Women's history of sexual abuse, their sexuality, and sexual self-schemas.

In this study, the authors assessed 48 female survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA) and 71 female control participants using measures of adult sexual function, psychological function (i.e., depression and anxiety), and sexual self-schemas. The primary purpose of this study was to examine whether differences existed between women with and without a history of CSA in the way that they viewed themselves as a sexual person and, if so, whether such differences mediated the link between early unwanted sexual experiences and later adult sexuality. CSA survivors were found to view themselves as less romantic and passionate than women who were not abused. In particular, CSA survivors showed an inverse relationship between romantic/passionate sexual self-schemas and negative sexual affect during sexual arousal. The relationship between CSA and negative sexual affect was independent from symptoms of depression and anxiety, suggesting that the impact of CSA on sexual self-schemas may be independent from the impact that the abuse may have in other areas of the survivor's life. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Breast cancer surgery: Comparing surgical groups and determining individual differences in postoperative sexuality and body change stress.

Women diagnosed and surgically treated for regional breast cancer (N?=?190) were studied to determine the sexual and body change sequelae for women receiving modified radical mastectomy (MRM) with breast reconstruction in comparison with the sequelae for women receiving breast-conserving therapy (BCT) or MRM without breast reconstruction. The sexuality pattern for women receiving reconstructive surgery was one that was significantly different—with lower rates of activity and fewer signs of sexual responsiveness—than that for women in either of the other groups. Significantly higher levels of traumatic stress and situational distress regarding the breast changes were reported by the women receiving an MRM in contrast to the women treated with BCT. Using a model to predict sexual morbidity, regression analyses revealed that individual differences in sexual self-schema were related to both sexual and body change stress outcomes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability of individual differences in physiological responses to stress.

Evaluated cardiovascular and plasma catecholamine responses to an audiovisual conflict task in 56 males (aged 25–59 yrs), classified as Type A (coronary prone) or Type B (noncoronary prone), and high or low reactors to a stressful subtraction task administered 2 mo earlier. A high/low-reactor classification showed positive associations with systolic blood pressure (BP), diastolic BP, heart rate, and plasma catecholamines. Related personality characteristics (e.g., feelings of anger, evaluative anxiety) were positively associated with being a high reactor, whereas the outward display of hostile impulses showed an inverse relationship. Findings are discussed in terms of a distinction between anger and hostility and the role of evaluation apprehension in Type A behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Examination of relationships among trait-like individual differences, state-like individual differences, and learning performance.

Several authors (e.g., J. T. Austin & H. J. Klein, 1996; R. Kanfer, 1990b, 1992) have urged researchers to examine comprehensive models of distal individual differences as predictors of proximal motivational processes and performance. Two field studies in an academic setting tested a model of relationships among trait-like individual differences (cognitive ability, general self-efficacy, and goal orientation), state-like individual differences (state anxiety, task-specific self-efficacy, and goals), and learning performance. Most hypothesized relationships among these constructs received support when tested on 2 samples, when examining different performance episodes, and when using different goal orientation and state-anxiety measures. In general, state-like individual differences were found to mediate the relationships between trait-like individual differences and learning performance. Implications of these results are discussed and suggestions for future research are provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reading comprehension: Developmental processes, individual differences, and interventions.

Research on the typical development of reading comprehension, individual differences in comprehension, and reading comprehension interventions is less common than research on word reading. The authors present an overview of research on the development of reading comprehension skills and sources of individual differences in comprehension with reference to cognitive models of comprehension. Methodological issues particular to developmental and individual difference research on comprehension are also described. The article ends with a selective review of research programmes that illustrate effective comprehension interventions for typically developing children and for children who struggle to understand what they read. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Corrugator muscle responses are associated with individual differences in positivity-negativity bias.

Corrugator supercilii muscle activity is considered an objective measure of valence because it increases in response to negatively valenced facial expressions (angry) and decreases to positive expressions (happy). The authors sought to determine if corrugator activity could be used as an objective measure of positivity-negativity bias. The authors recorded corrugator responses as participants rated angry, happy, and surprised faces as “positive” or “negative.” The critical measure of bias was the percentage of positive versus negative ratings assigned to surprised faces by each participant. Reaction times for surprise expressions were longer than for happy and angry expressions, consistent with their ambiguous valence. Participants who tended to rate surprised faces as negative showed increased corrugator activity to surprised faces, whereas those who tended to rate surprise as positive showed decreased activity. Critically, corrugator responses reflected the participants’ bias (i.e., their tendency to rate surprise as positive or negative). These data show that surprised faces constitute a useful tool for assessing individual differences in positivity-negativity bias, and that corrugator activity can objectively reflect this bias. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpersonal complementarity and individual differences.

Interpersonal circumplex theory has predicted complementarity in interpersonal interactions to be expressed in the form of correspondence along the affiliation dimension (e.g., friendly behavior evokes friendliness) and reciprocity along the control dimension (e.g., dominance evokes submission). Prior research has supported the first prediction but not the second. It was hypothesized in this study that the inconsistent findings were due in part to the neglect of the importance of individual differences (personality) variables. Interpersonal process and individual differences variables were assessed jointly in this study, and it was found that affiliative behavior was due largely to situational (complementarity) effects and control behavior was due largely to individual differences. The results are discussed with respect to an integration of group–interpersonal process and individual differences research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trade-offs, individual differences, and misunderstandings about evolutionary psychology.

Replies to comments on Evolutionary psychology: Controversies, questions, prospects, and limitations (see record 2010-02208-001) by Confer et al. The purpose of which was to clarify the logic of evolutionary psychology and clear up some of the more common misunderstandings about it. In this response, we address the key points raised by the commentators. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Arousal, extraversion, and individual differences in resource availability.

Three studies of the effects of extraversion and self-report arousal on attentional task performance were conducted, using sustained attention, visual/memory search, and letter transformation tasks. Differing predictions were derived from the Yerkes-Dodson Law (R. M. Yerkes and J. D. Dodson, 1908) and from M. S. Humphreys and W. Revelle's (see record 1984-16903-001) theory of individual differences in multiple attentional resources. Higher arousal was consistently associated with more efficient performance of demanding versions of the attentional tasks. This finding supports Humphreys and Revelle's hypothesis that arousal is positively associated with the resources required for sustained information transfer. No support for the Yerkes-Dodson Law was found in any study: Relationships between arousal and performance were largely linear. Interactive effects of extraversion and arousal on response criterion were found with self-paced tasks. Extraversion may affect more than 1 type of cognitive process, with the strategic demands of the task influencing the kind of extraversion effect found in any given experiment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Note-taking, individual differences, and memory for lecture information.

Investigated the encoding function of note taking and processing differences between successful and less successful students in lecture situations in 2 experiments. In Exp I, 48 undergraduates either took notes or listened during a lecture. Different memory patterns were found for these 2 groups, with note-takers recalling many more high- than low-importance propositions and listeners recalling an equal number of high- and low-importance propositions. Results suggest that note taking enhanced organizational processing of lecture information. In Exp II, the notes and recall of 80 successful and less successful students were compared. Successful Ss recalled more of the most important propositions, but these 2 groups of Ss did not differ in their recall of less important propositions. For both groups of Ss, recall content was closely related to the content of the notes, with successful Ss recording more high-importance propositions in their notes. Also, successful and less successful Ss were similar in their note-taking styles and the degree to which they benefited from reviewing their notes. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing individual differences in knowledge: Knowledge, intelligence, and related traits.

Twenty academic knowledge tests were developed to locate domain knowledge within a nomological network of traits. Spatial, numerical, and verbal aptitude measures and personality and interest measures were administered to 141 undergraduates. Domain knowledge factored along curricular lines; a general knowledge factor accounted for about half of knowledge variance. Domain knowledge exhibited positive relations with general intelligence (g), verbal abilities after g was removed, Openness, Typical Intellectual engagement, and specific vocational interests. Spatial and numerical abilities were unrelated to knowledge beyond g. Extraversion related negatively to all knowledge domains. Results provide broad support for R. B. Cattell's (1971/1987) crystallized intelligence as something more than verbal abilities and specific support for P. L. Ackerman's (1996) intelligence-as-process, personality, interests, and intelligence-as-knowledge theory of adult intelligence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attributional complexity: An individual differences measure.

Describes the development of a scale that measures the complexity of attributional schemata for human behavior—the Attributional Complexity Scale (ACS). In Study 1, the ACS was administered to 289 undergraduates. The results show that the ACS had adequate internal reliability and test–retest reliability, and a factor analysis yielded 1 major factor. Study 2 tested the discriminant and convergent validity of the ACS by administering it to 81 undergraduates. As predicted, attributional complexity was not related to social desirability, academic ability, or internal–external locus of control, but it was positively related to the need for cognition. Study 3 confirmed the prediction that psychology majors (n?=?59) would have more complex attributional schemata than natural science majors (n?=?35). Studies 4 and 5, with 174 Ss, provided evidence for the external validity of the scale: Attributionally complex Ss compared with attributionally simple Ss spontaneously produced more causes for personality dispositions and selected more complex causal attributions for simple behavioral events. Implications for various issues in social cognition are discussed. (48 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gaze cueing of attention: Visual attention, social cognition, and individual differences.

During social interactions, people's eyes convey a wealth of information about their direction of attention and their emotional and mental states. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of past and current research into the perception of gaze behavior and its effect on the observer. This encompasses the perception of gaze direction and its influence on perception of the other person, as well as gaze-following behavior such as joint attention, in infant, adult, and clinical populations. Particular focus is given to the gaze-cueing paradigm that has been used to investigate the mechanisms of joint attention. The contribution of this paradigm has been significant and will likely continue to advance knowledge across diverse fields within psychology and neuroscience. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A correlational analysis of skill specificity: Learning, abilities, and individual differences.

Skill specificity, the notion that task performance is based on unique underlying information-processing components at skilled levels of performance, is examined from the perspective of the ability determinants of individual differences in task performance during skill acquisition. The current investigation uses a dynamic ability-skill theoretical perspective to evaluate how individual differences in procedural learning for a complex criterion task relate to learning of procedures for other more basic tasks such as choice and simple reaction time (RT). An experiment with 86 college students was performed using a simulated Air Traffic Controller (ATC) task for assessment of procedural learning, along with practice on several perceptual speed measures and assessment of reference abilities. When Ss are allowed to practice tests of perceptual speed and psychomotor ability, some measures increase in their power to predict skilled performance on the complex ATC criterion task, a direct disconfirmation of the skill-specificity thesis. Discussion is devoted to the use of individual-differences approaches to address general transfer and skill specificity issues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Determinants of individual differences and gender differences in knowledge.

The authors investigated the abilities, self-concept, personality, interest, motivational traits, and other determinants of knowledge across physical sciences/technology, biology/psychology, humanities, and civics domains. Tests and self-report measures were administered to 320 university freshmen. Crystallized intelligence was a better predictor than was fluid intelligence for most knowledge domains. Gender differences favoring men were found for most knowledge domains. Accounting for intelligence reduced the gender influence in predicting knowledge differences. Inclusion of notability predictors further reduced the variance accounted for by gender. Analysis of Advanced Placement test scores largely supported the results of the knowledge tests. Results are consistent with theoretical predictions that development of intellect as knowledge results from investment of cognitive resources, which, in turn, is affected by a small set of trait complexes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing individual differences in constructive versus destructive responses to anger across the lifespan.

Scenario-based, self-report measures were developed to assess how people characteristically experience and manage anger from middle childhood through adulthood. The Anger Response Inventories ( ARIs) for children, adolescents, and adults each assess (a) anger arousal, (b) intentions, (c) cognitive and behavioral responses, and (d) long-term consequences. Several independent studies provide support for the reliability and validity of the ARIs. Theoretically consistent patterns of correlations were observed with (a) global self-report measures of hostility, aggression, and anger-management strategies (adult version); ( b) teacher reports of behavioral and emotional adjustment (child and adolescent versions); and (c) self- and family-member reports of behaviors in specific anger episodes (adolescent and adult versions ) . Findings from additional personality and developmental studies are summarized, further supporting construct validity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Role ambiguity, role conflict, and satisfaction: Moderating effects of individual differences.

Conducted a study with 90 military and civil service personnel to investigate the moderating effects of need for achievement and need for independence on relationships between role ambiguity, role conflict, and job satisfaction. Results indicate that need for achievement moderated relationships between intersender role conflict and satisfaction and between task ambiguity and satisfaction, while need for independence moderated the relationship between intersender conflict and satisfaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Impression management in the psychiatric interview: Quality, style, and individual differences.

Studied the ability of 24 male 20-63 yr old Veterans Administration Day Treatment Center psychiatric outpatients to vary intentionally their degree of apparent psychopathology during structured interviews (Mental Status Schedule). Patients who were defined as sick presenters prior to the interview phase of the experiment behaved in a significantly more pathological manner during an interview preceded by "fake sick" instructions than they did under "fake healthy" instructions. Patients who had been defined as healthy presenters manifested less of a behavior difference between the 2 interview conditions. There was evidence that patients primarily altered the content of their self-referent statements, not their style of interview behavior, and relied on cues provided by the interview questions when role playing mental illness and mental health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attention, attraction, and individual differences in reaction to criticism.

82 female undergraduates were classified as repressors or sensitizers (by scores on the Repression-Sensitization Scale) and led to expect either some future interaction or no future interaction with negative and positive evaluators. It was predicted that repressors would avoid attending to negative evaluators when no future interaction was anticipated more than sensitizers would, but that the groups would not differ when interaction was anticipated. This first prediction was not confirmed: The negative evaluator received more attention than the positive evaluator across all conditions. It was also predicted that repressors would react more positively to the negative evaluator than sensitizers when there was a prospect of future interaction, but that repressors would react less positively to the negative evaluator than sensitizers when there was no prospect of future interaction. This prediction was confirmed. Utility and individual differences in perception processes are discussed. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)