Samuel Juni

The composite measure of the defense mechanism inventory

Abstract A reanalysis of previously published data suggests that the Defense Mechanism Inventory can be utilized to yield a composite measure of reaction to frustration by contrasting linearly the defenses of Turning-against-object and Projection against those of Principalization and Reversal-of-affect. Factor-analytic and correlational data support the exclusion of Turning-against-self from the composite measure. Studies of content validity are presented for the combination of the four defenses into one dimension. Patterns of interitem reliability are charted for the five defenses and the composite measure for both men and women. Internal consistency data are also presented for the standard scoring as well as for a modified method to explore the feasibility of simplifying and shortening the test-taking procedure.

Conceptualizing defense mechanisms from drive theory and object relations perspectives.

Analyzing common defensive features from dual theoretical perspectives, repression is postulated as the underlying mechanism, and is differentiated from denial and suppression. Acting out and intrapunitiveness are interpreted as polar options within displacement. Drive theory and object relations implications are outlined in the conceptualization of intellectualization, reaction formation, and projection, particularly as they are elaborated by basic tenets in defense theory.

Person Perception as a Function of Orality and Anality

Summary The psychoanalytic theory of preoedipal fixation predicts that person perception is affected by basic characterological variables. Specifically, perceptual accuracy of nurturing figures is expected to be a function of orality, while a tendency to perceive authority as very different from oneself is hypothesized to be a function of anality. Thirty-one men and 24 women were given person perception scales, and their fixation scores were determined by Rorschach content analysis. The oral hypothesis was confirmed for women only, while the anal was confirmed for men only.

Self-effacing wit as a response to oppression: Dynamics in ethnic humor

Abstract Theories of self-effacing ethnic humor are analyzed from the perspectives of psychological defense and acculturation. These processes are contrasted with masochism as explanations of self-directed wit. Developmental paradigms are appealed to in conceptualizing the sociocultural function of humor. Identification with the aggressor is conceptualized as a transitional mechanism to assimilate the minority into the host culture. Turning against the self is developed as an alternate mechanism that uses humor as a means of self-empowerment. Reframing and splitting are posited as integral to the defensive process of ethnic humor. The method of luring the aggressor into a situation that is then used against him is construed as the kamikaze maneuver and conceptualized as an ambush technique in which the role of self-effacement facilitates aggression. The analytic elements of these approaches are explored with reference to Jewish humor as a stereotype of the wit of a transient and oppressed people, and annotated examples are offered from published anthologies. Illustrative vignettes, ranging from the mundane to the clinical, are annotated in the discussion. Directions for further inquiry are outlined for issues unresolved in the research literature.

Sexual and Racial Discrimination in Service-Seeking Interactions: A Field Study in Fast Food and Commercial Establishments

Observers at fast food restaurants and banks in New York City catalogued the sex and race of 492 customers and of the cashiers who were chosen by those customers. Data analysis showed that black customers preferred black cashiers while white customers preferred white cashiers. In contrast, female cashiers were preferred by both male and female customers, although the tendency was somewhat more pronounced for women. Also documented was an apparent bias of employing women rather than men in food-service positions. The findings are discussed in the general context of discrimination and stereotypy.

Religiosity and preoedipal fixation

Abstract Religious belief and observance derive from preoedipal oral and anal drives according to psychoanalytic theory. Specifically, belief in deity and such concepts as the afterlife are consonant with oral needs for nurturance from an omnipotent benefactor, coupled with a denial of death. Observance of ritual, and particularly church attendance, is a function of the anal need for regular activity and the anal-compulsive need for regularity and repetitiveness. One hundred and ninety-five male and 265 female American college students answered Likert items concerning their beliefs in God and the afterlife, as well as their regularity of church attendance; they then completed the Food Preference Inquiry and the Kline Ai3 Scale, which measures oral and anal typology, respectively. The Rorschach was then administered to a subsample of this group and scored for preoedipal fixation. Correlations between self-reported religiosity and fixational and typological measures confirmed these contingencies, but some o...

MAINTAINING ANONYMITY VS REQUESTING FEEDBACK AS A FUNCTION OF ORAL DEPENDENCY

61 undergraduates took a structured version of the group Rorschach. They were given the option of identifying themselves on the face sheet and requesting feedback from a professor of psychology or remaining anonymous and not getting feedback. In line with the experimental research relating orality and a tendency toward increased interaction with nurturing others, results showed that subjects who identified themselves and requested feedback had higher orality scores than those who remained anonymous. A more objective and versatile method of thematic scoring of Rorschach protocols was introduced; this focused on scoring words rather than usual response units.

Sexism and Handicapism in Interpersonal Helping

Summary In a factorially designed field study, two female and two male confederates (Cs) encountered 320 male and 320 female street pedestrians asking for help. Factors manipulated included sex of C, sex of Ss, handicap condition of C, dress condition of C, and the use of a wedding band to connote Cs marital status. Results showed that women were helped more than men and that handicapped were helped more than nonhandicapped. Interaction effects suggest that women and the handicapped share a single category in terms of meriting and requiring increased assistance. It is argued that such overhelping is symptomatic of underlying social prejudice against women and the handicapped.

EMOTIONAL AND PERSUASIVE PERCEPTION OF FONTS

The aim of this study was to explore the latent affective and persuasive meaning attributed to text when appearing in two commonly used fonts. Two satirical readings were selected from the New York Times. These readings (one addressing government issues, the other education policy) were each printed in Times New Roman and Arial fonts of the same size and presented in randomized order to 102 university students, who ranked the readings on a number of adjective descriptors. Analysis showed that satirical readings in Times New Roman were perceived as more funny and angry than those in Arial, the combination of emotional perception which is congruent with the definition of satire. This apparent interaction of font type with emotional qualities of text has implications for marketing, advertising, and the persuasive literature.

Partial impulse erogeneity as a function of fixation and object relations

The psychoanalytic theory of adult erogeneity is analyzed with respect to differential sexual and foreplay activities. Psychosexual fixation within any of the basic stages of oral, anal, or phallic development was hypothesized to correlate negatively with adult erogeneity in that respective area. The overall investment in sexuality across the erogenous areas was expected to be a function of the general level of development within the object relations domain, so that the less narcissistic and more other‐oriented a person is, the more investment is to be expected in interpersonal sexuality. Utilizing recently developed psychometric instruments measuring these analytic constructs, self‐report erogeneity data from 56 women were analyzed and compared with fixation and object relations variables. Results confirmed the object relations hypothesis. A comparison of the intercorrelations of the erogeneity and fixation variables showed that although the pattern is in line with the hypothesis, statistical significanc...