Patronizing young and elderly adults: Response strategies in a community setting

Within the context of an elaborated model of the communication predicament of aging, the effects of particular response strategies to patronizing, intergenerational talk were investigated with written vignettes depicting a community situation. Young adults (N = 222) evaluated a patronizing speaker more negatively than a non‐patronizing speaker, and they also judged both conversational partners to be more satisfied when patronizing speech was absent. As compared to cooperative responses, assertive responses from the patronizee led to evaluations that she was higher status, more controlling, less nurturing, and less satisfied. Patronizing individuals receiving an assertive response were evaluated as less in control and satisfied than when they received a cooperative response.     

The role of assertiveness,personal control,and participation in the prediction of nurse Burnout

The research reported here considered a critical problem facing today's hospital: burnout and commitment of nurses. A review of the literature revealed that nurse communication, particularly participation or collaboration in patient care decisions, had rarely been considered in models of nurse commitment. A model was proposed in which nurse participation and assertiveness were key predictors of emotional exhaustion, commitment and intent to remain, and the theoretical construct of personal control was used as a moderating variable in predicting these outcomes. The model was tested on a sample of nurses from a large hospital Results were generally supportive of the proposed model. Implications of the model for theory were discussed in terms of the role of personal control and the importance of nurse assertiveness, and applications for nurse and physician training were considered.     

Videotaping as a Means of Self-Monitoring to Improve Theater Students' Performance

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of retroactive and focused self-monitoring, actualized by videotaping, on children's theater performance. In Experiment 1, 20 students in a theater performance program were randomly assigned to either a control or a self-monitoring condition, and their weekly rehearsals were videotaped. Only students in the self-monitoring condition viewed their videotaped rehearsals. The authors found that retroactive self-monitoring enhanced theater performance. In Experiment 2, 36 children preparing for a Christmas play were randomly assigned to either a focused or to a general self-monitoring condition. They viewed their videotaped rehearsals; the focused self-monitoring group received a list of important aspects of the performance to watch. The focused self-monitoring enhanced the children's performance in the play.     

Solving the Tacking Problem with Contrast Classes

The traditional Bayesian qualitative account of evidential support(TB) takes assertions of the form ‘E evidentially supportsH’ to affirm the existence of a two-place relation ofevidential support between E and H. The analysans given forthis relation is C(H,E) =_def Pr(H|E) > Pr(H). Now it is wellknown that when a hypothesis H entails evidence E, not onlyis it the case that C(H,E), but it is also the case that C(H&X,E)for any arbitrary X. There is a widespread feeling that thisis a problematic result for TB. Indeed, there are a number ofcases in which many feel it is false to assert ‘E evidentiallysupports H&X’, despite H entailing E. This is known,by those who share that feeling, as the ‘tacking problem’for Bayesian confirmation theory. After outlining a generalizationof the problem, I argue that the Bayesian response has so farbeen unsatisfactory. I then argue the following: (i) There exists,either instead of, or in addition to, a two-place relation ofconfirmation, a three-place, ‘contrastive’ relationof confirmation, holding between an item of evidence E and twocompeting hypotheses H₁ and H₂. (ii) The correct analysans ofthe relation is a particular probabilistic inequality, abbreviatedC(H₁, H_2, E). (iii) Those who take the putative counterexamplesto TB discussed to indeed be counterexamples are interpretingthe relevant utterances as implicitly contrastive, contrastingthe relevant hypothesis H₁ with a particular competitor H₂.(iv) The probabilistic structure of these cases is such thatC(H₁, H₂, E). This solves my generalization of the tacking problem.I then conclude with some thoughts about the relationship betweenthe traditional Bayesian account of evidential support and myproposed account of the three-place relation of confirmation.

1 The ‘tacking problem’ and the traditional Bayesianresponse

2 Contrastive support

3 Concluding comments

     

Trust in top management and immediate supervisor: The relationship to satisfaction,perceived organizational effectiveness,and information receiving

Utilizing 2068 individuals in 60 organizations in the U.S. and Italy, this study (a) examines the overall relationship between trust in top management and immediate supervisor and overall estimates of satisfaction and perceived organizational effectiveness, (b) compares the amount of variance in satisfaction and effectiveness that can be explained by trust in top management to the amount of variance explained by trust in immediate supervisor, and (c) clarifies the role of information receiving as a predictor of trust in top management and immediate supervisor. Results of a canonical correlation analysis indicated that the canonical equation explained 49% of the variance in the linear composites (Canonical R = .69, p < .001). Trust in top management was more strongly associated with satisfaction and effectiveness than was trust in immediate supervisor. Tzvo separate multiple regression analyses indicated that after controlling for geographic location of company and type of industry, information received about job and organizational issues uniquely explained 26% of the variance in trust in top management and 13% of the variance in trust in immediate supervisor.     

Childhood homelessness,resilience, and adolescent mental health: A prospective,person-centered approach

School districts and other service providers are increasingly aware of the substantial mental health needs of students experiencing family homelessness. Past findings are mixed regarding whether homelessness conveys unique risk beyond the risks associated with extreme poverty. With prospective longitudinal data on homelessness experiences across childhood, we utilized latent profile analysis as a person-centered approach to conceptualizing mental health outcomes in adolescence for 3,778 youth. We considered literal family homelessness as well as families living doubled-up, and we employed propensity score matching to identify a comparison group of nonhomeless students balanced across a range of covariates to address systematic bias. Results indicated that students who experienced literal homelessness during childhood were significantly less likely to demonstrate profiles of resilience in mental health functioning. We considered our approach and findings in light of challenges and opportunities particularly relevant to the school context.     

Public Opinion of Genetic and Neuropsychological Contributors to Criminal Involvement

There is a lack of research that has examined public opinion on the importance of biosocial influences for understanding the potential causes of criminal and delinquent involvement. We address this gap in the current study by surveying a nationally representative sample of adults about the importance of biosocial factors for influencing criminal behavior. Results indicate that the public believes the environment matters more than genetic factors for determining whether someone becomes a criminal. However, the data also reveal an overall acceptance of the importance of neuropsychological factors for influencing criminal behavior. An ordered logistic regression analysis was also estimated to examine potential differences in opinion across demographic categories. The results revealed that income, gender, marital status, and employment status are significantly associated with whether a respondent supports the role of biosocial factors in crime causation. Implications of the findings are discussed.