Personality traits and health‐risk behaviours in university students

Relations between personality and health‐risk behaviours in university undergraduates were examined using multiple measures of personality across multiple samples (N = 1151). Big Five personality variables, at both factor and facet levels, were used to predict three specific health‐risk behaviours: (a) tobacco consumption, (b) alcohol consumption and (c) speeding in an automobile. Our findings showed that low Conscientiousness and low Agreeableness were uniformly associated with this cluster of potentially health damaging behaviours. Extraversion was additionally associated with alcohol use. Interaction effects were found between Conscientiousness and Agreeableness on smoking and (for men only) on drinking. Other personality variables not centrally related to the Big Five, such as Risk‐Taking (high) and Integrity (low), were also implicated in the present health‐risk behaviours. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Externalizing behaviours of Turkish-Dutch and Moroccan-Dutch youth: The role of parental cultural socialization

The present study examines whether perceived parental cultural socialization (e.g., encouraging cultural practices, traditions, language and cultural pride) is negatively associated with externalizing problem behaviours (e.g., fighting, expression of anger, lying and stealing) among Turkish-Dutch (n = 143) and Moroccan-Dutch (n = 164) youth (age 14–18), with ethnic in-group connectedness as a mediator. The results show that Turkish-Dutch youth, who report more cultural socialization efforts by their parents, are less likely to exhibit externalizing behaviours, because of their increased connectedness to the ethnic in-group. For Moroccan-Dutch youth, however, in-group connectedness is lower and we find no indirect effect of perceived parental cultural socialization on externalizing behaviours. We conclude that Turkish-Dutch youth seem to reap mental health benefits from what they perceive as their parents’ cultural socialization efforts. Thus, it is important to study ethnic differences in parental cultural socialization to enhance youth development across diverse youth populations in Europe.     

Belief disconfirmation versus habituation approaches to situational exposure in panic disorder with agoraphobia: a pilot study

Exposure therapy and cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) are both effective in the treatment of panic disorder with agoraphobia. Cognitive theories suggest that the way in which exposure to avoided situations is implemented in either treatment may be crucial. In particular, it is suggested that clinical improvement will be greatest if opportunities for disconfirmation of feared catastrophes are maximized. In a small pilot study, 16 patients with panic disorder and (moderate or severe) agoraphobia were randomly allocated to either habituation based exposure therapy (HBET) or exposure planned as a belief disconfirmation strategy and accompanied by dropping of safety-seeking behaviours. Both treatments were brief (total of 3.25 h of exposure) and were similar in terms of expectancy of change. Patients in the CBT condition showed significantly greater improvements in self-report measures of anxiety, panic and situational avoidance. They also completed significantly more steps in a standardized behavioural walk, during which they experienced significantly less anxiety. The controlled effect sizes for CBT were substantial (range 1.7-2.7), which suggests it may be a particularly efficient way of managing therapeutic exposure to feared situations in panic disorder with agoraphobia. Further research is needed to clarify the mechanism of change involved.     

The driving anger expression inventory: a measure of how people express their anger on the road

Four ways people express their anger when driving were identified. Verbal Aggressive Expression (alpha=0.88) assesses verbally aggressive expression of anger (e.g., yelling or cursing at another driver); Personal Physical Aggressive Expression (alpha=0.81), the ways the person uses him/herself to express anger (e.g., trying to get out and tell off or have a physical fight with another driver); Use of the Vehicle to Express Anger (alpha=0.86), the ways the person uses his/her vehicle to express anger (e.g., flashing lights at or cutting another driver off in anger); and Adaptive/Constructive Expression (alpha=0.90), the ways the person copes positively with anger (e.g., focuses on safe driving or tries to relax). Aggressive forms can be summed into Total Aggressive Expression Index (alpha=0.90). Aggressive forms of expression correlated positively with each other (rs=0.39-0.48), but were uncorrelated or correlated negatively with adaptive/constructive expression (rs=-0.02 to -0.22). Aggressive forms of anger expression correlated positively with driving-related anger, aggression, and risky behavior; adaptive/constructive expression tended to correlate negatively with these variables. Differences in the strengths of correlations and regression analyses supported discriminant and incremental validity and suggested forms of anger expression contributed differentially to understanding driving-related behaviors. Theoretical and treatment implications were explored.     

Behaviour and gaze analyses during a goal-directed locomotor task

The objectives of the current study were: (a) to determine whether perception–action coupling controlled behaviours when walking through moving doors and (b) to determine how vision contributed to this behaviour. Participants (N = 6) walked along a 7-m path toward two motor-driven doors, which moved at rates ranging between 20 and 40 cm/s. Each door was independently driven such that both moved at the same velocity (symmetrical) or at different velocities (asymmetrical). The results showed that in both door movement conditions the participants controlled their approach velocity by slowing down prior to crossing the doors. The decrease in walking velocity produced greater velocity variability in the final stages prior to crossing the doors and high success rates. The results from the gaze behaviours showed that fixation durations were significantly longer when the doors moved asymmetrically, suggesting that the visual information from this unpredictable environment took longer to process. However, the fixation patterns were similar between the two door movement conditions. Regardless of the door movement condition, the participants spent about 60% of each trial fixating environmental objects (i.e., left door, right door, or aperture). The majority of fixations were directed towards one of the doors at the beginning of the trial and then shifted towards the aperture in the final phase. The participants were using perception–action coupling to control their behaviours in the final phase in order to steer locomotion through the aperture.     

Job crafting and job performance: A longitudinal study

In this three-wave study (N = 288), we examined whether job crafting intentions and work engagement led to actual job crafting behaviours and, in turn, to higher levels of prospective work engagement and job performance. We used the Job Demands-Resources model as a theoretical framework and defined job crafting as the self-initiated changes that employees make in their job demands and resources. One month after reporting their job crafting intentions, respondents rated their actual job crafting behaviours. Again one month later, they rated their levels of work engagement, in-role performance, and organizational citizenship behaviour towards individuals (OCBI). Results of structural equation modelling showed that job crafting intentions and work engagement significantly related to actual job crafting, which, in turn, related to higher levels of work engagement, while controlling for job characteristics. Results further showed that engaged employees performed better on their in-role tasks but did not perform more OCBIs. The findings suggest that employees can increase their own work engagement and job performance through job crafting.     

Exploring the black box of the contingent reward leadership–performance relationship: The role of perceived justice and emotional exhaustion

Using data collected from three different sources (N = 294), we examined a model in which perceived organizational justice (distributive, procedural, and interactional) and emotional exhaustion mediate the relationship between contingent reward leadership (CRL) and two performance indicators, namely organizational citizenship behaviours (OCB) and absenteeism. We found that procedural justice mediates the negative relationship between CRL and emotional exhaustion while controlling for work overload and transformational leadership. We also found that emotional exhaustion plays a mediating role in the relationship between two dimensions of justice (procedural and interactional) and both OCB and absenteeism. Interactional justice and distributive justice were also directly linked to OCB. Implications of these findings for research on leadership, psychological health, and organizational justice are discussed.     

Approach or avoid? The effect of regulatory focus on consumer behavioural responses to personal selling attempts

While salespeople use adaptive influence tactics in interactions with consumers, consumers can act as goal-oriented individuals attempting to manage those interactions. Prior research has documented a repertoire of consumer response behaviours, but little is known about the motivational forces. The present research examines the effects of regulatory focus on consumer behavioural tendencies in response to personal selling attempts. The findings suggest that the more promotion-focused consumers are more likely to engage in goal-seeking behaviours. This research not only addresses a void in the literature, but more importantly, sheds light on motivational antecedents driving consumer behaviours in customer–salesperson interactions.