A general method for computing hierarchical component structures by Goldberg’s Bass-Ackwards method

Goldberg [Goldberg, L. R.(in press) Doing it all Bass-Ackwards: The development of hierarchical factor structures from the top down. Journal of Research in Personality] has recently described a novel method for computing hierarchical component structures via a “top down” design. He calls his method the “Bass Ackwards” approach to distinguish it from more common “bottom up” methods for obtaining hierarchical solutions. Using simple matrix equations, in this commentary I demonstrate that the end result of a Bass Ackwards analysis—that is, the correlations between component scores from different levels of a hierarchy—can be calculated without calculating the actual component scores. By avoiding component-score calculation, Goldberg’s method (a) can be applied to any data set in which a correlation matrix is available, and (b) can be applied to factor scores rather than estimated factor scores. Goldberg suggests that the Bass Ackwards method represents a useful tool for elucidating the underlying dimensionality and latent structure (rotation in hyperspace) of a data set. Computer code is reported in the Appendix A of this article to help personality researchers more fully evaluate this claim in empirical and simulated data.     

Three dimensions of coping and a look at their evolutionary origin

Serious problems persist concerning the conceptualization and measurement of the coping construct. This study examines the properties and factor structure of the COPE questionnaire, one of the most widely used instruments to measure coping, in a sample of 471 patients. A series of exploratory factor procedures are applied at the item- and scale-level, and the resulting solutions are tested both by their congruence with previously published structures and by confirmatory techniques. Our finding of three robust, generalizable, and parsimonious second-order dimensions—Engagement, Disengagement, and Help-Seeking—challenges the original structure. The results are discussed from an evolutionary perspective, on the assumption that the recognition of coping as the activation of vestigial defenses may make a substantial contribution to clarifying its functions and organization.     

The Minority-Majority Conundrum in Northern Ireland: An Orange Order Perspective

Researchers have argued that, depending on the framing of the Northern Ireland conflict, each group could either be a minority or a majority relative to the other. This complicates macrosocial explanations of the conflict which make specific predictions on the basis of minority or majority positions. The present paper argues that this conundrum may have arisen from the inherent variability in microidentity processes that do not fit easily with macroexplanations. In this paper the rhetoric of relative group position is analysed in political speeches delivered by leading members of an influential Protestant institution in Northern Ireland. It is apparent that minority and majority claims are not fixed but are flexibly used to achieve local rhetorical goals. Furthermore, the speeches differ before and after the Good Friday Agreement, with a reactionary "hegemonic" Unionist position giving way to a "majority-rights power sharing" argument and a "pseudo-minority" status giving way to a "disempowered minority" argument. These results suggest a view of the Northern Ireland conflict as a struggle for "symbolic power," i.e., the ability to flexibly define the intergroup situation to the ingroup's advantage.     

城镇职工医疗保险改革面临的问题与对策

我国政府已明确提出城镇职工基本医疗保险制度的改革目标,虽然改革已取得了一些进展,但距改革目标仍有相当差距。采用政治分析方法,分析了目前医改所面临的主要问题与原因,并在借鉴国际医疗保障制度改革启示的基础上,进一步探讨解决问题和推进改革进程的思路。     

A Statistical Interpretive Method for Neuropsychological Test Data

The accurate interpretation of large numbers of neuropsychological tests within a flexible battery approach is a difficult and sometimes controversial process. We present a statistically based method of interpretation (Rohling's Interpretive Method or RIM) and evaluation of neuropsychological data that allows for varying numbers of tests along a varying number of cognitive domains, yet remains psychometrically based. This method requires informed clinical judgment in that the level of confidence for tests, cognitive domains, and global indices are used as the backdrop for interpretive decisions. Specific procedures for use are presented in a systematic, detailed fashion to allow the interested reader to replicate the method. Two case examples are presented: a straightforward case of cerebrovascular insult and a more complicated case of mixed etiology. Examples include a variety of different neuropsychological tests commonly used in a flexible battery approach. A discussion of the practicality, ease of use, and potential limitations of this method are further presented.     

张居正的马基雅弗利主义人格解析

张居正是明朝伟大的政治家,同时也是成功的马基雅弗利主义者,堪称＂东方马基雅弗利＂。＂附保逐拱＂、＂王大臣案＂、＂刘台案＂和＂夺情本谋＂均是张居正马基雅弗利主义人格的例证,从中可以剖析出＂外儒内法＂和两面性的特点。张居正的马基雅弗利主义人格是专制皇权对人性的扭曲,而马基雅弗利主义人格也直接导致了张居正的悲剧结局。     

Influential observations in principal factor analysis

We propose a method for detecting influential observations in iterative principal factor analysis. For this purpose we derive the influence functionsI(x; LL ^T ) andI(x; ) for the common variance matrixT =LL ^T and the unique variance matrix , respectively, in the common factor decomposition =LL ^T + . A numerical example is given for illustration.The authors are grateful to Tomoyuki Tarumi and Atsuhiro Hayashi for their kind permission to use their software Seto/B for drawing Figures 1 and 2 and to anonymous reviewers for comments on the paper.     

Narcissistic Personality Inventory: Structure of the adapted Dutch version

Barelds, D. P. H. & Dijkstra, P. (2009). Narcissistic Personality Inventory: Structure of the adapted Dutch version. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 51, 132–138. The present study examined the structure of a Dutch adaptation of the 40‐item Narcissistic Personality Inventory ( Raskin & Terry, 1988 ) in a community sample (n = 460) and a student sample (n = 515). Altering the response format of the NPI to a Likert‐scale had no apparent effect on the responses. Confirmatory factor analyses supported neither the four‐factor structure reported by Emmons (1984) , nor the seven‐factor structure reported by Raskin and Terry (1988) . Instead, exploratory factor analyses supported either a single‐factor solution (general narcissism), or a two‐factor solution (Authority/Power and Self‐Admiration). The validity of the NPI was supported by its relations with sex, age, personality, self‐esteem, shame, guilt and social desirability.