BETWEEN KNOWING AND BEING: REFLECTIONS ON BEING TAUGHT SCIENCE AND RELIGION BY PROFESSOR CHRISTOPHER SOUTHGATE

It is a joy to be asked to contribute to this commemorative edition of Zygon, in honor of my friend Christopher Southgate. But a narrowly academic article seems not to fit the brief of writing a reflection on Southgate's teaching of science and religion, as one who has witnessed it, gladly, as both student and colleague. What follows, then, is deliberately reflective in tone, with little in the way of academic references apart from occasional links to Southgate's own work—though, I hope, enough of a strand of argument to justify inclusion in these pages. My argument is simply put: Southgate teaches by not teaching, but by drawing out knowledge from students and thereby empowering their growth. He is an exemplar, a kind man committed to the unfolding of understanding, interested too in forming dispositions in his students that will lead to their flourishing as thinkers and as people.     

The effect of question order on evaluations of test performance: Can the bias dissolve?

Question difficulty order has been shown to affect students’ global postdictions of test performance. We attempted to eliminate the bias by letting participants experience the question order manipulation multiple times. In all three experiments, participants answered general knowledge questions and self-evaluated their performance. In Experiment 1, participants studied questions and answers in easy–hard or hard–easy question order prior to taking a test in the same order. In Experiment 2, participants took the same test twice in the opposite question order (easy–hard then hard–easy, or hard–easy then easy–hard). In Experiment 3, participants took two different tests in the opposite question order (easy–hard then hard–easy, or hard–easy then easy–hard). In all three experiments, we were unable to eliminate the bias, which suggests that repeated exposure is insufficient to overcome a strong initial anchor.     

A first-principles study of the formation of θ′′ phase in Al–Cu alloys

The θ′′-Al₃Cu phase plays an important role in the precipitation process of Al–Cu alloys. This phase has a sandwich structure—every two {200}_Cu layers are separated by three {200}_Al layers. To analyse the formation mechanism of this structure, the elastic strain energy of the {200}_Cu and {200}_Al layers, and the chemical bonding energy that reflects the interaction between the electrons in Cu and neighbouring Al atoms are calculated and analysed by first-principles calculations, projected density of states and Bader analysis. Our computation results reveal that this sandwich structure is energetically preferred in the competition of elastic strain and chemical bonding energies. To minimise the elastic strain energy of {200}_Al and {200}_Cu layers, the {200}_Cu layers prefer being apart from each other, whereas the chemical bonding energy favours the opposite arrangement because the intermetallic bond between Al and Cu atoms may form through p-d hybridization.     

Why We Do What We Do When We Teach Pastoral Theology at United Theological College (UTC), Sydney

This paper seeks to reflect in a narrative way on the pedagogical processes involved in teaching pastoral theology at United Theological College, Sydney. The paper recognizes that the process of learning pastoral theology is a significant part of the content learned in pastoral theology. The learning process in pastoral theology also contributes to (trans)formational learning in those being formed for ministry. The paper seeks to contribute to the community of pastoral theologians by reflecting on the experience of teaching within a particular school.     

In money we trust? The use of financial compensations to repair trust in the aftermath of distributive harm

Trust is vital yet vulnerable in economic exchange relations. In these relations, a widely used strategy in response to distributive harm consists of having the transgressor pay a financial compensation to the victim. This research examines whether financial compensations can increase trust towards a transgressor, and whether the size of the compensation is relevant to this process. We hypothesized and found that whether larger compensations will elicit more trust, depends on how clear the perpetrator’s intention to transgress was. Experiment 1 revealed that trust perceptions increased more by a slight overcompensation of the inflicted harm as compared to an exact or a partial compensation, but not if the transgressor’s bad intentions became clear through the use of deception in the violation. In Experiments 2 and 3, we replicated these findings and further showed that it is not the use of deception per se, but rather the attribution of bad intent that moderates the effect of compensation size. Experiment 4, using a trust game paradigm revealed that this effect not only occurs for small overcompensations, but also for larger overcompensations.     

The faultline activation process and the effects of activated faultlines on coalition formation,conflict, and group outcomes

This research examines the effects of group faultline activation on coalition formation, conflict, and group outcomes. We distinguish between dormant faultlines (potential faultlines based on demographic characteristics) and activated group faultlines (members actually perceive subgroups based on the demographic characteristics) and hypothesize that while dormant faultlines do not automatically turn into active group divisions, a group’s entitlement configuration can activate divisions among group members. Study 1 was a construct validity study to verify the psychometric properties of the activated group faultline measure and explain its connection to other process variables. In Studies 2 and 3, we tested our hypotheses and found that groups with activated faultlines were more likely to form coalitions, have high levels of group conflict, and lower levels of satisfaction and group performance than dormant faultline groups. Furthermore, team identification moderated the effects of activated faultlines on group processes such that a strong workgroup identity decreased the likelihood that activated faultlines led to coalition formation and conflict.     

Survey and behavioral measurements of interpersonal trust

Although many studies treat trust as a situational construct, individual differences can be used to study and predict trusting behavior. We report two studies, the first showing the psychometric properties of a new trust inventory (the Propensity to Trust Survey or PTS), the second study validating this inventory using the standard economic task, the Investment Game. The first study utilized online survey data (N > 8000) to show that the PTS scales were reliable and measured broad constructs related to Big Five personality domains. Trust was related to extraversion and negative neuroticism, and trustworthiness was related to agreeableness and conscientiousness. The second study (N = 90) validated the PTS trust scale as a predictor of behavior in the Investment Game. These findings are evidence that trust and trustworthiness are compound personality traits, and that PTS scales are preferable to general Big Five measures for predicting trusting behavior.     

Learning words from reliable and unreliable speakers

Three studies examined whether 3- and 4-year olds would trust a reliable speaker over an unreliable speaker when learning a new word and whether that trust would be reversed, and the word mapping revised, when a trusted speaker later proved unreliable. Study 1 indicated that 3- and 4-year olds trusted a reliable speaker over an unreliable speaker. Study 2 indicated that some 4-year olds reversed trust and revised a word mapping when a trusted speaker later proved unreliable. Study 3 indicated that those 4-year olds who reversed trust and revised the word mapping were likely to maintain the revision and tended to favor the previously reliable speaker over time. These results are discussed in terms of the role of speaker reliability in young children's word learning.     

Beijing Calling... Mobile Communication in Contemporary China

Subsequently, with the recent wave of industrialization, China has become the “factory” of the globalized world. The modernization of this country, however, is not confined to the provision of production at a low added value: It also entails technological appropriation and innovation. In particular, China represents the biggest world market for mobile phones and will soon dominate the Internet market. In this country, the total number of mobile and fixed-line subscribers exceeds 750 million, and the total number of Internet users is more than 162 million. The present study focuses on how, after a decade of mobile phone use, the inhabitants of Beijing evaluate the changes in the social and communicative sphere as a result of the introduction of the mobile phone. In this paper, we present some results of a quantitative research, specifically focused on mobile communication. Based on face-to-face questionnaires administered to a convenient sample of 487 respondents, this study addresses the following research questions: After a decade of mobile phone use, how do Chinese people perceive the importance of this device? To what extent do the adoption and use of mobile phones increase or decrease social connectivity in contemporary China? To what extent does the use of mobile phones in everyday life enhance or reduce the communications – do they make you feel closer to or more distant from other people? What are the variables that predict users’ attitudes toward mobile phones in China?