Extraversion and neuroticism in orienting reflex dishabituation

The present study examined the effects of extraversion (E) and neuroticism (N) as individual difference dimensions and of stimulus intensity on electrodermal orienting response habituation, test response, and dishabituation. Subjects were 162 college students selected from a screening sample of 860 as representing extreme groups of high, medium, and low E crossing with high, medium, and low N. Subjects in all nine resulting groups were habituated to criterion on auditory stimuli of 60, 80, and 100 db. A novel (test) stimulus and a dishabituating standard stimulus followed criteron habituation at each intensity. Results indicated that response amplitude for initial, test, and dishabituation responses was a direct function and that habituation rate (trials-to-criterion) was an inverse function of stimulus intensity. Extraverts habituated more rapidly than introverts at high intensity and gave smaller test and dishabituation responses. Some results differed when regression coefficients defined habituation rate and when first stimulus intensities alone were examined. Correlations among initial, test, and dishabituation responses and between each of these and the two measures of habituation rate are also reported. Results were interpreted as partially supportive of Eysenck's theory.     

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.     

Perceived control and emotions: interactive effects on performance in achievement settings

Individual differences in cognitions and emotions play a critical role in difficult academic situations, such as the transition into college, a period infused with uncertainty. Perceived academic control (low vs. high) and emotions (course boredom, anxiety, and enjoyment) were examined to determine how they jointly predicted 620 first-year students’ achievement and attrition over an entire academic year. It was expected that students’ emotions would moderate the effects of high perceived control on achievement (final psychology grade, cumulative GPA) and attrition (overall course credits dropped). Regression results revealed several Perceived Control  ×  Emotion interactions that supported this moderation hypothesis: negative emotions impeded the benefits of high control (i.e., boredom and anxiety predicted worse performance in high-control students); positive emotions enhanced the benefits of high control (i.e., enjoyment predicted better performance in high-control students). Conversely, achievement emotions did not predict performance among low-control students. Together, these findings indicate that for a high level of perceived control to enhance students’ academic achievement and inhibit attrition, “adaptive” levels of emotions (lower boredom, lower anxiety, or higher enjoyment) are required. Implications for maximizing academic success among both low- and high-control students are discussed.

上海市大学城学生网瘾调查报告

本调查使用大学生网络成瘾量表,调查了上海市大学城里1286名大学生.调查结果显示:大学城学生不同性别和年级在因特网成瘾障碍量表各维度上的差异不显著,其脱瘾综合症状明显.大学城学生不同性别和年级网络成瘾的发生率有显著差异.上海市大学城学生网瘾发牛率在总体、男生、大二、大四维度上显著低于全市大学生网瘾发生率.     

大学生社会支持、自尊与主观幸福感的关系研究

目的探讨大学生社会支持、自尊与主观幸福感的关系。方法采用社会支持评定量表、自尊量表、总体幸福感量表对268名大学生进行测试。结果（1）社会支持越高,大学生的主观幸福感就越高,尤其是主观支持对主观幸福感的影响最大。同时大学生的自尊越高,主观幸福感越高。（2）自尊和主观支持对主观幸福感回归效应显著,且自尊对主观幸福感的预测力大于主观支持。（3）自尊对社会支持与主观幸福感的关系起了中介的影响。     

Attitude Towards Premarital Sex among Rural College Youth in Maharashtra,India

Little is known about the risky sexual behaviour, misconceptions and attitudes regarding sexuality and sexual health among rural youth in India. In order to understand these aspects, quantitative data were collected among 1,500 rural college students (800 male and 700 female) in the age group 15–24 years in the Thane district of Maharashtra, India, during 2004. Analysis of variance and regression analysis were performed using the total mean score of attitude towards sexuality as the dependent variable to determine the association and relationship, respectively, with background and familial characteristics. The results clearly showed that the majority of the students in the study expressed conservative attitudes towards premarital sexuality. Many students not only disagreed with casual sex but also considered it immoral. Gender bias i.e. permitting premarital sex for males and not for females, was reflected in their attitudes to some extent. Mean score indicated that male students had higher mean scores compared with their female counterparts and senior students compared with junior students, indicating more liberal attitudes towards sexuality. Bivariate analysis showed positive association between age; peer interaction; erotic exposure; habits of gutaka, tobacco, smoking and alcohol consumption; and knowledge about reproductive health issues with attitudes towards various sexuality issues. Multivariate analysis showed that female students studying in the commerce and science faculties were more liberal in attitude towards sexuality when compared with female students from the arts faculty. Male students with high erotic exposure (odds ratio 2.3); habits of gutaka, tobacco, smoking and alcohol consumption (odds ratio 2.7); and high peer interaction (odds ratio 2.3) had higher attitudinal scores indicated more liberal attitudes. Overall, the majority of the students expressed conservative attitudes towards premarital sex. The programme on sexuality education and responsibility for in-school adolescents should be launched early in secondary schools/college at an early stage of the perception process and formulation of attitudes towards sexuality. This would provide students with more scientific information and deter them from gathering incomplete information through sources such as pornography and peers.     

The effects of college major and job field congruence on job satisfaction

This study investigated predictors of job satisfaction and builds on previous research on the effects of bachelor’s degree majors and job field congruence on job satisfaction. Data on workers’ job experiences in 2001 were matched to those workers’ college experiences across 30 institutions and background characteristics up to 25 years earlier. With statistical controls for demographic, socioeconomic, and academic characteristics, a final sample of 2515 college graduates was used to test hypotheses centered on the possibility that a causal order relates education and job satisfaction. Specifically, college degree majors, measures of both actual and perceived congruence, as well as income were examined in relation to three dimensions of job satisfaction. Results support hypotheses that income and congruence both mediate the effects of majors on job satisfaction, and identify that two different measures of congruence are causally related to intrinsic dimensions of job satisfaction.     

大学生成就目标与主观幸福感的关系研究

目的：探讨大学生成就目标与主观幸福感的关系。方法：采用成就目标量表、主观幸福感量表整群抽样调查247名大学生。结果：①来自乡村的大学生的掌握目标显著高于来自城镇的大学生,女生的成绩回避目标显著高于男生。②掌握目标与积极情感显著正相关,与消极情感显著负相关;成绩接近目标与生活满意度、积极情感显著正相关;成绩回避目标与消极情感显著正相关。③掌握目标正向预测积极情感,负向预测消极情感;成绩接近目标正向预测生活满意度和积极情感;成绩回避目标正向预测消极情感,负向预测积极情感。结论：掌握目标和成绩接近目标有利于主观幸福感,成绩回避目标不利于主幸福感。     

Contradictions in the American dream: High educational aspirations and perceptions of deteriorating institutional support

This study examines contradictions in the “American Dream” during the Great Recession: young adults maintained high educational aspirations, yet perceived little opportunity for their educational achievements to help them fulfil their dreams of financial prosperity and work stability. Based on in‐depth interviews with 85 young college students and recent graduates, this study found that college enrolment was propelled by the recession, as a college degree, and often a graduate or professional degree, was perceived as an increasingly necessary credential. Despite these high educational aspirations, students and recent graduates were fearful about their capacity to find future work and they expressed concerns about the collapse of employment opportunity. Many were also wary of educational institutions, which they viewed as unable to prepare them for a shrinking job market. These perceptions reveal a contradiction in the “American Dream:” although young adults have high aspirations and achievements, they have lost confidence in the educational and work institutions upon which they must depend.     

The Relationship Between Direct Violence Victimization and Arrest History: The Mediating Role of Aggression

This study sought to determine whether emerging adults with a history of arrest differed on reported experiences of direct violence victimization (DVV), as well as measures of depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and aggression. We administered self-report measures to 535 diverse college students. Results revealed that 64 participants reported a history of arrest. Participants with a history of arrest reported significantly higher scores on measures of aggression, as well as a greater number of DVV experiences, when compared to a comparable random sample of participants with no history of arrest. When the total sample was examined, there was no direct relationship between DVV and history of arrest. However, we found evidence for the mediating effect of aggression between the two variables. Our findings suggest that, among emerging adults who have experienced DVV, high levels of aggression may play a role in criminal justice involvement.