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The authors propose a framework distinguishing two types of lateral attitude change (LAC): (a) generalization effects, where attitude change toward a focal object transfers to related objects, and (b) displacement effects, where only related attitudes change but the focal attitude does not change. They bring together examples of LAC from various domains of research, outline the conditions and underlying processes of each type of LAC, and develop a theoretical framework that enables researchers to study LAC more systematically in the future. Compared with established theories of attitude change, the LAC framework focuses on lateral instead of focal attitude change and encompasses both generalization and displacement. Novel predictions and designs for studying LAC are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Acceptance of Modern Myths about Sexual Aggression scale measures contemporary beliefs about sexual aggression that tend to blame victims and exonerate perpetrators. A Greek version of the thirty-item AMMSA scale was administered to two diverse convenience samples, one in Greece and one in Cyprus. Convergent and discriminant construct validity were assessed via correlations with other constructs that were hypothesized to be strongly related to AMMSA (Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance; hostile sexism) or moderately related (benevolent sexism; social dominance orientation; right-wing authoritarianism). It was found that the Greek AMMSA was unidimensional, highly internally consistent, normally distributed, and showed good construct validity. When sociodemographic data were analyzed, age, gender, and nationality turned out to be significant predictors of AMMSA, with a U-shaped trend for age, higher scores for men than women, and higher scores for Cypriots than Greeks. In sum, the Greek AMMSA scale provides a highly useful instrument for further research on sexual aggression myths, their correlates, and effects on judgment and behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Applying insights from the mood-as-information and mood-as-input models to persuasion, it was hypothesized that negative (vs. neutral) affect would increase or decrease message processing depending on how recipients interpret their affect. Recipients who are (vs. are not) likely to question the legitimacy of the message were predicted to process to a low (vs. high) extent when experiencing negative affect. High salience of a judgment-irrelevant cause for negative affect was predicted to render affect uninformative and hence discount its effects on processing. These hypotheses were supported in two experiments with 388 university students, in which the likelihood of questioning message legitimacy was operationalized as high versus low vested interest (smokers vs. nonsmokers reading an antismoking appeal; Experiment 1) or by providing versus not providing a cue to the communicator being propagandist (Experiment 2).

In its eleventh year, the International Journal of Conflict and Violence (IJCV) is introducing a number of innovations designed to improve communication among authors, readers, editors, and reviewers. At the same time, we will hold on to the core values that have traditionally shaped the journal's mission and continue publishing high-quality research spanning a wide range of topics, disciplines, and methodological approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In May 2011, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the International Monetary Fund and a prominent member of the French Socialist Party, was charged with attempted rape. Extensive media coverage led people across the globe to speculate about intentions and responsibilities. While the case was pending, we conducted two parallel Internet surveys, with French and German participants (N = 1,314). We examined how strongly exoneration of the alleged perpetrator depended on acceptance of modern myths about sexual aggression (AMMSA) and identity attributes that are temporarily salient as a function of local context (gender, political left-right orientation, nationality). AMMSA was a global predictor of exonerating the alleged perpetrator across national sub-samples, whereas the predictive power of gender and left-right orientation varied locally: For French respondents, left-wing political attitudes predicted exoneration of the alleged perpetrator, whereas only for German respondents, being male predicted exoneration. We conclude that the interplay of global (sexual aggression myths) and local (social identification) factors affects the lay assessment of ambiguous cases of sexual violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Schematic influences of rape myth acceptance (RMA) on visual information processing were studied. After reading a short text on a rape case, students viewed a “police photograph” of the plaintiff''s living room, where the rape allegedly happened, while their eye-movements were recorded. The photograph contained two myth-consistent cues, one being expected in the situation (wine bottle and glasses), the other unexpected (poster of a nude male). Results of Study 1 (N =60) showed that participants higher in RMA fixated the expected cue both earlier and less long, which may indicate hypervigilance and greater ease of processing, respectively. Higher RMA also predicted longer initial fixation of the unexpected cue. These processing differences mediated participants'' verdicts and blame judgments. In Study 2 (N =30), participants'' level of RMA was manipulated experimentally via social norm feedback. This manipulation significantly affected eye-movement patterns for the expected myth-consistent cue. Results support the notion that RMA actively guides visual information processing of relevant stimuli. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: To date, there has been little research into effective strategies for preventing the detrimental effects of stigma on the well-being of people with mental illness.Aim: The present research set out to identify adaptive strategies for dealing with the stigma of mental illness.Methods: On the basis of the responses of 355 people with mental illness (PWMI) a standardized questionnaire assessing 10 identity management strategies was developed. Participants also reported their personal experiences with stigma, depression and self-esteem.Results: Hierarchical regression analyses showed that after controlling for depression and stigmatizing experiences, the strategies of community involvement, humour and positive ingroup stereotyping were related to higher self-esteem. Secrecy, selective disclosure and attempts at overcompensation or disproving stereotypes were related to lower self-esteem. The following strategies were unrelated to self-esteem: comparing the present social position of PWMI with that in the past, normalization of the illness within a medical model, information seeking and selective withdrawal.Conclusions: PWMI should be encouraged to seek support within their community and to develop a positive image of their ingroup. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A questionnaire study addressed the intergenerational transmission of benevolent sexist beliefs (BS) from mothers to adolescent daughters and influences of BS on daughters' traditional goals, academic goals (i.e., getting an academic degree), and academic performance. In addition, the role of mothers' educational level and job status as predictors of their BS was explored. One hundred sixty-four pairs of female adolescents and their mothers from Granada (Spain) completed questionnaires independently. Hypotheses were tested in a path model. Results suggest that mothers' BS is negatively predicted by their education but not their job status. Mothers' BS predicted daughters' BS, which in turn negatively predicted daughters'goal to get an academic degree and positively predicted daughters' traditional goals. Daughters' academic performance was positively predicted by their goal to get an academic degree and negatively predicted by mothers' BS. Results are discussed in terms of the socializing influence of mothers' sexist ideology on their daughters and its implications for the maintenance of traditional roles that perpetuate gender inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A representative sample of German residents ( N = 397) was surveyed with the aim of studying their acceptance of contemporary rape myths (RMA), using items from the Acceptance of Modern Myths About Sexual Aggression Scale [AMMSA; Gerger et al., ] in relation to demographic variables (e.g., gender, age), intolerant belief systems (e.g., sexism, islamophobia), the ideologies of rightwing authoritarianism (RWA), and social dominance orientation (SDO), as well as gender identification. Age showed a U-shaped relationship with RMA, whereas gender was unrelated to RMA. For men (women), greater identification with their gender was associated with higher (lower) RMA. Substantial correlations of RMA with intolerant belief systems support the idea of a schema of intolerance. Although RWA and SDO were both related to RMA, only RWA explained unique variance beyond the effects of intolerant belief systems. Results are discussed in comparison to prior studies using mainly student samples. Aggr. Behav. 37:374-385, 2011. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prejudices against minorities are still a cause of inter-ethnic conflict and violence, although their expression has changed from blatant to more subtle forms. There has been a shortage of valid and reliable German-language scales for the measurement of contemporary racial prejudices. The Racial Argument Scale (RAS; Saucier & Miller Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 35:433-450, ) measures contemporary prejudice indirectly by asking respondents to judge how well given arguments support a conclusion. This scale was adapted to the German context with Turks as the target group. A validation study using a diverse sample of German adults ( N = 194) attests to the reliability and construct validity of the German RAS (RAS-G). The adapted instrument is thus suitable for the indirect measurement of prejudice in German-speaking samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose the Category-Focus IAT (CF-IAT) as an instrument to measure the implicit associations of single concepts. The CF-IAT directs respondents' attention to a subset of the experimental materials. In a first study using the CF-IAT, Chilean adolescents (N = 49), members of either the indigenous minority (Mapuche) or the nonindigenous majority, completed CF-IATs assessing implicit attitudes toward these groups. Results revealed, in both groups, a neutral implicit evaluation of the ingroup, but a negative implicit evaluation of the outgroup. Process evidence suggests that the CF-IAT's manipulation of attentional focus was successful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Studies 1 to 3, German female students (total N = 326) rated the likability and typicality of male targets: a nonsexist, a benevolent sexist, a hostile sexist, and (in Studies 2 and 3) an ambivalent sexist. When targets were presented as response profiles in the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory (Glick and Fiske ) (Studies 2 and 3), the benevolent sexist was rated to be most likable but least typical, whereas the ambivalent sexist was rated to be highly typical. Thus, women were aware of a link between benevolent and hostile sexism and approved of men’s benevolent sexism, especially when it was not paired with hostile sexism. Likability ratings were moderated by participants’ own benevolent sexism and feminist attitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]