Don’t look back in anger: A cross-sectional and dyadic examination of the Dark Triad,anger, and aggression in athletes

ObjectivesThe Dark Triad (psychopathy, Machiavellianism, and narcissism) has been linked to anti-social behaviour in sport, and while anti-social behaviour often involves aggression and violence, no research to date has examined the relationship between the Dark Triad and anger and aggression in athletes. The current two-sample study sought to address this gap.DesignMulti-sample cross-sectional design.MethodSample 1 included 224 athletes (M_AGE = 23.85) and Sample 2 included 98 coach-athlete dyads (196 total; athlete M_AGE = 18.15, coaches M_AGE = 34.84). In both samples, facets of the Dark Triad were related to anger and aggression.ResultsIn Sample 1, regression analyses indicated that psychopathy positively predicted both anger and aggression and Machiavellianism positively predicted aggression. In Sample 2, actor-partner interdependence models indicated a combination of dyadic relationships (i.e., both actor [coach and athlete personality predicted their own anger and aggression] and partner effects [coach and athlete personality predicted the other’s anger and aggression]). In this regard, actor effects were found between psychopathy and both anger and aggression and narcissism and aggression. Coach to athlete partner effects were found for narcissism and anger and Machiavellianism and aggression.ConclusionsOverall, the findings provide evidence for personal and interpersonal relationships between the Dark Triad and anger and aggression and highlight the potential for the darker side of both athlete and coach personality to influence athlete emotions.     

The independence of positive and negative affect depends on the affect measure

This study examined the degree of independence between Positive Affect (PA) and Negative Affect (NA) within a given situation. The affective state was measured before and after an experimentally induced success or failure experience in an anagram task. Two types of affect measures were used to assess PA and NA: the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) and a Pleasantness-Unpleasantness scale. Consistent with our hypotheses, results show that PA and NA are independent when measured with the PANAS but are correlated when assessed with the other scale. These PA-NA correlations differed significantly from each other before and after emotion induction, respectively. Additional analyses indicate that both PA scales are differentially sensitive to the mood induction procedure. The findings are discussed with respect to circumplex models of emotion.     

Discriminative stimulus control and the effects of concurrent operants.

Discriminative-stimulus-control functions were investigated in a concurrent operant context. Variable-interval reinforcement schedules were arranged for pigeons on two response keys. One key, illuminated with a white vertical line on green background (position irrelevant), was programmed with a given schedule value across groups. For different groups of pigeons, the alternative key, illuminated with green alone, was programmed with twice, the same, or half the reinforcement frequency of the other key. Stimulus-control gradients were collected from both keys as line orientation was varied. On the green-plus-line alternative, flattest gradients were observed when twice the reinforcement frequency was concurrently programmed and the steepest were observed when equal values were concurrently programmed. Also examined were the effects of a programmed changeover delay, important in maintaining the independence of concurrent operants. The changeover delay was found to have relatively minor effects upon stimulus control, despite its typical and marked effects upon steady-state responding.     

An incomplete data approach to the analysis of covariance structures

In this paper, linear structural equation models with latent variables are considered. It is shown how many common models arise from incomplete observation of a relatively simple system. Subclasses of models with conditional independence interpretations are also discussed. Using an incomplete data point of view, the relationships between the incomplete and complete data likelihoods, assuming normality, are highlighted. For computing maximum likelihood estimates, the EM algorithm and alternatives are surveyed. For the alternative algorithms, simplified expressions for computing function values and derivatives are given. Likelihood ratio tests based on complete and incomplete data are related, and an example on using their relationship to improve the fit of a model is given.This research forms part of the author's doctoral thesis and was supported by a Commonwealth Postgraduate Research Award. The author also wishes to acknowledge the support of CSIRO during the preparation of this paper and the referees' comments which led to substantial improvements.     

Molecular analyses of the effects of d-amphetamine on fixed-interval schedule performances of rats.

A series of doses (0.5 to 2.0 mg/kg) of d-amphetamine was administered to rats whose lever pressing was maintained by fixed-interval 30-s, 60-s, or 120-s schedules of reinforcement by sucrose delivery. Under both saline and d-amphetamine conditions, molecular features of responding were reliably described in terms of the distribution of postreinforcement pauses and local response rate following the onset of responding. Postreinforcement pause always varied from interval to interval but, on average, shortened under the drug. Local response rate (response rate exclusive of pause time) tended to decrease under the drug, and where acceleration occurred within runs of responses, it was reduced by the drug. All of these effects were dose-related. These findings suggest that fixed-interval behavior can be analyzed effectively at a molecular level, and that the effects of d-amphetamine are best described as disruption of temporal discrimination.     

Do multicultural experiences facilitate global processing style?

The current research explores whether multicultural experiences facilitate global processing style. We conducted two experiments in which participants were exposed to either a multicultural experience or a monocultural experience. They were required to either perform the Navon letter task (Experiment 1) or search for similarities or differences between two videos (Experiment 2). The experimental results showed that, compared to the participants exposed to a monocultural experience, those exposed to a multicultural experience had faster reaction times to global letters (Experiment 1) and tended to search for similarities (Experiment 2). This indicates that individuals with multicultural experiences facilitate a global processing style. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd, Asian Association of Social Psychology and Beijing Normal University     

Local Optima in Mixture Modeling

It is common knowledge that mixture models are prone to arrive at locally optimal solutions. Typically, researchers are directed to utilize several random initializations to ensure that the resulting solution is adequate. However, it is unknown what factors contribute to a large number of local optima and whether these coincide with the factors that reduce the accuracy of a mixture model. A real-data illustration and a series of simulations are presented that examine the effect of a variety of data structures on the propensity of local optima and the classification quality of the resulting solution. We show that there is a moderately strong relationship between a solution that has a high proportion of local optima and one that is poorly classified.     

知觉整体优先性的研究及其进展

知觉的性质是整体的还是分析的 ?这是心理学家们长期争论不休的问题。本世纪 70年代以来 ,一些认知心理学家提出知觉加工的整体优先性假设 ,强调整体在知觉加工中的优先地位。这一假设激发了大量整体 /局部范例的研究。本文综述了这方面的研究 ,分析了它们的理论假设 ,指出了这方面研究的局限以及替代的探讨。     

Configural and local processing of faces in children with Williams syndrome

Three experiments investigated face processing in children with Williams syndrome (WS). In Experiment 1, the ability to discriminate different aspects of faces was compared between WS subjects and a group of children individually matched for chronological age (CA-matches) and another group matched for mental age (MA-matches). In Experiments 2 and 3, the ability to process the local and configural aspects of geometrical patterns and faces was assessed within the same groups of subjects. The results indicated that the WSs' overall performance on face recognition was below that of the CA-matches, but similar to that of the MA-matches. This study revealed in addition that the CA- and MA-matches showed a bias toward a configural mode of face and geometrical shape processing, whereas children with WS did not show any bias. These findings suggest that face processing undergoes an abnormal developmental course in WS.     

封闭性知觉在大范围优先性中的特殊性

本文研究当封闭性作为被试分辨的图形性质时,空间位置不确定性和视野位置对大范围优先性有何影响。实验发现：（１）无论复合刺激呈现在视野的中央或外周．分辨复合刺激的整体性质的反应时（ＲＴ）比分辨局部性质的ＲＴ短,整体性质对分辨局部性质的反应有较强的干扰作用。相反,局部性质对分辨整体性质的反应的影响较小;（２）刺激位置的不确定对大范围优先性没有显著影响;（３）与周边刺激相比,分辨视野中央的复合刺激的ＲＴ较短,但整体性质的ＲＴ优势和对局部性质的干扰作用,不受刺激在视野中的位置的影响。这些实验结果揭示了封闭性知觉在大范围优先性中的特殊性。