Prediction accuracy of text recall: Ease, effort and familiarity

Prediction accuracy of text recall was studied in two experiments. Text characteristics (i.e., consistency and distinctiveness) were manipulated in Experiment 1, and familiarity with the reading-task in Experiment 2. The results were also analyzed and discussed in terms of easy processing (Experiment 1), and in terms of increased and more active processing (Experiment 2). Text characteristics did not affect prediction accuracy. However, being familiar with the reading-task led to good and long-lasting prediction accuracy. Thus, subjects reading a school-book text, instructed to learn the contents of it demonstrated reliable memory awareness, both for immediate recall and for delay of one week. It was also suggested that increased processing demands and active reading enhances prediction accuracy.     

The reciprocal cycle of self‐concealment and trust in romantic relationships

We propose that perceived partner concealment, self‐concealment from one's partner (i.e., keeping secrets from one's partner), and trust in one's partner form a reciprocal cycle in romantic relationships. In Study 1, participants in a romantic relationship (N = 94) completed a two‐time point survey within a span of 8 to 10 weeks. Results revealed that perceived partner concealment was associated with a loss of trust in partner, and low trust in partner was associated with an increase in self‐concealment from one's partner. Furthermore, the association between perceived partner concealment and self‐concealment from one's partner was mediated by trust. In Study 2, couples (N = 50) completed daily records for 14 consecutive days. Multilevel analyses indicated that on the days the individuals reported more self‐concealment, their partners reported lower trust in them. Moreover, on the days the partners reported lower trust, the partners also reported higher self‐concealment. These findings suggest that self‐concealment in romantic relationships can create a reciprocal cycle that involves loss of trust and more self‐concealment between partners, which would slowly deteriorate the relationship well‐being. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Measure of Quality of Life in Elderly Tourists

This research enriches our knowledge of the tourist market in relation to the elderly, i.e., those age 65 and older and retired. The purpose of the research is to explore the missing link between travel behaviors of the elderly and how they contribute to Quality of Life (QoL). As a result, this study clarifies elderly tourist motivation and also aims to examine the relationship among motivation, constraints, leisure-life domain satisfaction, and overall life satisfaction by generating theoretical and practical implications related to those behaviors. Using a structural equation modeling approach, the research model identifies the relevant relationships among the constructs. The results reveal that motivation positively influences satisfaction with leisure-life domain. However, travel constraints do not affect leisure-life domain satisfaction. In addition, satisfaction with leisure-life domain is linked to overall life satisfaction among the elderly.     

Sociolinguistic inference and intercultural coorientation.

We present a model that examines the effects of cultural differences on coorientation (the ability of communicators to accurately encode and interpret the referential and relational meanings of messages). Intercultural coorientation is made problematic by the absence of certain shared communication system knowledge, which in same‐culture interactions is used in the dynamic sociolinguistic negotiation of relational rights and obligations. We propose that the process of sociolinguistic negotiation of meanings relies fundamentally on probabilistic inference and have constructed a model based on Bayes' theorem. The model predicts the effects of the communication situation, communicator stereotypes and prejudice, and some other‐culture speaker errors on conclusions the receiver draws about the message. Using the model, we distinguish between the ethnocentric error of interpreting a communication in terms of one's own culture and the error of not seeing the communication as diagnostic. Among our predictions are: (a) the less diagnostic the communication, the more impact cultural stereotypes will have on attributions; (b) although evidence of sociolinguistic incompetence sometimes causes misunderstanding, it sometimes prevents misunderstanding; (c) multiple consistent features make intentions clearer than would a single cue, but multiple features violating co‐occurrence norms often lead to the attribution of incompetence.     

Social Safeness and Psychological Vulnerability in Turkish Youth: The Mediating Role of Life Satisfaction

The present study examined whether life satisfaction mediated social safeness and psychological vulnerability in Turkish youth. The participants included 261 university students who completed a questionnaire package that included the Turkish versions of the Social Safeness and Pleasure Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Psychological Vulnerability Scale. To test the proposed mediation model, authors employed hierarchical regressions. Furthermore, the authors tested mediation model using the Sobel Z-test and bootstrapping method to examine any indirect effects. Consistent with our hypotheses, the results indicated that there was a positive relationship between social safeness and life satisfaction, and a negative relationship between social safeness and psychological vulnerability. The results of the Sobel Z-test and bootstrapping revealed that life satisfaction significantly, yet partially, mediated the relationship between social safeness and psychological vulnerability. The findings highlight the importance of life satisfaction in enhancing perceptions of social safeness and decreasing psychological vulnerability among Turkish college students.     

Low trait self-control predicts self-handicapping

Past research has shown that self‐handicapping stems from uncertainty about one's ability and self‐presentational concerns. The present studies suggest that low dispositional self‐control is also associated with self‐handicapping. In 3 studies (N = 289), the association between self‐control and self‐handicapping was tested. Self‐control was operationalized as trait self‐control, whereas self‐handicapping was operationalized as trait self‐handicapping in Study 1 (N = 160), self‐reported self‐handicapping in Study 2 (N = 74), and behavioral self‐handicapping in Study 3 (N = 55). In all 3 studies, hierarchical regression analyses revealed that low self‐control predicts self‐handicapping, independent of self‐esteem, self‐doubt, social desirability, and gender.     

Relationships between Turkish Eighth-Grade Students’ Oral Reading Efficacy,Reading Comprehension and Achievement Scores on a High-Stakes Achievement Test

The present study aimed to explore the relation between students’ oral reading efficacy, reading comprehension, and academic performance on a nationwide high school placement exam (TEOG). The students were selected from a public middle school. The students’ oral reading efficacy, comprehension, and TEOG achievement scores were obtained to figure out the relations between them. The students’ TEOG results were obtained from the school administration. The findings revealed that there were statistically significant relations between oral reading efficacy, reading comprehension and TEOG achievements. Particularly, students’ reading comprehension and accuracy skills together explained 57% of variance in overall TEOG achievements.     

Socio-Economic Status and Creativity: A Meta-Analysis

In the present study, we examined the relationship between socio-economic status (SES) and creativity through a meta-analysis of 885 effect sizes from 151 samples in 117 studies. Analyses of a multivariate model with a robust variance estimator showed a small positive correlation between creativity and SES (r = .120, 95% CI [0.086, 0.154]). Further analyses with four groups of moderators (i.e., creativity measure, SES indicator, sample characteristics, and study characteristics) indicated that the mean effect size is significantly higher when the creativity index is flexibility rather than fluency or when SES is measured by parental or one's own level of education and parental occupation rather than the location of residency. In addition, the relationship between creativity and SES dissipated as the students progressed from elementary school through college. The potential role of schooling in the creativity-SES link is discussed.     

Writing and reading training effects on font type and size preferences by students with low vision

The effect of writing and reading training on preferred font type and size in low-vision students was evaluated in 35 children. An ophthalmologist confirmed low vision according to ICD-10-CM. Children identified the font type and size they could best read. The writing subtest of the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test, read in 1 min., and legibility as measured by the number of readable written letters were used in evaluating the children. A writing and reading treatment program was conducted, beginning with the child's preferred font type and size, for 3 months, 2 days per week, for 45 min. per day at the child's school. Before treatment, the most preferred font type was Verdana; after treatment, the preferred font type and size changed. Students had gained reading and writing speed after training, but their writing legibility was not significantly better. Training might affect the preferred font type and size of students with low vision. Surprisingly, serif and sans-serif fonts were preferred about equally after treatment.