Relationships beliefs and relationship quality across cultures: Country as a moderator of dysfunctional beliefs and relationship quality in three former Communist societies

Research on the correlation between relationship beliefs and quality has rarely considered the impact of culture. In this study, 206 manual workers, students and entrepreneurs from Georgia, Hungary and Russia completed a modified Relationships Belief Inventory (Eidelson & Epstein, 1982) and the Abbreviated Dyadic Adjustment Scale (Sharpley & Rogers, 1984). Results indicated a significant pan-cultural correlation between dysfunctional beliefs and relationship quality but a moderating effect for country, with dysfunctional beliefs in Hungary explaining more than four times of the variance in relationship quality than in the other countries. Findings are interpreted in the light of major value and ecological differences between the three countries

Terror threat perception and its consequences in contemporary Britain

The terrorist attacks of 9/11, and subsequent terrorist acts around the world, have alerted social psychologists to the need to examine the antecedents and consequences of terrorist threat perception. In these two studies we examined the predictive power of demographic factors (age, sex, location), individual values and normative influences on threat perception and the consequences of this perception for behavioural change and close relationships. In study 1 (N = 100) gender, benevolence values and normative influences were all correlates of threat perception, whilst sense of personal threat was correlated with increased contact with friends and family. In study 2 (N = 240) age, sex, location, and the values of Openness to Change and Hedonism, all predicted threat perception, which in turn predicted behavioural change and relationship contact. Such findings point to the important role social psychologists should play in understanding responses to these new terrorist threats

Depression, anxiety, and within-person variability in adults aged 18 to 85 years

Mild depression and anxiety were investigated in relation to measures of within-person (WP) variability and mean RT from psychomotor, executive function, visual search, and word recognition tasks in a continuous age range (18 to 85 years, M = 50.33, SD = 20.37) of 300 community-dwelling adults. Structural equation modeling identified a significant Age x Depression interaction in relation to visual search for measures of WP variability but not for mean RT. Older more depressed adults exhibited greater variability. WP variability in executive function and other cognitive constructs covaried, and the significant Age x Depression interaction with visual search was accounted for by WP variability in executive control. The findings suggest that age-, and depression-related reductions in attentional resources may contribute to increased variability in visual search, and that variability in executive control may be the mechanism underlying these effects.This article may not exactly replicate the final version published in the APA journal. It is not the copy of record.This paper has not (yet) been published

Modelling psychological responses to the great East Japan earthquake and nuclear incident

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited - Copyright @ 2012 Goodwin et al.This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.The Great East Japan (Tōhoku/Kanto) earthquake of March 2011was followed by a major tsunami and nuclear incident. Several previous studies have suggested a number of psychological responses to such disasters. However, few previous studies have modelled individual differences in the risk perceptions of major events, or the implications of these perceptions for relevant behaviours. We conducted a survey specifically examining responses to the Great Japan earthquake and nuclear incident, with data collected 11-13 weeks following these events. 844 young respondents completed a questionnaire in three regions of Japan; Miyagi (close to the earthquake and leaking nuclear plants), Tokyo/Chiba (approximately 220 km from the nuclear plants), and Western Japan (Yamaguchi and Nagasaki, some 1000 km from the plants). Results indicated significant regional differences in risk perception, with greater concern over earthquake risks in Tokyo than in Miyagi or Western Japan. Structural equation analyses showed that shared normative concerns about earthquake and nuclear risks, conservation values, lack of trust in governmental advice about the nuclear hazard, and poor personal control over the nuclear incident were positively correlated with perceived earthquake and nuclear risks. These risk perceptions further predicted specific outcomes (e.g. modifying homes, avoiding going outside, contemplating leaving Japan). The strength and significance of these pathways varied by region. Mental health and practical implications of these findings are discussed in the light of the continuing uncertainties in Japan following the March 2011 events

Evaluating the psychometric properties of the multigroup ethnic identity measure (MEIM) within the United Kingdom

In the present study, we examined the psychometric properties of the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) (Phinney, 1992; Phinney & Alipuria, 1990) among an ethnically diverse sample within the United Kingdom. In initial analyses, we evaluated the goodness-of-fit of a one-factor model (i.e., global ethnic identity) and the goodness-of-fit of a two-factor model (i.e., correlated but distinct Exploration and Commitment components). Results of initial confirmatory factor analyses led us to reject both the one-factor and two-factor models. Results of subsequent exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses revealed a three-factor structure (i.e., correlated but distinct Behavioral, Cognitive, and Affective components of ethnic identity) among the sample as a whole (n = 234) and among Asian Indian persons (n = 88) in particular, though resulst were mixed among White U.K./Irish persons (n = 54) in particular. Implications for the study of ethnicity-related concepts in the incerasibgly multi-cultural U.K. are discussed

Personality and Close Relationship Processes

This is a draft extract from S.O. Gaines (2016) Personality and Close Relationship Processes, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Chapter 1: Behaviorist Foundations of the Field of Close Relationships. Re-printed with permission from Cambridge University Press

Socioemotional Exchanges Between Men and Women in Heterosexual Relationships

Data Availability Statement: The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.Copyright © 2022 Gaines and Sedikides. We examined affection-giving, affection-denying, respect-giving, and respect-denying behaviors among men and women in heterosexual relationships. In a pilot study (N = 106 couples), although we had expected the latent variables of affectionate and respectful behaviors to emerge from exploratory factor analyses, we obtained the latent variables of socioemotional rewards and costs instead. In the main study (initial N = 182 couples), we replicated the factor patterns of socioemotional rewards and costs in confirmatory factor analyses. Moreover, we entered (final N = 177 couples) men’s and women’s self-reported narcissism alongside men’s and women’s socioemotional rewards and costs, as reported by partners, into a dyadic model that we tested via covariance structure analyses. Results revealed that, although men and women reciprocated rewards as well as costs (and correlations between individuals’ rewards and costs were negative), narcissism was not reflected in the patterns of reciprocity (men’s and women’s narcissism were positively related.) We discuss implications for studies of relationship processes as two-person group dynamics

Meaning in Life as a Mediator of Ethnic Identity and Adjustment Among Adolescents from Latin, Asian, and European American Backgrounds

Establishing a sense of life meaning is a primary facet of well-being, yet is understudied in adolescent development. Using data from 579 adolescents (53% female) from Latin American, Asian, and European backgrounds, demographic differences in meaning in life, links with psychological and academic adjustment, and the role of meaning in explaining associations between ethnic identity and adjustment were examined. Although no generational or gender differences were found, Asian Americans reported higher search for meaning than Latin and European Americans. Presence of meaning was positively associated with self-esteem, academic adjustment, daily well-being, and ethnic belonging and exploration, whereas search for meaning was related to lower self-esteem and less stability in daily well-being. Presence of meaning mediated associations between ethnic identity and adjustment, explaining 28–52% of ethnic identity’s protective effect on development. Ethnic identity thus appears to affect adjustment, in part, through its role in fostering a positive sense of meaning in adolescents’ lives