Status congruency as a predictor of job satisfaction and life stress.

Administered questionnaires to 2,080 United States Navy enlisted men grouped according to occupational specialties. A status congruency measure was developed and used to determine the degree to which an S was in step with peers within his occupational category relative to duty time, pay grade, age, and marital status. An individual's score on this measure was found to be significantly and uniquely predictive of his reported life stress and job satisfaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

SVIB as a predictor of job satisfaction.

A study was made of 185 graduates of professional curricula to test the hypothesis that job satisfaction in a certain occupation is related to congruent or appropriate interests in that occupation. Occupations represented were medicine, law, dentistry, mechanical engineering, accounting, and journalism. Ss were contacted by mail and asked to fill out 3 job satisfaction blanks and the SVIB. 12th grade SVIB scores were also available for each S. Only 1 of 56 relationships between interests and job satisfaction scores was significantly different from 0. The lack of relationships was true for both earlier and current testing of interests and for all 3 job satisfaction blanks. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conservatism as a predictor of humor preferences.

Of a sample of 139 high school students, humor preference profiles were compared for 30 Ss scoring highest on the Conservatism Scale, and 30 Ss scoring lowest. As predicted, high-conservative Ss tended to prefer "safe," formal types of humor, e.g., puns, while low conservatives (liberals) expressed greater appreciation of transparently "libidinal" types of humor, e.g., sick and sexual. Results were interpreted as indicating the importance of individual differences in the extent to which it is necessary for appetitive content to be disguised by the structural aspects of the joke medium before humorous affect is evoked. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

AVA as a predictor of occupational hierarchy.

High and low status male groups in industry were used to determine whether AVA can distinguish the 2. A Fisher 2-group discriminant analysis was applied to the data as well as a simple procedure using an AVA analyst. "Both methods proved to be highly successful… confirm existence of differences in temperament characteristics of personnel in higher and lower echelons… confirm power and efficiency of AVA in measuring these differences." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perspective taking as a predictor of marital adjustment.

Recently, theorists have argued that positive personality dispositions may facilitate the maintenance of satisfying personal relationships. On a sample of 159 couples (married an average of 23.8 years) it was hypothesized that perspective taking, defined as the cognitive tendency to put oneself in another person's place, would be positively predictive of marital adjustment. Three dimensions of perspective taking were measured. A general measure assessed self perspective taking in general social interaction. A second instrument assessed the perspective taking of the self, and the third assessed the perspective taking of another within the marriage relationship. Results indicated that for both husbands and wives, all 3 dimensions of perspective taking were predictive of marital adjustment. Wives had significantly higher scores than did husbands on all 3 perspective-taking scales. The results are discussed within the context of a model of relational competence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Payment history as a predictor of credit risk.

A numerical scoring system to predict credit payment was developed from the payment records of customers of a large Los Angeles department store. The following types of items were used: number of payments of less than amount due, number of payments missed completely, number of collection notices previously sent, etc. Results showed good (rbi = .71) ability to discriminate between potentially good accounts and those likely to require special collection efforts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive match as a predictor of psychotherapy outcome.

63 cognitively matched or unmatched patient–therapist pairs were followed in a double-blind methodology utilizing the Interpersonal Discrimination Test (IDT) as a measure of cognitive match between each pair. Premature termination occurred for 60% of the unmatched pairs and for 24% of the matched pairs. The Global Assessment Scale indicated a significantly faster rate of improvement for the remaining matched pairs at the 12-wk mark. Unmatched pairs eventually reached similar endpoints with final termination outcome measures being unable to distinguish between the 2 groups. Findings demonstrate the ability of the cognitive-match methodology, and specifically the ability of the IDT, to predict higher rates of early and dissatisfied terminations when patients and therapists are unmatched in cognitive structure. Findings confirm an earlier finding by J. E. Carr (1970) of greater improvement after 12 wks of treatment for matched vs mismatched patient–therapist pairs. (11 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Incongruency as a predictor of response to humor.

"The present study was undertaken in order to test two hypotheses about the relationships between incongruency and responses to humor. Thirty-three male neuropsychiatric patients were given an incongruency test, a humor appreciation test, and a humor interpretation test. Each contained hostile and sexual items. The results suggest that (a) degree of appreciation of cartoons representing a given drive area was not related to incongruency in that drive area, and (b) subjects tend to interpret the cartoons in such a manner as to avoid percepts in areas of marked incongruency." From Psyc Abstracts 36:04:4HJ35B. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Student satisfaction as a measure of departmental quality.

Undergraduate and graduate students in 38 departments indicated their degree of satisfaction with their major department (7,360 and 2,396 Ss in 1976 and 1977, respectively). Two highly correlated factors, General Satisfaction with Major and Satisfaction with Mentorship, were obtained for the 2 groups for the 2 successive years. Factor scores did not differ substantially across subgroups of students with differing characteristics on class level, GPA, sex, field of study, or reason for choosing their major. 15 faculty and departmental characteristics were also uncorrelated with factor scores. Student satisfaction thus appears to represent a unique criterion for assessing departmental quality. (7 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bargaining process as a determinant of postpurchase satisfaction.

To study interpersonal bargaining in an environment of increased realism, a shopping simulation game allowing for face-to-face dyadic interaction was created to test the hypothesis that pretransactional expectations concerning the willingness of a seller to bargain, as well as whether or not price concessions are received through bargaining, will affect postpurchase consumer satisfaction, 64 male college students served as Ss. Levels of expectation were controlled through pre-experimental instructions, whereas participation in bargaining was manipulated by programming the behavior of confederate salesmen. Results of a multivariate ANOVA indicate that both expectation of a seller's willingness to bargain and the receipt of price concessions through bargaining were independent factors that affected postpurchase satisfaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Anger as a predictor of aggression among incarcerated adolescents.

This study examined the validity of trait anger as a predictor of aggressive behavior among juvenile offenders. Two standard self-report anger scales were administered to 65 recently incarcerated male adolescents. These youths were followed prospectively for physical and verbal aggression during 3 months of subsequent incarceration. Anger scores were not correlated with participant history of violent offending or staff ratings of anger. However, anger scores from both instruments were predictive of subsequent physical and verbal aggression. For example, the Trait Anger scale successfully classified 66% of juvenile offenders into high and low aggressive groups; receiver operating characteristic analysis obtained an effect size of .72. These results support the predictive validity of self-reported anger in identifying juvenile offenders at risk for institutional aggression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-actualization level as a predictor of practicum supervision effectiveness.

20 counseling students at high and low levels of self-actualization (as measured by the Personal Orientation Inventory) were randomly assigned to high or low self-actualizing supervisors to assess the effects of such assignment on change in self-actualization during the course of the beginning practicum semester. A control group of 5 counseling students not enrolled in the practicum were also pre- and posttested to assess their change in self-actualization during the same semester. It was assumed that counselor growth in self-actualization would be affected by the level of self-actualization of the supervisor. Results do not support this assumption. Counseling students tended to gain in self-actualization whether or not they were enrolled in a practicum and regardless of the level of self-actualization of the supervisors to whom they were assigned. Evidence linking counseling effectiveness and self-actualization is advanced; speculation about supervision effectiveness and self-actualization requires further testing. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attachment style as a predictor of adult romantic relationships.

Questionnaire measures of attachment style, attachment history, beliefs about relationships, self-esteem, limerence, loving, love addiction, and love styles were administered to 374 undergraduates. Attachment style was related in theoretically expected ways to attachment history and to beliefs about relationships. Securely attached Ss reported relatively positive perceptions of their early family relationships. Avoidant Ss were most likely to report childhood separation from their mother and to express mistrust of others. Anxious-ambivalent subjects were less likely than avoidant Ss to see their father as supportive, and they reported a lack of independence and a desire for deep commitment in relationships. The self-esteem measure and each of the scales measuring forms of love were factor analyzed separately. Analyses based on scale scores derived from the resulting factors indicated that attachment style was also strongly related to self-esteem and to the various forms of love discussed in other theoretical frameworks. The results suggest that attachment theory offers a useful perspective on adult love relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The future autobiography as a predictor of sales success.

Scored future autobiographies written during an employment selection process by 36 male sales trainees on 3 constructs (differentiation, demand, and agency) developed by R. S. Ezekiel (see record 1968-05595-001) and used in a predictive validity design. Agency was positively and significantly correlated with sales success (as judged by supervisors' ratings), but differentiation and demand were not. With word count partialed out of the autobiographies, a higher correlation between the agency construct and sales success was obtained. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychopathology as a predictor of adolescent drug use trajectories.

The authors examined early psychopathology as a predictor of trajectories of drug use from ages 13-18 years. Six years of annual data were analyzed for 506 boys using a mixed effects polynomial growth curve model. They tested whether distinct measures of psychopathology and behavioral problems (i.e., attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder, depression, and violence) assessed in early adolescence could prospectively predict level and change in alcohol and marijuana use. Higher levels of all of the types of psychopathology predicted higher levels of alcohol use, and higher levels of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, conduct disorder, and violence predicted higher levels of marijuana use. Only conduct disorder predicted linear growth in alcohol use, and none of the measures predicted growth in marijuana use. The results suggest that drug use prevention programs should target youths with early symptoms of psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ideational fluency as a predictor of original problem solving.

A study with 50 college students gave evidence of the empirical validity of nonoverlapping scores of original problem solving on a lenient solution-standard predictor (the Wallach and Kogan Creativity Battery), by high correlations with corresponding scores on stringent solution-standard criterion tasks (a series similar to those used by E. Debono [1967] and N. R. F. Maier [1952]). Findings provide support for the construct validity of conceptualizations of original problem solving based on ideational fluency, and specify the critical role of unusual responses of low quality. The relative efficacy in predicting real-world creative attainments of tasks with a lenient vs a stringent standard for solutions is discussed. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A note on the MMPI as a suicide predictor.

Offers comments on C. V. Leonard's (1977) article on the MMPI as a suicide predictor. Her appraisal of former studies and her consideration of the differences between individuals with different suicidal behaviors are critically evaluated. It is suggested that future research should emphasize the development of useful MMPI indices of suicidal risk and should recognize the need to cross-validate these indices. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Knowledge of storybooks as a predictor of young children's vocabulary.

Shared book reading provides a rich source of linguistic stimulation for young children. The authors examined whether variations in knowledge of storybooks (assumed to index factors such as frequency of shared reading) were related to vocabulary scores for 3–6 yr olds. In Exp 1, parents' knowledge of storybooks explained unique variance in children's receptive vocabulary scores after controlling for children's analytic intelligence, parents' exposure to adult reading material, and parents' education. In Exp 2, children's knowledge of storybooks explained unique variance in their receptive and expressive vocabulary scores after controlling for parents' exposure to print and socioeconomic status level. Children's knowledge of storybooks indexed cognitive factors as well as exposure. The findings obtained in the 2 experiments suggest that storybook experiences during the preschool years may be an important influence on the development of children's language skills. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validity of socioeconomic origin as a predictor of executive success.

A population of 337 male Stanford Graduate School of Business, Master of Business Administration (MBA) alumni was analyzed for association between executive success criteria and socioeconomic origin measured by father's occupation when S was in elementary school, socioeconomic origin elementary school (SEO-elem.), and when S received MBA degree (SEO-MBA). No significant correlation was found between SEO-MBA and any criterion. SEO-elem. correlated significantly (p