Erez Yaakobi

Parenthood as a Terror Management Mechanism: The Moderating Role of Attachment Orientations

Six studies examined the hypothesis that parenthood serves a terror management function, with effects that are moderated by attachment orientations. In Studies 1 and 2, mortality salience, as compared with control conditions, increased the self-reported vividness and implicit accessibility of parenthood-related cognitions. In Studies 3 and 4, activating parenthood-related thoughts reduced death-thought accessibility and romantic intimacy following mortality salience. In Study 5, heightening the salience of parenthood-related obstacles increased death-thought accessibility. Across the five studies, the effects were significant mainly among participants who scored relatively low on avoidant attachment. In Study 6, avoidant people also reacted to mortality salience with more positive parenthood-related cognitions following an experimental manipulation that made parenthood compatible with their core strivings. Overall, the findings suggest that parenthood can have an anxiety-buffering effect that is moderated by attachment-related avoidance.

Social relationships and information dissemination in virtual social network systems: An attachment theory perspective

Web-based communication via social networking sites has become an integral method of communication, raising the question of whether the well-established Attachment Theory remains applicable to modern relationships. This communication shift is also likely to affect the information dissemination dynamic; i.e., how internal attachment working models relate to virtual modes of communication. Three studies (354 participants in total, median age 27) examined the applicability of Attachment Theory to web-based social network communications. Using self- report measures (Study 1) and an experimental simulation (Study 2), the results indicate that attachment security level predicts an individuals number of social ties and willingness to initiate web-based relationships. Secure individuals emerged as best situated to become social hubs. Study 3 reveals that a decrease in avoidance scores predicts an increased willingness to deliver information to others. Anxious participants exhibited less willingness to deliver highly threatening information but more willingness to deliver neutral information to others. These findings support the applicability of attachment internal working models to predicting web-based social network communication, and suggest that Attachment Theory can be a predictor of the dynamics of web-based dissemination of information.

Exposure to music and noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) among professional pop/rock/jazz musicians

Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) has been extensively studied in industrial work environments. With the advent of new technologies, loud music has been increasingly affecting listeners outside of the industrial setting. Most research on the effects of music and hearing loss has focused on classical musicians. The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between the amount of experience a professional pop/rock/jazz musician has and objective and subjective variables of the musician′s hearing loss. This study also examined professional pop/rock/jazz musicians′ use of hearing protection devices in relation to the extent of their exposure to amplified music. Forty-four pop/rock/jazz musicians were interviewed using the Pop/Rock/Jazz Musician′s Questionnaire (PRJMQ) in order to obtain self-reported symptoms of tinnitus and hyperacusis. Forty-two of the subjects were also tested for air-conduction hearing thresholds in the frequency range of 1-8 kHz. Results show that the extent of professional pop/rock/jazz musicians′ exposure to amplified music was related to both objective and subjective variables of hearing loss: Greater musical experience was positively linked to higher hearing thresholds in the frequency range of 3-6 kHz and to the subjective symptom of tinnitus. Weekly hours playing were found to have a greater effect on hearing loss in comparison to years playing. Use of hearing protection was not linked to the extent of exposure to amplified music. It is recommended that further research be conducted with a larger sample, in order to gain a greater understanding of the detrimental effects of hours playing versus years playing.

Effects of early employment experiences on anticipated psychological contracts

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate how initial employment experiences of new entrants to the labor market, which results from changes in organizations employment practices affect individuals’ expectations from their future employers (their anticipatory psychological contracts and anticipated job insecurity) and to explore the implications of these effects for theory and practice. Design/methodology/approach – The paper focussed on four common experiences and tested the hypotheses about their effects using data collected by a relatively large survey among mature college students with work experience (n=1,164). Findings – Individuals who had been exposed to the experiences of being laid off, witnessing layoffs and having to accept reductions in pay or status held higher transactional and lower relational expectations from their future employers, in comparison with individuals who had not been exposed to such experiences. They also anticipated a higher level of job insecurity in their futu...

Ostracism and attachment orientation: Avoidants are less affected in both individualistic and collectivistic cultures

Ostracism--being excluded and ignored--is painful and threatens needs for belonging, self-esteem, control and meaningful existence. Many studies have shown that immediate responses to ostracism tend to be resistant to moderation. Once ostracized individuals are able to reflect on the experience, however, personality and situational factors moderate recovery speed and behavioural responses. Because attachment orientation is grounded in perceptions of belonging, we hypothesized that attachment orientation would moderate both immediate and delayed reactions to laboratory-induced ostracism. Participants from individualistic or collectivistic cultures were either included or ostracized in a game of Cyberball, a virtual ball-toss game. In both cultures, we found that compared to more securely attached individuals, more avoidant participants were less distressed by ostracism, but more distressed by inclusion. It is suggested that over and beyond differences in culture, individuals who avoid meaningful attachment may be less affected by ostracism.

Recalling an Attachment Event Moderates Distress After Ostracism

Ostracism is known to cause psychological distress. Studies have indicated that immediate distress is resistant to individual differences and situational factors, but delayed reactions are more sensitive to moderation. Because attachment orientation is inextricably tied to rejection and inclusion, we hypothesized that attachment orientation would moderate both immediate and delayed ostracism effects and that recalling an attachment event compatible with a persons attachment internal working model would moderate the distress of a laboratory ostracism experience. In two experiments, 158 individualistic (secular Jewish) and 190 collectivistic (ultra–Orthodox Jewish) participants played Cyberball with two other ostensible in–group players. Distress was measured immediately after the game and 30 minutes later. The results show that less anxious and more avoidant individualistic but not collectivistic participants were less distressed by ostracism. After the delay, recall of an attachment event compatible with the participants‘ internal working model eliminated distress in both individualistic and collectivistic ostracized participants as measured on the needs satisfaction scale. Among individualistic participants, avoidants, who are known to avoid meaningful attachments, were less distressed by ostracism; anxious participants, who seek proximity, were more distressed. Recalling a compatible attachment event may be a mechanism that reduces individuals‘ perceptions of threats to their fundamental needs. Copyright

Individual, group and organizational efficacies in predicting performance

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for predicting three facets of employee performance (quality, innovation and efficiency) based on the evaluation of individual (self and occupational), group (collective) and organizational (means) efficacies. Design/methodology/approach A sample of 109 managers employed mainly in high-tech industries evaluated their employees’ quality, innovation and efficiency performance. The employees’ efficacies were also evaluated on three organizational levels. Findings Evaluation of employees’ self-efficacy accounted for most of the explained variance for all performance facets. Evaluation of group efficacy added incremental explained variance to the general performance as well as to the innovation performance and efficiency performance. Evaluation of means efficacy (provided to employees) added incremental explained variance to the general performance as well as to the innovation performance and the efficiency of performance. Male managers differed from female managers in their predictions of employees’ performance. Originality/value This is the first study to examine the concurrent effects of four types of efficacies, based on three organizational levels, in predicting performance. It also examines three facets of performance instead of only a general performance measure. It presents a model of the relative importance of these efficacies in predicting facets of performance.

Encounters with offspring help terminally ill adult patients cope with death anxiety

ABSTRACT This overview of recent work drawing on the theories of terror management and symbolic immortality suggests practical ways of helping the terminally ill to cope with death anxiety and its potential effects. The literature review shows that parenthood can act as an anxiety buffer mechanism against the fear of death but that individual differences, including attachment avoidance, moderate this association. Encounters with adult patients’ offspring may help minimize fear of death, improve coping, and increase quality of life and emotional well-being. Practical suggestions for psychologists, social workers and physicians are presented.