Psychology

We provide a selective review of the literature on personality and vocational behavior from 1993 to 1997. We framed the personality aspects of the research in terms of the Five-Factor Model of personality whenever possible, to enhance synthesis across the literature. Major clusters of literature reviewed included the links of personality to choice-related processes (i.e., interests, aspirations, attitudes and values, maturity, and decision-making), general career processes (i.e., job searches, career progression and changes, multiple roles, career commitment, congruence, and mentoring), occupational satisfaction and well-being (i.e., job satisfaction, occupational stress, strain, and burnout), and organizational outcomes (i.e., job performance, other desirable and undesirable outcomes). Neuroticism, extraversion, and conscientiousness emerged most frequently in associations with vocational behavior. We summarize other themes and provide recommendations for future research in this domain.

Psychological theories have long emphasized the roles of emotions in healthy functioning and in psychotherapy. However, the masculine socialization process has been hypothesized to encourage men to devalue and restrict much of their emotional experiencing (e.g., Brannon, 1976; Levant, 1992; O'Neil, 1981). This study of 208 men used two operationalizations of traditional masculine gender role socialization and found evidence that men reporting greater gender role conflict also acknowledged greater levels of alexithymia and fear of intimacy, even after controlling for socially desirable responding. Implications for psychotherapy and for future theory and research are noted.

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Researchers have called for increasing sophistication in the assessment of women's feminist identity development (Enns & Hackett, 1990; Hackett, Enns, & Zetzer, 1992) to understand important psychological processes. This series of studies examined recent efforts to operationalize Downing and Roush's (1985) model of feminist identity development. Specifically, the psychometric properties of two existing measures—the Feminist Identity Development Scale (Bargad & Hyde, 1991) and the Feminist Identity Scale (Rickard, 1987)—were examined in two studies with separate samples of women (total N= 486). Results of Study 1 indicated the strengths and significant limitations associated with each scale (e.g., low internal consistency for some subscales, item-subscale inconsistency). A composite measure (derived from these scales) with better overall psychometric properties is described. In Study 2, we found good support for the composite instrument's internal consistency, as well as convergent, discriminant, and factorial validity in a sample that included a wide age range and nonstudent community residents.

Sexual assault in general and date rape in particular are major issues for practitioners, educators, and researchers in counseling. This study sought to extend and refine existing research on the links between masculine gender roles and date rape by exploring 3 masculinity-related constructs that, until recently, have received relatively little attention in the context of rape research: masculinity ideology, attitudes toward feminism, and homophobia. In general, combinations of masculinity-related constructs were found to predict self-reported acceptance or perpetration of sexually coercive behaviors. Specifically, multiple regression analyses revealed that attitudes toward feminism and various, specific dimensions of masculinity ideology (vs. a global assessment, as in previous research) predicted unique variance in several types of date rape-supportive attitudes and beliefs: the Facade/Counterdependence dimension of masculinity ideology also predicted unique variance in self-reported history of sexual coercion. Implications for prevention, education, and future research are discussed.

The purpose of the current study was to respond to researchers’ calls to further illuminate the relations of the domains of vocational interests and personality (e.g., Lowman, 1991; Spokane, 1991; Waller, Lykken, & Tellegen, 1995). Specifically, we extended the empirical literature in this area by directly relating the RIASEC dimensions hypothesized by Prediger (1982; i.e., data/ideas and things/people) and by Hogan (1983; i.e., sociability and conformity) to the five-factor model of personality in a sample of 490 employed adults (mean age = 37). Results indicated strong links between personality and both sets of RIASEC dimensions, as well as somewhat different links for men and women in terms of both magnitude and pattern. Consistent with theory and related research, RIASEC dimensions were associated particularly strongly with the Big-Five dimensions of extraversion and openness, especially for men.

The relations among masculine role conflict, problem-solving appraisal, and 3 aspects of psychological distress (depression, anxiety, and dissatisfaction with social support) were investigated using latent variable modeling in a sample of 260 male college students. The final model indicated acceptable representation of the data and explained 35% of variance in men's experience of psychological distress. Problem-solving appraisal predicted 34% of men's psychological distress. However, contrary to published research, masculine role conflict accounted for only 1% of men's experience of psychological distress via its indirect relation through problem-solving appraisal. These findings call into question the uniformity myth that greater masculine role conflict is closely associated with men's experience of psychological distress. Potentially salient implications of the findings for practice and future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)

This study assessed the structure of a widely used measure of masculinity ideology, the Male Role Norms Scale (Thompson & Pleck, 1986), using data from four samples of male college students (total N= 656) at two large, public universities (one Midwestern, one Eastern-Central). Exploratory factor analysis suggested a four-factor model best fit the data in the exploratory sample (sample 1; N = 210). The four factors were Status/Rationality, Antifemininity, Tough Image, and Violent Toughness. A series of confirmatory factor analyses on a validation sample (samples 2, 3, and 4; N = 446), tested four models based on theory (i.e., Brannon, 1976) and previous research (i.e., Thompson & Pleck, 1986). Results from Study 1, our exploratory analysis, indicated that the four-factor model derived from the exploratory sample in Study 1 provided the best fit for the validation sample data of all models tested and also provided a good fit in absolute terms, according to several model–data fit indices. Implications for the assessment of masculinity ideology and suggestions for future research are discussed.

This article presents a new application of cluster analytic methodology to the study of gender role attitudes. We developed a preliminary typology of men's profiles of masculinity ideology in a sample of 217 upper-level undergraduates stratified across all academic divisions at a large, public university in the midwest. Based on cluster analyses of four dimensions of masculinity ideology, five patterns of endorsement were identified: Moderately Traditional, High Status/Low Violence, Nontraditional, High Violence/Moderately Traditional, and Traditional. Preliminary validity of this cluster solution was demonstrated by significant differences by cluster in gender role egalitarianism.

This research examined the therapy behaviors self-identified feminist therapists engaged in. Practicing therapists (N= 101) were asked to endorse various feminist self-labels and to indicate how often they engaged in a variety of feminist (as assessed by the Feminist Therapy Behaviors-Revised [FTB-R] scale; and other therapy behaviors with both women and men clients. The following results were found. First, incrementally specific feminist self-labeling by therapists improved the prediction of therapy behaviors reflecting the notion that the personal is political. Second, the most strongly identified feminist therapists were distinguished from other therapists by their attention to issues of oppression (e.g., sexism, racism, heterosexism) and socialization. Third, therapists reported engaging in FTB-R behaviors with men clients almost as much as with women clients. And finally, FTB-R and other therapy behaviors emerged as distinct, both in terms of the underlying structure of therapists' responses and in terms of the links to feminist self-labeling.

Have you been invited to be a discussant or expert commentator for an academic symposium? Here is the guidance I was wishing for when I prepared for my first time to fill that role. I was invited to write this guide for the newsletter of Division 51 of the American Psychological Association, where it was published around 1997. If you cannot access the PDF here, e-mail [email protected] or [email protected] for a copy.

This response to Yoder, Snell, and (2012) discusses implications for applying and building on their research findings regarding the complex feminist identifications found in young university women. Based on identity scholarship by women of color, it also discusses the challenges of conceptualizing and studying interactions among feminist and other multiple identities. Opportunities for richer understanding of the lives of people of all genders will come from taking into account hybrid and intersectional feminisms and identities and broadening samples to highlight the experiences of diverse groups of individuals.

Popular media convey notions that the United States is a postfeminist culture, where sexism is a thing of the past and gender equality prevails. Empirical data suggest otherwise. Further, links between group-based discrimination and psychological distress have been well documented (e.g., in bisexual and gay Latino men, African Americans, Asian Americans). Less understood are mediating factors explaining these links. We hypothesized a theory-based, integrated path model of women's distress and well-being as predicted by sexist events, highlighting intermediate effects of women's beliefs about justice and control in their lives. Specifically, we hypothesized that the more a woman experiences sexist events, the less fair and just her life seems; in turn, she feels less control of her life and reports heightened mental health concerns (depression, anxiety, less well-being). Cross-sectional data from 264 women indicated that sexist events had indirect effects on all three mental ...

The social and political landscape for sexual minority (SM) and transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) people has improved in the United States during the past several years. The Supreme Court’s ruling that made same-sex marriage legal in all 50 states was a visible, dramatic, and (for some) surprising change that affected the quality of life for many SM individuals. Shifts in attitudes and policies on other key issues (e.g., domestic partnership benefits, adoption, parenting) affecting both SM and TGNC communities have gained positive ground (American Civil Liberties Union, 2015) since the last publication of this handbook. However, in comparison with people in the general population, SM and TGNC people still face high rates of discrimination, interpersonal harassment and violence (Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2014), and mental health challenges (e.g., Burgess, Lee, Tran, & van Ryn, 2008; Mustanski, Garofalo, & Emerson, 2010). In this latest edition of the handbook, we exa...

A two-factor model of individual differences in smoking abstinence response was assessed. The two factors were nicotine bioadaptation (nicotine exposure and self-reported tolerance/dependence) and self-medication for negative affect/psychopathology. Bioadaptation was expected to promote transient increases in smoking abstinence-related negative affect, while self-medication was expected to be related to relatively permanent increases in negative affect. Of 56 male smokers starting, 50 completed the study, 30 of whom were randomly assigned to an immediate cessation group and 20 to a continuing-to-smoke control group. Mood and craving were repeatedly measured with the Profile of Mood States (POMS) and the Shiffman Withdrawal Questionnaire, administered twice per week during a three-week pre-quit baseline period and every 48 h during the 30-day abstinence phase. POMS negative moods decreased significantly across the six pre-quit baseline days even though there was no smoking cessation-related intervention during this time, a finding with implications for the question of whether quitters return to pre-quit levels of negative affect. Support for the two-factor model was provided by three of our findings. First, POMS Depression, Tension and Anger increased in the quit group after quitting and never returned to levels corresponding to the continuingto-smoke controls even after 30 days of abstinence. Second, trait depression assessed prior to smoking abstinence correlated with abstinence-related increases in POMS state depressive affect score shortly after quitting and during the last eight days of the study. Third, pre-quit cotinine concentration correlated with increases in negative affect during the first 48 h of abstinence. The findings suggest that previous studies should be interpreted with caution because of their failure to take into account the repeated-measures effect and selective attrition.

Genetic factors dynamically interact with both pre-and postnatal environmental influences to shape development. Considerable attention has been devoted to gene-environment interactions (GxE) on important outcomes (Caspi & Moffitt, 2006). It is also important to consider the possibility that these GxE effects may vary across development, particularly for constructs like self-regulation that emerge slowly, depend on brain regions that change qualitatively in different developmental periods, and thus may be manifested differently. To illustrate one approach to explore such developmental patterns, the relation between variation in the TaqIA polymorphism, related to D2 dopamine receptor expression and availability, and prenatal exposure to tobacco, was examined in two exploratory studies. First, in 4-week-old neonates, genotype-exposure interactions were observed for attention and irritable reactivity, but not for stress dysregulation. Second, in preschool children, genotype was related to Trails-P task performance on conditions requiring executive control, and children with both the A1+ genotype and a history of prenatal tobacco exposure displayed disproportionately poor