Agapé Christian Reconciliation Conversations: Exploring the Intersections of Culture,Religiousness, and Homosexual Identity in Latino and European Americans

To understand how homophobia manifests itself through a Latino cultural lens of identity, a program was designed to address the issues connecting homosexual identity, culture, and Christianity. The program included screening of one of two documentary films about lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) identity and family relations. This was followed by group sharing and biblical reflections. Participants ( N =?122) were asked to complete measures of homophobic attitudes and qualitative appraisal of the program. Pearson product moment correlations analyses revealed that age and political ideology were related negatively to homophobia. Eighty-five percent found the program to be very useful or useful and 95% indicated that they would recommend it to others. The complexities of the intersections of Christianity, culture, and attitudes toward homosexuality in an individual's identity were examined. The data illustrates a positive trend in changing attitudes towards homosexuality in the Latino Christian community.     

How Religiosity Shapes Rejection of Homosexuality Across the Globe

ABSTRACT

This study investigates to what extent different dimensions of religiosity are differentially related to rejection of homosexuality in countries around the world and, moreover, to what extent these relationships can be explained by particular mediators: authoritarianism and traditional gender beliefs. The theoretical framework includes in particular socialization and integration theories. Hypotheses are tested by employing multilevel models, using data from the World Values Survey, covering 55 countries around the world for the period 2010–2014. The results indicate that every dimension of religiosity has a positive relationship with rejection of homosexuality, rejecting some of our hypotheses: those who adhere to any denomination more often attend religious services and have stronger religious particularistic beliefs, or those who are more religiously salient do reject homosexuality more strongly. Sobel tests and bootstrapping procedures indicate that the relationships between the dimensions of religiosity and rejection of homosexuality are partially explained by authoritarianism and traditional gender beliefs.     

The relation of sensitivity to provocation and frustration to direct aggression: the mediating role of beliefs about aggression / La relación entre la sensibilidad a la provocación y a la frustración y la agresión directa: el papel mediador de las creencias sobre la agresión

Previous research has suggested that sensitivity to provocation and frustration differently predict aggressive behaviour. In the study reported in this paper, two potential mediators of the relationships among both sensitivities and self-reported aggression were examined, namely instrumental and expressive beliefs about aggression. A sample of 318 participants (52% men) took part in the study. Structural Equation Modeling demonstrated that sensitivity to provocation was related to both types of beliefs about aggression, whereas sensitivity to frustration was associated with expressive beliefs. However, only instrumental beliefs mediated the relationship between sensitivity to provocation and both physical and verbal aggression. Analysed variables predicted 46% of the variance in physical aggression and 11% of the variance in verbal aggression. Additionally, men reported higher physical aggression and endorsed more instrumental beliefs than women. Implications for understanding emotional and cognitive mechanisms involved in regulation of aggression are discussed.     

Exploring the transfer of self-efficacy: academic self-efficacy predicts exercise and nutrition self-efficacy / Una exploración de la transferencia de la autoeficacia: la autoeficacia académica predice la autoeficacia nutritiva y del ejercicio físico

In this research, we investigated the transfer of self-efficacy (SE) beliefs from one domain to another. Specifically, we explored whether academic SE beliefs might be able to predict exercise (Study 1) and nutrition (Study 2) SE. Additionally, to explore the underlying mechanisms, participants reported on domain confidence, perceived similarity and domain importance. Specifically, in Study 1, undergraduate students reported on their academic SE beliefs, confidence in the academic and exercise domains and their exercise SE beliefs (n = 50). In Study 2, participants reported on their academic SE beliefs, confidence in the academic and nutrition domains and their nutrition SE beliefs (n = 71). Moreover, in both studies, the perceived importance and the perceived similarity between domains were measured. Multiple regression analyses revealed that academic SE beliefs, academic confidence and exercise confidence were significant predictors of exercise SE beliefs (Study 1); for Study 2 nutrition SE was predicted by academic SE, academic confidence, nutrition confidence and nutrition importance diet. Additionally, we found a partial suppression effect in both studies: academic confidence strengthened the relationship between academic SE and exercise SE in Study 1, and between academic SE and nutrition SE in Study 2. Discussion focuses on the similarities and differences between the studies’ results and the implications for the literature.     

Academic potential beliefs and feelings and life satisfaction: the mediator role of social self-efficacy / Creencias y sentimientos sobre el potencial académico y satisfacción vital: el rol mediador de la autoeficacia social

The aim of the present study is to examine the mediating role of social self-efficacy on the relationship between academic potential beliefs and feelings and life satisfaction. Participants were 332 university students who completed a questionnaire package that included the Academic Potential Beliefs and Feelings Scale, Cognitive and Behavioural Social Self-efficacy Scale and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. To determine the relationships among academic potential beliefs and feelings, social self-efficacy and life satisfaction, the Pearson correlation coefficient and regression analyses were used. In order to test whether social self-efficacy mediated the link between academic potential beliefs and feelings and life satisfaction with regression analyses, Preacher and Hayes macros for SPSS were used. According to the results, social self-efficacy and life satisfaction were predicted positively by academic potential beliefs and feelings. On the other hand, life satisfaction was predicted positively by social self-efficacy. In addition, the association between academic potential beliefs and feelings and life satisfaction was fully mediated by social self-efficacy. Together, the findings illuminate the social processes underlying the association of academic potential beliefs and feelings with life satisfaction.     

Immigration Attitudes Before and After Tragedy in Copenhagen: The Importance of Political Affiliation and Safety Concerns

This research analyzes attitudes on immigration before and after the February 14–15, 2015 Copenhagen shootings. Little research has been conducted on changes in immigration beliefs pre‐ and postcrisis events, and, further, this research has not closely considered how political views and safety concerns may operate within immigration beliefs in an additive, interactive, or mediating fashion. Using the 2014 and 2015 Copenhagen Area Surveys, the latter conducted shortly after the February shootings, our findings show that taking the survey either before or after the shootings did not shape immigration policy preferences. Instead, the findings reveal that right‐leaning political affiliation and a greater fear of crime are the strongest predictors of anti‐immigration attitudes. Implications center on new approaches to understanding societal responses to crisis events.     

Competing Claims: Religious Affiliation and African Americans’ Intolerance of Homosexuals

Literature on religion and political intolerance indicates competing expectations about how Black Protestant church affiliation affects African Americans’ attitudes about civil liberties. On the one hand, Black Protestant theology emphasizes personal freedom and social justice, factors generally linked to more tolerant attitudes. On the other hand, Black Protestants tend to be conservative on family and social issues, factors often linked to intolerance of gays and lesbians. Data from the General Social Survey are used to examine the influence of religious group identification, as well as other relevant aspects of religiosity, on political intolerance among African Americans. Results indicate that although other aspects of religion (beliefs and behaviors) help explain variation in political intolerance, Black Protestant church affiliation has no relationship with attitudes about the civil liberties of homosexuals. However, additional tests show that Black Protestant church affiliation significantly predicts intolerance of other target groups (atheists and racists).     

Cultural family beliefs,maternal sacrifice,and adolescent psychological competence in Chinese poor single‐mother families

Research on cultural family beliefs and family processes as protective factors of adolescent development is severely lacking in the Chinese culture. Based on 432 Chinese single‐mother families living in poverty in Hong Kong, the relationships among Chinese cultural beliefs of familism, adolescent perceived maternal sacrifice, and psychological competence (indexed by a clear and healthy identity, cognitive competence, and a positive future outlook) were examined. Results showed that adolescents' perceived maternal sacrifice mediated the influence between maternal Chinese cultural beliefs of familism and the psychological competence of adolescents raised in poor single‐mother families in Hong Kong. The present study underscores the importance of cultural family beliefs and parental sacrifice on nurturing adolescent psychological competence in Chinese single‐mother families living in poverty, which contributes to the construction of a family resilience model applicable to Chinese communities.     

中国民间信仰40年：回顾与前瞻

回溯中国40年改革开放历程,其实质是一个思想解放的过程.经济改革的巨大成就在根本上得益于整个社会向常识与理性的回归,而其间隐寓着民族民间文化认同与传统文化价值建构的深刻逻辑。尊重差异、多元共生,是中国传统民间信仰最显著的文化特征,也是40年改革进程中形成的最普遍的思想共识。也正因此,民间信仰实现了从“封建迷信”到“民俗活动”再到“文化资源”以及“文化遗产”的多元次替换演进,并逐步进入了主流话语体系之中,成为40年来最引人关注的社会文化事象之一。民间信仰的“新生”,撬动了乡村社会的内在原动力,在大转型时代建立了主流社会与草根群体之间关系的缓冲地带,也拓展了关于中华农耕文明未来的想象空间。在中国改革进入新时代和全面实施乡村振兴战略新的历史阶段,传承民间信仰优秀基因和推动其创造性转化势在必行,并且成为民族民间文化自觉与自信的内在要求,更是当代学人理论探索和学术思考的应然使命,要着力活化民间信仰价值观,在积极推进民间信仰价值观与马克思主义价值观、现代化国家价值观的融会贯通中,推进当代中国价值观的培育、塑造及弘扬。     

Subjective Expected Utility With Incomplete Preferences

This paper extends the subjective expected utility model of decision making under uncertainty to include incomplete beliefs and tastes. The main results are two axiomatizations of the multiprior expected multiutility representations of preference relations under uncertainty. The paper also introduces new axiomatizations of Knightian uncertainty and the expected multiutility model with complete beliefs.