The homogeneity assumption in differential prediction analysis: does it really matter?

In simulation studies, the F test for differences in regression slopes has tended to distort nominal Type I and II error rates when the 2 subgroup error variances exceeded a 1.50:1 ratio. This study examines the frequency and extent that this ratio is violated within data sets relevant to applied psychology. The General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB) validity study database contained ability data and overall job performance ratings. The Project A military database contained both ability and personality data, along with job performance factor scores and an overall job performance rating. Results suggest that subgroup (White-Black, male-female) error variances are often homogeneous enough to support F test results from past empirical work. Enough heterogeneity was found, however, to urge applied psychologists investigating differential prediction to explore their data and consider the possibility of alternative statistical tests.     

Stopping Criteria in Sequential Choice

The essential decision in sequential choice is not which alternative to choose but when to stop acquiring additional information and commit to the leading alternative. Two studies investigate individuals’ stopping strategies. The key difference between the two studies is whether the experimenter or subjects controlled the order in which information was acquired. We hypothesize that subjects’ stopping criteria do not remain fixed, but are sensitive to acquisition costs and to the achieved progress during the choice. Across both studies 21 of 26 subjects exhibited significant adaptation. We also found an effort-reducing heuristic, stopping after all attributes in a predetermined set of core attributes had been acquired. As expected, use of this Core Attributes heuristic was greater when subjects controlled the order in which information was acquired. Both adaptation and the Core Attributes heuristic are compatible with the adaptive view of decision making and with the cost-benefit framework more generally.     

Investigating differential prediction by gender in employment-oriented personality measures

Gender-based differential prediction of job performance in employment-oriented personality measures has been left virtually unexamined. The use of 3 personality composites from the U.S. Army's instrument to predict 5 dimensions of job performance across 9 military jobs was investigated. Differential prediction, occurring in one third of the cases, was predominantly in the form of overprediction of female performances (i.e., higher male intercepts); slope differences were not found at above-chance levels. Female performance on the Effort and Leadership dimension was overpredicted in 90% of all predictor-criterion-job combinations, suggesting the measurement of this performance dimension as the source of the differential prediction rather than bias in the personality measures. Findings of overprediction of female performance parallel those of research investigating differential prediction by race in the ability domain.     

Programs of religious/spiritual support in hospitals - five “Whies” and five “Hows”

A contemporary orientation of the hospital experience model must encompass the clients’ religious-spiritual dimension. The objective of this paper is to share a previous experience, highlighting at least five reasons hospitals should invest in this direction, and an equal number of steps required to achieve it. In the first part, the text discourses about five reasons to invest in religious-spiritual support programs: 1. Religious-spiritual wellbeing is related to better health; 2. Religious-spiritual appreciation is a standard for hospital accreditation; 3. To undo religious-spiritual misunderstandings that can affect treatment; 4. Patients demand a religious-spiritual outlook from the institution; and 5. Costs may be reduced with religious-spiritual support. In the second part, the text suggests five steps to implement religious-spiritual support programs: 1. Deep institutional involvement; 2. Formal staff training; 3. Infrastructure and resources; 4. Adjustment of institutional politics; and 5. Agreement with religious-spiritual leaders. The authors hope the information compiled here can inspire hospitals to adopt actions toward optimization of the healing experience.     

The effect of conspicuous consumption on men’s testosterone levels

Using evolutionary psychology as a theoretical framework, it is argued that conspicuous consumption serves as a means by which men communicate their social status to prospective mates. Accordingly, men’s endocrinological responses, particularly their testosterone levels, are responsive to fluctuations in their status as triggered by acts of conspicuous consumption. Study 1 reports that men’s testosterone levels increased and decreased partially (directionally), after driving an expensive sports car and an old family sedan, respectively. Additionally, the location of the drive, either a busy downtown area or a semi-deserted highway, partially moderated this response. Study 2 demonstrates that when men’s social status was threatened by the wealth displays of a male confederate in the presence of a female moderator, their testosterone levels increased. This is suggestive of an evolved mechanism for responding to intra-sexual challenges. Collectively, these constitute the first set of studies to measure hormonal outcomes in consumer behavior.     

Calories,beauty, and ovulation: The effects of the menstrual cycle on food and appearance-related consumption

The menstrual cycle has been largely ignored within the consumer research literature. Using a survey panel, women's food and appearance-related consumption was tracked for 35 consecutive days. As predicted, food-related desires, dollars spent, and eating behaviors were greater during the luteal (non-fertile) phase, whereas appearance-related desires, dollars spent, and beautification behaviors increased during the fertile phase. Dollars spent on products unrelated to food or beautification were not significantly influenced by the menstrual cycle. Hence, women's consumption desires, preferences, and dollars spent in evolutionarily relevant product categories (food and mating) fluctuate across their ovulatory cycle. Branding-related implications are briefly discussed.     

Religious Identity and Borderless Territoriality in the Coptic e-Diaspora

In recent decades, Coptic Egyptian immigrants have steadily adopted new homelands throughout the world, most significantly in Europe, North America, and Australia. Their efforts perpetuate their religious and cultural identity and connect diaspora communities and experiences to the mother church as well as to the realities of marginalization and persecution of their co-religionists in Egypt. However, relatively little research has been carried out on the virtual or digital presences of diaspora Copts, all the more significant in the wake of the so-called Arab Spring. Focusing on religious identity, this article fills a lacuna by analyzing three case studies of electronic identity mediation and preservation in the Coptic diaspora: (1) the online ecclesiastical-pastoral and educational presence of Bishop Suriel of Melbourne, (2) the spiritual-social-cultural mission of the Los Angeles-based Coptic television station LogosTV, and (3) the global collaborative academic project of the digital Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia. These are part of an emerging electronic Coptic diaspora (e-diaspora)—a form of borderless territoriality—that functions to compensate for the loss of territorial and socio-religious-cultural-political control in Egypt and provide Copts with virtual territorial gains and borderless space for community and consciousness raising.