On some common objections to a behavioral approach to psychological categories

This paper addresses several objections that have been leveled against a behavioral approach to psychological categories. It reconstructs and critically assesses (a) the so-called causal objection; (b) alleged counterexamples whereby one can exhibit the typical behaviors associated with a psychological phenomenon without exhibiting the latter, including Lewis’ “perfect actor” case and Kirk’s “zombie”; (c) alleged counterexamples whereby organisms can exemplify psychological phenomena without exhibiting any behavior associated with them, including Armstrong’s imagined brain in a vat, Putnam’s “super-super-spartans” scenario, and related cases; and (d) the holistic objection. Mistaken assumptions in each of these objections are pinpointed. The paper starts with a brief characterization of behaviorism about psychological categories and a summary of the particular version thereof supported here, which draws upon Ryle and Skinner, among others.     

Self-perceived Authenticity is Contaminated by the Valence of One’s Behavior

Two studies tested whether people are biased to infer that their positive actions are more authentic than their negative actions. In Study 1, participants identified a positive or negative personal characteristic and assessed the authenticity of past behavior that reflected that characteristic. In Study 2, people imagined themselves performing positive and negative behaviors that they authentically did or did not want to perform. Both studies showed that people’s judgments of the authenticity of their behavior were contaminated by their perceptions of the valence of their behavior even when the objective authenticity of the behavior was controlled. Future research must disentangle authenticity and positivity to determine the degree to which each contributes to positive outcomes that have been attributed to authenticity.     

Assessing the Effect of Language Demand in Bundles of Math Word Problems

Differential bundle functioning (DBF) analyses were conducted to determine whether seventh and eighth grade second language learners (SLLs) had lower probabilities of answering bundles of math word problems correctly that had heavy language demands, when compared to non-SLLs of equal math proficiency. Math word problems on each of four test forms (two at Grade 7 and two at Grade 8) were bundled together if they used the passive voice, conditional clause, relative clause, or a combination of any two. The results showed that the average total scores for SLLs was significantly lower than that for non-SLLs on each test form. However, only two bundles (passive voice and conditional clause at Grade 7 on Form 2) indicated statistically significant DBF against SLLs in favor of matched non-SLLs. An additional step was taken to determine whether the two bundles that showed statistically significant DBF against SLLs had biased the mean total scores for this group.The Walker, Zhang, Banks, and Cappaert (2012) procedure established for this purpose showed that this was not the case. Implications of the results are provided as well as suggestions for future research.     

情绪创造力对员工创新行为的影响:情绪社会建构理论的视角

基于情绪社会建构理论,运用问卷调查法,通过分析708组配对数据,探讨情绪创造力对员工创新行为的影响机制。结果表明:情绪创造力对员工创新行为有显著的正向影响,创造性角色认同在其中具有部分中介作用;员工情绪创造力与领导激励创造性的交互作用通过员工创造性角色认同为中介,影响员工的创新行为,从而表现出有中介的调节作用。     

心理咨询中的非言语行为

非言语行为一般指不包含语言内容的人际交流行为。心理咨询作为人际沟通的一门艺术,非常强调非言语行为的重要性。已有研究发现心理咨询中的非言语行为在咨询师和当事人的互动中对咨询有促进作用,同时咨询师不当的非言语行为也会阻碍心理咨询。总结前人研究发现心理咨询中非言语行为的研究现状存在实证研究不足、孤立于咨询进程进行研究等问题,并且研究方法较为单一。如果要突破目前的研究瓶颈,需要借鉴其他领域的研究方法。     

绩效考核满意度对工作退缩行为的影响:有调节的中介效应

绩效考核满意度对员工工作行为的影响和作用机制一直是组织行为领域研究的重点。本研究采用《绩效考核满意度量表》、《在职行为量表》等研究工具,抽取419名在职员工,考察绩效考核满意度与工作退缩行为之间的关系以及组织公平感、道德型领导在其二者关系上的作用机制。结果发现:(1)绩效考核满意度与工作退缩行为之间存在显著负相关。(2)道德型领导调节绩效考核满意度和组织公平感之间的关系。(3)道德型领导调节绩效考核满意度和工作退缩行为之间的关系。(4)道德型领导和绩效考核满意度的交互作用通过分配公平、程序公平影响工作退缩行为。     

Linguistic and prosodic aspects of child-directed speech: The role of maternal child-rearing experiences

This study explored if the quality of mothers’ reported child-rearing experiences influences the prosodic and linguistic features of maternal child-directed speech. Lexical, syntactic, functional and prosodic aspects of maternal speech directed towards their 24-month-old children were examined. Results showed that mothers with different child-rearing histories differed in the ways they talked to their children. Mothers who recalled the caregiving they received during childhood as characterized by high levels of care and low levels of control, used a lexically and syntactically more complex speech and expressed more positive emotions. This kind of input seems to be more attuned with the typical growing skills of two-year-old children. Implications for the study of mother–infant relationship as well as for the study of child language development are addressed.     

Reactive temperament traits and behavioural problems in children: the mediating role of effortful control across sex and age

This study examines the mediating role of effortful control between reactive temperament traits (negative affectivity and extraversion) and children’s internalizing and externalizing behavioural problems. The sample was composed of 424 non-clinical children from 3 to 6 years of age (60% male). Use of a structural equation model revealed effortful control-mediated relations between reactive temperament traits and behavioural problems. Nevertheless, uniquely and directly, negative affect predicted externalizing problems and extraversion predicted internalizing problems. Assessment of invariance by children’s sex showed that the mediating role of effortful control tends to be stronger for externalizing problems in boys than in girls. Results showed no significant age differences. According to these results, effortful control as a method of self-regulation seems to be an essential process through which reactive temperament traits affect a child’s psychological adjustment.     

Maternal mind-mindedness: stability over time and consistency across relationships

Maternal mind-mindedness has been described both as a cognitive-behavioural trait and as a relational construct. This study assessed stability over time and consistency across relationships of maternal mind-mindedness in relation to preschool and primary school siblings and compared representational and interactional mind-mindedness. Mothers with two children between 2½ and 10 years were assessed twice, nine months apart (N = 32 at Time 1; N = 30 at Time 2). Representational mind-mindedness for a partner/friend was also assessed twice. Mothers’ representational mind-mindedness showed temporal stability but was inconsistent across relationships with two children and a partner/friend. Conversely, mothers’ interactional mind-mindedness was stable and highly consistent across relationships with two children. This supports the possibility that mothers’ interactional mind-mindedness is trait-like, while findings are equivocal for representational mind-mindedness. Representational mind-mindedness and interactional mind-mindedness were unrelated in this preliminary study, suggesting that these measures of maternal mind-mindedness were not equivalent for this age group.     

Psychological capital as a team phenomenon: Mediating the relationship between learning climate and outcomes at the individual and team levels

Psychological capital is a positive psychological state that influences employees’ behaviors and attitudes. Research has only recently begun to examine the phenomenon as a shared psychological team state. The purpose of this research is to examine the mediating role of team psychological capital in the relationship between learning climate and outcomes at the individual and team levels. The findings, which were carried out among 82 school management teams, indicated a positive relationship between learning climate and the team’s psychological capital, and between the team’s psychological capital and the individual’s job satisfaction and the team’s organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). It was also found that team’s psychological capital mediates the relationship between the team’s learning climate and job satisfaction, and between learning mechanisms and the team’s OCB. The findings might encourage research into psychological capital as a team phenomenon and encourage decision-makers to develop ways of reinforcing psychological capital among teams.