Memory bias for threatening information related to anxiety: an updated meta-analytic review

The evidence for an anxiety-related memory bias is contradictory. We compiled 171 articles published until October 2016 including a group with clinical or subclinical anxiety and a control group in tasks involving implicit or explicit memory using threatening stimuli. There was an anxiety-related memory bias in free recall tasks, but it was not observed in another memory task. The between-groups differences showed that the anxious group recalled more threatening stimuli than the control group (d?=?0.321). When we compared the group differences (anxious vs. control participants) in the within-groups effect (threatening vs. neutral stimuli), a moderate effect size emerged (d_bw?=?0.714). This anxiety-related memory bias was observed with shallow processing, that is consistent with attentional biases related to anxiety. There was also evidence that high-anxious persons recall fewer positive stimuli. Future research is needed to investigate whether this result is a memory or encoding bias and explore other moderator variables.     

What will Phil do next? : Spontaneously inferred traits influence predictions of behavior

Past research has shown that perceivers intentionally may make trait inferences about others and use this information to make predictions about these others' future behaviors. Other research has also shown that people can make trait inferences without intent—that is, spontaneously. However, one unexplored avenue is whether spontaneous trait inferences (STI), affect how perceivers predict others' will behavior. Three studies explored this issue. Results from Studies 1 and 2 showed that: (1) exposure to trait-implicative behaviors describing an actor influences subsequent behavior predictions made about the actor in a trait-consistent manner, and (2) predictions occurred regardless of behavior recall, implying that the behavior predictions were derived from prior trait inferences and not from behavior recall. Results from Study 3 bolstered this conclusion by showing that behavior predictions were similar regardless of whether subjects were explicitly instructed to make inferences or not, but that a manipulation known to interfere with inference generation (lie detection instructions) muted behavior predictions. Results from Study 3 also suggested that the prediction effects had both automatic and controlled components, and that reductions observed in the lie detection condition of Study 3 were caused by alterations in the automatic influence of trait knowledge to the behavior predictions. These results suggest that STI may be causal inferences about the actors' dispositions.     

儿童特质推理与情绪和效价线索理解的关系

本研究从情绪、效价两个角度探讨儿童特质理解与线索理解的关系。372名4、5、7岁儿童完成了贴标签和行为预测两类特质推理任务。实验一显示,所有年龄段儿童都能完成对情绪性特质害羞和胆小的推理,且特质和行为评定与情绪评定呈显著正相关;实验二显示,所有年龄段均能完成双重性质特质助人为乐和自私的推理,特质和行为评定与效价、情绪评定均呈显著正相关,回归分析则只有效价评定进入方程。结果说明,儿童完成情绪性特质推理任务时与情绪理解能力关系密切,而对双重性质特质推理时更多的与效价理解能力有关。     

Association of the DAT1 genotype with inattentive behavior is mediated by reading ability in a general population sample

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and reading disability (RD) frequently co-occur in the child population and therefore raise the possibility of shared genetic etiology. We used a quantitative trait loci (QTL) approach to assess the involvement of the dopamine transporter (DAT1) gene polymorphism in mediating reading disability and poor attention in a general population sample of primary school children aged 6-11 years in the UK. The potential confounding effects of IQ and chronological age were also investigated. We found an independent association between the homozygous DAT1 10/10 repeat genotype and RD that was not accounted for by the level of ADHD symptoms. This finding suggests that the DAT1 gene polymorphism may influence a common neural mechanism underlying both reading acquisition and ADHD symptoms.     

Violent and nonviolent video games differentially affect physical aggression for individuals high vs. low in dispositional anger

Although numerous experiments have shown that exposure to violent video games (VVG) causes increases in aggression, relatively few studies have investigated the extent to which this effect differs as a function of theoretically relevant individual difference factors. This study investigated whether video game content differentially influences aggression as a function of individual differences in trait anger. Participants were randomly assigned to play a violent or nonviolent video game before completing a task in which they could behave aggressively. Results showed that participants high in trait anger were the most aggressive, but only if they first played a VVG. This relationship held while statistically controlling for dimensions other than violent content on which game conditions differed (e.g. frustration, arousal). Implications of these findings for models explaining the effects of video games on behavior are discussed.     

乒乓球运动员人格特征对比赛成绩及专业发展的影响

根据先前研究确定的乒乓球运动员人格特征,对少体队、省队、国家队三个层次的乒乓球运动员群体进行纵向追踪研究。研究结果发现,乒乓球运动员人格特征与其比赛成绩存在较高相关,能够较好的预测高水平运动的比赛成绩;升级组运动员在乐观性、宽容性、探究性、有恒性、自律性、果断性、稳定性等7项特质上优于未升级组运动员,乒乓球运动员人格特征可较准确地预测球员在专业水平上的成功表现。研究的结果支持了先前横向比较研究的结论:乒乓球运动员的人格特征主要由表现性、乐观性、变通性、宽容性、合作性、稳定性、探究性、紧张性、有恒性、自律性、独立性、果断性和工作专注13项心理特质组成。     

大学生自我价值感与人格特质的相关研究

用黄希庭等编制的《青少年自我价值感量表》与王登峰等编制的《中国人人格量表》对大学一、二年级486名学生的测试结果表明:(1)大学生的自我价值感与人格特质存在高度的相关;(2)自我价值感的所有维度与人格特质中的自我指向特点呈显著正相关;(3)自我价值感的大多数维度与外向性、善良、才干、人际关系和处世态度呈显著正相关,其中处世态度和外向性对自我价值感的绝大多数维度都有良好的预测效果;(4)自我价值感的大多数维度与行事风格和情绪性呈显著负相关。     

中学教师的人格特点研究

采用以“大五因素”人格理论编制的NEO人格问卷修订本(NEO-PI-R),对1005名中学教师五种典型的人格特质及其教师特征因素进行分析。结果表明:中学教师五种人格特质的宜人性和尽责性得分最高,神经质特质得分最低。中老年教师的尽责性特质显著高于年轻教师。从教师特征因素来看,中学教师在人格宜人性方面存在性别差异,25岁以下的高学历教师在人格的开放性上显著高于其他年龄的教师,而不同职称的教师在人格各个特质上均不存在差异。     

品德心理结构研究进展的剖析及展望

对品德心理结构的研究一直是德育心理学研究的重要课题。纵观我国学者关于品德心理结构的研究成果,提示了研究进展的三个阶段:起步研究阶段、拓展研究阶段、核心研究阶段。初步评定了各研究的得失,提出了进一步研究品德心理结构的展望与启示。     

Direct and indirect relationships among posttraumatic stress disorder,depression, hostility,anger, and verbal and physical aggression in returning veterans

Hostility, anger, and aggression are conceptually related but unique constructs found to occur more often among veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than among civilians or veterans without PTSD. However, the pathways between PTSD, depression, hostility, anger, and aggression have not been comprehensively characterized. Therefore, drawing on a sample of returning Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom combat veterans ( N = 175; 95% male; mean age 30 years), this study sought to examine the direct and indirect relationships among PTSD, depression, hostility, anger, and four types of aggression: verbal, and physical toward self, others, and objects. Functional modeling of direct effects was done using multiple least-squares regression and bootstrapped mediation analyses were carried out to test indirect effects. Results indicate that PTSD is not the overall direct contributor to different forms of aggression, supporting the mediating role of depression and trait anger. Depression symptoms explain part of the relationships between PTSD and verbal aggression, physical aggression toward objects, and physical aggression toward self and trait anger explains part of the relationships between PTSD and verbal aggression, physical aggression toward objects, and physical aggression toward others. Our findings support the importance of assessing for anger, depression, and different types of aggression among veterans presenting for PTSD treatment to develop individualized treatment plans that may benefit from early incorporation of interventions.