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We recently proposed a model of cancer-related anxiety to account for the etiology and maintenance of clinically significant anxiety in the context of cancer. This study tested predictions arising from the model to explain fear of cancer recurrence or progression (FCR). Patients with cancer were recruited from a research registry or outpatient hospital clinics (n = 211). In bivariate analyses, FCR was associated with metacognitive beliefs, intolerance of uncertainty, core belief disruption, less meaning in life, social constraints, death anxiety, intrusions, threat appraisal, and coping. A hierarchical regression explained 65% of the variance in FCR. FCR was predicted by younger age, intrusions, death anxiety, threat appraisal and meta-cognitions. The findings highlight the importance of both cognitive processes and content in FCR, including intrusions, fears about death and dying, beliefs about worry, and threat appraisals., Author(s): L. Curran [sup.1] [sup.2] , L. Sharpe [sup.1] , C. MacCann [sup.1] , P. Butow [sup.1] [sup.3] [sup.4] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.1013.3, 0000 0004 1936 834X, School of Psychology, [...]

Mariana MacPhail,1 Barbara Mullan,2 Louise Sharpe,1 Carolyn MacCann,1 Jemma Todd1 1School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; 2School of Psychology and Speech Pathology, Curtin University, Bentley, WA, Australia Background: The purpose of this study was to explore the predictive utility of the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA) and test a HAPA-based healthy eating intervention, in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Materials and methods: The study employed a prospective, randomized, controlled trial design. The 4-month intervention consisted of self-guided HAPA-based workbooks in addition to two telephone calls to assist participants with the program implementation, and was compared to “treatment as usual”. Participants (n=87) completed health measures (diet, body mass index [BMI], waist circumference, blood pressure, blood glucose levels, lipid levels, and diabetes distress) and HAPA measures prior to the intervention and again upon completion 4 months later. Results: The overall HAPA model predicted BMI, although only risk awareness and recovery self-efficacy were significant independent contributors. Risk awareness, intentions, and self-efficacy were also independent predictors of health outcomes; however, the HAPA did not predict healthy eating. No significant time × condition interaction effects were found for diet or any HAPA outcome measures. Conclusion: Despite the success of HAPA in predicting health outcomes for those with type 2 diabetes mellitus, the intervention was unsuccessful in changing healthy eating or any of the other measured variables, and alternative low-cost health interventions for those with type 2 diabetes mellitus should be explored. Keywords: intervention, healthy eating, theory, risk awareness, self-efficacy

Research demonstrates that people can fake on self-rated emotional intelligence scales. As yet, no studies have investigated whether informants (where a knowledgeable informant rates a target's emotional intelligence) can also fake on emotional intelligence inventories. This study compares mean score differences for a simulated job selection versus a standard instructed set for both self-ratings and informant-ratings on the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-Short Form (TEIQue-SF). In a 2 × 2 between-person design, participants ( N = 81 community volunteers, 151 university students) completed the TEIQue-SF as either self-report or informant-report in one of two instruction conditions (answer honestly, job simulation). Both self-reports ( d = 1.47) and informant-reports ( d = 1.56) were significantly higher for job simulation than "answer honestly" instructions, indicating substantial faking. We conclude that people can fake emotional intelligence for both themselves (self-report) and on behalf of someone else (informant-report). We discuss the relevance of our findings for self- and informant-report assessment in applied contexts., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Despite research demonstrating positive outcomes of conscious death reflection, very little research directly examines a core proposition of existential psychologists-that death reflection provides an opportunity for more authentic living. The current study compared individuals chronically exposed to genuine mortality cues (funeral/cemetery workers, n = 107) to a matched control sample ( n = 121) on autonomous motivation. It also assessed the moderating role of six constructs implicated in growth-oriented processing of death reflection: psychological flexibility, curiosity, neutral death acceptance, death anxiety, approach-oriented coping, and avoidant coping. Funeral/cemetery workers were significantly higher on autonomous motivation, and death-related work was found to have a more positive association with autonomous motivation for those higher on flexibility and lower on death anxiety. This has implications for both understanding which individuals are most likely to experience growth motivations when confronting death, and potential avenues for facilitating these motivations to enhance well-being., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Objectives: Worry about recurrence or progression is a common concern among people with chronic physical illnesses. Although there are options to measure the fear of cancer recurrence and other illness-specific measures, there is only one transdiagnostic measure of fear of progression, which does not assess the fear of recurrence or relapse., Design: A multi-phase study outlining the development and validation of a novel transdiagnostic measure of fear of recurrence or progression, the Worries About Recurrence and Progression Scale (WARPS)., Method: From a prior systematic review, we used quotes from people with lived experience to generate 55 items. Next, we piloted the items with 10 people with a range of chronic conditions, leading to a final total of 57 items. We then recruited four groups of people with cardiac disease, rheumatic disease, diabetes and respiratory disease (n = 804). An exploratory factor analysis in a randomly split sample resulted in an 18 item, single factor scale. We then performed confirmatory factor analysis on these 18 items in the remaining sample., Results: The 18-item WARPS demonstrated good construct validity, internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Specifically, the WARPS was strongly correlated with the Fear of Progression Questionnaire, and with illness-specific fears. Significant, moderate correlations were observed with depression, anxiety, stress, and death anxiety. The WARPS demonstrated the validity and reliability amongst people with four of the most common chronic conditions and the factor structure was invariant across genders., Conclusion: The WARPS is a valid and reliable tool to measure transdiagnostic worries about recurrence and progression., (© 2023 The Authors. British Journal of Health Psychology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Psychological Society.)

Purpose: The prevalence of parental burnout, a condition that has severe consequences for both parents and children, varies dramatically across countries and is highest in Western countries characterized by high individualism., Method: In this study, we examined the mediators of the relationship between individualism measured at the country level and parental burnout measured at the individual level in 36 countries (16,059 parents)., Results: The results revealed three mediating mechanisms, that is, self-discrepancies between socially prescribed and actual parental selves, high agency and self-directed socialization goals, and low parental task sharing, by which individualism leads to an increased risk of burnout among parents., Conclusion: The results confirm that the three mediators under consideration are all involved, and that mediation was higher for self-discrepancies between socially prescribed and actual parental selves, then parental task sharing, and lastly self-directed socialization goals. The results provide some important indications of how to prevent parental burnout at the societal level in Western countries., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany.)

To regulate others' emotions effectively we must learn about the efficacy of our regulation attempts. Deciding whether we made someone else feel better involves a causal judgment about the effect of our intervention on their emotional state. The current study examined whether, like other causal judgments, beliefs about emotion regulation efficacy are disproportionately affected by base rates. In two experiments, we showed that participants' perceived efficacy at helping a target regulate their emotions was more influenced by the target's average emotion levels than the relative effect of regulating versus not regulating the target's emotion. This led participants to conclude that they were helpful both when they were not (Experiment 1) and even when they made the target feel worse (Experiment 2). These findings suggest that our beliefs about the effectiveness of other-directed emotion regulation are notably biased by the average level of emotion expressed by the regulation target. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

The study of individual differences in emotion regulation has typically focused exclusively either on the stage of the emotion generation process at which regulation occurs or on the engagement versus disengagement orientation of the regulation efforts. We introduce a new measure that samples equally across each stage of the process model of emotion regulation and from both engagement and disengagement orientations. Through five studies ( n total = 2,543), we present the development and convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity evidence for the Process Model of Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (PMERQ). We show the final 10-scale 45-item questionnaire has acceptable internal consistency, is invariant between genders and across the age range, and has sufficient convergent and discriminant validity. The PMERQ also predicts affective and relationship functioning with strategies occurring earlier in the process model generally showing the strongest effects. We propose the PMERQ is a valuable measure to assess individual differences in the use of emotion regulation strategies.

The Extended Process model of Emotion Regulation outlines the processes people use to influence the timing and type of emotions they have. The current study applies this model to extrinsic regulation (regulating others' emotions). In a 2x2 between-subjects design, we examine how the target person's emotion (anger/anxiety), and target/regulator closeness (close/distant) interact to predict the regulator's intention to regulate, regulation process choice, evaluation of regulation success (regulation self-efficacy), and empathy toward the target. Participants ( N = 266) were randomly allocated to 1 of 4 conditions to read 3 vignettes where a close/distant target expressed anger/anxiety. Compared to distant targets, close targets elicited significantly greater intention to regulate, social sharing (but not humor, reappraisal, or distancing), self-efficacy of implementation and empathy. There was no support for emotion type or emotion-by-closeness hypotheses. We conclude that closeness but not emotion type affects emotion regulation at all 3 stages of the Extended Process model of Emotion Regulation. Future research could include the effect of closeness on additional processes (such as direct situation modification, or giving space). (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

This article presents two studies with data from 750 college students (58.67% females, M age = 20.79 years) and 1035 school students (52.1% girls, M age = 14.44 years) respectively, describing the development and initial validation of the Positive and Negative Co-Rumination Scale (PANCRS). The PANCRS consists of 32 items with 3 second-order factors: Positive Co-Rumination consisting of 3 first-order factors (i.e., Affirmation, Problem-Solving and Enhancing Friendship), Negative Co-Rumination consisting of 4 first-order factors (i.e., Worry About Evaluation, Inhibiting Happiness, Worry About Impact and Slack) and Frequency consisting of 2 first-order factors (i.e., Frequencies of Co-Rumination on Positive and Negative Events). Results from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the measure's 9 first-order and 3 second-order factors structure. Moreover, correlation analyses provided first evidence for the subscales' differential validity: (1) Positive Co-Rumination showed positive correlations with positive indicators of psychological adjustment (i.e., friendship quality and life satisfaction) and negative correlations with negative indicators of psychological adjustment (i.e., anxiety and depression); (2) Negative Co-Rumination showed non-significant or negative correlations with positive indicators of psychological adjustment and positive correlations with negative indicators of psychological adjustment; (3) Frequency showed positive correlations with both positive and negative indicators of psychological adjustment. In addition, all PANCRS scores showed satisfactory composite reliability (omegas) and temporal stability (test-retest). Overall the findings suggest that the PANCRS is a reliable and valid instrument to assess positive and negative aspects of Co-rumination.

The emotional experiences you have with a romantic partner shape how satisfied you are in your relationship. Engaging in attempts to make a romantic partner feel better is linked with better relationship outcomes. However, it is not yet clear which specific processes people use to regulate their partners' emotions, nor which processes are most strongly linked with relationship satisfaction. In the current study of 277 individuals (55% female), we tested the extent to which eight extrinsic emotion regulation processes (expressive suppression, downward social comparison, humor, distraction, direct action, reappraisal, receptive listening, and valuing) predict relationship satisfaction. Six of the eight processes showed significant positive correlations with relationship satisfaction, with the strongest associations for valuing ( r  = .43), humor ( r  = .33), and receptive listening ( r  = .27). Relative weights were significant only for valuing, humor, and receptive listening, suggesting that these are the most important predictors of relationship satisfaction. Results are discussed in terms of the distinction between intrinsic and extrinsic regulation processes and the potential importance of motives for regulation., Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-023-04432-4., (© The Author(s) 2023, Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.)

Existing research has linked emotional intelligence (EI) with intrinsic emotion regulation (processes people use to regulate their own emotions). However, there has not yet been an empirical examination of whether EI abilities relate to extrinsic emotion regulation (processes people use to regulate other people's emotions). This study (N = 178 undergraduates) examines whether ability EI (as measured by the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test) correlates with eight extrinsic regulation processes (as measured by the Regulation of Others' Emotions Scale, including downward comparison, expressive suppression, humour, distraction, direct action, reappraisal, receptive listening and valuing). Total ability EI score is significantly positively correlated with three high-engagement processes (r = .24, .40, and .16 for reappraisal, receptive listening, and valuing) and negatively correlated with two low-engagement processes (r = -.30 and -.38 for downward comparison and expressive suppression). When all four EI branches predicted each regulation process in multiple regression, only emotion management significantly predicted downward comparison, receptive listening and valuing, and only emotion management and understanding predicted expressive suppression (no significant regression coefficients for reappraisal). We conclude that the drivers of EI/extrinsic regulation associations are engagement with the target's emotion and the emotion management branch of EI.

Emotional intelligence (EI) abilities relate to desirable outcomes such as better well-being, academic performance, and job performance. Previous research shows that coping strategies mediate the effects of ability EI on such outcomes. Across two cross-sectional studies, we show that coping strategies mediate the relationships of ability EI with both well-being (life satisfaction, psychological well-being) and ill-being (depression, anxiety, stress). Study 1 ( N  = 105 first-year university students, 78% female) assessed EI with the Situational Test of Emotion Understanding (STEU) and Situation Test of Emotion Management (STEM). Avoidant coping significantly mediated the relationship of both the STEU and STEM with depression, anxiety, stress, and psychological well-being. EI was associated with lower avoidant coping, higher well-being and lower ill-being. Study 2 ( N  = 115 first-year university students, 67% female) assessed EI with the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT). Avoidant coping mediated the relationship between EI and ill-being, but not the relationship between EI and well-being. These effects were significant for three of the four EI branches-emotion perception, understanding, and management. We discuss possible reasons why avoidant coping may be an active ingredient by which lower EI relates to lower well-being. We also discuss a possible application of our findings-that EI training programs might benefit from including content aimed at reducing avoidant coping., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 MacCann, Double and Clarke.)

Principal Component Metrics is a novel theoretically-based and data-driven methodology that enables the evaluation of the internal structure at item level of maximum emotional intelligence tests. This method disentangles interindividual differences in emotional ability from acquiescent and extreme responding. Principal Component Metrics are applied to existing (Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test) and assembled (specifically, the Situational Test of Emotion Understanding, the Situational Test of Emotion Management, and the Geneva Emotion Recognition Test) emotional intelligence test batteries in an analysis of three samples (total N = 2,303 participants). In undertaking these analyses important aspects of the nomological network of emotional intelligence, acquiescent, and extreme responding are investigated. The current study adds a central piece of empirical validity evidence to the emotional intelligence domain. In the three different samples, theoretically predicted internal structures at item level were found using raw item scores. The validity of the indicators for emotional intelligence, acquiescent, and extreme responding was confirmed by their relationships across emotional intelligence tests and by their nomological networks. The current findings contribute to evaluating the efficacy of the emotional intelligence construct as well as the validity evidence surrounding the instruments that are currently designed for its assessment, in the process opening new perspectives for analyzing existing and constructing new emotional intelligence tests., Competing Interests: RR was employed by RAD Science Solution. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Fontaine, Sekwena, Veirman, Schlegel, MacCann, Roberts and Scherer.)

Emotion regulation strategies have been characterized as adaptive or maladaptive; however, the ability to switch strategies to best suit the situation (regulatory flexibility and adaptability) underlies effective emotion regulation. Emotional intelligence may be a key capacity that enables flexible emotion regulation. We use experience sampling data from 165 participants to test whether emotional intelligence abilities (emotion understanding and management) predict variability in four emotion regulation strategies. Results show that both the emotion understanding and emotion management branches of emotional intelligence significantly relate to between-strategy variability (with moderate effect sizes), but only emotion understanding significantly predicts within-strategy variability. These findings support the hypothesis that emotional intelligence is an important predictor of the ability to flexibly vary emotion regulation depending on the situation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: Over the last two decades, Western society has undergone a marked cultural transformation characterized by rising individualism. Concurrently, the digital landscape has transformed through the rise of social media and smartphones. These factors have previously been implicated in changing individuals' attitudes, behavior, and interpersonal interactions. We investigated whether these societal changes have coincided with changes in trait emotional intelligence (EI) over the last 17 years in Western university students., Method: We examined this question using a cross-temporal meta-analysis (k = 70; N = 16,917)., Results: There was no change in overall trait EI; however, the trait EI domains "well-being," "self-control," and "emotionality" demonstrated significant decreases with time, after controlling for gender composition and between-country differences., Conclusion: We discuss these findings in relation to how they contribute to our understanding of trait EI, and how they add to the literature on how Western society is changing with time., (© 2021 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Introduction: Research indicates that body image disturbance is associated with poorer psychosocial outcomes for individuals with physical health conditions, with poorest body image reported for individuals with visible bodily changes. Using White's (2000) theoretical model of body image the present paper aimed to examine the nature of these relationships in two distinct groups: individuals with an amputation and individuals with diabetes. It was hypothesized that body image disturbance would be associated with psychosocial outcomes and would mediate the relationships between self-ideal discrepancy and personal investment in psychosocial outcomes., Methods: Individuals with diabetes ( N = 212) and individuals with an amputation ( N = 227) provided details regarding their medical condition, and completed measures assessing body image, investment, self-ideal discrepancy, depression, anxiety, and quality of life. Structural equation and invariance modeling were used to test the model paths and the invariance of the model., Results: As hypothesized, body image disturbance was found to mediate the relationships between personal investment and psychosocial outcome, and between self-ideal discrepancy and psychosocial outcome. The predicted paths were invariant across groups, although the model accounted for more variance in people with an amputation than people with diabetes., Conclusion: Body image disturbance, personal investment, and self-ideal discrepancy are important factors contributing to psychosocial outcome for individuals with diabetes and individuals with an amputation. These findings not only confirm the validity of the model in these two groups, but they emphasize the importance of targeting body image in future psychological interventions for individuals with a health condition., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 McDonald, Sharpe, MacCann and Blaszczynski.)

High levels of stress in the parenting domain can lead to parental burnout , a condition that has severe consequences for both parents and children . It is not yet clear, however, whether parental burnout varies by culture, and if so, why it might do so. In this study, we examined the prevalence of parental burnout in 42 countries (17,409 parents; 71% mothers; M age = 39.20) and showed that the prevalence of parental burnout varies dramatically across countries. Analyses of cultural values revealed that individualistic cultures, in particular, displayed a noticeably higher prevalence and mean level of parental burnout. Indeed, individualism plays a larger role in parental burnout than either economic inequalities across countries, or any other individual and family characteristic examined so far, including the number and age of children and the number of hours spent with them. These results suggest that cultural values in Western countries may put parents under heightened levels of stress., Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42761-020-00028-4., Competing Interests: Conflict of InterestThe authors declare no competing financial interests or funding source that could have influenced the data collection, analysis, or conclusions. M.M. and I.R. have now founded a training institute (name currently masked for blind review) which delivers training on parental burnout to professionals. The institute did not participate in the funding of this study nor did it influence the process, the results, or their interpretation in any manner., (© The Society for Affective Science 2021.)

Context: Historically, situational judgement tests (SJTs) have been widely used for personnel selection. Their use in medical selection in Europe is growing, with plans for further expansion into North America and Australasia, in an attempt to measure and select on 'non-academic' personal attributes. However, there is a lack of clarity regarding what such tests actually measure and how they should be designed, scored and implemented within the medical and health education selection process. In particular, the theoretical basis from which such tests are developed will determine the scoring options available, influencing their psychometric properties and, ultimately, their validity., Methods: The aim of this article is to create an awareness of the previous theory and practice that has informed SJT development. We describe the emerging interest in the use of the SJT format to measure specific constructs (eg 'resilience', 'dependability', etc.), drawing on the tradition of 'individual differences' psychology. We compare and contrast this newer 'construct-driven' method with the traditional, pragmatic approach to SJT creation, often employed by organisational psychologists. Making reference to measurement theory, we highlight how the anticipated psychometric properties of traditional vs construct-driven SJTs are likely to differ., Conclusions: Compared to traditional SJTs, construct-driven SJTs have a strong theoretical basis, are uni- rather than multidimensional, and may behave more like personality self-report instruments. Emerging evidence also suggests that construct-driven SJTs have comparable predictive validity for workplace performance, although they may be more prone to 'faking' effects. It is possible that construct-driven approaches prove more appropriate at early stages of medical selection, where candidates have little or no health care work experience. Conversely, traditional SJTs may be more suitable for specialty recruitment, where a range of hypothetical workplace scenarios can be sampled in assessments., (© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education.)

Schools and universities devote considerable time and resources to developing students' social and emotional skills, such as emotional intelligence (EI). The goals of such programs are partly for personal development but partly to increase academic performance. The current meta-analysis examines the degree to which student EI is associated with academic performance. We found an overall effect of ρ = .20 using robust variance estimation ( N = 42,529, k = 1,246 from 158 citations). The association is significantly stronger for ability EI (ρ = .24, k = 50) compared with self-rated (ρ = .12, k = 33) or mixed EI (ρ = .19, k = 90). Ability, self-rated, and mixed EI explained an additional 1.7%, 0.7%, and 2.3% of the variance, respectively, after controlling for intelligence and big five personality. Understanding and management branches of ability EI explained an additional 3.9% and 3.6%, respectively. Relative importance analysis suggests that EI is the third most important predictor for all three streams, after intelligence and conscientiousness. Moderators of the effect differed across the three EI streams. Ability EI was a stronger predictor of performance in humanities than science. Self-rated EI was a stronger predictor of grades than standardized test scores. We propose that three mechanisms underlie the EI/academic performance link: (a) regulating academic emotions, (b) building social relationships at school, and (c) academic content overlap with EI. Different streams of EI may affect performance through different mechanisms. We note some limitations, including the lack of evidence for a causal direction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: The study objective was to develop and validate the first epilepsy-specific anxiety survey instrument (Epilepsy Anxiety Survey Instrument [EASI]) alongside a briefer screening instrument to detect anxiety disorders in routine clinical practice (brEASI)., Methods: The instruments were developed utilizing a mixed-methods approach in four related studies. Pilot items were developed following qualitative interviews with people with epilepsy (PWE; Study 1) and consultation with multidisciplinary experts in anxiety and epilepsy (Study 2). PWE (n = 314) then completed pilot items alongside existing measures of anxiety and depression (Study 3). Factor analysis was conducted to refine the scale and select well-performing items for a briefer diagnostic screener (brEASI). The brEASI was validated against a gold standard diagnostic interview in 106 PWE recruited from an outpatient epilepsy service (Study 4). Receiver operating characteristic analysis was conducted to determine the brEASI's diagnostic performance., Results: Twenty-six pilot items were generated based on the findings of Studies 1 and 2. Analyses in Study 3 resulted in an 18-item EASI, and eight well-performing items were selected for the brEASI. The area under the curve (AUC) of brEASI was excellent (AUC = 0.89, 95% confidence interval = 0.82-0.94). At a cutoff of 7, it demonstrated a sensitivity of 76% and specificity of 84% for identifying Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition anxiety disorders., Significance: The EASI and brEASI represent the first valid and reliable epilepsy-specific anxiety instruments. The EASI has been designed to comprehensively assess anxiety in PWE, whereas the brEASI may be used within busy neurology settings to provide rapid information to aid diagnoses of anxiety disorders. Given the significant prevalence and burden of anxiety in PWE, these tools are important potential solutions to improve the understanding and detection of anxiety in epilepsy., (Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2019 International League Against Epilepsy.)

Situational Judgment Tests (SJTs) are criterion valid low fidelity measures that have gained much popularity as predictors of job performance. A broad variety of SJTs have been studied, but SJTs measuring personality are still rare. Personality traits such as Conscientiousness are valid predictors of many educational, work and life-related outcomes and SJTs are less prone to faking than classical self-report measurements. We developed an SJT measure of Dependability, a core facet of Conscientiousness, by gathering critical incidents in semi-structured interviews using the construct definition of Dependability as a prompt. We examined the psychometric properties of the newly developed SJTs across two studies (N = 546 general population; N = 440 sales professionals). The internal validity of the SJTs was examined by correlating the SJT scores with related self-report measures of Dependability and Conscientiousness, as well as testing the unidimensionality of the measure with CFA. Additionally, we specified a bi-factor model of SJT, self-report and behavioral checklist measures of Dependability accounting for common and specific measurement variance. External validity was examined by correlating the SJT scale and specific factor with work-related outcomes. The results show that the Dependability SJTs with an expert based scoring procedure were psychometrically sound and correlated moderately to highly with traditional self-report measures of Dependability and Conscientiousness. However, a large proportion of SJT variance cannot be accounted for by personality alone. This supports the notion that SJTs measure general domain knowledge about the effectiveness of personality-related behaviors. We conclude that SJT measures of personality can be a promising addition to classical self-report assessments and can be used in a wide variety of applications beyond measurement and selection, for instance as formative assessments of personality., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Despite widespread use as a chronic pain management strategy, pacing has been linked with higher levels of pain and disability. A recent meta-analysis found a positive correlation between existing measures of pacing and avoidance, which may partially account for these poorer outcomes. A measure was developed to differentiate pacing from avoidance by emphasizing non-pain-contingent pacing behaviors and nonavoidance of pain. A sample of 283 adults with chronic pain completed the Non-Avoidant Pacing Scale (NAPS) and existing measures of pacing, avoidance, pain, and physical and psychological functioning. Exploratory factor analysis of 10 items (subsample 1, n = 141) suggested two 4-item factors: planned pacing behaviors and pacing through flare ups. Confirmatory factor analysis of 8 items (subsample 2, n = 142) revealed satisfactory fit (goodness-of-fit index .947, comparative fit index .964). The pattern of correlations between each factor and avoidance and key outcomes suggests that the NAPS total scale (ɑ = .819) captures key pacing behaviors and differentiates pacing from avoidance. Unlike existing measures, the NAPS was not positively correlated with avoidance and was associated with better psychological functioning across affective and cognitive domains. The NAPS allows researchers and clinicians to assess the role of pacing in chronic pain management without artefactual overlap with avoidance. PERSPECTIVE: The NAPS assesses activity pacing in chronic pain without artefactual overlap with avoidance. Associations were found between more frequent pacing, as measured by the NAPS, and better psychological functioning. Clearly differentiating pacing from avoidance allows for accurate assessment of the role of pacing in chronic pain management., (Crown Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Instructors are under pressure to produce excellent outcomes in students. Although the contribution of student personality on student outcomes is well established, the contribution of instructor personality to student outcomes is largely unknown., Aim: This study examined the influence of instructor personality (as reported by both students and instructors themselves) on student educational outcomes at university., Sample and Method: Mathematics and psychology university students (N = 515) and their instructors (n = 45) reported their personality under the Big Five framework., Results: Multilevel regressions were conducted to predict each outcome from instructor personality, taking into account the effects of student gender, age, cognitive ability, and personality, as well as instructor gender and age. Student-reports of instructor personality predicted student evaluations of teaching but not performance self-efficacy or academic achievement. Instructor self-reports did not predict any of the outcomes. Stronger associations between student-reports and the outcomes than instructor self-reports could be explained by students providing information on both the predictor and the outcome variables, as well as a greater number of raters providing information on instructor personality. Different domains of the instructor Big Five were important for different element of student evaluations of teaching., Conclusions: The study highlights the importance of studying instructor personality, especially through other-reports, to understand students' educational experiences. This has implications for how tertiary institutions should use and interpret student evaluations., (© 2017 The British Psychological Society.)

People process emotional information using visual, vocal, and verbal cues. However, emotion management is typically assessed with text based rather than multimedia stimuli. This study (N = 427) presents the new multimedia emotion management assessment (MEMA) and compares it to the text-based assessment of emotion management used in the MSCEIT. The text-based and multimedia assessment showed similar levels of cognitive saturation and similar prediction of relevant criteria. Results demonstrate that the MEMA scores have equivalent evidence of validity to the text-based MSCEIT test scores, demonstrating that multimedia assessment of emotion management is viable. Furthermore, our results inform the debate as to whether cognitive saturation in emotional intelligence (EI) measures represents "noise" or "substance". We find that cognitive ability associations with EI represent substantive variance rather than construct-irrelevant shared variance due to reading comprehension ability required for text-based items.

The aim of this study was to investigate the predictive and moderating effects of HEXACO personality factors, in addition to theory of planned behavior (TPB) variables, on fruit and vegetable consumption. American college students (N = 1036) from 24 institutions were administered the TPB, HEXACO and a self-reported fruit and vegetable consumption measure. The TPB predicted 11-17% of variance in fruit and vegetable consumption, with greater variance accounted for in healthy weight compared to overweight individuals. Personality did not significantly improve the prediction of behavior above TPB constructs; however, conscientiousness was a significant incremental predictor of intention in both healthy weight and overweight/obese groups. While support was found for the TPB as an important predictor of fruit and vegetable consumption in students, little support was found for personality factors. Such findings have implications for interventions designed to target students at risk of chronic disease.

An understanding of spousal dementia caregivers' coping strategies and their predictive factors is imperative for caregivers' well-being. Although several reviews have explored the relationship between coping strategies and outcomes, no review has investigated factors that predict caregivers' use of one type of coping strategy over another. The current review aimed to identify factors that predict caregivers' coping strategies. Within this, we attempted to identify caregivers who are more likely to adopt dysfunctional coping strategies and be at risk of adverse outcomes. Several electronic databases were systematically searched. Twenty-one studies were eligible for review, describing 18 caregiver and care-recipient factors related to the 3 coping strategies. No factors were classified "predictive," however, 16 factors were "potentially predictive." Younger, more highly educated caregivers with greater emotional supports and knowledge of dementia were associated with solution-focused coping. Younger, less educated caregivers were associated with emotional support/acceptance-based coping strategies. Whereas nonwhite caregivers with less emotional supports caregiving for persons with more behavioral problems were associated with dysfunctional coping strategies. Enhancing caregiver self-efficacy, knowledge of dementia, improving social supports, linking to support groups, managing behavioral problems, as well as coaching adaptive coping strategies while flagging caregivers at risk for dysfunctional coping may improve outcomes for caregivers.

There is a stable relationship between the Openness/Intellect domain of personality and aesthetic engagement. However, neither of these are simple constructs and while the relationship exists, process based evidence explaining the relationship is still lacking. This research sought to clarify the relationship by evaluating the influence of the Openness and Intellect aspects on several different aesthetic emotions. Two studies looked at the between- and within-person differences in arousal and the emotions of interest, pleasure and confusion in response to visual art. The results suggest that Openness, as opposed to Intellect, was predictive of greater arousal, interest and pleasure, while both aspects explained less confusion. Differences in Openness were associated with within-person emotion appraisal contingencies, particularly greater novelty-interest and novelty-pleasure relationships. Those higher in Openness were particularly influenced by novelty in artworks. For pleasure this relationship suggested a different qualitative structure of appraisals. The appraisal of novelty is part of the experience of pleasure for those high in Openness, but not those low in Openness. This research supports the utility of studying Openness and Intellect as separate aspects of the broad domain and clarifies the relationship between Openness and aesthetic states in terms of within-person appraisal processes.

Background: Caregiving for a person with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is related to poor caregiver outcomes. Coping strategies adopted by caregivers are known to influence psychological outcomes in other dementia caregiver populations, however, their influence on psychological outcomes in FTD caregivers is poorly understood at present., Methods: Questionnaire data for 94 German primary caregivers (mean [M] 59.11 years, 68 females) of FTD care-recipients living in the community (M 63.94, 30 females) were investigated. Standardized measures completed by the caregiver included the Caregiver Strain Index (CSI), Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II), Quality of Life-Alzheimer's Disease (QoL-AD), and the Brief Coping Orientations to Problems Experienced (COPE). Care-recipients' nursing care level was collected as a measure of the intensity of their care needs., Results: Mediation analyses showed that the effect of the intensity of care-recipients' care needs on caregiver well-being depended on caregivers' experience of strain. High levels of caregiver strain did not predict depression (-0.22, 95% confidence interval CI: [0.16 to 2.04]) but predicted reduced QoL (-0.44, CI: [-1.15 to -.16]). Moreover, caregivers' experience of strain was exacerbated by their use of dysfunctional coping (β = .21; p = .04), care-recipients' intensity of care needs (β = .25; p = .01), and fewer financial resources (β = .23; p = .02). In turn, caregivers' use of dysfunctional coping as a response to their strain increased the levels of depression (0.46, CI: [0.19-0.82]). By contrast, use of problem-focused coping strategies increased caregivers' QoL (0.10, CI: [0.00 to 0.31])., Significance: This study identifies variables amenable to clinical interventions that can improve caregivers' well-being: specifically, caregiver strain and coping strategies. For a disease without cure yet increasing prevalence and cost, ameliorating the caregiver experience through targeted interventions is essential., (© The Author(s) 2015.)

Objectives: To explore whether HEXACO personality domains could incrementally increase the prediction of exercise behavior above Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) variables, and whether personality moderated the intention-behavior gap., Methods: US College students (N = 1017) completed demographic, TPB, HEXACO domain and exercise behavior measures., Results: The TPB predicted physical activity, accounting for 45% and 39% of variance in intention and behavior, respectively. Regarding personality domains, lower emotionality significantly predicted intention, and lower honesty-humility significantly predicted behavior, but these were small effects. Personality did not moderate the intention-behavior gap., Conclusions: Personality has a limited direct role in predicting exercise intention and behavior beyond the TPB. The prediction of exercise behavior from honesty-humility highlights the importance of considering the HEXACO personality model.