大学生成就动机、性格特征、控制点与自信关系的研究

本研究将成就动机、性格特征及内外控倾向三因素综合起来加以考察 ,探讨它们对大学生自信人格的影响作用及影响路径 ,从而揭示出四种人格特征之间的内在关系 ,2 3 5名大学生参加了测试。结果表明 :大学生成就动机、性格特征、内外控和自信等四种人格特征之间存在不同程度的相关 ;成就动机、内外控倾向和性别等主要变量对大学生自信有显著预测作用 ;成就动机和控制点对大学生自信具有直接效应 ,控制点和性格特征对自信具有间接效应     

Poor peer work does not boost student confidence

Students' low confidence, particularly in numerical topics, is thought to be a barrier to keeping them engaged with education. We studied the effects on confidence of exposure to a peer's work of varying quality (very good or bad) and neatness (messy or neat). Previous research underpinned our hypothesis that a peer's bad-quality work—which students rarely see—might boost student confidence more than very good work. We also predicted that a peer's very good work—which students are often shown—might be less discouraging if it were messy, suggesting it required effort and struggle. However, in experiments with university students and low-educated adults, these hypotheses were not supported, and all participants decreased in confidence after seeing any peer work. The failure to find support for these hypotheses can inform future research into social comparison effects on self-confidence in numerical topics. These results also have practical implications for teachers and managers who are expected to provide examples of peer work.     

Bootstrap confidence intervals for principal covariates regression

Principal covariate regression (PCOVR) is a method for regressing a set of criterion variables with respect to a set of predictor variables when the latter are many in number and/or collinear. This is done by extracting a limited number of components that simultaneously synthesize the predictor variables and predict the criterion ones. So far, no procedure has been offered for estimating statistical uncertainties of the obtained PCOVR parameter estimates. The present paper shows how this goal can be achieved, conditionally on the model specification, by means of the bootstrap approach. Four strategies for estimating bootstrap confidence intervals are derived and their statistical behaviour in terms of coverage is assessed by means of a simulation experiment. Such strategies are distinguished by the use of the varimax and quartimin procedures and by the use of Procrustes rotations of bootstrap solutions towards the sample solution. In general, the four strategies showed appropriate statistical behaviour, with coverage tending to the desired level for increasing sample sizes. The main exception involved strategies based on the quartimin procedure in cases characterized by complex underlying structures of the components. The appropriateness of the statistical behaviour was higher when the proper number of components were extracted.     

The Effect of Information Strength and Weight on Behavior in Financial Markets

Griffin and Tversky (1992) explain evidence of individual over- and underconfidence as resulting from attending too much to the strength (i.e., extremity) of information and not enough to the weight (i.e., statistical reliability) of information. We report two experiments that demonstrate how information strength and weight affect confidence, trading, prices, and wealth in laboratory markets. Our results indicate that information strength and weight affect individual over- and underconfidence and that market participants lack sufficient self-insight to avoid trading when they are biased. As a consequence, market prices are biased, and market participants with high-strength, low-weight information systematically transfer wealth to participants with low-strength, high-weight information.     

Therapeutic attitudes and practice patterns among psychotherapy trainees in Germany

Aim: This study aims to explore if and how values and attitudes from trainees of different psychotherapeutic schools vary during training. Another aim has been to evaluate the extent of their therapeutic self-confidence during training. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 171 trainees in German institutes with different theoretical orientations (Psychoanalysis – PA, Psychodynamic Therapy – PT and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy – CBT) participated. Results are reported for two questionnaires: Therapeutic-Attitudes-Candidate-Version (ThAT-CV) and Work-Involvement-Scales (WIS). Results: Therapeutic attitudes showed significant differences between trainees with different theoretical orientations but no significant difference between different levels of training within the same school. Whereas the PA and CBT trainees endorsed contrasting attitude profiles, the PT group displayed less differentiated attitudes in between those contrasts. Most trainees experienced their psychotherapeutic practice as challenging, and Stressful Involvement in therapy sessions was lower with more years in training. Female trainees reported more Healing Involvement and felt more competent in general than their male colleagues. Self-reported competence was higher the more congruent the trainees’ attitudes with their school's theoretical orientation. Conclusions: The ThAT-CV discriminates significantly between trainees of different therapeutic schools. Our sample demonstrates high identification with attitudes belonging to their theoretical orientation. This may account for high ratings of self-reported therapeutic competence. Attitudes seem to be formed before training and change little thereafter. Less differentiated attitudes may explain PT-trainees’ higher levels of Stressful Involvement.     

The impact of self‐confidence on the compromise effect

This research reports an investigation into whether the personality aspect of self‐confidence affects the compromise effect. We hypothesize that highly self‐confident people have greater certainty in making decisions and are more attracted to risk‐taking, which makes them less likely to choose the safe or middle option in a large choice set. The three studies involved are conducted using between‐ and within‐subjects experimental designs. Various product categories are used to generalize the findings. Study 1 looks at purchasing decisions and utilizes three scales of self‐confidence, risk preference, and uncertainty; it demonstrates that consumers with high self‐confidence are less likely to choose a compromise option due to high certainty in their decision‐making. Study 2 discovers that people with low self‐confidence are more likely to choose the middle option in a risky condition than in a nonrisky condition. Study 3 decomposes self‐confidence into general and specific self‐confidence, and reveals that people with low general self‐confidence and low specific self‐confidence are more likely to choose the middle option.     

An Archival Study of Eyewitness Memory of the Titanic's Final Plunge

A handful of real-life studies demonstrate that most eyewitnesses accurately recall central details (i.e., the gist of what happened) from traumatic events. The authors evaluated the accuracy of archival eyewitness testimony from survivors of the Titanic disaster who witnessed the ship's final plunge. The results indicate that most eyewitness testimony (15 eyewitnesses of 20) is consistent with forensic evidence that demonstrates that the Titanic was breaking apart while it was still on the ocean's surface. Despite the methodological limitations of archival research, the authors provide evidence from a single-occurrence traumatic event (with a large-scale loss of life) that the majority of eyewitnesses accurately recall central details.     

The Impact of Multifaceted Questions on Eyewitness Accuracy Following Forced Fabrication Interviews

Lawyers will frequently use complex-question forms, such as multifaceted questions (single questions that contain both a true and a false proposition), when cross-examining witnesses, and prior research has shown that use of such questions reduces testimonial accuracy. The present study extends this research by using a forced fabrication paradigm (Chrobak & Zaragoza, 2008) to assess how multifaceted questions might affect eyewitness suggestibility after exposure to misleading post-event information. Consistent with prior studies, the use of multifaceted questions led to lower accuracy than simple questions. The novel finding was that multifaceted questions caused larger impairments in performance among fabrication participants (who had earlier been suggestively interviewed), than in control participants (who had not). We also provide preliminary evidence that the impairment caused by multifaceted questions is due to both (a) having to consider two propositions simultaneously, and (b) the shift in question focus from the fabricated event to a true event.     

The Effect of a Nonverbal Aid on Preschoolers' Recall for Color

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether the provision of a nonverbal memory aid would improve preschoolers' recall of color. Forty 4-year-old children carried out 2 tasks with the same set of colored objects. Colors were not referred to, nor were children told that their recall would later be tested. One day later, the children were split into 2 groups. One group was given a chart containing both the colors of the objects and distractor colors. The other group was not given a chart. Recall for object color was tested. There was an effect of chart provision; children who used the chart recalled more colors correctly than did those who did not use a chart. This result indicates (a) that even very young children can make use of props to facilitate their recall and (b) that such memory aids need not be exact copies of previously seen objects. Implications of these findings for eyewitness recall are discussed.