Sex differences in interaction style as a product of perceived sex differences in competence.

Observed the interaction styles of 72 male and 72 female university students while they worked in 4-person, mixed-sex groups on a discussion task. In some groups, Ss were only given information about each other's names and gender. In this circumstance, males were perceived by themselves and other group members to be higher in competence than females. Males also engaged in a greater amount of active task behavior than females, who exhibited a greater amount of positive social behavior than males. In other groups, Ss' competency-based status was manipulated by providing false feedback that they were high or low relative to their group in intellectual and moral aptitude. High-status Ss were then perceived to be more competent and engaged in more active task and less positive social behavior than low status ones. In this condition, no sex differences were obtained on perceived competence or on active task or positive social behavior. Findings support the idea that the gender differences obtained in interaction when status was not specified were partially a function of Ss' belief that the sexes differ in competence. (43 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Learned helplessness through modeling: The role of perceived similarity in competence.

Tested the hypothesis that learned helplessness can be induced through modeling and that the effects are mediated by perceived similarity in competence. 40 male college students observed a model fail at anagram tasks under variations in perceived similarity. Ss who perceived the unsuccessful model to be of comparable ability and those given no competence feedback persisted less throughout the tasks than Ss who perceived the model as less competent than themselves and control Ss who did not observe a model. The latter 2 groups did not differ in their initial level of persistence, but their performances diverged on succeeding trials, with Ss who perceived themselves as more competent than the model showing higher persistence. A similar pattern of results was obtained for the effects of perceived similarity on Ss' expectations of self-efficacy. A microanalysis revealed that regardless of treatment condition, the higher the Ss' expected efficacy, the longer they persisted. The strength of this relationship increased over trials, suggesting that Ss came to rely more heavily on their judgments of self-efficacy in regulating their expenditure of effort as the experiment progressed. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Demand characteristics or conformity?: Suspiciousness of deception and experimenter bias in conformity research.

Administered to 87 undergraduates (a) the Psychology Research Survey (PRS), a measure of attitudes toward psychology experiments; and (b) a battery of attitude scales on current issues. 6 advanced undergraduate Es, led to believe that Ss had high- or low-conformity scores on the battery, presented R. Wyer's dot-estimation conformity task to Ss. Results of a postexperimental questionnaire indicate Ss' suspiciousness of deception was quite common (43.7%) and suspicious Ss conformed less. The prediction that suspicious Ss would be more positive in their attitudes on the PRS than nonsuspicious Ss was not supported. However, Ss who were aware that they were being deceived and nevertheless conformed had significantly more positive attitudes on the PRS than aware Ss who conformed less. In addition, Es who tested Ss of the opposite sex biased their results according to their expectations, while for Ss of the same sex the bias was reversed. It is apparent that conformity studies are quite susceptible to the effects of demand characteristics and that only with controlled E-S interaction and more attention to deception procedures can results be generalized. (French summary) (19 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Impact of social comparisons on the developing self-perceptions of learning disabled students.

Learning disabled (LD) children's self-perceptions were investigated using the Perceived Competence Scale for Children. This self-report instrument taps children's perceptions of their scholastic and athletic competence, social acceptance, and feelings of global self-worth. Participants in the study were 86 students in Grades 3–8 who attended a public school LD resource room. Results indicated that social comparison processes play an important role in the formation of LD students' perceived academic competence. LD students perceived themselves as becoming less academically competent across the grade span tested when they compared themselves with normally achieving students in their regular classes. When they compared their abilities with LD peers in their resource room, they maintained high perceptions of their own academic competence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of motive for helping, recipient's inability to reciprocate, and sex on devaluation of the recipient's competence.

Tested the prediction that motive base will interact with reciprocation such that greater superiority in perceived competence will occur following nonreciprocation than following reciprocation of efficacy-motivated helpers. It was hypothesized that this effect would be qualified by the helper's motivation for helping, the evaluative attribute in question, and the helper's set. 60 male and 60 female undergraduates were asked to imagine that during the preceding weekend they had successfully rescued a boatload of children. For half of the Ss, the scenario emphasized efficacy-motivating helping; for the other half, it emphasized empathy-motivated helping. Ss were then put to work on the "easier" of 2 "randomly assigned" word-forming tasks, whereas their same-sex partner (a confederate) worked on the "harder" task. Once Ss reached their quota they were invited to send their excess letters to the still-struggling co-worker; all did. In return, the confederate attempted successfully or unsuccessfully to share his or her earnings. As predicted, the efficacy-motivated helpers, unlike their empathy-motivated counterparts, rated themselves as more competent than, but not more sociable than, the recipient who was unable to reciprocate. Weak support was found for the prediction that these differences in perceived competence would largely apply to male helpers. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Motivation as a variable in work-partner selection.

It was hypothesized that in making a work-partner choice between a competent nonfriend and a less competent friend Ss with high achievement motivation would select the competent nonfriend; those with high affiliation motivation, the less competent friend; and those high in both motivations would show evidence of conflict. Friendship ratings together with achievement and affiliation motivation scores were obtained from the Ss, who were then divided into groups of 4 consisting of 3 mutual friends and 1 nonfriend. The nonfriend was made to succeed on the group task, and the friends, to fail. The Ss were then told to write down their choice of a work-partner. The results confirmed the set of hypotheses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Alternative responses to dissonance.

50 male and 50 female Ss were placed in an experimental situation in which they found their judgments contradicted by a respected associate of the same sex. Ss were free to resolve the dissonance by conforming to the contrary judgments of the associate, rejecting the associate as one who was less competent than he had been thought to be, underrecalling the disagreements, or, devaluating the importance of the topics about which disagreements had occurred. Female Ss made less use of rejection than did male Ss and were more inclined to tolerate the conflict. Other findings suggest that individuals are inclined to employ the 4 responses as alternative means of reducing dissonance rather than as supplementary means. Finally, correlations relating the MA scale to conformity, underrecall, and tolerance were significantly different for the 2 sexes, suggesting that the effect of anxiety upon Ss' choice of dissonance reducing response depends upon the sex of the Ss. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of perceived dependency relationships upon conformity to group expectations.

The study was designed to test the hypothesis that "group members perceiving themselves as interdependent for their reward attainment become highly motivated toward the group task." Results generally are in accord with several predictions, one of which is that: "Members of groups who are instrumentally interdependent become more highly motivated toward the group task than Ss who can achieve their goals independently of the others in the group." Another prediction supported by results is that: "Under conditions of instrumental independence, Ss who are told that both they and their teammates can attain a valued goal through the group activity become more highly task motivated than Ss who are told either that only S or Ss partner can attain this goal." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social identification effects in group polarization.

Tested a model of group polarization derived from social identity theory, proposing that if group members conform to group norms, attitude polarization could occur only if group members perceive those norms as more extreme than they "objectively" are. In Exp I, 60 undergraduates perceived attitude-relevant information attributed to speakers who were categorized as a group as representing a more extreme position of the issue than when the same information was attributed to noncategorized individuals. Attitude polarization occurred when Ss believed the information came from their in-group. As predicted, this polarization resulted from Ss' adoption of the "extremitized" in-group norm. In Exp II, categorization was manipulated by focusing 42 Ss on their group performance or on their individual performance. When Ss were focused on their group membership, group norms were perceived as more extreme, and attitude polarization due to conformity to these extremitized norms occurred. When Ss were focused on their individual performance, no extremitization occurred, and attitudes shifted to a more neutral position on the issue. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of expecting to be liked on choice of associates.

This study investigated one of the factors which the authors felt influenced the strong tendency of people to choose to associate with others they perceive as similar to themselves, the fear of being disliked by dissimilar strangers. As predicted, it was found that if Ss felt it was important to talk with people who would like them, they more often chose to interact with similar than dissimilar people. A 2nd group of students, assured that all members of all groups would be told they were "not likable" and thus presumably concerned about making others like them, were also more anxious than control Ss to talk with similar people. If Ss were assured that all members of all groups would be told they were "likable" Ss were much more willing to associate with dissimilar groups of people than with similar ones. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-advocacy and self-esteem.

Explored the utility of treating self-esteem as an attitude that might be vulnerable to the same kinds of experimental manipulations usually directed at more traditional, less consequential attitudinal issues. Within an attitudinal advocacy paradigm, 109 undergraduates wrote 3 essays either about their personality attributes or about social propositions. Half the Ss writing on each of these topics were told to advocate a positive position (i.e., self-laudatory or proposition supporting) in their essays. The remaining Ss, although induced to advocate positive positions, were led to believe that they could elect to write negative (self-deprecatory or issue-opposing) essays. As anticipated, Ss who wrote the self-laudatory essays subsequently rated themselves more favorably than did Ss who wrote in support of social propositions. The latter Ss showed a corresponding advocacy effect with regard to the social proposition that they had espoused. The manipulation of perceived choice did not influence the magnitude of the advocacy effect. The results are regarded as encouraging with respect to the application of laboratory-derived attitude change procedures to issues of high personal relevance and clinical importance. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Minors' attitudes and competence toward participation in psychoeducational decisions.

27 7–23 yr olds, 33 14–25 yr olds, and 21 16–20 yr olds enrolled in a university-based day-school program for children with learning and related behavior problems were given a choice about participating in decisions about their subsequent placements. Ss were also offered instructions on how to prepare for participating in the decision process. Structured questions and ratings of observed behavior were used to measure Ss' current and subsequent interest in participation, perspective of competence to participate, interest in instruction to increase competence, expectations, actual participation, and judgments of outcome. Findings were similar to those found in a previous study by the present authors (see record 1984-16316-001). A high proportion of Ss wanted to participate, perceived themselves as competent to do so, knew what outcomes they wanted, followed through, and judged their involvement as effective. Most Ss were interested in improving skills related to such participation. Adults involved (6 teachers, 76 parents, and 4 school psychologists) rated the participation of Ss as effective. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Status of women in the psychological community in the Southeast: Women as experimenters.

Studied the evaluative perceptions of undergraduate psychology majors regarding the performance of videotaped male and female Es. When Es were described as competent, Ss judged both sexes to be equally competent. When Es were described as incompetent, Ss (particularly males) perceived female Es as much less competent than male Es. Competent female Es were also perceived as less feminine. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of physical attractiveness in the readjustment of discharged psychiatric patients.

27 female and 22 male psychiatric inpatients (aged 18–56 yrs) about to be discharged to the community were rated for physical attractiveness, and their adjustment was assessed 6 mo after discharge. Before discharge, Ss' premorbid adjustment, physical attractiveness, adequacy of present interpersonal behavior, and present hospital adjustment were assessed. Six months after discharge, Ss were interviewed, and time out of the hospital, social competence, and a friend's or relative's ratings of the Ss were measured. Findings show that Ss who were more physically attractive stayed out of the hospital longer than the less attractive ones. Females who were relatively more attractive were perceived as being better adjusted by the friend or relative; this relationship was not present for males. Implications for the role of physical attractiveness in the etiology and maintenance of mental disorders are discussed. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

From rarity to evaluative extremity: Effects of prevalence information on evaluations of positive and negative characteristics.

Experiments showed a scarcity principle in evaluative judgments such that the identical characteristic is evaluated more extremely the lower its perceived prevalence. In Study 1, Ss evaluated a fictitious medical condition that was described as either beneficial or detrimental to health and as occurring in either 30% or in one half of 1% of a test population. The condition was evaluated more extremely—as a more positive health asset or a more negative health liability—in the low-prevalence than in the high-prevalence conditions. Study 2 demonstrated the same effect in self-evaluations and with a different manipulation of perceived prevalence. Ss were told that they actually had the fictitious medical condition, that it was either beneficial or detrimental to their health, and either that they were the only 1 of 5 Ss who had it or that 4 of the 5 did. Low-prevalence Ss exhibited more extreme evaluative, affective, and behavioral reactions to the medical condition than did high-prevalence Ss. The origins and validity of the scarcity principle are discussed, as are its implications for uniqueness theory, reactance theory, and social evaluation theories. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mental illness and the impact of believing others know about it.

Reports 2 studies measuring the impact upon 30 male inpatients and 29 male outpatients of believing others have become aware of their psychiatric history. Ss thought the interest was in determining if another person would behave the same toward mental patients and controls. 1/2 the Ss were told the other person knew they were patients and the remainder that he believed them to be nonpatients. Believing others were aware of their status caused Ss to feel less appreciated, to find a task more difficult, and to perform more poorly, and they were perceived as more tense, anxious, and poorly adjusted by an O. (20 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpersonal competence among college males hypothesized to be at risk for schizophrenia.

Compared the interpersonal competence of undergraduate males hypothesized on the basis of scores on 4 scales designed to identify schizophrenia-prone individuals to be at elevated risk for schizophrenia with male control undergraduates in 2 studies. In Study 1, 96 high-risk Ss were compared with 60 controls on a behavioral measure requiring them to role play responses to problem situations. Results show that responses of anhedonic Ss were significantly less competent and more terse than were those of controls. Responses of impulsive, nonconforming Ss were significantly more hostile and more odd than controls' responses. In Study 2, 78 high-risk Ss and 33 controls used a multiple-choice version of the problem inventory. Results show that nonconforming Ss were significantly less able than controls to recognize competent responses and were significantly more likely than controls to select hostile response alternatives. It is suggested that the interpersonal behaviors of anhedonic and nonconforming Ss were consistent with their designation as high-risk individuals and potentially important to their later adjustment. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)