Stability/Instability of Cognitive Strategies Across Tasks Determine Whether Stress Will Affect Judgmental Processes'

Previous research indicates that individuals employ various cognitive heuristics and decision modes in making decisions and judgmental tasks that do not follow an expected value model. It further indicates that several cognitive faculties are affected by stress. The purpose of this study was twofold: first, to examine whether individual differences exist in the use of cognitive heuristics and risk-assessment decision modes; second, to examine whether stress would affect the use of these cognitive strategies. Three versions of a questionnaire measuring the representativeness and availability heuristics, and risk-seeking and risk-aversion decision modes were administered to three different groups of subjects. Consistent individual differences were only observed in the subscales measuring risk-seeking and risk-aversion modes, but not in the use of the heuristics. In a different group of subjects, exposure to noise and task overload stress increased the use of the representativeness heuristic, but did not alter the use of risk-seeking and risk-aversion decision modes. These results indicate that the existence of individual differences in cognitive strategies may determine, in part, whether stress will modify judgmental processes.     

Book reviews and notes

GENERAL.

READINGS IN THE QUR'AN. Selected and translated by KENNETH CRAGG. London: Collins Liturgical Publications, 1990. 389pp. Pb. £8.95. ISBN 0–00–599087–4.

DER KORAN UND DIE JUDEN: DIE GESCHICHTE EINER TRAGODIE. By Johan Bouman. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buch‐gesellschaft, 1990. 130pp. Pb. n.p. ISBN 3–534–80123–7.

ISMAIL HAKKI BURSEVPS TRANSLATION OF AND COMMENTARY ON FUSUS AL‐HKAM. VOLS. 3 and 4. By Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi. Translated by Bulent Rauf with the help of R. Brass and H. Tollemache. Oxford: Muhyiddin ibn ^cArabi Society, 1989, 1991. 254pp, 353pp. Hb. £40.00, £50.00. ISBN 0–9509527–2–9; 0–9509527–4–5.

SCIENCE AND MUSLIM SOCIETIES. By Nasim Butt. London: Grey Seal Books, 1991. 135pp. Pb. £5.95. ISBN 1–85640–023–9.

THE MUSLIMS OF AMERICA. Edited by Yvonne Yazbeck Haddad. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. 249pp. Hb. £35.00. ISBN 0–19–506728–2.

TURNING POINTS IN RELIGIOUS STUDIES. By URSULA KING. Edinburgh: T & T Clark Ltd, 1990. 329pp. Hb. £19.95. ISBN 0–567–09564–9.

THE SEPARATED ONES: JESUS, THE PHARISEES AND ISLAM. By Ruqaiyyah Waris Maqsood. London: SCM Press, 1991. 194pp. Pb. £9.95. ISBN 0–334–02498–6.

WHO NEEDS AN ISLAMIC STATE! By Abdelwahab El‐Affendi. London: Grey Seal Books, 1991.115pp. Pb. £5.95. ISBN 1–85640–022–0.

‘MULTI‐FAITH WORSHIP'? QUESTIONS AND SUGGESTIONS FROM THE INTER‐FAITH CONSULTATIVE GROUP. By The. General Synod Board of Mission. London: Church House Publishing, 1992. 66pp. Pb. £3.50. ISBN 0–7151–5530‐X.

WAS SAGT DER KORAN ZUM HEILIGEN KRIEG? By Adel TheodorKhoury. Giitersloh: Gutersloher Verlaghaus Gerd Mohn, 1991. 95pp. Pb. DM12.80. ISBN 3–579–00787–0.

REGIONAL.

Africa.

RELIGION AND CUSTOM IN A MUSLIM SOCIETY: THE BERTI OF SUDAN. By Ladislav Holy. Cambridge Studies in Social and Cultural Anthropology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991. 243pp. Hb. £30.00; $49.50. ISBN 0–521–39485–6.

POPULAR ISLAM IN TUNISIA. By Kees Schilder. Research Reports 1991/44. Leiden: African Studies Centre, 1991. 171pp. Pb. DFL.12.50. ISBN 90–70110–85–7.

A POEM CONCERNING THE DEATH OF THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD UTENDI WA KUTA WAFUNABII. Edited by J.W.T. Allen, Rland Allen, N.Q. King, Jan Knappert Et Al. African Studies, 26. New York/Ontario/Larnpeter: The Edwin Mellen Press, 1991. 161pp. Hb. n.p. ISBN 0–7734–9705–6.

SACRED VOID: SPATIAL IMAGES OF WORK AND RITUAL AMONG THE GIRIAMA OF KENYA. By David Parkin. Cambridge Studies in Social and Cultural Anthropology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992. 259pp. Hb. £35.00. ISBN 0–521–40466–5.

PEOPLE AND EMPIRES IN AFRICAN HISTORY: ESSAYS IN MEMORY OF MICHAEL CROWDER. Edited By J.F. Ade Ajayi and J.D.Y. Peel. London and New York: Longman, 1992. 254pp. Hb. £36.00. ISBN 0–582–08997–2.

Asia.

MUSLIMS IN CENTRAL ASIA: EXPRESSIONS OF IDENTITY AND CHANGE. By Jo‐ANN GROSS. Durham: Duke University Press, 1992. 224pp. Pb. $18.95. ISBN 0–8223–1190–9.

Europe.

ISLAM IN DUTCH SOCIETY: CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS. Edited by W.A.R. Shadid and P.S. Van Koningsveld. Kampen. Kok Pharos Publishing House, 1992. 205pp. Pb. n.p.ISBN 90–242–3047–0.

VAN MAT TOT MINARET. By Nico Landman. Amsterdam: VU Uitgeverij, 1992. 387pp. Pb. n.p. ISBN 90–5383–086–3.

DE ISLAM IN WEST‐EUROPA, IN HET BIJZONDER IN NEDERLAND. By HuUG Van Ooijen, Rinus Penninx, Jan Rath and ThulSunier. Nijmegen: Reeks REcht & Samenleving, 1991. 76pp. Pb. n.p. ISBN 90–71478–20–3.

MUSLIMS IN WESTERN EUROPE. By Jorgen S. Nielsen. Islamic Surveys 20. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1992. 186pp. Hb. £25.00. ISBN 0–7486–0309–0.

NATIONAL PROBLEMS IN THE BALKANS: HISTORY AND CONTEMPORARY DEVELOPMENTS. Edited by V. Mincheva. Sofia: Arges Publishing House for the Institute of Balkan Studies, 1992.247pp. Pb. LV20,00. No ISBN.

THE BALKANS: MINORITIES AND STATES IN CONFLICT. By Hugh Poulton. London: Minority Rights Publications, 1991. 244pp. Pb. £8.95. ISBN 1–873194–05–6.

THE SATANIC VERSES: BRADFORD RESPONDS. Edited by David G. Bowen. Bradford: D.G. Bowen and Bradford & Ilkley Community College, 1992. 82pp. Pb. .n.p. ISBN 0–947–851–25–9.

THE KINGDOM OF CYPRUS AND THE CRUSADES 1191–1374. By Peter W. Edbury. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991.241pp. Hb. £27.50, $44.50. ISBN 0–521–26876–1.

DIE MIGRANTEN AUS SUBAY: TURKEN IN DEUTSCHLAND: EINE ETHNOGRAPHIE. By Werner Schiffauer. Stuttgart: Klett‐Cotta, 1991. 388pp. Hb. n.p. ISBN 3–608–93170–8.

Middle East.

POLITICAL ISLAM: RELIGION AND POLITICS IN THE ARAB WORLD. By Nazih N. Ayubi. London and New York: Routledge, 1991. 291pp. Hb. £40.00. ISBN 0–415–05442–7.

THE ARAB CHRISTIAN: A HISTORY IN THE MIDDLE EAST. By Kenneth CRAGG. London: Mowbray, 1992. 336pp. Pb. £9.95. ISBN 0–264–67257–7.

ISLAMIC FUNDAMENTALISM AND THE GULF CRISIS. Edited by JAMES PISCATORI. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1991. 267pp. Pb. £7.95; $11.50. ISBN 0–9629608–0–2.

RACE AND SLAVERY IN THE MIDDLE EAST. By BERNARD LEWIS. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990. 184pp. Hb. £22.50. ISBN 0–19–506283–3.

THE IRAQI REVOLUTION OF 1958: THE OLD SOCIAL CLASSES REVISITED. Edited by Robert A. Fernea and Wm. Roger Louis. London: I.B. Tauris, 1991. 232pp. Hb. £35.00. ISBN 1–85043–318–6.

CULTURE, HISTORY AND IDEOLOGY IN THE FORMATION OF BA'THIST IRAQ, 1968–69. By AMATZIABaram. New York: St Martin's Press, 1991. 196pp. Hb. £35.00. ISBN 0–312–04805‐X.

THE PALLESTINIAN UPRISING: A WAR BY OTHER MEANS. By F. Robert Hunter. London: I.B. Tauris, 1991.292pp. Hb. £17.95. ISBN 1–85043–325–9.

POLITICS IN AN ARABIAN OASIS: THE RASHIDI TRIBAL DYNASTY. By Madawi AL Rasheed. London: I.B. Tauris, 1991. 300pp. Hb. £35.00. ISBN 1–85043–320–8.

THE LION OF EGYPT: SULTAN BAYBARSI AND THE NEAR EAST IN THE TfflRTEENTH CENTURY. By Peter THORAU. London: London and New York, 1987. 319pp. Pb. £13.50. ISBN 0–582–06823–1.

HISTORICAL DICTIONARY OF LIBYA. By RONALD BRUCE ST JOHN. African Historical Dictionaries, 33.2nd Edition. Metuchen, NJ & London: Scarecrow Press, 1991. 192pp. Hb. £18.75. ISBN 0–8108–2451–5.

ACCOMMODATING PROTEST: WORKING WOMEN, THE NEW VEBLING AND CHANGE IN CAIRO. By ARLENE ELOWE MACLEOD. New York: Columbia University Press, 1991. 206pp. Hb. $37.50. ISBN 0–231–07280–5.

FEZ: CITY OF ISLAM. By Titus Burckhardt. Cambridge: Islamic Texts Society, 1992. 175pp. Hb. £24.95; $39.95. ISBN 0–946621–17–9.

CHRISTIAN‐MUSLIM RELA TIONS.

ROBIN LAMBURN — FROM A MISSIONARY'S NOTEBOOK: THE YAO OF TUNDURU AND OTHER ESSAYS. Edited by NOEL Q. KING and Klaus Fiedler with Gavin White. Social Science Studies on International Problems, no. 164. Saarbriicken; Fort Lauderdale: Verlag Breitenbach, 1991. 240pp. Pb. n.p. ISBN 0584–603‐X.

MATERIAUX POUR SERVIR A L'ETUDE DE LA CONTROVERSE THEOLOGIQUEISLAMO‐CHRETIENNE DE LANGUE ARABE DU Vffle AUX Xlle SIECLE. By PAUL KHOURY. Religionswissenschaftliche Studien 11/2. Wurzburg: Echter Verlag and Altenberge: Oros Verlag, 1991. 633pp. Pb. $633.00; DM99.80. ISBN 3–429–01410–7 (Echter); 3–89375–039–8 (Oros).

THE CONQUEST OF CHRISTIAN AND MUSLIM SPAIN 1031–1157. By Bernard F. Reilly. Oxford: Blackwell, 1992. 284pp. Hb. £40.00. ISBN 0–631–16913‐X.

ISLAM IN A WORLD OF DIVERSE FAITHS. Edited by Dan Cohen‐Sherbok. Library of Philosophy and Religion. Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1991. 218pp. Hb. £45.00. ISBN 0–333–52612–0.

LA FOIE EN MARCHE: LES PROBLEMES DE FOND DU DIALOGUE ISLAMO‐CHRETIEN. By PONTIFICIOISTITUTO Dl STUDI Arabie D'islamistica. Collection ‘Studi Arabo‐Islamici del PISAF, no.4. Rome: PISAI, 1990. 235pp. Pb. n.p. ISBN 88–85907–05–9.

DIPLOMATARIUM II: DOCUMENTS 1–500: FOUNDATIONS OF CRUSADER VALENCIA: REVOLT AND RECOVERY 1257–1263. By ROBERT I. Burns. Princeton: New Jersey, 1991. 440pp. Hb. $69.50. ISBN 0–691–05435–5.

ANTI‐CHRISTIAN POLEMIC IN EARLY ISLAM: ABU ‘ISA AL‐WARRAQ'S ‘AGAINST THE TRINITY’. By David Thomas. University of Cambridge Oriental Publications 45. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992. 218pp. Hb. £40.00; $74.95. ISBN 0–521–41244–7.

INCULTURATION ET LIBERATION EN AFRIQUE AUJOURDHUI: MELANGES EN L'HONNEUR DU PROFESSEUR ABBE MULAGO GWA CKALA. Revue Africaine de Theologie, 27–28, April‐October 1990. 336pp. No ISBN number.

STRIVING TOGETHER: A WAY FORWARD IN CHRISTIAN‐MUSLIM RELATIONS. By Charles Kimball. Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1991. 132pp. Pb. n.p. ISBN 0–88344–691‐X.

INTERWINED WORLDS: MEDIEVAL ISLAM AND BIBLE CRITICISM. By Hava Lazarus‐Yafeh. Princeton University Press, 1992. 178pp. Hb. £22.50; $29.95. ISBN 0–691–07398–8.     

In-session gaming as a tool in treating adolescent problematic gaming

For some adolescent gamers, playing online games may become problematic, impairing functioning in personal, family, and other life domains. Parental and family factors are known to influence the odds that adolescents may develop problematic gaming (PG), negative parenting and conflictual family dynamics increasing the risk, whereas positive parenting and developmentally supportive family dynamics protecting against PG. This suggests that a treatment for adolescent PG should not only address the gaming behaviors and personal characteristics of the youth, but also the parental and family domains. An established research-supported treatment meeting these requirements is multidimensional family therapy (MDFT), which we adapted for use as adolescent PG treatment. We report here on one adaptation, applying in-session gaming. In-session demonstration of the “problem behavior” is feasible and informative in PG. In the opening stage of therapy, we use in-session gaming to establish an alliance between the therapist and the youth. By inviting them to play games, the therapist demonstrates that they are taken seriously, thus boosting treatment motivation. Later in treatment, gaming is introduced in family sessions, offering useful opportunities to intervene in family members' perspectives and interactional patterns revealed in vivo as the youth plays the game. These sessions can trigger strong emotions and reactions from the parents and youth and give rise to maladaptive transactions between the family members, thus offering ways to facilitate new discussions and experiences of each other. The insights gained from the game demonstration sessions aid the therapeutic process, more so than mere discussion about gaming.     

VOLITION: A NEW EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH

The subjects were presented with a drawing task, i.e. to follow a straight line. Later, without the subjects' knowledge, the experimenter inserted a mirror so that the subjects were looking at another person's hand in a mirror, placed so that the subjects still thought they were looking at their own hands. When both the subjects' and the stooge's hand were following the straight line, the subjects experienced the alien hand as their own and that its movements were controlled by themselves (voluntary movements). When the stooge drew a curve to the right, the subjects still experienced the hand as their own, but now making involuntary movements. Thus, 'the visual hand' dominated 'the kinesthetical hand' despite the fact that the subjects objectively made compensatory movements to the left.     

MEASUREMENT OF 'POLITICAL.' PREFERENCES: A further study of direct and indirect scaling methods

The direct methods of ratio estimation and magnitude estimation and the indirect method of pair comparison were used to construct scales of liberalism and conservatism. It was found ( a ) that the scales of conservatism are linearly related to each other and ( b ) those of liberalism are also linearly related to each other but with a discontinuity in the middle of the range; one linear function for the conservative statements and another for the liberal statements, with the discontinuity occurring in the middle of the subjective scale. Liberalism vs. conservatism was found to be reverse. The linear function between all kinds of scales as well as the reverse relation between liberalism vs. conservatism suggest that the continuum of political preferences is metathetic.     

Gender and height: Developmental patterns in knowledge and use of an accurate stereotype

The belief that men are taller than women is an accurate gender stereotype that is presumably learned through everyday encounters with men and women. It is unlike most gender beliefs that are difficult to quantify and verify, and that may be learned through means other than direct experience. This research makes use of several advantages available when studying an accurate stereotype (e.g., the ability to know the “truth” about judged targets). Subjects from five different age/grade levels (kindergarten, third grade, seventh grade, tenth grade, and college, N=491, 92.26% Caucasian, 7.54% Arabic, 0.2% African American) made judgments of “who is taller” among photographed male—female pairs that had actually been matched in height. Judgments were made of kindergarten, seventh grade, and college photo pairs. In a developmental context, height judgments are particularly interesting because the gender difference in height changes at different ages—specifically, girls are taller than boys around seventh grade. The data indicated that subjects were sensitive to the changing height stereotype—i.e., they judged adult males taller than adult females, but seventh grade females taller than seventh-grade males. However this was most strikingly true among subjects directly faced with this reality in their peer context—seventh graders—and among college students. Height judgments were also sensitive to an ingroup (gender) bias. The data are discussed in reference to the broader literature on stereotyping and base rate influences on judgment.     

Stereotypes on Campus: How Contact and Liking Influence Perceptions of Group Distinctiveness

In two studies, subjects' stereotypes of various campus groups were assessed using a content-free, cognitive methodology in which stereotypes are defined as "generalizations about a class of people that distinguish that class from others" (McCauley, Stitt, & Segal, 1980, p. 197). In an effort to predict strength of stereotypes, four main findings emerged: (a) contact with a group's members was associated with increased liking of the group; (b) contact predicted increased stereotype strength; (c) liking a group was associated with decreased stereotype strength; and (d) over time, the strength of stereotypes tended to decrease. These data are discussed in regard to the contact hypothesis (Airport, 1954; Amir, 1969; Cook, 1978,1984), the role of positive affect in altering cognitive organization, and more generally, to the issue of stereotype development.