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The Transtheoretical Model proposes that perception of pros and cons of smoking is linked to quitting. The structure of decisional balance items to help in the development of a pregnancy-tailored measure is examined in a sample of low-income, pregnant women who smoked or had recently stopped smoking. Findings indicate that inclusion of pregnancy-related items provide further information about salient concerns during pregnancy.

Four studies examined the generality of attitude polarization (C. G. Lord, L. Ross, & M. R. Lepper, 1979). Biased assimilation of essays on 2 controversial issues was substantial and correlated with reported attitude change. Polarization was observed for reported attitude change on capital punishment and generally stronger in Ss with extreme than moderate attitudes. Polarization was not indicated in a pre-post measurement design. For affirmative action, reported polarization was not observed. The hypothesis that Ss reporting polarization would subsequently write particularly strong essays was not supported, although those reporting depolarization wrote relatively weak essays. The results suggest the relevance of individual differences in reported attitude change but do not confirm the powerful inferences frequently drawn regarding the pervasive, undesirable consequences of self-reported attitude polarization.

The current study examined female bloggers' perceptions of online and "real-life" same-sex friendships and examined relationships between self-disclosure through blogs and perceptions of the two types of friendships. Three hundred seven female bloggers (M age = 34.56 years) completed an online survey regarding friendship satisfaction and perceptions of intimacy-promoting interaction patterns in friendships. One hundred respondents' weblogs were analyzed for self-disclosure. Self-reported self-disclosure was positively correlated with number of online friendships and satisfaction with online friendships. Although participants reported having close online friends, they perceived real-life friendships as more likely than online friendships to possess intimacy-promoting interaction patterns. These perceptions did not differ as a function of self-disclosure through blogging, although bloggers who were categorized as higher in disclosure were more satisfied with online friendships than were bloggers who were categorized as lower in disclosure. These results suggest a relationship between self-disclosure through blogging and online relationship satisfaction among women in middle adulthood but that these women perceive real-life friendships as more likely to offer interaction patterns that foster intimacy.