal learning

The article presents a Bayesian model of causal learning that incorporates generic priors--systematic assumptions about abstract properties of a system of cause-effect relations. The proposed generic priors for causal learning favor sparse and strong (SS) causes--causes that are few in number and high in their individual powers to produce or prevent effects. The SS power model couples these generic priors with a causal generating function based on the assumption that unobservable causal influences on an effect operate independently (P. W. Cheng, 1997). The authors tested this and other Bayesian models, as well as leading nonnormative models, by fitting multiple data sets in which several parameters were varied parametrically across multiple types of judgments. The SS power model accounted for data concerning judgments of both causal strength and causal structure (whether a causal link exists). The model explains why human judgments of causal structure (relative to a Bayesian model lacking these generic priors) are influenced more by causal power and the base rate of the effect and less by sample size. Broader implications of the Bayesian framework for human learning are discussed.     

语言的群体间偏差研究

个体在用语言来描述他人的行为时,会因为描述对象的群体种类不同而有偏差,具体表现为在描述群体内成员的积极行为和群体外成员的负向行为时,会使用较高抽象水平的词;在描述群体外成员的积极行为和群体内成员的负向行为时,会使用较低抽象水平的词。这种抽象水平的差异由语言范畴模型来具体表明。Maass等人把这种描述上的偏差命名为语言的群体间偏差。并认为在这一现象下有两种机制：动机机制和认知机制,研究表明认知机制能解释大部分语言的群体间偏差现象,而动机机制会在群体内形象受到威胁时发挥作用。     

How Do Organizations and Social Policies ‘Acculturate’ to Immigrants? Accommodating Skilled Immigrants in Canada

While the idea of acculturation (Berry 1997) was originally proposed as the mutual change of both parties (e.g., immigrants and the host society), the change processes of host societies are neglected in research. A grounded theory study explored the efforts of human service organizations to 'acculturate' to an increasingly diverse immigrant population, through interviews conducted with service providers serving Mainland Chinese immigrants. Acculturation efforts of human service organizations (mezzo-level acculturation) were often needs-driven and affected by the political will and resultant funding programs (macro-level forces). Even with limitations, human service organizations commonly focused on hiring Mainland Chinese immigrants to reflect the changing demographics of their clientele and creating new programs to meet the language and cultural backgrounds of the clients. To contextualize these organizational efforts, an analysis of how policy changes (macro-level acculturation) interact with organizational practice is presented. Finally, the meaning of acculturation for the host society is discussed.     

3D mapping of language networks in clinical and pre-clinical Alzheimer's disease

We investigated the associations between Boston naming and the animal fluency tests and cortical atrophy in 19 probable AD and 5 multiple domain amnestic mild cognitive impairment patients who later converted to AD. We applied a surface-based computational anatomy technique to MRI scans of the brain and then used linear regression models to detect associations between animal fluency and Boston Naming Test (BNT) performance and cortical atrophy. The global permutation-corrected significance for the maps associating BNT performance with cortical atrophy was p=.0124 for the left and p=.0196 for the right hemisphere and for the animal fluency maps p=.055 for the left and p=.073 for the right hemisphere. The degree of language impairment correlated with cortical atrophy in the left temporal and parietal lobes (BA 20, 21, 37, 39, 40, and 7), bilateral frontal lobes (BA 8, 9, and 44) and the right temporal pole (BA 38). Using a novel 3D mapping technique, we demonstrated that in AD language abilities are strongly influenced by the integrity of the perisylvian cortical regions.     

诱发负性情绪时人际情绪调节与个体情绪调节对前瞻记忆的影响

依据在情绪调节过程中大量存在的人际互动现象,首次明确提出人际情绪调节概念,并采用以前瞻记忆成绩为因变量的前后衔接、递进的两阶段实验模式研究其与个体情绪调节对缓解负性情绪影响的差异。结果表明：诱发的负性情绪会干扰双任务前瞻记忆;在高认知负载情境下,人际情绪调节对这种干扰的调节效果显著优于个体情绪调节。这说明从理论上确认人际情绪调节概念具有合理性,从实证上探讨了这种调节方式可能更有效地调节负性情绪对认知资源的占用,从而有助于扩展情绪调节领域的研究视角,并推进对其作用机制的研究     

信用卡消费者透支行为的心理特征及其人群分类研究

由于广大信用卡消费者的行为决策与心理因素密切相关,因而深入分析透支行为对于消费决策的影响,对于推动我国信用卡市场健康发展以及促使消费者形成理性的透支决策具有重要的现实意义.本研究发现:信用卡消费者透支行为的心理特征差异可以从消费意愿性、透支情感性、还贷能力性、财务压力性、社保完善性、自我控制性、利率敏感性、从众环境性这八个因素进行分析;信用卡消费者可分为"透支偏好型"、"透支权变型"以及" 透支规避型"三类.     

心境影响自尊的记忆效应的研究

研究了心境在自尊的记忆效应中所起的作用.被试为181名大学生,30个特质形容词为刺激材料,采用2(自尊分组)×2(BDI分组)×2(参照条件)×2(词性)的混合实验设计,要求被试自由回忆特质形容词.以中性词或BDI分数为协变量进行了方差分析及简单效应分析,结果重复证实了既往研究发现的自尊的记忆效应模式,且发现不存在对于负向信息的自我参照效应.更为重要的是,研究结果证实自尊的记忆效应并非暂时的心境使然,而是特质自尊作用的结果.这一结果有助于加深对自尊的认知动力特性的认识.     

高校教师组织承诺与工作绩效的关系研究

本文主要探讨高校教师组织承诺与工作绩效之间的关系,通过回归分析得出以下结论:(1)对人际促进而言,5个变量能联合预测工作绩效中人际促进的18%的变异量(R2=0.180).其中规范承诺的贡献率较大,机会承诺的贡献率最小.(2)对任务绩效而言,5个变量能联合预测工作绩效中任务绩效的16.7%的变异量(R2=0.167),其中,规范承诺的贡献率最大,其次为理想承诺.(3)对工作奉献而言,5个变量能联合预测工作绩效中工作奉献的17.2%的变异量(R2=0.172)其中,感情承诺的贡献率最大,其次分别为规范承诺、理想承诺.     

情绪智力结构的实证研究

通过编制问卷和对初中生情绪智力的调查,对我们先前提出的情绪智力概念以及发展性情绪智力的结构进行实证研究.结果表明,我们得到了一个模型拟合较好的情绪智力结构,达到了构想水平,验证了我们先前提出的关于情绪智力结构的理论构想.同时获得初中生情绪智力的特点的调查信息.