Processing strategy moderates the cultivation effect

This study tested the hypothesis that processing strategy moderates the effect of television viewing on social perceptions (cultivation effect). One hundred twenty‐two male and female students provided estimates of the prevalence of crime, occupations, affluence, and marital discord under one of three conditions. Some participants were induced to process heuristically (heuristic group) through instructions to provide their estimates spontaneously with little elaboration. Other participants were induced to process systematically (systematic group) through an accuracy motivation/task importance manipulation. A third (control) group received instructions to simply answer the questions. The results indicated that processing strategy moderated the cultivation effect such that cultivation effects were noted in the heuristic and control groups but not in the systematic group. These results are consistent with the notion that the cultivation effect can be explained in part as the result of heuristic processing through lack of source discounting, and they provide support for the heuristic processing model of cultivation effects.     

An Investigation of Psychology Staffing in Australian Metropolitan Acute Public Hospitals

Psychology is one component of the multidisciplinary services provided to patients in acute public hospitals, with research demonstrating that psychological intervention significantly enhances clinical outcomes for patients across a range of health issues. Despite the increasingly important role that psychologists play in Australian hospitals, there remains a lack of information available about staff levels, discipline structures, and clinical activity for psychological services within acute hospital settings. The most recent Australian data about hospital‐based psychology services was collected 20 years ago. The current study provides updated information from a survey of 15 Australian metropolitan, acute public hospitals: presenting and critically reviewing staffing configurations and models of service delivery. Results suggest that: (a) hospitals employ a highly skilled workforce at a rate of 0.16 full‐time equivalent psychology staff for every 10 hospital beds; (b) psychologists have a viable career pathway within the hospital‐based health sector; (c) role diversity is common, with the primary focus varying as a function of position level; (d) neuropsychology staffing requires urgent attention to address significant delays in access to services; and (e) public hospitals actively contribute to current and future workforce development through supervision, research, and training. The implications of these results for the future of psychological services in Australian healthcare are discussed.     

A MATHEMATICAL STRUCTURE FOR ANALYZING FAIRNESS IN SELECTION1

A model for examining tradeoffs between rate of minority hiring and quality of selectees is presented. Each case is to be defined in terms of the selection ratio, the relation of outcome to predictor within each group, and other parameters. It is shown that, in a representative case, substantial changes in the rate of minority hiring have only small effects on the quality of the work force. How changes in this rate affect indices of adverse impact and other aspects of fairness is also examined.     

Time-limit tests: estimating their reliability and degree of speeding

Non-spurious methods are needed for estimating the coefficient of equivalence for speeded tests from single-trial data. Spuriousness in a split-half estimate depends on three conditions; the split-half method may be used if any of these is demonstrated to be absent. A lower-bounds formula,r _c, is developed. An empirical trial of this coefficient and other bounds proposed by Gulliksen demonstrates that, for moderately speeded tests, the coefficient of equivalence can be determined approximately from single-trial data. It is proposed that the degree to which tests are speeded be investigated explicitly, and an index is advanced to define this concept.