Christ-Centred Solidarity in a Time of Pandemic

The article proposes a reading of Colossians 1:15-20 for the time of COVID-19, arguing that the assertion that all things “hold together” in the incarnate Christ should lead Christians not only to practise solidarity with those most at risk, but also to evaluate societal and systemic responses to COVID-19 in the light of their effects on the most vulnerable members of society. The article considers the use and misuse of the rhetoric of self-sacrificial love or loving self-sacrifice, and the use and misuse of the image of warfare – arguing that in both of these areas, Christian communities offer urgent challenges and correctives on the basis of their traditions of Christ-centred solidarity.     

‘He's got his father's bias’: Parental influence on weight bias in young children

Our aim was to explore the role of parents in the transmission of stereotypical body size attitudes and awareness of weight loss strategies to preschool children. Participants were 279 3‐year‐old children and their parents, who provided data at baseline and 1 year later. Parents completed self‐report body size attitude and dieting measures. Child weight bias and awareness of weight loss strategies were assessed through interview. Over time, negative associations with large bodies and awareness of weight loss strategies increased. Fathers’ attitudes prospectively predicted boys’ weight bias and awareness of weight loss strategies. Among girls, parental attitudes were less predictive. Findings confirm the importance of fathers in the development of boys’ body attitudes and inform prevention programmes.     

The practice of psychotherapy and spiritual direction

The author compares and contrasts insight-oriented psychotherapy, supportive psychotherapy, and spiritual direction in relation to goals and methods; management of resistance, transference, and countertransference; and selection criteria. The enhancement of spiritual formation through insight-oriented psychotherapy and supportive psychotherapy is also discussed.     

Prominence of girls and boys in the classroom: Schoolchildren's perceptions

Several studies have revealed teachers' asymmetric perceptions of girls and boys in their classes. The present research examines these effects on schoolchildren's own perceptions of the prominence of male and female peers in school relevant categories. A total of 147 (native born, Jewish middle class) second and sixth graders participated in the study. A questionnaire in two versions was prepared: One formulated in the masculine plural, habitually used in Hebrew as the generic plural for both sexes. The other in both masculine and feminine (optional he/she) plural, also admissible in Hebrew usage. Overall, students judged more boys as prominent, even more so in sixth grade. Subjects also pointed to same-sex peers as prominent. Surprisingly, the sex-optional formulation of the questionnaire did not decrease stereotyping perceptions. Results raise questions about the status of girls in school. Implications for girls' future as achievers in modern society are discussed. Furthermore, the effectiveness of language manipulation in Hebrew regarding sexist vs. nonsexist attitudes is put into question.     

Social and solipsistic observer training: Effects on agreement with a criterion

The need to train accurate, not necessarily agreeing, observers is discussed. Intraobserver consistency as an intermediate criterion in such training is proposed and contrasted with the more familiar criterion of interobserver agreement. Videotaped observations of social interactions between handicapped and nonhandicapped preschoolers provided the medium for examining the criterion agreement of four observers trained against each type of standard. Observers generally failed to show high levels of criterion agreement whether trained to a within- or to a between-observer agreement standard. The results varied somewhat with the frequency of behaviors, however. Correlations between interobserver agreement and intraobserver consistency were variable but somewhat higher when interobserver agreement was the training criterion than when intraobserver consistency was the criterion. Correlations between interobserver agreement and criterion agreement ranged from — .16 to .89 during interobserver agreement training. Correlations between intraobserver consistency and criterion agreement ranged from — .23 to .99 during intraobserver consistency training.     

Briefly presented stimuli can disrupt constant suppression and binocular rivalry suppression

An earlier study has shown that the intermittent suppression of one monocular stimulus by another in binocular rivalry does not occur when normally rivalrous stimuli are briefly presented. Constant suppression of stimuli presented to one eye is a common consequence of esotropia during development. A study is reported which demonstrates that constant suppression does not occur when stimuli are briefly presented. The dependence of suppression on stimulus duration is similar in both forms of suppression.     

Book reviews

With Faith and Fury. Delos McKown. New York: Promethius Books, 1985. pp 440. $16.95

The Sacred in a Secular Age. Phillip E. Hammond, Editor. University of California Press, 379 pages (p/b) $8.95 (£8.50)