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People encounter intertemporal decisions every day and often engage in behaviors that are not good for their future. One factor that may explain these decisions is the perception of their distal future self. An emerging body of research suggests that individuals vary in how they perceive their future self and many perceive their future self as a different person. The present research aimed to (1) build on and extend Hershfield's et al. (2011) review of the existing literature and advance the conceptualization of the relationship between the current and future self, (2) extend and develop measures of this relationship, and (3) examine whether and how this relationship predicts intrapsychic and achievement outcomes. The results of the literature review suggested that prior research mostly focused on one or two of the following components: (a) perceived relatedness between the current and future self in terms of similarity and connectedness, (b) vividness in imagining the future self, and (c) degree of positivity felt toward the future self. Additionally, differences in how researchers have labeled the overall construct lead us to propose "future self-identification" as a new label for the three-component construct. Our research built on existing measures to test the validity of a three-component model of future self-identification. Across three samples of first-year undergraduates, this research established the psychometric properties of the measure, and then examined the relationships between the components and four outcome domains of interest: (1) psychological well-being (self-esteem, hope), (2) imagination of the future (visual imagery of future events, perceived temporal distance), (3) self-control, and (4) academic performance. We demonstrated that the three components of future self-identification were correlated but independent factors. Additionally, the three components differed in their unique relationships with the outcome domains, demonstrating the utility of measuring all three components of future self-identification when seeking to predict important psychological and behavioral outcomes.

This research examined the function of future self-continuity and its potential downstream consequences for academic performance through relations with other temporal psychological factors and self-control. We also addressed the influence of cultural factors by testing whether these relations differed by college generation status. Undergraduate students enrolled at a large public university participated in two studies (Study 1: N = 119, M[subscript age] = 20.55, 56.4% women; Study 2: N = 403, M[subscript age] = 19.83, 58.3% women) in which they completed measures of temporal psychological factors and psychological resources. In Study 2, we also obtained academic records to link responses to academic performance. Future self-continuity predicted subsequent academic performance and was related positively to future focus, negatively to present focus, and positively to self-control. Additionally, the relation between future focus and self-control was stronger for continuing-generation college students than first-generation college students. Future self-continuity plays a pivotal role in academic contexts. Findings suggest that it may have positive downstream consequences on academic achievement by directing attention away from the present and toward the future, which promotes self-control. Further, the strategy of focusing on the future may be effective in promoting self-control only for certain cultural groups.

Women are more likely to leave science, technology, engineering, and mathematics compared to men, in part because they lack similar role models such as peers, teaching assistants, and instructors. We examined the effect of a brief, scalable online intervention that consisted of a letter from a female role model who normalized concerns about belonging, presented time spent on academics as an investment, and exemplified overcoming challenges on academic performance and persistence. The intervention was implemented in introductory psychology (Study 1, N = 258) and chemistry (Study 2, N = 68) courses. Relative to the control group, the intervention group had higher grades and lower failing and withdrawal rates.

Perceived control is interrelated with aging-related outcomes across adulthood and old age. Relatively little is known, however, about resources as antecedents of longitudinal change in perceived control and the role of perceived control as a buffer against mortality risk when these resources are low. We examined functional limitations, depressive symptoms, and emotional support as antecedents of level and rates of change in perceived control and whether level and rates of change in perceived control buffer the relations between high functional limitations and depressive symptoms and lack of emotional support and mortality risk. In addition, age was investigated as a moderator of these associations. To do so, we used 16-year longitudinal data from participants in the Americans' Changing Lives (ACL) Study who were at least 40 years old at Wave 1 (N = 2,540; mean age = 62.85, SD = 12.15; 65% women). With respect to the antecedents of perceived control, results indicated that more functional limitations and depressive symptoms, as well as having less emotional support, were each associated with lower levels of and stronger declines in perceived control over time. Additionally, more functional limitations and less emotional support were more detrimental to levels of perceived control in midlife compared to old age. Focusing on outcomes of perceived control, more positive rates of change in perceived control protected against mortality risk for those with fewer functional limitations and depressive symptoms and more emotional support, and this was more pronounced for functional limitations and depressive symptoms in old age as compared to midlife. Our discussion focuses on the complex interplay among perceived control, functional limitations, depressive symptoms, and emotional support; how they vary with age; and the implications of our findings for interventions.

Supplemental instruction (SI) is a small-group, peer-mentored programme which is compatible with the learning preferences of American Indian students. We tested the hypothesis that SI is a compensatory strategy that reduces the differences in the grades earned in introduction to psychology by Euro-American and American Indian students. The sample consisted of 129 American Indian students and 4588 Euro-American students enrolled in introduction to psychology at a US university. As hypothesised, a multi-level model yielded a significant (p < 0.01) interaction between SI and ethnicity on course grade. Whereas for non-SI users, the gap between Euro-American and American Indian students was 0.71 grade points, for SI users, it was only 0.15 grade points. Strategies should be devised for increasing SI visits by students enrolled in introduction to psychology, particularly those who belong to American Indian tribes.

Author(s): Chung Jung Mun[sup.1] , Paul Karoly[sup.1] , Morris A. Okun[sup.1] , Hanjoe Kim[sup.1] , Howard Tennen[sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, 85287-1104, Tempe, AZ, USA [...], For individuals with chronic pain, the within-person influence of affect and goal cognition on daily work-related goal striving is not yet well understood. The present study tested the hypothesis that anticipatory goal cognition in the form of a morning work goal schema mediates the relations between morning affect and later (afternoon and evening) work goal striving. Working adults with chronic pain (N = 131) completed a 21-day diary with morning, afternoon, and evening assessments analyzed via multi-level structural equation modeling. At the within-person level, morning positive and negative affect were positively associated with morning work goal schemas; and morning work goal schemas, in turn, positively predicted both afternoon and evening work goal striving. Our findings underscore the complex dynamics over time of the relationship between affect and self-regulatory processes and have implications for future studies and for interventions to assist working adults with chronic pain.

Recently, it has been suggested that constructs from different disciplines should be incorporated into Tinto's (1993) sociological model of the determinants of departure from college (Ackerman & Schibrowsky, 2007). We tested the hypothesis that variables derived from Rusbult's (1983) social-psychological investment theory contribute, above and beyond variables derived from Tinto's model, to the prediction of maintaining the intent to stay at a university. A sample of 218 first-semester freshmen at a large southwestern university who indicated at the beginning of the fall 2007 semester that they intended to stay subsequently completed a questionnaire assessing integration variables (goal commitment, social integration, and academic integration), investment variables (satisfaction level, investment size, and quality of alternatives), and college graduation intention (stay versus transfer). A binary logistic regression analysis revealed that two variables derived from investment theory--satisfaction level and quality of alternatives--affected the log odds of students maintaining their intent to stay. (Contains 4 tables.)

Research in social cognition laboratories and in simulated legal settings demonstrates that people often do not understand the statistical properties of evidence and are unable to detect scientifically flawed studies. In a mock jury study, we examined the effects of an evidence-based transcript on scepticism towards evidence obtained in flawed scientific studies, methodological reasoning, personal values (bias) regarding athletes and juror decision-making. Relative to the group that read a trial transcript that appealed to juror emotion, the group that read a transcript that included the steps for analysing the trial's scientific evidence was more likely to show greater scepticism towards the disputed scientific evidence, to display methodological reasoning, to exhibit positive values regarding college athletics and to reject conventional wisdom in rendering a final verdict. Furthermore, the students' scepticism towards the scientific evidence mediated the effect of type of transcript on verdict behaviour. (Contains 1 table and 2 figures.)

Previous studies have established a positive association between organizational volunteering and well-being. In the current study, we examined whether the relations between organizational volunteering and positive affect, negative affect, and resilience are modified by respondents' age and number of chronic health conditions. This study used cross-sectional data from the 2008 Arizona Health Survey of residents 18 years old and older (N = 4,161). Multiple regression analyses provided no support for the hypothesis that age moderates the association between volunteer status and positive affect, negative affect, and resilience. In contrast, there was a significant (p less than 0.05) interaction between volunteer status and chronic health conditions on positive affect and resilience. Consistent with the compensatory hypothesis, as number of chronic health conditions increased, the relations between volunteering and positive affect and resilience scores increased. Implications of these findings for increasing volunteering among adults with multiple chronic health conditions are discussed. (Contains 2 figures and 3 tables.)

We tested the hypotheses derived from investment theory that quality of alternatives and institutional preference exert additive and interactive effects on institutional commitment in a sample of 1166 first-year college students at a large state university, who were surveyed within two weeks of the start of their first semester. As predicted, a hierarchical regression analysis revealed: as quality of alternatives increased, institutional commitment decreased; as preference for the university increased, institutional commitment increased; and as institutional preference decreased, the inverse relation between quality of alternatives and institutional commitment increased. The findings of the present study suggest that first-year college students who do not rank their university as one of their top three choices and who rate the quality of alternatives as high should be classified as at risk of dropping out and targeted for proactive advising. (Contains 1 figure and 3 tables.)

In this article, we distinguish between 2 types of students who intend to transfer and graduate from another institution. During the fall of 2006, 507 first-semester students attending a state university completed a survey. Seventy-six percent of the students indicated that they planned on graduating from the University (intent-to-persist), 16% indicated that they intended to transfer and that this intention emerged following enrollment at the University (endogenous intent-to-transfer), and 8% indicated that they entered the University with the intent to transfer (exogenous intent-to-transfer). Exogenous intent-to-transfer students were significantly (p less than 0.05) higher than endogenous intent-to-transfer students on academic integration, social integration, and institutional commitment. The 2 types of intent-to-transfer students differed in their economic, social, and quality of academic program reasons for enrolling at and transferring from the University. Implications for retention of making the distinction between the 2 types of intended transfer students were noted. (Contains 3 tables.)

We investigated the nature of and linkages between student-generated academic goals, individual differences in self-regulatory thinking (goal process cognition), and exam performance among college students. In Study 1 (N = 365) and in Study 2 (N = 325), we elicited students' self-ascribed most important academic goals for introductory psychology and their goal process cognition toward their most important goal. In addition, in Study 2, we collected data on students' exam scores in introductory psychology and their most important academic goal and goal process cognition for another course. Three types of academic goals were identified: performance (39-55%), mastery (22-39%), and study strategies (20-23%). Students with mastery academic goals had the highest positive arousal whereas students with performance academic goals had the highest negative arousal. Compared to students with performance academic goals, students with mastery academic goals had lower exam scores in introductory psychology and this difference was mediated, in part, by goal process cognition.

The goal of this study is to investigate whether perceived changes in one's well-being from the present to the future are related to chronological age, target age, and type of measure (psychological well-being versus life satisfaction). Young adults (N = 114) rated their current well-being and their future well-being at one of three target ages (30, 50, or 70 years old) and middle-aged adults (N = 51) rated their current well-being and future well-being at the target age of 70 years old. Future self-enhancement effects were observed on both measures of well-being for young adults and on life satisfaction for middle-aged adults. Future self-enhancement effects were greater for life satisfaction than for psychological well-being. One-way MANOVAs showed that there were chronological age differences but not target age differences in the magnitude of future self-enhancement effects for well-being. Future self-enhancement effects were larger for young adults than for middle-aged adults. (Contains 2 tables.)

Describes an instructional program focusing on the application of causal reasoning and related principles of the scientific method to problems that occur in daily life. Reports the results of a capstone exercise that investigated the changes in students' beliefs towards legalization of marijuana after reading persuasive communications. (CMK)

Compared actual volunteers, latent volunteers, conditional volunteers, and definite nonvolunteers living in retirement community on social-structural, role, environmental, resource, lifestyle, and individual difference variables. Three functions emerged from discriminant analysis. Findings have implications for recruiting latent and conditional volunteers. (Author/NB)

Compared older adults who volunteered to work for community organization at office or in adult day care center on social-psychological and demographic predictors. Found that day care center volunteers were higher than office volunteers on sympathy whereas office volunteers were higher than day care center volunteers on educational attainment, involvement in clubs and organizations, and role taking. (Author/NB)

The ability of investment theory to account for intent and behavior of 421 part-time, working community-college students concerning departure from or persistence at college was studied. The contribution of investment to institutional persistence, and a framework for the departure decision process among nontraditional college students are discussed. (SLD)

Effects of credit load on the intent-turnover relation at a community college were assessed. Results of a stepwise logistic regression model for 316 students indicate that intent was more strongly related to turnover among students carrying 13 or more credit hours as compared to students carrying fewer credit hours. (TJH)

Examined whether positive and negative social ties moderate effects of negative daily events on psychological distress of 110 older adults. Effect of negative daily events on psychological distress significantly decreased as positive social ties increased. Negative social ties did not interact with negative daily events to influence psychological distress, but instead had a significant additive effect on it. (Author/NB)

To authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.2009.00486.x Byline: Mia Logic (*), Morris A. Okun (*), John A. Pugliese (*) Abstract: Tucker, Orlando, Elliott, and Klein (2006) proposed that the associations between social control attempts and health behaviors are mediated by affects. The evidence is mixed regarding whether affects fully mediate these associations. In a sample of 317 college students involved in heterosexual dating relationships, we tested Tucker's mediational model and an expanded mediational model that incorporated the action readiness component of emotions (motivation to change and reactance). Full mediation of the associations between (a) positive social control and health behavior change; and (b) negative social control and hiding unhealthy behavior were found only when motivation to change and reactance were included in the model. Unexpectedly, reactance and negative social control exerted direct effects on health behavior change. Author Affiliation: (*)Arizona State University Article note: (1) Morris A. Okun, Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1104. E-mail: okun@asu.edu