The end of the end of ideology.

The "end of ideology" was declared by social scientists in the aftermath of World War II. They argued that (a) ordinary citizens' political attitudes lack the kind of stability, consistency, and constraint that ideology requires; (b) ideological constructs such as liberalism and conservatism lack motivational potency and behavioral significance; (c) there are no major differences in content (or substance) between liberal and conservative points of view; and (d) there are few important differences in psychological processes (or styles) that underlie liberal versus conservative orientations. The end-of-ideologists were so influential that researchers ignored the topic of ideology for many years. However, current political realities, recent data from the American National Election Studies, and results from an emerging psychological paradigm provide strong grounds for returning to the study of ideology. Studies reveal that there are indeed meaningful political and psychological differences that covary with ideological self-placement. Situational variables--including system threat and mortality salience--and dispositional variables--including openness and conscientiousness--affect the degree to which an individual is drawn to liberal versus conservative leaders, parties, and opinions. A psychological analysis is also useful for understanding the political divide between "red states" and "blue states." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction: La rectitude politique dans le milieu universitaire: Plusieurs facettes, significations et conséquences.

Defines "political rigidity" as it relates to race, sex, sexual orientation, nationality, religion, age, and physical handicaps. The ideology of the political straightness has important consequences in the academic world. When privileged treatment is granted according to race or sex for example, that has consequences for admission, recruiting and the contractual practices. Some consider that the policies of privileges are unjust and discriminatory for those which do not enjoy such. Others defend quotas and the other policies of privileges by saying that they are necessary to correct discrimination in the academic world. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What's fair is fair—Or is it? Value differences underlying public views about social justice.

Individual differences in judgments of the fairness of various sociopolitical phenomena were examined in three surveys. Scales measuring two value dimensions thought to underlie the meaning of fairness were constructed, and survey respondents endorsing these different values were compared on their evaluation of the procedural and distributive fairness of political objects. Those endorsing the value of proportionality, hypothesized by equity theorists to underlie fairness judgments, judged equity-based public policies to be fairer than equality-based policies and judged that Ronald Reagan would be a fairer president than Walter Mondale. These people also emphasized the procedural aspects of government when judging government fairness. Respondents endorsing the value of egalitananism, hypothesized by developmental theorists and some political philosophers to underlie fairness judgments, judged equality-based public policies to be fairer than equity-based policies and judged that Mondale would be a fairer president than Reagan. These people emphasized the distributive aspects of government when judging government fairness. Results support the naive moral philosopher image of the individual as judge of political objects (Tyler, 1984a). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Editor’s comment.

Comments on the first four papers in this issue of Rehabilitation Psychology, which form a topical thesis on the ideology of rehabilitation services. The first paper points out some of the failings of the rehabilitation services system and notes that this system has often fallen short of the goals that it was designed to meet and frequently serves the needs of service providers rather than clients. The second paper and the third paper provide a response to these criticisms, essentially agreeing with the position that the rehabilitation service delivery system has not lived up to the potential that was envisioned for it by its designers, and they discuss the realities of the bureaucratic system imbedded in the political system that defines our public policies. The last paper is a response to and critique of the three previous papers, and presents an alternative view, noting that the rehabilitation service system and the political system of which it is a part are continually affected by response and stimuli from the outside world, and therefore continually evolve. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ideology and crime control.

Replies to comments by T. P. O'Brien and D. J. Jones (see record 1999-11125-011) and C. B. Clements (see record 1999-11125-012) regarding the Haney and P. Zimbardo (see record 1998-04417-001) discussion of changing trends in US prison policy. The author applauds O'Brien and Jones's willingness to join in the political discussion regarding prison policies, but he disagrees with their historical account of decreases in crime rates resulting from increased punitiveness. Haney also expresses concerns about the authors' insistence that research should be conducted and presented in ways that are accepted by all sides of the political community. Haney also agrees with Clements that elective officials exploit crime issues for political purposes. Haney believes that psychological informed perspectives, based on data and professional experiences and not anecdotes of ideology, are needed to break an irrational cycle, regardless of whether "all sides" of the political community agree with their implications. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Lessons learned in advocacy and public policy: My second education.

This is an anecdotal account of lessons learned through on-the-job experiences at the interface of psychological science and public policy--in essence, a "second education." Foremost among them was an appreciation for the profound effect seemingly remote political events can have on programs at the local level, and the consequent importance of understanding and tracking them. Since policy and those who make it not only influence, but are influenced by events at the local level, the remaining lessons concern advocacy strategies and tactics. Included are observations regarding the timing and "packaging" of arguments, the cultivation of influential "customers," and the role of well-connected professionals. Most of what I learned late in my career, through experience, is now readily available to all psychologists; how widely it is pursued will have a significant impact on the field's future. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A biased view of liberal bias.

Comments on the article by R. E. Redding (see record 2001-00465-001) which discusses pluralism and sociopolitical diversity in psychology. Redding argues that those with liberal political views dominate the field of psychology and that, as a result, conservative viewpoints are underrepresented in empirical research. To support this argument, Redding reports the results of a content analysis of American Psychologist articles which indicates that 97% of the articles reflected a liberal agenda, compared with 3% that reflected a conservatist agenda. The current authors highlight problems with this analysis and present results of their own content analysis which resulted in contrasting data. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Inhibition of metastases by anticoagulants

Medicare spends more than $200 billion a year; the politics surrounding the Medicare program cannot be fully understood without an adequate appreciation of that fact. An understanding of the political economy of Medicare is perhaps best achieved by thinking along three dimensions: (1) Medicare as redistributive politics; (2) Medicare as special-interest politics; and (3) Medicare as distributive politics. Seeing the extent to which Medicare policies flow from these political processes makes clear that Medicare reform and broader political reform are, at some level, inseparable and indistinguishable.     

Liberal and conservative political ideology, experiences of harassment, and perceptions of campus climate.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relations among racial-ethnic group membership, political ideology (i.e., conservative and liberal), and perceptions of general campus climate (GCC) and of campus climate for racial-ethnic minorities (RECC). One hundred and thirty-six (136) undergraduate, graduate, and professional students participated in this study at a large public Midwestern university. A series of multivariate analyses of variance, hierarchical regressions, and mediation analyses were conducted. Findings indicated that Whites endorsed more positive perceptions of campus climate, reported fewer experiences of racial-ethnic harassment, and endorsed less liberal political ideological beliefs than people of color. No racial differences in conservative ideology emerged. After controlling for racial-ethnic group membership, results showed that experiences of racial-ethnic harassment predicted both GCC and RECC, whereas conservative ideology only predicted RECC. Post hoc analyses demonstrated that experiences of racial-ethnic harassment fully mediated the relationship between racial-ethnic group membership and GCC, but only partially mediated the relationship between racial-ethnic group membership and RECC. Neither conservative nor liberal ideologies were significant mediators. Implications for future research and practice are provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive style and political ideology.

Employed a systematic coding technique to assess the integrative complexity of policy statements of 45 US Senators who, on the basis of their 1975 and 1976 voting records, had been classified as liberal, moderate, or conservative. Two hypotheses were tested. One hypothesis, derived from research on the authoritarian personality and conservatism, was that Ss who consistently voted for conservative ideological causes would be more prone to rely on simple (good vs bad) evaluative rules in interpreting policy issues than liberal or moderate Ss. The 2nd was that Ss who voted in ideologically consistent patterns (regardless of the liberal or conservative content of the ideology) would be more prone to rely on simple evaluative rules in interpreting issues than Ss who voted in less consistent patterns (moderates). 20 paragraph-sized statements were sampled from the speeches of each S; all material was coded for integrative complexity. Results indicate that conservative Ss made significantly less complex statements than their liberal or moderate colleagues. This finding remained significant after controlling for political party affiliation, education, years of service in the Senate, and age. Alternative interpretations of the data are examined. (38 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The professional psychologist in Europe.

Describes the main features of professional psychology in Europe, focusing on its professional associations, legal status and definitions, training, forms of employment, and roles and methods. As a reflection of the political, economic, cultural, and social diversity of Europe, significant differences have developed in professional psychology as practiced in the various countries. However, recent factors encouraging closer cooperation include the need for mutual support, political influences, and the programs of the World Health Organization. To assist communication and cooperation, the European Federation of Professional Psychologists Associations has recently been founded, with which 19 national associations are currently affiliated. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Exploring the function of legitimacy: Mediating effects of personal and institutional legitimacy on leadership endorsement and system support.

Conducted 2 surveys to test different predictions made by J. R. French and B. Raven (1959) and E. P. Hollander and J. W. Julian (1978) about the effect of political legitimacy on political evaluations. In Study 1, a government-evaluation questionnaire was administered to 248 undergraduates. In Study 2, 300 randomly selected Chicagoans responded by telephone to questions about legitimacy of government officials and the benefits, fairness, and policies of government. Results of surveys support the distinction between 2 sources of legitimacy, personal and institutional, suggested by these theories of legitimacy. Findings suggest that each source had a different effect on policy satisfaction, evaluations of political officials, and support for the system of government. The survey results suggest strongly that personal legitimacy resulted in greater performance-based evaluations of specific government policies and (to a lesser extent) government officials, whereas institutional legitimacy led to a lessened tendency to translate performance-based grievances into political distrust. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A dimension of moral judgment.

Moral principles which are used to guide reasoning in situations of normlessness or moral uncertainty can be placed in categories corresponding to 2 classic traditions in social philosophy: "the ethics of personal conscience" and "the ethics of social responsibility." Through the use of a self-report measure, evidence was provided for the hypothesis that the tendency to adopt 1 or the other of these viewpoints is a result of the adherent's underlying personality structure. Proponents of the ethics of personal conscience, for example, tended to be progressive, rebellious, and unconventional, with pronounced tendencies toward social activism. Persons characterized by the ethics of social reponsibility were good-natured, thoughtful, and well-socialized, but somewhat conservative in their political orientation. (29 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Contribution of Psychological Assessment.

Recognizing that only practicing clinicians can contribute relevant data toward resolving the continuing controversy surrounding the value of psychological testing assessment, the author reports the following anecdotal analysis of his assessment work. The author would encourage all clinical psychologists to carry out a retrospective analysis of assessment's contribution in their own clinical settings. Although such anecdotal analyses are definitely limited by the question of the validity of the criteria of discharge diagnosis and significant clinical improvement, the author has found the exercise to be worthwhile as feedback on the contribution of his assessment and as information that is helpful in discussion of psychological assessment with trainees in psychology and other mental health disciplines. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Creative cognition, conceptual combination, and the creative writing of Stephen R. Donaldson.

This article explores the reported use of conceptual combination in Stephen R. Donaldson's development of the idea for his award-winning fantasy series, The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever. Donaldson's (1991) own account is used to illustrate the general principles of a creative cognition approach to understanding creativity as well as the more specific role of the basic process of conceptual combination. The links between Donaldson's and others' anecdotal accounts of creativity and laboratory investigations are assessed. The article concludes with an argument for a "convergence" approach in which information from anecdotal accounts and laboratory studies is combined to provide a more complete picture of creative functioning than either approach alone can offer. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual victimization in the military: An unintended consequence of “Don't Ask, Don't Tell”?

The integration of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals into the U.S. military is a long-standing and politically and socially divisive issue. Exclusionary and pseudo-inclusionary policies that restrict openly LGB individuals from military service are also of long duration. Yet LGB servicemembers have continued to serve covertly in the military for many decades. Moreover, political issues and social conventions associated with “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” (DADT) have diverted focus from imperative research issues, such as LGB servicemembers and incidents of victimization in the military. Research is reviewed to evaluate such victimization, which is conceptualized as resulting from a convergence of sexual stigma, conservative gender role beliefs, and sexual prejudice. DADT, in combination with overarching difficulties intrinsic to sexual orientation research, serves to augment LGB victimization and reduce victim reports and help seeking. Consequently, there is a deficient evidence base for assisting LGB servicemembers and for advancing research, prevention efforts, and policy changes. Implications of repealing DADT are discussed, as are future directions for LGB military research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Religious beliefs and political ideologies as predictors of psychotherapeutic orientations of clinical and counseling psychologists.

Examined the relations among religious beliefs, political ideologies, and psychotherapeutic orientations in 233 34-98 yr old clinical and counseling psychologists. A majority of the respondents affirmed having religious or spiritual beliefs and claimed that their religious beliefs influenced their practice of therapy. Most respondents labeled themselves as politically liberal, and almost half claimed that their political ideologies influenced their practice. The humanistic therapeutic orientation was positively related to Eastern and mystical beliefs, atheistic and agnostic beliefs, and political liberalism; the cognitive-behavioral orientation was positively related to conservative Christian beliefs; and the psychodynamic orientation was negatively related to Eastern and mystical beliefs and positively related to political liberalism. These findings are discussed in the contexts of the scientist practitioner model and postmodern, constructivist thought. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Studies of How the Mind Publicly Enfolds into Being.

Review of book Studies of How the Mind Publicly Enfolds into Being edited by William E. Smythe and Angelina Baydala. This volume contains the fruits of a symposium of the Western Canadian Theoretical Psychologists devoted to the topic contained in the title, though the original idea was expressed by considering "psyche and polis" (p. viii), the two Greek terms from which our conceptions of self and public largely derive. Most of the reflection does not return all the way to ancient Greece, but the essays draw deeply on historical sources, retracing the influences of contemporary thought and reminding the audience of some roads not taken. The issue and definition of self are the predominant theme. Judging from the references, the sources of inspiration for many of these essays is predominantly philosophical, with liberal borrowings from sociology, cultural studies, and political theory. Despite the complexity and range of theoretical issues discussed, the contributions are uniformly clear and engaging, a credit to authors and editors alike. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)