Observations of Adolescent Peer Group Interactions as a Function of Within‐ and Between‐Group Centrality Status

Observations of adolescent (n = 258; M age = 15.45) peer group triads (n = 86) were analyzed to identify conversation and interaction styles as a function of within‐group and between‐group centrality status. Group members' discussions about hypothetical dilemmas were coded for agreements, disagreements, commands, and opinions. Interactions during a hypothetical decision were rated for openness, dominance, aggression, and prosocial behavior. Hierarchical linear modeling revealed that higher within‐group status predicted more disagreements, commands, and less openness than lower within‐group status. Interactions showed that prosocial and aggressive behavior varied as a function of individual status in low‐status but not high‐status groups. Boys, but not girls, engaged in more openness in higher status groups. Results provide insights into peer socialization.     

Ethical Actions: A Comparison of Individual and Group Recommendations

In order to examine the way ethical decisions are made, we asked ethicists, regulatory officials, and experienced researchers to review a set of scenarios that depict important ethical tensions in research. The method employed was “protocol analysis,” a talk-aloud technique pioneered by cognitive scientists. Each individual was asked to make recommendations for courses of action. Later, we held a focus group of university faculty and staff with either institutional review board experience or research ethics training. They too were asked to recommend actions. The results show there are areas where the two data collection approaches agree, as well as areas of considerable difference. Implications for training in the responsible conduct of research are discussed.     

Creatively Labeling Behavior in Individual and Group Counseling

The authors make a case for the accurate labeling of behavior at the appropriate time in the counseling process and caution against the kind of labeling of a person which results in stereotyping and counseling ineffectiveness. They present a list of seven criteria to be considered if behavior is to be accurately labeled and advocate the use of metaphors, especially in group counseling, to label certain kinds of behavior     

Egalitarianism and utilitarianism in committees of representatives

We consider a committee of representatives that makes dichotomous choices (acceptance/rejection) by vote. Given the size of each group represented, what is the most adequate voting rule for the committee? We provide answers based on each of the two principles commonly used to make normative assessments in different contexts: egalitarianism and utilitarianism. To that end, we introduce utilities into the model and adopt a normative approach.     

Relationship Preferences Among Gay and Lesbian Online Daters: Individual and Contextual Influences

There is currently little knowledge about what gay men and lesbians seek in a romantic relationship. This study extends the literature on gay men and lesbians' partnership preferences by engaging in the first large‐scale empirical study of the long‐term dating intentions and monogamy beliefs of gay and lesbian online daters across 53 regions in 8 European countries (N = 24,598). Looking at profile and preference information, the authors examined both individual and contextual determinants in a series of multilevel logistic regression analyses. They show that lesbians give more importance to monogamy but show less interest in starting a long‐term relationship. The data also reveal the importance of life course aspects such as relationship history and presence of children. Finally, the authors empirically demonstrate that social tolerance and legal recognition of same‐sex unions are associated with higher long‐term dating intentions and stronger monogamy beliefs.     

Organizational Constraints and Individual Mobility: Ability Group Formation and Maintenance*

While assignment to ability groups and curriculum tracks is ostensibly based on students' aptitude for learning, previous research has found that student aptitude explains only a small portion of the variance in curriculum placement. Likewise, while ability grouping has been described as very flexible, studies have found that little movement between groups actually occurs. This study examines ability grouping in a first-grade classroom in order to increase our understanding of the factors which influence ability group formation and maintenance. This investigation found that time and management constraints influenced the number and size of groups formed, independently of the range of aptitude in the classroom. Since these factors remained constant throughout the year, they also limited the amount of movement that occurred between groups. When across-classroom grouping is used, other, more stringent constraints are likely to affect allocation decisions. It will be argued that these constraints represent a problem which exists whenever there is an attempt to match individuals with positions in society.     

Individual Differences in Infants' Recognition of Briefly Presented Visual Stimuli

Infants' recognition memory has been shown to be related to individual differences in look duration and level of heart period variability. This study examined the effect of individual differences in these 2 measures on infants' recognition of briefly presented visual stimuli using a paired‐comparison recognition‐memory paradigm. A sample of 35 full‐term infants was studied longitudinally at 14, 20, and 26 weeks of age. Recognition memory for briefly presented stimuli was tested in 6 experimental conditions, with delays corresponding to different heart‐rate‐defined phases of attention. The 20‐and 26‐week‐old infants, and infants with high levels of heart period variability, generally showed more evidence of recognition memory for briefly presented visual stimuli. Greater evidence of recognition memory was observed when stimuli were presented during sustained attention. Infants with more mature baseline physiological responses show greater evidence of recognition memory, and stimulus and procedural factors may be more important for the study of individual differences in infant visual attention than has previously been suggested.     

Educational Status and Savings Performance in Individual Development Accounts

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between education and savings performance in Individual Development Accounts (IDAs), a matched savings program for the poor. Based on economic and institutional theories of savings, we further investigate whether the relationship between education and savings is mediated by income, intended uses of IDAs, or program factors. The data of this study are from the American Dream Demonstration (N = 2,150), the first national demonstration of IDAs. The results indicate that education was positively related to savings after controlling for program factors and other individual characteristics. Household income and two program factors, monthly savings target and financial education, partially mediated the relationship between education and savings outcomes. These results provide some support for both economic and institutional theories of savings among low-income people. The findings also may help design and implement more effective savings programs for the low-income population and its varying segments.     

Neural Correlates of Individual Differences in Infant Visual Attention and Recognition Memory

Past studies have identified individual differences in infant visual attention based upon peak look duration during initial exposure to a stimulus. Colombo and colleagues found that infants that demonstrate brief visual fixations (i.e., short lookers) during familiarization are more likely to demonstrate evidence of recognition memory during subsequent stimulus exposure than infants that demonstrate long visual fixations (i.e., long lookers). This study utilized event‐related potentials (ERPs) to examine possible neural mechanisms associated with individual differences in visual attention and recognition memory for 6‐ and 7.5‐month‐old infants. Short‐ and long‐looking infants viewed images of familiar and novel objects during ERP testing. There was a stimulus type by looker type interaction at temporal and frontal electrodes on the late slow wave (LSW). Short lookers demonstrated an LSW that was significantly greater in amplitude in response to novel stimulus presentations. No significant differences in LSW amplitude were found based on stimulus type for long lookers. These results indicate deeper processing and recognition memory of the familiar stimulus for short lookers.     

A Framework For The Study of Individual Behavior and Social Interactions

Recent work in economics has begun to integrate sociological ideas into the modeling of individual behavior. In particular, this new approach emphasizes how social context and social interdependences influence the ways in which individuals make choices. This paper provides an overview of an approach to integrating theoretical and empirical analysis of such environments. The analysis is based on a framework due to Brock and Durlauf (2001, forthcoming). Empirical evidence on behalf of this perspective is assessed and some policy implications are explored.     

Individual,Group, and Community in the Behavior Sequence

In higher education today planning for the future is viewed as a difficult, yet essential task in relation to educational decision making. This paper identifies key components of a long-range planning process and argues that schools of social work must engage in thinking about the future in systematic and informed ways in order to reach their program objectives.     

Individual and Group Shifts to Extreme: Laboratory Experiment on Crowd Polarization

Abstract

Hypotheses that crowds shift to more militant action as a result of both individual shifts and changes in composition are tested through small groups experimentation. Subjects are asked to choose the most militant action they would take in hypothetical crowd situations and then reach group consensus. After tentative consensus, participants are instructed to leave the group if they do not agree; other subjects who were observers are permitted to join the group to continue discussion. The hypotheses that final consensus would be more militant than the first, which would be more militant than individual choices were supported.     

Social distancing of the neglectful family: Sex,Race, and Social Class Influences

Parents who are neglectful of their children tend to be socially isolated. One explanation for this is that they are shunned by the community because of their deviant lifestyles. A social distance questionnaire was constructed and administered to 232 urban residents. Scalogram analysis yielded two scales of social distancing behavior applicable at the neighborhood level. Males and working class respondents averaged greater distancing than females and members of the middle class among both Blacks and Whites. Implications for social network interventions to prevent neglect are offered.     

Saving Performance in Individual Development Accounts: Does Marital Status Matter?

Research indicates that marriage has a large effect on reducing the risk of poverty and is associated with a higher probability of attaining affluence over the life course when compared with nonmarriage. Using data from the American Dream Demonstration (N =2,364), this study compares savings performances of married and unmarried low‐income participants in a matched savings program—Individual Development Accounts. The results indicate that both married and unmarried low‐income participants can save in Individual Development Accounts. After controlling for program and other participant characteristics, there were no significant differences in savings between married and unmarried participants. We further examined possible factors that are associated with Individual Development Account savings performance for these two groups.     

Managing the National Status Group: Immigration Policy in Germany

This article challenges the established convention in immigration policy scholarship of treating economic utility and identity maintenance as logically distinct concerns. Drawing on work by Weber, Wallerstein and Bourdieu, we argue that concerns about economic utility and identity maintenance interact in the immigration policies of Western liberal democratic states, leading to policies designed to build and maintain middle‐class national status groups. Using the example of contemporary immigration policy in Germany, we illustrate how this impulse to build the middle‐class status group affects immigrant inclusion/exclusion in nuanced ways at both the group and individual levels, along class/status, ethnic and gender lines. We conclude by considering the policy implications of growing and shaping populations according to middle‐class ideals, particularly for the statistical monitoring of immigrant populations for integration benchmarking purposes.     

Bringing It All Back Home: Individual and Group Supervision in Family Therapy Training*

Literature in family therapy training neglects to address the usefulness of individual supervision. Just as family members struggle to integrate needs for autonomy with needs for family membership, so the individual family therapy trainee has individual concerns. Psychoanalytic literature fully recognises the power of the emotional responses of the psychotherapist, but is uncertain how to handle these reactions, especially in terms of the parallel process between psychotherapy and supervision. The integration of individual process-centred supervision with live group supervision and training provides a structure within which to maximize the supervisory experience.     

Context and Models for the Analysis of Individual and Group Needs

This article summarizes the papers presented in the discussion group focused on the theme “Models for the Analysis of Individual and Group Needs” at the joint symposium of the International Association for Educational and Vocational Guidance, Society for Vocational Psychology, and National Career Development Association held in Padua, Italy, in September 2007 titled Vocational Psychology and Career Guidance Practice: An International Partnership. The predominant theme that emerged from papers and discussion was that theory and practice need to be positioned within their proximal and distal contexts, ranging from personal to societal contexts.