Psychometric Properties and Factorial Structure of the State Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait Version (STAI-T) in Caribbean University Students

The study investigated the psychometric properties of the State Trait Anxiety Inventory—Trait Scale (STAI-T: Spielberger, 1983) in a Caribbean university student sample. Participants were 415 undergraduate students (75% female) who completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait Version (STAI-T; Spielberger, 1983), Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II; Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996), the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS; Zung, 1965), the Ego Resiliecy-89 (ER-89; Block, 1989), and the Perceived Stress Scale-Ten Item Version (PSS-10; Cohen et al., 1983). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to examine the construct validity of the trait anxiety scale in terms of factor structure, convergent, discriminant, and nomological validities. CFA results revealed that a two-factor solution (trait anxiety absent and trait anxiety present) provided significantly better fit than the one-factor model of trait anxiety. There was clear evidence of convergent validity, discriminant validity, and nomological validity of the scale. Results support the psychometric adequacy of the STAI-T for use with Caribbean university students.     

Psychobiography in psychology: Past,present, and future

The present article reviews the history and emerging trends in the field of psychobiography. Five historical periods are highlighted: hagiography and pre-19th century study of lives; Freud and applied psychoanalysis; psychodynamic extensions and personology; modern multi-theoretical models; and psychobiography as interdisciplinary science. The author advocates for a science of psychobiography manifested in expanded and empirically validated theoretical models anchoring research. Further, attention is drawn to the need for more rigorous historiographic research methods weighting first-person sources and incorporating mixed methods designs. Increased attention to ethical and legal issues in the conduct and reporting of psychobiographical studies is also highlighted. Finally, emerging trends in psychobiography related to research production, academic training, and organisational initiatives are presented.     

Moderating role of affectivity in career resilience and career anchors

This study explored the moderating role of positive affect and negative affect in the link between employees’ career resilience and their career anchors . A convenience sample (N=143) of predominantly black African people (86%) and staff level (80%) employees with more than 10 years of service (60%) participated in the study (mean age: 41 years; men: 52%; women: 48%) . Correlational analysis showed significant associations between the variables . Hierarchical moderated regression analysis indicated low positive affect as a significant moderator of the career resilience-managerial competence career anchor relationship . High negative affect and low negative affect significantly weakened the career resilience-entrepreneurial creativity, career resilience-pure challenge and career resilience-lifestyle relationships . The findings add new insights that may be useful for career development support programmes in the contemporary workplace .     

Children's Loss of Agency under Extreme Adversity

This study explores the notion of children's agency in situations of extreme adversity. The child participants (n=117) live in the midst of the HIV/AIDS pandemic; extreme poverty; and systemic educational malfunction. Four focus group interviews were conducted with the children to explore their experiences of potential barriers to education. The findings indicated that contextual factors had a profoundly negative impact on the children, with their agentive capacity being severely compromised through their exposure to multiple, complex layers of risk. There was very little evidence to suggest that children retain any sense of their own agency in such adversity. This has implications for their resilience and for the development of policy and intervention strategies that may meet these children's needs.     

Psychological strengths and subjective well-being in South African white students

This study investigated the role of individual resources, notably self-efficacy, gratitude, and hope, in subjective well-being of white dormitory students at a historically white institution of higher learning. Using a convenience sample of white students (N?=?227), we tested the role of generalised self-efficacy, gratitude, and hope as indicators of a latent factor, labelled personal resources, in a structural equation model with subjective well-being as the latent output variable, measured by self-esteem and satisfaction with life. Path analyses indicated a reasonable fit between the data and our hypothesised theoretical model which proposed positive relations between levels of generalised self-efficacy, gratitude, dispositional hope, self-esteem and satisfaction with life. White students were psychologically doing well, considering above-midpoint levels obtained for levels of generalised self-efficacy, gratitude, dispositional hope, and satisfaction with life However, scores obtained for self-esteem and adult dispositional hope were below the mid-point and neutral respectively, indicating that White students do not agree that they experience high levels of these two psychological strengths. White female students experienced higher levels of hope, gratitude, and life satisfaction, while no significant gender differences were found for generalised self-efficacy and self-esteem. The results of this study highlight the potential for using psychological strengths to promote well-being in racially diverse students.     

Engagement organisationnel,coping, et affects en contexte organisationnel : test d’un modèle intégrateur

This study examines a model relating components of organizational commitment to positive and negative affect through the partial mediation of problem solving coping. The results of a study conducted among a sample of 647 employees from various organizations show that affective commitment relates positively to positive affect and negatively to negative affect, with the relation to positive affect being partially mediated by problem solving coping. Normative commitment was positively related to negative affect. Finally, continuance commitment based on few alternatives was negatively related to positive affect and positively related to negative affect, with the relation to positive affect being partially mediated by a weaker problem solving coping. Continuance commitment based on perceived sacrifice had no effects.     

Resilience in Families Adapting to Autism Spectrum Disorder

This study explored adjustment and adaptation in families living with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Data on family resilience were collected from 19 biological mothers of children with ADS. The data were analysed qualitatively and quantitatively to yield information on factors that enable these families to bounce back from the diagnosis and accompanying challenges with regard to ADS. The findings from the qualitative analysis indicate that social support, the spousal relationship, and family time, togetherness and routines are the most important resilience-promoting factors with ASD. Family hardiness, family problem-solving communication, and family time and routines were significant resilience resources.     

The transconfessional character of the doctrine of justification and its depiction on the title page of the Brest Bible

Abstract

This article examines the illustration on the Brest Bible's title page, relating it to the woodcut, The Law and the Gospel or Law and Grace, created forty-five years earlier to provide a visual aid for Luther's doctrine of salvation by faith and God's grace alone. Luther's reflections on justification, while original in thrust, had been preceded by centuries of the Church's teaching on the subject. Law and Grace appeared among book illustrations, particularly on the title pages of Bibles, not only in Lutheran editions, but also in those commissioned by other confessions. Sometimes the schema would be deliberately altered to modify the message. This essay shows how the title page of the Brest Bible provides a striking example, and that in light of Calvin's teaching, the image there reveals a subtle, but significantly modified reinterpretation.     

Change in physical self-perceptions across the transition to secondary school: Relationships with perceived teacher-emphasised achievement goals in physical education

ObjectivesThis study aimed to examine the effects of change in perceived teacher achievement goal emphasis in physical education (PE) on physical self-perceptions and self-esteem across the transition to secondary school.Design & methodsA longitudinal design was adopted with three time points, one at the end of primary school and two during the first year of secondary school. Participants (N = 491) were cross-classified by primary (N = 42) and secondary (N = 46) PE class in order to examine the association between perceived class-level teacher-emphasised goals and within-class student goals with self-beliefs.ResultsPersonal approach goals and class perceptions of teacher mastery approach goal promotion were all positively associated with ratings of co-ordination, sport competence, flexibility, and endurance in primary school. More favourable perceptions of coordination, sport competence, strength, flexibility, and endurance during the first year of secondary school were predicted by an increase in performance approach goal emphasis, whereas ratings of sport competence and flexibility were negatively associated with an increase in mastery approach goal emphasis.ConclusionsAlthough not entirely consonant with theoretical predictions, current findings suggest that teacher-emphasised performance approach goals in PE can promote development of several physical self-perceptions in the initial year of secondary school.     

Between Private and Public Sectors

This article validates Simon Kuznets’ argument that minorities prefer the private sector to the public sector in order to avoid discrimination. Based on new archival findings, comparative interethnic research shows that majority Greek civil engineers in the interwar years developed close, interlocking relations with the government and national institutions, which elevated their socio-professional status. Despite the absence of anti-Jewish legislation, this process effectively excluded equally qualified Jewish engineers from Greek-controlled power networks and employment. The Greek nationalistic climate of the times permeated the civil engineers’ professional associations and Greece's one higher educational institution (National Technical University of Athens) of engineering. As the professional networks consolidated to protect their interests, Jewish civil engineers and architects, employers and employees alike, were effectively shut out with no possibility of benefitting from professional integration or association with the mainstream community of civil engineers. Jewish civil engineers were, therefore, channelled into restricting their services to Jewish clients and community projects. However, with the newly developing large-scale armaments industries in the 1930s, Jews opted to train as chemical, mechanical, and electrical engineers to fill positions in family-owned firms (as did their fellow Greeks), and also found employment in lower paying jobs that Greek engineers considered unattractive in state-owned facilities.