Showing papers in "Current Directions in Psychological Science in 2001"
TL;DR: For example, this article found that women are twice as likely as men to experience depression from early adolescence through adulthood, and that gender differences in stress experiences and stress reactivity may interact to create women's greater vulnerability to depression.
Abstract: From early adolescence through adulthood, women are twice as likely as men to experience depression. Many different explanations for this gender difference in depression have been offered, but none seems to fully explain it. Recent research has focused on gender differences in stress responses, and in exposure to certain stressors. I review this research and describe how gender differences in stress experiences and stress reactivity may interact to create women's greater vulnerability to depression.
2,223 citations
TL;DR: The authors found that internalization is a causal risk factor for body-image and eating disorders, and that it appears to operate in conjunction with other established risk factors for these outcomes, including dieting and negative affect.
Abstract: Body-image disturbance and eating disorders are a significant physical and mental health problem in Western countries. We describe emerging work on one newly identified variable that appears to be a potent risk factor for the development of these problems internalization of societal standards of attractiveness. Work conducted independently in our labs over the past decade has included scale development, correlational studies, prospective risk-factor studies, randomized experiments, and randomized prevention trials. Findings collectively suggest that internalization is a causal risk factor for body-image and eating disturbances, and that it appears to operate in conjunction with other established risk factors for these outcomes, including dieting and negative affect. Future research is needed to examine the specific familial, peer, and media influences that promote internalization and to replicate and extend our prospective and experimental studies.
1,242 citations
TL;DR: Empirical research shows that a benign experience of repetition can in and of itself enhance positive affect, and that such affect can become attached not only to stimuli that have been exposed but also to similar stimulus that have not been previously exposed, and to totally distinct stimuli as well.
Abstract: In the mere-repeated-exposure paradigm, an individual is repeatedly exposed to a particular stimulus object, and the researcher records the individual's emerging preference for that object. Vast literature on the mere-repeated-exposure effect shows it to be a robust phenomenon that cannot be explained by an appeal to recognition memory or perceptual fluency. The effect has been demonstrated across cultures, species, and diverse stimulus domains. It has been obtained even when the stimuli exposed are not accessible to the participants’ awareness, and even prenatally. The repeated-exposure paradigm can be regarded as a form of classical conditioning if we assume that the absence of aversive events constitutes the unconditioned stimulus. Empirical research shows that a benign experience of repetition can in and of itself enhance positive affect, and that such affect can become attached not only to stimuli that have been exposed but also to similar stimuli that have not been previously exposed, and to totally...
1,192 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a review focuses on two widely used strategies for down-regulating emotion: Reappraisal and suppression, both of which come early in the emotion-generative process.
Abstract: Emotions seem to come and go as they please. However, we actually hold considerable sway over our emotions: We influence which emotions we have and how we experience and express these emotions. The process model of emotion regulation described here suggests that how we regulate our emotions matters. Regulatory strategies that act early in the emotion-generative process should have quite different outcomes than strategies that act later. This review focuses on two widely used strategies for down-regulating emotion. The first, reappraisal, comes early in the emotion-generative process. It consists of changing how we think about a situation in order to decrease its emotional impact. The second, suppression, comes later in the emotion-generative process. It involves inhibiting the outward signs of emotion. Theory and research suggest that reappraisal is more effective than suppression. Reappraisal decreases the experience and behavioral expression of emotion, and has no impact on memory. By contrast, suppress...
1,129 citations
TL;DR: The authors found that particular patterns of word use predict health and also reflect personality styles, and that language use in the laboratory writing paradigm is associated with changes in social interactions and language usage in the real world.
Abstract: When people write about their deepest thoughts and feelings about an emotionally significant event, numerous benefits in many domains (e.g., health, achievement, and well-being) result. As one step in understanding how writing achieves these effects, we have developed a computer program that provides a “fingerprint” of the words people use in writing or in natural settings. Analyses of text samples indicate that particular patterns of word use predict health and also reflect personality styles. We have also discovered that language use in the laboratory writing paradigm is associated with changes in social interactions and language use in the real world. The implications for using computer-based text analysis programs in the development of psychological theory are discussed.
484 citations
TL;DR: This article reviewed the literature on the impact of religion and spirituality on physical and mental health, concluding that the influence is largely beneficial, and proposed mechanisms for the positive effect of faith and spirituality.
Abstract: An increased interest in the effects of religion and spirituality on health is apparent in the psychological and medical literature. Although religion in particular was thought, in the past, to have a predominantly negative influence on health, recent research suggests this relationship is more complex. This article reviews the literature on the impact of religion and spirituality on physical and mental health, concluding that the influence is largely beneficial. Mechanisms for the positive effect of religion and spirituality are proposed.
465 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the anticipated and actual pleasure of outcomes and their relation to choices people make in laboratory studies and real-world studies, and proposed a theory of anticipated pleasure that explains why the same outcome can lead to a wide range of emotional experiences.
Abstract: When making decisions, people often anticipate the emotions they might experience as a result of the outcomes of their choices. In the process, they simulate what life would be like with one outcome or another. We examine the anticipated and actual pleasure of outcomes and their relation to choices people make in laboratory studies and real-world studies. We offer a theory of anticipated pleasure that explains why the same outcome can lead to a wide range of emotional experiences. Finally, we show how anticipated pleasure relates to risky choice within the framework of subjective expected pleasure theory.
424 citations
TL;DR: It is speculated that the precursors of mentalizing ability derive from a brain system that evolved for representing agents and actions, and the relationships between them.
Abstract: The fact that brain disorder can impair social interactions in different ways suggests that social competence has multiple components that have foundations in brain systems. The physiological basis of one aspect of social cognition, theory of mind, is just beginning to be understood. Brain-imaging studies suggest that a network of areas linking medial prefrontal and temporal cortex forms the neural substrate of mentalizing, that is, representing one’s own and other people’s mental states. The medial prefrontal areas are prominent also in tasks that involve selfmonitoring, whereas the temporal regions are prominent also in tasks that involve the representation of goals of actions. We speculate that the precursors of mentalizing ability derive from a brain system that evolved for representing agents and actions, and the relationships between them.
360 citations
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TL;DR: This paper showed that hot temperatures can increase aggression by directly increasing feelings of hostility and indirectly increasing aggressive thoughts, and that better climate controls in many institutional settings (e.g., prisons, schools, the workplace) may reduce aggression-related problems in those settings.
Abstract: The heat hypothesis states that hot temperatures can increase aggressive motives and behaviors. Although alternative explanations occasionally account for some portion of the observed increases in aggression when temperatures are high, none are sufficient to account for most such heat effects. Hot temperatures increase aggression by directly increasing feelings of hostility and indirectly increasing aggressive thoughts. Results show that global warming trends may well increase violent-crime rates. Better climate controls in many institutional settings (e.g., prisons, schools, the workplace) may reduce aggression-related problems in those settings.
344 citations
TL;DR: The health action process approach as discussed by the authors is explicitly based on the assumption that two distinct phases need to be studied longitudinally, one phase that leads to a behavioral intention and another phase leading to the actual behavior.
Abstract: Changing health-related behaviors requires two separate processes that involve motivation and volition, respectively. First, an intention to change is developed, in part on the basis of self-beliefs. Second, the change must be planned, initiated, and maintained, and relapses must be managed; self-regulation plays a critical role in these processes. Social-cognition models of health behavior change address these two processes. One such model, the health action process approach, is explicitly based on the assumption that two distinct phases need to be studied longitudinally, one phase that leads to a behavioral intention and another that leads to the actual behavior. Particular social-cognitive variables may play different roles in the two stages; perceived self-efficacy is the only predictor that seems to be equally important in the two phases.
342 citations
TL;DR: Forgiveness is a suite of prosocial motivational changes that occurs after a person has incurred a transgression as discussed by the authors, and people who are inclined to forgive their transgressors tend to be more agreeable, more emotionally stable, and, some research suggests, more spiritually or religiously inclined than people who do not tend to forgive the transgressors.
Abstract: Forgiveness is a suite of prosocial motivational changes that occurs after a person has incurred a transgression. People who are inclined to forgive their transgressors tend to be more agreeable, more emotionally stable, and, some research suggests, more spiritually or religiously inclined than people who do not tend to forgive their transgressors. Several psychological processes appear to foster or inhibit forgiveness. These processes include empathy for the transgressor, generous attributions and appraisals regarding the transgression and transgressor, and rumination about the transgression. Interpreting these findings in light of modern trait theory would help to create a more unified understanding of how personality might influence forgiveness.
TL;DR: The authors explored the potential theoretical explanations for this language behavior, the costs and benefits associated with language switching, and the role of language dominance in the direction of the switch, and concluded that code switching follows functional and grammatical principles and is a complex, rule-governed phenomenon.
Abstract: Bilingual speakers often code-switch from one language to another, especially when both languages are used in the environment. This article explores the potential theoretical explanations for this language behavior, the costs and benefits associated with language switching, and the role of language dominance in the direction of the switch. In short, code switching follows functional and grammatical principles and is a complex, rule-governed phenomenon. Although significant progress has been made in understanding the psycholinguistics of code switching, research is needed to examine the cognitive mechanisms underlying the bilingual's ability to integrate and separate two languages during the communicative process.
TL;DR: The study of strong and weak synesthetic phenomena provides an opportunity to enrich scientists' understanding of basic mechanisms involved in perceptual coding and cross-modal information processing.
Abstract: In this review, we distinguish strong and weak forms of synesthesia. Strong synesthesia is characterized by a vivid image in one sensory modality in response to stimulation in another one. Weak synesthesia is characterized by cross-sensory correspondences expressed through language, perceptual similarity, and perceptual interactions during information processing. Despite important phenomenological dissimilarities between strong and weak synesthesia, we maintain that the two forms draw on similar underlying mechanisms. The study of strong and weak synesthetic phenomena provides an opportunity to enrich scientists' understanding of basic mechanisms involved in perceptual coding and cross-modal information processing.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors studied the relationship between marital quality and subjective well-being in the context of retirement in the ecological and life-course context, and found that both similarities and differences between men and women demonstrated the need to consider couples conjointly (rather than viewing individuals in isolation).
Abstract: Retirement has been viewed either as a transition that is accompanied by psychological distress or as a time of continued, or even enhanced, subjective well-being. Existing evidence is mixed, with some studies reporting retirement as positively related to well-being and others reporting a negative relationship or none at all. Our research indicates that developmental and social contexts shape an individual's retirement decisions and experiences, so that retirement should be studied in its ecological and life-course context. Research on marital quality and subjective well-being in retirement has demonstrated both similarities and differences between men and women, as well as the need to consider couples conjointly (rather than viewing individuals in isolation). Future research focusing on the retirement process as it unfolds over time and in ecological context can serve to illuminate the circumstances under which retirement promotes or detracts from the quality of life.
TL;DR: This paper found that American teenagers have more discretionary time, much spent watching television or interacting with friends; spending large amounts of time in these activities is related to negative developmental outcomes, however, increasing amounts of young people's discretionary time appear to be spent in structured voluntary activities, like arts, sports, and organizations, which may foster initiative, identity, and other positive deve...
Abstract: Young people develop as “the sum of past experiences,” and data on their time use are one means of quantifying those experiences. U.S. children and adolescents spend dramatically less time than in the agrarian past in household and income-generating labor. Because such labor is usually repetitive and unchallenging, this reduction has probably not deprived youths of crucial developmental experience. The schoolwork replacing this time has a clearer relationship to developmental outcomes. American teens, however, spend less time on schoolwork than teens in other industrialized countries. American teenagers have more discretionary time, much spent watching television or interacting with friends; spending large amounts of time in these activities is related to negative developmental outcomes. Increasing amounts of young people's discretionary time, however, appear to be spent in structured voluntary activities, like arts, sports, and organizations, which may foster initiative, identity, and other positive deve...
TL;DR: The relationship between age and affect in adulthood is further complicated by the effects of moderators, such as extraversion and marital status as mentioned in this paper, which may explain why positive affect rises from youth through young and then older adulthood, but may decline after one's mid-70s.
Abstract: Evidence suggests that positive affect rises from youth through young and then older adulthood, but may decline after one's mid-70s. Negative affect appears to decrease steadily from early adulthood to older adulthood, but this decline may taper off in the oldest years. The relationship between age and affect in adulthood is further complicated by the effects of moderators, such as extraversion and marital status. Despite these complexities, recent empirical studies and current theory have furthered the understanding of age and affect in adulthood, although important questions remain.
TL;DR: This paper found evidence of both moral hypocrisy and overpowered integrity, which can lead ostensibly moral people to act immorally, and these findings raise important questions for future research on the role of moral principles as guides to behavior.
Abstract: Failure of moral people to act morally is usually attributed to either learning deficits or situational pressures. We believe that it is also important to consider the nature of moral motivation. Is the goal actually to be moral (moral integrity) or only to appear moral while, if possible, avoiding the cost of being moral (moral hypocrisy)? Do people initially intend to be moral, only to surrender this goal when the costs of being moral become clear (overpowered integrity)? We have found evidence of both moral hypocrisy and overpowered integrity. Each can lead ostensibly moral people to act immorally. These findings raise important questions for future research on the role of moral principles as guides to behavior.
TL;DR: For example, this paper found that individuals respond to suggestion without being hypnotized almost as much as they do following a hypnotic induction, and non-hypnotic and hypnotic suggestibility are highly correlated.
Abstract: More than a half-century of research aimed at identifying the predictors of hypnotic responding has been described as investigations of “hypnotizability.” Most of that research, however, has disregarded the well-established findings that (a) people respond to suggestion without being hypnotized almost as much as they do following a hypnotic induction, and (b) nonhypnotic and hypnotic suggestibility are highly correlated. More recent studies have provided the first empirical data on predictors of individual differences in response to the induction of hypnosis. These studies indicate that individual differences in hypnotic suggestibility can be accounted for completely by nonhypnotic suggestibility, expectancy, motivation, and reaction time. Because the amount of variance accounted for is as great as the reliability of the hypnotic-suggestibility scale, and because nonhypnotic suggestibility has been controlled, no additional variables are necessary to account for hypnotic suggestibility.
TL;DR: Recent developments in both evolutionary and investment-model research have greatly furthered understanding of infidelity, and the field could gain additional insight by examining the similarities of these prominent approaches.
Abstract: Given the potential negative ramifications of infidelity, it is not surprising that researchers have attempted to delineate its root causes. Historically, descriptive approaches have simply identified the demographics of who is unfaithful and how often. However, recent developments in both evolutionary and investment-model research have greatly furthered understanding of infidelity. The field could gain additional insight by examining the similarities of these prominent approaches.
TL;DR: For instance, this paper found evidence of increasing self-regulatory skill with age in the experiential aspects of emotion, but less marked age differences in the frequency and valence of affect in old age.
Abstract: Recent research investigating emotion in old age suggests that autonomic responsiveness diminishes with age. The experiential aspects of emotion, however, show less marked age differences. Despite the health-related and social losses of old age, research findings on changes in the frequency and valence of affect in old age are inconsistent, and those studies that have reported changes have found only small ones. Studies of emotion regulation have found evidence of increasing self-regulatory skill with age. Theoretical accounts of emotional development in late life emphasize the integration of cognitive and affective processes, but differ in whether accommodative mechanisms are considered to be as effective as proactive mechanisms in reaching emotional goals.
TL;DR: In this paper, a two-part model that combines multidimensional and multiplicative inheritance with dynamic development is proposed to evaluate the influence of nature on the development of talent. But the model is limited to the early stages of a person's development.
Abstract: Recent empirical research has challenged the common belief in the existence of talent, suggesting that exceptional performance is entirely the product of nurture rather than nature. However, this research has been based on a simple conception of what talent entails. Rather than involving a unidimensional, additive, and static genetic process, talent may instead emerge from a multidimensional, multiplicative, and dynamic process. This latter possibility is described in a two-part model that combines multidimensional and multiplicative inheritance with dynamic development. The first part of the model handles domain specificity, profile heterogeneity, the distribution of individual differences, familial heritability, and domain complexity. The second part explicates early-versus late-bloomers, early signs of talent, talent loss, and shifts in the domain of talent. The resulting model has crucial implications for how best to gauge the impact of nature in the development of talent.
TL;DR: The authors found that parental work stress has implications for the quality of family interaction and, in turn, children's and adolescents' adjustment, which in turn predict lower parent-child acceptance and higher conflict, processes that in turn are related to less positive adjustment of children and adolescents.
Abstract: Recent research indicates that parental work stress has implications for the quality of family interaction and, in turn, children's and adolescents' adjustment. Studies in two distinct genres are reviewed: investigations relying on global reports of work demands, family dynamics, and child and adolescent adjustment and studies focusing on within-person comparisons of family interaction on days characterized by high and low work stress. The effects of parental work stress on children's and adolescents' adjustment appear to be indirect. Work stress is linked to parents' feelings of overload and strain, which in turn predict lower parent-child acceptance and higher conflict, processes that in turn are related to less positive adjustment of children and adolescents. In the face of high work stress, withdrawing from family involvement may be adaptive in the short run but ultimately problematic. The strength of these associations depends on parents' personality qualities, parents' coping styles, and work and fa...
TL;DR: This article showed that despite their differences, these mechanisms may be substitutable for one another, and that there is surprising generality or flexibility in the processes used to maintain self-esteem.
Abstract: Many qualitatively different mechanisms for regulating self-esteem have been described in the literature. These include, for example, reduction of cognitive dissonance, self-affirmation, and social comparison. The work reviewed here demonstrates that despite their differences, these mechanisms may be substitutable for one another. For example, a threat to self via cognitive dissonance can affect attempts to maintain self-esteem via social comparison. This implies that these mechanisms are serving the same, unitary goal of maintaining self-esteem. Thus, there is surprising generality or flexibility in the processes used to maintain self-esteem. Substitution of one mechanism for another may depend on the transfer of affect. The issue of substitutability across domains is briefly discussed.
TL;DR: The authors found that decision-making groups prefer to discuss shared information that all members know instead of unshared information that a single member knows, which may stem from group members' positive evaluations of each other's task capabilities when shared information is communicated.
Abstract: Decision-making groups prefer to discuss shared information that all members know instead of unshared information that a single member knows. This bias toward discussing shared information can lead groups to make suboptimal decisions when unshared information is critical for good decision making. This preference for discussing shared information may stem from group members' positive evaluations of each other's task capabilities when shared information is communicated. Members who already are perceived as capable (i.e., those high in status, experts, and leaders) need not bolster their image by communicating shared information. Instead, they discuss unshared information more than members perceived as less capable. As members low in status gain respect by communicating shared information, they may risk mentioning unshared information later during discussion. Assigning group leaders, informing members of their expert roles, and allowing ample time for discussion may increase groups' discussion of unshared in...
TL;DR: This work reviews recent neuroimaging studies that have converged upon the conclusion that priming is reliably accompanied by decreased activity in a variety of brain regions and considers recent experiments on within- and cross-modality priming.
Abstract: Priming refers to a change in the ability to identify or produce an item as a consequence of a specific prior encounter. Priming has been studied extensively in cognitive studies of healthy volunteers, neuropsychological investigations of brain-damaged patients, and, more recently, studies using modern functional neuroimaging techniques such as positron emission tomography a nd functional magnetic resonance imaging. We review recent neuroimaging studies that have converged upon the conclusion that priming is reliably accompanied by decreased activity in a variety of brain regions. The establishment of this cortical signature of priming is beginning to generate new hypotheses concerning the relation between priming and explicit retrieval, which we illustrate by considering recent experiments on withinand cross-modality priming.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors show how economic, social, and ideological factors constrain family arrangements, but are also transformed in their creation, and how sharing parents resist those pressures, and construct equality through everyday negotiations and ongoing decisions about family and work.
Abstract: Conventional images of motherhood and fatherhood, social interactions, and gender-based job pressures push couples toward unequal parenting. Equally sharing parents resist those pressures, and construct equality through everyday negotiations and ongoing decisions about family and work. They do not believe that mothers are more responsible for children, or more suited to care for them, than fathers. They avoid gender-based decisions about jobs that reinforce a gender-based division of labor at home. Qualitative research is necessary to unravel the complex interactions between work and family arrangements, and to show how economic, social, and ideological factors constrain family arrangements, but are also transformed in their creation.
TL;DR: Fertility differentials are genetically influenced, and at least part of the influence derives from behavioral precursors that are under volitional control, which are themselves genetically mediated.
Abstract: To search for genetic influence on human fertility differentials appears inconsistent with past empirical research and prior interpretations of Fisher's fundamental theorem of natural selection. We discuss Fisher's theorem and give reasons why genetic influences may indeed account for individual differences in human fertility. We review recent empirical studies showing genetic influence on variance in fertility outcomes and precursors to fertility. Further, some of the genetic variance underlying fertility outcomes overlaps with that underlying fertility precursors. Findings from different cultures, different times, different levels of data, and both behavioral and molecular genetic designs lead to the same conclusion: Fertility differentials are genetically influenced, and at least part of the influence derives from behavioral precursors that are under volitional control, which are themselves genetically mediated.
TL;DR: Current research on how individuals process tailored health information is discussed, and directions for future research in this area are discussed.
Abstract: Advances in computer technology have made it possible to customize communication, including health-education materials, to the specific needs and interests of any individual. Studies show that individually tailored health-education materials are more effective than generic materials in promoting changes in a variety of health-related behaviors. Theory and research in information processing provide an explanation for why such materials are effective. This article discusses current research on how individuals process tailored health information, and discusses directions for future research in this area.
TL;DR: The data suggest that aging interacts with stress and depression to enhance risks for morbidity and mortality among older adults.
Abstract: A competent immune response is central to good health. There is good evidence that both aging and psychological stress can dysregulate immune function, resulting in changes in various aspects of the immune response that are large enough to have consequences for health. Older adults appear to show even greater immunological impairments associated with stress or depression than younger adults. Thus, the data suggest that aging interacts with stress and depression to enhance risks for morbidity and mortality among older adults.
TL;DR: A review of studies examining cognitive, academic, and psychosocial outcomes in children who sustained mild head injuries from 1970 to 1998 concludes that there is no compelling evidence that mild head injury is a "silent epidemic".
Abstract: Although mild head injury is the most prevalent type of head injury in children and adolescents, only a relatively small number of studies on this kind of head injury have been reported. This article summarizes a review of studies examining cognitive, academic, and psychosocial outcomes in children who sustained mild head injuries. Despite earlier claims of mild head injury being a “silent epidemic,” the studies, which were published from 1970 to 1998, provide no compelling evidence to support this view.