Is there a Gender Difference in False Belief Development?

The contribution of children's social environment to their acquisition of theory of mind skills, combined with the well documented advantage for girls in mental state talk with siblings, peers and mothers, might lead to a female advantage on false belief tasks. We present a post‐hoc analysis of large datasets from two independent laboratories. A slight advantage for girls on false belief task performance was found in both datasets and was only apparent in younger but not older children. Language ability could be controlled for only in a smaller subsample of one dataset and cannot be ruled out as a potential mediator of this effect. However, if there is an age‐specific advantage for girls in false belief acquisition it is a weak effect only.     

Theoretical ideas and analysis as the focus of graduate education

An emphasis on theoretical ideas and analysis in graduate education highlights the contributions that sociologists can make to the major issues of the modern world. Such a strategy will bring sociology into a dialogue with the intellectual community and policy makers and will provide a greater degree of focus to a now disparate enterprise. Sociologists can make a distinctive contribution in addressing major social issues if they recognize the rightful relationship between theoretical ideas and research procedures. They have collaborated for several years on issues relating to bureaucracy, higher education, and social theory, with recent publications on a sociologically informed theory of human rights.     

The Causes of World War III: Thirty years later

Dire warnings about the imminence of World War III were common in the 1950s, as the world adjusted to the introduction of nuclear weapons. C. Wright Mills and other critical writers exaggerated the power of the military in American society and the weakness of civilian social forces. In the thirty years since Mills publishedThe Causes of World War III, the mass society has asserted itself and nonnuclear conflicts have been the major threats to world peace.     

Association between Depressive Symptoms,Perceived Partner Emotional Expression,and Marital Quality

Previous studies have explored the direct association between mental health and marital quality; however, the processes moderating that association are not yet well understood. The present study examined associations between depressive symptoms, perceived partner emotional expression, and marital quality among 462 married individuals. Findings suggest that (a) low commitment, low satisfaction, and marital instability may be symptomatic of mental well-being; (b) individuals experiencing depressive symptoms are more inclined to have negative views of their relationships; and (c) perceptions of their partners’ expressions of gratitude and understanding serve as a buffer against the negative association between depressive symptoms and marital quality. Thus, perceptions of positive emotional expressiveness may serve as a resource facilitating marital quality when individuals are experiencing depressive symptoms.     

Migration and immigration: recent advances using linked administrative data

Journal of Population Research -