Living in a world with God: An interpretative phenomenological exploration of the religious experiences of five Baptists in Britain

Religious and spiritual experiences often form significant elements of people’s narratives about their faith and lives, but the impact of these experiences is often neglected in academic studies. This study investigated the connections between perceived experiences of God and beliefs in the lives of five members of a Baptist church in Britain, using data from semi-structured interviews. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used to explore the data and develop eleven recurrent sub-themes, organized into two superordinate themes: ‘Knowing God’ and ‘Living in the World.’ There were idiosyncratic differences between the experiences of the participants, but they all perceived God communicating with them and attributed certain events to God’s influence. These experiences developed real and meaningful relationships with God, and the participants’ faith affected every aspect of their lives, shaping their actions, beliefs and daily lived experiences. The participants’ diverse experiences and beliefs created mutually supporting meaning systems (or worldviews) that were much stronger than the individual elements that contributed to them. God was an intrinsic part of the participants’ social reality, and their lived experiences cannot be adequately understood without appreciating the influence of this central aspect of their lives. These findings show the importance of taking a holistic and idiographic perspective when studying religiosity and spirituality. The study also demonstrates IPA is a useful and effective tool for studying lived experiences of religiosity and spirituality and supports its broader use to investigate such phenomena

Shelter Dogs: The effects of Training on Proximity

Almost 700,000 dogs are euthanized in U.S. shelters every year (ASPCA, 2017). In order to increase their adoptability, this study examined the use of positive reinforcement and shaping to train dogs to spend time in proximity to people. The experimenter selected 45 subjects who remained at the back of their kennels when she approached them. Fifteen of the subjects were trained with the use of a clicker marker and 15 without the use of any marker. Fifteen subjects were simply exposed to the presence of the experimenter. It was found that training significantly increased the number of dogs that reached proximity to the experimenter and decreased the average distance between them. Further, the number of dogs that reached proximity to the experimenter and the number that reached proximity to a novel person were identical, indicating that the trained behavior generalized. However, the use of a clicker did not increase the number of subjects that reached proximity or decrease the average distance between the dog and the person. These results indicate that a simple procedure that incorporates shaping and positive reinforcement can be utilized in a shelter setting to increase the number of dogs that will spend time in proximity to potential adopters

Applying social influence insights to encourage climate resilient domestic water behaviour: Bridging the theory-practice gap

Water scarcity is one of the most pressing issues of our time and it is projected to increase as global demand surges and climate change limits fresh water availability. If we are to reduce water demand, it is essential that we draw on every tool in the box, including one that is underestimated and underutilised: social influence. Research from the psychological sciences demonstrates that behaviour is strongly influenced by the behaviour of others, and that social influence can be harnessed to develop cost-effective strategies to encourage climate resilient behaviour. Far less attention has been paid to investigating water-related interventions in comparison to interventions surrounding energy. In this paper we consider the application of three social influence strategies to encourage water conservation: social norms; social identity; and socially-comparative feedback. We not only review their empirical evidence base, but also offer an example of their application in the residential sector with the aim of highlighting how theoretical insights can be translated into practice. We argue that collaborations between researchers and industry are essential if we are to maximise the potential of behaviour change interventions to encourage climate resilient water behaviour

The dynamics of leadership and resistance in repressive regimes: The cases of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic and Polish People’s Republic

Leadership—particularly identity leadership—remains a relatively under-researched area in the social psychological literature on resistance in violent or repressive contexts. This chapter examines how leaders mobilized overt resistance in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic and the Polish People’s Republic. Both regimes were led by a single-party monopoly, characterized by severe repression of political and non-political activities that were perceived as threatening to the status quo or as promoting identities inconsistent with the dominant ideology. We present an analysis of interviews and archival data, focusing on how resistance leaders overcame obstacles placed by those in power and organized resistance in the form of collective action. Leaders engaged in adaptive changes in their strategy, built a shared social identity to mobilize resistance, and gave agency to followers—allowing them to unite and sustain the movement. This chapter enhances our understanding of the psychology of leadership in mobilizing collective action under repression

New insights into insight: Neurophysiological correlates of the difference between the intrinsic “aha” and the extrinsic “oh yes” moment

Insight refers to a situation in which a problem solver immediately changes his understanding of a problem situation. This representational change can either be triggered by external stimuli, like a hint or the solution itself, or by internal solution attempts. In the present paper, the differences and similarities between these two phenomena, namely “extrinsic” and “intrinsic” insight, are examined. To this end, electroencephalogram (EEG) is recorded while subjects either recognize or generate solutions to German verbal compound remote associate problems (CRA). Based on previous studies, we compare the alpha power prior to insightful solution recognition with the alpha power prior to insightful solution generation. Results show that intrinsic insights are preceded by an increase in alpha power at right parietal electrodes, while extrinsic insights are preceded by a respective decrease. These results can be interpreted in two ways. In consistency with other studies, the increase in alpha power before intrinsic insights can be interpreted as an increased internal focus of attention. Accordingly, the decrease in alpha power before extrinsic insights may be associated with a more externally oriented focus of attention. Alternatively, the increase in alpha power prior to intrinsic insights can be interpreted as an active inhibition of solution-related information, while the alpha power decrease prior to extrinsic insights may reflect its activation. Regardless of the interpretation, the results provide strong evidence that extrinsic and intrinsic insight differ on the behavioral as well as the neurophysiological level