Robert M. Hessling

Direct and Moderating Effects of Community Context on the Psychological Well-Being of African American Women

The effects of community characteristics on well-being were examined among 709 African American women. Direct and moderating effects of neighborhood characteristics on distress were tested. Aggregate-level ratings of neighborhood cohesion and disorder were significantly related to distress, although the relation between cohesion and distress became nonsignificant when individual risk factors were statistically controlled. Aggregate-level neighborhood variables interacted significantly with individual risk and resource variables in the prediction of distress, consistent with trait-situation interaction theories (D. Magnusson & N. S. Endler, 1977). Community cohesion intensified the benefits of a positive life outlook. Community disorder intensified both the benefits of personal resources and the detrimental effects of personal risk factors. Results showed evidence of resilience among African American women.

Neighborhood context, personality, and stressful life events as predictors of depression among African American women.

The authors tested neighborhood context, negative life events, and negative affectivity as predictors of the onset of major depression among 720 African American women. Neighborhood-level economic disadvantage (e.g., percentage of residents below the poverty line) and social disorder (e.g., delinquency, drug use) predicted the onset of major depression when controlling for individual-level demographic characteristics. Neighborhood-level disadvantage/disorder interacted with negative life events, such that women who experienced recent negative life events and lived in high disadvantage/disorder neighborhoods were more likely to become depressed than were those who lived in more benign settings, both concurrently and over a 2-year period. Neighborhood disadvantage/disorder can be viewed as a vulnerability factor that increases susceptibility to depression following the experience of negative life events.

Using Images to Increase Exercise Behavior: Prototypes Versus Possible Selves

This study investigated the impact of health-related prototypes and possible selves on exercise behavior. In addition, this study examined if these effects might be moderated by individual differences—specifically social comparison (SC) and consideration of future consequences (CFC). One hundred and fifty-two students participated in all three waves of the study—premanipulation, manipulation, and follow-up. As expected, results indicated that individuals who were high on SC and exposed to a prototype manipulation increased their exercise behavior at follow-up. Furthermore, individuals who were future-oriented and exposed to a possible selves manipulation increased their exercise behavior at follow-up. Overall, results revealed that health images have an important impact on health behavior. Implications for behavior change are discussed.

Social support, health, and well-being among the elderly: what is the role of negative affectivity?

We examined whether dispositional negative affectivity (NA) spuriously explains the relationships between perceived social support and self-reports of well-being (depression, loneliness, and life satisfaction) and physical health among the elderly. A sample of 100 elderly adults attending a senior community center completed measures of the aforementioned variables. Maximum likelihood path analyses and commonality analyses suggested that NA spuriously explains the relationship between social support and physical health. The relationships between social support and the three measures of psychological well-being remained significant even after controlling for NA. These findings suggest that NA is an important individual difference variable to attend to when assessing the social support and physical health of the elderly.

Readers' perceptions of four alternatives to masculine generic pronouns.

STYLE GUIDES SUGGEST A NUMBER OF WAYS to avoid using masculine pronouns in reference to mixed-gender groups: (a) using paired pronouns such as “he or she” (American Psychological Association, 1994; Miller & Swift, 1988; Schwartz, 1995). (b) alternating between masculine and feminine pronouns (Addison Wesley Longman, 1998; Frank & Treichler, 1989), or (c) using the pronoun “they” in singular contexts (American Heritage Dictionary, 1992; Chicago Manual ofstyle, 1993). Unfortunately, some of those strategies have disadvantages that may not be intuitively obvious. For example, Madson and Hessling (1999) found that readers overestimated the frequency of feminine pronouns in alternating text, perceiving it to be lower in overall quality and more biased in favor of women in comparison with text containing the paired pronouns “he or she.” We designed the present study to replicate and extend those findings (Madson & Hessling, 1999) by using different stimulus material and additional conditions. Specifically, we wanted to determine (a) whether readers would perceive the singular “they” as a good alternative to generic masculine pronouns and (b) whether readers would perceive the paired pronouns “she or he” as essentially equivalent to “he or she.” A total of 23 1 introductory psychology students (1 13 men. 118 women; 43% Hispanic, 39% Caucasian; M age = 19 years, SD = 2.66) participated in partial fulfillment of a course requirement. The participants read one of four versions of an essay describing techniques for improving study skills. Two versions contained paired pronouns beginning with the masculine pronoun (i.e., “he or she”) or with the feminine pronoun (i.e., “she or he”). The third version contained the plural pronoun “they,” and the fourth alternated between masculine and feminine pronouns (i.e., “he” in one paragraph, “she” in the next). Dependent variables were the perceived frequency of masculine and feminine pronouns, perceived gender bias in the text, the perceived effectiveness of pronoun usage in eliminating gender bias, and the overall quality of the passage. The participants estimated pronoun frequency on a Likert-type scale (1 = never; 5 = all the time) and on a percentage scale-that is, they estimated what percentage of all the