Values,abilities and behavior

The values of life, freedom and solidarity are the base on which we can build behaviors and abilities. Schools must be flexible, they must allow the young to explore and to express all their potential abilities. We must create a new balance, just as we must give the young a new sense of responsibility in the pursuit of their studies.     

Clarifying the Role of Psychological Pain in the Risks of Suicidal Ideation and Suicidal Acts among Patients with Major Depressive Episodes

The role of psychological pain in the risk of suicide was explored using a three‐dimensional psychological pain model (pain arousal, painful feelings, pain avoidance). The sample consisted of 111 outpatients with major depressive episodes, including 28 individuals with suicidal histories. They completed the Chinese version of the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (BSI), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Psychache Scale, and the three‐dimensional Psychological Pain Scale (TDPPS). A structured clinical interview was conducted to assess the history of suicidal acts. Significant correlations were found among BDI, BSI, and TDPPS scores (p < .01). Stepwise regression analyses showed that only pain avoidance scores significantly predicted suicide ideation at one's worst point (β = .79, p < .001) and suicidal acts (β = .46, p < .001). Pain avoidance was also a better predictor of current suicidal ideation (β = .37, p = .001) than were BDI scores (β = .31, p < .01). Increased levels of pain avoidance during a major depressive episode may be a dominant component of the motivation for suicide. Future clinical assessments for populations at high risk of suicide should include measures of psychological pain to reduce the incidence of suicide.     

Culture and Testing Practices: Is the World Flat?

There has been much speculation regarding the influence of cultural norms on the acceptance and use of personnel selection testing. This study examined the cross‐level direct effects of four societal cultural variables (performance orientation, future orientation, uncertainty avoidance, and tightness–looseness) on selection practices of organisations in 23 countries. A total of 1,153 HR professionals responded to a survey regarding testing practices in hiring contexts. Overall, little evidence of a connection between cultural practices and selection practices emerged. Implications of these findings for personnel selection and cross‐cultural research as well as directions for future work in this area are described.     

国家宗教事务局局长叶小文看望慰问中国道教协会负责人

1月6日上午全国政协民族和宗教委员会主任田聪明、副主任周明甫、专职副主任邓宗良,在民宗委办公室副主任卫元琪等的陪同下来到北京白云观,看望慰问中国道教协会负责人,向全国道教界表示节日的问候和新春的祝福.