Thomas Ellwart

Speeded detection and increased distraction in fear of spiders: evidence from eye movements.

Anxiety patients exhibit attentional biases toward threat, which have often been demonstrated as increased distractibility by threatening stimuli. In contrast, speeded detection of threat has rarely been shown. Therefore, the authors studied both phenomena in 3 versions of a visual search task while eye movements were recorded continuously. Spider-fearful individuals and nonanxious control participants participated in a target search task, an odd-one-out search task, and a category search task. Evidence for disorder-specific increased distraction by threat was found in all tasks, whereas speeded threat detection did not occur in the target search task. The implications of these findings for cognitive theories of anxiety are discussed, particularly in relation to the concept of disengagement from threat.

Reliabilität und Validität dreier Instrumente zur Messung von Angst vor Spinnen

Zusammenfassung. Es wird uber die Gutekriterien und Faktorenstrukturen dreier Instrumente zur Messung von Angst vor Spinnen berichtet. Der “Spinnenphobie-Fragebogen (SPF)“ und der “Fragebogen zur Angst vor Spinnen (FAS)“ sind Ubersetzungen englischsprachiger, mehrfaktorieller Fragebogen. Beim “Spinnenangst-Screening (SAS)“ handelt es sich um eine Neuentwicklung mit nur vier Items zum moglichst okonomischen Screening groser Stichproben. Alle drei Instrumente zeigten gute bis sehr gute Reliabilitatswerte, sowohl bezuglich der internen Konsistenz als auch der Retest-Reliabilitat. Auch die Konstruktvaliditaten und die Kriteriumsvaliditaten erwiesen sich als sehr gut. Verwendungsempfehlungen fur das Screening und die beiden Fragebogen werden gegeben.

From fear to love: Individual differences in implicit spider associations.

The Implicit Association Test (IAT) was used to investigate automatic fear associations in fear of spiders. Fear associations toward spiders were measured among spider fearful and nonfearful participants (Experiment 1) as well as among nonfearfuls and spider enthusiasts (Experiment 2). It was shown that the IAT is sensitive to personal automatic fear associations and therefore distinguishes between high-fearful, nonfearful, and enthusiastic participants. Moreover, implicit spider associations measured by the IAT predicted avoidance behavior beyond self-reports. The results of Experiment 2 provide additional support for the argument that implicit spider associations are different from general stereotypes or knowledge about spiders.

Managing knowledge exchange and identification in age diverse teams

Purpose – This paper aims to examine the impact of individual and group-level variables on knowledge exchange and identification in age diverse teams. From a diversity perspective, influences of age-related diversity perceptions and diversity beliefs (level 1) are compared with effects of objective age diversity (level 2). From a management perspective, the paper goes beyond age diversity and investigates the incremental effects of team and individual characteristics from a team learning perspective. Design/methodology/approach – Questionnaire data of 516 team members and their supervisors in 73 organizational teams were analyzed in a multilevel approach. Findings – Objective age diversity had a negative effect on knowledge exchange and identification. Beyond that, age-related diversity perceptions and positive diversity beliefs on the individual level predict the effect of objective diversity. Relativizing the impact of diversity, individual characteristics (knowing the team experts, clear understanding ...

Formative Versus Reflective Measurement: An Illustration Using Work–Family Balance

ABSTRACT The aim of this article is to propose the formative measurement approach that can be used in various constructs of applied psychology. To illustrate this approach, the authors will (a) discuss the distinction between commonly used principal-factor (reflective) measures in comparison to the composite (formative) latent variable model, which is often applied in other disciplines such as marketing or engineering, and (b) point out the advantages and limitations of formative specifications using the example of the work–family balance (WFB) construct. Data collected from 2 large cross-sectional field studies confirm the reliability and validity of formative WFB measures as well as its predictive value regarding criteria of WFB (i.e., job satisfaction, family satisfaction, and life satisfaction). Last, the specific informational value of each formative indicator will be demonstrated and discussed in terms of practical implications for the assessment in different psychological fields.

Team‐based rewards in computer‐mediated groups

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to compare effects of different monetary team‐based reward strategies on performance, pay satisfaction, and communication behavior in computer‐mediated groups.Design/methodology/approach – In a laboratory experiment, 32 groups of undergraduate students, each consisting of three individuals, interacted electronically and performed a consensus‐reaching task. Team‐based incentives were distributed either equally (each team member received an equal share) or equitably (each team members share depended on her/his individual contribution). A control group received no team‐based (or other) incentives.Findings – Hierarchical multilevel analyses revealed that both types of team‐based rewards increased team members motivation and pay satisfaction compared to the control condition. Moreover, the effects of team‐based rewards on performance were moderated by group members assertiveness. In addition, team‐based rewards lead to more cooperative and task‐oriented communication i...

Managing information overload in virtual teams: Effects of a structured online team adaptation on cognition and performance

Information overload (IO) indicates the exchange of too much low-quality information in virtual teams. When being overloaded with information, teams need to adapt and to change communication behaviour. This study introduces and tests a structured online team adaptation (STROTA) procedure that enables virtual teams to reduce IO by improving their team mental model quality. STROTA, built from team adaptation models, is a moderated intervention consisting of three stages: (1) individual situation awareness, (2) team situation awareness, and (3) plan formulation. STROTA was tested in the context of an experimental problem-solving task. Participants (N = 363) worked in virtual teams of three and were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions: no STROTA, incomplete STROTA (step 1, steps 1–2), and complete STROTA (steps 1–2–3). We found teams that followed a complete STROTA procedure experienced lessened IO over time. Teams with complete STROTA showed the largest development of TMM immediately after STROTA. Finally, multilevel mediation analyses showed that TMM are mediators that explain the influence of STROTA on IO.

Team Mental Models of Expertise Location Validation of a Field Survey Measure

This research provides and validates a field survey measure of team mental models (TMMs) on the location of team member expertise. The measure integrates two important aspects into the expertise location TMM Index: (a) the quality of meta-knowledge about experts within the team, and (b) team consensus regarding within-team expertise. Complementary to content-specific TMM approaches, this measure can be applied across different team and task types as a screening indicator in organizational surveys. To validate the TMM Index, an experimental study (n = 120, 40 teams) and a longitudinal field study (n = 130, 37 teams) were conducted. Both studies provide evidence that the TMM Index is a reliable screening indicator that corresponds to content-specific accuracy and consensus scores. Multilevel analyses revealed that the TMM Index predicts team performance (self- and other ratings), team coordination, and individual variables such as knowledge credibility and self-efficacy over time.

Quantifying similarity of team mental models: An introduction of the rrg index

Previous research has emphasized the importance of shared cognitions such as team mental models (TMM) for high performance in teams. The most prominent approaches to measure TMMs are based on indices of within-group agreement (e.g., rWG, r*WG, and aWG). However, a major shortcoming of these indices is the missing separation of team-specific agreement. Recent indices overestimate the existence of team-specific mental models if there is a common agreement beyond team borders. In this paper, we discuss team situations in which this team specific agreement is most important (e.g., competitive negotiation or action teams) and introduce the TMM index (rRG) that is based on random group resampling. The advantage of this index is its focus on team specific agreement rather than on common agreement. We demonstrate the usefulness of the rRG by comparing it to other agreement indices theoretically and by means of Monte Carlo simulation. Finally, limitations and fields of application are discussed.

Wissensverteilung und Wissenskoordination in Gruppen

Zusammenfassung. Zwei Skalen zur Erfassung transaktiver Wissenssysteme und Wissenskoordination wurden aus dem Englischen adaptiert und in einer laborexperimentellen Studie in computergestutzten Dreiergruppen eingesetzt. Die erste Skala erfasste Spezialisierung, Glaubwurdigkeit und Koordination von Teamwissen, wobei Parallelformen eingesetzt wurden, die sich hinsichtlich der Beurteilungsperspektive unterschieden (individueller Bezug: Ich-Formulierung, Gruppenbezug: Wir-Formulierung). Mit der zweiten Skala wurden Kenntnisse zur Wissensverteilung, der Bedarf an zusatzlichem Wissen sowie die gegenseitige Wissensunterstutzung erfasst. Zusatzlich wurden fachliches Vertrauen und Teamzufriedenheit als Kriteriumsvariablen erhoben. Die beiden Skalen wiesen insgesamt gute psychometrische Eigenschaften auf. Auswertungen mittels Hierarchisch Linearer Modelle ergaben eine hypothesenkonform positive Beziehung zwischen der auf Gruppenebene wahrgenommenen Glaubwurdigkeit in das Wissen anderer und dem Vertrauen sowie der T...