To predict some of the people some of the time: A reexamination of the moderator variable approach in personality theory.

Bem and Allen (1974) proposed but did not test the notion that trait relevance moderates cross-situational behavior consistency, but did obtain support, albeit weaker than is generally recognized, for a moderator effect of self-reported consistency. Kenrick and Stringfield (1980) showed that self-reported observability of behavior may also moderate self–peer consistency, but replication attempts were not entirely successful. Our investigation produced significant moderator effects on self–peer correlations for trait relevance, consistency, and observability when each of these variables was analyzed alone; we also obtained significant moderator effects for trait relevance and self-reported consistency (but not for observability) when all the variables were included in the same regression analysis. There was significant support for the prediction that the moderators combine additively: Self–peer correlations increased linearly as a function of the number of contributing moderator effects. There was even stronger support for the prediction that the moderators combined in an all-or-nothing manner: Self–peer correlations were high when the level of all three moderators was high, and low when the level of one or more of the three moderators was low. Our future research recommendation? Identify the optimal moderators and the manner in which they can be combined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of how people change: Applications to addictive behaviors.

How people intentionally change addictive behaviors with and without treatment is not well understood by behavioral scientists. This article summarizes research on self-initiated and professionally facilitated change of addictive behaviors using the key transtheoretical constructs of stages and processes of change. Modification of addictive behaviors involves progression through 5 stages: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance; and individuals typically recycle through these stages several times before termination of the addiction. Multiple studies provide strong support for these stages as well as for a finite and common set of change processes used to progress through the stages. Research to date supports a transtheoretical model of change that systematically integrates the stages with processes of change from diverse theories of psychotherapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of the links.

Reviews the book, Cognition, metacognition, and reading by D. L. Forrest-Pressley and T. G. Waller (1984). In the introduction to this monograph the authors point out that, in spite of receiving much recent attention, metacognition is only vaguely defined in the literature, and its relationship to cognition and cognitive activities such as reading is particularly unclear. Further, they claim that the difficulties that researchers have encountered in understanding reading is attributable to their failure to understand properly the complexity of the reading process. The solution offered by the authors is to assign metacognition a central role in reading by defining the reading process as the interaction of at least three skills--decoding, comprehension, and mature reading strategies--each of which has a cognitive and metacognitive component. The potential contribution of this volume depends upon the extent to which this approach succeeds in clarifying the concept of metacognition and advancing our understanding of the cognitive basis of reading. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of the typical eyewitness.

G. L. Wells (see record 1993-39684-001) convincingly argued that the experimental work on eyewitness identification can be generalized to real cases of identification. He systematically developed arguments for the use of certain procedures that optimize accurate identification rates. However, Wells's arguments for generalization require that certain assumptions are made about the "typical" eyewitness situation. The consequences of such assumptions are considered. It is concluded that generalizations about eyewitness identification must be qualified, particularly when they are made in the context of the legal setting. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using the theory of planned behavior to predict leisure time physical activity among people with chronic kidney disease.

Objective: To evaluate the utility of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) for explaining and predicting leisure time physical activity (LTPA) in the chronic kidney disease population. Study Design: Prospective correlational design. Participants: Eighty men (n=52) and women (n=28) with chronic kidney disease (mean serum creatinine=310.55 [±148.75] μmol/L). Method: Baseline interview assessing attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and intention to engage in LTPA. Telephone interview 1 week later assessing frequency and intensity of LTPA. Results: Perceived behavioral control (β=.69) but not attitude (β=.17) or subjective norm (β=.02) was associated with intention to engage in LTPA. Intention (β=.53) but not perceived behavioral control (β=.18) predicted LTPA. Conclusion: These findings provide partial support for the utility of the TPB for explaining LTPA among people with chronic kidney disease. Additional research is required to determine if targeting perceived behavioral control may be an effective means for increasing LTPA in this population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of the powerful self-fulfilling prophecy.

This research examined moderators of naturally occurring self-fulfilling prophecies. The authors assessed whether positive or negative self-fulfilling prophecies were more powerful and whether some targets were more susceptible to self-fulfilling prophecies because of their self-concepts in a particular achievement domain and previous academic records. Participants were 98 teachers and 1,539 students in sixth-grade public school math classes. Results yielded a strong pattern showing that teacher perceptions predicted achievement more strongly for low achievers than for high achievers. Results also yielded a much weaker pattern showing that teacher overestimates predicted achievement more strongly than teacher underestimates. Implications for social perceptual accuracy, self-enhancement theory, and understanding when self-fulfilling prophecies are stronger are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality traits and the eye of the beholder: Crossing some traditional philosophical boundaries in the search for consistency in all of the people.

Studies of nomothetically applied personality tests, clinical inference, and person perception have been interpreted as supporting the view that the naive "trait" based personality conceptions of the layman (and psychologist) are largely erroneous constructions of the perceiver. Recent work has suggested that the assumption of nomothetic applicability of traits may have been incorrect and that only some people may be consistent on any given trait. A method was developed to combine advantages of both idiographic and nomothetic measurement by allowing each of 98 undergraduates to choose his or her most consistent characteristic (on bipolar dimensions based on the 16 PF) and to assess the extent to which these consistent dimensions were publicly observable. High correlations were found between self, parent, and peer ratings on the high-consistency dimensions, particularly when Ss judged them to be highly publicly observable. The utility of consistency and observability self-assessments as moderating variables for individual traits is also considered, as is the use of mean population consistency and observability rankings in discriminating relatively more nomothetically applicable dimensions. (56 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of the benefits of learning Latin.

The authors studied whether Latin or French as a foreign curricular language is a better preparation for learning Spanish. Fifty native German speakers who took a university Spanish course concluded their course with a translation test. English was the 1st foreign language for all students, whereas half of them had learned French and the other half had learned Latin as their 2nd foreign language at school. Participants who had learned French at school made markedly fewer grammar errors and slightly fewer vocabulary errors in the Spanish test than participants who had learned Latin. Knowledge of Latin is probably not an optimal preparation for modern language learning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationships between leader behavior and subordinate satisfaction and performance: A test of some situational moderators.

Examined the effects of 4 situational moderators on the relationships between (a) leader behavior and subordinate satisfaction and (b) leader behavior and subordinate performance, in a social services organization. Respondents--54 Black counselors and people-helping workers--described their job satisfaction, role clarity, and the behavior of their leaders ( n = 19), while the leaders evaluated the respondents' job performance. Using subgroup moderator analyses, the effect of work unit size was significant, with leader structure related to satisfaction in larger units and consideration related to satisfaction in smaller units. Results confirm earlier findings that in low-stress jobs consideration enhances satisfaction and performance but that in high-stress jobs, structure is helpful. Also confirmed were results of previous studies showing that high structure had dysfunctional effects only when accompanied by low consideration. Finally, role clarity did not moderate the relationship between leader behavior and subordinate satisfaction and performance. (37 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assertiveness expectancies: How hard people push depends on the consequences they predict.

The present article seeks to explain varying levels of assertiveness in interpersonal conflict and negotiations with assertiveness expectancies, idiosyncratic predictions people make about the social and instrumental consequences of assertive behavior. This account complements motivation-based models of assertiveness and competitiveness, suggesting that individuals may possess the same social values (e.g., concern for relationships) but show dramatically different assertiveness due to different assumptions about behavioral consequences. Results clarify the form of assertiveness expectancies, namely that most people assume increasing assertiveness can yield positive social and instrumental benefits up to a point, beyond which benefits decline. However, people vary in how assertive this perceived optimal point is. These individual differences in expectancies are linked in 4 studies to assertiveness, including self-reported assertiveness, rated behavioral preferences in assorted interpersonal conflict scenarios, partner ratings of participants' behavior in a face-to-face dyadic negotiation, and work colleague ratings of participants' assertiveness in the workplace. In each case, the link between expectancies and behavior remained after controlling for values. The results suggest a place for expectancies alongside values in psychological models of interpersonal assertiveness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of a relational theory.

The author searched for empirically based theories and models with an interpersonal and relational focus. This search was conducted in spite of academic and professional psychology’s general avoidance of theory building coupled with an exaggerated reliance on empirical evidence, producing a chaotic proliferation of models unrelated to each other. Requirements for any theory are verifiability, applicability, redundancy, and fruitfulness. Many two-factor relational theories and models derive from the two assumptions of space and time. From these models and theories two stand out: attachment theory and relational competence theory (RCT). Both theories attempt to link heretofore separate fields: research and practice. The major asset of attachment theory has been a multitude of studies in the English-speaking world. The major shortcoming of RCT is that research to support the validity of its models has been conducted only in Italy. However, many test instruments, enrichment programs, and interactive practice exercises for some models of RCT are available in English. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of the CPR

In 1991, the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine defined, endorsed, and called for the implementation of the computerized patient record (CPR) by 2001. Seven years later, in 1998, health care is still arguing about what a CPR is, how it's to be implemented, and when. This article discusses the origins of the CPR and its initial development efforts. It explores the roadblocks that stalled its development and how managed care may have jump-started the process. Finally, it explains current CPR development efforts and what's on the horizon.     

Book review: In search of madness: Schizophrenia and neuroscience.

Review of book: In search of madness: Schizophrenia and neuroscience by R. Walter Heinrichs. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001, 368 pp. Hardcover. ISBN 0-1951-2219-4. Reviewed by Gillian O'Driscoll. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction to the special section: In search of a double paradigm.

The goal of this special section was to publish articles that would speak to two audiences simultaneously—health psychologists with an interest in adult development and aging and geropsychologists with an interest in health psychology. The three articles that were included were each quite different in conceptualization and design. They included a targeted longitudinal study of samples of hypertensive and normotensive patients, a large national population survey, and a targeted pair of experiments. These articles add to a growing literature in health psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of the unexpected: Finding creativity in the micromoments of the classroom.

This article explores how micromoments of the classroom--brief, easy-to-miss interactions between teachers and students--can play a large role in determining whether students' creative potential is supported or undermined. One particular micromoment, which occurs when students' unexpected ideas are dismissed by teachers, is examined. Potential reasons why teachers might routinely dismiss student ideas, consequences of such dismissals for students, and considerations for addressing this problem are also discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of the curative principle in couples therapy.

Comments on a curative principle for couples therapy proposed by L. S. Greenberg and S. M. Johnson (1986) and on a later article designed to test the model (Greenberg et al. It is concluded that Greenberg and colleagues are trying to reclaim understanding as a recognized and respected source of therapeutic change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Emotional convergence between people over time.

The authors propose that people in relationships become emotionally similar over time--as this similarity would help coordinate the thoughts and behaviors of the relationship partners, increase their mutual understanding, and foster their social cohesion. Using laboratory procedures to induce and assess emotional response, the authors found that dating partners (Study 1) and college roommates (Studies 2 and 3) became more similar in their emotional responses over the course of a year. Further, relationship partners with less power made more of the change necessary for convergence to occur. Consistent with the proposed benefits of emotional similarity, relationships whose partners were more emotionally similar were more cohesive and less likely to dissolve. Discussion focuses on implications of emotional convergence and on potential mechanisms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of the false-uniqueness phenomenon: Fear and estimates of social consensus.

A close look at the results of Tabachnik, Crocker, and Alloy (1983) and Sanders and Mullen (1983) suggests that people possessing undesirable attributes overestimate consensus, whereas people holding desirable attributes underestimate consensus. The latter pattern is a form of false uniqueness. In this study we looked at the accuracy of social consensus estimates in the context of psychological fears. Ss filled out an abbreviated version of a fear survey and made estimates of consensus. The results showed that both high- and low-fear respondents overestimated the incidence of high fear among their peers, but high-fear Ss were more inaccurate in their estimates. A false-uniqueness effect was found on the part of low-fear Ss, as they tended to underestimate the incidence of low fear among their peers. These findings are consistent with a motivational interpretation that emphasizes the individual's need to justify or normalize stigmatized behavior and to bolster perceived self-competence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

In search of laws for the visual control of locomotion: Some observations.

Some observations on visual control of locomotion are presented in this paper. W. H. Warren and D. M. Yaffe (see record 1990-00239-001) in their comment on A. E. Patla et al (see record 1990-00234-001) present new data on dynamics of overground running and argue for their theory with one modification: The variable time to contact modulates global impulse rather than just vertical impulse. Further data on step length adjustments presented in the paper highlight several observations. First, success rate is affected by the magnitude of step length even when the cue is given early to allow subjects the opportunity to modulate impulse. Second, later cuing time introduces variability among subjects in impulse contributions to step length adjustments. Some results from other experiments on visual control of locomotion point to the rich and varied adaptations to locomotion made by us to function in our environment. The common theme that emerges from these studies strengthens our earlier observation on complex task-specific modulation of the locomotor pattern. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)