Separation-individuation and adjustment to college: A longitudinal study.

Aimed to (1) chart late-adolescent individuation from freshman to junior year in college, (2) further examine previously reported sex differences in separation–individuation and college adjustment, and (3) assess the within-year and across-year association between individuation and adjustment. As part of an ongoing longitudinal project, 130 students completed measures of separation–individuation and college adjustment early in their freshman year (D. K. Lapsely et al, 1989). In the present follow-up study, 81 of those original Ss completed measures in their junior year. The results indicated significant increases in individuation from parents over time along most but not all dimensions of individuation for both men and women. Gender specific patterns of individuation/adjustment emerged in freshman and junior year. In general, independence from parents in freshman year did not predict junior year college adjustment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences and reactions to job characteristics.

Evaluated 3 different methods of measuring individual differences as moderators of employee reactions to job characteristics. The 3 methods are urban vs rural background, strong vs weak belief in the Protestant work ethic, and high vs low strength for "higher order" needs. Each of these 3 methods was used as a moderator of the relationships between job characteristics on the one hand, and specific job facet satisfaction, overall job satisfaction, and job behavior on the other hand. Data were obtained from 80 newly hired female telephone operators. Based on the job satisfaction results, higher order need strength was the most useful way to measure this type of individual difference, followed by the Protestant work ethic, and lastly by urban vs rural background of the worker. There were no differences among the 3 individual differences as moderators of the job characteristics and job behavior relationship. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in reaction to meprobamate: A study in visual perception.

An investigation of the effect of meprobamate upon reactions to Necker Cube, Retinal Rivalry, Archimedes Spiral, and Peripheral Span on 68 college-age males, divided equally between drug and placebo conditions by the doubleblind method. No significant relationship appeared between the Maudsley Personality Inventory Extraversion scale and the test scores, nor between the tests themselves, with exception of cube and rivalry (r = + .35, p     

Individual differences in cardiovascular reactions to stress and cigarette smoking.

Examined the stability of cardiovascular (CDV) reactions to psychological stress and cigarette smoking and the extent to which CDV actions to stress were predictive of CDV reactions to smoking. 26 male Ss were given an initial test involving 2 repetitions of mental arithmetic stress and paced smoking while blood pressure and heart rate were measured. Ss were retested 2 mo later in the same paradigm. Large and stable individual differences were observed in CDV reactivity to both stress and smoking. For systolic and diastolic blood pressure, but not heart rate, reactions to stress were modestly correlated with reactions to cigarette smoking, suggesting that levels of reactivity to cigarette smoking may have significance for coronary heart disease and blood pressure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conscientiousness and reactions to psychological contract breach: A longitudinal field study.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 95(5) of Journal of Applied Psychology (see record 2010-18410-006). Six correlations in Table 1 on page 1187 are incorrectly reported. A corrected table is presented in the erratum, with corrected values in bold.] The authors examined the role of employee conscientiousness as a moderator of the relationships between psychological contract breach and employee behavioral and attitudinal reactions to the breach. They collected data from 106 newly hired employees within the 1st month of employment (Time 1), 3 months later (Time 2), and 8 months after Time 1 (Time 3) to observe the progression through contract development, breach, and reaction. Results suggest that conscientiousness is a significant moderator for 4 of the 5 contract breach-employee reaction relationships examined (turnover intentions, organizational loyalty, job satisfaction, and 1 of 2 facets of job performance). Specifically, employees who were lower in conscientiousness had more negative reactions to perceived breach with respect to turnover intentions, organizational loyalty, and job satisfaction. In contrast, employees who were higher in conscientiousness reduced their job performance to a greater degree in response to contract breach. Future research directions are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Initiation to cannabis use: A longitudinal social psychological study of college freshmen.

Conducted a 6-mo study of social-psychological variables associated with initiation to cannabis use among 319 college freshmen. Measures of social learning and behavior variables were administered during the 1st college week and again near the year's conclusion. Ss were also given Rotter's Internal-External Control Scale. Univariate and multivariate analysis support the field-theoretical method in predicting initiation to use and in showing changes consequent upon initiation. Issues pertaining to locus of control, the escape hypothesis of drug use, and the causal direction of person-environment interaction are discussed. (French summary) (49 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Persistance at a liberal arts college: A replicated, five-year longitudinal study.

Analyzed data on 1,171 freshmen entering Macalester College in 1964 and 1965 to observe factors related to persistance at the college. Voluntary withdrawals (Ss who left the college in good academic standing) did not differ from the persisters (graduates of Macalester) on precollege ability and achievement measures (including the Scholastic Aptitude Test, the Omnibus Personality Inventory, and the Allport-Vernon-Lindzey Study of Values). College GPAs for the withdrawal Ss, however, revealed that these Ss did not achieve as well as the persisters. The male failures (Ss having less than a C average at time of dropping from the College) had lower achievement in high school than the withdrawals, while the female failures did less well than the withdrawals on the precollege ability tests. No generalizable differences were apparent among the groups on personality and values inventories, home proximity to the college, or participation in an experimental advising program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences model applied to instruction and evaluation of large college classes.

Describes an approach to evaluating college instruction based on individual differences among students. Data for 99 males and 92 females taught by a self-paced testing method were compared with data for 102 males and 92 females taught by the traditional method. The self-paced method, the Phase Achievement System, is based on a combination of lectures, an audiotape library, assigned readings, and multiple choice tests in a modular format. Students may take the test modules in any order or grouping at 5 different times in the enrollment period; any module may be retaken, and grades are based on a criterion-referenced policy. Data from both the cognitive and affective domains are presented. Results from several modes of analysis culminating in a path analysis corroborate contemporary experimental evidence concerning the determinants of achievement and indicate some advantages of the self-paced method. On the basis of these data, suggestions for future research and for counseling students are made. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in the stress-response-dampening effect of alcohol: A dose-response study.

Recent evidence suggests that alcohol consumption can lead to attenuated stress response, but parameters such as dose and personality traits appear to influence the magnitude of alcohol's effects. To better characterize these relations, 96 21–30 yr old male social drinkers were assigned to either a placebo, a moderate, or a high dose of alcohol and then had heart rate and a self-report measure of anxiety taken during a stressful social interaction. Consistent with previous research, alcohol dampened both heart rate and, to a lesser extent, anxiety responses to the stressor. Because the reduced heart rate responsivity was obtained in the absence of increased basal heart rate, it is suggested that cardiovascular stress response dampening (SRD) does not appear to be an artifact of an initial values effect. Although there was some evidence that Ss with prealcoholic personality traits were especially sensitive to the SRD effect of alcohol, this effect did not appear to be strong or robust across alternative measures of prealcoholic traits. There was no evidence that self-consciousness or expectancies for tension-reducing alcohol effects were associated with stress responsivity in Ss consuming alcohol. (43 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychophysiological reactions to films by chronic schizophrenics: II. Individual differences in resting levels and reactivity.

Resting skin-resistance, heart-rate, and reactivity data to 1 of 2 tension-arousing films were obtained from 2 normal comparison groups and a sample of drug-free chronic schizophrenics. The schizophrenics were subdivided into 3 subsamples on the basis of the number of deviant associations given to a word-association test. The resting skin-resistance data failed to discriminate between normals and schizophrenics; however, meaningful differences were found among the schizophrenic subsamples such that increasing thought disturbance was associated with increasing basal resistance levels. Basal heart-rate data did indicate faster heart rate for all schizophrenic subsamples compared with both normal groups. Reactivity data also indicated different results for the 2 indexes. Skin-resistance indexes failed to indicate any differences between schizophrenics and normals or among the schizophrenic samples. 1 heart-rate index suggested less reactivity for schizophrenics than for normals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Selection fairness information and applicant reactions: A longitudinal field study.

Although laboratory studies have found that selection information can affect applicant perceptions, this has not been tested in the field. The authors followed 2 cohorts of police applicants (N = 274) in a longitudinal study to examine the relationship between information, applicant perceptions, and behavior (e.g., turnover). Information was related to perceived fairness measured at the time of testing and 1 month later when applicants received their results. Information moderated the relationship between outcome favorability and test-taking self-efficacy among African Americans but not among Whites. Information was not related to the behavioral measures. The discussion focuses on why certain findings from previous studies were not replicated and on the use of information when applicants have an investment in getting a job. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in preferences to photographs.

Individual differences in preferences to photographs were explored based on an alternative framework. This framework predicts that the primary difference between individuals in this respect is their ability to process photographic information, which in turn influences their preferences. Chiefly, people with well-developed schemes in photography (e.g., photo professionals) should have a higher ability to process photographic information than people with less developed schemes (e.g., psychology students). Consequently, people with well-developed schemes in photography should prefer photographs that are relatively more demanding to process. Ten psychology students and 5 photo professionals assessed 32 photographs on six general concepts: Preference, Hedonic Tone, Expressiveness, Familiarity, Uncertainty, and Dynamics. As predicted, photo professionals had a higher ability to process photographic information and preferred photographs that were relatively uncertain and unfamiliar. These results are in concordance with previous research and give strong support to the utility of the present framework in experimental aesthetics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in response to a Zen meditation exercise.

In order to explore the psychological functions involved in meditation, 28 male college student volunteers were instructed in a concentration exercise related to Zen Buddhist procedures. Their response to the exercise was rated as high, moderate, and low from verbal reports taken after daily 45-min. sessions over a 2-3 wk. period. Response was then compared with premeditation test results related to attention, tolerance for unrealistic experience, and capacity for regression in the service of the ego (derived from Rorschach expressions of "primary process" and from spontaneous visual imagery). Capacity for regression and tolerance for unrealistic experience significantly predicted response to meditation, while attention measures did not. Once issues related to comfort in the face of strange inner experience are resolved, attention functions necessary to the exercise probably became available. (15 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A longitudinal study of gender differences in depressive symptoms from age 50 to 80.

The Obvious Depression Scale was administered to 739 community residents at ages 50, 60, and 80 years, with 151 present at all waves. Although selective attrition influenced the level of depressive symptoms in cross-sectional vs. longitudinal samples, both sets of analyses revealed higher scores in women than in men at ages 50 and 60, but not at age 80. Men showed increases in depressive symptoms from age 60 to 80, but women did not (interaction p ?     

Sexual arousal to rape depictions: Individual differences.

145 male undergraduates participated (a) in an orientation session in which personality variables, sexual motivations, sexual experience, and self-reported likelihood of raping were assessed and (b) in a laboratory session in which they listened to 1 of 8 audiotaped depictions of an interaction involving sexual acts between a man and a woman. The content of these depictions was systematically manipulated along the dimensions of consent, pain, and outcome. Later in the 2nd session, Ss listened to a 2nd audiotaped portrayal of either nonconsenting or consenting sex. Their sexual arousal was assessed throughout this 2nd session by penile tumescence and self-reports. Results highlight the importance of the interaction between individual differences variables and manipulations in the content of the portrayals in affecting sexual arousal to rape depictions. Support was obtained for the prediction that such arousal is not an isolated response but is associated with other measures of sexually aggressive tendencies. (44 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Port noise complaints: Verbal and behavioral reactions to airport-related noise.

Compared the verbal and behavioral reactions of a total of 716 residents living in high-, medium-, and low-noise zones surrounding a major airport, as well as in communities out of the airport's noise range. Results show that the effects of noise were highly complex. While the proportion of those reported to be bothered by noise was correlated with objectively measured noise levels, the intensity and perceived source of the noise were unrelated to reported psychological and physical symptoms, length of residence in the area, or trace measures indicating recreational use of outdoor areas. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in circadian rhythm parameters and short-term tolerance to shiftwork: a follow-up study

The relationship between individual differences in the phase and amplitude of circadian rhythms and tolerance to shiftwork has been the subject of several studies. Those studies recorded circadian rhythms and shiftwork tolerance at approximately the same time. The present study aimed to examine the predictive relationships between the amplitude, phase, and mesor of 24 h rhythms obtained before exposure to shiftwork, and subsequent indices of tolerance measured after one and three years of shiftwork. The results revealed some stable relations between the various rhythm parameters and subsequent tolerance measures. Workers who had a higher mesor of positive moods, and a lower mesor of negative moods and fatigue, before entering shiftwork tended to tolerate shiftwork better. Further, those whose heart rate rhythm showed an earlier acrophase had better subsequent sleep quality scores, while those with a smaller amplitude of their temperature, negative mood and fatigue rhythms showed better night-shift tolerance.     

Sex differences in learning mathematics: A longitudinal study with item and error analyses.

In a longitudinal study we examined children's mathematics performance on assessment tests given at third and sixth grades. We contrasted successful performance on six categories of items by sex and by grade. We also evaluated unsuccessful performance by means of analyses of errors on individual problems. Two primary results of the study were that girls exhibit an advantage at third grade that disappears by sixth grade and that consistent sex-related errors are observed at both grades. We give an explanation of observed sex differences based on cognitive psychology, with particular attention to how mathematical knowledge is acquired and stored and to the role of automaticity in problem solving. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in selective attention among prereaders: A key to mirror-image confusions.

Exp I investigated the position that mirror-image confusions reflect an inability to attend to low-salient cues. 84 3–5 yr olds were given 3 problems: mirror-image matching, shape-detail matching, and consistent left–right ordering on a picture-naming task. With nonlearners, performance was reassessed following explicit instructions. This rendered Ss divisible into levels: spontaneous, instructed learners, and nonlearners. As predicted, most 3-yr-olds fell into identical categories across all low-salient problems, either instructed learners or nonlearners. The 4–5 yr olds were spontaneous or instructed learners but did not exhibit concordance across all problems. It is suggested that for these Ss, level differences reflected differences between nonreaders already attending to reading cues and those not yet attending. Exp II, with the 4–5 yr olds from Exp I, identified the nonreaders, who were given a letter-series and letter-writing task. Significant-levels agreement occurred among the prereading tasks involving attention to individual shape details. The ordering problem showed level concordance only with tasks involving left–right scanning. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in reaction to failure-induced stress.

"The McKinney Reporting Test and the MMPI were administered to samples of aviation cadets, aircraft commanders, copilots, and ROTC student officers. Two criterion groups representing the extremes in adjustment were selected within each of the military samples… . There was an overall-significant tendency among the low adjustment cases for those who shifted toward more accurate performance on the McKinney stress period to answer on the Hy scale… like Janet's psychasthenic type, and for those who became more inaccurate to answer like the hysteric. This tendency did not hold for high adjustment cases." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)