Infants' understanding of false labeling events: the referential roles of words and the speakers who use them

The four studies reported here examine whether 16-month-old infants' responses to true and false utterances interact with their knowledge of human agents. In Study 1, infants heard repeated instances either of true or false labeling of common objects; labels came from an active human speaker seated next to the infant. In Study 2, infants experienced the same stimuli and procedure; however, we replaced the human speaker of Study 1 with an audio speaker in the same location. In Study 3, labels came from a hidden audio speaker. In Study 4, a human speaker labeled the objects while facing away from them. In Study 1, infants looked significantly longer to the human agent when she falsely labeled than when she truthfully labeled the objects. Infants did not show a similar pattern of attention for the audio speaker of Study 2, the silent human of Study 3 or the facing-backward speaker of Study 4. In fact, infants who experienced truthful labeling looked significantly longer to the facing-backward labeler of Study 4 than to true labelers of the other three contexts. Additionally, infants were more likely to correct false labels when produced by the human labeler of Study 1 than in any of the other contexts. These findings suggest, first, that infants are developing a critical conception of other human speakers as truthful communicators, and second, that infants understand that human speakers may provide uniquely useful information when a word fails to match its referent. These findings are consistent with the view that infants can recognize differences in knowledge and that such differences can be based on differences in the availability of perceptual experience.     

Codependence and Interdependence: Cross-Cultural Reappraisal of Boundaries and Relationality

This article explores the cross-cultural implications of the Western notion of boundaries and the Asian matrix of relationality for pastoral care ministry. Theorists of codependence (relationship addiction) show that American awareness of boundaries produces phobic attitudes toward the interwoven interplay of human relationships. Noting the underlying American cultural ideal (i.e., individual autonomy), evidences that boundaries are culturally defined are reviewed. Drawing upon the social-psychological concept of interdependence (Asian construal of self), the author proposes that there is a need for a different understanding of boundaries, since some Asian people have strikingly different construals of the self, of others, and of the interdependence of the two. Boundaries and relationality need to be in dialogue with each other so as to create relational boundaries that empower mutual relations within which we may come to experience the power of the relational, triune God.     

Psychological ownership in relation to workplace trust and turnover intent

The study investigated the relationship between workplace trust, psychological ownership and turnover intent within a South African professional services organisation. A cross-sectional quantitative survey design was used to collect data from a purposive sample (n = 302) of skilled, highly skilled and professional employees in a professional services industry. The participants completed the Psychological Ownership Questionnaire, Workplace Trust Survey, and Turnover Intentions Scale. The results from structural equation modelling (SEM) suggest psychological ownership to be significantly related to workplace trust (positively) and turnover intent (negatively). In addition, the findings indicate psychological ownership to fully mediate the relationship between workplace trust and turnover intent. By implication, work environments that fostered workplace trust would increase the level of psychological ownership that employees’ experienced, which, in turn, would reduce employees’ intent to leave their workplace.     

Psychological Correlates of Perception of Sexual Intent in Women

Abstract

In a sample of 183 men and 186 women, the authors assessed (a) the relative contributions of gender and level of nonverbal social cues to the perception of a female actor's sexual intent during a videotaped social interaction with a man and (b) the association between those variables and personality traits implicated in faulty sexual-information processing. The authors assessed those variables while the participants viewed 1 of 3 film segments depicting a female-male interaction. The authors experimentally manipulated eye contact, touch, physical proximity, and female clothing. At all levels of those nonverbal cues, the men perceived more sexual intent in the female actor than did the women. The perception of the female actor's sexual intent increased as the nonverbal cues in the film segments were magnified: Both actors displayed more eye contact, touch, and physical proximity, and the female actor wore more revealing clothing. Relative to the women, the men demonstrated greater sexual preoccupation and reduced sociosexual effectiveness, variables associated with inferring greater sexual intent in the female actor.     

Catholic Priests' Knowledge of Pastoral Codes of Conduct in the United States

This exploratory study investigated Catholic priests' knowledge and perceptions of pastoral codes of conduct and their perceptions about the processes for reporting misconduct. Overall, respondents understood that they had to breach confidentiality when parishioners divulged a threat to harm self or others or when there was an allegation of misconduct involving a colleague. Fewer respondents understood that information received in spiritual counseling or spiritual direction must be maintained confidentially. Respondents were aware that their codes of pastoral conduct offered guidance about engaging in dual relationships (i.e., friendships with parishioners), but most respondents included parishioners in their circles of friends.     

The military chaplain: a study in ambiguity

This article looks at the ambiguities in the role of the military chaplain from three points of view. The first considers the nature of the constituency within which the chaplain ministers, paying particular attention to the degree – or otherwise – of secularisation and the reasons for this. The second examines the role of the chaplain in relation to the two institutions which he or she serves (i.e. church and state) and the tensions that emerge as a result. These are articulated in terms of ‘an angle of eschatological tension’. The third is concerned with ‘the roles within the role’ – that is the variety of tasks that make up the role of chaplaincy and the degree to which these are compatible with each other. The significance of theology in the resolution of the ensuing issues is set against diminishing societal resources in terms of religious literacy.     

Getting lost

This paper seeks to explore the process, challenges and journey of setting up counselling within a boys’ public school setting, as an independent practitioner. It looks at the structure and way in which the service was set up and what had to be changed and adapted as time went on. The school had a strong reputation for pastoral care but had come to recognise that there were some issues that it was neither possible nor appropriate for school staff to deal with. So, whilst the school could and did provide containment for many of its pupils, there were those who got lost or were outside of the culture. This seemed to get reflected in my own experience. Setting up counselling in a school is not straightforward, and like the process of therapy itself, it takes time and is not a linear process. Although the service grew steadily, there were factors that led to my finally resigning from the post – I also got lost in the system. There is also a comparison with setting up a service under the auspices of an organisation at the same time.     

Health,Healing and Wholeness in Frail Elderly People

ABSTRACT

This article explores the relationship between health, healing and wholeness in a group of twenty frail older residents of nursing homes, using in-depth interviews. While the participants in this study were all frail and lived with a number of disabilities, they demonstrated signs of transcendence in their responses to their disabilities. While independent living older adults in a previous study had all expressed fears of future vulnerability, only 45% of these nursing home residents said they had fears. Failure to thrive is discussed as one area of concern for frail older people, noting that this may stem from a lack of nourishment of the soul. Pastoral care is described as a multidisciplinary intervention for these residents, forming part of their wholistic care.     

Navigating Between Cultures: A New Paradigm for Korean American Cultural Identification

The author incorporates empirical methodology and cross-cultural psychology literature to propose a new paradigm for Korean American cultural identification. He explains cultural identification as a cultural process construct that has important bearing on how successfully or unsuccessfully minority persons may function in the U.S. The construct of bicultural orthogonal identification was applied toward the development of a bilingual 4-item Korean American Cultural Identification Scale (KACIA). A random sample of 80 from a larger national pool of 1,141 Korean Americans was used to develop the scale. Findings support the orthogonality of bicultural identifications and good validity and reliability for the KACIA. The author argues for complimentary dualism over conflicting dualism and the orientation of “both/and” over “either/or” as a strategy for doing pastoral practice and theology.Parts of this article appeared elsewhere in different versions and they are modified and used here with permission from the respective publishers (see Lee, 1994, 1995, 2004a).