Showing papers on "Interpersonal relationship published in 1998"

Social Relationships and Motivation in Middle School: The Role of Parents, Teachers, and Peers

Abstract: Adolescents' supportive relationships with parents, teachers, and peers were examined in relation to motivation at school (school- and class-related interest, academic goal orientations, and social goal pursuit). On the basis of 167 sixth-grade students, relations of perceived support from parents, teachers, and peers to student motivation differed depending on the source of support and motivational outcome: Peer support was a positive predictor of prosocial goal pursuit, teacher support was a positive predictor of both types of interest and of social responsibility goal pursuit, and parent support was a positive predictor of school-related interest and goal orientations. Perceived support from parents and peers also was related to interest in school indirectly by way of negative relations with emotional distress. Pursuit of social responsibility goals and school- and class-related interest in 6th grade partly explained positive relations between social support in 6th grade and classroom grades 1 year later. Continued research on the social origins of classroom motivation in early adolescence is needed. For most students, early adolescence is a time of change and transition. With respect to interpersonal relationships and social adjustment, these changes reflect a growing psychological and emotional independence from adults and a corresponding dependence on peer relationships to establish and maintain positive perceptions of the self (Steinberg, 1990; Youniss & Smollar, 1985). Often confounding these general developmental challenges is a transition to a new school environment, which tends to be marked by adolescents' perceptions that teachers no longer care about them, and decreased opportunities to establish meaningful relationships with peers (Eccles & Midgley, 1989). Therefore, young adolescents often must negotiate and establish relationships with adults and peers under less than optimal conditions. A particular concern is that young adolescents who do not enjoy positive, supportive relationships with adults and peers are often at risk for academic problems (e.g., Goodenow, 1993; Midgley, Feldlaufer, & Eccles, 1989; Phelan, Davidson, & Cao, 1991). In the present study, I examined specific ways in which supportive relationships with parents, teachers, and peers are related to young adolescents' motivation at school and to academic performance.

Interpersonal Forgiving in Close Relationships: II. Theoretical Elaboration and Measurement

Abstract: Interpersonal forgiving was conceptualized in the context of a 2-factor motivational system that governs people's responses to interpersonal offenses Four studies were conducted to examine the extent to which forgiving could be predicted with relationship-level variables such as satisfaction, commitment, and closeness; offense-level variables such as apology and impact of the offense; and social-cognitive variables such as offunder-focused empathy and rumination about the offense Also described is the development of the transgression-related interpersonal motivations inventory--a self-report measure designed to assess the 2-component motivational system (Avoidance and Revenge) posited to underlie forgiving The measure demonstrated a variety of desirable psychometric properties, commending its use for future research As predicted, empathy, apology, rumination, and several indexes of relationship closeness were associated with self-reported forgiving

Social anxiety among adolescents: linkages with peer relations and friendships.

Abstract: This study examined the utility of modifying the Social Anxiety Scale for Children-Revised (SASC-R) for use with adolescents, and examined associations between adolescents' social anxiety (SA) and their peer relations, friendships, and social functioning. Boys (n = 101) and girls (n = 149) in the 10th through 12th grades completed the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A) and measures of social support, perceived competence, and number and quality of their best friendships. Factor analysis of the SAS-A confirmed a three-factor structure: Fear of Negative Evaluation, Social Avoidance and Distress in General, and Social Avoidance Specific to New Situations or Unfamiliar Peers. Girls reported more SA than boys, and SA was more strongly linked to girls' social functioning than boys'. Specifically, adolescents with higher levels of SA reported poorer social functioning (less support from classmates, less social acceptance), and girls with higher levels of SA reported fewer friendships, and less intimacy, companionship, and support in their close friendships. These findings extend work on the SASC-R to adolescents, and suggest the importance of SA for understanding the social functioning and close friendships of adolescents, especially girls.

Intimacy as an Interpersonal Process" The Importance of Self-Disclosure, Partner Disclosure, and Perceived Partner Responsiveness in Interpersonal Exchanges

Abstract: H. T. Reis and P. Shaver's (1988) interpersonal process model of intimacy suggests that both self-disclosure and partner responsiveness contribute to the experience of intimacy in interactions. Two studies tested this model using an event-contingent diary methodology in which participants provided information immediately after their social interactions over 1 (Study 1) or 2 (Study 2) weeks. For each interaction, participants reported on their self-disclosures, partner disclosures, perceived partner responsiveness, and degree of intimacy experienced in the interaction. Overall, the findings strongly supported the conceptualization of intimacy as a combination of self-disclosure and partner disclosure at the level of individual interactions with partner responsiveness as a partial mediator in this process. Additionally, in Study 2, self-disclosure of emotion emerged as a more important predictor of intimacy than did self-disclosure of facts and information.

Uncertainty, trust, and commitment formation in the United States and Japan

Abstract: A theory of trust proposed by Yamagishi and Yamagishi provides the basis for the prediction that (1) social uncertainty promotes commitment formation between particular partners and (2) high trusters tend to form committed relations less frequently than would low trusters when facing social uncertainty. These predictions receive support in two experiments conducted in the United States and Japan. The findings provide empirical support for the theory of trust that emhasizes the role of general trust (trust in others in general) in emancipating people fromt the confines of safe, but closed relationships. The results also offer a theoretical explanation for what have been viewed in the past as cultural differences.

Cognitive Interdependence: Commitment and the Mental Representation of Close Relationships

Abstract: On the basis of an interdependence analysis, it is proposed that commitment to a close relationship is associated with cognitive interdependence—a mental state characterized by a pluralistic, collective representation of the self-in-relationship. A cross-sectiona l survey study and a 2-wave longitudinal study revealed that strong commitment to a romantic relationship is associated with greater spontaneous plural pronoun usage, greater perceived unity of self and partner, and greater reported relationship centrality. Commitment and cognitive interdependence operate in a cycle of mutual influence, such that earlier commitment predicts change over time in cognitive interdependence, and earlier cognitive interdependence predicts change over time in commitment. Links between commitment and cognitive interdependence were weak or nonsignifican t for relationships among best friends, suggesting that this phenomenon may be unique to romantic relationships. Involvement in a close relationship can change individuals in fundamental ways. For example, close involvement can produce changes in everyday activity preferences, arising from attempts to coordinate activities with those of a significant other (cf. Berscheid, Snyder, & Omoto, 1989; Van Lange et al., 1997). Close involvement can also change the ways in which we communicate; for instance, increasing commitment is associated with enhanced tendencies to accommodate, or to diminish negative reciprocity during the course of interaction (cf. Gottman, 1979; Rusbult, Verette, Whitney, Slovik, & Lipkus, 1991). Does close involvement modify mental representations of the self or change the manner in which we think about ourselves in relation to our partners? The present work asserts that increasing relationship commitment is accompanied by a restructuring of selfin-relationship mental representations, including tendencies to perceive ourselves less as individuals and more as part of a

Handbook of personal relationships: Theory, research and interventions.

Abstract: Handbook of Personal Relationships: Theory, Research and Interventions (2nd ed.). Steve Duck (Ed.). Chichester, England: John Wiley & Sons. 1997. 857 pp. ISBN 0-471-95913-8. $140.00 cloth. Steve Duck, Lee West, and Linda Acitelli underscore in the introduction to the Handbook of Personal Relationships the sentiment that "real life relationships . . . happen to real people while. . . researchers are busy making other models" (p. 20). Their main thesis is that a discrepancy exists between real life relationships and relationships depicted in research. To support that contention, they present several criticisms, two of which are emphasized here. They argue that researchers represent relationships too simplistically, and little focus is placed on sociocultural contexts of relationships. Contributors address the thesis by demonstrating how research can represent complexities of relating and relationships, thereby illustrating how the criticism can be overcome or by stressing sociocultural contexts in which relationships exist. Chapters in Section 1, "Developmental Psychology," demonstrate that the study of relationship learning has moved beyond the dyadic level to the more complex systems level of influence. For example, Ross Parke and Robin O'Neil review research on family subsystems that describe how subsystems influence relationship learning and the processes through which that learning occurs. Maria von Salisch builds on Parke and O'Neil's work by describing how affect regulation is learned through experiencing emotions elicited by others. Two themes pervade Section 2, "Social Psychology." The first concerns how, within interdependent relationships, motives conflict. converge, and resolve into individual and joint outcomes. This theme is addressed through a data-analytic approach and through the perspectives of two theories-interdependence and self-expansion. The second theme concerns origins of personal dispositions leading to conflicts in relationships and is addressed in chapters covering evolutionary approaches to relationships, adult attachment formation, and interracial ties. For example, Stanley Gaines and William Ickes present the origins of differences between contrasting opinions of interracial relationships by examining such relationships from two perspectives-that of individuals observing them (outsiders) and that of individuals engaging in them (insiders). Gaines and Ickes explain that previous research, capturing only the outsiders' perspective, was incomplete. They argue that outsiders' and insiders' perspectives are needed to understand interracial relationships and that the interaction of these perspectives is important because tensions between the two can affect relationships. Complexities of interracial relationships are made more evident by records of frank conversations among insiders communicating with one another via the Internet. …

Organizational citizenship behavior of contingent workers in Singapore

Abstract: This study, conducted in Singapore, where there are ongoing labor shortages, supports social exchange theory predictions that contingent workers engage in less organizational citizenship, expect le...

Attachment working models and the sense of trust : An exploration of interaction goals and affect regulation

Abstract: Five studies examined the association between adult attachment style and the sense of trust in close relationships. Study 1 focused on the accessibility of trust-related memories. Studies 2-5 focused on trust-related goals and coping strategies, while using different data collection techniques (openended probes, diary methodology, lexical decision task). Findings showed that secure persons felt more trust toward partners, showed higher accessibility of positive trust-related memories, reported more positive trust episodes over a 3-week period, and adopted more constructive strategies in coping with the violation of trust than insecure persons. In addition, whereas intimacy attainment was the main trust-related goal for all the attachment groups, security attainment was an additional goal of anxious-ambivalent persons, and control attainment was an additional goal of avoidant persons. Findings are discussed in terms of attachment working models.

Social Networks and Perceptions of Intergroup Conflict: The Role of Negative Relationships and Third Parties

Abstract: This study investigated the relationship between interpersonal relationships among members of different departments and individuals' perceptions of intergroup conflict within an organization. Altho...

Complaints About Transgressions and Misconduct

Abstract: (1998). Complaints About Transgressions and Misconduct. Research on Language and Social Interaction: Vol. 31, No. 3-4, pp. 295-325.

Work, friendship, and media use for information exchange in a networked organization

Abstract: We use a social network approach to examine how work and friendship ties in a university research group were associated with the kinds of media used for different kinds of information exchange. The use of electronic mail, unscheduled face-to-face encounters, and scheduled face-to-face meetings predominated for the exchange of six kinds of information: Receiving Work, Giving Work, Collaborative Writing, Computer Programming, Sociability, and Major Emotional Support. Few pairs used synchronous desktop videoconferencing or the telephone. E-mail was used in similar ways as face-to-face communication. The more frequent the contact, the more “multiplex” the tie: A larger number of media was used to exchange a greater variety of information. The closeness of work ties and of friendship ties were each independently associated with more interaction: A greater frequency of communication, the exchange of more kinds of information, and the use of more media. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Calibrating the sociometer: the relationship between interpersonal appraisals and state self-esteem.

Abstract: Four experiments examined the functional relationship between interpersonal appraisal and subjective feelings about oneself. Participants imagined receiving one of several positive or negative reactions from another person (Experiments 1, 2, and 3) or actually received interpersonal evaluations (Experiment 4), then completed measures relevant to state self-esteem. All 4 studies showed that subjective feelings were a curvilinear, ogival function of others' appraisals. Although trait self-esteem correlated with state reactions as a main effect, it did not moderate participants' reactions to interpersonal feedback.

Academic and Social Motivational Influences on Students' Academic Performance

Abstract: We discuss ways in which aspects of academic and social motivation interact to influence student's academic performance. Research on academic and social motivational constructs is reviewed, focusing on students' ability and efficacy beliefs, control beliefs, achievement values, and achievement goal orientations. Relations between academic and social motivational processes are discussed, as well as how motivational processes from both domains might interact to influence academic outcomes. We also discuss motivation from the perspective of contextual factors and school socialization processes that have the potential to influence student motivation and subsequent performance. In this regard, teachers' instructional practices and interpersonal relationships with students are highlighted as potentially powerful factors influencing student motivation and performance.

Hope, problem-solving ability, and coping in a college student population: some implications for theory and practice.

Abstract: The influence of high versus low hope on problem-solving ability and on coping with stressful academic and interpersonal situations was examined in 211 college students. Consistent with Snyder's (1995) model, high-hope students were found to have greater problem-solving abilities than low-hope students. High-hope students were also found to employ less disengagement strategies than low-hope students for coping with stressful academic situations. No difference was found in the strategies used by high- and low-hope students for coping with stressful interpersonal situations. Separate hierarchical regression analyses indicated that hope was an important predictor of both academic and interpersonal life satisfaction independent of coping activities. Implications of the present findings for both theory and practice are discussed.

Relational self-worth: differences in perceived worth as a person across interpersonal contexts among adolescents.

Abstract: The present study investigated the hypothesis that in addition to perceptions of one's global self-worth as a person, individuals evaluate their self-worth differently across relational contexts. Perceptions of self-worth among adolescents were examined in 4 such contexts: with parents, teachers, male classmates, and female classmates. The factor pattern revealed a clear, 4-factor solution with negligible cross-loadings. Approximately three-fourths of the participants reported differences in self-worth, ranging from small to large, across contexts. To examine the basis for differences and similarities across relationships, self-worth in each context was predicted by the validation support reported by adolescents in that context. Support in a given context was significantly more highly correlated with relational self-worth in the corresponding context than in any of the other contexts. Adolescents could be divided into subgroups based upon the high correlation between self-worth in one particular context and global self-worth. These findings suggest that how an individual evaluates the self in certain relationships is critical to his or her overall sense of worth as a person.

Commitment in a changing world of work.

Abstract: The Canadian workplace is undergoing extensive changes that have the potential to alter dramatically the psychological commitments that employees experience with regard to their work. The purpose of this article is to examine the interplay between these changes and employee commitment. We begin by outlining a well-established three-component model of commitment and identifying some of the changes taking place in the world of work. The potential impact of these changes on employee commitment is then discussed with respect to three selected themes: changes in the nature of employees' commitment to the organization, changes in the focus of employees' commitment, and the multiplicity of employer-employee relationships within organizations. Finally, we discuss the implications of the changes in commitment for both practitioners and researchers within the field of I-O psychology.There are major changes taking place in the political, economic, and societal climate in Canada and throughout the developed world. These changes are having a tremendous impact on the world of work and how organizations do business. Among the things affected by organizational attempts to adapt to these changes is their relationship with employees. In this article, we discuss the changing nature of this relationship with specific focus on the impact on employee commitment. In light of this discussion, we offer suggestions as to how organizations might better manage their relationships with employees, and provide an agenda for future research by I-O psychologists. To begin, however, we provide a brief overview of what we currently know about the nature, development, and consequences of employee commitment.Commitment in the WorkplaceTheory and research on workplace commitment is most developed in the area of employee commitment to organizations (Morrow & McElroy, 1993). Until relatively recently, organizational commitment was viewed as a unidimensional construct, but there was little consensus on the nature of the construct (Meyer & Allen, 1991). Today, it is well recognized that employees' commitment to the organization can take different forms (e.g., Allen & Meyer, 1990; O'Reilly & Chatman, 1986). Allen and Meyer (1990), for example, identified three common themes among the uni-dimensional conceptualizations of commitment. The first, which they labelled affective commitment, is characterized by an emotional attachment to, identification with, and involvement in the organization. The second, continuance commitment, reflects a perceived cost associated with discontinuing employment. Finally, normative commitment consists of a belief that it is one's moral obligation to remain with the organization. Allen and Meyer argued that a more complete understanding of an employee's relationship with an organization is achieved by recognizing that he or she might experience all three of these forms of commitment to varying degrees.Although there are a variety of factors that have the potential to contribute to the development of affective, continuance, and normative commitment, including individual differences, the strongest influences tend to be situational (Meyer & Allen, 1997). Affective commitment appears to be strengthened by work experiences that contribute to employees' "comfort" in the organization (e.g., good interpersonal relations; role clarity) as well as their sense of "competence" and self-worth (e.g., participation; feedback; challenge). Continuance commitment increases as a function of actions or decisions, in or outside the workplace, that make the retention of valued assets (e.g., company benefits; status in the community) contingent on their continued employment in the organization. Normative commitment is influenced by familial/cultural or organizational socialization experiences that emphasize the appropriateness of continued service, or by the receipt of benefits from the organization (e. …

On the Perception of Social Consensus

Abstract: Publisher Summary Humans, as social creatures continually perceive others and predict what others think, feel, and, most importantly, what they will do. Various branches of social psychology have addressed questions posed by this basic need for prediction and in specific about impression formation, interpersonal relations, and group stereotypes. It is noted that social perceptions and predictions must be reasonably accurate to be effective. Perceptions of the social world can become destructive if they are grossly distorted. Perceiver's own behavior, values, or their visual perspective uniquely affect their judgments. Such egocentric variations underscore the subjectivity of social perception. This chapter aims to examine these egocentric distortions in perceptions of social consensus. The perception of social consensus is the idea that the thoughts, feelings, and actions of others are similar to one's own. The chapter provides a brief review of the history of projection research, which establishes that the interest in this phenomenon is old and has intrigued investigators of differing theoretical persuasions.

Urban Girls: Resisting Stereotypes, Creating Identities.

Abstract: Sociologists have tried to analyze adolescents as long as the discipline has existed However, most studies have focused on suburban youth, ignoring a large segment of the population, the urban adolescent Urban Girls tries to reverse this trend The researchers included in this ambitious project realize there is more to adolescence than the suburban experience The city has unique effects on the people who live there, and they on it Drawing on experts from across the country, Urban Girls investigates what it is like to be young in an American city This book also explores the minority experience in America It is wonderful to see studies of Black and Latina youth that do not automatically label them as future convicts, drug dealers, or with other negative stereotypes --The American Reporter Traditional psychology textbooks have ignored the normative development of urban girls and the unique situations they face on a daily basis Lumped together with their suburban, mostly white and middle class counterparts, their voices are frequently subsumed within the larger study of adolescent development Urban Girls is the first book to directly focus on the development of urban poor and working class adolescent girls Including both quantitative and qualitative essays, and including contributions from psychologists, sociologists, and public health scholars, this volume explores the lives of a diverse group of girls from varying ethnic and class backgrounds Topics covered include the identity development of Caribbean-American girls, the role of truth telling in the psychological development of African-American girls, relationships between mothers and daughters of different races and ethnicities, friendships, sexuality, health risks, career development, and other subjects of importance to human development Filling a gap in the literature of human development, Urban Girls is sure to be of use to psychologists, sociologists, and social workers

Coming out for lesbian women: its relation to anxiety, positive affectivity, self-esteem, and social support.

Abstract: The present study investigated relations between lesbians' disclosure of their sexual orientation and psychological adjustment. The 499 participants responded to a questionnaire assessing level of self-disclosure, sources of social support, forms of socializing, self-description of sexual orientation, and length of self-identification as a lesbian. The more widely a woman disclosed her sexual orientation the less anxiety, more positive affectivity, and greater self-esteem she reported. Degree of disclosure to family, gay and lesbian friends, straight friends, and co-workers was related to overall level of social support, with those who more widely disclosed reporting greater levels of support. Participants who more widely disclosed their sexual orientation were less likely to engage in anonymous socializing, had a larger percentage of lesbian friends, and were more involved in the gay and lesbian community. Path analyses revealed a mediating effect of social reactions (both initial and current) o...

A National Portrait of Family Structure and Adolescent Drug Use

Abstract: Using 3 years of data from the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, we examine the distribution of drug use among adolescents aged 12-17 years by family structure. In addition, we investigate the plausibility of two hypotheses that purport to explain the association between family structure and adolescent behavior, namely economic resources and residential mobility. The results of cross-tabulations and multivariate logistic regression models indicate that the risk of drug use, including problem use, is highest among adolescents in father-custody families (father-only and father-stepmother families), even after controlling for the effects of sex, age, race-ethnicity, family income, and residential mobility. The risk of drug use is lowest in mother-father families. Economic resources and residential mobility fail to explain these relationships, thus casting doubt on their ability to explain the association between family structure and an important adolescent behavior. Key Words: adolescent, alcohol, drug use, family structure marijuana. The development and consequences of adolescent drug use are important social issues. Adolescents who use drugs are at heightened risk of low academic achievement, high school dropout, early sexual initiation, teenage nonmarital pregnancy, troubled interpersonal relationships, and marital disruption in adulthood (Johnson & Kaplan, 1990; Newcomb & Bentler, 1988). A parallel line of research demonstrates that each of these outcomes is also associated with residence in singleparent or stepparent families (Astone & McLanahan, 1991, 1994; Downey, 1994, 1995; Downey & Powell, 1993; McLanahan & Sandefur, 1994; Wu, 1996). Although the link between family structure and adolescent drug use has been explored in a number of previous studies (Flewelling & Bauman, 1990; Hoffmann, 1994, 1995; Needle, Su, & Doherty, 1990; Thomas, Farrell, & Barnes, 1996), there are several lessons from the more general research on family structure that should be applied to research on adolescent drug use. The first lesson is that research on the relationship between family structure and adolescent drug use requires large samples to distinguish precise effects. Most studies have been forced to rely on categorization schemes that do not recognize potential differences between father-custody and mother-custody families. For example, much of the research in this area has assessed differences between single-mother families and mother-father families (Hoffmann, 1993; Thomas et al., 1996) or among single-parent, stepparent, and mother-father families (Flewelling & Bauman, 1990; Hoffmann, 1995; Needle et al., 1990). Yet a key result that has emerged from the general literature about family structure is that there are important differences between adolescents in mother-stepfather and father-stepmother families and between those in single-mother and single-father families (Ambert, 1986; Downey, 1995; Downey & Powell, 1993; Lee, Burkham, Zimiles, & Ladewski, 1994). In general, adolescents who reside with their mothers fare better than those who reside with their fathers in both single-parent and stepparent families. Given the small proportion of adolescents who reside with fathers but not with mothers (Bianchi, 1995; U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1993), it is not surprising that many studies of family structure and adolescent drug use, which often rely on small samples, have not heretofore distinguished the effects of father versus mother absence from the family. A second lesson concerns the theoretical models used to explain the effects of family structure on adolescent outcomes. Much of the research on family structure and adolescent drug use has been descriptive. A typical approach is to examine the distribution of drug use by family structure and then control for various demographic characteristics to determine if the relationships persist. Although this provides important information about the association between family structure and drug use, it fails to explain theoretically why this association exists. …

Introduction: Morality in Discourse.

Abstract: (1998). Introduction: Morality in Discourse. Research on Language and Social Interaction: Vol. 31, No. 3-4, pp. 279-294.

Psychosocial risk factors and mortality: a prospective study with special focus on social support, social participation, and locus of control in Norway.

Abstract: STUDY OBJECTIVE: The objective is to investigate the effect on mortality of psychosocial variables, with special focus on social support, social participation, and locus of control. DESIGN: The study is designed as a prospective study with a 17 year follow up period, using univariate and multivariate proportional hazards regression analysis to estimate the predictive power of psychosocial variables, when controlling for sociodemographic and biological factors. SETTING: The study is based on a population sample randomly drawn from different neighbourhoods of Oslo in 1975/76, for the purpose of surveying health, in particular mental health, in relation to various social and psychosocial variables. The initial data were gathered by structured interviewing, whereas the data about mortality and cause of death, was gathered from the Central Bureau of Statistics. PARTICIPANTS: The initial sample included 1010 persons above the age of 18 years, with no upper age limit. The follow up with respect to mortality covered the whole sample, with the exception of a very few who had left the country. MAIN RESULTS: When controlling for socio-demographic and biological factors, low social participation, and to a lesser extent, few close relationships and external locus of control, were associated with increased mortality. CONCLUSION: The effect of social participation and locus of control may indicate that life style, and individual psychological resources, are at least as important for survival as support from others in stressful life situations.

Social Skills Training: Should We Raze, Remodel, or Rebuild?.

Abstract: The degree to which children and youth establish and maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers is the defining feature of social competence. Difficulties in social c...

Relationship-specific and global perceptions of social support: associations with well-being and attachment.

Abstract: Is one's global sense of social support largely a summation of the support perceived to exist within current social relationships, or is it a trait-like construct independent of current support levels? To address this issue, 183 college students completed measures of global support, support from four different social domains, attachment style, and several measures of well-being. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that for two well-being measures (global and social loneliness), both global and domain support displayed significant unique associations; for emotional loneliness, only domain support had a significant unique influence. For the well-being measure reflecting generalized negative affect, only global support displayed such a unique association. Thus, global and domain support appear to be, to a considerable degree, independent constructs, each with its own sphere of influence in affecting well-being.

Influence of HIV Status and Age on Cognitive Representations of Others

Abstract: In 2 studies the postulate that the perception of time left in life influences the ways that people conceptualize social relationships was explored. It was hypothesized that when time is limited, emotional aspects of relationships are highly salient. In Study 1, a card-sort paradigm involving similarity judgments demonstrated, for a sample of persons 18 to 88 years old, that the prominence of affect in the mental representations of prospective social partners is positively associated with age. In Study 2, the same experimental approach was applied to a sample of young gay men similar to one another in age, but notably different in their health status (that is, HIV negative; HIV positive, asymptomatic; and HIV positive, symptomatic). It was found that, with age held constant, increasing closeness to the end of life is also associated with an increasing prominence of affect in the mental representations of social partners. The results suggest that the perception of limited time, rather than chronological age, is the critical variable influencing mental representations of social partners.

Research in Community and Mental Health

Abstract: Includes two main sections: social networks within and between organizations and social networks and interpersonal relationships.

Interpersonal Relationships and Relationship Dominance: An Analysis Based on Methodological Relationism

Abstract: The author argues that a mature Asian social psychology is marked by the characteristic ways in which it generates knowledge about social behavior in general, rather than by the body of knowledge it obtains about Asians. Methodological relationalism, grounded in dialectics, is explicated as a conceptual framework for the analysis of human though and action; it is transformed by Asian views reflecting the omnipresence of self-other relations in all social life. A classification of interpersonal relationships, categorized according to the basis of their formation, is provided. Cultural contrasts are explored, with reference to: (a) the formation of relationships, (b) cultural roots of how interpersonal relationships are defined in myths and legends, and (c) the dominance of specific relationships in different cultures. Finally, Confucian heritage cultures are described in terms of the construct relationship dominance.