Interpersonal perception in Japanese and British observers

We compared performance of Japanese and British observers in deciphering images depicting Japanese interpersonal relationships. 201 Japanese and 215 British subjects were assessed by means of a test consisting of 31 photograph problems accompanied by two or three alternative solutions one of which was correct. Japanese subjects outperformed British subjects on the test overall (z = 3.981, p < 0.001). A two-factor ANOVA (culture x gender) was performed for each of the problems. A cultural effect was found in 17 problems. Surprisingly, British subjects outperformed Japanese subjects in 7 of these problems. There was a gender effect in 4 problems and a culture x gender interaction in 6 problems. The results indicate that cultural experience facilitates nonverbal appraisal of interpersonal relationships, but it may sometimes cause specific errors. Differences in the perceptual cues used suggest that British subjects had difficulty reading Japanese facial expressions.     

Minimalist semantics in meta-ethical expressivism

James Dreier (Philos Perspect 18:23–44, 2004) states what he calls the “Problem of Creeping Minimalism”: that metaethical Expressivists can accept a series of claims about meaning, under which all of the sentences that Realists can accept are consistent with Expressivism. This would allow Expressivists to accept all of the Realist’s sentences, and as Dreier points out, make it difficult to say what the difference between the two views is. That Expressivists can accept these claims about meaning has been suggested by Simon Blackburn on behalf of his “quasi-realist”. I argue against the assumption that there is a way to interpret the Realist’s sentences in a way that renders them consistent with Expressivism.     

Do Psychotherapists with Different Theoretical Orientations Stereotype or Prejudge Each Other?

This study investigates a possible threat to the progress of psychotherapy. It aims to detect and compare stereotyped or even prejudiced views among psychotherapists of different theoretical orientations, building on social psychological theory of in-groups and out-groups. Swedish psychotherapists (n = 416) of four different orientations (psychodynamic, cognitive, behavioural, or integrative/eclectic) used the valuable elements in psychotherapy questionnaire to rate the importance of various elements in psychotherapy. They also estimated how therapists of other orientations would rate these elements. These estimates were then compared with therapists’ actual self-ratings in order to detect patterns of stereotyping or prejudiced views. Psychotherapists exaggerate the differences between their own and other orientations in a stereotyped way, but correctly predict what members of their own orientation (in-group) find important. However, they overestimate how important ‘orientation-typical features’ are to those of other orientations (out-group), indicating a clear tendency to stereotype. Overall, integrative/eclectic therapists’ estimates were less stereotyped than the estimates of therapists of other orientations. A somewhat unexpected finding was that cognitive and behavioural therapists seem more inclined towards stereotyping. The stereotyped views of other theoretical orientations among psychotherapists can be argued to have negative connotations and may thus be seen as prejudices. These prejudices could create irrational and unnecessary obstacles to the development of both the science and the practice of psychotherapy and signal the need for psychotherapists of all orientations to develop a more balanced picture of each other.     

Does interest broaden or narrow attentional scope?

Theory proposes that interest is a positive emotion that may either broaden attention to facilitate processing of new information, or narrow attention to preserve engagement with new information. To our knowledge, no research has directly examined the effect of interest on attentional scope. Across four experiments, we show that traits associated with the propensity to experience interest—specifically, trait curiosity and internal boredom proneness—are associated with a narrower scope of attention. We also find that, instead of broadening, interest actually narrows attentional scope in comparison to a neutral state and awe. Challenging the conventional notion that all positive emotions broaden cognition and attention, our findings suggest that specific emotions influence attention in ways that extend beyond a general emotional valence effect.