What Would Jesus Buy: American Consumption of Religious and Spiritual Material Goods

This article examines an important and understudied part of the sociological study of religion: consumption of religious materials. We use data from the Baylor Religion Survey and present an initial look at which Americans read the Left Behind series, viewed The Passion of the Christ , or purchased religious paraphernalia such as "What Would Jesus Do" bracelets. Drawing on cultural consumption and religious capital research we explore class, demographic, and religious influences on consumption patterns. We find some support for each of these perspectives, which suggests that religious consumption is not a subset of cultural consumption nor of religious practice but is some combination of both.     

THE EFFECTS OF PERSONALITY SIMILARITY ON PEER RATINGS OF CONTEXTUAL WORK BEHAVIORS

The present field study investigates whether rater-ratee similarity in the Big Five personality factors influences peer ratings of contextual work behaviors. It overcomes problems that previous studies have had by using a polynomial regression analysis and by correcting the potential biases from nonindependence. Using more than 500 peer dyads, we found that rater-ratee similarity in Conscientiousness, but not in other dimensions, was positively associated with peer ratings even after controlling for interpersonal affect. These results suggest that the observed effect of personality similarity may reflect actual behavioral differences rather than biases due to interpersonal affect. Implications of the findings are discussed along with recommendations for future research.     

Religious Diversity and Community Volunteerism Among Asian Americans

We examine whether religious membership and participation foster community volunteerism among a religiously diverse group of Asian Americans. We use data from the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey (SCCBS), the only data set that contains both a large, national sample of Asian Americans and detailed questions on religious and civic participation. Asian-American Protestants, Catholics, and adherents of non-Christian religions are involved in community volunteerism to varying degrees. Surprisingly, however, fewer Hindus and Buddhists volunteer when compared to the nonaffiliated. We use these results to propose theoretical concepts that take into account the impact of a religion's structure as well as the double-minority status faced by nonwhite and non-Christian Asian Americans on the likelihood of volunteering. Our findings indicate that accepted predictors of community volunteerism may operate differently among new nonwhite immigrants and their children than in the general U.S. population; this provides building blocks for future research on religion and civic participation among nonwhite and non-Christian populations.     

Maladaptive Responses to Relationship Dissolution: The Role of Relationship Contingent Self‐Worth

The present study examined responses to romantic breakup as a function of relationship contingency of self‐worth (CSW)—the degree to which individuals base self‐worth on being in a romantic relationship. Relationship CSW was hypothesized to be a vulnerability factor, exacerbating affective and behavioral responses to romantic relationship dissolution. Results of structural equation modeling (N = 312) revealed that among participants who reported a breakup over the past year, those who more strongly based self‐worth on being in a relationship reported greater emotional distress and obsessive pursuit of their ex‐partners than did those with lower relationship CSW. Specifically, emotional distress partially mediated the link between relationship CSW and obsessive pursuit. Implications of relationship CSW for interpersonal motivation and well‐being are discussed.     

Relationships between stage of change for stress management behavior and perceived stress and coping

The main aim of this study was to examine the relationships between stage of change, which was guided by the transtheoretical model, for stress management behavior and perceived stress and coping. First, we developed the Korean version of the Rhode Island Stress and Coping Inventory (RISCI). Second, we related stage of change for stress management behavior to perceived stress and coping. Based on two surveys that we conducted (n = 530 for survey 1 and n = 299 for survey 2), we developed the Korean version of the RISCI with acceptable internal consistency and criterion‐related validity against the depressive level measured using the Korean Beck Depression Inventory II. The stress score of the Korean version of the RISCI was significantly lower in maintenance than in the other stages, while the coping score was significantly higher in action and maintenance than in the first three stages (n = 804), irrespective of sex. These results provided further empirical evidence to validate stage classification in the field of stress management behavior.     

Living the Inconceivable: Hua-yen Buddhism and Postmodern Différend

This essay attempts a paradigmatic comparison between the fourfold worldview of Hua-yen Buddhism and the postmodern philosophy of Jean-François Lyotard. Employing a tension between centripetal and centrifugal forces as a structural underpinning of these two philosophies, the essay illuminates the liberating nature of Hua-yen Buddhism and postmodern thought together with the shadow of skepticism involved in endorsing a vision for a poly-lingual existence. Despite human beings' desire for a totalitarian vision hidden in every aspect of our discourse, Hua-yen Buddhism and postmodern thought demand us to envision the world of the ‘inconceivable’ in which the diversity of existence raises its own voice beyond the regulating force of our society.     

False Memory Syndrome: A Feminist Philosophical Approach

In this essay, I attempt to outline a feminist philosophical approach to the current debate concerning (allegedly) false memories of childhood sexual abuse. Bringing the voices of feminist philosophers to bear on this issue highlights the implicit and sometimes questionable epistemological, metaphysical, and ethical-political commitments of some therapists and scientists involved in these debates. It also illuminates some current debates in and about feminist philosophy.     

MEASUREMENT ERROR IN RESEARCH ON HUMAN RESOURCES AND FIRM PERFORMANCE: ADDITIONAL DATA AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH

Gerhart and colleagues (2000) and Huselid and Becker (2000) recently debated the presence and implications of measurement error in measures of human resource practices. This paper presents data from 3 more studies, 1 of large organizations from different industries at the corporate level, 1 from commercial banks, and the other of autonomous business units at the level of the job. Results of all 3 studies provide additional evidence that single respondent measures of HR practices contain large amounts of measurement error. Implications for future research into the HR firm performance relationship are discussed.