Effect of success and failure on depressive cognitions

A cognitive social-learning approach to depression emphasizes biases or distortions in depressed persons' evaluation of information about self, future, and environment. 33 depressed and 34 nondepressed female undergraduates participated in a task that ostensibly assessed therapeutic potential; they received success, failure, or no feedback about their performance on this realistic social interaction task. It was anticipated that depressed women, especially as a function of feedback would respond in characteristic ways that could be construed as depression-enhancing on both self-rating and expectation-of-performance measures. The predictions were largely confirmed. A task developed to assess depressed-distorted responses to stories also revealed significant differences in types of response choices between depressed and nondepressed Ss. Results reinforce attempts to assess not what depressed people are or have , but what they do . (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

If you are gender schematic, all members of the opposite sex look alike.

96 male and 96 female undergraduates classified on the basis of the Bem Sex-Role Inventory were asked to recall "who said what" after listening to a taped conversation either among 3 men and 3 women (the gender study) or among 3 Blacks and 3 Whites (the race study). Analysis of Ss' errors revealed that both sex-typed and cross-sex-typed Ss confused the members of the opposite sex with one another significantly more than androgynous or undifferentiated Ss did. In contrast, no individual differences related to sex typing emerged in the race study, which suggests that the greater gender schematicity of sex-typed individuals is specific to gender, as S. L. Bem's (see record 1981-25685-001) gender schema theory implies. The finding that cross-sex-typed Ss were significantly more gender schematic than anyone else and the apparent inconsistency of the data with the self-schema theory of H. Markus et al (see record 1982-23588-001) are discussed. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived attributes of the terms client, patient, and typical person..

Helping professionals most commonly refer to seekers of counseling services as clients or as patients. However, little has been known of the implied meanings of each of those labels. 74 undergraduates compared, "client," "patient," and "typical person" using semantic differential-type scales and the Personal Attribute Inventory. Although "client" and "patient" were each evaluated more negatively than was "typical person," no significant differences were found between "client" and "patient." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Responses to "neutral" pronoun presentations and the development of sex-biased responding.

Investigated whether 36 kindergarten and 36 1st-grade children, like college students, would give male-biased responses to a "he" presentation and examined how Ss would respond to the use of "they" and "he or she" pronoun presentations. The effects of pronoun use on memory were also investigated, as were possible sex differences in responding. Each S was assigned to 1 of 3 pronoun presentation groups, each of which contained an equal number of girls and boys. Ss in the different groups listened to the exact same story except that Group I Ss heard the pronoun "they" used throughout the story, Group 2 Ss heard "she" or "he" used throughout the story, and Group 3 Ss heard the pronoun "he" throughout the story. Ss were then asked to retell the story and were shown pictures of a boy and a girl and asked to indicate which one the story was about. Results support the pronomial dominance theory of pronoun functioning for young children. Results also support the hypothesis that boys initially use a self-imaging response to neutral presentations. The time of transition away from this response was identified as the 1st-grade level. There was no indication that kindergarten or 1st-grade girls use the self-imagining approach. The "they" presentation appeared to be the most neutral. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"That swimsuit becomes you: Sex differences in self-objectification, restrained eating, and math performance": Correction to Fredrickson et al. (1998).

Reports an error in "That swimsuit becomes you: Sex differences in self-objectification, restrained eating, and math performance" by Barbara L. Fredrickson, Tomi-Ann Roberts, Stephanie M. Noll, Diane M. Quinn and Jean M. Twenge (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1998[Jul], Vol 75[1], 269-284). This article contains errors in the Participants sections. The corrected information is included in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1998-04530-020.) Objectification theory (B. L. Fredrickson & T Roberts, 1997) posits that American culture socializes women to adopt observers' perspectives on their physical selves. This self-objectification is hypothesized to (a) produce body shame, which in turn leads to restrained eating, and (b) consume attentional resources, which is manifested in diminished mental performance. Two experiments manipulated self-objectification by having participants try on a swimsuit or a sweater. Experiment 1 tested 72 women and found that self-objectification increased body shame, which in turn predicted restrained eating. Experiment 2 tested 42 women and 40 men and found that these effects on body shame and restrained eating replicated for women only. Additionally, self-objectification diminished math performance for women only. Discussion centers on the causes and consequences of objectifying women's bodies. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Vocal onset latency in the study of question answering.

A study of the adequacy of the vocal response measure in studying question answering among 12 undergraduates showed that vocal answer latencies to yes–no questions closely resembled previously measured buttonpress latencies obtained by the author (1984). On a small number of read-only trials, Ss viewed the phrases "yes," "no," or "don't know" in place of a question. On these trials, the Ss simply recited the phrase on the screen. The resulting "yes" latencies were faster than the others, which did not differ. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that an internal response index is initialized "yes" in yes–no question answering. It is concluded that the vocal onset latency measure and the read-only trial procedure are useful in question answering research. (French abstract) (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"What is learned during automatization? The role of attention in constructing an instance": Correction to Logan and Etherton.

Reports an error in "What is learned during automatization? The role of attention in constructing an instance" by Gordon D. Logan and Joseph L. Etherton (Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 1994[Sep], Vol 20[5], 1022-1050). In the aforementioned article, the Appendix on page 1050 was incomplete. The complete Appendix is presented in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1995-04305-001.) Seven experiments with 372 Ss were conducted to examine the role of attention in automatization. Ss searched 2-word displays for members of a target category in divided-attention, focused-attention, and dual-task conditions. The main issue was whether attention conditions would affect what Ss learned about co-occurrences of the words in the displays. The attention hypothesis, derived from the instance theory of automaticity, predicts learning of co-occurrences in divided-attention and dual-task conditions in which Ss attend to both words but not in focused-attention conditions in which Ss only attend to 1 word. The data supported the attention hypothesis and therefore the instance theory. [A correction concerning this article appears in Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory & Cognition, 1994(Nov), Vol 20(6), 1390. The Appendix was incomplete and the complete Appendix is presented.] (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Construct systems and the definition of social situations.

Studied the relationship between 2 construct subsystems, one for construing people and one for defining a concrete social situation. Using a variant of G. Kelly's grid methodology, 20 college students rated 12 personal acquaintances on 12 constructs of bipolar concepts. They were then presented with 1 of 2 problematic social situations and asked to rate the same acquaintances on 10 dimensions relevant to the situation. Principal-components analysis was used to derive 1 central and 2 secondary patterns of construing (centrality being defined by the amount of variance the component accounts for on a grid), as well as 1 central and 2 secondary dimensions defining the social situation. Cross-correlations between the orderings of people on these 2 sets of components were used to determine the extent to which "implicit personality theory" influenced the definition of a situation. Findings show that central construing related strongly to the central definition of a situation, whereas secondary construing related more weakly to secondary definitions. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Collective induction: Social combination and sequential transition": Correction to Laughlin and Futoran.

Reports an error in "Collective induction: Social combination and sequential transition" by Patrick R. Laughlin and Gail C. Futoran (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1985[Mar], Vol 48[3], 608-613). One sentence reads incorrectly on page 610. The correct sentence is provided in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1985-20078-001.) 240 undergraduates, as individuals and 4-person cooperative groups, attempted to induce a rule that partitioned a deck of standard playing cards into exemplars and nonexemplars. A trial consisted of (a) individual member hypotheses, (b) group hypothesis (omitted in individual conditions), (c) choice of any of the cards, and (d) feedback on the exemplar or nonexemplar status of the card. Ss were instructed to select cards to confirm or disconfirm the current hypothesis, or received no such instructions. Groups had significantly more correct final hypotheses, plausible final hypotheses, and overall plausible hypotheses than individuals. Performance was better for both individuals and groups under control instructions than either instructions to select cards to confirm or disconfirm hypotheses. Social combination analyses and sequential transition analyses indicated that the groups were remarkably able to recognize and adopt the correct hypothesis if and only if it was proposed by at least 1 group member on some trial. Thus, the superiority of collective induction over individual induction was due to superior hypothesis evaluation by groups rather than to superior hypothesis formation by groups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Accuracy of feeling-of-knowing judgments for predicting perceptual identification and relearning.

The feeling of knowing (FOK) refers to predictions about subsequent memory performance on previously nonrecalled items. The present research explored predictive accuracy with 2 new FOK criterion tests (in addition to recognition): relearning and perceptual identification. In 2 experiments, Ss attempted to recall the answers to general information questions, then made FOK predictions for all nonrecalled answers, and finally had a criterion test to assess the accuracy of the FOK predictions. Exp I, conducted with 32 undergraduates, demonstrated that perceptual identification can be employed successfully as a criterion test for the feeling of knowing FOK. This opens a new way for metamemory research via perception. Moreover, the FOK accuracy for predicting perceptual identification was not significantly correlated with the FOK accuracy for predicting recognition, in accord with the idea that these 2 tests assess memory differently. Exp II, conducted with 77 undergraduates, demonstrated that relearning performance can also be predicted by FOK judgments. Overall results show that there is a positive relationship between the FOK and the amount of time elapsing before a memory search is terminated during recall. (76 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of "voice" and peer opinions on responses to inequity.

Examined the effects of "voice" (participating in allocation decision making by expressing one's own opinion about the preferred allocation) on responses to an inequitable allocation. In addition to Ss' (82 female undergraduates) presence or absence of voice, Exp I manipulated (a) whether the allocation made by a "decision maker" (a confederate) was or was not made biased (due to self-interest) and (b) whether the S did or did not learn that a "co-worker" believed the allocation to be inequitable. Exp II, with 61 female high school students, manipulated presence/absence of voice and involved only a self-interested decision maker. In both experiments, the impact of voice was mediated by knowledge about the co-worker's opinion. When Ss had no knowledge about the co-worker's opinion (Exp I) or knew that the co-workers's opinion coincided with the decision maker's allocation (Exp II), there was evidence for a "fair process effect": Voice Ss expressed greater satisfaction than those with no voice. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Increasing compliance by improving the deal: The that's-not-all technique.

Seven experiments with 426 adolescents, undergraduates, and adults were conducted to examine the effectiveness of a compliance procedure known as the that's-not-all technique. The procedure involves offering a product at a high price, not allowing the customer to respond for a few seconds, then offering a better deal by either adding another product or lowering the price. Exps I–II demonstrated the effectiveness of this procedure over a control group that was given the better deal initially. Exps III–IV suggested that this effectiveness may be partially explained through a norm of reciprocity that calls for the customer to respond to the seller's new offer. Exp V suggested that the effect also results from an altering of the anchor point Ss use to judge the new price. Exp VI indicated the effectiveness of the procedure cannot be explained by the S perceiving the lower price as a bargain. Exp VII, which examined the differences between the that's-not-all and the door-in-the-face procedures, implied that the former technique is more effective than the latter. Overall findings demonstrate the effectiveness of the that's-not-all technique. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Factors in the Self-Deception Questionnaire: Association with depression": Correction to Roth and Ingram.

Reports an error in "Factors in the Self-Deception Questionnaire: Associations with depression" by David L. Roth and Rick E. Ingram (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1985[Jan], Vol 48[1], 243-251). Errors appear in Table 2 on page 247. The factor loading for Item 7 (.65) is listed under Factor 2 and it should be under Factor 4. The factor loading for Item 18 (.54) is listed under Factor 2 and it should be under Factor 3. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1985-17551-001.) Administered the Self-Deception Questionnaire (SDQ) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) to 60 male and 52 female undergraduates and replicated the negative correlation found by H. A. Sackeim and R. C. Gur (1978; see also PA, Vol 62:6213). The SDQ was factor analyzed to determine which factors might account for this correlation with depression. Analysis showed that the 3 largest factors, identified by content themes of relationship with parents, emotionality, and denial of tabooed activities, correlated reliably with the BDI. Acceptable conceptualizations of distortion and reality and data that empirically relate those conceptualizations to depression and other forms of psychopathology are needed to clarify any associations that exist between cognitive accuracy and emotional functioning. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpreting the negative mood-helping literature via "mega"-analysis: A contrary view.

"Mega"-analysis was developed by M. Carlson and N. Miller (see record 1987-31249-001) as an extension of traditional meta-analytic procedures for conducting integrative reviews of existing research literatures. One such mega-analysis was conducted by Carlson and Miller to synthesize the literature on the relation between negative mood states and helping. That analysis found no support for a theoretical account (negative state relief) that had been confirmed previously by using various experimental approaches. In an attempt to reconcile the discrepancy, the logic and methods used in Carlson and Miller's mega-analysis of the negative mood-helping literature were examined, and several serious problems were found. These problems are discussed, and data are presented to show that the results of that mega-analysis, and perhaps all mega-analyses, should not be viewed with confidence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Affective implications of seeking psychological counseling.

Asked 315 undergraduates to evaluate either "a typical person," "a typical person seeking counseling," "a client seeking counseling," or "a patient seeking counseling" on the Personal Attitude Inventory. Ss evaluated a typical person significantly more positively than the other target groups mentioned above. These findings held regardless of the sex of the respondent or whether the respondents had previously sought counseling services. It appears that counselors may need to continue to educate the public to offset the negative stereotypes that seem to be surrounding counseling and those who seek it. (6 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of assigned versus participatively set goals, knowledge of results, and individual differences on employee behavior when goal difficulty is held constant.

In Exp I, 60 female clerical workers were randomly assigned to participative, assigned, and "do best" goal conditions on a clerical test. Specific goals led to higher performance than did the "do best" goals. With goal difficulty held constant, there was no significant difference between the assigned and participative conditions on performance or goal acceptance. Goal attainment, however, was higher in the assigned condition than it was in the participative condition. No main or interaction effects were found for knowledge of results (KR) or for individual difference measures with performance or goal acceptance. However, high self-esteem Ss who received KR attained their goals more often than did Ss with low self-esteem when the goals were participatively set. Exp II was conducted with 28 employees from the same sample in a performance-appraisal setting over an 8-mo period. Assigned goals resulted in higher performance and greater goal acceptance than participatively set goals. There was a positive linear relationship between goal difficulty and performance in the participative condition only. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Participants instead of subjects.

Surveyed 163 undergraduates to determine their preference for using the word participants instead of the word subjects in psychological literature. 66% of the Ss preferred participants, 25% preferred subjects, and 9% had no preference. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Detection of the fake "good" and "bad" response on the Sixteen Personality Factor Inventory in prisoners and college students.

Administered the 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire to 30 inmates of a correctional center and to 30 college students, instructing some Ss to fake their answers to make themselves look better than they are and others to try to give a worse impression. In the fake-good condition, only 6 of the 18 factors examined were not altered significantly, and in the fake-bad condition only 2 factors. Prisoners and students produced similar faking results. The 3 dissimulation indices for detecting faking are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reappraisal of the A-B therapist "type" distinction in terms of the Personality Research Form.

Assessed personality dimensions involved in the A-B therapist "type" distinction which has proven predictive of therapist-patient compatibility in several clinical and analogue studies. The A-B scale scores of 223 male undergraduates were related to the 22 variables of Jackson's Personality Research Form. Multiple discriminant analyses and factor analyses strongly supported the hypothesis that A-B status is explicable in personality terms: so-called A-type Ss (predicted to be compatible with schizoid patients) were characterized by cautious self-expression, social ineptness, and a restricted cognitive scope; B-type Ss (presumably compatible with neurotic patients) appeared socially ascendant and "open" to complex experiences. Results were supported by a cross-validation study of 50 professional Ss. As in prior research, the variables differentiating A-B statuses appeared to involve a prominent "masculinity-femininity" component. (30 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the introduction of Gestalt psychology into America.

Criticizes F. McKinney's (see record 1977-28569-001) account of the introduction of Gestalt psychology into US psychology for neglecting to mention the contributions of R. M. Ogden. Ogden provided early translations of Koffka's work and wrote the first book by a US psychologist from the viewpoint of Gestalt theory and principles. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)