MALE ACCEPTANCE OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION PROGRAMS FOR WOMEN: THE RESULTS OF ALTRUISTIC OR EGOISTICAL MOTIVES?

It has been argued in the past that self-interest plays an important role in the reaction of men to affirmative action programs that are designed to promote women in non-traditional jobs. In the main, this hypothesis has received limited support apparently because the conception of self-interest was understood in terms of one's private well-being. It is clear, however, that self-interest also refers to group status or position in society. In this study self-interest was measured through the concept of collective relative deprivation. The effects of relative deprivation on behalf of others, and the procedure employed to implement affirmative action programs on men's attitudes toward these programs were also assessed. One hundred and forty-five male managers or professionals participated in the study. According to predictions, results show that collective relative deprivation and preferential treatment for women have negative effects on affirmative action attitudes. Findings are thus supportive of the broader conception of self-interest and relative deprivation arguments. Finally, the positive link between relative deprivation on behalf of others and affirmative action indicates that men who disapprove of sex inequalities support these programs. Il a été postulé que le ‘self-interest’ influence les réactions des hommes aux programmes d'action positive mis sur pied pour assurer une représentativité plus équitable des femmes dans les secteurs non-traditionnels d'emploi. Cette hypothèse n'a pas été confirmée en raison de la conception individualiste du ‘self-interest’. Le ‘self-interest’ réfère tout autant à la situation de l'individu qu'à celle de son groupe. Dans la présente étude, le ‘self-interest’ a été mesuré par le biais du concept de privation relative collective. Les effets de la privation relative pour autrui et de la procédure d'implantation des programmes d'action positive sur les attitudes des hommes face à l'action positive ont également été évalués. En tout, 145 cadres ou professionnels masculins ont participé à la présente étude. Les résultats confirment les hypothèses voulant que la privation relative collective et le traitement préférentiel ont des effets négatifs sur les attitudes aux programmes d'action positive, ce qui milite en faveur d'une conception élargie du ‘self-interest’. Finalement, le lien positif entre la privation relative autrui et l'action positive montre que les hommes qui sont défavorables aux inégalités de sexe favorisent les programmes.     

Humean dispositionalism

Humean metaphysics is characterized by a rejection of necessary connections between distinct existences. Dispositionalists claim that there are basic causal powers. The existence of such properties is widely held to be incompatible with the Humean rejection of necessary connections. In this paper I present a novel theory of causal powers that vindicates the dispositionalist claim that causal powers are basic, without embracing brute necessary connections. The key assumptions of the theory are that there are natural types of causal processes, and that manifestations of powers are identified with certain kinds of causal processes. From these assumptions, the modal features of powers are explained in terms of internal relations between powers themselves and the process-types in which powers are manifested.     

The acute effects of nicotine on positive and negative affect in adolescent smokers

Although adolescent cigarette smoking remains a critical public health concern, little is known about the reinforcing mechanisms governing smoking in this vulnerable population. To assess predictions derived from both positive and negative reinforcement models of drug use, the authors measured the acute effects of nicotine, as administered via tobacco cigarettes, on both positive and negative affect in a group of 15- to 18-year-old smokers. A matched group of nonsmokers served as a comparison group. Findings revealed that whereas adolescents who smoked a cigarette experienced reductions in both positive and negative affect, the observed reductions in negative affect were moderated by nicotine content of the cigarette (high yield vs. denicotinized), level of nicotine dependence, level of baseline craving, and smoking expectancies pertinent to negative affect regulation. Nonsmokers experienced no change in affect over the 10-min assessment period, and no interaction effects were observed for positive affect. Overall, the findings conform to a negative reinforcement model of nicotine effects and strongly suggest that, even among young light smokers, nicotine dependence and resultant withdrawal symptomatology may serve as motivating factors governing smoking behavior.     

Dialectical Tensions Supervisor Attitudes and Contextual Influences in Psychotherapy Supervision

Psychotherapy supervision is a complex process; supervisors must concurrently balance multiple roles, such as teacher, counselor and consultant. The current paper proposes four “dialectical tensions” inherent in supervision which, if attended to, can guide supervisor behavior during the supervision session. Specifically, supervision requires balancing the following polarities: (1) promote change/provide support, (2) provide feedback/maintain relationship, (3) supervisee-directed/supervisor-directed, and (4) client focus/supervisee development focus. We discuss these dialectical tensions in a contextual framework, and we propose that supervisor awareness, intention and willingness are necessary to incorporate contextual factors and balance the dialectical tensions during supervisory interactions. We present two examples of supervisory interactions and describe how attention to the dialectical tensions can guide supervisory decisions.     

Relevant Restricted Quantification

The paper reviews a number of approaches for handling restricted quantification in relevant logic, and proposes a novel one. This proceeds by introducing a novel kind of enthymematic conditional.