Nonverbal zero-acquaintance accuracy of self-esteem,social dominance orientation,and satisfaction with life

Two samples of undergraduates judged the personalities of strangers (either six men or six women) after viewing a 30 s, silent video clip of each target. We evaluated the accuracy of five traits, three of which were not previously studied in zero-acquaintance research (self-esteem, social dominance orientation (SDO), and satisfaction with life (SWL); we also tested masculinity and femininity). We compared these five new traits to a baseline of accuracy for extroversion. People reached consensus on self-esteem, SDO, and SWL, though accuracy was higher and more consistent for male targets. Significant self-other agreement was obtained only for SWL, for male targets. We replicated past studies by demonstrating zero-acquaintance accuracy for masculinity but not femininity.     

An application of the matching law to social dynamics

Using a procedure similar to the one described by Conger and Killeen (1974), we evaluated levels of attending for 25 college students who participated in either a 20-min (n = 12) or 30-min (n = 13) discussion on juvenile delinquency. Confederates delivered statements of agreement (e.g., "I agree with that point") according to independent variable-interval schedules. Pooled results were evaluated using three generalized formulations of the matching law, and showed that matching was more likely during the first 5 min of the discussion than during the last 5 min. Individual data for 7 of 9 participants were better described by the generalized response-rate matching equation than by the generalized time-allocation matching equation when response allocation was characterized in terms of frequency rather than duration.     

浅析死刑认同的心理根源

我国民众普遍认同死刑,这种"死刑认同"具有三种心理情绪根源:死亡情结、社会情感以及正义报复感。死刑认同实质上是国民的一种个人情绪和社会情感的表达和要求。取消死刑是必然趋势,但必须具备相应的社会条件。     

多层次研究的数据聚合适当性检验:文献评价与关键问题试解

组织管理领域的多层次研究经常需要测量共享单位特性构念, 常用方法是将单位内若干个体成员的评分聚合到单位层次, 确保聚合后的分数具有充分代表性的统计前提是通过聚合适当性检验。聚合适当性检验的常用指标是组内一致性r_WG和组内信度ICC(1)、ICC(2), 但目前学界对于这两类指标何者更优、r_WG的原分布选择和数据清理、各指标的划界值等关键问题存在诸多争议。为此, 首先对国内9份管理学、心理学期刊2014年以来发表的166篇包含聚合适当性检验的论文进行内容分析, 并以Journal of Applied Psychology上的85篇论文为对比, 查明常规实践中的共性问题, 进而提出实践建议:(1)明确功能定位, 将r_WG作为聚合适当性指标, ICC(1)和ICC(2)分别作为效度、信度指标。(2)计算r_WG时审慎选择原分布, 排除组内一致性过低的组。(3)为各指标设定更加合理、有适度灵活性的划界值, 停止使用武断、粗糙的经验标准。最后, 强调研究者在模型构建和聚合决策中应加强理论考量, 避免片面依赖统计检验结果。     

Alternate methods and software for calculating interobserver agreement for continuous observation data

Portable electronic data collection devices permit investigators to collect large amounts of observational data in a form ready for computer analysis. These devices are particularly efficient for gathering continuous data on multiple behavior categories. We expect that the increasing availability of these devices will lead to greater use of continuous data collection methods in observational research. This paper addresses the difficulties encountered when calculating traditional interobserver agreement statistics for continuous, multiple-code scoring. Two alternative strategies are described that yield interobserver agreement values based on the exact time of behavior code entries by the primary and secondary observers.Work on this paper was supported in part by NICHD Grants P01HD15051 and R01HD17650 and Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services Grant G008302980.     

Simplifying continuous monitoring of multiple-response/multiple-subject classroom interactions

In order to facilitate the field monitoring of three subjects interacting according to one or more of 18 response categories, a modified version of several available, but oftentimes mechanically incompatible, observational procedures was designed. Its continuous recording strategy, sectioned into one-minute observational units, enabled researchers to derive highly representative behavior samples, and when accompanied by the specially tailored coding form and recording apparatus, observers achieved over 90% agreement across all reliability sessions. This procedure provides applied researchers with a simple, highly reliable, and adaptable observation tool for continuously and simultaneously monitoring the behaviors of one or more subjects.     

The effect of witnessing consequences on the behavioral recordings of experimental observers

The cueing effects of interviewer praise contingent on a target behavior and expectation of behavior change were examined with six observers. Experiment I investigated the effect of cues in conjunction with expectation. Experiment II assessed the relative contributions of cues and expectation, and Experiment III examined the effect of cues in the absence of expectation. The frequencies of two behaviors, client eye contact and face touching, were held constant throughout a series of videotaped interviews between an "interviewer" and a "client". A within-subjects design was used in each experiment. During baseline conditions, praise did not follow eye contact by the client on the videotape. In all experimental conditions, praise statements from the interviewer followed each occurrence of eye contact with an equal number of praises delivered at random times when there was no eye contact. Three of the six observers dramatically increased their recordings of eye contact during the first experimental phase, but these increases were not replicated in a second praise condition. There were no systematic changes in recorded face touching. Witnessing the delivery of consequences, rather than expectation seemed to be responsible for the effect. This potential threat to the internal validity of studies using observational data may go undetected by interobserver agreement checks.     

Interdisciplinary agreement in the diagnosis of headache types

The degree of agreement in independent diagnosis of headache by a neurologist and a clinical psychologist was determined to be 86.4% in a series of 66 consecutive patients. Fifty-five percent of the disagreements were due to the patients' giving different information to the two assessors. This source of disagreement was associated with the patients' having had previous psychiatric treatment.This research was supported in part by Grant NS-15235 from the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke.     

Measures of interobserver agreement: Calculation formulas and distribution effects

Seventeen measures of association for observer reliability (interobserver agreement) are reviewed and computational formulas are given in a common notational system. An empirical comparison of 10 of these measures is made over a range of potential reliability check results. The effects on percentage and correlational measures of occurrence frequency, error frequency, and error distribution are examined. The question of which is the best measure of interobserver agreement is discussed in terms of critical issues to be considered     

Evaluating interobserver reliability of interval data

Previous recommendations to employ occurrence, nonoccurrence, and overall estimates of interobserver reliability for interval data are reviewed. A rationale for comparing obtained reliability to reliability that would result from a random-chance model is explained. Formulae and graphic functions are presented to allow for the determination of chance agreement for each of the three indices, given any obtained per cent of intervals in which a response is recorded to occur. All indices are interpretable throughout the range of possible obtained values for the per cent of intervals in which a response is recorded. The level of chance agreement simply changes with changing values. Statistical procedures that could be used to determine whether obtained reliability is significantly superior to chance reliability are reviewed. These procedures are rejected because they yield significance levels that are partly a function of sample sizes and because there are no general rules to govern acceptable significance levels depending on the sizes of samples employed.