Young adolescents’ emotional and regulatory responses to positive life events: Investigating temperament,attachment, and event characteristics

Very little is known about what factors predict variations in responses to positive events among youth. Consequently, we examined young adolescents’ positive emotional reactions and their savoring and dampening responses to their most intense positive event across a four-day period. The investigated predictors were parent-reported adolescent temperament, adolescent-reported attachment security with mothers and fathers, and researcher-coded event characteristics. The sample was 56 youth (31 boys, 10–14 years of age). More support was found for temperament than attachment. Specifically, effortful control predicted more savoring and sustained positive affect (PA) about the events, whereas negative emotionality predicted more dampening. Adolescents’ reports of more secure attachment to fathers were marginally linked to more savoring of their positive event. Girls reported higher levels of initial PA yet endorsed more dampening responses than boys. Event type (interpersonal vs. not) was unrelated to responses to the events. Overall, this study offers new information on the development of PA regulation and responses to positive events in youth.     

The Flexible Correction Model: Bias Correction Guided by Naïve Theories of Bias

Psychological researchers have examined a broad array of biases and shortcomings of social perceivers. Less attention has been paid to how people react when they become concerned about the possibility of bias and attempt to correct or overcome the potential for bias. An early approach was to think of bias correction as “subtracting” information or reactions that are identified as coming from the biasing factor instead of the target. An alternative approach is to conceptualize bias correction as guided by social perceivers' naïve theories or perceptions of the bias at work. The subtraction theories were designed to deal with the assimilative biases typical of early priming experiments, but theory‐based corrections can readily deal with either assimilative or contrastive biases. We describe both types of correction theories, with a focus on the empirical support for theory‐based correction (and especially for the Flexible Correction Model). We also identify future directions for research on theory‐based correction.     

Walking Before and During a Sea Voyage

Stationary and moving surfaces impose different constraints on walking. In this study we investigated within-participants differences between walking on a ship before (at the dock) and during (at sea) a sea voyage. Four individuals participated in the study. While on the ship they wore a tri-axial accelerometer (ActiGraph GT3X+; ActiGraph LLC, Pensacola, FL) on their waists. Activity data were sampled at 30 Hz. Data were collected on the day before the voyage began and on several days at sea. The number of steps per day was greater at the dock than at sea. The net resultant force per day also was greater at the dock than at sea. However, resultant force per step was greater at sea (79.97 ± 8.50 vector magnitude counts/step) than on land (62.94 ± 10.03 vector magnitude counts/step). In addition, we observed variations in resultant force per step across days at sea. Ship motion decreased overall activity but increased the force per step.     

We‐commerce: Exploring factors influencing online group‐buying intention in Taiwan from a conformity perspective

Group buying is a relatively new online consumption practice. Consumers negotiate product or service prices with businesses to obtain low prices or an increased number of products. This study investigates factors influencing online group‐buying intention from a conformity perspective. An online survey is used to sample 650 online group buyers in Taiwan. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) is applied to examine the hypotheses within the theoretical framework. Analytical results indicate that social factors (online recommendations, media recommendations, and personal recommendations) positively affect social influence and online group‐buying intention. Individual factors (compliance and attention‐to‐social‐comparison‐information) positively affect social influence and conformity. Psychological factors (financial risk, performance risk, and social risk) negatively affect online group‐buying intention, and are positively correlated with social influence and conformity. Furthermore, social influence (informational influence and normative influence) are positively correlated with conformity and online group‐buying intention. Social influence and conformity are positively correlated with online group‐buying intention. Finally, implications of analytical findings are discussed.     

Heuristic cognitive diagnosis when the Q‐matrix is unknown

Cognitive diagnosis models of educational test performance rely on a binary Q‐matrix that specifies the associations between individual test items and the cognitive attributes (skills) required to answer those items correctly. Current methods for fitting cognitive diagnosis models to educational test data and assigning examinees to proficiency classes are based on parametric estimation methods such as expectation maximization (EM) and Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) that frequently encounter difficulties in practical applications. In response to these difficulties, non‐parametric classification techniques (cluster analysis) have been proposed as heuristic alternatives to parametric procedures. These non‐parametric classification techniques first aggregate each examinee's test item scores into a profile of attribute sum scores, which then serve as the basis for clustering examinees into proficiency classes. Like the parametric procedures, the non‐parametric classification techniques require that the Q‐matrix underlying a given test be known. Unfortunately, in practice, the Q‐matrix for most tests is not known and must be estimated to specify the associations between items and attributes, risking a misspecified Q‐matrix that may then result in the incorrect classification of examinees. This paper demonstrates that clustering examinees into proficiency classes based on their item scores rather than on their attribute sum‐score profiles does not require knowledge of the Q‐matrix, and results in a more accurate classification of examinees.     

Exploring and Estimating the Revenues and Profits of Participants in Stolen Data Markets

Researchers have begun to explore the problem of mass data breaches, where consumer information is acquired by cybercriminals and sold in open markets on-line. Although studies document the social processes of the market and relationships between buyers and sellers, few have considered the revenues earned from market transactions. This study explored these issues using a sample of threads from 10 Russian language and 3 English language Web forums used to sell stolen data. Estimates were generated on the total number of transactions completed by participants along with the advertised prices for the two most common forms of personal information sold. The findings demonstrated that buyers may earn a range of revenues from the sale of stolen data, although this figure was smaller than the potential profits earned from fraudulent use and identity crimes by data buyers. The implications of this study for cybercrime research and policy are explored in detail.     

Refusal Self‐Efficacy Among SMART Recovery Members by Affiliation Length and Meeting Frequency

Using the Brief Situational Confidence Questionnaire, the authors examined the refusal self‐efficacy of 105 Self‐Management and Recovery Training (SMART Recovery) members according to their affiliation length and meeting frequency. Results demonstrated that longer affiliation with SMART Recovery and higher meeting frequency significantly enhanced substance refusal self‐efficacy.     

Effects of Parental Psychological Control on Child’s School Life: Mobile Phone Dependency as Mediator

Ecological view of human development calls for an investigation of multiple contexts surrounding children. In South Korea, traditional Confucianism and recent technological advancements serve as influential social and cultural contexts that affect parent–child relations and child development. High levels of parental control and strong emphasis on academic achievement have long been distinctive features of Korean parenting practices, which are attributable to Confucian values. Additionally, Korean children’s mobile phone dependency (MPD) has become a growing concern, as South Korea developed as an IT powerhouse. Combined, these contexts resulted in high parental control of children’s mobile phone use, so that such electronic devices would not hinder learning and achievement. Effects of high parental control on children’s MPD and their school life, however, have yet to be discovered. We hypothesized, that, unlike parents’ intentions, psychological control is more likely to increase MPD and disrupt school life. To examine this research model, we made use of the first and third wave data from Korea Children and Youth Panel Survey. Participants were 2378 children (52.2 % boys) of the same age of 10 in the first wave. After multiple imputation for missing values, hierarchical logistic regression followed to examine the mediational model. The results verified the hypothesized model, showing significant adverse influence of psychological control on MPD, self-regulated learning and school adjustment. MPD fully mediated the effect of psychological control on self-regulations, while partially mediating the effects on school adjustment. Implications for Korean parents with regard to supporting children’s psychological autonomy was discussed.     

Mix or Match? Consumer Spending Decisions in Conditional Promotions

Conditional multi‐item promotions are a prevalent marketing tactic whereby consumers have to buy a certain number of products to get a discount. This paper examines how framing a multi‐item promotion in terms of savings on multiple items versus a single item (e.g., “buy two, get X% off on both” vs. “buy two, get 2X% off on the cheaper item”) affects consumers’ decision‐making and product choices. Two laboratory studies and a field study at a boutique clothing store demonstrate that the “2X% on cheaper” framing makes consumers more likely to select similarly priced primary and secondary items. This strategy is driven by increased focus on promotional savings under the “2X% on cheaper” framing, which leads consumers to spend more on their secondary items. Overall, this research shows how a subtle change in the framing of multi‐item promotions changes consumers’ product selection strategies and shopping basket composition.