Girls’ perceptions of boys with violent attitudes and behaviours, and of sexual attraction. Lidia Puigvert, Loraine Gelsthorpe, Marta Soler-Gallart & Ramon Flecha. Palgrave Communications 5, Article number: 56 (2019). May 28 2019. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-019-0262-5
Abstract: Violence against women is a reality that is still present in Europe and a serious public health threat worldwide. Fortunately, investment is being made to raise awarness at the national and EU levels and among diverse publics. However, more research is needed in order to better explain its underlying factors, and thus identify effective actions that could contribute to preventing young girls and women from becoming victims. Drawing on a theoretical approach to the preventive socialization of gender violence, in this study we report data from the quasi-experimental research project ‘Free Teen Desire’ (Marie Sklodowska-Curie Grant, 2015–2016, No 659299). Through a survey conducted on 100 female adolescents (aged 13–16) in different European secondary schools (in England, Spain, Cyprus and Finland), we analysed their pattern of attraction for both ‘hooking up’ and stable relationships towards boys with either violent attitudes and behaviour or boys with non-violent behaviour, what would be linked to gender violence victimization at a later stage in their lives. Our findings suggest that in the different European secondary schools studied, a similar pattern of attraction is recognized by female participants: although non-violent boys are highly preferred to those with a violent profile, we observed that boys with violent attitudes and behaviours are mostly preferred for hooking up, and boys with non-violent traits are mostly preferred for stable relationships. In addition to the novelty of providing quantitative data on these links (non-violent/stable relationships; violent/hook-ups) in the case of adolescents, the findings regarding the pattern of attraction towards boys with violent traits for sporadic relationships are in line with previous extensive qualitative research. This body of research marks the existence of a coercive dominant discourse that associates attraction with violence and influences the socialization processes of many girls during their sexual-affective relationships’ awakening, which has been shown to constitute a risk factor for gender violence victimization.
Introduction
In 2013, the World Health Organization, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the South African Medical Research Council published a report on ‘Global and regional estimates of violence against women: prevalence and health effects of intimate partner violence and non-partner sexual violence’. The report constituted the first global systematic review and synthesis of scientific data on two forms of violence against women: violence by an intimate partner (intimate partner violence) and sexual violence by someone other than a partner. It reveals that 35% of women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or intimate partner violence or sexual violence by a non-partner at some point in their lives; almost a third of all women who have been in a relationship have experienced physical and/or sexual violence committed by their intimate partner. Beyond this, at the global level, 38% of all murders of women are committed by intimate partners, and women who have suffered physical or sexual abuse by their partners suffer from serious health problems at a later stage (WHO, 2014).
Although resources have been invested in programmes and campaigns by European institutions, and legislation has been passed in the EU in order to pressure member states to act upon the issue of gender violence, figures reveal that there has been little change in practice. In this regard, in 2014, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) published a report called the ‘Violence against women: an EU-wide survey’ (FRA, 2014). This report gathered data from the 28 European member states on experiences of physical, sexual and psychological violence, including intimate partner violence (domestic violence) and sexual harassment. The FRA declared that violence and abuse are affecting the lives of European women but that this situation is being systematically under-reported to the authorities. Data collected in the survey indicates that an estimated 13 million women in the EU had experienced physical violence in the course of 12 months before the survey interviews, and an estimated 3.7 million women in the EU had experienced sexual violence in the course of 12 months before the survey interview. Regarding minors, FRA figures revealed that one in three girls and young women had experienced physical and/or sexual violence by the age of 15 years old and that out of all women who had a (current or previous) partner, 22% had experienced physical and/or sexual violence committed by a partner since the age of 15. Regarding non-partner violence, one in five women had experienced physical violence committed by someone other than their partner since the age of 15.
As observed, violence against women is a reality that is still present in Europe and a serious public health threat worldwide, which fortunately is being addressed more and more with the aim of tackling its multiple manifestations, from the domestic sphere to the trafficking of human beings, considering its gendered dimension (Limoncelli, 2017). However, more research is needed in order to inform two central socio-legal debates related to the prevention and tackling of gender violence: on the one hand, how to unveil effective actions that prevent girls and young women from falling in the coercive dominant discourse that fosters attraction towards violence (Puigvert, 2014; Racionero-Plaza et al., 2018), and on the other hand, to contribute to sensitizing the penal systems in the EU to gender differences (Burman and Gelsthorpe, 2017; Gelsthorpe, 2017) while providing insights on how to advance legislation of consent and, specifically, on the affirmative ‘yes’ (Vidu and Tomás-Martínez, 2019). In this sense, an in-depth analysis of this complex problem should help us to better recognize which of the risk factors already identified in the literature are the ones which are more prominent in perpetuating the cycle of the violent victimization of youth.
A coercive dominant discourse: attraction to violence
Research on risk factors related to gender violence conducted from a preventive socialization approach has identified that there is a coercive dominant discourse in which people with violent attitudes and behaviours are socially portrayed as attractive and exciting. On the other hand, people and relationships with non-violent attitudes and behaviours are portrayed as less exciting (Gómez, 2015; Soler-Gallart, 2017). Accordingly, due to imbalanced power relationships between men and women, this coercive dominant discourse (e.g., through TV, teen magazines, social networks, popular media, among other things) influences many girls’ and women’s socialization into linking attractiveness to people with violent attitudes and behaviours.
Different qualitative investigations have analysed the impact of this coercive dominant discourse. In this regard, research on the ‘Impact of communicative acts and new masculinities’ (Soler-Gallart, 2008–2011) conducted with adolescents showed how some communicative acts (those acts that include not only speech acts but also other types of communication) reinforced hegemonic masculinities, which are the ones linked to dominant and violent attitudes and behaviours. However, other communicative acts, based on dialogic interactions, contribute to better recognizing new masculinities, which are represented by boys who reject violence while maintaining desirability. Oliver (2010–2012) directed a research project in order to deepen our understanding of what has been defined by Flecha and Puigvert as the ‘mirage of upward mobility’, the mistaken perception of some girls and young women who believe that having a sexual-affective relationship with boys/men who respond to the hegemonic model of masculinity (Connell, 2012) will lead to an increase in their status and attractiveness. Nonetheless, research has revealed that in these cases, instead of increasing the girls’ or young women’s status or attractiveness, it decreases those qualities (Tellado et al., 2014). In turn, girls who fall for the mirage of upward mobility more easily identify when other girls go through this mirage than when it affects themselves (Puigvert, 2015–2016).
The Free_Teens_Desire project (2015–2016), in which the present study is framed, also investigated to what extent dialogue situations based on a ‘language of desire’ instead of on a ‘language of ethics’ can question adolescent girls’ desires that link attractiveness to violent behaviours, gathering for the first time quantitative data on this link (Puigvert, 2015–2016). The language of ethics is often used to educate children in a non-sexist way, in both home and school contexts (Rios-González et al., 2018). Parents and teachers thus talk about what ‘is good’ or what ‘should be done’, using cognitive schemata to assess sexual-affective lives that are grounded in ethics. In the case that is under examination here, the employment of a ‘language of ethics’ when talking about men with violent behaviour and attitudes would imply that adults are saying something such as ‘that boy is not convenient for you’, ‘he is a bad boy’ or ‘he has inappropriate behaviour’. Dialogues using the language of ethics are sometimes seen by adolescents as boring, unattractive or ‘moralistic’. In contrast, a ‘language of desire’ predominates among adolescents’ dialogues; this language is also used by media, in social networks and in those contexts which adolescents consider attractive. The language of desire is not exerted within the realm of ethics, but within the realm of aesthetics, taking into account adolescents’ desires and likes; as a result, this triggers emotions and actions. The disassociation between both types of languages and the ‘language of desire’ missing from many gender violence campaigns prevents them from being effective. In not using the language which adolescents and the media tend to use, the campaigns do not challenge the dominant model of socialization and the association between violence and attraction that this imposes (Flecha and Puigvert, 2010).
Building upon the findings of research studies on the preventive socialization approach, three different masculinity models have been recognized and accordingly theorized (Flecha et al., 2013). These are considered as ideal types in a Weberian way, identified in order for us to be able to develop social theory. First, the Dominant Traditional Masculinities (DTM) is the model represented by those men who embrace the values of the patriarchal society and consider themselves to be the ones who ‘know about sex’, and they are sometimes linked with violent attitudes. Second, the Oppressed Traditional Masculinities (OTM), the model which, drawing from a perspective merely limited to the language of ethics, is represented by those men who hold egalitarian values but are considered ‘not sexy’. In this second model, the capacity to increase attraction and be desired has not yet been transformed, so they are not an alternative to gender violence, as they do not challenge the values embodied by the DTM. Radically opposed to OTM and DTM are the New Alternative Masculinities, a model situated within the realm of language of desire, represented by men who oppose violent attitudes and behaviours while also being considered sexy.
When is the risk taken? Hook-ups vs. stable relationships with men with violent attitudes and behaviours
Research in the field of psychology has also studied how, under certain conditions, aggressive men and those men considered more masculine are preferred to other men. Giebel and colleagues (2013) conducted a study in which they analysed whether appetitive aggression in men serves as an additional signal for a favoured partner choice. The authors defined appetitive aggression as ‘the intrinsic motivation to act violently even when not being threatened’ (p. 248). Testing participating women’s responses in relation to different descriptions regarding a soldier’s experience after returning from war, they observed that the preference for the ‘warrior’ was higher for women in their fertile window of the menstrual cycle and for short-term relationships. Accordingly, their findings reveal that women preferred a soldier higher in appetitive aggression as a short-term mate but not as a partner in a long-term relationship.
In another research study, Giebel et al. (2015) investigated personality traits and to what extent these traits predict the desire to choose a dominant partner. The authors observed that those individuals who declared wanting to avoid boredom and looked for exciting social activities have a stronger desire for a dominant partner. According to this study, those perceived as dominant are considered more interesting, attractive and appealing for people with higher boredom susceptibility. Additionally, people who like new and exciting social activities such as parties, social drinking and casual sex also prefer a dominant partner. In a similar vein to this investigation, Houser et al. (2015) observed that dating preferences were positively correlated with popularity, social preference and overt and relational aggression. Popular and overtly aggressive girls were seen as desirable dating partners by their male peers, and relational aggression was linked with dating popularity for both boys and girls.
On dating violence in adolescence and young adulthood
Participants in current debates on increasing rates of violence among young people agree that some specific types of experience, such as adolescents’ experience of violence during intimate partner relationships, including former or present long-term partners and dating violence (violence occurred in sporadic relationships or hook-ups), are a growing problem and an increasing concern (Erickson et al., 2010; Bramsen et al., 2012; Leen et al., 2013). Dating violence perpetration and victimization is of major relevance, especially considering the influence that it may have on future intimate partner violence and, as highlighted by Theobald and colleagues (2016), the burden of coping with violence from one generation to the next (p. 225).
Within the field of criminology, many researchers are advancing knowledge about the risk factors that may lead to dating violence. In this regard, Rebellon and Manasse (2004) investigated the association between delinquency and other risk-taking behaviours with dating behaviour among adolescents, showing that delinquency serves to increase romantic involvement. According to their results, risk-taking adolescents attract the romantic interest of others, and such attention may provide indirect reinforcement for delinquency among both male and female adolescents. In a different study about risk factors for first time sexual assault, Bramsen et al. revealed that the 6-month period following the 15th birthday is characterized by a high risk for initial sexual victimization by peers (Bramsen et al., 2012, p. 524). Authors identified two elements that predicted initial adolescent peer-on-peer sexual victimization (APSV): first, the number of sexual partners, and second, sexual risk behaviours that place girls in close association or proximity to potential offenders.
At the core of identifying these violent situations lies the idea suggested by some authors, that victimization and revictimization are either caused by an impaired ability to recognize potentially threatening situations (Bramsen et al., 2011; Messman-Moore and Brown, 2006) or are a function of how youths perceive common dating risk situations that may place them at risk not only of suffering dating violence but also a variety of other problematic behaviours (Helm et al., 2015). In this line, it has also been suggested that among those adolescents with high acceptance of dating aggression, peer aggression and delinquency significantly predicted recurrent aggression in a new relationship (Williams et al., 2008).
Research has also found that some adolescents tend to maintain violent dating relationships that become chronic, and some teens engage in multiple violent relationships in which the severity of violence increases from the first to subsequent relationships (Burke Draucker et al., 2012). There is evidence that intimate partner violence and violence in hook-ups is widespread among adolescents and young adults and leads to a life trajectory that includes violence, either as victims or perpetrators (Bramsen et al., 2011; Burke Draucker et al., 2012; Exner-Cortens et al. 2013; Lundgren and Amin, 2015). As mentioned above, peer influences and attitudes towards violence (e.g., acceptance of rape myths, tolerance of violence, and justification of using violence) appear to be the most extensively evidenced risk factors for dating violence perpetration (Bramsen et al., 2011; Tapp and Moore, 2016).
All in all, the present article draws, on the one hand, on classic works of feminist authors such as Mary Wollstonecraft (1972) who in the 18th century, advocated for the rights of women to receive the education needed to realize their full faculties and rights on equal footing with men. On the other hand, it draws on the large amount of current literature on associated risk factors for violence perpetration and victimization. This work adds to these bodies of literature by introducing quantitative data on the female adolescents’ pattern of attraction towards either boys with violent attitudes and behaviours or boys with non-violent traits, looking at the differences in such attraction patterns when the young women consider either hook-ups or stable relationships. Despite reporting data on both violent and non-violent boys, the analysis is mostly focused on the scenarios involving boys with violent behaviours, as these are the ones at the very centre of the coercive socialization that leads to the link between attraction and violence. Unveiling the mechanisms behind this coercive discourse and how it operates in a different way in hook-ups and in stable relationships will help to contribute to prevention strategies of gender violence as well as to untangle how violence acts as an underlying force within the current patriarchal system, perpetuating the coercive model of socialization.
Saturday, June 8, 2019
Morally good content was transmitted with greater fidelity than neutral or morally bad ones; the communication of moral virtue might serve to avoid negative impression formation & promote social bonding
Social transmission favours the ‘morally good’ over the ‘merely arousing’. Joseph M. Stubbersfield, Lewis G. Dean, Sana Sheikh, Kevin N. Laland & Catharine P. Cross. Palgrave Communications 5, Article number: 3 (2019). https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-019-0269-y
Abstract: Moral stories are pervasive in human culture, forming the basis of religious texts, folklore, and newspaper articles. We used a linear transmission chain procedure to test three competing hypotheses: (1) that moral content in general is preferentially transmitted between individuals compared to non-moral content; (2) that negativity bias leads specifically to morally bad content being preferentially transmitted; and (3) that a bias towards pro-social information leads specifically to morally good content being preferentially transmitted. While we found no support for a bias for moral content in general, we did find that morally good content was transmitted with greater fidelity than neutral or morally bad content, with ratings of morally good content but not morally bad content predicting transmission. Moral content, therefore, appears to be particularly culturally potent when it describes the ‘virtuous’ rather than the ‘sinful’. A second study repeated the first but also tested the influence of physiological arousal on transmission by measuring the electrodermal activity of participants. This study also found that morally good content was transmitted with greater fidelity than neutral or morally bad content and that physiological arousal had a negative effect on transmission with more arousing material being less faithfully transmitted. These results suggest that the communication of content relating to moral virtue might serve to avoid negative impression formation and promote social bonding, and that this might partially explain the ubiquity of moral content in human culture.
Introduction
Information about morality—defined by Ayala (2010) as “value judgments concerning human behaviour” (p. 9016)— pervades human culture, in religious texts, folklore, fables and news stories. Moral information might be an explicit proclamation of what is moral or amoral, or a more implicit illustration of the moral norms of a social group. Morality is characterised by some authors as an adaptation, built upon emotions that are themselves adaptive, with specific moral codes emerging via gene-culture coevolution (Gintis et al., 2008; Graham et al., 2013; Norenzayan, 2014). While disagreement exists about the sequences of events and selection pressures underpinning the human capacity for morality, there is general agreement that the emergence and evolution of moral codes and norms is only possible through cultural transmission (Ayala, 2010; Haidt and Joseph, 2004, McNamara et al., 2019). The process by which moral content is embedded into culturally transmitted stories and artefacts is poorly understood, however. Here, we present two studies investigating cognitive content biases towards moral information.
A cognitive content bias is a predisposition that humans have for attending to, recalling, or re-producing, certain kinds of information. (Boyd and Richerson, 1985; Barrett and Nyhof, 2001; Henrich and McElreath, 2003). Evolutionary psychologists argue that such biases exist because they were adaptive in ancestral environments (e.g., tracking social relationships in complex groups), and that they modify the content and structure of cultural knowledge and artefacts, which makes them increasingly transmittable (Barrett and Nyhof, 2001; Laland and Brown, 2011; Mesoudi, 2016). Studies have demonstrated biases for a number of types of content: ecological information relevant to health and survival, hereafter survival content (Nairne, 2010; Stubbersfield et al., 2015); information relevant to social relationships and interaction, hereafter social content (Mesoudi et al., 2006; Stubbersfield et al., 2015), and information evoking an emotional response, hereafter emotional content (Eriksson and Coultas, 2014; Heath et al., 2001; Stubbersfield et al., 2017). A number of studies investigating biases in transmission have used the transmission chain, or serial reproduction, paradigm, in which experimental material is passed along a linear ‘chain’ of individuals. First developed by Bartlett (1932), this method allows researchers to assess which types of information are preserved with the greatest fidelity as they are passed along the chain, in turn revealing the biases in social transmission which influence the transmission and evolution of culture (Mesoudi and Whiten, 2008; Mesoudi et al., 2006). While evidence for a number of content biases in transmission has been documented (See Stubbersfield et al., 2018 for a review) a content bias for morally relevant content has yet to be experimentally examined.
Based on Haidt and Joseph’s (2004) moral foundations theory, one might expect a transmission bias for all morally relevant information, because any information relevant to the moral foundations would be salient. This hypothesis has not yet been directly tested but indirect evidence for a bias for moral content comes from the literature on impression formation. Wojciszke et al. (1998) for example, found that morality-related information played a more important role in global impression formation and was more cognitively accessible than competence-related information. Ybarra et al. (2001) found that participants were more sensitive to person-relevant information from the morality domain than the competence domain. Van Leeuwen et al. (2012) used a memory confusion paradigm and found that participants spontaneously categorised along a morality dimension but not along a competence dimension. Morality also influences the perception of specific actions: Pizarro et al. (2006) gave participants one of two vignettes—the first about a man intentionally leaving a restaurant without paying and the second about a man who forgot to pay for his meal. Participants who read the vignette with the intentional— but not the accidental—moral transgression distorted the recalled amount to be larger than it was when asked for the size of the bill. Taken together, these studies suggest that moral content is particularly salient when forming impressions of other people and their actions.
Another known bias which could influence the transmission of moral content is a general negativity bias. Research on memory, perception, decision making and impression formation has suggested that negative entities (such as events, objects or personal traits) are more salient than their positive counterparts (Baumeister et al., 2001; Rozin and Royzman, 2001). It has been suggested that this bias is adaptive, because negative entities are likely to incur greater costs on an individual than positive entities incur benefits (Rozin and Royzman, 2001). A suggestion supported by Fessler et al. (2014), who found that participants were more credulous of negatively framed than positively framed information and that negative content was over-represented in a corpus of online urban legends and supernatural beliefs. Bebbington et al. (2016) also demonstrated a transmission advantage for negatively valenced content over positively valenced content, and found that ambiguous content is more likely to become negative than positive through transmission. Similarly, Walker and Blaine (1991) used a naturalistic “field-experiment” to demonstrate that rumours forecasting unpleasant consequences have an advantage in social transmission over rumours forecasting pleasant consequences. In addition, other studies have found a negativity bias in emotional expression in the arts (see Brand et al., 2019; Morin and Acerbi, 2017). Based on these findings it is feasible that content featuring immoral behaviour will be more salient and better transmitted than content featuring virtuous behaviour, because immoral agents could be perceived as more hazardous than moral agents are beneficial.
Alternatively, a positivity bias might shape the transmission of moral content. Experimental research has found a preference for choosing to transmit positively valenced vignettes over negatively valenced equivalents (van Leeuwen et al., 2018). Studies using “real world” data have found an advantage for positive content, with positively valenced messages being more frequently and more widely shared on social media than negative content (Ferrara and Yang, 2015a; Ferrara and Yang, 2015b; Fu et al., 2016) and urban legends featuring amusing content being more common than those featuring other, negative emotions (Stubbersfield et al., 2018). In addition, research has shown that children seek out and transmit content which supports a positive, pro-social, evaluation of their in-group over other types of information, including negative information about their out-group (Over et al., 2017). Therefore, the possibility of virtuous content being advantaged in transmission should also be considered. We therefore examine the transmission of both morally good content and morally bad content. In Study 1 we test three alternative hypotheses relating to the transmission of moral information in a linear transmission chain. In Study 2 we extend on Study 1 by including a measure of physiological arousal in order to examine the role of emotion in the transmission of moral information.
Abstract: Moral stories are pervasive in human culture, forming the basis of religious texts, folklore, and newspaper articles. We used a linear transmission chain procedure to test three competing hypotheses: (1) that moral content in general is preferentially transmitted between individuals compared to non-moral content; (2) that negativity bias leads specifically to morally bad content being preferentially transmitted; and (3) that a bias towards pro-social information leads specifically to morally good content being preferentially transmitted. While we found no support for a bias for moral content in general, we did find that morally good content was transmitted with greater fidelity than neutral or morally bad content, with ratings of morally good content but not morally bad content predicting transmission. Moral content, therefore, appears to be particularly culturally potent when it describes the ‘virtuous’ rather than the ‘sinful’. A second study repeated the first but also tested the influence of physiological arousal on transmission by measuring the electrodermal activity of participants. This study also found that morally good content was transmitted with greater fidelity than neutral or morally bad content and that physiological arousal had a negative effect on transmission with more arousing material being less faithfully transmitted. These results suggest that the communication of content relating to moral virtue might serve to avoid negative impression formation and promote social bonding, and that this might partially explain the ubiquity of moral content in human culture.
Introduction
Information about morality—defined by Ayala (2010) as “value judgments concerning human behaviour” (p. 9016)— pervades human culture, in religious texts, folklore, fables and news stories. Moral information might be an explicit proclamation of what is moral or amoral, or a more implicit illustration of the moral norms of a social group. Morality is characterised by some authors as an adaptation, built upon emotions that are themselves adaptive, with specific moral codes emerging via gene-culture coevolution (Gintis et al., 2008; Graham et al., 2013; Norenzayan, 2014). While disagreement exists about the sequences of events and selection pressures underpinning the human capacity for morality, there is general agreement that the emergence and evolution of moral codes and norms is only possible through cultural transmission (Ayala, 2010; Haidt and Joseph, 2004, McNamara et al., 2019). The process by which moral content is embedded into culturally transmitted stories and artefacts is poorly understood, however. Here, we present two studies investigating cognitive content biases towards moral information.
A cognitive content bias is a predisposition that humans have for attending to, recalling, or re-producing, certain kinds of information. (Boyd and Richerson, 1985; Barrett and Nyhof, 2001; Henrich and McElreath, 2003). Evolutionary psychologists argue that such biases exist because they were adaptive in ancestral environments (e.g., tracking social relationships in complex groups), and that they modify the content and structure of cultural knowledge and artefacts, which makes them increasingly transmittable (Barrett and Nyhof, 2001; Laland and Brown, 2011; Mesoudi, 2016). Studies have demonstrated biases for a number of types of content: ecological information relevant to health and survival, hereafter survival content (Nairne, 2010; Stubbersfield et al., 2015); information relevant to social relationships and interaction, hereafter social content (Mesoudi et al., 2006; Stubbersfield et al., 2015), and information evoking an emotional response, hereafter emotional content (Eriksson and Coultas, 2014; Heath et al., 2001; Stubbersfield et al., 2017). A number of studies investigating biases in transmission have used the transmission chain, or serial reproduction, paradigm, in which experimental material is passed along a linear ‘chain’ of individuals. First developed by Bartlett (1932), this method allows researchers to assess which types of information are preserved with the greatest fidelity as they are passed along the chain, in turn revealing the biases in social transmission which influence the transmission and evolution of culture (Mesoudi and Whiten, 2008; Mesoudi et al., 2006). While evidence for a number of content biases in transmission has been documented (See Stubbersfield et al., 2018 for a review) a content bias for morally relevant content has yet to be experimentally examined.
Based on Haidt and Joseph’s (2004) moral foundations theory, one might expect a transmission bias for all morally relevant information, because any information relevant to the moral foundations would be salient. This hypothesis has not yet been directly tested but indirect evidence for a bias for moral content comes from the literature on impression formation. Wojciszke et al. (1998) for example, found that morality-related information played a more important role in global impression formation and was more cognitively accessible than competence-related information. Ybarra et al. (2001) found that participants were more sensitive to person-relevant information from the morality domain than the competence domain. Van Leeuwen et al. (2012) used a memory confusion paradigm and found that participants spontaneously categorised along a morality dimension but not along a competence dimension. Morality also influences the perception of specific actions: Pizarro et al. (2006) gave participants one of two vignettes—the first about a man intentionally leaving a restaurant without paying and the second about a man who forgot to pay for his meal. Participants who read the vignette with the intentional— but not the accidental—moral transgression distorted the recalled amount to be larger than it was when asked for the size of the bill. Taken together, these studies suggest that moral content is particularly salient when forming impressions of other people and their actions.
Another known bias which could influence the transmission of moral content is a general negativity bias. Research on memory, perception, decision making and impression formation has suggested that negative entities (such as events, objects or personal traits) are more salient than their positive counterparts (Baumeister et al., 2001; Rozin and Royzman, 2001). It has been suggested that this bias is adaptive, because negative entities are likely to incur greater costs on an individual than positive entities incur benefits (Rozin and Royzman, 2001). A suggestion supported by Fessler et al. (2014), who found that participants were more credulous of negatively framed than positively framed information and that negative content was over-represented in a corpus of online urban legends and supernatural beliefs. Bebbington et al. (2016) also demonstrated a transmission advantage for negatively valenced content over positively valenced content, and found that ambiguous content is more likely to become negative than positive through transmission. Similarly, Walker and Blaine (1991) used a naturalistic “field-experiment” to demonstrate that rumours forecasting unpleasant consequences have an advantage in social transmission over rumours forecasting pleasant consequences. In addition, other studies have found a negativity bias in emotional expression in the arts (see Brand et al., 2019; Morin and Acerbi, 2017). Based on these findings it is feasible that content featuring immoral behaviour will be more salient and better transmitted than content featuring virtuous behaviour, because immoral agents could be perceived as more hazardous than moral agents are beneficial.
Alternatively, a positivity bias might shape the transmission of moral content. Experimental research has found a preference for choosing to transmit positively valenced vignettes over negatively valenced equivalents (van Leeuwen et al., 2018). Studies using “real world” data have found an advantage for positive content, with positively valenced messages being more frequently and more widely shared on social media than negative content (Ferrara and Yang, 2015a; Ferrara and Yang, 2015b; Fu et al., 2016) and urban legends featuring amusing content being more common than those featuring other, negative emotions (Stubbersfield et al., 2018). In addition, research has shown that children seek out and transmit content which supports a positive, pro-social, evaluation of their in-group over other types of information, including negative information about their out-group (Over et al., 2017). Therefore, the possibility of virtuous content being advantaged in transmission should also be considered. We therefore examine the transmission of both morally good content and morally bad content. In Study 1 we test three alternative hypotheses relating to the transmission of moral information in a linear transmission chain. In Study 2 we extend on Study 1 by including a measure of physiological arousal in order to examine the role of emotion in the transmission of moral information.
Large discrepancies between self-perception & actual meat consumption: Only 18 % of the sample & 26 % of self-declared low-meat consumers met official dietary recommendations for meat intake
Meat avoidance: motives, alternative proteins and diet quality in a sample of Swiss consumers. Désirée Hagmann, Michael Siegrist and Christina Hartmann. Public Health Nutrition, June 4 2019. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980019001277
Abstract
Objective: Diets lower in meat are considered both highly beneficial for human health and more environmentally friendly. The present study compared consumer groups with different self-declared diet styles regarding meat (vegetarians/vegans, pescatarians, low- and regular meat consumers) in terms of their motives, protein consumption, diet quality and weight status.
Design: Cross-sectional data from the Swiss Food Panel 2.0 (survey 2017).
Setting: Switzerland, Europe.
Participants: Data of 4213 Swiss adults (47·4 % females) from a nationally representative sample living in the German- and French-speaking regions of Switzerland (mean age 55·4 years).
Results: For vegetarians, vegans and pescatarians, ethical concerns about animal welfare and environmental friendliness, as well as taste preferences are stronger reasons to avoid meat consumption. Female low-meat consumers are more likely to be motivated by weight regulation. Only 18 % of the sample and 26 % of self-declared low-meat consumers met the official dietary recommendations for meat intake. Concerns about animal welfare and taste preferences predicted lower meat intake, whereas perceived difficulty of practising a low-meat diet and weight-loss motives were associated with higher meat consumption in consumers who reported eating little or no meat.
Conclusions: Our study demonstrates that there can be large discrepancies between consumers’ self-perception and their actual meat consumption. This has to be taken into account when designing public health interventions. Addressing ethical concerns about animal welfare (e.g. through awareness campaigns), further improving the range of vegetarian options and increasing consumers’ knowledge about the dietary recommendations may be ways to promote diets lower in meat.
Abstract
Objective: Diets lower in meat are considered both highly beneficial for human health and more environmentally friendly. The present study compared consumer groups with different self-declared diet styles regarding meat (vegetarians/vegans, pescatarians, low- and regular meat consumers) in terms of their motives, protein consumption, diet quality and weight status.
Design: Cross-sectional data from the Swiss Food Panel 2.0 (survey 2017).
Setting: Switzerland, Europe.
Participants: Data of 4213 Swiss adults (47·4 % females) from a nationally representative sample living in the German- and French-speaking regions of Switzerland (mean age 55·4 years).
Results: For vegetarians, vegans and pescatarians, ethical concerns about animal welfare and environmental friendliness, as well as taste preferences are stronger reasons to avoid meat consumption. Female low-meat consumers are more likely to be motivated by weight regulation. Only 18 % of the sample and 26 % of self-declared low-meat consumers met the official dietary recommendations for meat intake. Concerns about animal welfare and taste preferences predicted lower meat intake, whereas perceived difficulty of practising a low-meat diet and weight-loss motives were associated with higher meat consumption in consumers who reported eating little or no meat.
Conclusions: Our study demonstrates that there can be large discrepancies between consumers’ self-perception and their actual meat consumption. This has to be taken into account when designing public health interventions. Addressing ethical concerns about animal welfare (e.g. through awareness campaigns), further improving the range of vegetarian options and increasing consumers’ knowledge about the dietary recommendations may be ways to promote diets lower in meat.
The value of the present deception literature is quite low, such that it is not possible to determine whether any given effect is real or a false positive
Lessons From Pinocchio: Cues to Deception May Be Highly Exaggerated. Timothy J. Luke. Association for Psychological Science, June 7, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691619838258
Abstract: Deception researchers widely acknowledge that cues to deception—observable behaviors that may differ between truthful and deceptive messages—tend to be weak. Nevertheless, several deception cues have been reported with unusually large effect sizes, and some researchers have advocated the use of such cues as tools for detecting deceit and assessing credibility in practical contexts. By examining data from empirical deception-cue research and using a series of Monte Carlo simulations, I demonstrate that many estimated effect sizes of deception cues may be greatly inflated by publication bias, small numbers of estimates, and low power. Indeed, simulations indicate the informational value of the present deception literature is quite low, such that it is not possible to determine whether any given effect is real or a false positive. I warn against the hazards of relying on potentially illusory cues to deception and offer some recommendations for improving the state of the science of deception.
Keywords: deception, replication, meta-analysis, false positives
Abstract: Deception researchers widely acknowledge that cues to deception—observable behaviors that may differ between truthful and deceptive messages—tend to be weak. Nevertheless, several deception cues have been reported with unusually large effect sizes, and some researchers have advocated the use of such cues as tools for detecting deceit and assessing credibility in practical contexts. By examining data from empirical deception-cue research and using a series of Monte Carlo simulations, I demonstrate that many estimated effect sizes of deception cues may be greatly inflated by publication bias, small numbers of estimates, and low power. Indeed, simulations indicate the informational value of the present deception literature is quite low, such that it is not possible to determine whether any given effect is real or a false positive. I warn against the hazards of relying on potentially illusory cues to deception and offer some recommendations for improving the state of the science of deception.
Keywords: deception, replication, meta-analysis, false positives
Strength of transmission of religiosity from parent to child is dependent on parent and child gender; overall, effect sizes were strongest for sons, mothers, and the mother-daughter dyad
Stearns, M., & McKinney, C. (2019). Connection between parent and child religiosity: A meta-analysis examining parent and child gender. Journal of Family Psychology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/fam0000550
Abstract: Many studies have indicated a relationship between parental and child religiosity, but the strength of the relationship has varied. Moreover, few studies have examined moderators of this relationship, and none have conducted a meta-analysis to determine a concise picture of the association between parent and child religiosity. The current study conducted a meta-analysis to clarify the relationship between parent and child religiosity as well as gender as a possible moderator. Analysis of 30 studies conducted over the past 27 years revealed that the strength of transmission of religiosity from parent to child is dependent on parent and child gender. Overall, effect sizes were strongest for sons, mothers, and the mother-daughter dyad. Thus, these results suggest that gender plays a major role in the connection between parent and child religiosity.
Abstract: Many studies have indicated a relationship between parental and child religiosity, but the strength of the relationship has varied. Moreover, few studies have examined moderators of this relationship, and none have conducted a meta-analysis to determine a concise picture of the association between parent and child religiosity. The current study conducted a meta-analysis to clarify the relationship between parent and child religiosity as well as gender as a possible moderator. Analysis of 30 studies conducted over the past 27 years revealed that the strength of transmission of religiosity from parent to child is dependent on parent and child gender. Overall, effect sizes were strongest for sons, mothers, and the mother-daughter dyad. Thus, these results suggest that gender plays a major role in the connection between parent and child religiosity.
How people with extreme imagination are helping explain consciousness
How people with extreme imagination are helping explain consciousness. Daniel Cossins. New Scientist, Jun 5 2019. https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24232330-300-how-people-with-extreme-imagination-are-helping-explain-consciousness/
The first studies of people with hyperphantasia – hyper-vivid mental imagery – are revealing how our imaginations shape the world we perceive and make us who we are
Excerpts:
When you are absorbed in a novel, what does your mind’s eye see? For many of us, it is a foggy, low-contrast approximation of the scenes described, no matter how evocatively they are written. Not so for Clare Dudeney. “When people describe things, especially gory things, I visualise them so vividly it’s like I’m experiencing them first-hand,” she says. “A few years ago, I was on the train reading a passage about someone who got a nail stuck in their foot and I passed out.”
Dudeney is one of an unknown number of people with this ability, known as hyperphantasia. She only realised it a few years ago. Mental imagery is inherently private, after all. It is hard to articulate what you see in your own mind’s eye, never mind get a sense of how it compares with everyone else’s. But we now know it differs wildly between individuals. Some people find it impossible to picture their own bedroom, while others, like Dudeney, can call to mind images as sharp as they appear at the cinema.
These extremes of imagination are intriguing. A better grasp of what is going on in the brains of people who experience them could help tease out the role of mental imagery in emotion and mental health – and may be promising territory in the search for treatments for various psychological disorders. People with extraordinary imaginations might even reveal something about how we all experience the world.
The first studies of people with hyperphantasia – hyper-vivid mental imagery – are revealing how our imaginations shape the world we perceive and make us who we are
Excerpts:
When you are absorbed in a novel, what does your mind’s eye see? For many of us, it is a foggy, low-contrast approximation of the scenes described, no matter how evocatively they are written. Not so for Clare Dudeney. “When people describe things, especially gory things, I visualise them so vividly it’s like I’m experiencing them first-hand,” she says. “A few years ago, I was on the train reading a passage about someone who got a nail stuck in their foot and I passed out.”
Dudeney is one of an unknown number of people with this ability, known as hyperphantasia. She only realised it a few years ago. Mental imagery is inherently private, after all. It is hard to articulate what you see in your own mind’s eye, never mind get a sense of how it compares with everyone else’s. But we now know it differs wildly between individuals. Some people find it impossible to picture their own bedroom, while others, like Dudeney, can call to mind images as sharp as they appear at the cinema.
These extremes of imagination are intriguing. A better grasp of what is going on in the brains of people who experience them could help tease out the role of mental imagery in emotion and mental health – and may be promising territory in the search for treatments for various psychological disorders. People with extraordinary imaginations might even reveal something about how we all experience the world.
Friday, June 7, 2019
Self-serving Optimism in Hedonic Prediction: People Believe in a Bright Future for Themselves and Their Friends, but Not for Their Enemies
Sjåstad, Hallgeir, Siv Skard, Helge Thorbjørnsen, and Elisabeth Norman. 2019. “Self-serving Optimism in Hedonic Prediction: People Believe in a Bright Future for Themselves and Their Friends, but Not for Their Enemies.” PsyArXiv. June 7. doi:10.31234/osf.io/wgc3z
Abstract: According to longitudinal research, psychological well-being is remarkably stable over time. However, people may still believe that the future will deviate from the past in a non-random, desirable direction. Across three experiments in USA and Norway (N=1,130; two pre-registered), participants were randomly assigned to report their well-being in the past (1-5 years back) or predict their future well-being (1-5 years ahead). In line with a "bright-future hypothesis", people had a strong tendency to predict higher levels of happiness and meaning in the future than the past. Rather than being the result of a cognitive illusion, the evidence favored a motivated-belief explanation. Specifically, the same time asymmetry was found both in separate judgment between-persons and joint evaluation within-persons, and the expectation of future improvement generalized to the judgment of a friend but not to a personal enemy. People may typically predict a bright future when they want to see one.
Abstract: According to longitudinal research, psychological well-being is remarkably stable over time. However, people may still believe that the future will deviate from the past in a non-random, desirable direction. Across three experiments in USA and Norway (N=1,130; two pre-registered), participants were randomly assigned to report their well-being in the past (1-5 years back) or predict their future well-being (1-5 years ahead). In line with a "bright-future hypothesis", people had a strong tendency to predict higher levels of happiness and meaning in the future than the past. Rather than being the result of a cognitive illusion, the evidence favored a motivated-belief explanation. Specifically, the same time asymmetry was found both in separate judgment between-persons and joint evaluation within-persons, and the expectation of future improvement generalized to the judgment of a friend but not to a personal enemy. People may typically predict a bright future when they want to see one.
Self-Gifting in Interdependent Cultures: Lonely Mothers and Self-Compassion
Self-Gifting in Interdependent Cultures: Lonely Mothers and Self-Compassion. Satoko Suzuki, Saori Kanno. European Association for Consumer Research Conference Proceedings, Volume 11, 2018. http://www3.acrwebsite.org/assets/PDFs/Proceedings/EACRVol11.pdf
ABSTRACT: Self-gifting consumer behavior, due to its nature of focus on self, its compatibility with interdependent cultures had always been questioned. Still, self-gifting is now prevalent in many interdependent cultures. This paper illuminates that self-gifting plays an important role of self-compassion for Japanese mothers feeling isolated from their family members. As demonstrated in its name and characteristics, one of the predominant aspects of self-gift consumer behavior (SGCB) is the focus on self. Hence, Mick and DeMoss (1990a) suggested that SGCB may depend on an individually-centered view of self, and questioned its existence in cultures dominant with a group-centered view of self. Thus, the investigation of SGCB in non-Western cultures has become to be one of the research agendas in the self-gift research. However, only very recently, the initiatives of exploring SGCB in the Eastern cultures have begun (e.g., Joy et al. 2006; Suzuki 2011; Tynan et al. 2010). Using the data gathered from the Japanese mothers on their SGCB, we explore how self-gifts play a role in interdependent cultures.
ABSTRACT: Self-gifting consumer behavior, due to its nature of focus on self, its compatibility with interdependent cultures had always been questioned. Still, self-gifting is now prevalent in many interdependent cultures. This paper illuminates that self-gifting plays an important role of self-compassion for Japanese mothers feeling isolated from their family members. As demonstrated in its name and characteristics, one of the predominant aspects of self-gift consumer behavior (SGCB) is the focus on self. Hence, Mick and DeMoss (1990a) suggested that SGCB may depend on an individually-centered view of self, and questioned its existence in cultures dominant with a group-centered view of self. Thus, the investigation of SGCB in non-Western cultures has become to be one of the research agendas in the self-gift research. However, only very recently, the initiatives of exploring SGCB in the Eastern cultures have begun (e.g., Joy et al. 2006; Suzuki 2011; Tynan et al. 2010). Using the data gathered from the Japanese mothers on their SGCB, we explore how self-gifts play a role in interdependent cultures.
The Use and Misuse of Income Data and Extreme Poverty: An implication of the low recent extreme poverty rate is that it cannot be substantially higher now due to welfare reform, as many commentators have claimed
The Use and Misuse of Income Data and Extreme Poverty in the United States. Bruce D. Meyer, Derek Wu, Victoria R. Mooers, Carla Medalia. NBER Working Paper No. 25907, May 2019. https://www.nber.org/papers/w25907
Abstract: Recent research suggests that rates of extreme poverty, commonly defined as living on less than $2/person/day, are high and rising in the United States. We re-examine the rate of extreme poverty by linking 2011 data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation and Current Population Survey, the sources of recent extreme poverty estimates, to administrative tax and program data. Of the 3.6 million non-homeless households with survey-reported cash income below $2/person/day, we find that more than 90% are not in extreme poverty once we include in-kind transfers, replace survey reports of earnings and transfer receipt with administrative records, and account for the ownership of substantial assets. More than half of all misclassified households have incomes from the administrative data above the poverty line, and several of the largest misclassified groups appear to be at least middle class based on measures of material well-being. In contrast, the households kept from extreme poverty by in-kind transfers appear to be among the most materially deprived Americans. Nearly 80% of all misclassified households are initially categorized as extreme poor due to errors or omissions in reports of cash income. Of the households remaining in extreme poverty, 90% consist of a single individual. An implication of the low recent extreme poverty rate is that it cannot be substantially higher now due to welfare reform, as many commentators have claimed.
Abstract: Recent research suggests that rates of extreme poverty, commonly defined as living on less than $2/person/day, are high and rising in the United States. We re-examine the rate of extreme poverty by linking 2011 data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation and Current Population Survey, the sources of recent extreme poverty estimates, to administrative tax and program data. Of the 3.6 million non-homeless households with survey-reported cash income below $2/person/day, we find that more than 90% are not in extreme poverty once we include in-kind transfers, replace survey reports of earnings and transfer receipt with administrative records, and account for the ownership of substantial assets. More than half of all misclassified households have incomes from the administrative data above the poverty line, and several of the largest misclassified groups appear to be at least middle class based on measures of material well-being. In contrast, the households kept from extreme poverty by in-kind transfers appear to be among the most materially deprived Americans. Nearly 80% of all misclassified households are initially categorized as extreme poor due to errors or omissions in reports of cash income. Of the households remaining in extreme poverty, 90% consist of a single individual. An implication of the low recent extreme poverty rate is that it cannot be substantially higher now due to welfare reform, as many commentators have claimed.
Thursday, June 6, 2019
Taking a vacation from Facebook and Instagram on subjective well-being: Surprisingly, at post-test the SNS vacation resulted in lower positive affect for active users and had no significant effects for passive users
Taking a break: The effect of taking a vacation from Facebook and Instagram on subjective well-being. Sarah M. Hanley, Susan E. Watt, William Coventry. PLOS One, June 6, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0217743
Abstract: Social Networking Sites (SNS) such as Facebook and Instagram have relocated a large portion of people’s social lives online, but can be intrusive and create social disturbances. Many people therefore consider taking an “SNS vacation.” We investigated the effects of a one-week vacation from both Facebook and Instagram on subjective well-being, and whether this would vary for passive or active SNS users. Usage amount was measured objectively, using RescueTime software, to circumvent issues of self-report. Usage style was identified at pre-test, and SNS users with a more active or more passive usage style were assigned in equal numbers to the conditions of one-week SNS vacation (n = 40) or no SNS vacation (n = 38). Subjective well-being (life satisfaction, positive affect, and negative affect) was measured before and after the vacation period. At pre-test, more active SNS use was found to correlate positively with life satisfaction and positive affect, whereas more passive SNS use correlated positively with life satisfaction, but not positive affect. Surprisingly, at post-test the SNS vacation resulted in lower positive affect for active users and had no significant effects for passive users. This result is contrary to popular expectation, and indicates that SNS usage can be beneficial for active users. We suggest that SNS users should be educated in the benefits of an active usage style and that future research should consider the possibility of SNS addiction among more active users.
Abstract: Social Networking Sites (SNS) such as Facebook and Instagram have relocated a large portion of people’s social lives online, but can be intrusive and create social disturbances. Many people therefore consider taking an “SNS vacation.” We investigated the effects of a one-week vacation from both Facebook and Instagram on subjective well-being, and whether this would vary for passive or active SNS users. Usage amount was measured objectively, using RescueTime software, to circumvent issues of self-report. Usage style was identified at pre-test, and SNS users with a more active or more passive usage style were assigned in equal numbers to the conditions of one-week SNS vacation (n = 40) or no SNS vacation (n = 38). Subjective well-being (life satisfaction, positive affect, and negative affect) was measured before and after the vacation period. At pre-test, more active SNS use was found to correlate positively with life satisfaction and positive affect, whereas more passive SNS use correlated positively with life satisfaction, but not positive affect. Surprisingly, at post-test the SNS vacation resulted in lower positive affect for active users and had no significant effects for passive users. This result is contrary to popular expectation, and indicates that SNS usage can be beneficial for active users. We suggest that SNS users should be educated in the benefits of an active usage style and that future research should consider the possibility of SNS addiction among more active users.
France Bans Judge Analytics, 5 Years In Prison For Rule Breakers
France Bans Judge Analytics, 5 Years In Prison For Rule Breakers. Artificial Lawyer, June 4 2019. https://www.artificiallawyer.com/2019/06/04/france-bans-judge-analytics-5-years-in-prison-for-rule-breakers/
Excerpts without links:
In a startling intervention that seeks to limit the emerging litigation analytics and prediction sector, the French Government has banned the publication of statistical information about judges’ decisions – with a five year prison sentence set as the maximum punishment for anyone who breaks the new law.
Owners of legal tech companies focused on litigation analytics are the most likely to suffer from this new measure.
The new law, encoded in Article 33 of the Justice Reform Act, is aimed at preventing anyone – but especially legal tech companies focused on litigation prediction and analytics – from publicly revealing the pattern of judges’ behaviour in relation to court decisions.
A key passage of the new law states:
‘The identity data of magistrates and members of the judiciary cannot be reused with the purpose or effect of evaluating, analysing, comparing or predicting their actual or alleged professional practices.’ *
[...]
Insiders in France told Artificial Lawyer that the new law is a direct result of an earlier effort to make all case law easily accessible to the general public, which was seen at the time as improving access to justice and a big step forward for transparency in the justice sector.
However, judges in France had not reckoned on NLP and machine learning companies taking the public data and using it to model how certain judges behave in relation to particular types of legal matter or argument, or how they compare to other judges.
In short, they didn’t like how the pattern of their decisions – now relatively easy to model – were potentially open for all to see.
Unlike in the US and the UK, where judges appear to have accepted the fait accompli of legal AI companies analysing their decisions in extreme detail and then creating models as to how they may behave in the future, French judges have decided to stamp it out.
Various reasons for this move have been shared on the Paris legal tech grapevine, ranging from the general need for anonymity, to the fear among judges that their decisions may reveal too great a variance from expected Civil Law norms.
One legal tech expert in France, who wished to remain anonymous, told Artificial Lawyer: ‘In the past few years there has been a growing debate in France about whether the names of judges should be removed from the decisions when those decisions are published online. The proponents of this view obtained this [new law] as a compromise from the Government, i.e. that judges’ names shouldn’t be redacted (with some exceptions to be determined) but that they cannot be used for statistical purposes.’
Whatever the reason, the law is now in effect and legal tech experts in Paris have told Artificial Lawyer that, as far as they interpret the regulations, anyone breaking the new rule can face up to five years in prison – which has to be the harshest example of legal tech regulation on the planet right now.
Forbidden knowledge…….
That said, French case law publishers, and AI litigation prediction companies, such as Prédictice, appear to be ‘doing OK’ without this specific information being made available. This is perhaps because even if you take out the judges from the equation there is still enough information remaining from the rest of the case law material to be of use.
Moreover, it’s unclear if a law firm, if asked to by a client, could not manually, or using an NLP system, collect data on a judge’s behaviour over many previous cases and create a statistical model for use by that client, as long as they didn’t then publish this to any third party. That said, it’s not clear this would be OK either. And with five years in prison hanging over your head, would anyone want to take the risk?
But, the point remains: a government and its justice system have decided to make it a crime for information about how its judges think about certain legal issues to be revealed in terms of statistical and comparative analysis.
Some of the French legal experts Artificial Lawyer talked to this week asked what this site’s perspective was. Well, if you really want to know, it’s this:
[...]
—
Part of the French text covering the new law is below:
‘Les données d’identité des magistrats et des membres du greffe ne peuvent faire l’objet d’une réutilisation ayant pour objet ou pour effet d’évaluer, d’analyser, de comparer ou de prédire leurs pratiques professionnelles réelles ou supposées.
La violation de cette interdiction est punie des peines prévues aux articles 226-18, 226-24 et 226-31 du code pénal, sans préjudice des mesures et sanctions prévues par la loi n° 78-17 du 6 janvier 1978 relative à l’informatique, aux fichiers et aux libertés.’
(* Translated version above, via Google.)
Excerpts without links:
In a startling intervention that seeks to limit the emerging litigation analytics and prediction sector, the French Government has banned the publication of statistical information about judges’ decisions – with a five year prison sentence set as the maximum punishment for anyone who breaks the new law.
Owners of legal tech companies focused on litigation analytics are the most likely to suffer from this new measure.
The new law, encoded in Article 33 of the Justice Reform Act, is aimed at preventing anyone – but especially legal tech companies focused on litigation prediction and analytics – from publicly revealing the pattern of judges’ behaviour in relation to court decisions.
A key passage of the new law states:
‘The identity data of magistrates and members of the judiciary cannot be reused with the purpose or effect of evaluating, analysing, comparing or predicting their actual or alleged professional practices.’ *
[...]
Insiders in France told Artificial Lawyer that the new law is a direct result of an earlier effort to make all case law easily accessible to the general public, which was seen at the time as improving access to justice and a big step forward for transparency in the justice sector.
However, judges in France had not reckoned on NLP and machine learning companies taking the public data and using it to model how certain judges behave in relation to particular types of legal matter or argument, or how they compare to other judges.
In short, they didn’t like how the pattern of their decisions – now relatively easy to model – were potentially open for all to see.
Unlike in the US and the UK, where judges appear to have accepted the fait accompli of legal AI companies analysing their decisions in extreme detail and then creating models as to how they may behave in the future, French judges have decided to stamp it out.
Various reasons for this move have been shared on the Paris legal tech grapevine, ranging from the general need for anonymity, to the fear among judges that their decisions may reveal too great a variance from expected Civil Law norms.
One legal tech expert in France, who wished to remain anonymous, told Artificial Lawyer: ‘In the past few years there has been a growing debate in France about whether the names of judges should be removed from the decisions when those decisions are published online. The proponents of this view obtained this [new law] as a compromise from the Government, i.e. that judges’ names shouldn’t be redacted (with some exceptions to be determined) but that they cannot be used for statistical purposes.’
Whatever the reason, the law is now in effect and legal tech experts in Paris have told Artificial Lawyer that, as far as they interpret the regulations, anyone breaking the new rule can face up to five years in prison – which has to be the harshest example of legal tech regulation on the planet right now.
Forbidden knowledge…….
That said, French case law publishers, and AI litigation prediction companies, such as Prédictice, appear to be ‘doing OK’ without this specific information being made available. This is perhaps because even if you take out the judges from the equation there is still enough information remaining from the rest of the case law material to be of use.
Moreover, it’s unclear if a law firm, if asked to by a client, could not manually, or using an NLP system, collect data on a judge’s behaviour over many previous cases and create a statistical model for use by that client, as long as they didn’t then publish this to any third party. That said, it’s not clear this would be OK either. And with five years in prison hanging over your head, would anyone want to take the risk?
But, the point remains: a government and its justice system have decided to make it a crime for information about how its judges think about certain legal issues to be revealed in terms of statistical and comparative analysis.
Some of the French legal experts Artificial Lawyer talked to this week asked what this site’s perspective was. Well, if you really want to know, it’s this:
[...]
—
Part of the French text covering the new law is below:
‘Les données d’identité des magistrats et des membres du greffe ne peuvent faire l’objet d’une réutilisation ayant pour objet ou pour effet d’évaluer, d’analyser, de comparer ou de prédire leurs pratiques professionnelles réelles ou supposées.
La violation de cette interdiction est punie des peines prévues aux articles 226-18, 226-24 et 226-31 du code pénal, sans préjudice des mesures et sanctions prévues par la loi n° 78-17 du 6 janvier 1978 relative à l’informatique, aux fichiers et aux libertés.’
(* Translated version above, via Google.)
Minimum Wage and Productivity: A real increase of about 22% in the minimum wage during the period 1998–2000 reduced TFP by 5.8% in low unskilled-intensive industries and 9.7% in high unskilled-intensive industries in Chile
Minimum Wage and Productivity: Evidence from Chilean Manufacturing Plants. Roberto Álvarez, Rodrigo Fuentes. Economic Development and Cultural Change, Volume 67, Number 1 | October 2018, pp. 193–224. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/697557
Abstract: This paper analyzes the effects of the minimum wage on a firm’s productivity. The main hypothesis is that an increase in the minimum wage has a negative effect on total factor productivity (TFP) due to the existence of labor adjustment costs. Using data from Chilean manufacturing plants for the period 1992–2005 and a difference-in-differences methodology, we find that an increase in minimum wage had a negative effect on TFP. Our estimates indicate that a real increase of about 22% in the minimum wage during the period 1998–2000 reduced TFP by 5.8% in low unskilled-intensive industries and 9.7% in high unskilled-intensive industries. These results are robust to alternative measures of productivity and to the inclusion of several covariates to avoid confounding effects of other policy changes or firms’ exposure to minimum wage changes.
Abstract: This paper analyzes the effects of the minimum wage on a firm’s productivity. The main hypothesis is that an increase in the minimum wage has a negative effect on total factor productivity (TFP) due to the existence of labor adjustment costs. Using data from Chilean manufacturing plants for the period 1992–2005 and a difference-in-differences methodology, we find that an increase in minimum wage had a negative effect on TFP. Our estimates indicate that a real increase of about 22% in the minimum wage during the period 1998–2000 reduced TFP by 5.8% in low unskilled-intensive industries and 9.7% in high unskilled-intensive industries. These results are robust to alternative measures of productivity and to the inclusion of several covariates to avoid confounding effects of other policy changes or firms’ exposure to minimum wage changes.
A man with an unattractive wife is perceived to be more moral because the couple shares a stronger & more communal relationship
Forming Judgments Based on Spouse’s Attractiveness. Nivriti Chowdhry, Ajay Kalra. European Association for Consumer Research Conference Proceedings, Volume 11, 2018. http://www3.acrwebsite.org/assets/PDFs/Proceedings/EACRVol11.pdf
Excerpts of the extended abstract:
This research investigates the effect of spouse attractiveness on the perceived morality of a focal person and the credibility of their firm. Five studies demonstrate that a man with an unattractive wife is perceived to be more moral because the couple shares a stronger and more communal relationship.The spouses and romantic partners of CEOs, politicians, and celebrities are often in the public eye themselves. For example, Melinda Gates, Priscilla Chan, and Miranda Kerr are as well-known as their spouses. Additionally, several service providers and retailers (e.g., financial advisors, contractors, automobile dealers) routinely feature their spouses in their professional profiles and commercial messages. How does the beauty of the spouse impact perceptions of the focal person?The person perception literature concludes that, in general, beautiful people reap more benefits from society than unattractive people (Dion, Berscheid, and Walster 1972, Langlois et al. 2000, Mobius and Rosenblat 2006). This research focuses on the effects of a person’s own beauty, not the beauty of people associated with a target person. In contrast, we demonstrate that judgments about a fo-cal person’s traits can be based on the attractiveness of their spouse, and explicate why an associated person’s physical attractiveness can be detrimental to perceptions of a focal person. In particular, using entitativity theory and social exchange theory, we explain how the physical appearance of an associated person can signal information about a target person’s morality, one of the more important dimension in marketing and consumer behavior.
Entitativity is defined as the cohesiveness and unity of a social group, such as a sports team, work group, or family (Campbell 1958; McConnell et al. 1997). When gauging the entitativity of a group, judges may consider fixed characteristics or dynamic processes un-derlying the relationship (Wai-man Ip, Chiu, and Wan 2006). Fixed characteristics are immediately observable physical features and signal psychological similarity. Dynamic processes underlying the relationship include the behavior and movement patterns of a group and signal common goals and attitudes of the group members (Wai-man Ip et al. 2006).
Social exchange theory (Blau 1964) posits that married couples exchange physical attractiveness, social status, and wealth. Of these, physical attractiveness is the only immediately observable fixed characteristic that entitativity judgments about a married couple can be based on. There are three different combinations of a married cou-ple’s relative attractiveness: (a) a physically similar couple, in which both people are equally attractive, (b) when the wife is more attrac-tive than the husband, and (c) when the husband is more attractive than the wife. The first combination - two equally attractive people - is consistent with extant entitativity theory. When both individu-als in a relationship are similarly attractive, they indicate entitativity through fixed characteristics, and are likely perceived to be psycho-logically similar. The second pairing has been studied and concludes that men married to attractive women are perceived to exchange wealth or social status for physical attractiveness (Baumeister and Vohs 2004).
Excerpts of the extended abstract:
This research investigates the effect of spouse attractiveness on the perceived morality of a focal person and the credibility of their firm. Five studies demonstrate that a man with an unattractive wife is perceived to be more moral because the couple shares a stronger and more communal relationship.The spouses and romantic partners of CEOs, politicians, and celebrities are often in the public eye themselves. For example, Melinda Gates, Priscilla Chan, and Miranda Kerr are as well-known as their spouses. Additionally, several service providers and retailers (e.g., financial advisors, contractors, automobile dealers) routinely feature their spouses in their professional profiles and commercial messages. How does the beauty of the spouse impact perceptions of the focal person?The person perception literature concludes that, in general, beautiful people reap more benefits from society than unattractive people (Dion, Berscheid, and Walster 1972, Langlois et al. 2000, Mobius and Rosenblat 2006). This research focuses on the effects of a person’s own beauty, not the beauty of people associated with a target person. In contrast, we demonstrate that judgments about a fo-cal person’s traits can be based on the attractiveness of their spouse, and explicate why an associated person’s physical attractiveness can be detrimental to perceptions of a focal person. In particular, using entitativity theory and social exchange theory, we explain how the physical appearance of an associated person can signal information about a target person’s morality, one of the more important dimension in marketing and consumer behavior.
Entitativity is defined as the cohesiveness and unity of a social group, such as a sports team, work group, or family (Campbell 1958; McConnell et al. 1997). When gauging the entitativity of a group, judges may consider fixed characteristics or dynamic processes un-derlying the relationship (Wai-man Ip, Chiu, and Wan 2006). Fixed characteristics are immediately observable physical features and signal psychological similarity. Dynamic processes underlying the relationship include the behavior and movement patterns of a group and signal common goals and attitudes of the group members (Wai-man Ip et al. 2006).
Social exchange theory (Blau 1964) posits that married couples exchange physical attractiveness, social status, and wealth. Of these, physical attractiveness is the only immediately observable fixed characteristic that entitativity judgments about a married couple can be based on. There are three different combinations of a married cou-ple’s relative attractiveness: (a) a physically similar couple, in which both people are equally attractive, (b) when the wife is more attrac-tive than the husband, and (c) when the husband is more attractive than the wife. The first combination - two equally attractive people - is consistent with extant entitativity theory. When both individu-als in a relationship are similarly attractive, they indicate entitativity through fixed characteristics, and are likely perceived to be psycho-logically similar. The second pairing has been studied and concludes that men married to attractive women are perceived to exchange wealth or social status for physical attractiveness (Baumeister and Vohs 2004).
Girls perform better than boys on performance-based ICT literacy assessments; differences are larger in primary schools than in secondary schools; overall, the gender differences in ICT literacy are significant but small
Is there a gender gap? A meta-analysis of the gender differences in students' ICT literacy. Fazilat Siddiq, Ronny Scherer. Educational Research Review, Volume 27, June 2019, Pages 205-217. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2019.03.007
Highlights
• Girls perform better than boys on performance-based ICT literacy assessments.
• Gender differences are larger in primary schools than in secondary schools.
• The overall effect size is robust across several analysis conditions.
• No evidence of publication bias could be found.
• Overall, the gender differences in ICT literacy are significant but small.
Abstract: The study of gender differences in academic achievement has been one of the core topics in education, especially because it may uncover possible gaps and inequalities in certain domains. Whereas these differences have largely been examined in traditional domains, such as mathematics, reading, and science, the existing body of empirical studies in the domain of ICT literacy is considerably smaller, yet abounds in diverse findings. One of the persistent findings however is that boys consider their ICT literacy to be higher than that of girls. This meta-analysis tests whether the same pattern holds for students’ actual performance on ICT literacy tasks, as measured by performance-based assessments. In total, 46 effect sizes were extracted from 23 empirical studies using a random-effects model. Overall, the gender differences in ICT literacy were significant, positive, and favored girls (g = + 0.12, 95 % CI = [0.08, 0.16]). This effect varied between studies, and moderation analyses indicated that the grade level students were taught at moderated its magnitude—effect sizes were larger in primary school as compared to secondary school. In conclusion, our findings contrast those obtained from previous meta-analyses that were based on self-reported ICT literacy and suggest that the ICT gender gap may not be as severe as it had been claimed to be.
Highlights
• Girls perform better than boys on performance-based ICT literacy assessments.
• Gender differences are larger in primary schools than in secondary schools.
• The overall effect size is robust across several analysis conditions.
• No evidence of publication bias could be found.
• Overall, the gender differences in ICT literacy are significant but small.
Abstract: The study of gender differences in academic achievement has been one of the core topics in education, especially because it may uncover possible gaps and inequalities in certain domains. Whereas these differences have largely been examined in traditional domains, such as mathematics, reading, and science, the existing body of empirical studies in the domain of ICT literacy is considerably smaller, yet abounds in diverse findings. One of the persistent findings however is that boys consider their ICT literacy to be higher than that of girls. This meta-analysis tests whether the same pattern holds for students’ actual performance on ICT literacy tasks, as measured by performance-based assessments. In total, 46 effect sizes were extracted from 23 empirical studies using a random-effects model. Overall, the gender differences in ICT literacy were significant, positive, and favored girls (g = + 0.12, 95 % CI = [0.08, 0.16]). This effect varied between studies, and moderation analyses indicated that the grade level students were taught at moderated its magnitude—effect sizes were larger in primary school as compared to secondary school. In conclusion, our findings contrast those obtained from previous meta-analyses that were based on self-reported ICT literacy and suggest that the ICT gender gap may not be as severe as it had been claimed to be.
The Puzzle of Open Defecation in Rural India: Evidence from a Novel Measure of Caste Attitudes in a Nationally Representative Survey
The Puzzle of Open Defecation in Rural India: Evidence from a Novel Measure of Caste Attitudes in a Nationally Representative Survey. Dean Spears. Economic Development and Cultural Change, May 30, 2019. https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/698852
Abstract: Uniquely widespread and persistent open defecation in rural India has emerged as an important policy challenge and puzzle about behavioral choice in economic development. One candidate explanation is the culture of purity and pollution that reinforces and has its origins in the caste system. Although such a cultural account is inherently difficult to quantitatively test, we provide support for this explanation by comparing open defecation rates across places in India where untouchability is more and less intensely practiced. In particular, we exploit a novel question in the 2012 India Human Development Survey that asked households whether they practice untouchability, meaning whether they enforce norms of purity and pollution in their interactions with lower castes. We find an association between local practice of untouchability and open defecation that is robust; is not explained by economic, educational, or other observable differences; and is specific to open defecation rather than other health behavior or human capital investments more generally. We verify that practicing untouchability is not associated with general disadvantage in health knowledge or access to medical professionals. We interpret this as evidence that the culture of purity, pollution, untouchability, and caste contributes to the exceptional prevalence of open defecation in rural India.
Abstract: Uniquely widespread and persistent open defecation in rural India has emerged as an important policy challenge and puzzle about behavioral choice in economic development. One candidate explanation is the culture of purity and pollution that reinforces and has its origins in the caste system. Although such a cultural account is inherently difficult to quantitatively test, we provide support for this explanation by comparing open defecation rates across places in India where untouchability is more and less intensely practiced. In particular, we exploit a novel question in the 2012 India Human Development Survey that asked households whether they practice untouchability, meaning whether they enforce norms of purity and pollution in their interactions with lower castes. We find an association between local practice of untouchability and open defecation that is robust; is not explained by economic, educational, or other observable differences; and is specific to open defecation rather than other health behavior or human capital investments more generally. We verify that practicing untouchability is not associated with general disadvantage in health knowledge or access to medical professionals. We interpret this as evidence that the culture of purity, pollution, untouchability, and caste contributes to the exceptional prevalence of open defecation in rural India.
Wednesday, June 5, 2019
Having more children is associated with less concern for climate change for women (but not men); overall, we refute the eco-mom theory and call for new climate change survey data that better capture gender roles and identity
Price, Carmel E., and Stephanie Bohon. 2019. “Eco-moms and Climate Change: The Moderating Effects of Fertility in Explaining Gender Differences in Concern.” SocArXiv. June 5. doi:10.1177/232949651985269
Abstract: Women typically report greater concern for the environment, including climate change, than men. The eco-mom theory—the belief that women have greater environmental concern than men because mothers primarily care about the health and safety of their children, while fathers primarily care about the economic support of their household—is often proffered as an explanation for this difference. Researchers who have previously tested the eco-mom theory have narrowly operationalized parenthood; we are skeptical of this theory and believe it needs additional testing. We look at fertility in relation to concern for climate change using the 2010 General Social Survey. Modeling parenthood like previous studies, we find no differences in concern for climate change between women who have children and those who do not. Modeling fertility, we find that having more children is associated with less concern for climate change for women but not men. Additionally, we find no gender difference in concern for climate change for those with many children, but these findings are complicated by education. Overall, we refute the eco-mom theory and call for new climate change survey data that better capture gender roles and identity as well as more qualitative inquiries into public concern for climate change.
Abstract: Women typically report greater concern for the environment, including climate change, than men. The eco-mom theory—the belief that women have greater environmental concern than men because mothers primarily care about the health and safety of their children, while fathers primarily care about the economic support of their household—is often proffered as an explanation for this difference. Researchers who have previously tested the eco-mom theory have narrowly operationalized parenthood; we are skeptical of this theory and believe it needs additional testing. We look at fertility in relation to concern for climate change using the 2010 General Social Survey. Modeling parenthood like previous studies, we find no differences in concern for climate change between women who have children and those who do not. Modeling fertility, we find that having more children is associated with less concern for climate change for women but not men. Additionally, we find no gender difference in concern for climate change for those with many children, but these findings are complicated by education. Overall, we refute the eco-mom theory and call for new climate change survey data that better capture gender roles and identity as well as more qualitative inquiries into public concern for climate change.
Rolf Degen summarizing: Psychological research on bystander apathy - prompted by false reporting - had promoted an unduly pessimistic view of human nature, refuted by new data
Liebst, Lasse S., Richard Philpot, Marie B. Heinskou, and Marie R. Lindegaard. 2019. “Bystander Intervention in Street Violence: Current Evidence and Implications for Practice.” SocArXiv. March 22. doi:10.31235/osf.io/7m9u
Abstract: In street violence, bystanders are a potential resource for crime prevention, as they tend to be present when the police are absent. This paper describes evidence of bystanders taking an active role in the prevention of violence and considers implications for crime prevention initiatives.
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Recently, however, this apathetic view of bystanders has been challenged. In a meta-analytical synthesis of the experimentally-based bystander effect research field, Fischer et al. (2011) showed that the bystander effect does not generalize to dangerous emergencies. When comparing bystander helping in low versus high danger conditions, they found that the bystander effect attenuated, or even reversed, in simulations of high-danger. This suggests that bystanders intervene when it really matters, and that the presence of others does not diffuse the responsibility for helping. Rather, in dangerous situations, additional bystanders may offer a welcome support that increases the likelihood of helping. This latter ‘reversed bystander effect’ is meaningful from the standpoint of the intervener: “I can intervene because there are others to help me if this dangerous situation gets out of hand.”
Fischer and colleagues have since verified the existence of the reversed bystander effect in field experiments simulating aggressive emergencies (Fischer & Greitemeyer, 2013). Adding to this, recent reassessments of the Kitty Genovese case document that several bystanders did in fact do something to help, as expected under the reversed bystander effect hypothesis (Manning et al., 2007). Taken together, this leaves us, both at the meta-analytical and anecdotal level of knowledge, with a more optimistic and agential view of bystanders.
These recent findings not only reframe the role of bystanders within the psychological literature, but are also of importance for the parallel criminological work that conceptualizes bystanders as ‘guardians’ (Cohen & Felson, 1979). Here, it is argued that the mere presence of bystanders has a crime preventive effect, with bystander presence making it more difficult and risky from the perspective of the offender to commit a crime. Although this situational approach is effective in deterring ‘cold-headed’ crimes, (e.g., robberies, burglaries, petty theft), it may be less effective against ‘hot-headed’ crimes, such as street violent assaults (Hayward, 2007). Moving beyond a mere focus on bystander presence as a deterrent to crime, in this paper, we suggest that bystander actions may offer new avenues for behavior-based crime prevention initiatives.
Abstract: In street violence, bystanders are a potential resource for crime prevention, as they tend to be present when the police are absent. This paper describes evidence of bystanders taking an active role in the prevention of violence and considers implications for crime prevention initiatives.
---
Recently, however, this apathetic view of bystanders has been challenged. In a meta-analytical synthesis of the experimentally-based bystander effect research field, Fischer et al. (2011) showed that the bystander effect does not generalize to dangerous emergencies. When comparing bystander helping in low versus high danger conditions, they found that the bystander effect attenuated, or even reversed, in simulations of high-danger. This suggests that bystanders intervene when it really matters, and that the presence of others does not diffuse the responsibility for helping. Rather, in dangerous situations, additional bystanders may offer a welcome support that increases the likelihood of helping. This latter ‘reversed bystander effect’ is meaningful from the standpoint of the intervener: “I can intervene because there are others to help me if this dangerous situation gets out of hand.”
Fischer and colleagues have since verified the existence of the reversed bystander effect in field experiments simulating aggressive emergencies (Fischer & Greitemeyer, 2013). Adding to this, recent reassessments of the Kitty Genovese case document that several bystanders did in fact do something to help, as expected under the reversed bystander effect hypothesis (Manning et al., 2007). Taken together, this leaves us, both at the meta-analytical and anecdotal level of knowledge, with a more optimistic and agential view of bystanders.
These recent findings not only reframe the role of bystanders within the psychological literature, but are also of importance for the parallel criminological work that conceptualizes bystanders as ‘guardians’ (Cohen & Felson, 1979). Here, it is argued that the mere presence of bystanders has a crime preventive effect, with bystander presence making it more difficult and risky from the perspective of the offender to commit a crime. Although this situational approach is effective in deterring ‘cold-headed’ crimes, (e.g., robberies, burglaries, petty theft), it may be less effective against ‘hot-headed’ crimes, such as street violent assaults (Hayward, 2007). Moving beyond a mere focus on bystander presence as a deterrent to crime, in this paper, we suggest that bystander actions may offer new avenues for behavior-based crime prevention initiatives.
Tuesday, June 4, 2019
United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and South Africa: In 9 of 10 public conflicts, at least 1 bystander, but typically several, will do something to help; increased bystander presence is related to a greater likelihood that someone will intervene
Philpot, R., Liebst, L. S., Levine, M., Bernasco, W., & Lindegaard, M. R. (2019). Would I be helped? Cross-national CCTV footage shows that intervention is the norm in public conflicts. American Psychologist, http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/amp0000469
Abstract: Half a century of research on bystander behavior concludes that individuals are less likely to intervene during an emergency when in the presence of others than when alone. By contrast, little is known regarding the aggregated likelihood that at least someone present at an emergency will do something to help. The importance of establishing this aggregated intervention baseline is not only of scholarly interest but is also the most pressing question for actual public victims—will I receive help if needed? The current article describes the largest systematic study of real-life bystander intervention in actual public conflicts captured by surveillance cameras. Using a unique cross-national video dataset from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and South Africa (N = 219), we show that in 9 of 10 public conflicts, at least 1 bystander, but typically several, will do something to help. We record similar likelihoods of intervention across the 3 national contexts, which differ greatly in levels of perceived public safety. Finally, we find that increased bystander presence is related to a greater likelihood that someone will intervene. Taken together these findings allay the widespread fear that bystanders rarely intervene to help. We argue that it is time for psychology to change the narrative away from an absence of help and toward a new understanding of what makes intervention successful or unsuccessful.
Abstract: Half a century of research on bystander behavior concludes that individuals are less likely to intervene during an emergency when in the presence of others than when alone. By contrast, little is known regarding the aggregated likelihood that at least someone present at an emergency will do something to help. The importance of establishing this aggregated intervention baseline is not only of scholarly interest but is also the most pressing question for actual public victims—will I receive help if needed? The current article describes the largest systematic study of real-life bystander intervention in actual public conflicts captured by surveillance cameras. Using a unique cross-national video dataset from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and South Africa (N = 219), we show that in 9 of 10 public conflicts, at least 1 bystander, but typically several, will do something to help. We record similar likelihoods of intervention across the 3 national contexts, which differ greatly in levels of perceived public safety. Finally, we find that increased bystander presence is related to a greater likelihood that someone will intervene. Taken together these findings allay the widespread fear that bystanders rarely intervene to help. We argue that it is time for psychology to change the narrative away from an absence of help and toward a new understanding of what makes intervention successful or unsuccessful.
Improving Emotional Intelligence: A Systematic Review of Existing Work and Future Challenges
Kotsou, I., Mikolajczak, M., Heeren, A., Grégoire, J., & Leys, C. (2019). Improving Emotional Intelligence: A Systematic Review of Existing Work and Future Challenges. Emotion Review, 11(2), 151–165. https://doi.org/10.1177/1754073917735902
Abstract: Emotional intelligence (EI) can be defined as the ability to identify, express, understand, manage, and use emotions. EI has been shown to have an important impact on health, relationships, and work/academic performance. In this article, we present a systematic review of 46 EI intervention studies on adult populations in order to assess their outcomes. Overall, these findings provide some support for the efficacy of EI programs. However, important limitations in most of the studies restrict the generalizability of their results. We discuss the contributions and limitations of these studies and make recommendations for the development and implementation of future interventions.
Keywords: emotional intelligence, emotions, review, training
Abstract: Emotional intelligence (EI) can be defined as the ability to identify, express, understand, manage, and use emotions. EI has been shown to have an important impact on health, relationships, and work/academic performance. In this article, we present a systematic review of 46 EI intervention studies on adult populations in order to assess their outcomes. Overall, these findings provide some support for the efficacy of EI programs. However, important limitations in most of the studies restrict the generalizability of their results. We discuss the contributions and limitations of these studies and make recommendations for the development and implementation of future interventions.
Keywords: emotional intelligence, emotions, review, training
What are the Associations of Body Mass Index, Sexual Dysfunction and Mood in Midlife Women?
What are the Associations of Body Mass Index, Sexual Dysfunction and Mood in Midlife Women? F. Fairbanks, S. Faubion, K. Mara, E. Kapoor. Journal of Sexual Medicine, June 2019, Volume 16, Issue 6, Supplement 3, Page S22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2019.03.504
Menopause-related symptoms affect millions of women worldwide and may impair quality of life. Weight gain is a common complaint among midlife women and is associated with metabolic syndrome, increased cardiovascular risk, and breast and uterine cancers. Psychologycal symptoms, primarily anxiety and depression, are also common among midlife women, particularly during the menopause transition. Nearly half of midlife women report sexual health concerns, and approximately 10% report distress associated with sexual concerns.
Menopause-related symptoms affect millions of women worldwide and may impair quality of life. Weight gain is a common complaint among midlife women and is associated with metabolic syndrome, increased cardiovascular risk, and breast and uterine cancers. Psychologycal symptoms, primarily anxiety and depression, are also common among midlife women, particularly during the menopause transition. Nearly half of midlife women report sexual health concerns, and approximately 10% report distress associated with sexual concerns.
Increasingly, claims are being made by neuroscientists that adolescence is characterised by unique changes to the brain, that underlie what are claimed to be unique behavioural features of the teenage years; author disagrees
Against the Stream: The teenage brain is not unique. Philip Graham. BJPsych Bulletin, June 4 2019. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjb.2019.37
Abstract: Increasingly, claims are being made by developmental neuroscientists that adolescence is characterised by unique changes to the brain. These changes are said to underlie what are claimed to be unique behavioural features of the teenage years. In this paper, it is argued that the brain changes described begin before the teen years and continue long after them. This is not surprising, as there are no behavioural features that are specific to adolescence.
Abstract: Increasingly, claims are being made by developmental neuroscientists that adolescence is characterised by unique changes to the brain. These changes are said to underlie what are claimed to be unique behavioural features of the teenage years. In this paper, it is argued that the brain changes described begin before the teen years and continue long after them. This is not surprising, as there are no behavioural features that are specific to adolescence.
Young Women’s Desire for Sex: Despite sexual double standards, sexual desire is highly prevalent among young women, and is so powerful that when desire is high, they are less likely to use condoms or withdrawal
The Social Production and Salience of Young Women’s Desire for Sex. Abigail Weitzman. Social Forces, soz049, https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/soz049, May 29 2019
Abstract: Using data from the Relationship Dynamics and Social Life Study, a diverse sample of 925 women updated weekly for 2.5 years, I (1) describe how desire for sex varies across and within women during the transition to adulthood; (2) explore how desire corresponds with women’s social circumstances and experiences; and (3) assess the relationship between desire for sex, sexual activity, and contraceptive use. The strength of young women’s desire varies across demographic characteristics like religiosity and social class; changes after pivotal events like sexual debut; and varies with social ecology, such as friends’ attitudes. When women more strongly desire sex they are more likely to have sex and to use hormonal contraception. Moreover, the association between desire and sex is especially pronounced when women are using a hormonal method. In contrast, when women more strongly desire sex they are less likely to use condoms or withdrawal, irrespective of hormonal use. These findings suggest that sexual desire is socially situated and relevant for both anticipatory and situational decisions about contraception.
Abstract: Using data from the Relationship Dynamics and Social Life Study, a diverse sample of 925 women updated weekly for 2.5 years, I (1) describe how desire for sex varies across and within women during the transition to adulthood; (2) explore how desire corresponds with women’s social circumstances and experiences; and (3) assess the relationship between desire for sex, sexual activity, and contraceptive use. The strength of young women’s desire varies across demographic characteristics like religiosity and social class; changes after pivotal events like sexual debut; and varies with social ecology, such as friends’ attitudes. When women more strongly desire sex they are more likely to have sex and to use hormonal contraception. Moreover, the association between desire and sex is especially pronounced when women are using a hormonal method. In contrast, when women more strongly desire sex they are less likely to use condoms or withdrawal, irrespective of hormonal use. These findings suggest that sexual desire is socially situated and relevant for both anticipatory and situational decisions about contraception.
Evolutionary Theories and Men's Preferences for Women's Waist-to-Hip Ratio: Which Hypotheses Remain? A Systematic Review
Evolutionary Theories and Men's Preferences for Women's Waist-to-Hip Ratio: Which Hypotheses Remain? A Systematic Review. Jeanne Bovet. Front. Psychol., June 4 2019https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01221
Abstract: Over the last 25 years, a large amount of research has been dedicated to identifying men's preferences for women's physical features, and the evolutionary benefits associated with such preferences. Today, this area of research generates substantial controversy and criticism. I argue that part of the crisis is due to inaccuracies in the evolutionary hypotheses used in the field. For this review, I focus on the extensive literature regarding men's adaptive preferences for women's waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), which has become a classic example of the just-so storytelling contributing to the general mistrust toward evolutionary explanations of human behavior. The issues in this literature originate in the vagueness and incompleteness of the theorizing of the evolutionary mechanisms leading to mate preferences. Authors seem to have rushed into testing and debating the effects of WHR on women's attractiveness under various conditions and using different stimuli, without first establishing (a) clear definitions of the central evolution concepts (e.g., female mate value is often reduced to an imprecise concept of “health-and-fertility”), and (b) a complete overview of the distinct evolutionary paths potentially at work (e.g., focusing on fecundability while omitting descendants' quality). Unsound theoretical foundations will lead to imprecise predictions which cannot properly be tested, thus ultimately resulting in the premature rejection of an evolutionary explanation to human mate preferences. This paper provides the first comprehensive review of the existing hypotheses on why men's preferences for a certain WHR in women might be adaptive, as well as an analysis of the theoretical credibility of these hypotheses. By dissecting the evolutionary reasoning behind each hypothesis, I show which hypotheses are plausible and which are unfit to account for men's preferences for female WHR. Moreover, the most cited hypotheses (e.g., WHR as a cue of health or fecundity) are found to not necessarily be the ones with the strongest theoretical support, and some promising hypotheses (e.g., WHR as a cue of parity or current pregnancy) have seemingly been mostly overlooked. Finally, I suggest some directions for future studies on human mate choice, to move this evolutionary psychology literature toward a stronger theoretical foundation.
Introduction
The ratio between the waist and the hips circumferences (Waist-to-Hip Ratio, or WHR) is a physical characteristic often used as an example to show that evolution shaped human mate preferences. It is also an example of just-so storytelling in evolutionary psychology. In 1993, Devendra Singh suggested that WHR represents a strong predictor of women's physical attractiveness (Singh, 1993a). He also argued that men's preference for a mate with a low WHR is adaptive, because a low WHR reflects a woman's high mate value. But what exactly is this “mate value”? During the past 25 years, the evolutionary literature on WHR and women's attractiveness has flourished, but the definition of this “mate value” is rarely expressed. In evolutionary biology, mate value is attached to the concept of reproductive success: a woman with a high mate value will increase the reproductive success of her mate(s). An increase in reproductive success is characterized by an increased number of descendants in next generations and can be achieved in various ways. First, survival until reproduction is indispensable. Second, the number of children born during an individual's lifespan is also crucial. But the survival and the quality of these children will directly impact their own reproductive success, and hence the number of grandchildren in the next generation, thus ultimately influencing the reproductive success of the grandparents. In short, a woman has higher value as a potential mate if she increases the number and quality of descendants a man will have (including the ones he has with other women). The question then is which of these components of reproductive success are actually linked to a mate's WHR? To answer this, I assemble the numerous hypotheses exposed since the idea of the WHR as an indicator of women's mate value was first suggested in 1993. These hypotheses are examined to determine which of the characteristics linked to WHR are most likely, in theory, to be translated into an increase in the reproductive success of the woman's mate.
The objective of this review is 2-fold. The first goal is to gather and pool all the existing evolutionary hypotheses regarding men's preferences for a certain (low, high or average) WHR. There are many reviews about men's preferences for women's WHR, but this is the first exhaustive review of the hypotheses mentioned in these studies. The second purpose of this paper is an in-depth theoretical examination of these hypotheses, which are often only briefly justified and, in some cases, have never been properly developed.
Most of the debate around WHR and attractiveness has centered on two other questions: “Is the preference for a low WHR universal?” and “Is WHR the best predictor of the attractiveness of women's bodies?” I will not address these two questions extensively here (it is beyond the scope of this paper), but a brief commentary seems necessary at this point. A preference for a relatively low WHR (i.e., low relatively to men's WHR, or low relatively to the average female WHR) has been observed in a large number of studies, including a wide range of populations and methods. With that in mind, results show that there is some variation in what is the exact value of the ideal WHR [reviewed in Brooks et al. (2015) and Cashdan (2008)]. The second debate concerns WHR as the “best” predictor for attractiveness. Authors have debated whether WHR or BMI is the best predictor of attractiveness and mate value (Tassinary and Hansen, 1998; Tovée et al., 1999; Furnham et al., 2005; Cornelissen et al., 2009a,b). As could be expected, the results vary according to the population and stimuli used. Other measurements have also been proposed to replace WHR (for example, hip or waist size alone, abdominal depth or waist/stature ratio: Brooks et al., 2010, 2015; Lassek and Gaulin, 2016). The objective of this paper is not to decide if WHR is the best measure of physical attractiveness or if the ideal WHR is universal or not. For our purposes, it is sufficient to note that the effect of WHR on attractiveness is widespread (even if the value of the preferred WHR varies), and large enough to warrant questions about its possible adaptive basis.
Abstract: Over the last 25 years, a large amount of research has been dedicated to identifying men's preferences for women's physical features, and the evolutionary benefits associated with such preferences. Today, this area of research generates substantial controversy and criticism. I argue that part of the crisis is due to inaccuracies in the evolutionary hypotheses used in the field. For this review, I focus on the extensive literature regarding men's adaptive preferences for women's waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), which has become a classic example of the just-so storytelling contributing to the general mistrust toward evolutionary explanations of human behavior. The issues in this literature originate in the vagueness and incompleteness of the theorizing of the evolutionary mechanisms leading to mate preferences. Authors seem to have rushed into testing and debating the effects of WHR on women's attractiveness under various conditions and using different stimuli, without first establishing (a) clear definitions of the central evolution concepts (e.g., female mate value is often reduced to an imprecise concept of “health-and-fertility”), and (b) a complete overview of the distinct evolutionary paths potentially at work (e.g., focusing on fecundability while omitting descendants' quality). Unsound theoretical foundations will lead to imprecise predictions which cannot properly be tested, thus ultimately resulting in the premature rejection of an evolutionary explanation to human mate preferences. This paper provides the first comprehensive review of the existing hypotheses on why men's preferences for a certain WHR in women might be adaptive, as well as an analysis of the theoretical credibility of these hypotheses. By dissecting the evolutionary reasoning behind each hypothesis, I show which hypotheses are plausible and which are unfit to account for men's preferences for female WHR. Moreover, the most cited hypotheses (e.g., WHR as a cue of health or fecundity) are found to not necessarily be the ones with the strongest theoretical support, and some promising hypotheses (e.g., WHR as a cue of parity or current pregnancy) have seemingly been mostly overlooked. Finally, I suggest some directions for future studies on human mate choice, to move this evolutionary psychology literature toward a stronger theoretical foundation.
Introduction
The ratio between the waist and the hips circumferences (Waist-to-Hip Ratio, or WHR) is a physical characteristic often used as an example to show that evolution shaped human mate preferences. It is also an example of just-so storytelling in evolutionary psychology. In 1993, Devendra Singh suggested that WHR represents a strong predictor of women's physical attractiveness (Singh, 1993a). He also argued that men's preference for a mate with a low WHR is adaptive, because a low WHR reflects a woman's high mate value. But what exactly is this “mate value”? During the past 25 years, the evolutionary literature on WHR and women's attractiveness has flourished, but the definition of this “mate value” is rarely expressed. In evolutionary biology, mate value is attached to the concept of reproductive success: a woman with a high mate value will increase the reproductive success of her mate(s). An increase in reproductive success is characterized by an increased number of descendants in next generations and can be achieved in various ways. First, survival until reproduction is indispensable. Second, the number of children born during an individual's lifespan is also crucial. But the survival and the quality of these children will directly impact their own reproductive success, and hence the number of grandchildren in the next generation, thus ultimately influencing the reproductive success of the grandparents. In short, a woman has higher value as a potential mate if she increases the number and quality of descendants a man will have (including the ones he has with other women). The question then is which of these components of reproductive success are actually linked to a mate's WHR? To answer this, I assemble the numerous hypotheses exposed since the idea of the WHR as an indicator of women's mate value was first suggested in 1993. These hypotheses are examined to determine which of the characteristics linked to WHR are most likely, in theory, to be translated into an increase in the reproductive success of the woman's mate.
The objective of this review is 2-fold. The first goal is to gather and pool all the existing evolutionary hypotheses regarding men's preferences for a certain (low, high or average) WHR. There are many reviews about men's preferences for women's WHR, but this is the first exhaustive review of the hypotheses mentioned in these studies. The second purpose of this paper is an in-depth theoretical examination of these hypotheses, which are often only briefly justified and, in some cases, have never been properly developed.
Most of the debate around WHR and attractiveness has centered on two other questions: “Is the preference for a low WHR universal?” and “Is WHR the best predictor of the attractiveness of women's bodies?” I will not address these two questions extensively here (it is beyond the scope of this paper), but a brief commentary seems necessary at this point. A preference for a relatively low WHR (i.e., low relatively to men's WHR, or low relatively to the average female WHR) has been observed in a large number of studies, including a wide range of populations and methods. With that in mind, results show that there is some variation in what is the exact value of the ideal WHR [reviewed in Brooks et al. (2015) and Cashdan (2008)]. The second debate concerns WHR as the “best” predictor for attractiveness. Authors have debated whether WHR or BMI is the best predictor of attractiveness and mate value (Tassinary and Hansen, 1998; Tovée et al., 1999; Furnham et al., 2005; Cornelissen et al., 2009a,b). As could be expected, the results vary according to the population and stimuli used. Other measurements have also been proposed to replace WHR (for example, hip or waist size alone, abdominal depth or waist/stature ratio: Brooks et al., 2010, 2015; Lassek and Gaulin, 2016). The objective of this paper is not to decide if WHR is the best measure of physical attractiveness or if the ideal WHR is universal or not. For our purposes, it is sufficient to note that the effect of WHR on attractiveness is widespread (even if the value of the preferred WHR varies), and large enough to warrant questions about its possible adaptive basis.
Conservatives are consistently more supportive of hydraulic fracturing (fracking), liberals are consistently more opposed; liberals (conservatives) who report being more informed are likely to see greater (lesser) risk from fracking
Seeing through risk-colored glasses: Risk and benefit perceptions, knowledge, and the politics of fracking in the United States. Emily L. Howell et al. Energy Research & Social Science, Volume 55, September 2019, Pages 168-178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2019.05.020
Abstract: Political conservatives are consistently more supportive of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in the U.S., while political liberals are consistently more opposed, yet the processes shaping this division are largely unexplored. Here, we illustrate how political polarization in support for fracking can be understood by how risk and benefit perceptions mediate the relationship between political ideology and support for fracking, with liberals seeing greater risk and less benefit. Importantly, however, especially for understanding opinion formation around the issue of fracking, perceived knowledge exacerbates this division. Liberals who report being more informed about fracking are likely to see greater risk from fracking. Conservatives who report being more informed, however, do not see a significantly different level of risk than do conservatives who are less informed but are much more likely than any other group to see greater benefit from fracking. The result is that those who perceive themselves as highly knowledgeable about fracking are the most likely to be polarized by political ideology in their perceptions of the level of risk and benefit associated with fracking and, in turn, their level of support for the technology. We discuss the implications of these findings for communication and decision-making in the politically polarized environment around fracking.
Abstract: Political conservatives are consistently more supportive of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in the U.S., while political liberals are consistently more opposed, yet the processes shaping this division are largely unexplored. Here, we illustrate how political polarization in support for fracking can be understood by how risk and benefit perceptions mediate the relationship between political ideology and support for fracking, with liberals seeing greater risk and less benefit. Importantly, however, especially for understanding opinion formation around the issue of fracking, perceived knowledge exacerbates this division. Liberals who report being more informed about fracking are likely to see greater risk from fracking. Conservatives who report being more informed, however, do not see a significantly different level of risk than do conservatives who are less informed but are much more likely than any other group to see greater benefit from fracking. The result is that those who perceive themselves as highly knowledgeable about fracking are the most likely to be polarized by political ideology in their perceptions of the level of risk and benefit associated with fracking and, in turn, their level of support for the technology. We discuss the implications of these findings for communication and decision-making in the politically polarized environment around fracking.
Monday, June 3, 2019
Political and nonpolitical considerations on roommate selection: Partisanship strongly influences this social decision even in the presence of nonpolitical-but-politically-correlated individuating information, outweighing cleanliness
Political Considerations in Nonpolitical Decisions: A Conjoint Analysis of Roommate Choice. Richard M. Shafranek. Political Behavior, June 3 2019. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11109-019-09554-9
Abstract: Research shows the increasing tendency of partisan considerations to influence decisions outside the context of politics, including residential choice. Scholars attribute this tendency to affective distaste for members of the other party. However, little work has investigated the relative influence of political and nonpolitical factors in these situations—and it has not sufficiently ruled out alternative explanations for these phenomena. Do people mainly choose to socially avoid members of the other party for political reasons, or is partisanship simply perceived to be correlated with relevant nonpolitical considerations? In some settings, political affiliation may serve primarily as a cue for other factors. As a result, studies that manipulate partisanship but fail to include other individuating information may exaggerate partisanship’s importance in these decisions. To address this shortcoming, I assess the impact of political and nonpolitical considerations on roommate selection via conjoint analysis. I find that partisanship strongly influences this social decision even in the presence of nonpolitical-but-politically-correlated individuating information. Partisan preferences are also moderated by roommates’ perceived levels of political interest. Finally, other social traits do matter, but how they matter depends on partisanship. Specifically, partisans report increased willingness to live with counter-stereotypic out-partisans. This suggests that partisan social divides may be more easily bridged by individuals with cross-cutting identities.
Keywords: Partisanship Affective polarization Homophily Conjoint
Abstract: Research shows the increasing tendency of partisan considerations to influence decisions outside the context of politics, including residential choice. Scholars attribute this tendency to affective distaste for members of the other party. However, little work has investigated the relative influence of political and nonpolitical factors in these situations—and it has not sufficiently ruled out alternative explanations for these phenomena. Do people mainly choose to socially avoid members of the other party for political reasons, or is partisanship simply perceived to be correlated with relevant nonpolitical considerations? In some settings, political affiliation may serve primarily as a cue for other factors. As a result, studies that manipulate partisanship but fail to include other individuating information may exaggerate partisanship’s importance in these decisions. To address this shortcoming, I assess the impact of political and nonpolitical considerations on roommate selection via conjoint analysis. I find that partisanship strongly influences this social decision even in the presence of nonpolitical-but-politically-correlated individuating information. Partisan preferences are also moderated by roommates’ perceived levels of political interest. Finally, other social traits do matter, but how they matter depends on partisanship. Specifically, partisans report increased willingness to live with counter-stereotypic out-partisans. This suggests that partisan social divides may be more easily bridged by individuals with cross-cutting identities.
Keywords: Partisanship Affective polarization Homophily Conjoint
Of two persons with six fingers on their hands, MRI revealed that it is actuated by extra muscles & nerves, & fMRI identified a distinct cortical representation of the extra finger; were able with only one hand of tasks normally requiring 2
Augmented manipulation ability in humans with six-fingered hands. C. Mehring, M. Akselrod, L. Bashford, M. Mace, H. Choi, M. Blüher, A.-S. Buschhoff, T. Pistohl, R. Salomon, A. Cheah, O. Blanke, A. Serino & E. Burdet. Nature Communications 10, Article number: 2401 (2019). https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-10306-w
Abstract: Neurotechnology attempts to develop supernumerary limbs, but can the human brain deal with the complexity to control an extra limb and yield advantages from it? Here, we analyzed the neuromechanics and manipulation abilities of two polydactyly subjects who each possess six fingers on their hands. Anatomical MRI of the supernumerary finger (SF) revealed that it is actuated by extra muscles and nerves, and fMRI identified a distinct cortical representation of the SF. In both subjects, the SF was able to move independently from the other fingers. Polydactyly subjects were able to coordinate the SF with their other fingers for more complex movements than five fingered subjects, and so carry out with only one hand tasks normally requiring two hands. These results demonstrate that a body with significantly more degrees-of-freedom can be controlled by the human nervous system without causing motor deficits or impairments and can instead provide superior manipulation abilities.
Abstract: Neurotechnology attempts to develop supernumerary limbs, but can the human brain deal with the complexity to control an extra limb and yield advantages from it? Here, we analyzed the neuromechanics and manipulation abilities of two polydactyly subjects who each possess six fingers on their hands. Anatomical MRI of the supernumerary finger (SF) revealed that it is actuated by extra muscles and nerves, and fMRI identified a distinct cortical representation of the SF. In both subjects, the SF was able to move independently from the other fingers. Polydactyly subjects were able to coordinate the SF with their other fingers for more complex movements than five fingered subjects, and so carry out with only one hand tasks normally requiring two hands. These results demonstrate that a body with significantly more degrees-of-freedom can be controlled by the human nervous system without causing motor deficits or impairments and can instead provide superior manipulation abilities.
Sexual Medicine Health Care Professionals Sexual Behavior and Practices: 32% of those surveyed have had sex in the office
Behind Closed Doors: Assessing Sexual Medicine Health Care Professionals Sexual Behavior and Practices. M. Krychman. Journal of Sexual Medicine, June 2019, Volume 16, Issue 6, Supplement 3, Page S23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2019.03.506
Abstract: It is a common believed misperception that those who treat sexual medicine conditions enjoy an active robust sexual life with their partners. The perception is that medical professionals who treat male and sexual problems are more sexually active, experimental in their behavior and have a willingness to discuss sexually related topics in public forums unrelated to work. A survey was conducted to assess the sexual behavior of health care professional who diagnosis, treat and assess sexual concerns in their patients.
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among other data:
sex in public with threat of discovery 78pct
anal sex 72pct
threesome sex 48pct
annilingus 50pct
BDSM 38pct
sex in the office: 32pct
Abstract: It is a common believed misperception that those who treat sexual medicine conditions enjoy an active robust sexual life with their partners. The perception is that medical professionals who treat male and sexual problems are more sexually active, experimental in their behavior and have a willingness to discuss sexually related topics in public forums unrelated to work. A survey was conducted to assess the sexual behavior of health care professional who diagnosis, treat and assess sexual concerns in their patients.
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among other data:
sex in public with threat of discovery 78pct
anal sex 72pct
threesome sex 48pct
annilingus 50pct
BDSM 38pct
sex in the office: 32pct
Toddlers prefer those who win but not when they win by force
Toddlers prefer those who win but not when they win by force. Ashley J. Thomas, Lotte Thomsen, Angela F. Lukowski, Meline Abramyan, Barbara W. Sarnecka. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Abstract: Social hierarchies occur across human societies, so all humans must navigate them. Infants can detect when one individual outranks another, but it is unknown whether they approach others based on their social status. This paper presents a series of seven experiments investigating whether toddlers prefer high- or low-ranking individuals. Toddlers aged 21–31 months watched a zero-sum, right-of-way conflict between two puppets, in which one puppet ‘won’ because the other yielded the way. Of the 23 toddlers who participated, 20 reached for the puppet that ‘won’. However, when one puppet used force and knocked the other puppet down in order to win, 18 out of 22 toddlers reached for the puppet that ‘lost’. Five follow-up experiments ruled out alternative explanations for these results. The findings suggest that humans, from a very early age, not only recognize relative status but also incorporate status into their decisions about whether to approach or avoid others, in a way that differs from our nearest primate relatives.
Abstract: Social hierarchies occur across human societies, so all humans must navigate them. Infants can detect when one individual outranks another, but it is unknown whether they approach others based on their social status. This paper presents a series of seven experiments investigating whether toddlers prefer high- or low-ranking individuals. Toddlers aged 21–31 months watched a zero-sum, right-of-way conflict between two puppets, in which one puppet ‘won’ because the other yielded the way. Of the 23 toddlers who participated, 20 reached for the puppet that ‘won’. However, when one puppet used force and knocked the other puppet down in order to win, 18 out of 22 toddlers reached for the puppet that ‘lost’. Five follow-up experiments ruled out alternative explanations for these results. The findings suggest that humans, from a very early age, not only recognize relative status but also incorporate status into their decisions about whether to approach or avoid others, in a way that differs from our nearest primate relatives.
Liberalism may result from relatively unpredictable childhood, with personality types optimized for short-term relationships, risk-taking, novelty, & creativity; conservatives may be suited for stable surroundings with low risk payoffs
Ideology, attachment, and life history strategy: Cultural conservatism may be an ontogenetic product of high-predictability niches. Connor Wood, Jonathan Morgan, John Shaver. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Attachment theory and life history theory may offer useful tools for investigating the psychological bases of ideological commitments. Thornhill and Fincher (2007) found that conservatives exhibited more secure attachment styles than liberals and reported more positive childhood memories, suggesting that liberal orientations result from relatively unpredictable childhood environments that produce personality types optimized for short-term relationships, risk-taking, novelty, and creativity. Conservatives, by contrast, may be suited for stable surroundings with low risk payoffs. However, other studies have questioned these results (Koleva and Rip 2009; Gaziano 2017). Therefore, we set out in a preregistered study to conceptually replicate Thornhill and Fincher’s 2007 findings in light of life history theory (Del Guidice, 2009). Individuals with “fast” life histories pursue low-investment reproductive strategies. “Slow” LH strategies are characterized by more parental and relational investment. In a sample of >600, we found that certain kinds of ideological conservatism – specifically cultural conservatism– were strongly associated with stable childhood backgrounds and with slow life-history variables, corroborating Thornhill and Fincher’s interpretation. However, the association between conservatism and attachment style held only for female subjects. Conservatism may be an adaptation for stable cultural niches, but attachment style may not be the critical variable.
Attachment theory and life history theory may offer useful tools for investigating the psychological bases of ideological commitments. Thornhill and Fincher (2007) found that conservatives exhibited more secure attachment styles than liberals and reported more positive childhood memories, suggesting that liberal orientations result from relatively unpredictable childhood environments that produce personality types optimized for short-term relationships, risk-taking, novelty, and creativity. Conservatives, by contrast, may be suited for stable surroundings with low risk payoffs. However, other studies have questioned these results (Koleva and Rip 2009; Gaziano 2017). Therefore, we set out in a preregistered study to conceptually replicate Thornhill and Fincher’s 2007 findings in light of life history theory (Del Guidice, 2009). Individuals with “fast” life histories pursue low-investment reproductive strategies. “Slow” LH strategies are characterized by more parental and relational investment. In a sample of >600, we found that certain kinds of ideological conservatism – specifically cultural conservatism– were strongly associated with stable childhood backgrounds and with slow life-history variables, corroborating Thornhill and Fincher’s interpretation. However, the association between conservatism and attachment style held only for female subjects. Conservatism may be an adaptation for stable cultural niches, but attachment style may not be the critical variable.
What do people think diseases look, smell, sound, taste, and feel like?
What do people think diseases look, smell, sound, taste, and feel like? Josh Ackerman, Wilson Merrell, Soyeon Choi. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Abstract: Humans have basic five senses: sight, smell, sound, taste, and touch. These five senses help us perceive and navigate the world, enabling us to approach potential rewards and avoid imminent threats. In this study, we examined how people believe they use the five sensory modalities to detect an important environmental threat, the risk of infectious diseases. Using a fully within-subjects design, 300 participants read a scenario where they imagined a flu outbreak and thus needing to determine whether another person was sick or not. Participants ranked the five senses (sight, smell, sound, taste, touch) in terms of perceived effectiveness in detecting infection and how likely they would be to actually use each of the senses. Rankings of effectiveness and likelihood of use were similar, in the descending order of sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste. Participants’ expected emotional reactions, confidence in their disease-detection abilities, and individual differences in pathogen disgust and perceived vulnerability to disease were also examined. While the existing research has mainly focused on direct and indirect consequences of disease detection, this study provides interesting insights into people’s lay beliefs of the detection process itself.
Abstract: Humans have basic five senses: sight, smell, sound, taste, and touch. These five senses help us perceive and navigate the world, enabling us to approach potential rewards and avoid imminent threats. In this study, we examined how people believe they use the five sensory modalities to detect an important environmental threat, the risk of infectious diseases. Using a fully within-subjects design, 300 participants read a scenario where they imagined a flu outbreak and thus needing to determine whether another person was sick or not. Participants ranked the five senses (sight, smell, sound, taste, touch) in terms of perceived effectiveness in detecting infection and how likely they would be to actually use each of the senses. Rankings of effectiveness and likelihood of use were similar, in the descending order of sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste. Participants’ expected emotional reactions, confidence in their disease-detection abilities, and individual differences in pathogen disgust and perceived vulnerability to disease were also examined. While the existing research has mainly focused on direct and indirect consequences of disease detection, this study provides interesting insights into people’s lay beliefs of the detection process itself.
Contrary to most previous findings, women’s clothing style and grooming did not change according to cycle phase or hormone levels; women may not advertise their fertility with different clothing styles or make-up usage
Probing ovulatory cycle shifts in women’s make-up and clothing style. Julia Stern, Stephanie Rudolph, Lars Penke. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
The existence of ovulatory cycle shifts in women’s mate preferences and sexual desire has been discussed controversially, highlighting methodological criticism and the need for high powered replication studies. However, there is still a lack of replication studies investigating whether women actually advertise their fertility to signal sexual proceptivity to men, by dressing more attractive (wearing red, sexy or skin revealing clothes) and spending more time and effort in grooming. We addressed this lack of research in a large, pre-registered within-subject study including salivary hormone measures and luteinizing hormone tests. One-hundred-fifty-seven female participants have been photographed in a standardized setting four times across two ovulatory cycles. All photographs were coded on a number of variables for three dimensions: a) clothing color (e.g. wearing red), b) body exposure (e.g. wearing skin revealing clothes), c) grooming (incl. make-up use, hairstyle or accessoires). Multilevel intraindividual comparisons revealed that, contrary to most previous findings, women’s clothing style and grooming did not change according to cycle phase or hormone levels. These results indicate that women may not advertise their fertility with different clothing styles or make-up usage. Hormonal mechanisms and implications for estrus theories will be discussed.
The existence of ovulatory cycle shifts in women’s mate preferences and sexual desire has been discussed controversially, highlighting methodological criticism and the need for high powered replication studies. However, there is still a lack of replication studies investigating whether women actually advertise their fertility to signal sexual proceptivity to men, by dressing more attractive (wearing red, sexy or skin revealing clothes) and spending more time and effort in grooming. We addressed this lack of research in a large, pre-registered within-subject study including salivary hormone measures and luteinizing hormone tests. One-hundred-fifty-seven female participants have been photographed in a standardized setting four times across two ovulatory cycles. All photographs were coded on a number of variables for three dimensions: a) clothing color (e.g. wearing red), b) body exposure (e.g. wearing skin revealing clothes), c) grooming (incl. make-up use, hairstyle or accessoires). Multilevel intraindividual comparisons revealed that, contrary to most previous findings, women’s clothing style and grooming did not change according to cycle phase or hormone levels. These results indicate that women may not advertise their fertility with different clothing styles or make-up usage. Hormonal mechanisms and implications for estrus theories will be discussed.
Sunday, June 2, 2019
The fact that women wrote more graffiti with sexual content might be explained by the SIDE-model which states that breaking with social norms is easier in groups or in situations of total anonymity
He writes a lot, she gets to the point - sex differences in bathroom graffiti. Kathrin Masuch, Susanne Schmehl, Elisabeth Oberzaucher. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Abstract: Graffiti might be seen as a special kind of art or vandalism, but they are a special way of communication. Public bathrooms are most suitable for research on graffiti as they offer privacy and shield from the influence of other persons. Earlier research on graffiti showed that women are not as likely as men to create graffiti. Robin Dunbar claimed that the content of gossip is based on evolutionary strategies. Therefore, females tend to talk about social interactions and support, whereas men are more likely to verbally intimidate possible competitors. We examined 165 bathrooms in restaurants and bars and classified 4747 graffiti. We picked locations of high variability to ensure high social and educational diversity of visitors. Data analysis revealed a number of sex differences. Graffiti conveying social information and sexual content are found more often in ladies’ bathrooms, but generally, more graffiti are found in men’s rooms. The results partially support earlier findings but also raise new questions: The fact that women wrote more graffiti with sexual content might be explained by the SIDE-model which states that breaking with social norms is easier in groups or in situations of total anonymity.
Abstract: Graffiti might be seen as a special kind of art or vandalism, but they are a special way of communication. Public bathrooms are most suitable for research on graffiti as they offer privacy and shield from the influence of other persons. Earlier research on graffiti showed that women are not as likely as men to create graffiti. Robin Dunbar claimed that the content of gossip is based on evolutionary strategies. Therefore, females tend to talk about social interactions and support, whereas men are more likely to verbally intimidate possible competitors. We examined 165 bathrooms in restaurants and bars and classified 4747 graffiti. We picked locations of high variability to ensure high social and educational diversity of visitors. Data analysis revealed a number of sex differences. Graffiti conveying social information and sexual content are found more often in ladies’ bathrooms, but generally, more graffiti are found in men’s rooms. The results partially support earlier findings but also raise new questions: The fact that women wrote more graffiti with sexual content might be explained by the SIDE-model which states that breaking with social norms is easier in groups or in situations of total anonymity.
Sense of humor is a sexuality selected trait, signalling underlying mate quality and intelligence; women view humor production ability as more important when choosing a mate; men are better at it
Sex differences in humor production ability - a meta-analysis. Gil Greengross, Paul J. Silvia, Emily C. Nusbaum. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Abstract: There is abundant evidence that sense of humor is a sexuality selected trait, signalling underlying mate quality and intelligence. Consistent with sexual selection and mental fitness indicator theories, women view humor production ability as more important when choosing a mate. However, it is not clear if men actually possess higher humor abilities than women. We offer the first comprehensive quantitative meta-analysis on the topic, aimed at measuring the magnitude of such differences, if present. We included studies where participants identified as male or female created humor output that was assessed for funniness by independent raters who were blind to any characteristics of the subjects. Our meta-analysis includes 36 effect sizes from 28 studies (N = 5057, 67% women, including college and non-college students). Twenty of the 36 effect sizes, accounting for 61% of the participants, were not previously published. Results based on random-effects model revealed that men’s humor output was rated as funnier than women’s, with a combined effect size d = 0.321. Results were robust across various moderators and study characteristics, and multiple tests indicated that publication bias is unlikely. Overall, the results are consistent with the signalling hypothesis, and the view that humor is a sexually selected trait.
Abstract: There is abundant evidence that sense of humor is a sexuality selected trait, signalling underlying mate quality and intelligence. Consistent with sexual selection and mental fitness indicator theories, women view humor production ability as more important when choosing a mate. However, it is not clear if men actually possess higher humor abilities than women. We offer the first comprehensive quantitative meta-analysis on the topic, aimed at measuring the magnitude of such differences, if present. We included studies where participants identified as male or female created humor output that was assessed for funniness by independent raters who were blind to any characteristics of the subjects. Our meta-analysis includes 36 effect sizes from 28 studies (N = 5057, 67% women, including college and non-college students). Twenty of the 36 effect sizes, accounting for 61% of the participants, were not previously published. Results based on random-effects model revealed that men’s humor output was rated as funnier than women’s, with a combined effect size d = 0.321. Results were robust across various moderators and study characteristics, and multiple tests indicated that publication bias is unlikely. Overall, the results are consistent with the signalling hypothesis, and the view that humor is a sexually selected trait.
Male Solosexuality: A man's preference to engage in masturbation as a sole or primary means of sexual expression; the central emotional hallmark is admiration, veneration, and glorification of the penis
The Practice, Identity, and Ideology of Male Solosexuality: Description and Sexual Health Overview. Bill Herring. Sexual Addiction & Compulsivity, Jun 1 2019. https://doi.org/10.1080/10720162.2019.1615586
Abstract: This article introduces the core characteristics of male solosexuality, a recent identity construction, ideological narrative and set of associated sexual practices organized around communal online male masturbation and idealization of the penis. Behaviorally, solosexuality refers to a man's preference to engage in masturbation as a sole or primary means of sexual expression, while its central emotional hallmark is admiration, veneration, and glorification of the penis. After introducing the central behavioral and ideological components of male solosexuality this article applies a concise set of sexual health principles to assess the potential benefits and risks of what some people consider to be not just a collection of sexual attitudes and behaviors but an emerging sexual identity. This article reviews a range of potential motivations for solosexual behavior and shows how the same behavior may represent different degrees of adaptive or problematic components among its practitioners.
Abstract: This article introduces the core characteristics of male solosexuality, a recent identity construction, ideological narrative and set of associated sexual practices organized around communal online male masturbation and idealization of the penis. Behaviorally, solosexuality refers to a man's preference to engage in masturbation as a sole or primary means of sexual expression, while its central emotional hallmark is admiration, veneration, and glorification of the penis. After introducing the central behavioral and ideological components of male solosexuality this article applies a concise set of sexual health principles to assess the potential benefits and risks of what some people consider to be not just a collection of sexual attitudes and behaviors but an emerging sexual identity. This article reviews a range of potential motivations for solosexual behavior and shows how the same behavior may represent different degrees of adaptive or problematic components among its practitioners.
We remember & act on others’ unique preferences, especially our kin and romantic partners; women are better at predicting some preferences (food, environments & pastimes) of their male partner than vice versa
Gifted at gift giving- An evolutionary perspective on preference accuracy. Diana Fleischman, Sophie Berryman. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Abstract: Humans remember and act on others’ unique preferences, especially our kin and romantic partners. Preference accuracy has been shown in two monogamous bird species, but there is little other comparative evidence. Although men give the majority of gifts cross-culturally, some evidence indicates women are better at anticipating the gift preferences of others, even when only presented with a photo of the recipient. Here I present a new study of 54 heterosexual romantic couples and their ability to predict one another’s preferences in domains including food, environments and pastimes. We find that, in two out of three domains, women are better at predicting the preferences of their male partner than vice versa. We also find that social intelligence, measured by accuracy in the "Mind in the Eyes" task, predicts better preference accuracy. We replicate a previous counterintuitive effect showing worse prediction accuracy in couples who have been together longer. We do not find that preference accuracy predicts relationship satisfaction. I’ll consider why we take the time, attention and effort to learn one another’s preferences from an evolutionary perspective.
Abstract: Humans remember and act on others’ unique preferences, especially our kin and romantic partners. Preference accuracy has been shown in two monogamous bird species, but there is little other comparative evidence. Although men give the majority of gifts cross-culturally, some evidence indicates women are better at anticipating the gift preferences of others, even when only presented with a photo of the recipient. Here I present a new study of 54 heterosexual romantic couples and their ability to predict one another’s preferences in domains including food, environments and pastimes. We find that, in two out of three domains, women are better at predicting the preferences of their male partner than vice versa. We also find that social intelligence, measured by accuracy in the "Mind in the Eyes" task, predicts better preference accuracy. We replicate a previous counterintuitive effect showing worse prediction accuracy in couples who have been together longer. We do not find that preference accuracy predicts relationship satisfaction. I’ll consider why we take the time, attention and effort to learn one another’s preferences from an evolutionary perspective.
Understanding hostility in online political discussions: Individuals who are hostile online are equally likely to be hostile offline, motivated by status and seeking to challenge existing political hierarchies
Why so angry? Understanding hostility in online political discussions. Alexander Bor, Michael Bang Petersen. Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Abstract: Across Western democracies, online discussions about politics are considered uncivil, aggressive and hostile. Previous evolutionary research has explained this online political hostility as the result of the evolutionarily novel psychophysics of online environments: Lack of face-to-face interaction etc. down-regulate empathy and prompt hostility as a result of lack of emotion-regulation. On this explanation, online political hostility thus reflects an evolutionary mismatch. In contrast, we integrate (i) classical work on the adaptive functions of aggression and (ii) recent evidence on social media behavior to propose that online political hostility is deliberately employed as an instrumental strategy to further particular political agendas. We investigate this using a large representative sample of US citizens (N = 1500). Against the mismatch account, we find that individuals who are hostile online are equally likely to be hostile offline. Consistent with adaptive accounts of aggression, these individuals are motivated by status and seek to challenge existing political hierarchies. To this end, they invest more in online (vs. offline) political discussions as these discussions offer greater benefits (e.g., more interactions and greater reach) at lower costs. Thus, the hostility of online political discussions reflects a strategic investment in online discussions by aggressive prone individuals rather than an evolutionary mismatch.
Abstract: Across Western democracies, online discussions about politics are considered uncivil, aggressive and hostile. Previous evolutionary research has explained this online political hostility as the result of the evolutionarily novel psychophysics of online environments: Lack of face-to-face interaction etc. down-regulate empathy and prompt hostility as a result of lack of emotion-regulation. On this explanation, online political hostility thus reflects an evolutionary mismatch. In contrast, we integrate (i) classical work on the adaptive functions of aggression and (ii) recent evidence on social media behavior to propose that online political hostility is deliberately employed as an instrumental strategy to further particular political agendas. We investigate this using a large representative sample of US citizens (N = 1500). Against the mismatch account, we find that individuals who are hostile online are equally likely to be hostile offline. Consistent with adaptive accounts of aggression, these individuals are motivated by status and seek to challenge existing political hierarchies. To this end, they invest more in online (vs. offline) political discussions as these discussions offer greater benefits (e.g., more interactions and greater reach) at lower costs. Thus, the hostility of online political discussions reflects a strategic investment in online discussions by aggressive prone individuals rather than an evolutionary mismatch.
Why do (some) women wear chokers? Wearing chokers is a function of short-term mating orientation and both male and female observers see them as such
Why do (some) women wear chokers? Laith Al-Shawaf, Heather Williquette. Human Behavior and Evolution Society 31st annual meeting. Boston 2019. http://tiny.cc/aa1w6y
Abstract: In a series of three studies, we generated and tested seven distinct hypotheses about why women wear choker necklaces and what they signify. Study 1 (n=102) showed that interest in wearing chokers and frequency of wearing chokers were both predicted by women’s sociosexuality, a stable individual difference variable that indexes a person’s dispositional orientation toward short-term mating. Study 2 (n=104) showed that male observers correctly use women’s chokers as a cue to their sociosexuality. Study 3 (n=100) showed that female observers also correctly use women’s chokers as a cue to their short-term mating orientation. These studies find clear support for the hypothesis that wearing chokers is a function of short-term mating orientation and no evidence for the other six hypotheses. These findings suggest two key conclusions: a) choker necklaces appear to be valid cues of sociosexual orientation and b) both male and female observers use them as such.
Abstract: In a series of three studies, we generated and tested seven distinct hypotheses about why women wear choker necklaces and what they signify. Study 1 (n=102) showed that interest in wearing chokers and frequency of wearing chokers were both predicted by women’s sociosexuality, a stable individual difference variable that indexes a person’s dispositional orientation toward short-term mating. Study 2 (n=104) showed that male observers correctly use women’s chokers as a cue to their sociosexuality. Study 3 (n=100) showed that female observers also correctly use women’s chokers as a cue to their short-term mating orientation. These studies find clear support for the hypothesis that wearing chokers is a function of short-term mating orientation and no evidence for the other six hypotheses. These findings suggest two key conclusions: a) choker necklaces appear to be valid cues of sociosexual orientation and b) both male and female observers use them as such.
Alone Together: Important gender imbalances exist in what partners do when together; men are much more likely to watch TV and enjoy leisure while women do domestic chores
Alone Together: Gender Inequalities in Couple Time. Giacomo Vagni. Social Indicators Research, Jun 1 2019. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11205-019-02135-7
Abstract: An important body of research has used time diaries to assess the transformation of gender relationships at home. However, little is known about how partners perceive time shared together. While the household division of labor still remains heavily gendered, it can be expected that what partners do, even when they are together, is also gendered. The aim of this paper is to address the question of the discrepancy (or mismatch) in couples’ reporting of time together as well as the potential discrepancy in the activities engaged in during shared time. Using the 2015 UK Time Use Survey, I show that there is no gender difference in how partners report being together; however, important gender imbalances exist in what partners do when together. In particular, I find that, when together with their partner, men are much more likely to watch TV and enjoy leisure while women do domestic chores. I conclude by discussing different concepts of time together and the usefulness of couple-level diary data for studying gender relationships at home.
Keywords: Time use Gender Families Dyadic data
Abstract: An important body of research has used time diaries to assess the transformation of gender relationships at home. However, little is known about how partners perceive time shared together. While the household division of labor still remains heavily gendered, it can be expected that what partners do, even when they are together, is also gendered. The aim of this paper is to address the question of the discrepancy (or mismatch) in couples’ reporting of time together as well as the potential discrepancy in the activities engaged in during shared time. Using the 2015 UK Time Use Survey, I show that there is no gender difference in how partners report being together; however, important gender imbalances exist in what partners do when together. In particular, I find that, when together with their partner, men are much more likely to watch TV and enjoy leisure while women do domestic chores. I conclude by discussing different concepts of time together and the usefulness of couple-level diary data for studying gender relationships at home.
Keywords: Time use Gender Families Dyadic data
Saturday, June 1, 2019
Pornography & aggression, & sexual & relationship dissatisfaction: Studies reveal methodological bias in favor of findings for effects that disappear when better methodologies are employed
Fisher, W. (2019). 004 How Science Studies Pornography Impact and
What Science Can, and Cannot, Tell Us. The Journal of Sexual Medicine,
16(6), S2. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2019.03.461
Introduction:Sexuality clinicians have been concerned about the impact of pornography on sexual behavior at least since Dr. Ivan Bloch’s declaration, in 1902, that “There is no sexual aberration, no perverse act, however frightful,that is not photographically represented today.” Historically, the US, Britain,and Canada have funded national commissions to investigate the presumed negative effects of pornography, and in very recent years, the US Republican party platform and the US states of Florida and Utah have declared that pornography represents a public health crisis. More recently still, the Canadian parliament launched an inquiry into the health effects of online pornography.
Objective:There is a widely accepted social, scientific, and clinical narrative to the effect that pornography is a pervasive cause of sexual aggression against women, relationship devaluation and deterioration, and cause of sexual dysfunction. This presentation provides an overview of four decades of scientific research on the effects of pornography with a view towards soberly assessing what science can, and cannot, tell us about the effects of pornography on sexual aggression, relationship breakdown, and sexual dysfunction.
Methods:The methodological approaches and findings of classic studies inthe areas of pornography and sexual aggression, pornography and sexual and relationship satisfaction, and pornography-induced sexual dysfunction are reviewed and critiqued.
Results:Careful methodological review of laboratory experimentation concerning pornography and aggression reveals staggering methodological bias in favor of findings for effects of pornography on sexual aggression that disappear when appropriate methodologies are employed. Similarly, findings for effects of pornography on sexual and relationship dissatisfaction appear tohave been exaggerated in close-ended research that focuses solely on assessing harms and are not replicated in open-ended participant-informed research approaches. Findings for pornography-induced sexual dysfunction are ambiguous and may be interpreted to mean that individuals are receiving access to idiosyncratically arousing content in pornography that is not otherwise available to them in setting in which their sexual function is suboptimal.
Conclusions:This overview of research calls attention to the need for scientific skepticism in evaluating widely shared but scientifically questionable conclusions concerning the supposed negative effects of pornography. Attention to methodological bias, failures to replicate, and recognition of conflicting findings suggest that the science does not support the conclusions with any degree of consistency. At the same time, we do see patients clinically who have significant problems with their or their partner’s use of pornography, and careful, clinically relevant science on the actual role of pornography in these presentations and effective treatment approaches that focus appropriately on causal factors remains to be accomplished.
Introduction:Sexuality clinicians have been concerned about the impact of pornography on sexual behavior at least since Dr. Ivan Bloch’s declaration, in 1902, that “There is no sexual aberration, no perverse act, however frightful,that is not photographically represented today.” Historically, the US, Britain,and Canada have funded national commissions to investigate the presumed negative effects of pornography, and in very recent years, the US Republican party platform and the US states of Florida and Utah have declared that pornography represents a public health crisis. More recently still, the Canadian parliament launched an inquiry into the health effects of online pornography.
Objective:There is a widely accepted social, scientific, and clinical narrative to the effect that pornography is a pervasive cause of sexual aggression against women, relationship devaluation and deterioration, and cause of sexual dysfunction. This presentation provides an overview of four decades of scientific research on the effects of pornography with a view towards soberly assessing what science can, and cannot, tell us about the effects of pornography on sexual aggression, relationship breakdown, and sexual dysfunction.
Methods:The methodological approaches and findings of classic studies inthe areas of pornography and sexual aggression, pornography and sexual and relationship satisfaction, and pornography-induced sexual dysfunction are reviewed and critiqued.
Results:Careful methodological review of laboratory experimentation concerning pornography and aggression reveals staggering methodological bias in favor of findings for effects of pornography on sexual aggression that disappear when appropriate methodologies are employed. Similarly, findings for effects of pornography on sexual and relationship dissatisfaction appear tohave been exaggerated in close-ended research that focuses solely on assessing harms and are not replicated in open-ended participant-informed research approaches. Findings for pornography-induced sexual dysfunction are ambiguous and may be interpreted to mean that individuals are receiving access to idiosyncratically arousing content in pornography that is not otherwise available to them in setting in which their sexual function is suboptimal.
Conclusions:This overview of research calls attention to the need for scientific skepticism in evaluating widely shared but scientifically questionable conclusions concerning the supposed negative effects of pornography. Attention to methodological bias, failures to replicate, and recognition of conflicting findings suggest that the science does not support the conclusions with any degree of consistency. At the same time, we do see patients clinically who have significant problems with their or their partner’s use of pornography, and careful, clinically relevant science on the actual role of pornography in these presentations and effective treatment approaches that focus appropriately on causal factors remains to be accomplished.
Biological Bases of Beauty Revisited: The Effect of Symmetry, Averageness, and Sexual Dimorphism on Female Facial Attractiveness Seems Smaller Than We Thought
Jones, A.L.; Jaeger, B. Biological Bases of Beauty Revisited: The Effect of Symmetry, Averageness, and Sexual Dimorphism on Female Facial Attractiveness. Symmetry 2019, 11, 279. https://www.mdpi.com/2073-8994/11/2/279
Abstract: The factors influencing human female facial attractiveness—symmetry, averageness, and sexual dimorphism—have been extensively studied. However, recent studies, using improved methodologies, have called into question their evolutionary utility and links with life history. The current studies use a range of approaches to quantify how important these factors actually are in perceiving attractiveness, through the use of novel statistical analyses and by addressing methodological weaknesses in the literature. Study One examines how manipulations of symmetry, averageness, femininity, and masculinity affect attractiveness using a two-alternative forced choice task, finding that increased masculinity and also femininity decrease attractiveness, compared to unmanipulated faces. Symmetry and averageness yielded a small and large effect, respectively. Study Two utilises a naturalistic ratings paradigm, finding similar effects of averageness and masculinity as Study One but no effects of symmetry and femininity on attractiveness. Study Three applies geometric face measurements of the factors and a random forest machine learning algorithm to predict perceived attractiveness, finding that shape averageness, dimorphism, and skin texture symmetry are useful features capable of relatively accurate predictions, while shape symmetry is uninformative. However, the factors do not explain as much variance in attractiveness as the literature suggests. The implications for future research on attractiveness are discussed.
Keywords: faces; attractiveness; symmetry; machine learning; averageness; dimorphism
Abstract: The factors influencing human female facial attractiveness—symmetry, averageness, and sexual dimorphism—have been extensively studied. However, recent studies, using improved methodologies, have called into question their evolutionary utility and links with life history. The current studies use a range of approaches to quantify how important these factors actually are in perceiving attractiveness, through the use of novel statistical analyses and by addressing methodological weaknesses in the literature. Study One examines how manipulations of symmetry, averageness, femininity, and masculinity affect attractiveness using a two-alternative forced choice task, finding that increased masculinity and also femininity decrease attractiveness, compared to unmanipulated faces. Symmetry and averageness yielded a small and large effect, respectively. Study Two utilises a naturalistic ratings paradigm, finding similar effects of averageness and masculinity as Study One but no effects of symmetry and femininity on attractiveness. Study Three applies geometric face measurements of the factors and a random forest machine learning algorithm to predict perceived attractiveness, finding that shape averageness, dimorphism, and skin texture symmetry are useful features capable of relatively accurate predictions, while shape symmetry is uninformative. However, the factors do not explain as much variance in attractiveness as the literature suggests. The implications for future research on attractiveness are discussed.
Keywords: faces; attractiveness; symmetry; machine learning; averageness; dimorphism
MSM: Relative to a full battery condition, participants were more likely to agree to a hookup in the lowest battery condition; those men also endorsed a greater propensity for sensation seeking
Smartphone Battery Levels and Sexual Decision-Making Among Men Who Have Sex with Men. Alex Lopes, Kaylee Skoda, Cory L. Pedersen. Sexuality & Culture, June 1 2019. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12119-019-09620-8
Abstract: Smartphone-dating and hook-up apps are undeniable factors in the modern landscape of sexuality. In particular, gay and bisexual men have bridged social and societal barriers for connection by using these apps. Despite advantages afforded by such technological advancements, when individuals are faced with a low phone battery, a sense of urgency may be experienced, which can increase risk-taking behaviours to accommodate an impending phone “death”. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a draining smartphone battery would facilitate a greater likelihood of agreeing to a hookup encounter. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three battery life condition groups (5%, 20%, 100%) and were asked how likely they were to agree to a hookup with a simulated potential sexual partner. We discovered that, relative to a full battery condition, participants were more likely to agree to a hookup in the lowest battery condition. Additionally, men who reported a greater likelihood of agreeing to a hookup also endorsed a greater propensity for sensation seeking, regardless of the battery condition. These findings have practical implications for educating smartphone users who utilize dating and hookup apps about how scarcity decision-making and sensation-seeking can impact the ability to practice safe sexual behaviours.
Keywords: Hookups Dating applications MSM Decision-making Smartphones
Abstract: Smartphone-dating and hook-up apps are undeniable factors in the modern landscape of sexuality. In particular, gay and bisexual men have bridged social and societal barriers for connection by using these apps. Despite advantages afforded by such technological advancements, when individuals are faced with a low phone battery, a sense of urgency may be experienced, which can increase risk-taking behaviours to accommodate an impending phone “death”. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a draining smartphone battery would facilitate a greater likelihood of agreeing to a hookup encounter. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three battery life condition groups (5%, 20%, 100%) and were asked how likely they were to agree to a hookup with a simulated potential sexual partner. We discovered that, relative to a full battery condition, participants were more likely to agree to a hookup in the lowest battery condition. Additionally, men who reported a greater likelihood of agreeing to a hookup also endorsed a greater propensity for sensation seeking, regardless of the battery condition. These findings have practical implications for educating smartphone users who utilize dating and hookup apps about how scarcity decision-making and sensation-seeking can impact the ability to practice safe sexual behaviours.
Keywords: Hookups Dating applications MSM Decision-making Smartphones
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