Mnemonic differences and similarities across opposing social groups: The linguistic conflict at the University of Leuven as a case study

In the 1960s, a historical event occurred at one of Europe's most prestigious universities: The Dutch-speaking students forced the French-speaking students to relocate and establish their own university. We compared the extent to which members of each social group developed elaborate memories of the events surrounding the conflict and whether they were associated with differences in rehearsal type (media, conversational, rumination) and initiating conditions (importance, political engagement, and negative/positive emotions). All participants were university students at the time of the conflict. We found that Dutch-speakers exhibited more elaborate memories compared to French-speakers and that importance was associated with elaborate memories only for the Dutch-speakers. However, positive emotions appear to be critical in the formation of elaborate memories across the social groups. We found no such associations for negative emotions. We discuss these results in terms of the social/cognitive processes transcending social group membership in understanding how individuals remember past conflicts.     

驾驶员情绪状态研究

采用驾驶员情绪状态量表(DPOMS),对265名客车驾驶员的情绪状态进行了问卷调查。结果表明：(1)年龄对驾驶员的疲劳状态有显著影响,对其余各种情绪状态没有显著影响;(2)女驾驶员的紧张精绪显著高于男驾驶员,积极情绪(精力)显著于低于男驾驶员;(3)出租汽车驾驶员的愤怒、疲劳、紧张等消极精绪显著高于公交大客车驾驶员,积极情绪(精力)显著低于公交大客车驾驶员;(4)事故组驾驶员的愤怒、疲劳、紧张、慌乱等消极情绪显著高于安全组驾驶员,积极情绪(精力)显著低于安全组驾驶员。     

Impulsive responses to positive mood and reward are related to mania risk

Bipolar disorder is characterised by impulsivity, and recent research suggests it is important to consider more specific forms of impulsivity. In two student samples, we examined associations of self-reported impulsivity with mania risk (Hypomanic Personality Scale, HPS). We hypothesised that mania risk would relate to impulsivity in the context of opportunities for rewarding activities (Delaying Gratification Inventory, DGI), reward pursuit (Fun-Seeking subscale of the Behavioural Activation Scale, BAS), and when experiencing positive affect (Positive Urgency Measure, PUM). In Study 1 (N=823), the HPS was uniquely related to Fun-Seeking and PUM scores. Study 2 (N=482) replicated the correlation of HPS scores with PUM while documenting positive associations between PUM and trait-like responses to positive affect. Findings across both studies stress the importance of considering the role of positive emotion in driving the impulsivity among persons at risk for mania. These findings have implications for refining our understanding of the aetiology of bipolar disorder and for treatment development.     

Positive mood boosts the expression of a dispositional need for closure

Three studies (N=539) examined the hypothesis that positive mood increases the degree to which epistemic motivation, i.e., the need for closure (NFC), affects the way in which an individual processes information (heuristic vs. systematic processing). In each of the studies, different methods of operationalising mood were used: in Study 1, mood was measured as a state; in Study 2, mood was induced by asking participants to recall emotional events; and in Study 3, mood was induced by emotional pictures. The styles of information processing that were utilised by our participants were operationalised in terms of their preferences for (Study 1) and ability to recall (Studies 2 and 3) schema-consistent and schema-inconsistent information. Taken together, the results of the three studies show that only under positive mood, NFC level of an individual is consistent with his or her style of information processing, that is, only under positive mood is there a negative relationship between the NFC level of an individual and the utilisation of schema-inconsistent information. Our results can be explained in terms of the effect that mood has on an individual's perceived ability to achieve NFC.     

儿童对图画喻意理解的比较研究

本文针对儿童对图画中隐喻情绪的识辨和理解的发展特点 ,进行了跨文化研究。旨在探索儿童对图画喻意的敏感性的发展规律以及不同教育方式对儿童图画认知发展的影响。 3 60名 4岁到 2 0岁的中英被试参加了实验。结果表明 :在识辨作品任务及口头评价中 ,中国儿童比英国同龄儿童更早理解图画的情绪喻意 ,并很少对图画的悲伤喻意持忽略态度。提示不同文化背景下 ,儿童对图画喻意的理解存在发展上的不均衡性 ,中国的幼教方式也许促进了儿童对图画喻意理解的发展。     

Positive Marginality: Antecedents and Consequences

This article presents evidence for the view that an important precursor to a feminist identity is a sense of one's own marginality plus a redefinition of what that marginality means. Choosing marginality appears to be a highly adaptive strategy for social activists who can pass as members of the dominant majority. Women leaders in psychology appear to be more likely to be Jewish and/or to be from working class backgrounds than one would expect by chance. An examination of their autobiographical narratives indicates that many of them have actively engaged their marginal identities and redefined them into a source of strength. This article also explores the historical and contextual factors that influence overt identification with some form of marginality. These factors include historical differences in the danger due to a particular stigmatizing social label, familial social activism, and the social power possessed by an individual woman. Finally, it is argued that positive marginality appears to promote an awareness that injustice is rooted in structural processes rather than personal inadequacy.     

Positive priming: Locations containing relevant information are labeled accordingly

Individuals engaged in a location task where the relevancy status [relevant (stimulus) vs irrelevant (distractor) information] of these locations was reversed from one trial (prime) to the next (probe). The results produced by these reversals (Distractor-to-Stimulus and Stimulus-to-Distractor) indicated that both stimulus and distractor items are given relevancy status labels which participate in the future processing at the labeled locations. These findings support the view that selective processing involves both `facilitatory' and `inhibitory' components. Further, unlike identity tasks, the data indicated that neither the formation nor the subsequent use of these `location' labels (stimulus or distractor) is related to the presence of a response conflict.PsycINFO classification: 2330; 2340     

Affect at the different phases of cognitive behavioral therapy: An evaluation of psychotherapy provided by candidates

The purpose of this study was to investigate the affect, as measured by “Positive and Negative Affect Schedule” (PANAS), its influence on psychopathology, and to examine the effect of changing affect during cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The study was carried out at the psychotherapy training center, Karlstad University. The hypothesis was whether clients with mental disorders have a self‐destructive affective personality (low PA and high NA) and healthy individuals have a self‐actualizing personality (high PA and low NA). Thirty‐two healthy participants and 44 clients participated in the study. The clients were asked to fill in the PANAS once throughout CBT, either during evaluation, treatment or finishing phase, accordingly there were three different groups at different therapy phases. The healthy subjects were also asked to fill in the self‐report scale once. The comparison of the three phases of therapy and the four affective personality types showed a significant difference between the phases of therapy and the four affective personality types: totally 16 (of 22) and eight (of nine) clients measured at the evaluation and treatment phases, respectively, had a self‐destructive personality. However, at the end of therapy five (of 13) clients had a self‐actualizing personality characteristics, while only three of them were self‐destructive. Furthermore, the results indicate that affective personality does not seem to be a basic and stable personality trait, which could be altered by therapy. The affections measured by PANAS may be influenced by psychopathology and CBT, when conducted by candidate therapists it can be effective in terms of affect changes.     

Thriving Among African‐American Adolescents: Religiosity,Religious Support,and Communalism

While research has identified some positive factors in the lives of African‐American adolescents, there is limited, yet growing, empirical research examining how positive factors foster thriving for these youth. Using a positive youth development framework, we examined naturally occurring factors that promote thriving among African‐American adolescents. This cross‐sectional study included 152 youth who were surveyed at five Black churches in a large Midwestern city. Using MPlus, the structural regression model results revealed support for a model that demonstrated religiosity, religious support, and communalism are significantly and directly related to thriving among African‐American adolescents. Implications for theory, research and practice are discussed. Moving from a deficit lens to a strengths‐based approach can facilitate understanding of developmental processes and provide a foundation for supporting and enhancing positive outcomes among African‐American adolescents.