Considering the role of personality in the work-family experience: Relationships of the big five to work-family conflict and facilitation

Using a national, random sample (N=2130), we investigated the relationship between each of the Big Five personality traits and conflict and facilitation between work and family roles. Extraversion was related to greater facilitation between roles but was not related to conflict, whereas neuroticism was related to greater conflict but only weakly related to facilitation. Conscientiousness was related to less conflict, presumably reflecting efficient time use and organizational skills. In general, conflict was negatively related to work-family outcomes (e.g., lower job and family effort and satisfaction) whereas facilitation was positively related to the same outcomes. Conflict and facilitation were shown, however, to be orthogonal rather than opposite constructs. Implications for work-family theory, for the understanding of personality traits, and for enhanced responsibilities of organizations are discussed.     

Is Modernism Really Modern? Uncovering a Fallacy in Postmodernism

Some postmodernists criticize the view that the logics of Western thought can be employed universally. In doing so, they assume without adequate proof that different human societies have greatly different rationalities and employ completely different logics. This essay argues that, on the contrary, widely different cultures often share noteworthy similarities in rationality.     

Consumer Response to a Prosocial Marketing Initiative: The Case of Discount Stores and Gun Sales

This research examined factors that influence how consumers respond to prosocial marketing initiatives. Specifically, consumers' attitudes toward the societal role of corporations were examined within the context of a prosocial (an activity perceived by the consumer to benefit society) marketing action being undertaken by a corporation. The results indicate that whether a consumer believed a firm should be managed primarily for the benefit of the common good (e.g., the greater community, consumers, employees) or managed primarily for the benefit of investors significantly influenced the likelihood of store patronage. Perceived ethicality of the retailer's action also mediated the relationship between consumers' attitudes toward the societal role of corporations and the likelihood of store patronage. The marketing and societal implications of these results are discussed.     

Relationship of social support and social burden to repeated breast cancer screening in the women's health initiative.

Direct and interactive effects of social support, social burden (caregiving, negative life events, and social strain), education, and income on repeated use of breast cancer screening among a large (N=55,278), national sample of postmenopausal women participating in the Women's Health Initiative observational study were examined. Repeated screening decreased as emotional/informational support and positive social interactions decreased (ps<.01). Repeated mammography decreased with frequent caregiving (p<.01). Less social strain reduced the frequency of repeated breast self-examinations (BSEs; ps<.01), but frequent caregiving and more negative life events increased repeated use of BSE (ps<.01). Interactive effects suggested that emotional/informational but not tangible support is associated with repeated mammography and clinical breast examinations (ps<.01) and may be particularly important among low-income older women, especially those burdened by caregiving.     

Interaction of Recruiter and Applicant Gender in Resume Evaluation: A Field Study

In the present study, we examined the effect of recruiter and applicant gender on recruiters' evaluations of applicants' qualifications as reported on actual applicant resumes. Forty recruiters evaluated applicant resumes that were randomly allocated to them. In total, 388 recruiter evaluations of applicant resumes comprised the sample. Results indicate that recruiter and applicant gender interacted to predict recruiters' perceptions of applicants' qualifications. Male recruiters' perceptions of applicants' work experiences did not differ depending on applicant gender. However, female recruiters perceived male applicants' resumes to report more work experiences than resumes of female applicants. Furthermore, male recruiters perceived female applicants as having more extracurricular interests than male applicants. Female recruiters rated both male and female applicants as having about the same amount of extracurricular activity information on their resumes. Gender role theory provides a possible explanation for the study's findings.     

Using confidence ratings to identify a target among foils

Sauer, Brewer, and Weber (2008) advanced a novel procedure for testing eyewitness recognition memory. Rather than providing a single decision (i.e., identifying a lineup member or rejecting the lineup as a whole), participants rated their confidence that each lineup member was the culprit. Classification algorithms determined when patterns of confidence ratings indicated suspect guilt or innocence. Across varied test stimuli, confidence-based classifications equalled or out-performed single decisions. However, Sauer et al.’s classification criteria were designed to optimize performance for the data to which they were applied. If effective classification using confidence ratings requires such idiosyncratic criteria, the applied utility of the confidence procedure is nil. We re-analysed the data from Sauer et al.’s two identification experiments and demonstrated that confidence-based classification performance exceeding that of a traditional lineup task did not depend on uniquely developed classification criteria. Confidence-rating lineups offer a potentially promising alternative to procedures requiring single decisions from witnesses.     

Perception in the absence of attention: perceptual processing in the Roelofs effect during inattentional blindness

We present two experiments that examine sensory processing during conditions of inattentional blindness. A large rectangular frame that normally induces a Roelofs effect can go unreported due to inattentional blindness. Even when participants fail to report the frame, they mislocalize an attended target in a way consistent with having processed the frame. A more demanding visuospatial distractor task can increase inattentional blindness during conditions of divided attention, but has no effect on the spatial mislocalization illusion. Our results support theories that postulate a significant amount of perceptual processing in the absence of attention.     

Genetic architecture of context processing in late middle age: more than one underlying mechanism

Studies comparing young and older adults suggest a deficit in processing context information as a key mechanism underlying cognitive aging. However, the genetic architecture of context processing has not been examined. Consistent with previous results, we found evidence of functionally dissociable components of context processing accuracy in 1127 late middle-aged twins ages 51-60. One component emphasizes use of context cues to prepare responses (proactive cognitive control), and the other emphasizes adjustment of responses after probes are presented (reactive control). Approximately one-quarter of the variance in each component was accounted for by genes. Multivariate twin analysis indicated that genetic factors underlying two important components of context processing were independent of one another, thus implicating more than one underlying mechanism. Slower reaction time (RT) on noncontext processing trials was positively correlated with errors on the strongly proactive control component on which young adults outperform older adults, but RT was negatively correlated with errors on the strongly reactive control component on which older adults perform better. Although this RT measure was uncorrelated with chronological age in our age-homogeneous sample, slower RT was associated with performance patterns that were more like older adults. However, this did not generalize to other processing speed measures. Genetic correlations, which reflect shared genetic variance, paralleled the phenotypic correlations. There was also a positive genetic correlation between general cognitive ability and accuracy on the proactive control component, but there were still mostly distinct genetic influences underlying these measures. In contrast, the reactive control component was unrelated to general cognitive ability.     

Associations between evaluation anxiety,cognitive interference and performance on working memory tasks

According to Cognitive Interference Theory, evaluation anxiety leads to increased negative off‐task self‐dialogue which then results in diminished cognitive performance. Given that negative off‐task self‐dialogue is primarily verbal, the phonological loop and central executive components of the working memory system should be most affected by evaluation anxiety. Eighty‐eight participants were randomly assigned to receive evaluation anxiety inducing instructions or supportive instructions prior to administration of three tests (Digit Span, Visual Memory Span, and StroopColour‐Word) that measured the phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, and central executive components of working memory. Measures of evaluation anxiety and negative off‐task self‐dialogue were obtained during and after testing. Results showed that participants receiving anxiety inducing instructions reported significantly more evaluation anxiety and off‐task self‐dialogue. They also had significantly lower performance on the Digit Span Test and the StroopColour‐Word Test. Negative off‐task self‐dialogue also mediated the relationship between evaluation anxiety and performance on the Digit Span Test. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.