Toward an empirically derivable definition of entry level.

Discusses the "entry level" issue in relation to the example of school psychology, the structure of graduate programs, and the professional characteristics of psychology. A causal modeling approach to evaluating the effects of education and training on practice is presented. Two major perspectives on entry level are individuated on the basis of their emphases on education and practice, and empirical strategies for relating entry level to practice are proposed. An approach that encompasses the relative contributions of a range of individual difference, education and training, professional competence, and practice factors is suggested as an alternative to the narrow, degree-based approach to entry level. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Maternal deprivation: Toward an empirical and conceptual re-evaluation.

Research concerned with maternal deprivation reveals a wide variety of circumstances included under this rubric. This latter factor and the varying degrees of methodological sophistication limit the usefulness of the data. Suggestions are made to improve the research. From Psyc Abstracts 36:04:4FG59Y. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward a behavioral definition of genius.

Discusses some problems in defining genius. Emphasis is placed on the early history of the concept of genius, particularly on the theories of Freud and F. Galton. A definition of genius is proposed which makes continuous influential productivity the major criterion and the achievement of long-term eminence the central outcome of so-called "works of genius." Data is offered from several studies supporting this point, showing that eminent persons do in fact evidence an earlier, more continuous productivity than most of their peers. The socio-psychological implications of this finding are discussed. (72 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An empirical study of moral intuitions: Toward an evolutionary ethics.

This study of moral intuitions used a questionnaire containing 2 moral dilemmas that were administered to university students. The dilemmas probed the underlying dimensions involved in moral intuitions. The results of both group- and individual-level analyses suggested that the most important dimensions were Speciesism, Abhorrent Political Philosophy (Nazism), and Inclusive Fitness, followed by Social Contract and Number of Individuals. The dimensions of Action–Inaction, Elite, and Endangered Species had significant but weak influences. The results are interpreted within an evolutionary framework and represent progress toward developing an understanding of the is on which it is possible to base the ought (a consideration of the moral imperatives when a legitimate conflict of interest exists between different living beings). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stimulus-response compatibility and the Simon effect: Toward an empirical clarification.

Perceptual accounts attribute the Simon effect to the correlation between relevant stimulus feature and response location (e.g., T. Hasbroucq & Y. Guiard, 1991). This account is questioned, and it is demonstrated that a Simon effect can be obtained without a stimulus–response correlation (Experiment 1). Experiments 2 and 3 replicated this finding and showed that the relative size of stimuli and response labels and temporal overlap of warning signal and stimulus cannot account for why the effect was absent in Hasbroucq and Guiard's study. However, no Simon effect occurred in a close replication of Hasbroucq and Guiard's original experiment (Experiment 4). Participants' reports suggested that this was due to a special stimulus-coding strategy, and in fact, the effect reappeared with a slightly modified stimulus display (Experiment 5). These results provide strong evidence against a perceptual approach to the Simon effect and support response-related views instead. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Tobacco-related instruction in undergraduate nursing education in Illinois

Tobacco use is responsible for more deaths in the United States than any other factor. Nurses are in a unique position to convey life-saving messages to clients regarding tobacco use. To gauge the type and extent of tobacco-related background knowledge acquired by nurses in the course of their education, the Nurses' Committee of the Illinois Division of the American Cancer Society (ACS) surveyed 70 nursing programs in the state of Illinois. The number of lecture hours spent on tobacco-related issues was greater in LPN programs than in either associate or baccalaureate degree programs, and instruction was scattered throughout the curriculum of each program. Most schools reported heavy reliance on adult medical-surgical textbooks to convey tobacco-related content. The most recent editions of the textbooks used by the schools were reviewed, and they also were found to adopt a scattered approach, with a disappointing lack of depth regarding the hazards of tobacco. It is recommended a single course be identified as responsible for relaying tobacco-related content and information supplied by general medical-surgical textbooks be supplemented by materials drawn from other sources.     

Toward the definition of a domain of academic motivation.

In the domain of academic motivation, distinctions such as statics vs dynamics, rational vs empirical, and linear or "one shot" vs cyclic or "bootstrapping" help clarify the focus of previous studies and suggest guidelines for future studies. The present study's development of a 75-item self-report Academic Motivations Inventory is presented as illustrating bootstrapping in researching the structure of academic motivation. The 1st and 2nd cycles of the study are described briefly. In the current cycle (Cycle 3) of the development of this instrument, 626 university students were administered the inventory. Factor analyses of the inventory produced a set of 9 interpretable dimensions which summarize a considerable portion of the domain and which can be measured with adequate reliability. This collection of factors is discussed in relation to prior studies of the structure of the domain; further research toward the development of the domain is specified. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward a conceptual understanding and definition of executive coaching.

A review of the literature on coaching reveals that very little empirical research has focused on the executive coaching methods used by consultants with managers and leaders in organizations. Within the framework of a 17-dimensional model of systems and psychodynamic theory, the author provides an overview of a conceptual approach to coaching activities that incorporates 5 identifiable components plus an emphasis on goal setting, intervention methods, and hypothesized factors in negative consulting outcomes. A definition of executive coaching is offered as a way of summarizing the literature and differentiating these consulting activities from others for the purpose of improving conceptual clarity and encouraging specific research on the concepts, methods, and outcomes of such activities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Medical psychology: Toward definition, clarification, and organization.

A definition for the term and field of medical psychology is proposed in the hope of providing common terminology and of integrating areas of development in the field. The area is seen as comprising psychosomatics, somatopsychology, health care studies, and behavioral medicine. Suggestions for supporting the growth of this psychological specialty are offered. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Systems of student and teacher motivation: Toward a qualitative definition.

Defines 3 systems of motivation: ability-evaluative, task mastery, and moral responsibility. Implicit in each motivation system is a value orientation, and these values are shared by students and teachers. The qualitative perspective relates to distinct networks of cognitions, involving goals and values, attributions, and strategy beliefs. Student motivation is characterized by showing how each motivational system can be elicited by a competitive, cooperative, or individualistic goal structure. Teacher motivation is characterized by showing how each system evolves from specific teacher goal orientations. Different goals that affect student and teacher motivation are implicit in the goal structure of the classroom and in the teacher's belief system. (109 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward a more rigorous definition of social reinforcement: Some interpersonal clarifications.

Some researchers define social reinforcers procedurally (i.e., a priori), thereby ignoring Skinner's (1953) admonition to define reinforcers emprirically. The present study compared "popular" and "interpersonal" concepts of reinforcement under conditions in which the 2 concepts imply different reinforcers. Confederates responded to hostile-dominant statements by 20 8–14 yr old boys with either friendly-submissive (popular) or hostile-submissive (complementary) statements. Results suggest that behavioral complementarity may be applied to predict both social reinforcers and "antidotes" and support the existence of coplementary behavioral relationships. Simply equating social reinforcement with friendly behavioral consequences is inadequate to explain the spectrum of behaviors found to be reinforcing. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an emancipatory psychology.

Responds to comments by W. Mieder (see record 1991-03996-001), K. L. Dion (see record 1991-03991-001), and K. J. Gergen (see record 1991-03993-001) on T. B. Rogers's (see record 1991-03999-001) examination of the role of proverbs in psychology. It is argued that theory is important for the critical social functions it serves, rather than just for the quest for truth. Also, consideration of an emancipatory psychology is recommended, in which psychology is viewed as a socially embedded discipline. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an ounce of prevention.

Questions whether psychologists and other health professionals can develop a network to implement the changes in the health-care delivery system that prevention strategies require. Major changes in intervention, research, and training are called for. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The meaning of the future: Toward a more specific definition of possible selves.

Possible selves are traditionally defined as conceptions of our selves in future states. The author discusses the way the theory is used in the literature and argues that there is a need for a clearer definition, because there appear to be a number of common misinterpretations regarding possible selves. Important features of possible selves are discussed, in particular their nature as experienced meaning, their relation with the rest of the self-concept, and their social and cultural nature. It is suggested that agency is an important aspect of possible selves and that they can be seen as narratives. The clearer definition suggested is that possible selves are conceptions of our selves in the future, including, at least to some degree, an experience of being an agent in a future situation. Possible selves get vital parts of their meaning in interplay with the self-concept, which they in turn moderate, as well as from their social and cultural context. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an experimental psychology of aging.

Advocates the development of an experimental psychology of aging for cultural, scientific, and practical purposes. The ethical, economical, and temporal problems involved in longitudinal studies are discussed. Data on the effect of age differences on intellectual functioning, RT, and perceptual ability are presented. Several tentative hypotheses are proposed to explain results not covered by the perceptual difficulty and cautiousness hypotheses. New research areas are pointed out. (22 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an integrative study of narcissism.

Comments on the article by Miller and Campbell (see record 2010-17135-004). The expression of narcissism spans the continuum from normal to pathological and has meaningful correlates in clinical and nonclinical populations. There is growing speculation that narcissism also contributes to major societal concerns (e.g., terrorism and corporate malfeasance). Improving our understanding of the psychological, interpersonal, and social expressions of narcissism should be one of the most important areas in behavioral science research. Unfortunately, the study of narcissism is fragmented and underpursued. Pathological narcissism (PN), primarily narcissistic personality disorder (NPD; American Psychiatric Association, 1994), has been studied mainly through clinical case reports and psychodynamic theory (Ronningstam, 2005), whereas the study of trait narcissism has utilized more empirical methods. Miller and Campbell contend that the current understanding of PN is speculative and empirically lacking. His proposed remedy is for psychiatric and clinical researchers to incorporate the strategies and tools used to study trait narcissism. Although research on PN should be more empirically based, the uncritical adoption of the trait narcissism paradigm seems ill advised. Rather, an integrative research perspective incorporating knowledge and methodologies across disciplines would seem more promising. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an explanation of stage hypnosis.

Explains stage hypnosis by 8 principles which do not utilize the concept of hypnotic state or trance. To produce an amazing performance, stage hypnotists rely primarily on (a) the high base rate of waking suggestibility, (b) a highly selective procedure for screening Ss, (c) the heightened suggestibility that is produced when the situation is defined to Ss as hypnosis, and (d) important social-psychological variables that are present in the stage situation. In addition, some stage hypnotists at times use (e) the "stage whispers" technique (in which Ss are told privately, in whispers, to help make the demonstration a success); (f) the "failure to challenge" technique, where the audience is misled; (g) trained Ss to carry out the difficult stunts, and (h) 1 or more tricks, e.g., pressure on the carotid baroreceptors which produces stupor. (25 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)