Implicit and explicit attitudes toward high-fat foods in obesity.

This study examined implicit and explicit attitudes toward high-fat foods in obese (n = 30) and normal-weight controls (n = 31). The Implicit Association Test (A. G. Greenwald, D. E. McGee, & J. L. K. Schwartz, 1998) was used to measure the differential association of the 2 target categories--high-fat vs. low-fat food words--with an attribute dimension (positive vs. negative). Results suggest that obese people are characterized by a significantly stronger implicit negative attitude toward high-fat foods than are normal-weight controls. This implicit negative attitude is contradictory to their preferences and behavior: Several studies indicate that obese people prefer and consume high-fat foods. Apparently, obese people like the taste of high-fat foods but not the fat content itself, not only on the explicit but also on the implicit level. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Religious beliefs of Catholic college students and their attitudes toward minorities.

"There was a very significant tendency… for those scoring high on the religion scale to be less favorable toward Jews and Negroes and to favor segregation of Negroes in their own parishes, while those who scored low on the religion scale were significantly less prejudiced and were opposed to segregation." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development and validation of a scale for measuring cynical attitudes toward college.

The purpose of this research was to develop and validate a new measure of undergraduate student cynicism--the Cynical Attitudes Toward College Scale (CATCS). In Study 1, the authors split data collected from 1,049 students representing 3 diverse college populations into development and confirmation samples. Using confirmatory factor analysis, the authors (a) developed an 18-item measurement model reflecting 4 reliable dimensions of student cynicism-policy, academic, social, and institutional; (b) demonstrated cross-sample generalizability; and (c) established convergent and discriminant validity. In Study 2, the authors showed the CATCS's ability to discriminate among diverse groups of students predicted to differ on the 4 subscales as well as to predict future academic outcomes. Practical applications of the CATCS are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of a teen pregnancy prevention program on teens' attitudes toward sexuality: A latent trait modeling approach.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of program interventions in a school-based teen pregnancy program on hypothesized constructs underlying teens' attitudes toward sexuality. An important task related to this purpose was the validation of the constructs and their stability from pre- to postintervention measures. Data from 1,136 middle grade students were obtained from an earlier evaluation of an abstinence-based teen pregnancy prevention program (S. Weed, I. Ericksen, G. Grant, & A. Lewis, 2002). Latent trait structural equation modeling was used to evaluate the impact of the intervention program on changes in constructs of teens' attitudes toward sexuality. Gender was also taken into consideration. This investigation provides credible evidence that both 1st- and 2nd-order constructs related to measures of teens' attitudes toward risky sexual behavior are sufficiently stable and sensitive to detect program effects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Patient variables supporting chronic illness. A scale for measuring attitudes toward respiratory illness and hospitalization

Liver biopsies and serum samples were collected after intravenous application of 2 g cephradin (n = 13) or 2 g cephacetril (n = 11) during surgery. There was no difference in the serum levels of cephradin and cephacetril. 30 min. after i.v. application of cephradin the liver tissue concentration was 72.62 mcg/g. 30 min. after i.v. cephacetril the liver tissue concentration was 5.83 mcg/g. The quotient of liver tissue concentration to serum concentration for cephradin was between 0.36 and 0.83, and for cephacetril between 0.02 and 0.16. The excretion of cephradin and cephacetril in human bile was studied by collecting bile samples from the common bile duct via T-tube drainage (n = 17). Cholecystomized patients were given 2 g of antibiotics intravenously. Serum levels of cephradin were 263 mcg/ml 5 min after application, and 22 mcg/ml after 240 min. Serum levels of cephradin were 263 mcg/ml 5 min after application, and 22 mcg/ml after 240 min. Serum levels of cephacetril were 193 mcg/ml 5 min after application, and 27 mcg/ml after 240 min. The highest levels of cephradin in the bile were found 75 min after injection at a concentration of 86.4 mcg/ml; the highest level for cephacetril was 21.8 mcg/ml at 15 min. In patients with hyperbilirubinaemia cephradin reached a mean maximum concentration of 29.6 mcg/ml in bile samples, in comparison to 117.4 mcg/ml in normal patients, while no difference was seen with cephacetril. After intravenous administration of 2 g cephradin biliary concentration are achieved which may be sufficiently high to be effective not only against the very sensitive gram-positive organisms, but also against most strains of E. coli, Klebsiella and indol-negative Proteus. Cephradin is effective in the treatment of cholangitis and intrahepatic abscesses, as was observed in 18 patients. A free bile-flow is essential.     

Toward a theory of hynotic behavior: Effects on suggestibility of task motivating instructions and attitudes toward hypnosis.

Attitudes toward hypnosis were assessed in 75 college students. 3 weeks later the students were required to participate in an experiment in which they were tested individually on the Barber Suggestibility Scale. The scale was administered under 3 experimental treatments with 25 Ss, ? with positive attitudes toward hypnosis and ? with nonpositive attitudes, assigned randomly to each treatment. The treatments were: Task Motivating Instructions, Hypnotic Induction Procedure, Direct Suggestions (Control). The findings confirmed Hypotheses 1 and 2 which stated: (a) Ss given either brief task motivating instructions or a procedure of the type traditionally termed a hypnotic induction show greater response to suggestions than Ss given neither task motivating insructions nor a hypnotic induction; and (b) brief task motivating instructions and an extended hypnotic induction procedure both elicit high levels of suggestibility. (46 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A multiplant factor analysis of employees' attitudes toward their company.

Is an attitude questionnaire designed to measure a specific attitude unifactorial? If not, what is the nature of the factors? 735 mailed questionnaires, representing a 50% return, were analyzed. Although designed to measure one thing, attitude toward the company, it was found to contain a large general factor of general attitude or bias toward the company. 1 of the other 3 factors found was respect for personal rights; the 3rd was opportunity for self improvement. The factorial structure of employees' work attitudes may be more complex than previously thought. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A scale for the measurement of attitudes toward French Canadians.

Constructed a scale (FC scale) for the measurement of attitudes toward French Canadians and its reliability and validity were assessed. 50 judges rated 45 statements for their favorableness-unfavorableness toward French Canadians. The method of successive intervals was used to derive scale values. 26 statements were included in the FC scale. Administering this scale to an English Canadian sample (n = 304) and a French Canadian sample (n = 208) yielded split-half reliability coefficients of .78 and .72, respectively. The scale was found to have considerable empirical validity when assessed. 1st, the correlations of the FC scale with the preference and the identity scales were significant and in the predicted direction for both samples. 2nd, as predicted, the French sample showed a highly favorable attitude toward themselves, while the English sample showed only a mildly favorable attitude toward the French Canadians. (French summary) (16 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attitudes toward special loyalty oaths at the University of California.

In 1951 "… the attitudes and backgrounds of a number of persons who declined to sign one or both of two special oaths then required at the University of California… " were examined and compared "… with comparable data from a sample of persons, similar in other respects, who had signed both of these oaths." Similarities and differences between signers and nonsigners are indicated. F-Scale results indicated that "… the nonsigners were markedly less authoritarian than the signers." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A behavioral study of staff attitudes toward mental illness.

65 nurses and aides completed 2 factor analyzed attitude questionnaires. Hospitalized psychiatric patients (N = 188) screened for ability to identify their staff and make valid behavioral ratings, rated their ward staff on a 55-item interpersonal behavior inventory. Relationships between perceived behavior and endorsed attitudes were examined. Restrictive attitudes were consistently related to controlling and restricting behavior. Protective Benevolence was related to such behaviors as aloofness, distance, and dishonesty. Hence, some attitudes were related to behaviors which were congruent with the endorsed attitude, some attitudes were related to seemingly incongruent behaviors, while other attitudes had no significant behavioral correlates. A new attitude area, highly related to outgoing interpersonal behavior, was identified. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A scale for measuring attitudes of social responsibility in children.

"A scale of social attitudes was designed to discriminate children who have, with their peers, a reputation for responsibility as contrasted with children who have little reputation for responsibility. The resulting scale yields a measure which is substantially correlated with other measures of personal and social adjustment." The scale shows a positive trend in mean score with age. Development of the scale is discussed and the items retained after criterion group analysis are presented in a table. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Acculturation, enculturation, and Asian American college students' mental health and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help.

In the present study, we tested a theoretically and empirically derived partially indirect effects acculturation and enculturation model of Asian American college students' mental health and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. Latent variable path analysis with 296 self-identified Asian American college students supported the partially indirect effects model and demonstrated the ways in which behavioral acculturation, behavioral enculturation, values acculturation, values enculturation, and acculturation gap family conflict related to mental health and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help directly and indirectly through acculturative stress. We also tested a generational status moderator hypothesis to determine whether differences in model-implied relationships emerged across U.S.- (n = 185) and foreign-born (n = 107) participants. Consistent with this hypothesis, statistically significant differences in structural coefficients emerged across generational status. Limitations, future directions for research, and counseling implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

A measure of staff attitudes toward care of physically ill patients.

The development of an instrument for measuring staff attitudes toward patient care in general medical and surgical hospitals, called the Philosophy of Treatment Form (POT), is presented. In this development both a general medical and surgical sample and, for comparative purposes, a psychiatric sample were utilized. The POT measures 7 attitude areas for which reliabilities and intercorrelations are presented. Data from a 3rd sample of 350 general medical and surgical staff members indicate that 3 of these areas reliably differentiated among professional groups and 3 reliably differentiated among wards. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Guttman-type scales for union and management attitudes toward each other.

A systematic study of scale preparation for industrial relations purposes is reported. 14 multiple-choice items were presented to 41 officials. Unidimensionality on at least 7 items was confirmed by the analysis. "The refined scales are valuable instruments for substantive research on union-management relations at the plant level." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Need satisfactions of managerial level personnel in a government agency.

Compares the need satisfactions of managers in field work with those of similar managers in central office work with a government agency. There was greater satisfaction among those in field work especially with respect to certain higher-level needs. Also, a comparison was made of the need satisfactions of all respondents in the government agency with those of a similar group from private industry. The satisfaction of the government managers was less across all need items than the satisfaction of the private industry managers. A perceptual halo effect created by the insecure conditions existing in the government agency at the time the study was conducted may explain this finding. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The use of a sentence completion test in measuring attitudes toward superiors and subordinates.

"A sentence-completion test designed to measure attitudes toward superiors and subordinates was administered to 312 Air Force cadets in advanced training. The test was scored with acceptable reliability, and showed a correlation of .32 with a direct attitude measure of the same dimension, and of .27 with an indirect measure based on an information test. Interpretation of these values is restricted due to a correlation of -.45 with a direct scale of alienation, and the absence of significant correlations with reputational criterion measures." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Change in attitudes toward the Negro in a Southern university.

"Attitude toward the Negro… appears to be remarkably stable as far as group means are concerned. In view of the social tension prevalent in the South during the period 1955-1958, one might reasonably expect to find a change in attitude towards desegregation… . Contrary to such popular beliefs, no change… was found in comparing a random sample of students at the University of Texas in 1958 with a similar sample in 1955." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Patterns of attitudes toward child rearing and the family.

24 scales of the Parental Attitude Research Instrument were administered to 100 student nurses. A centroid factor analysis of the scales revealed 5 relatively independent factors: suppression and interpersonal distance, hostile rejection of the homemaking role, excessive demand for striving, over-possessiveness, and hostile punitive control. Similarity of these factors to behavior and attitudes of parents of emotionally disturbed children and to factors isolated from the Fels Parent Behavior Scales was noted. This measuring instrument may permit prediction of different patterns of mother-child interaction. 19 references. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A note on the Nagle attitude scale.

Nagle's scale to measure attitude toward supervisor assumed a relationship between an attitude toward the supervisor and a perception of how he behaves. This assumption was rejected by Brayfield and Crockett (1955). Evidence is now presented in support of the assumption and in rebuttal to Brayfield and Crockett. A special scale to measure attitudes toward supervisors was constructed specifically to avoid items referring to overt behavior. The correlation between the 2 scales for 74 research engineering employees was .786, or .835 when corrected for attenuation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sociocultural attitudes and symptoms of bulimia: Evaluating the SATAQ with diverse college groups.

This study evaluated the utility of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire (SATAQ; L. J. Heinberg, J. K. Thompson, & S. Stormer, 1995) for the assessment of diverse college groups, including men, women, minorities, and sorority members. Scores from the SATAQ were compared with the Eating Disorder Inventory-2 (EDI-2; D. M. Garner. 1991) for a sample of 405 college students at a large midwestem university. Significant group differences were observed on the scales assessing awareness of sociocultural pressures to be thin and internalization of these attitudes. These scores were highest among the Caucasian women, Caucasian sorority, and Hispanic sorority groups. However, construct validity was only demonstrated for the Internalization scale and was strongest for the Caucasian women, suggesting that sociocultural awareness may hold unique meaning for diverse groups. The need for the development of more specific measures assessing sociocultural pressures, internalization, and the implications for counseling psychologists is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)