A general method for computing hierarchical component structures by Goldberg’s Bass-Ackwards method

Goldberg [Goldberg, L. R.(in press) Doing it all Bass-Ackwards: The development of hierarchical factor structures from the top down. Journal of Research in Personality] has recently described a novel method for computing hierarchical component structures via a “top down” design. He calls his method the “Bass Ackwards” approach to distinguish it from more common “bottom up” methods for obtaining hierarchical solutions. Using simple matrix equations, in this commentary I demonstrate that the end result of a Bass Ackwards analysis—that is, the correlations between component scores from different levels of a hierarchy—can be calculated without calculating the actual component scores. By avoiding component-score calculation, Goldberg’s method (a) can be applied to any data set in which a correlation matrix is available, and (b) can be applied to factor scores rather than estimated factor scores. Goldberg suggests that the Bass Ackwards method represents a useful tool for elucidating the underlying dimensionality and latent structure (rotation in hyperspace) of a data set. Computer code is reported in the Appendix A of this article to help personality researchers more fully evaluate this claim in empirical and simulated data.     

Three dimensions of coping and a look at their evolutionary origin

Serious problems persist concerning the conceptualization and measurement of the coping construct. This study examines the properties and factor structure of the COPE questionnaire, one of the most widely used instruments to measure coping, in a sample of 471 patients. A series of exploratory factor procedures are applied at the item- and scale-level, and the resulting solutions are tested both by their congruence with previously published structures and by confirmatory techniques. Our finding of three robust, generalizable, and parsimonious second-order dimensions—Engagement, Disengagement, and Help-Seeking—challenges the original structure. The results are discussed from an evolutionary perspective, on the assumption that the recognition of coping as the activation of vestigial defenses may make a substantial contribution to clarifying its functions and organization.     

The Minority-Majority Conundrum in Northern Ireland: An Orange Order Perspective

Researchers have argued that, depending on the framing of the Northern Ireland conflict, each group could either be a minority or a majority relative to the other. This complicates macrosocial explanations of the conflict which make specific predictions on the basis of minority or majority positions. The present paper argues that this conundrum may have arisen from the inherent variability in microidentity processes that do not fit easily with macroexplanations. In this paper the rhetoric of relative group position is analysed in political speeches delivered by leading members of an influential Protestant institution in Northern Ireland. It is apparent that minority and majority claims are not fixed but are flexibly used to achieve local rhetorical goals. Furthermore, the speeches differ before and after the Good Friday Agreement, with a reactionary "hegemonic" Unionist position giving way to a "majority-rights power sharing" argument and a "pseudo-minority" status giving way to a "disempowered minority" argument. These results suggest a view of the Northern Ireland conflict as a struggle for "symbolic power," i.e., the ability to flexibly define the intergroup situation to the ingroup's advantage.     

微观发生法:聚焦认知变化

微观发生法通过在变化发生的整个过程中对行为进行高密度观察和反复试验分析,可以提供关于认知变化的路线、速率、广度、来源以及变化模式的多样性等方面的精细信息,对于理解心理变化的机制有重要意义。该文论述了从发生法到微观发生法的演变过程、微观发生法的研究设计及其合理性与有待解决的问题。     

The Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire: Confirmatory Factor Analysis

Within contemporary psychology there is increasing interest in the role of religion on behaviour and psychological functioning. Such interest can be attested to by the growth in the number of pertinent books and articles that have been published and also the development of new self-report measures of religiosity. The Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire is one such recently developed measure. It is a brief self-report measure comprising 10 items that were designed to measure strength of religious faith regardless of religious denomination or affiliation. Although Plante and Boccaccini (1997a, 1997b) have provided some preliminary evidence for the reliability and validity of the scale, the factor structure of the scale has not yet been examined. The aim of the present paper was to confirm the factor structure of the scale. The hypothesised one-factor model was tested using confirmatory factor analytic methods. Data from a sample of 106 Northern Irish undergraduate university students were examined using confirmatory factor analytic methods. A one-factor model was tested and accepted on the basis of fit statistics, therefore supporting the hypothesised unidimensional structure of the scale. The present results provide further evidence that the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire is psychometrically sound and therefore it can be recommended for further use by researchers interested in the construct of strength of religious faith.     

城镇职工医疗保险改革面临的问题与对策

我国政府已明确提出城镇职工基本医疗保险制度的改革目标,虽然改革已取得了一些进展,但距改革目标仍有相当差距。采用政治分析方法,分析了目前医改所面临的主要问题与原因,并在借鉴国际医疗保障制度改革启示的基础上,进一步探讨解决问题和推进改革进程的思路。     

Building Collaborative Capacity in Community Coalitions: A Review and Integrative Framework

This article presents the results of a qualitative analysis of 80 articles, chapters, and practitioners' guides focused on collaboration and coalition functioning. The purpose of this review was to develop an integrative framework that captures the core competencies and processes needed within collaborative bodies to facilitate their success. The resulting framework for building collaborative capacity is presented. Four critical levels of collaborative capacity—member capacity, relational capacity, organizational capacity, and programmatic capacity—are described and strategies for building each type are provided. The implications of this model for practitioners and scholars are discussed.     

应对量表(COPE)测评维度结构研究

该文旨在对应对量表(COPE)的测评维度结构进行进一步的鉴别分析和验证研究。研究一对736名大学生的应对量表中文修订本(C-COPE)测评数据进行探索性二阶因素分析;研究二根据已有研究关于应对量表测评维度组构模式的不同结论,以及研究一的结果,提出十个假设模型,采用验证性因素分析测试这些模型与另一大学生样本(N：465)测评数据的拟合度。研究结果支持C-COPE八因子斜交模型。该量表如何进一步修订也在文中予以讨论。     

工作分析的工具及其选择策略

政治、经济和科学技术的急剧变化与发展对工作的性质产生了重大的影响.本文以工作性质的变迁为背景,结合文献深入探讨了工作分析诸工具的特点和效能,并就工作分析工具的选择问题提出了考虑信息的最终用途、考虑选定方法的成本效益、确保信息的可靠性与可接受性、定期回顾与适时更新以及综合应用与扬长避短等5项建议.     

A Statistical Interpretive Method for Neuropsychological Test Data

The accurate interpretation of large numbers of neuropsychological tests within a flexible battery approach is a difficult and sometimes controversial process. We present a statistically based method of interpretation (Rohling's Interpretive Method or RIM) and evaluation of neuropsychological data that allows for varying numbers of tests along a varying number of cognitive domains, yet remains psychometrically based. This method requires informed clinical judgment in that the level of confidence for tests, cognitive domains, and global indices are used as the backdrop for interpretive decisions. Specific procedures for use are presented in a systematic, detailed fashion to allow the interested reader to replicate the method. Two case examples are presented: a straightforward case of cerebrovascular insult and a more complicated case of mixed etiology. Examples include a variety of different neuropsychological tests commonly used in a flexible battery approach. A discussion of the practicality, ease of use, and potential limitations of this method are further presented.