Do you get what you pay for? Preventing insufficient effort responding in MTurk and student samples

Previous research has developed multiple indices to detect instances of insufficient effort responding (IER; Huang et al., 2015, 0.1037/a0038510). Although these techniques are largely successful, conflation between effort and insufficient effort leads to unnecessary data removal, thus warranting investigation into IER prevention strategies such as warning statements. For example, Brühlmann et al. (2020, 10.1016/j.metip.2020.100022) reported that close to 60% of participants were flagged for IER on at least one IER detection index. The current study used positive, negative, and no warning statements in two samples (MTurk and university participant pool) to examine their impact on two types of IER. Results do not support the use of warning statements to reduce IER covertly, overtly, or overall. Although slightly more university participants were flagged for IER for two of five IER indices, the remaining three indices did not differ between samples. This finding represents an important contribution to survey research literature by directly comparing samples on a variety of IER indices. Implications for survey research necessitate the examination of additional prevention strategies and sample differences in IER.     

Self-Efficacy for Enhancing Students’ Career and College Readiness: A Survey of Professional School Counselors

Grounded in Bandura’s (1997) self-efficacy theory and Savickas’s (2011) career construction theory, this study examined school counselors’ beliefs about whether they can perform specific tasks related to supporting students’ career and college readiness. A national sample of school counselors (N = 2,047) completed the School Counselor Self-Efficacy for Enhancing Student Career and College Readiness Scale (Baker, Parikh-Foxx, & Martinez, 2017). Findings from a survey research design indicated that the extent of related training and the challenges associated with implementation of career service delivery were of concern to participants. Recommendations for training, practice, and further research are presented.     

An international survey on the incidence and modulating factors of carsickness

About two in three people have experienced carsickness at some point in their life (Reason & Brand, 1975). Little is known about current numbers of sufferers, cultural differences, or which modulating factors are being perceived as most relevant. Therefore, given a global increase of interest in carsickness driven by the development of automated vehicles, this survey intended to assess the status quo of carsickness in different parts of the world. We conducted an online survey with N = 4,479 participants in Brazil, China, Germany, UK and USA. 46% of participants indicated they had experienced some degree of carsickness in the past five years as a passenger in a car. When including childhood experiences, this rate increased to 59%, comparable to the 1975 findings by Reason and Brand. The highest and lowest incidence of carsickness was reported in China and Germany, respectively. In all countries, men and older participants reported a lower incidence of carsickness as compared to females and younger participants. The main modulating factors were found to be driving dynamics, visual activities, and low air quality. This study showed that carsickness still affects about 2/3 of passengers and discusses how its occurrence relates to in-transit activities and other modes of transport. The research provides a sound basis to further study how carsickness develops and to investigate countermeasures to potentially reduce it.     

Is there a spillover effect of a right turn on red permission for bicyclists?

A number of countries allow bicyclists to perform a right turn on red (RTOR) at some specific intersections to promote cycling by reducing the required physical effort and trip time. Implementation of a rule that allows a RTOR for bicyclists at some intersections could lead not only to local effects at those intersections where the rule actually applies, but also to supralocal effects. Using an experimental survey approach, this study explores whether a so-called ‘spillover effect’ of the rule can be expected. This effect would imply that allowing bicyclists to turn right on red at some intersections causes them to also turn right on red more often at intersections where RTOR for bicyclists is not allowed.The answers from 768 respondents indicate that respondents with a high awareness of the existence of a RTOR rule for bicyclists (experimental group) turn right on red significantly more often at intersections where RTOR for bicyclists is not permitted than respondents with a low awareness of the rule (control group). This indicates that implementation of the RTOR rule for bicyclists can indeed lead to an increase in red light running at other intersections. This might lead to safety issues at intersections where RTOR for bicyclists is not permitted, since road authorities could have decided not to allow RTOR for bicyclists at these intersections for safety reasons.The study also finds that men, young people and people who generally perform more risky cycling behaviours have a higher tendency to perform non-permitted RTOR. These findings are in line with existing literature.     

Child sexual abuse and literacy achievement in a sample of South African primary school children

This study investigated child sexual abuse (CSA) and literacy achievement among South African primary school children. Data on self-reported experience of CSA and actual literacy achievement were collected from a convenience sample of 160 learners from a Soweto school in Johannesburg. The literacy tests measured five domains of reading and spelling competencies. The results show a statistically significant relationship between CSA and literacy scores, with learners who were sexually abused scoring significantly lower on the literacy tests used in this study. Specifically, learners with CSA experience performed noticeably lower in the real word test, followed by spelling, words spelt correctly, reading fluency, and non-word spelling. School psychologists could adopt a social justice framework in providing psychological and literacy support for children who are sexually abused.     

A victimization survey of female‐perpetrated assaults in the United Kingdom

A survey of a national representative sample of adults (1,455) in the United Kingdom investigated the incidence of female‐perpetrated assault as had been experienced by adult male and female respondents in any context over the past five years. Sampling was undertaken throughout the United Kingdom by a self‐completion instrument modeled on the Conflict Tactics Scale. Respondents reporting assault were also asked brief details about their assailant and the context of the assault (e.g., estimated age, relation to victim, and involvement of alcohol) and whether injury was suffered. Men reported being victimized by females more than women and experiencing the more severe forms of assault more than women. Single women were the most likely women to report a female assault, and approximately 50% of assaulted men reported that they experienced assault by a female intimate or ex‐intimate. Aggr. Behav. 25:67–79, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

A Systematic Review of Online Response Rates in Four Counseling Journals

This systematic review of articles published in 4 counseling journals found 207 articles that used online recruitment, of which 98 (47.3%) reported a response rate. These 98 studies collectively contained 22,466 individual participants. Results showed that nearly one third of all empirical articles used online recruitment, and the average response rate was 34.2% (SD = 22.6). Response rates are further described by journal, population, research methodology, and recruitment strategy. Researcher‐reported issues with online recruitment and data collection were also analyzed qualitatively, and recommendations for researchers are discussed.