Attachment Avoidance and Amends-Making: A Case Advocating the Need for Attempting to Replicate One’s Own Work

Attachment avoidance is typically associated with negative behaviors in romantic relationships; however, recent research has begun to uncover circumstances (e.g., being in high-quality relationships) that promote pro-relationship behaviors for more avoidantly attached individuals. One possible explanation for why more avoidant individuals behave negatively sometimes but positively at other times is that their impulses regarding relationship events vary depending on relationship context (e.g., relationship satisfaction level). An initial unregistered study found support for this hypothesis in an amends-making context. We then conducted three confirmatory high-powered preregistered replication attempts that failed to replicate our initial findings. In our discussion of these four studies we highlight the importance of attempting to replicate one’s own work and sharing the results regardless of the outcome

Are you coming on to me? Bias and accuracy in couples' perceptions of sexual advances

How accurately do romantic partners perceive each other’s sexual advances? Two preregistered studies investigated whether perceivers over- or underestimate the specific behaviors their partner uses to indicate sexual interest (directional bias), as well as correctly detect the particular pattern of those behaviors (tracking accuracy). We also tested if biased and accurate perceptions were moderated by gender and explored how bias and accuracy predicted relational outcomes. Results revealed strong evidence for tracking accuracy in judgments of sexual advances overall, and mixed results for directional bias. Gender moderated only directional bias, such that women consistently overestimated their partner’s sexual advances, whereas men underestimated or showed no bias. Finally, biased sexual advance perceptions were associated with sexual satisfaction and love for both perceivers and partners. Implications for relationship functioning are discussed. </jats:p

Enhancing transparency of the research process to increase accuracy of findings: A guide for relationship researchers

The purpose of this paper is to extend to the field of relationship science, recent discussions and suggested changes in open research practises. We demonstrate different ways that greater transparency of the research process in our field will accelerate scientific progress by increasing accuracy of reported research findings. Importantly, we make concrete recommendations for how relationship researchers can transition to greater disclosure of research practices in a manner that is sensitive to the unique design features of methodologies employed by relationship scientists. We discuss how to implement these recommendations for four different research designs regularly used in relationship research and practical limitations regarding implementing our recommendations and provide potential solutions to these problems

Panel Discussion on Open Access: What’s in it for me?

Background The 2016 Tri-Agency Open Access Policy on Publications is a landmark for the open access movement in Canada. It stipulates that peer-reviewed journal publications arising from Tri-Agency funded research must be made freely accessible within 12 months of publication. This and other open access policies emphasize the societal advantage of openly accessible research, but how does the researcher benefit? Summary Panelists will highlight the benefits of open access as well as other open research practices, with a focus on the perspective of graduate students and early career researchers. One benefit is the increased impact of open access publications compared to subscription-based publications, as shown in citation-based studies as well as altmetrics such as download reports available through Western’s institutional repository, Scholarship@Western. Another benefit is enhanced collaboration, encompassing not only open access publishing but also open data practices, both of which enable researchers to more readily learn from and build off of each other’s work. Finally, authors benefit from retaining rights to their work, which includes various open access publishing options as well as negotiating greater control over their research post-publication. Interdisciplinary Reflection Open access is particularly valuable for interdisciplinary researchers insofar as it makes research easily discoverable. This allows for cross-fertilization across disciplines, since researchers are more easily able to access, read, and build on work in other areas. Librarians often select journal subscriptions that support active research in a particular discipline, but open access journals are available to all, regardless of an institution’s research focus

A 4-study replication of the moderating effects of greed on socioeconomic status and unethical behaviour.

Four replications of Piff and colleagues\u27 study examined the moderating effects of greed attitudes on the relationship between socio-economic status (SES) and unethical behaviour (Study 7). In the original study, the researchers found that both greed and SES predicted increased propensity to engage in unethical behavior. Furthermore, this association was moderated such that the effects of SES on unethical behaviour were no longer present in the greed prime condition versus the neutral condition. In replication 1 of the original study main effects of greed attitudes and SES were found, but no interaction was found. Main effects for greed emerged in replications 3 and 4. However no main effects for SES or interactions emerged for replications 2-4. A meta-analysis was conducted with all replications and the original study, and found no moderating effect of greed on the relationship between SES and unethical behavior

Time, Money, and Happiness: Does Putting a Price on Time Affect Our Ability to Smell the Roses?

DeVoe and House (2012; Experiment 3) demonstrated that the process of thinking about one’s income in relation to time (i.e., as an hourly wage) affected the enjoyment that participants derived from pleasurable experiences. Participants compelled to think of “time is money” experienced more impatience and less enjoyment in reaction to listening to a pleasurable piece of music compared to participants not asked to think of time as money. These effects were attenuated when participants were financially compensated for this leisure time. This suggests that putting a price on time can influence enjoyment of leisure activities, depending on the degree to which individuals are compensated for engaging in these activities. To determine the reliability, and magnitude, of the reported effects, two preregistered high-powered close replications were conducted. These independent replication attempts, as well as the analyses on the combined sample, failed to replicate the original pattern of findings. The results of the current studies suggest that, using these operationalizations of the study variables, the interactive effects of compensation and calculation cannot be considered robust and may not consistently predict happiness or impatience