Social-cognitive influences on change in aggression over time.

This study examined whether social cognitions that have been assumed to influence aggression actually forecast change in aggressive habits over time. Participants were 189 3rd- through 7th-grade boys and girls; data on social cognitions and social behaviors were collected in the fall and spring of the school year. Aggression-encouraging cognitions assessed in the fall indeed promoted aggression over the school year, but such developments hinged critically on child sex and on initial (fall) levels of aggression and victimization. Results illustrate the principle that cognitions affect behavioral development mainly when the child's transactions with the social environment support the use of the cognitions as guides for behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability of small group interaction and achievement over time.

Investigated the stability over time of student behavior in small groups and the relationships among student and group characteristics, group interaction, and achievement. 110 students in 3 average-ability 7th- and 8th-grade mathematics classrooms worked for one semester in small groups. Group interaction and achievement were measured in 2 3-wk instructional units, 3 mo apart on perimeter, area, and volume and on the metric system. For both occasions, giving explanations was positively related to achievement and receiving no explanation in response to a question or error (receiving no response or a terminal response) was negatively related to achievement. The input–process–achievement relations were also fairly stable over time: For both occasions, group interaction partially mediated the effects of relative ability within the group and intellectual achievement responsibility on achievement. There were significant differences among group compositions (uniform-ability groups and 2 kinds of mixed-ability groups) in interaction and achievement at the 1st instructional unit but not at the 2nd one. In contrast to the stability of relationships among variables over time, student and group behavior tended to be unstable over time. Possible explanations for the instability of student and group behavior are discussed, as well as the implications of this result for instruction and further research. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability of orthopedic and surgically assisted rapid palatal expansion over time

At the present time no reports are available on the stability between orthopedic and surgically assisted rapid palatal expansion. This study was designed to examine and compare the dental and skeletal changes over time for both orthopedic maxillary expansion and surgically assisted palatal expansion. The study was divided into two groups. Group one was orthopedically expanded and consisted of 14 males and 10 females. The ages ranged from 6 years to 12 years with a mean of 8.5 years. Group two received surgically assisted rapid palatal expansion and consisted of 12 males and 16 females with ages ranging from 13 years to 35 years and a mean age of 19.25 years. All 52 subjects were white, from the same geographic area, and were treated by the same two operators. Dental models and posterior anterior cephalograms were obtained immediately before and after expansion, at removal of the expansion device, and 1 year after removal of the appliance. A repeated measures analysis of variance test was applied to assess changes over time between groups. The surgical and nonsurgical techniques displayed similar trends over time although the surgical group contained a greater quantity of expansion. Both the orthopedic and the surgical groups showed stable results.     

Stability over time of serum antibody levels to human papillomavirus type 16

Protein concentration, leukocyte density, and lactate concentration were studied in 41 pairs of ventricular and lumbar CSF drawn at an interval of less than 24 hours from patients with suspected bacterial CNS infections. The ventriculo-lumbar ratios ranged from 0.003 to 10.2 (median=0.42) for protein and from 0.002 to 53.5 (median=0.17) for leukocytes. The uneven distribution of leukocytes and proteins in the CSF space may produce findings that fail to indicate bacterial CNS infections. Lactate was distributed more homogeneously in the CSF space than protein and leukocytes (ventriculo-lumbar ratio 0.52 to 1.66 [median=0.811).     

Relational aggression, gender, and peer acceptance: Invariance across culture, stability over time, and concordance among informants.

It has been proposed that overt physical and verbal aggression are more prevalent among boys and that covert aggression in the context of interpersonal relationships is more typical of girls. The purpose of this study was to replicate and extend American research on this topic to Italy. Italian elementary school pupils (n?=?314) and their teachers provided nominations for aggression and prosocial behavior on 2 occasions within a single school year. Both peer and teacher nominations were highly stable, though there was very poor concordance between them. Peer nominations for both overt and relational aggression were linked to peer rejection. Contrary to expectations, boys scored higher than girls in both overt and relational aggression. Nevertheless, on the basis of the gender composition of extreme groups, the authors conclude that the distinction between overt and relational aggression is as useful in facilitating research on aggressiveness among girls in Italy as it is in the United States. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mapping individual performance over time.

Cross-sectional research investigating seniority, tenure, and age as they relate to job performance has demonstrated an initial positive linear increase followed by a plateau. Investigations into the stability of performance have demonstrated that individuals change their rank order over time. Taken together, these findings suggest that the curvilinear relationship displayed in the seniority, tenure, and age research is actually made up of many different intraindividual change patterns. Performance data for 2 samples of professional baseball players were used to investigate these individual change patterns for systematic and meaningful differences. The results demonstrated the importance of studying performance over time at the individual level and that focusing on either mean performance or change in rank order can mask systematic individual patterns of change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability and change in aggression and withdrawal in middle childhood and early adolescence.

Examined stability and change in aggression and withdrawal in the context of both normal and deviant behavioral development. The design included 3 age cohorts with a total of 653 Ss separated in age by 3 yrs. Aggression and withdrawal were measured using the Peer Evaluation Inventory initially when the Ss were in Grades 1, 4, and 7 and a 2nd time when the Ss were in Grades 4, 7, and 10, respectively. Members of 4 classification groups were included in the sample: 183 Ss in an aggressive group, 219 Ss in a withdrawn group, 251 Ss in an aggressive-withdrawn group, and a nondeviant control group consisting of 1,103 Ss. The stability of aggression was found to be moderately high, regardless of sex of S or grade at time of initial assessment. Moderate stability was found for withdrawal for both boys and girls when initial assessments were conducted at Grades 4 and 7. The withdrawn Ss became more withdrawn over the 3-yr period. It is concluded that, for many children, the problems of aggression and withdrawal do not appear to be transitory. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The ethic of care: Stability over time, gender differences, and correlates in mid- to late adulthood.

Two studies showed that women scored significantly higher on the Ethic of Care Interview (ECI) than did men. More women than men generated interpersonal real-life dilemmas, and more men than women generated impersonal ones. In Study 2, longitudinal data indicated that care levels were moderately stable in mid- to late adulthood. The ECI was negatively related to authoritarianism and positively related to justice levels, role taking, and cognitive complexity. People scoring higher in care also felt more positively about their physical health and experience of aging. These results support the construct validity of the ECI and point to its potential role in adults' personal adaptation. (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)     

Creative self-efficacy development and creative performance over time.

Building from an established framework of self-efficacy development, this study provides a longitudinal examination of the development of creative self-efficacy in an ongoing work context. Results show that increases in employee creative role identity and perceived creative expectation from supervisors over a 6-month time period were associated with enhanced sense of employee capacity for creative work. Contrary to what was expected, employees who experienced increased requirements for creativity in their jobs actually reported a decreased sense of efficaciousness for creative work. Results show that increases in creative self-efficacy corresponded with increases in creative performance as well. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability in schizophrenia symptoms over time: Findings from the Mount Sinai Pilgrim Psychiatric Center Longitudinal Study.

This study examined the stability of symptoms of schizophrenia over time, focusing on the stability of symptom structure. Symptoms were assessed with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). The sample consisted of 215 chronic patients followed up for as long as 4 years. Exploratory factor analysis identified 6 factors. Several statistical techniques were used to examine the stability of these symptoms, including longitudinal confirmatory factor analysis. Low-to-moderate rank-order stability and high absolute stability of the factors were found, with the structure of the PANSS-assessed symptoms consistent over time. The results demonstrate that despite changes in the severity of symptoms in individual patients with schizophrenia, the factor structure and interrelatedness of symptoms have considerable stability over time. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Maintenance of specific counseling skills over time.

Conducted naturalistic observations of the frequency with which 7 female and 6 male counseling trainees used specifically trained counseling responses across time. Frequency measures were based on the 1st 30 min of audiotaped interviews with clients, taken at the end of prepracticum, during practicum, and at least 3 mo after training. Seven response categories were identified as trained in prepracticum: goal setting, confrontation, reflection/restatement, interpretation/summary, structuring, probe, and minimal verbal. Two more categories arose from the data: self-disclosure and information giving. A 10th category, "other," served for otherwise unclassifiable responses. Responses were classified by 3 trained raters working independently. Data indicate that males make more responses overall than females. All responses occurred in the trainees' repertoire to some degree, but confrontation and goal setting were used with decreasing frequency, and probes increased across trials. Effects of supervisory expectations, as well as the tendency to internal consistency for a single individual across trials, are noted, and training of specific skills is affirmed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Creativity and aggression.

We studied problems of identification in an experiment using a meta-contrast design. The first stimulus in the pair (A) was the word I shown subliminally. The second stimulus (B) depicted an aggressor and a victim facing each other. To manipulate the subject's identification, the subliminal A was flashed either on the victim or on the aggressor, or was completely withheld. Subjects were 28 16-year-olds of both sexes. They also took a perceptgenetic (PG) test measuring creativity and a test on anxiety and defensive strategies as revealed in the perceptual process (the meta-contrast technique or MCT). It was predicted that creative subjects would identify more openly with the aggressor than noncreative ones, when I was presented on the aggressor. Differences in the use of defenses were also expected. The results supported the predictions. It was concluded that creative subjects are more self-reliant than noncreative ones, more inclined to believe in the value of private impressions and ideas. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Maternal permissiveness toward aggression and subsequent TAT aggression.

To test the hypothesis that the effect of permissiveness towards the expression of aggression in childhood extends into adulthood, 2 groups of Ss (100 college girls), distinguished by the degree of maternal permissiveness towards the expression of aggression (derived from questionnaires answered by the mothers), were placed in an aggression-arousing situation (inducted by making highly insulting and deprecating comments to them). Subsequently, Ss were asked to respond to TAT cards (selected on the basis of being high or low in aggressiveness and presented on a screen for 20 sec.). Ss reared under conditions of high maternal permissiveness responded more frequently with aggressive responses to the "aggressive" cards than did the low permissive group. The low permissive group felt more uncomfortable and dysphoric than Ss reared under conditions of greater permissiveness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability and change in person-team and person-role fit over time: The effects of growth satisfaction, performance, and general self-efficacy.

Although considerable research has focused on various forms of person-environment fit, little research has examined how person-team and person-role fit operate over time in team contexts. To address this gap, the authors examined the dynamic nature of values-based person-team fit and person-role fit. They identified several factors that influence these fit perceptions over time. Individuals were composed into teams that worked intensively over an extended time period. Results suggest that person-team fit, when conceptualized as values congruence, is generally stable over time, but perceptions of person-role fit in teams are dynamic. Individuals' growth satisfaction and performance were positively related to increases in person-role fit over time. Furthermore, the effect of performance on person-role fit was moderated by individuals' general self-efficacy. Implications for managerial practice and future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On changes in psychiatric diagnosis over time.

Examined the factors determining diagnoses of types of mental illness. A survey of the age and diagnosis of 2,134 male psychiatric inpatients discharged from a single treatment facility in 1954, 1964, and 1974 revealed 3 major diagnostic trends: (a) the proportion of patients with affective disorders increased threefold, (b) patients with neuroses went from being the largest group to one of the smallest, and (c) schizophrenia increased significantly. In-depth examination of changes in the psychiatric process revealed that shifts in the patient population and symptomatology could not fully explain these trends. The relative importance of similar symptoms appeared to be interpreted differently at various historical times; diagnosis itself seemed to be relative to historical period. Possible causes include shifts in the patient population, increased treatment of neurotic patients on an outpatient basis, and changes in diagnostic categories due to increased clinical knowledge. It is suggested that the change in treatment emphasis from a psychological/psychoanalytic perspective to a psychopharmacological/medical one may be correlated with an increase in diagnoses more consistent with biological treatment (e.g., affective disorders and schizophrenia) and a decrease in categories less appropriate for this model (e.g., neurosis). (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

As generations speak.

Generational dialogue refers to both shifts in relatedness between generations as well as how the otherness of predecessors and successors are negotiated internally. At various points in the life cycle, the need for generational dialogue is rekindled. As a new place within the generational cycle is inhabited, the individual contends with a novel version of the self and the influences that other generations, both older and younger, exert. Since each new generation's place needs to be claimed and not simply conferred, clashes within and between subjectivities are inevitable. Doubts about the self give rise to a “sorting out” process of which generational dialogue is a part. Clinical examples illustrate the unconscious search for generational dialogue and how it might be engendered or thwarted in analytic work. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)