Test anxiety in elementary school and junior high school students in japan

This study describes the sex difference, developmental trends of a modified Japanese version of the Test Anxiety Scale for Children (TASC, Sarason, Davidson, Frederick, & Waite, 1960) and presents evidence of negative effects of test anxiety on academic achievement. It was found that (a) the mean TASC scores for girls were found to be higher than boys across grades; (b) the developmental trends of anxiety scores showed the inversed V curves with the peak of 4th grades in elementary school, but in junior high school the curves were V shaped. Those results were explained in reference with selfdefensiveness, learning of anxiety, resistance to anxiety, and acquisition of self-concept; (c) the test anxiety was shown to have a negative effect on both academic achievement and intelligence test scores. Furthermore, it was to be also found in teacher-made tests that higher test anxiety students were inferior to lower in all the school subjects.     

Cyber-Sex

Abstract

While percentages of extramarital sex (EMS) vary from study to study, it can be estimated that 50-60% of married men and 45-55% of married women engage in extramarital sex at some time or another during their marriage and almost half come to therapy because of it. EMS appears in several different forms, only some of which are sexual in nature. Recently, couples are coming to therapy with a new type of affair: the Cyber-Affair. According to the President of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, this type of Internet infidelity has been greatly underestimated due to the Internet's current popularity as a technological advancement. In addition, healthcare professionals are often unfamiliar with the dynamics associated with the relatively new concept of cyber-affairs and the electronic process of “virtual cheating” and thus often do not consider the behavior as infidelity.

It is the purpose of this paper to explore this new phenomenon, the cyber-affair and to investigate how the ability to form romantic and sexual relationships over the Internet can sometimes lead to marital separation and divorce. In addition, the paper examines the factors involved in Internet infidelity, the unique problems associated with this type of affair, along with a discussion of the therapeutic considerations.     

Resolving the Curious Paradox of the (A)Sexual Lesbian

SUMMARY

Lesbians' erotic lives have been bracketed by opposing sexual narratives. According to a variety of experts, sex between two women is an unnatural and unlikely event. Data from a number of other sources suggest that lesbian sex is both frequent and ecstatic. For many long term partners, these polarized narratives serve as filters, screening out a myriad of middle ground practices and scenarios. Because more subtle possibilities are invisible or discounted, couple's only alternative-after the passionate courtship phase of the relationship has ended-is lesbian bed death. In such cases, renewed erotic contact depends on the restoration of the erased sexual middle-ground. This paper focuses on the strategies clinicians can use to neutralize the hegemonic either/or lesbian sexual narratives and expand their client's erotic repertoires.     

Social judgment of aggressive language: Effects of target and sender sex on the evaluation of slurs

We investigated the influence of the sex of the target and the sex of the sender on the judgment of slurs (verbal derogation). From previous research, we selected and clustered slurs into seven categories and respondents rated their degree of perceived insult in two consecutive questionnaire surveys (N = 281 and N = 224, respectively). Results confirm that slurs are generally judged as being more insulting when directed towards females than towards males. In comparison, differences in sex of sender were small. When directed towards females, slurs referring to “being loose” were rated as the most insulting. For both target sexes, remarks referring to homosexuality and physical unattractiveness were among those rated as the most insulting. Least insulting were slurs referring to unethical acts, lack of intelligence and cowardliness. A sex of respondent effect was found, suggesting that women rated slurs generally more insulting than men. The pattern of results showed considerable stability across surveys attesting for the reliability of the method for measuring the social evaluation of slurs.     

Effect of Depressive Symptoms and Sex on the Relationship Between Loneliness and Cigarette Dependence: A Moderated Mediation

Loneliness is a subjective and emotionally unpleasant experience of perceiving insufficient social relationships. Previous research has revealed that loneliness constitutes a psychosocial risk factor for depression, and is also related to unhealthy behaviors such as smoking. This study aims to examine the relation between loneliness, depression, and cigarette dependence, and to explore the role of sex in this relationship. A total sample of 275 adult treatment-seeking daily smokers (Mage = 45.3; 61.5% females) was used. Our results showed a significant correlation between higher scores of loneliness, depressive symptoms, and cigarette dependence. In addition, mediation analysis showed a significant indirect effect of loneliness on cigarette dependence, via depressive symptoms. Regarding the effect of sex, we found that this variable significantly moderated the relationship between depressive symptoms and cigarette dependence. Results of this study extend previous literature by showing that, in treatment seeking smokers, loneliness is a significant predictor of depressive symptoms, and through this relation, it predicts cigarette dependence. Additionally, sex was a significant moderator of this relation. These findings have several clinical implications, and also contribute to the understanding of cigarette dependence, which is a well-known barrier for smoking cessation.     

Parents Think Their Sons Are Brighter Than Their Daughters: Sex Differences in Parental Self-Estimations and Estimations of Their Children's Multiple Intelligences

In this study, 156 participants, predominantly White British adults (M age = 44.3 years) rated themselves on overall IQ and on H. Gardner's (1983) 7 intelligence subtypes. Parents (n = 120) also estimated the intelligence of their children. Men's self-estimates were significantly higher than women's (110.15 vs. 104.84). Participants thought their verbal, mathematical, and spatial intelligence scores were the best indicators of their own overall intelligence. Parents estimated that their sons had significantly higher IQs than their daughters (115.21 vs. 107.49). Self-estimates and estimates of children's multiple intelligences were higher for men and sons, significantly so for logical-mathematical and spatial intelligence. Parents rated 2nd-born daughters as having significantly higher verbal and musical intelligence than their male counterparts. Higher parental IQ self-estimates corresponded with higher IQ estimates for children. Results for 1st-born children were clearest and showed the most significant differences. The findings are interpreted in terms of sociocultural and familial influences and the possibility of actual sex differences in particular abilities.     

Face encoding is not categorical: Consistent evidence across multiple types of contingent aftereffects

ABSTRACT

Race-contingent aftereffects indicate that faces of different races are encoded via dissociable visual channels. Race-contingent aftereffects reflect perceptions of typicality, indicating a gradual transition of activity across channels as faces change from looking more typical of one race to the other We examine whether faces forming more discrete categories (sex: male/female; species: human/monkey) are encoded in a similar fashion, or whether they are instead encoded via more dichotomous categorical judgements. Curves representing the rate of change of aftereffect magnitude as stimuli changed from male to female produced shallow slopes, closely resembling ratings of typicality, but differing significantly from slopes for categorical judgements. For species, aftereffect slopes were significantly shallower than both ratings of typicality and categorical judgements. Overall, these results suggest that the encoding of facial properties such as these is not categorical, but instead involves a graded response as stimulus typicality varies. Aftereffect slopes were similar across the two experiments, raising the possibility of a common system that is recruited during contingent adaptation, regardless of the specific dimension involved or the categories used by the experimenter.     

Religiosity and fear of death: a three‐nation comparison

Numerous studies have sought to determine if religiosity is correlated with fear of death. Findings have been anything but consistent, with reports of negative relationships, positive relationships, no relationship, and even curvilinear associations. To shed light on this still contentious issue, the present study was undertaken among college students in three countries – Malaysia, Turkey, and the United States. Overall, the patterns in all three countries were similar. When linearity was assumed, there is a substantial positive correlation between most religiosity measures and fear of death. Assuming curvilinearity added slightly to the strength of the relationships in the US data and nothing to data from Malaysia or Turkey. Other findings were that on average females were more religious and feared death more than did males, and Muslims expressed considerably greater fear than did members of any other major religion. Results were discussed in the context of a new theory – called death apprehension theory. Among other things, it specifically predicts that death apprehension will be positively related to most religious beliefs and practices.     

Gender Influences on Preschool Children's Social Problem-Solving Strategies

The authors investigated gender influences on the nature and competency of preschool children's social problem-solving strategies. Preschool-age children (N = 179; 91 boys, 88 girls) responded to hypothetical social situations designed to assess their social problem-solving skills in the areas of provocation, peer group entry, and sharing or taking turns. Results indicated that, overall, girls' responses were more competent (i.e., reflective of successful functioning with peers) than those of boys, and girls' strategies were less likely to involve retaliation or verbal or physical aggression. The competency of the children's responses also varied with the gender of the target child. Findings are discussed in terms of the influence of gender-related social experiences on the types of strategies and behaviors that may be viewed as competent for boys and girls of preschool age.