Carla Jeffries

The David and Goliath Principle Cultural, Ideological, and Attitudinal Underpinnings of the Normative Protection of Low-Status Groups From Criticism

Two studies documented the “David and Goliath” rule—the tendency for people to perceive criticism of “David” groups (groups with low power and status) as less normatively permissible than criticism of “Goliath” groups (groups with high power and status). The authors confirmed the existence of the David and Goliath rule across Western and Chinese cultures (Study 1). However, the rule was endorsed more strongly in Western than in Chinese cultures, an effect mediated by cultural differences in power distance. Study 2 identified the psychological underpinnings of this rule in an Australian sample. Lower social dominance orientation (SDO) was associated with greater endorsement of the rule, an effect mediated through the differential attribution of stereotypes. Specifically, those low in SDO were more likely to attribute traits of warmth and incompetence to David versus Goliath groups, a pattern of stereotypes that was related to the protection of David groups from criticism.

Withholding negative feedback: Is it about protecting the self or protecting others?

The reluctance to deliver negative feedback to someones face is widely documented. This research disentangles the extent to which this reluctance is motivated by a desire to protect the self as opposed to others. Participants assessed an essay written by someone with high, medium, or low self-esteem. Assessment of the essay was most positive when the feedback was to be provided face-to-face, less positive when delivered anonymously, and least positive when it was not required to be delivered at all. This effect only emerged among participants low in self-liking (but was unrelated to self-competency). The self-esteem of the essay writer had no effect on evaluations. The data lend support for a self-protection motive and modest support for an other-protection motive.

You’re either with us or against us! Moral conviction determines how the politicized distinguish friend from foe

Three studies investigated how politicized collective identification affects individuals’ reactions towards others. We hypothesized that a strong politicized identity tends to be accompanied by a moral conviction about the politicized cause, which in turn determines how the politicized respond to those less committed to their cause. Consistent with this, Study 1 showed that politicized (feminist) identification is associated with lower identification with women who place moderate (vs. high) moral value on gender equality. Study 2 showed that politicized identification was associated with negative emotions towards people who disagree with this cause and this was mediated by the extent to which participants saw supporting the activist goal as morally obligatory. Study 3 showed that politicized identification, to the extent to which it implied holding a moral conviction about the activist cause, is associated with a desire for more social distance to an attitudinally dissimilar other, but not from an attitudinally similar other.

A Case Study of Designing Artificial Facebook Pages: A New Approach to Online Research

The main objective of this chapter is for readers to develop an understanding of both ethical and technical considerations of using social networking sites in psychology research. In addition, this text will describe the rationale behind the development of an artificial Facebook page, as well as the steps and skills that are necessary. This case study will describe some of the difficulties that the authors encountered during this process. It is expected that readers will gain a deeper understanding and develop a better appreciation of the wider issues involved in social networking research.

Recommendations for Male-Friendly Individual Counseling With Men: A Qualitative Systematic Literature Review for the Period 1995–2016.

Over the past few decades, there have been calls to customize therapy for men. Researchers have increasingly become aware of the impact of masculinity on men and their psychological health, their willingness to seek help, and their experience of therapy. Recommendations have been published for how to enhance engagement and therapeutic change for men in counseling. This article systematically collected and examined recommendations for individual male-friendly therapy from 44 sources written over a 21-year period to identify common themes using qualitative methodology. The resulting 4 themes included knowledge about men, masculinity, and socialization; therapist critical self-awareness and commitment; masculinity-informed treatment adaptations; and masculinity-informed tasks and goals. The themes were discussed in relation to relevant research and similar diversity-sensitive approaches, including different ways that masculinity knowledge was incorporated into treatment and the ethical implications of targeting traditional masculinity for change. Increased empirical research on male-friendly counseling is needed to validate existing recommendations.