Predicting real-world outcomes: Critical thinking ability is a better predictor of life decisions than intelligence. Heather A. Butler, Christopher Pentoney, and Mabelle P. Bong. Thinking Skills and Creativity, Volume 25, September 2017, Pages 38-46, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2017.06.005
Highlights
• Critical thinking and intelligence predicted the occurrence of real-world outcomes.
• Those higher in critical thinking and intelligence reported fewer negative life events.
• Critical thinking was a stronger predictor of real-world outcomes than intelligence.
Abstract: We all probably know someone who is very intelligent, but does blatantly stupid things. Despite evidence that intelligence predicts a variety of life outcomes, the relationship between intelligence and good thinking is less clear. This research explored whether critical thinking ability or intelligence was the better predictor of real life events. Community adults and college students (n = 244) completed a critical thinking assessment, an intelligence test, and an inventory of life events. Individuals with higher critical thinking scores and higher IQs reported fewer negative life events. Critical thinking more strongly predicted life events than intelligence and significantly added to the variance explained by IQ. There is ample evidence that critical thinking can be taught, so there is hope that teaching critical thinking skills might prevent the occurrence of negative life events. We advocate for critical thinking instruction as a way to create a better future for everyone.
Check also: Wisdom and how to cultivate it: Review of emerging evidence for a constructivist model of wise thinking. Igor Grossmann. European Psychologist, in press. Pre-print: https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/qkm6v/
Saturday, August 12, 2017
We fear death, again --- Why We Should Create Artificial Offspring: Meaning and the Collective Afterlife
Why We Should Create Artificial Offspring: Meaning and the Collective Afterlife. John Danaher. Science and Engineering Ethics, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11948-017-9932-0
Abstract: This article argues that the creation of artificial offspring could make our lives more meaningful (i.e. satisfy more meaning-relevant conditions of value). By ‘artificial offspring’ I mean beings that we construct, with a mix of human and non-human-like qualities. Robotic artificial intelligences are paradigmatic examples of the form. There are two reasons for thinking that the creation of such beings could make our lives more meaningful and valuable. The first is that the existence of a collective afterlife—i.e. a set of human-like lives that continue after we die—is likely to be an important source and sustainer of meaning in our present lives (Scheffler in Death and the afterlife, OUP, Oxford, 2013). The second is that the creation of artificial offspring provides a plausible and potentially better pathway to a collective afterlife than the traditional biological pathway (i.e. there are reasons to favour this pathway and there are no good defeaters to trying it out). Both of these arguments are defended from a variety of objections and misunderstandings.
Abstract: This article argues that the creation of artificial offspring could make our lives more meaningful (i.e. satisfy more meaning-relevant conditions of value). By ‘artificial offspring’ I mean beings that we construct, with a mix of human and non-human-like qualities. Robotic artificial intelligences are paradigmatic examples of the form. There are two reasons for thinking that the creation of such beings could make our lives more meaningful and valuable. The first is that the existence of a collective afterlife—i.e. a set of human-like lives that continue after we die—is likely to be an important source and sustainer of meaning in our present lives (Scheffler in Death and the afterlife, OUP, Oxford, 2013). The second is that the creation of artificial offspring provides a plausible and potentially better pathway to a collective afterlife than the traditional biological pathway (i.e. there are reasons to favour this pathway and there are no good defeaters to trying it out). Both of these arguments are defended from a variety of objections and misunderstandings.
Opportunistic Accountability: State–Society Bargaining Over Shared Interests
Opportunistic Accountability: State–Society Bargaining Over Shared Interests. Shelby Grossman, Jonathan Phillips, and Leah R. Rosenzweig. Comparative Political Studies, http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0010414017720706
Abstract: Conflicting preferences between the state and society underpin most accountability mechanisms by providing a credible way for society to impose costs on the state. Adapting a classic bargaining framework, we argue that broader conditions can support state–society bargaining. Policies that both the state and society value can also enhance society’s negotiating power, provided society has a relatively lower valuation and is more patient than the state. ***By threatening to sabotage their own interests but hurt the impatient state even more, citizens can compel the state to deliver broader policy benefits. We illustrate this logic with the case of polio vaccination in northern Nigeria, where entire communities have resisted the vaccine as a strategy to bargain for more desired services.*** To resolve and preempt noncompliance, the Nigerian government has enhanced service delivery in other areas, demonstrating the opportunity for improved accountability in the presence of shared-interest policies.
Abstract: Conflicting preferences between the state and society underpin most accountability mechanisms by providing a credible way for society to impose costs on the state. Adapting a classic bargaining framework, we argue that broader conditions can support state–society bargaining. Policies that both the state and society value can also enhance society’s negotiating power, provided society has a relatively lower valuation and is more patient than the state. ***By threatening to sabotage their own interests but hurt the impatient state even more, citizens can compel the state to deliver broader policy benefits. We illustrate this logic with the case of polio vaccination in northern Nigeria, where entire communities have resisted the vaccine as a strategy to bargain for more desired services.*** To resolve and preempt noncompliance, the Nigerian government has enhanced service delivery in other areas, demonstrating the opportunity for improved accountability in the presence of shared-interest policies.
Digitally connected, socially disconnected: The effects of relying on technology rather than other people
Digitally connected, socially disconnected: The effects of relying on technology rather than other people. Kostadin Kushlev, Jason D.E. Proulx and Elizabeth W. Dunn. Computers in Human Behavior, Volume 76, November 2017, Pages 68-74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.07.001
Highlights
• We assessed the costs and benefits of relying on smartphones for information.
• People were randomly assigned to look for a building with or without their phones.
• People relying on their phones found the building faster and felt happier.
• Participants using phones talked to fewer people and felt less socially connected.
• On-the-go information is useful but has a hidden cost: missed social opportunities.
Abstract: In less than a decade, smartphones have transformed how, when, and where people access information. We propose that turning to technology for information may lead individuals to miss out on opportunities to cultivate feelings of social connection. Testing this hypothesis, we asked participants to find an unfamiliar building and randomly assigned them to solve this everyday problem either with or without their smartphones. Compared to those who could not rely on technology, participants who used their smartphones found the building more easily but ended up feeling less socially connected. Although having access to smartphones improved participants’ mood by making their task easier, this beneficial effect was diminished by the costs to social connection. Our findings provide the first experimental evidence that the benefits of pervasive connectivity may be undercut when technology supplants social interactions.
Highlights
• We assessed the costs and benefits of relying on smartphones for information.
• People were randomly assigned to look for a building with or without their phones.
• People relying on their phones found the building faster and felt happier.
• Participants using phones talked to fewer people and felt less socially connected.
• On-the-go information is useful but has a hidden cost: missed social opportunities.
Abstract: In less than a decade, smartphones have transformed how, when, and where people access information. We propose that turning to technology for information may lead individuals to miss out on opportunities to cultivate feelings of social connection. Testing this hypothesis, we asked participants to find an unfamiliar building and randomly assigned them to solve this everyday problem either with or without their smartphones. Compared to those who could not rely on technology, participants who used their smartphones found the building more easily but ended up feeling less socially connected. Although having access to smartphones improved participants’ mood by making their task easier, this beneficial effect was diminished by the costs to social connection. Our findings provide the first experimental evidence that the benefits of pervasive connectivity may be undercut when technology supplants social interactions.
Dispelling stereotypes, nerds in high school had a lower income and less reproductive success
The Life History of the Nerd and Jock: Reproductive Implications of High School Labels. Edward Sturman, Holly Wright, Jennifer Bremser, and Tabitha Fish. Eleventh Annual Conference on the Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences, NEEPS 2017. Binghamton University, June 15-18, 2017. https://t.co/gckPMHScQg
Abstract: The present research sought to explore whether labels such as “nerd” and “jock” represent different life history strategies. We hypothesized that self-identified nerds would seek to maximize future reproductive success while the jock strategy would be aimed at maximizing current reproductive success. We also empirically tested Belsky’s (1997) theory of attachment style and life history. A mixed student/community sample was used (n=312, average age = 31) and completed multiple questionnaires on Survey Monkey. Dispelling stereotypes, nerds in high school had a lower income and did not demonstrate a future orientation in regards to reproductive success, although they did have less offspring. Being a jock in high-school was related to a more secure attachment style, higher income, and higher perceived dominance.
Abstract: The present research sought to explore whether labels such as “nerd” and “jock” represent different life history strategies. We hypothesized that self-identified nerds would seek to maximize future reproductive success while the jock strategy would be aimed at maximizing current reproductive success. We also empirically tested Belsky’s (1997) theory of attachment style and life history. A mixed student/community sample was used (n=312, average age = 31) and completed multiple questionnaires on Survey Monkey. Dispelling stereotypes, nerds in high school had a lower income and did not demonstrate a future orientation in regards to reproductive success, although they did have less offspring. Being a jock in high-school was related to a more secure attachment style, higher income, and higher perceived dominance.
Political Affiliation, Spirituality, & Religiosity: Links to Emerging Adults’ Life Satisfaction & Optimism
Political Affiliation, Spirituality, and Religiosity: Links to Emerging Adults’ Life Satisfaction and Optimism. Cansu Berivan Ozmen, Gina M. Belsford and Caili R. Danieu. Journal of Religion and Health, pp 1–14. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-017-0477-y
Abstract: The goal of this study was to extend the existing literature regarding the intersection between belief systems shaping psychological processes and subjective well-being among emerging adults. A nationwide sample of 3966 college students reported on their political affiliation, spirituality, and religiosity in relation to their subjective well-being. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that politically conservative participants were significantly more optimistic and satisfied with life than their liberal counterparts and Republican emerging adults reported significantly higher life satisfaction than Democrats. Republican emerging adults also reported significantly higher rates of religiosity and spirituality than Democratic and Independent politically affiliated emerging adults. Our findings corroborate and expand upon existing literature regarding belief systems and political identity as determinants of subjective well-being in emerging adults.
Abstract: The goal of this study was to extend the existing literature regarding the intersection between belief systems shaping psychological processes and subjective well-being among emerging adults. A nationwide sample of 3966 college students reported on their political affiliation, spirituality, and religiosity in relation to their subjective well-being. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that politically conservative participants were significantly more optimistic and satisfied with life than their liberal counterparts and Republican emerging adults reported significantly higher life satisfaction than Democrats. Republican emerging adults also reported significantly higher rates of religiosity and spirituality than Democratic and Independent politically affiliated emerging adults. Our findings corroborate and expand upon existing literature regarding belief systems and political identity as determinants of subjective well-being in emerging adults.
Resident Neuroticism Accounts for Life Satisfaction Differences Between Conservative & Liberal USA States
State Resident Neuroticism Accounts for Life Satisfaction Differences Between Conservative and Liberal States of the USA. Stewart J. H. McCann. Psychological Reports, http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0033294117725072
Abstract: Past research indicates associations between higher conservatism and higher life satisfaction, lower neuroticism and higher life satisfaction, and higher conservatism and lower neuroticism. Qualified deduction led to the following hypothesis: Neuroticism can account for the association between higher conservatism and higher life satisfaction. The 50 American states served as the units of analysis. Responses of 619,397 residents to the 44-item Big Five Inventory in an internet survey conducted from 1999 to 2005 provided mean neuroticism scores for each state. Conservative-liberal leaning of over 84,000 respondents to CBS News/New York Times polls from 1999 to 2003 and the percent voting Republican in each state in the 2000 to 2008 presidential elections combined to form a conservatism score for each state. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index provided life satisfaction scores for over 1,000,000 respondents, transforming to a 2008 to 2010 composite score for each state. In a sequential multiple regression equation with life satisfaction as the criterion, state socioeconomic status and white population percent entered first as a block, conservatism entered second, and neuroticism entered third, the demographic controls accounted for 45.7% of the variance, conservatism accounted for another 10.4%, and neuroticism accounted for an additional 10.6%. However, with the entry order of conservatism and neuroticism reversed, neuroticism accounted for another 19.6% but conservatism accounted for only an additional nonsignificant 1.4%. Therefore, the hypothesis was supported. Three alternativeexplanations suggested by other researchers were not supported in the state-level analysis.
Abstract: Past research indicates associations between higher conservatism and higher life satisfaction, lower neuroticism and higher life satisfaction, and higher conservatism and lower neuroticism. Qualified deduction led to the following hypothesis: Neuroticism can account for the association between higher conservatism and higher life satisfaction. The 50 American states served as the units of analysis. Responses of 619,397 residents to the 44-item Big Five Inventory in an internet survey conducted from 1999 to 2005 provided mean neuroticism scores for each state. Conservative-liberal leaning of over 84,000 respondents to CBS News/New York Times polls from 1999 to 2003 and the percent voting Republican in each state in the 2000 to 2008 presidential elections combined to form a conservatism score for each state. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index provided life satisfaction scores for over 1,000,000 respondents, transforming to a 2008 to 2010 composite score for each state. In a sequential multiple regression equation with life satisfaction as the criterion, state socioeconomic status and white population percent entered first as a block, conservatism entered second, and neuroticism entered third, the demographic controls accounted for 45.7% of the variance, conservatism accounted for another 10.4%, and neuroticism accounted for an additional 10.6%. However, with the entry order of conservatism and neuroticism reversed, neuroticism accounted for another 19.6% but conservatism accounted for only an additional nonsignificant 1.4%. Therefore, the hypothesis was supported. Three alternativeexplanations suggested by other researchers were not supported in the state-level analysis.
Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained: People Anticipate More Regret from Missed Romantic Opportunities than from Rejection
Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained: People Anticipate More Regret from Missed Romantic Opportunities than from Rejection. Samantha Joel, Jason Plaks and Geoff MacDonald. University of Toronto. Open Science Framework, Aug 11 2017, https://osf.io/s45ce/
Abstract: Romantic pursuit decisions often require a person to risk one of two errors: pursuing a romantic target when interest is not reciprocated (resulting in rejection), or failing to pursue a romantic target when interest is reciprocated (resulting in a missed romantic opportunity). In the present research, we examined how strongly people wish to avoid these two competing negative outcomes. When asked to recall a regrettable dating experience, participants were more than three times as likely to recall a missed opportunity rather than a rejection (Study 1). When presented with romantic pursuit dilemmas, participants perceived missed opportunities to be more regrettable than rejection (Studies 2-4), partially because they perceived missed opportunities to be more consequential to their lives (Studies 3 and 4). Participants were also more willing to risk rejection rather than missed romantic opportunities in the context of imagined (Study 4) and actual (Study 5) pursuit decisions. These effects generally extended even to less secure individuals (low self-esteem, high attachment anxiety). Overall, these studies suggest that motivation to avoid missed romantic opportunities may help to explain how people overcome fears of rejection in the pursuit of potential romantic partners.
Abstract: Romantic pursuit decisions often require a person to risk one of two errors: pursuing a romantic target when interest is not reciprocated (resulting in rejection), or failing to pursue a romantic target when interest is reciprocated (resulting in a missed romantic opportunity). In the present research, we examined how strongly people wish to avoid these two competing negative outcomes. When asked to recall a regrettable dating experience, participants were more than three times as likely to recall a missed opportunity rather than a rejection (Study 1). When presented with romantic pursuit dilemmas, participants perceived missed opportunities to be more regrettable than rejection (Studies 2-4), partially because they perceived missed opportunities to be more consequential to their lives (Studies 3 and 4). Participants were also more willing to risk rejection rather than missed romantic opportunities in the context of imagined (Study 4) and actual (Study 5) pursuit decisions. These effects generally extended even to less secure individuals (low self-esteem, high attachment anxiety). Overall, these studies suggest that motivation to avoid missed romantic opportunities may help to explain how people overcome fears of rejection in the pursuit of potential romantic partners.
Friday, August 11, 2017
Spiritual Disciplines & Virtue Formation: Examining the Effects of Intercessory Prayer, Moral Intuitions, etc., on Generous Behavior
Spiritual Disciplines and Virtue Formation: Examining the Effects of Intercessory Prayer, Moral Intuitions, and Theological Orientation on Generous Behavior. Greenway, Tyler S., Ph.D., FULLER THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY, SCHOOL OF PSYCHOLOGY, 2017, 160 pages; 10286232. gradworks.umi.com/10/28/10286232.html
Abstract: This study was designed to investigate the effects of intercessory prayer, moral intuitions, and theological orientation on generous behavior. Of particular interest for this project is the manner in which moral intuitions and the discipline of prayer interact. Research has found that both moral intuitions and prayer have an effect on virtuous behavior, but their interaction remains under investigated. It may be that intercessory prayer is more effective in producing or enhancing virtuous behavior when performed by individuals who tend to be motivated by particular moral intuitions when making moral decisions. This study was specifically designed to examine how intercessory prayer interacts with the moral intuitions of harm/care and fairness/reciprocity, which previous research has found are emphasized by both political conservatives and liberals, though liberals tend to rely on these intuitions more exclusively. ***Contrary to hypotheses, multiple regression analyses revealed that the prayer condition was associated with less monetary generosity than the control condition***. Exploratory hypotheses and results are considered, and the implications of this research are discussed.
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"Prayer may have led to less monetary generosity because it relieved any anxiety or dissonance experiened by the individuals. Prayer may have also led to less generosity because God was believed to be the solution to the problem, rather than participants' personal action"
Abstract: This study was designed to investigate the effects of intercessory prayer, moral intuitions, and theological orientation on generous behavior. Of particular interest for this project is the manner in which moral intuitions and the discipline of prayer interact. Research has found that both moral intuitions and prayer have an effect on virtuous behavior, but their interaction remains under investigated. It may be that intercessory prayer is more effective in producing or enhancing virtuous behavior when performed by individuals who tend to be motivated by particular moral intuitions when making moral decisions. This study was specifically designed to examine how intercessory prayer interacts with the moral intuitions of harm/care and fairness/reciprocity, which previous research has found are emphasized by both political conservatives and liberals, though liberals tend to rely on these intuitions more exclusively. ***Contrary to hypotheses, multiple regression analyses revealed that the prayer condition was associated with less monetary generosity than the control condition***. Exploratory hypotheses and results are considered, and the implications of this research are discussed.
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"Prayer may have led to less monetary generosity because it relieved any anxiety or dissonance experiened by the individuals. Prayer may have also led to less generosity because God was believed to be the solution to the problem, rather than participants' personal action"
Behavioral display of lumbar curvature in response to the opposite sex
Behavioral display of lumbar curvature in response to the opposite sex. Zeynep Şenveli Bilkent University, Graduate Program in Neuroscience - Master's degree thesis. http://repository.bilkent.edu.tr/handle/11693/33362
Abstract: The aim of this thesis was to investigate the hypothesis that women adjust their lumbar curvature to approach the suggested biomechanical optimum of 45.5 degrees in response to the presence of an attractive member of the opposite sex. The experiment was designed to examine the relationship between a) participants’ ratings of an attractive male confederate and the displayed change in deviation from the optimum displayed by women, and b) participants’ ratings of the attractive male confederate and the displayed change in the absolute degree of lumbar curvature, both while controlling for potential confounds such as participants’ self-perceived physical attractiveness, self-esteem, personality traits, and sociosexual orientation. Initial statistical analyses revealed a significant change in participants’ lumbar curvature pre- to post-exposure to the attractive male confederate. Subsequent analyses to examine the nature of the change indicated that socio-sexual orientation reliably predicted the change in lumbar curvature, but not the change in deviation from the optimum. The remaining variables predicted neither the change in lumbar curvature nor the change in deviation from the optimum significantly. This study is aimed at increasing our understanding of the behavioral display of lumbar curvature for self-promotion purposes in response to the presence of opposite sex.
Abstract: The aim of this thesis was to investigate the hypothesis that women adjust their lumbar curvature to approach the suggested biomechanical optimum of 45.5 degrees in response to the presence of an attractive member of the opposite sex. The experiment was designed to examine the relationship between a) participants’ ratings of an attractive male confederate and the displayed change in deviation from the optimum displayed by women, and b) participants’ ratings of the attractive male confederate and the displayed change in the absolute degree of lumbar curvature, both while controlling for potential confounds such as participants’ self-perceived physical attractiveness, self-esteem, personality traits, and sociosexual orientation. Initial statistical analyses revealed a significant change in participants’ lumbar curvature pre- to post-exposure to the attractive male confederate. Subsequent analyses to examine the nature of the change indicated that socio-sexual orientation reliably predicted the change in lumbar curvature, but not the change in deviation from the optimum. The remaining variables predicted neither the change in lumbar curvature nor the change in deviation from the optimum significantly. This study is aimed at increasing our understanding of the behavioral display of lumbar curvature for self-promotion purposes in response to the presence of opposite sex.
Reproductive mode and the shifting arenas of evolutionary conflict
Furness, A. I., Morrison, K. R., Orr, T. J., Arendt, J. D. and Reznick, D. N. (2015), Reproductive mode and the shifting arenas of evolutionary conflict. Ann NY Acad Sci, 1360: 75–100. doi:10.1111/nyas.12835
Abstract: In sexually reproducing organisms, the genetic interests of individuals are not perfectly aligned. Conflicts among family members are prevalent since interactions involve the transfer of limited resources between interdependent players. Intrafamilial conflict has traditionally been considered along three major axes: between the sexes, between parents and offspring, and between siblings. In these interactions, conflict is expected over traits in which the resulting phenotypic value is determined by multiple family members who have only partially overlapping fitness optima. We focus on four major categories of animal reproductive mode (broadcast spawning, egg laying, live bearing, and live bearing with matrotrophy) and identify the shared phenotypes or traits over which conflict is expected, and then review the empirical literature for evidence of their occurrence. Major transitions among reproductive mode, such as a shift from external to internal fertilization, an increase in egg-retention time, modifications of embryos and mothers for nutrient transfer, the evolution of postnatal parental care, and increased interaction with the kin network, mark key shifts that both change and expand the arenas in which conflict is played out.
Rolf Degen's Comments: https://plus.google.com/101046916407340625977/posts/DdWUNNsnKxJ
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Abstract: In sexually reproducing organisms, the genetic interests of individuals are not perfectly aligned. Conflicts among family members are prevalent since interactions involve the transfer of limited resources between interdependent players. Intrafamilial conflict has traditionally been considered along three major axes: between the sexes, between parents and offspring, and between siblings. In these interactions, conflict is expected over traits in which the resulting phenotypic value is determined by multiple family members who have only partially overlapping fitness optima. We focus on four major categories of animal reproductive mode (broadcast spawning, egg laying, live bearing, and live bearing with matrotrophy) and identify the shared phenotypes or traits over which conflict is expected, and then review the empirical literature for evidence of their occurrence. Major transitions among reproductive mode, such as a shift from external to internal fertilization, an increase in egg-retention time, modifications of embryos and mothers for nutrient transfer, the evolution of postnatal parental care, and increased interaction with the kin network, mark key shifts that both change and expand the arenas in which conflict is played out.
Rolf Degen's Comments: https://plus.google.com/101046916407340625977/posts/DdWUNNsnKxJ
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