Work Barriers in the Context of Pathways to the Employment of Welfare-to-Work Clients

The ability of welfare-to-work clients to leave the welfare rolls and stay in the labor force is often limited by the work barriers they face. Using a sample of 1,404 female welfare-to-work clients we first examined the structure of work barriers and then tested their contribution to current work status in the context of a structural equation model that incorporated other central pathways to employment. Whereas work barriers included diverse factors ranging from lack of transportation to low quality jobs, they were shown to constitute a uni-dimensional construct. Furthermore, work barriers had a net adverse effect on employment outcomes, controlling for job search self-efficacy and employment intention. We conclude with discussion of implications for the development of welfare-to-work programs and interventions that target low-income women.     

Community types and mental health: a multilevel study of local environmental stress and coping

Research has found that neighborhood structural characteristics can influence residents' mental health. Few studies, however, have explored the proximal reasons behind such influences. This study investigates how different types of communities, in terms of environmental stressors (social and physical disorder and fear of crime) and social resources (informal ties and formal organizational participation), affect well-being, depression, and anxiety in adult residents. Data are from a survey of 412 residents nested in 50 street blocks. Block stressors and resources were cluster analyzed to identify six block types. After controlling for several individual- and block-level characteristics, results from multilevel models suggest that in communities facing relatively few stressors, higher levels of formal participation are associated with better mental health. Because high levels of formal participation were not found in communities with higher levels of stressors, the impact of participation in such contexts could not be examined. However, results suggest that in communities where stressors are more common, isolation from neighbors may have a protective effect on mental health.     

The Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire: Some unfinished business

This article gauges the extent to which items and sum scores of the Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ) are contaminated with social desirability response set (SDR), and the extent to which that contamination results in biased findings. Special validity coefficients are introduced for that purpose. Although the SDR confound was quite substantial across all items (with one exception), it is argued on the basis of the size of the introduced validity coefficients and other, logical considerations that paradoxically the confound had minimally distorting effects in estimating the BPAQ models selected for probing the extent of bias.     

Trait Stability and Continuity in Childhood: Relating Sociability and Hostility to the Five-Factor Model of Personality

We investigated the continuity of personality constructs in the Oregon Youth Substance Use Project, a cohort-sequential study encompassing development from early childhood to adolescence with five annual or biennial assessments. Sociability and Hostility, assessed by teachers' ratings of children's behaviors at each assessment, were related to the traits comprising the Five-Factor model assessed by teachers' ratings at the fifth assessment. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that Sociability and Hostility were reliably measured at each assessment, and these constructs were relatively stable over time (mean rank-order stability coefficients over intervals of 1-5 years were .50 and .43, respectively). Sociability was most strongly associated (positively) with Extraversion, and Hostility was most strongly associated (negatively) with Conscientiousness and Emotional Stability. No differences were found for younger versus older children. Implications for measuring childhood personality traits using teachers' reports of early childhood behavior are discussed.     

特征类型在组合概念范畴效应中的作用

组合概念范畴效应是指,人们解释不同范畴组合概念的策略存在差异。本研究通过特征列举实验和建构路径模型,检验概念的特征类型在组合概念范畴效应中的作用。特征列举实验的结果表明,生物的实体特征比率高于人造物,而人造物的情境特征比率高于生物。路径分析的结果表明：⑴修饰词的实体特征比率显著影响属性解释比率,修饰词具有较多实体特征的组合概念得到属性解释的比率较高;⑵主名词的情境特征比率对关系解释比率的影响不显著;⑶将特征类型引入路径模型后,范畴对解释策略的影响依然显著。因此,范畴间的特征类型差异会影响组合概念范畴效应,但还存在其他影响因素有待进一步研究。     

名人广告效果的制约因素研究述评

系统回顾了影响名人广告效果的因素,指出名人广告的效果受名人可信度的影响,名人可信度包括吸引力、专业性与可靠性3个要素,专业性与可靠性对名人广告的效果具有积极的影响,吸引力对广告效果的影响受名人与商品的一致性以及消费者的精细加工水平的制约,精细加工可能性模型与意义迁移模型进一步说明了名人广告对消费者产生影响的具体过程,在名人广告中名人形象与商品形象的一致性是影响广告效果的决定性因素。     

语义启动模型以及启动范围

启动效应一般分为两种——知觉启动和语义启动(概念启动)。语义启动的范式逐渐成为研究语义知识在大脑中是如何存储的主要研究手段。该文针对语义启动发生的3种机制:激活扩散模型,复合线索模型和分布式记忆模型进行了简要的评述,并且重点介绍了分布式记忆模型。同时对启动效应可以激活语义知识的范围作了一个简要的概括。     

拥有关系信息情境模型建构的影响因素

该研究修正了Radvansky1997年的实验设计 ,运用扇效应技术系统地探讨影响建构拥有关系情境模型的因素。共包括 4个实验 ,被试为 180名一年级本科生 ,研究材料是“1人 /多物”与“多人 / 1物”两类表示拥有关系的句型 ,每类句型都有 3种扇水平 ,用计算机逐个呈现句子 ,要求被试迅速再认作出按键反应 ,用MANOVA分析了被试对不同扇水平的两类句型的反应时。实验 1在中文条件下重复了Radvansky1997年的实验 ;实验 2探讨在明确的相同空间条件下 ,对“多人买 1物”拥有行为句式的整合是否表现出扇效应 ;实验 3探讨在信息采用顺向展开的情况下 ,“多人买 1物”拥有行为句式的整合是否表现出扇效应 ;实验 4进一步探讨在具有相同时空状语的条件下 ,“1人有多物”与“多人有 1物”两类拥有状态句式的整合是否表现出扇效应。结果表明 ,当具有明确的时空信息情况下 ,或者当信息顺向展开的情况下 ,“多人买 1物”的拥有行为句式的整合均没有表现出扇效应 ;而在有相同时空状语情况下 ,“1人有多物”的拥有状态句式的整合也没有表现出扇效应 ;说明这些句式可以整合为同一情境模型 ,与Radvansky的研究结果不同。研究结果初步表明 ,享有共同概念的若干事件信息是否整合为同一个情境模型 ,受到动词的动作性程度、是否有相     

结构方程模型检验：拟合指数与卡方准则

讨论了Hu和Bentler（1998,1999）推荐的检验结构方程模型的7个拟合指数准则,对这7个指数的历史、特点和表现做了比较详细的述评。指出了他们基于这7个指数的单指数准则和2-指数准则的不足之处。提出了超低显著性水平下的卡方准则,并部分重复他们的模拟例子,将卡方准则与这7个指数准则比较,结果说明新的卡方准则优于其中的6个,与另一个相当。最后简要说明了应当如何检视拟合指数进行模型检验和模型比较。     

小学儿童两维空间方位传递性推理能力的发展

研究了小学儿童两维空间方位传递性推理能力的发展水平及认知策略,同时,对心理模型理论进行了检验。被试为城市中等小学7岁、9岁、11岁儿童各24名,男女各半。单模型和双模型两种实验任务均为四前提。采用个别实验,儿童在前提呈现的情况下进行推理。主要研究结果：（1）7岁儿童开始萌发了两维空间方位传递性推理能力,9岁儿童和11岁儿童的推理能力处于发展和提高过程中;（2）随着年龄增长,使用模型建构策略解决问题的儿童人次越来越多,绝大部分11岁儿童都能使用这一策略进行推理。但即使儿童使用了模型建构策略,他们的推理成绩也没有反映出模型数量所造成的任务难度差异,即不符合心理模型理论关于模型数量的主要预期;（3）即使儿童能自发生成模型建构策略,儿童在两维空间方位传递性推理中使用这一策略的有效性程度并不高。