Showing papers in "American Psychologist in 2008"
TL;DR: It is proposed that psychological research published in APA journals focuses too narrowly on Americans, which results in an understanding of psychology that is incomplete and does not adequately represent humanity.
Abstract: This article proposes that psychological research published in APA journals focuses too narrowly on Americans, who comprise less than 5% of the world's population. The result is an understanding of psychology that is incomplete and does not adequately represent humanity. First, an analysis of articles published in six premier APA journals is presented, showing that the contributors, samples, and editorial leadership of the journals are predominantly American. Then, a demographic profile of the human population is presented to show that the majority of the world's population lives in conditions vastly different from the conditions of Americans, underlining doubts of how well American psychological research can be said to represent humanity. The reasons for the narrowness of American psychological research are examined, with a focus on a philosophy of science that emphasizes fundamental processes and ignores or strips away cultural context. Finally, several suggestions for broadening the scope of American psychology are offered.
1,352 citations
TL;DR: EI--conceptualized as an ability--is an important variable both conceptually and empirically, and it shows incremental validity for predicting socially relevant outcomes.
Abstract: Some individuals have a greater capacity than others to carry out sophisticated information processing about emotions and emotion-relevant stimuli and to use this information as a guide to thinking and behavior. The authors have termed this set of abilities emotional intelligence (EI). Since the introduction of the concept, however, a schism has developed in which some researchers focus on EI as a distinct group of mental abilities, and other researchers instead study an eclectic mix of positive traits such as happiness, self-esteem, and optimism. Clarifying what EI is and is not can help the field by better distinguishing research that is truly pertinent to EI from research that is not. EI--conceptualized as an ability--is an important variable both conceptually and empirically, and it shows incremental validity for predicting socially relevant outcomes.
1,337 citations
TL;DR: Suggestions are made for changes and shifts in emphases in psychotherapy research and clinical practice to ensure that both research and practice contribute to the knowledge base and provide information that can be used more readily to improve patient care and, in the process, reduce the perceived and real hiatus betweenResearch and practice.
Abstract: The long-standing divide between research and practice in clinical psychology has received increased attention in view of the development of evidence-based interventions and practice and public interest, oversight, and management of psychological services. The gap has been reflected in concerns from those in practice about the applicability of findings from psychotherapy research as a guide to clinical work and concerns from those in research about how clinical work is conducted. Research and practice are united in their commitment to providing the best of psychological knowledge and methods to improve the quality of patient care. This article highlights issues in the research- practice debate as a backdrop for rapprochement. Suggestions are made for changes and shifts in emphases in psychotherapy research and clinical practice. The changes are designed to ensure that both research and practice contribute to our knowledge base and provide information that can be used more readily to improve patient care and, in the process, reduce the perceived and real hiatus between research and practice.
992 citations
TL;DR: Evidence that Asians and Asian Americans are more reluctant to explicitly ask for support from close others than are European Americans because they are more concerned about the potentially negative relational consequences of such behaviors is presented.
Abstract: Social support is one of the most effective means by which people can cope with stressful events. Yet little research has examined whether there are cultural differences in how people utilize their social support networks. A review of studies on culture and social support presents evidence that Asians and Asian Americans are more reluctant to explicitly ask for support from close others than are European Americans because they are more concerned about the potentially negative relational consequences of such behaviors. Asians and Asian Americans are more likely to use and benefit from forms of support that do not involve explicit disclosure of personal stressful events and feelings of distress. Discussion centers on the potential implications of these findings for intercultural interactions and for the use of mental health services by Asians and Asian Americans.
817 citations
TL;DR: It is argued that most researchers are unaware of the serious limitations of classic methods and are unfamiliar with modern alternatives, and a range of modern robust and rank-based significance tests suitable for analyzing a wide range of designs is introduced.
Abstract: Summary Most researchers analyze data using outdated methods.Classic parametric tests, effect sizes, and conÞdence inter-vals around effect size statistics are not robust to violationsof their assumptions, and violations seem to occur fre-quently when real data are analyzed. Researchers relyingon statistical tests (e.g. LeveneOs test) to identify assump-tion violations may frequently fail to detect deviations fromnormality and homoscedasticity that are large enough toseriously affect the Type I error rate and power of classicparametric tests. We recommend that researchers bypassclassic parametric statistics in favor of modern robustmethods. Modern methods perform well in a much largerrange of situations than do classic techniques. The use ofmodern methods will result in researchers Þnding morestatistically signiÞcant results when real effects exist in thepopulation. Using modern methods will also reduce thenumber of Type I errors made by researchers and result inmore accurate conÞdence intervals around robust effectsize statistics. A range of accessible texts about modernmethods is available (e.g., Wilcox, 2001, 2003), as well asa wide range of software to perform modern analyses.Given the wealth of resources available, researchers have atremendous opportunity to engage in modern robust statis-tical methods.
782 citations
TL;DR: The research reported in this article is the first to empirically demonstrate that exposure to multiple cultures in and of itself can enhance creativity.
Abstract: Many practices aimed at cultivating multicultural competence in educational and organizational settings (e.g., exchange programs, diversity education in college, diversity management at work) assume that multicultural experience fosters creativity. In line with this assumption, the research reported in this article is the first to empirically demonstrate that exposure to multiple cultures in and of itself can enhance creativity. Overall, the authors found that extensiveness of multicultural experiences was positively related to both creative performance (insight learning, remote association, and idea generation) and creativity-supporting cognitive processes (retrieval of unconventional knowledge, recruitment of ideas from unfamiliar cultures for creative idea expansion). Furthermore, their studies showed that the serendipitous creative benefits resulting from multicultural experiences may depend on the extent to which individuals open themselves to foreign cultures, and that creativity is facilitated in contexts that deemphasize the need for firm answers or existential concerns. The authors discuss the implications of their findings for promoting creativity in increasingly global learning and work environments.
708 citations
TL;DR: The author provides an overview of how the design of multimedia instruction can be informed by the science of learning and thescience of instruction, which yields 10 principles of multimedia instructional design that are grounded in theory and based on evidence.
Abstract: During the last 100 years, a major accomplishment of psychology has been the development of a science of learning aimed at understanding how people learn. In attempting to apply the science of learning, a central challenge of psychology and education is the development of a science of instruction aimed at understanding how to present material in ways that help people learn. The author provides an overview of how the design of multimedia instruction can be informed by the science of learning and the science of instruction, which yields 10 principles of multimedia instructional design that are grounded in theory and based on evidence. Overall, the relationship between the science of learning and the science of instruction is reciprocal.
684 citations
TL;DR: This article analyzes the topic of leadership from an evolutionary perspective and proposes three conclusions that are not part of mainstream theory that might explain the alienation and frustration of many citizens and employees.
Abstract: This article analyzes the topic of leadership from an evolutionary perspective and proposes three conclusions that are not part of mainstream theory. First, leading and following are strategies that evolved for solving social coordination problems in ancestral environments, including in particular the problems of group movement, intragroup peacekeeping, and intergroup competition. Second, the relationship between leaders and followers is inherently ambivalent because of the potential for exploitation of followers by leaders. Third, modern organizational structures are sometimes inconsistent with aspects of our evolved leadership psychology, which might explain the alienation and frustration of many citizens and employees. The authors draw several implications of this evolutionary analysis for leadership theory, research, and practice.
650 citations
TL;DR: The evidence showing that leaders do indeed affect the performance of organizations--for better or for worse--is summarized and the mechanisms through which they do so are described.
Abstract: This article concerns the real-world importance of leadership for the success or failure of organizations and social institutions. The authors propose conceptualizing leadership and evaluating leaders in terms of the performance of the team or organization for which they are responsible. The authors next offer a taxonomy of the dependent variables used as criteria in leadership studies. A review of research using this taxonomy suggests that the vast empirical literature on leadership may tell us more about the success of individual managerial careers than the success of these people in leading groups, teams, and organizations. The authors then summarize the evidence showing that leaders do indeed affect the performance of organizations--for better or for worse--and conclude by describing the mechanisms through which they do so.
516 citations
TL;DR: Developmentally appropriate prevention strategies that target youths directly and acknowledge normal adolescent interests in romance and sex are needed, including those with histories of sexual abuse, sexual orientation concerns, and patterns of off- and online risk taking.
Abstract: The publicity about online "predators" who prey on naive children using trickery and violence is largely inaccurate. Internet sex crimes involving adults and juveniles more often fit a model of statutory rape--adult offenders who meet, develop relationships with, and openly seduce underage teenagers--than a model of forcible sexual assault or pedophilic child molesting. This is a serious problem, but one that requires approaches different from those in current prevention messages emphasizing parental control and the dangers of divulging personal information. Developmentally appropriate prevention strategies that target youths directly and acknowledge normal adolescent interests in romance and sex are needed. These should provide younger adolescents with awareness and avoidance skills while educating older youths about the pitfalls of sexual relationships with adults and their criminal nature. Particular attention should be paid to higher risk youths, including those with histories of sexual abuse, sexual orientation concerns, and patterns of off- and online risk taking. Mental health practitioners need information about the dynamics of this problem and the characteristics of victims and offenders because they are likely to encounter related issues in a variety of contexts.
513 citations
TL;DR: The primary theme of this article, which serves as the introductory contribution of a special section of the American Psychologist, is that work plays a central role in the development, expression, and maintenance of psychological health.
Abstract: The primary theme of this article, which serves as the introductory contribution of a special section of the American Psychologist, is that work plays a central role in the development, expression, and maintenance of psychological health. The argument underlying this assumption is articulated at the outset of the article in conjunction with a historical review of vocational psychology and industrial/organizational psychology. The article follows with an overview of contemporary vocational psychology and a presentation of the psychology-of-working perspective, which has emerged from critiques of vocational psychology and from multicultural, feminist, and expanded epistemological analyses of psychological explorations of working. Three illustrative lines of inquiry in which research has affected the potential for informing public policy are presented. These three lines of scholarship (role of work in recovery from mental illness; occupational health psychology; and working, racism, and psychological health) are reviewed briefly to furnish exemplars of how the psychological study of working can inform public policy.
TL;DR: The cultural context of suicidal behavior among African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian American and Pacific Islander, and Latino adolescents, and the implications of these contexts for suicide prevention and treatment are discussed.
Abstract: Ethnic groups differ in rates of suicidal behaviors among youths, the context within which suicidal behavior occurs (e.g., different precipitants, vulnerability and protective factors, and reactions to suicidal behaviors), and patterns of help-seeking. In this article, the authors discuss the cultural context of suicidal behavior among African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian American and Pacific Islander, and Latino adolescents, and the implications of these contexts for suicide prevention and treatment. Several cross-cutting issues are discussed, including acculturative stress and protective factors within cultures; the roles of religion and spirituality and the family in culturally sensitive interventions; different manifestations and interpretations of distress in different cultures; and the impact of stigma and cultural distrust on help-seeking. The needs for culturally sensitive and community-based interventions are discussed, along with future opportunities for research in intervention development and evaluation.
TL;DR: The resulting recommendations contain standards for all journal articles, and more specific standards for reports of studies with experimental manipulations or evaluations of interventions using research designs involving random or nonrandom assignment.
Abstract: In anticipation of the impending revision of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, APA's Publications and Communications Board formed the Working Group on Journal Article Reporting Standards (JARS) and charged it to provide the board with background and recommendations on information that should be included in manuscripts submitted to APA journals that report (a) new data collections and (b) meta-analyses. The JARS Group reviewed efforts in related fields to develop standards and sought input from other knowledgeable groups. The resulting recommendations contain (a) standards for all journal articles, (b) more specific standards for reports of studies with experimental manipulations or evaluations of interventions using research designs involving random or nonrandom assignment, and (c) standards for articles reporting meta-analyses. The JARS Group anticipated that standards for reporting other research designs (e.g., observational studies, longitudinal studies) would emerge over time. This report also (a) examines societal developments that have encouraged researchers to provide more details when reporting their studies, (b) notes important differences between requirements, standards, and recommendations for reporting, and (c) examines benefits and obstacles to the development and implementation of reporting standards.
TL;DR: This article is a user's guide to conducting empirically respectable case-based time-series studies in a clinical practice or laboratory setting.
Abstract: Both researchers and practitioners need to know more about how laboratory treatment protocols translate to real-world practice settings and how clinical innovations can be systematically tested and communicated to a skeptical scientific community. The single-case time-series study is well suited to opening a productive discourse between practice and laboratory. The appeal of case-based time-series studies, with multiple observations both before and after treatment, is that they enrich our design palette by providing the discipline another way to expand its empirical reach to practice settings and its subject matter to the contingencies of individual change. This article is a user's guide to conducting empirically respectable case-based time-series studies in a clinical practice or laboratory setting.
TL;DR: Examination of rape victims' experiences seeking postassault assistance from the legal, medical, and mental health systems and how those interactions impact their psychological well-being suggests that for many victims, postassault help seeking becomes a "second rape," a secondary victimization to the initial trauma.
Abstract: This review article examines rape victims' experiences seeking postassault assistance from the legal, medical, and mental health systems and how those interactions impact their psychological well-being. This literature suggests that although some rape victims have positive, helpful experiences with social system personnel, for many victims, postassault help seeking becomes a "second rape," a secondary victimization to the initial trauma. Most reported rapes are not prosecuted, victims treated in hospital emergency departments do not receive comprehensive medical care, and many victims do not have access to quality mental health services. In response to growing concerns about the community response to rape, new interventions and programs have emerged that seek to improve services and prevent secondary victimization. The contributions of rape crisis centers, restorative justice programs, and sexual assault nurse examiner programs are examined. Strategies for creating more visible and impactful roles for psychologists and allied professionals are also discussed.
TL;DR: The article first examines the field's unclear definitions and faulty assumptions, and offers an integrated definition of race and ethnicity--dynamic sets of historically derived and institutionalized ideas and practices--while noting that race, although often used interchangeably with ethnicity, indexes an asymmetry of power and privilege between groups.
Abstract: For more than a century, hundreds of psychologists have studied race and ethnicity. Yet this scholarship, like American culture at large, has been ambivalent, viewing race and ethnicity both as sources of pride, meaning, and motivation as well as sources of prejudice, discrimination, and inequality. Underlying this ambivalence is widespread confusion about what race and ethnicity are and why they matter. To address this ambivalence and confusion, as well as to deepen the American conversation about race and ethnicity, the article first examines the field's unclear definitions and faulty assumptions. It then offers an integrated definition of race and ethnicity--dynamic sets of historically derived and institutionalized ideas and practices--while noting that race, although often used interchangeably with ethnicity, indexes an asymmetry of power and privilege between groups. Further, it shows how psychology's model of people as fundamentally independent, self-determining entities impedes the field's--and the nation's--understanding of how race and ethnicity influence experience and how the still-prevalent belief that race and ethnicity are biological categories hinders a more complete understanding of these phenomena. Five first propositions of a unified theory of race and ethnicity are offered.
TL;DR: The authors propose a new approach, the reader system, which they evaluated with psychology and education grant proposals and found to be substantially more reliable and strategically advantageous than traditional peer reviews of grant applications.
Abstract: Peer review is a gatekeeper, the final arbiter of what is valued in academia, but it has been criticized in relation to traditional psychological research criteria of reliability, validity, generalizability, and potential biases. Despite a considerable literature, there is surprisingly little sound peer-review research examining these criteria or strategies for improving the process. This article summarizes the authors' research program with the Australian Research Council, which receives thousands of grant proposals from the social science, humanities, and science disciplines and reviews by assessors from all over the world. Using multilevel cross-classified models, the authors critically evaluated peer reviews of grant applications and potential biases associated with applicants, assessors, and their interaction (e.g., age, gender, university, academic rank, research team composition, nationality, experience). Peer reviews lacked reliability, but the only major systematic bias found involved the inflated, unreliable, and invalid ratings of assessors nominated by the applicants themselves. The authors propose a new approach, the reader system, which they evaluated with psychology and education grant proposals and found to be substantially more reliable and strategically advantageous than traditional peer reviews of grant applications.
TL;DR: Test of developed abilities are generally valid for their intended uses in predicting a wide variety of aspects of short-term and long-term academic and job performance, and validity is not an artifact of socioeconomic status.
Abstract: The authors review criticisms commonly leveled against cognitively loaded tests used for employment and higher education admissions decisions, with a focus on largescale databases and meta-analytic evidence. They conclude that (a) tests of developed abilities are generally valid for their intended uses in predicting a wide variety of aspects of short-term and long-term academic and job performance, (b) validity is not an artifact of socioeconomic status, (c) coaching is not a major determinant of test performance, (d) tests do not generally exhibit bias by underpredicting the performance of minority group members, and (e) test-taking motivational mechanisms are not major determinants of test performance in these highstakes settings.
Journal Article•
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the impact of post-traumatic stress disorder on the psychological well-being of sexual assault survivors seeking post-assault assistance from the legal, medical, and mental health systems.
Abstract: This review article examines rape victims' experiences seeking postassault assistance from the legal, medical, and mental health systems and how those interactions impact their psychological well-being. This literature suggests that although some rape victims have positive, helpful experiences with social system personnel, for many victims, postassault help seeking becomes a "second rape," a secondary victimization to the initial trauma. Most reported rapes are not prosecuted, victims treated in hospital emergency departments do not receive comprehensive medical care, and many victims do not have access to quality mental health services. In response to growing concerns about the community response to rape, new interventions and programs have emerged that seek to improve services and prevent secondary victimization. The contributions of rape crisis centers, restorative justice programs, and sexual assault nurse examiner programs are examined. Strategies for creating more visible and impactful roles for psychologists and allied professionals are also discussed.
TL;DR: The quantitative methodology curriculum (statistics, measurement, and research design) was documented to examine the extent to which innovations in quantitative methodology have diffused into the training of PhDs in psychology.
Abstract: In a survey of all PhD programs in psychology in the United States and Canada, the authors documented the quantitative methodology curriculum (statistics, measurement, and research design) to examine the extent to which innovations in quantitative methodology have diffused into the training of PhDs in psychology. In all, 201 psychology PhD programs (86%) participated. This survey replicated and extended a previous survey (L. S. Aiken, S. G. West, L. B. Sechrest, & R. R. Reno, 1990), permitting examination of curriculum development. Most training supported laboratory and not field research. The median of 1.6 years of training in statistics and measurement was mainly devoted to the modally 1-year introductory statistics course, leaving little room for advanced study. Curricular enhancements were noted in statistics and to a minor degree in measurement. Additional coverage of both fundamental and innovative quantitative methodology is needed. The research design curriculum has largely stagnated, a cause for great concern. Elite programs showed no overall advantage in quantitative training. Forces that support curricular innovation are characterized. Human capital challenges to quantitative training, including recruiting and supporting young quantitative faculty, are discussed. Steps must be taken to bring innovations in quantitative methodology into the curriculum of PhD programs in psychology.
TL;DR: The long history and broadening scope of peace psychology is reviewed and a model of peace that is useful for organizing the literature is introduced that suggests that peace can be facilitated at four different points of intervention.
Abstract: Although the literature in peace psychology has been growing rapidly, many American psychologists are unaware of how conflict is resolved and peace is conceptualized and achieved. This article reviews the long history and broadening scope of peace psychology and introduces a model of peace that is useful for organizing the literature. The model suggests that peace can be facilitated at four different points of intervention. The authors discuss relationships between positive and negative peace, structural and direct violence, and peacekeeping, peacemaking, and peacebuilding. They advance some challenges for peace psychologists and conclude that peace psychology is a crucial field for grappling with humanity's most pressing problems in the coming decades.
TL;DR: This article outlines both challenges and opportunities for psychology of issues related to diversity in education and work, and discusses of work-related legislative and public policy fronts that can be informed and influenced by the contributions of psychologists.
Abstract: This article outlines both challenges and opportunities for psychology of issues related to diversity in education and work. For the purposes of this discussion, "diverse" populations include four groups currently marginalized and disadvantaged in the U.S. workplace: women, people of color, sexual minorities, and people with disabilities. An overview of employment participation patterns for these groups is presented, workplace barriers arising from marginalized status are highlighted, and the article concludes with a discussion of work-related legislative and public policy fronts that can be informed and influenced by the contributions of psychologists.
TL;DR: The author concludes that greater attention to the cultural context will expand psychology's theoretical models, greatly enhance the authors' empirically based understanding of applied problem solving/coping, and promote the ability to enhance effective problem solving and coping around the world.
Abstract: The purpose of this article is to suggest an expansion of the conceptualizations and measurement of applied problem solving and, relatedly, coping. The author discusses the evolution of his programmatic line of research over the last 30 years to illustrate the changing landscape in applied problem solving and, to a lesser extent, in the coping literature. Developments from the early stage-sequential models of applied problem solving to the utility of combining major dimensions of applied problem solving and coping are discussed, as are the notion of problem resolution as a way of assessing consequences of coping, and finally, the use of East Asian cultural values to assess collectivistic coping styles. The overlooked and until recently almost forgotten role of culture in the evolution of these general domains of inquiry is highlighted. The author concludes that greater attention to the cultural context will expand psychology's theoretical models, greatly enhance our empirically based understanding of applied problem solving/coping, and promote our ability to enhance effective problem solving and coping around the world.
TL;DR: Four new metaphors that more accurately reflect the science of child development are proposed to shape the field and research is proposed to test the scientific merit for and public receptivity to these metaphors.
Abstract: Metaphors can both inspire and mislead the public. Current metaphors for youth violence are inconsistent with scientific evidence about how chronic violence develops and evoke inaccurate or harmful reactions. Popular, problematic metaphors include superpredator, quarantining the contagious, corrective surgery, man as computer, vaccine, and chronic disease. Four new metaphors that more accurately reflect the science of child development are proposed to shape the field. Preventive dentistry offers a lifelong system of universal, selected, and indicated intervention policies. Cardiovascular disease offers concepts of distal risk factors, proximal processes, equifinality and multifinality, and long-term prevention. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's public health model focuses on injury and the victim to elicit popular support. Public education for illiteracy offers concepts of long-term universal education coupled with specialized help for high-risk youths and goes beyond metaphor to represent a truly applicable framework. Research is proposed to test the scientific merit for and public receptivity to these metaphors.
TL;DR: An ethics-based confidentiality practice model is provided that clarifies the ethical rule and puts its legal exceptions into ethical perspective and can be used as a universal training outline, a consultation and supervision tool, a guide to professional practice, and a basis for clearer ongoing conversation about the ethics of "conditional confidentiality".
Abstract: All psychologists must uphold the same ethical standards about confidentiality even though each state imposes different legal limits on their ability to protect clients' confidences. The resulting ethical-legal confusion is exacerbated by legally based confidentiality training that treats legal exceptions as if they were the rule and fosters the impression that attorneys are now the only real experts about this aspect of practice. This article provides an ethics-based confidentiality practice model that clarifies the ethical rule and puts its legal exceptions into ethical perspective. Like the Confidentiality section of the American Psychological Association's (2002) Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct, this outline would apply to all psychologists regardless of state laws, but the details of its implementation would vary according to role and setting. It can be used as a universal training outline, a consultation and supervision tool, a guide to professional practice, and a basis for clearer ongoing conversation about the ethics of "conditional confidentiality." Psychologists can use this practice model to regain their status as experts about the confidentiality ethics of their own profession.
TL;DR: This article initially presents an overview of the extant literature, and borrows models from a related but more advanced field of study to stimulate the development of conceptual frameworks for guiding research on mentoring.
Abstract: Skillful faculty mentoring of graduate students is essential for producing the next generation of scholars. Unfortunately, the mentoring process is underappreciated and understudied. This article initially presents an overview of the extant literature. Subsequently, it borrows models from a related but more advanced field of study to stimulate the development of conceptual frameworks for guiding research on mentoring. Until the field progresses from its current state (i.e., an art) to a science, there will be few empirically informed answers regarding how to mentor effectively. Nevertheless, some suggestions are warranted and are offered in order to encourage effective mentoring.
TL;DR: As members of that task force, the current authors wish to express their broad agreement with Swann et al, and clarify pockets of disagreement.
Abstract: Comments on the original article "Do people's self-views matter? Self-concept and self-esteem in everyday life," by W. B. Swann, Jr., C. Chang-Schneider, and K. L. McClarty. Swann et al argued that people's self-views, and their global self-esteem in particular, yield a suite of behavioral effects that are beneficial to the individual and to society at large. The Swann et al article is the latest link in a debate on the causal utility of self-esteem. Specifically, the article is a reply to a report published by the American Psychological Society Task Force on Self-Esteem (Baumeister, Campbell, Krueger, & Vohs, 2003). As members of that task force, the current authors wish to express their broad agreement with Swann et al. At the same time, in the comment presented here, they clarify pockets of disagreement.