Social dominance orientation and right-wing authoritarianism across the adult lifespan: An examination of aging and cohort effects.

Social dominance orientation (SDO) and right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) are foundational constructs in intergroup relations, yet their development across the lifespan is poorly understood. The few studies on the topic demonstrate that age positively correlates with both SDO and RWA. However, it is unclear whether this association is due to (a) normative aging, (b) generational differences associated with the period in which one was born and raised, or (c) a combination of these processes. This study estimates a series of cohort-sequential latent growth models to examine change due to both aging and cohort effects using 11 annual waves of longitudinal panel data collected from a nationwide random sample of adults (Ns = 61,858-61,862). Mean levels of SDO and RWA both trended upward across the adult lifespan, although this pattern was more marked for RWA. Cohort effects also emerged for both constructs and were again more pronounced for RWA. Contextual factors thus appear to influence authoritarianism more than they impact the preference for intergroup hierarchy. Similar trends emerged when differentiating birth cohorts by gender and ethnic majority status. Age and cohort effects for generalized prejudice among an ethnic majority group were also assessed (N = 47,955), revealing that prejudice declined in early adulthood but began to stabilize in middle age. This is the first large-scale study to document how SDO, RWA, and generalized prejudice change over the adult lifespan while also examining trends associated with the period in which a person was born and socialized. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Body image across the adult lifespan: A longitudinal investigation of developmental and cohort effects.

The current study examined patterns of normative change and cohort effects in body image across the male and female adult lifespan. Body satisfaction was assessed in longitudinal data spanning six years, from 2010 to 2015. Cohort sequential latent growth curve modelling was utilized to assess patterns of mean-level change due to both aging and cohort effects in 15,264 participants (62.9 % women) aged between 18-94 years (M = 46.55, SD = 14.24). Results demonstrated a very slight increase in body satisfaction across the lifespan for both men and women. Cohort effects demonstrated that for women aged 54 years and below, all but two cohorts (24-29 and 34-39 years) displayed an upward trajectory in their body satisfaction over the 5-year period of assessment. No consistent cohort effects were evident for men. Finally, men, relative to women, consistently displayed higher levels of body satisfaction across the lifespan. This study provides insights into the trajectory of body image across the lifespan for men and women. The findings also suggest recent (cohort) improvements in body image for women, and potential explanations for this unexpected shift are discussed.

Ten-year panel data confirm generation gap but climate beliefs increase at similar rates across ages.

Accumulating evidence indicates that climate change awareness and concern has increased globally, but commentators suggest a climate change generation gap whereby younger people care more about climate change than older people. Here we use a decade of panel data from 56,513 New Zealanders to test whether belief that "Climate change is real" and "Climate change is caused by humans" increased over the 2009-2018 period; and whether changes are uniform across 12 five-year birth cohorts spanning those born from 1936 to 1995. Results confirm a generation gap in mean (intercept) climate change beliefs but not in over-time increase (slope). The generation gap occurs because older cohorts started from a lower initial belief level (circa 2009), but all age cohorts increased their belief level at a similar rate over the last decade; and these results were not qualified by respondents' gender. The findings offer hope for collective action that bridges efforts across generations.

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and nationwide lockdown on trust, attitudes toward government, and well-being.

The contagiousness and deadliness of COVID-19 have necessitated drastic social management to halt transmission. The immediate effects of a nationwide lockdown were investigated by comparing matched samples of New Zealanders assessed before (Nprelockdown = 1,003) and during the first 18 days of lockdown (Nlockdown = 1,003). Two categories of outcomes were examined: (a) institutional trust and attitudes toward the nation and government and (b) health and well-being. Applying propensity score matching to approximate the conditions of a randomized controlled experiment, the study found that people in the pandemic/lockdown group reported higher trust in science, politicians, and police, higher levels of patriotism, and higher rates of mental distress compared to people in the prelockdown prepandemic group. Results were confirmed in within-subjects analyses. The study highlights social connectedness, resilience, and vulnerability in the face of adversity and has applied implications for how countries face this global challenge. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

The Big Six Personality Traits and Mental Distress: Dynamic Modeling in a Population Panel Study Reveals Bidirectional Relationships Involving Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Conscientiousness.

In a single comprehensive model, using a large nationally representative sample, we investigate longitudinal relationships between mental distress and "Big Six" personality using an analysis approach sensitive to dynamic effects (i.e., to effects of deviations from individual trajectories). We find that, consistent with a mechanism involving scarring by distress, upward deviations (flare-ups) in distress predict flare-ups in Neuroticism 12 months later. Among younger adults (n = 4,775), distress flare-ups predict dips in Conscientiousness. Consistent with a dynamic precursor model, (a) flare-ups in Neuroticism and Extraversion predict subsequent flare-ups in distress among older adults (n = 11,167), and (b) slopes of distress correlate with slopes of a number of traits (e.g., positively for Neuroticism, and, among older adults, negatively for Extraversion). While demonstrating these scarring and dynamic precursor effects, we draw attention to a nuanced direction of dynamic effect for Extraversion, a newly discovered dynamic effect of Conscientiousness, and previously undocumented dynamic effects of traits on each other.

Why Do We Hold Mixed Emotions About Racial Out-Groups? A Case for Affect Matching.

A four-wave survey on a national probabilistic sample (N = 17,399) tested novel predictions about how positive and negative contact with racial out-groups predicts warmth and anger toward those groups. Three competing hypotheses were tested: (a) that negative contact will outweigh positive contact when predicting both emotions ("bad is stronger than good"); (b) that negative and positive contact will similarly predict each emotion; and (c) that negative contact will have a disproportionately large association with anger (a negative emotion), whereas positive contact will have a disproportionately large association with warmth (a positive emotion)-a phenomenon known as affect matching. The data revealed clear evidence for affect matching: Negative contact was associated with high levels of anger more than low levels of warmth, whereas positive contact was associated with high levels of warmth more than low levels of anger. Results suggest that positive and negative feelings about out-groups may be tied to qualitatively distinct contact experiences.

Clinical Profiles Among Greek Adolescent Suicide Attempters.

BACKGROUND: Suicide attempts are a significant public health problem among youth, resulting in a major social and economic burden for communities and a devastating impact on families. AIMS: To determine whether we can identify distinct clinical profiles using latent class analysis in a clinical sample of Greek adolescents who were admitted to hospital following a suicide attempt. METHOD: Data on 11 clinical parameters from 182 adolescents were analyzed, with a two-class solution selected as the best fitting among the one- through three-class solutions that were examined. RESULTS: We observed two distinct classes, specifically in the probability of mood disorders, substance use disorders, abandonment/neglect, and displaying traits of personality disorders. While most of the adolescents who attempted suicide showed a low probability of these parameters (71.7%), about a third of the sample (28.3%) showed a much more severe clinical profile. Analyses of pertinent contextual and risk factors indicated that those with a more severe clinical profile tend to come from overall more dysfunctional family systems, have more problems in school, and have made a previous attempt. CONCLUSION: We conclude that the adolescent suicide attempt population is a heterogeneous group in need of focused differentiated care specifically targeted to particular subgroups.

Are People Becoming More Entitled Over Time? Not in New Zealand.

It is a common conception that entitlement is increasing among younger generations over time. However, although there is some evidence for this trend, other findings are less conclusive. The current research investigated change in psychological entitlement across the adult lifespan for men and women (ages 19-74), using six annual waves of data (2009-2014) from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study ( N = 10,412). We employed Cohort-Sequential Latent Growth Modeling to assess mean-level change in entitlement. Entitlement was found to be generally unchanging over time for both men and women, with only those aged 65 and above showing increasing entitlement. Entitlement showed a steady downward trend across age. These findings from a large national probability sample suggest that change in entitlement may follow a decreasing developmental trend across the lifespan. In New Zealand, at least, there is no evidence for a narcissism epidemic.

Authoritarianism and National Identity: Examining the Longitudinal Effects of SDO and RWA on Nationalism and Patriotism.

The resurgence of right-wing political parties across the globe raises questions about the origins of national identity. Based on the Dual Process Model of Ideology and Prejudice, we argue that people's tendency to submit to ingroup authorities (Right-Wing Authoritarianism [RWA]) and preference for group-based hierarchy (Social Dominance Orientation [SDO]) underlie people's belief in the superiority of their nation (nationalism) and attachment to their homeland (patriotism). We examine these hypotheses using three waves of data from an annually conducted national longitudinal panel study of New Zealanders ( N = 3,838). As predicted, RWA had positive cross-lagged effects on nationalism and patriotism. Conversely, SDO had a positive cross-lagged effect on nationalism, but a negative cross-lagged effect on patriotism. Little evidence of reciprocal cross-lagged effects (i.e., national identity on authoritarianism) was found. These results demonstrate that nationalism and patriotism are related, albeit distinct, ways of identifying with one's nation that are ultimately rooted in authoritarianism.

Normative personality trait development in adulthood: A 6-year cohort-sequential growth model.

The present study investigated patterns of normative change in personality traits across the adult life span (19 through 74 years of age). We examined change in extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, openness to experience and honesty-humility using data from the first 6 annual waves of the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study (N = 10,416; 61.1% female, average age = 49.46). We present a cohort-sequential latent growth model assessing patterns of mean-level change due to both aging and cohort effects. Extraversion decreased as people aged, with the most pronounced declines occurring in young adulthood, and then again in old age. Agreeableness, indexed with a measure focusing on empathy, decreased in young adulthood and remained relatively unchanged thereafter. Conscientiousness increased among young adults then leveled off and remained fairly consistent for the rest of the adult life span. Neuroticism and openness to experience decreased as people aged. However, the models suggest that these latter effects may also be partially due to cohort differences, as older people showed lower levels of neuroticism and openness to experience more generally. Honesty-humility showed a pronounced and consistent increase across the adult life span. These analyses of large-scale longitudinal national probability panel data indicate that different dimensions of personality follow distinct developmental processes throughout adulthood. Our findings also highlight the importance of young adulthood (up to about the age of 30) in personality trait development, as well as continuing change throughout the adult life span. (PsycINFO Database Record

The Diversity and Prevalence of Sexual Orientation Self-Labels in a New Zealand National Sample.

In this study, we asked participants to "describe their sexual orientation" in an open-ended measure of self-generated sexual orientation. The question was included as part of the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study (N = 18,261) 2013/2014 wave, a national probability survey conducted shortly after the first legal same-sex marriages in New Zealand. We present a two-level classification scheme to address questions about the prevalence of, and demographic differences between, sexual orientations. At the most detailed level of the coding scheme, 49 unique categories were generated by participant responses. Of those who responded with the following, significantly more were women: bisexual (2.1 % of women, compared to 1.5 % of men), bicurious (0.7 % of women, 0.4 % of men), and asexual (0.4 % of women and less than 0.1 % of men). However, significantly fewer women than men reported being lesbian or gay (1.8 % of women, compared to 3.5 % of men). Those openly identifying as bicurious, bisexual, or lesbian/gay were significantly younger than those with a heterosexual orientation. This study shows diversity in the terms used in self-generated sexual orientations, and provides up-to-date gender, age, and prevalence estimates for the New Zealand population. Finally, results reveal that a substantial minority of participants may not have understood the question about sexual orientation.

Values Stability and Change in Adulthood: A 3-Year Longitudinal Study of Rank-Order Stability and Mean-Level Differences.

Recent studies have examined whether values change across time. The present study investigates both rank-order stability and mean-level differences in core values--and whether age and sex moderate stability and change--over 3 years using a national probability sample (from 25 to 75 years;N= 3,962). Value priorities were highly stable, except for Conservation values among women, which peaked in stability at age 50 and decreased afterward. Older adults and women placed greater emphasis on values relating to the welfare of others and preservation of traditional practices and stability (Self-Transcendence and Conservation values). Younger individuals and men tended to more highly value the pursuit of status and power, and independent thought and behavior (Self-Enhancement and Openness to Change). The results are consistent with a life span perspective on values development and indicate values may change slowly throughout life as a reflection of biological and psychological maturation.

Regional differences in the psychological recovery of Christchurch residents following the 2010/2011 earthquakes: a longitudinal study.

We examined changes in psychological distress experienced by residents of Christchurch following two catastrophic earthquakes in late 2010 and early 2011, using data from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study (NZAVS), a national probability panel study of New Zealand adults. Analyses focused on the 267 participants (172 women, 95 men) who were living in central Christchurch in 2009 (i.e., before the Christchurch earthquakes), and who also provided complete responses to our yearly panel questionnaire conducted in late 2010 (largely between the two major earthquakes), late 2011, and late 2012. Levels of psychological distress were similar across the different regions of central Christchurch immediately following the September 2010 earthquake, and remained comparable across regions in 2011. By late 2012, however, average levels of psychological distress in the regions had diverged as a function of the amount of property damage experienced within each given region. Specifically, participants in the least damaged region (i.e., the Fendalton-Waimairi and Riccarton-Wigram wards) experienced greater drops in psychological distress than did those in the moderately damaged region (i.e., across the Spreydon-Heathcote and Hagley-Ferrymead wards). However, the level of psychological distress reported by participants in the most damaged region (i.e., across Shirley-Papanui and Burwood-Pegasus) were not significantly different to those in the least damaged region of central Christchurch. These findings suggest that different patterns of psychological recovery emerged across the different regions of Christchurch, with the moderately damaged region faring the worst, but only after the initial shock of the destruction had passed.

Demographic and psychological predictors of panel attrition: evidence from the New Zealand attitudes and values study.

This study examines attrition rates over the first four years of the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study, a longitudinal national panel sample of New Zealand adults. We report the base rate and covariates for the following four distinct classes of respondents: explicit withdrawals, lost respondents, intermittent respondents and constant respondents. A multinomial logistic regression examined an extensive range of demographic and socio-psychological covariates (among them the Big-Six personality traits) associated with membership in these classes (N = 5,814). Results indicated that men, Maori and Asian peoples were less likely to be constant respondents. Conscientiousness and Honesty-Humility were also positively associated with membership in the constant respondent class. Notably, the effect sizes for the socio-psychological covariates of panel attrition tended to match or exceed those of standard demographic covariates. This investigation broadens the focus of research on panel attrition beyond demographics by including a comprehensive set of socio-psychological covariates. Our findings show that core psychological covariates convey important information about panel attrition, and are practically important to the management of longitudinal panel samples like the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study.

Stability and change in political conservatism following the global financial crisis.

The current study analyzes data from a national probability panel sample of New Zealanders (N = 5,091) to examine stability and change in political orientation over four consecutive yearly assessments (2009-2012) following the 2007/2008 global financial crisis. Bayesian Latent Growth Modeling identified systematic variation in the growth trajectory of conservatism that was predicted by age and socio-economic status. Younger people (ages 25-45) did not change in their political orientation. Older people, however, became more conservative over time. Likewise, people with lower socio-economic status showed a marked increase in political conservatism. In addition, tests of rank-order stability showed that age had a cubic relationship with the stability of political orientation over our four annual assessments. Our findings provide strong support for System Justification Theory by showing that increases in conservatism in the wake of the recent global financial crisis occurred primarily among the poorest and most disadvantaged.

Ingroup friendship and political mobilization among the disadvantaged.

This study investigated the effects of ingroup contact in a large, national sample of Maori (a disadvantaged ethnic group; N = 940) on political attitudes relevant to decreasing ethnic inequality in New Zealand. We tested the role of 2 mediating mechanisms-ethnic identification and system justification-to explain the effects of ingroup contact on the dependent variables. Time spent with ingroup friends predicted increased support for the Maori Party and support for symbolic and resource-specific reparative policies benefiting Maori. These effects were partially mediated by increased ethnic identification. Although ingroup contact also reduced levels of system justification among Maori, its effects on policy attitudes and party preference were not mediated by system justification. This suggests that a key antecedent to system challenging political attitudes is an increased sense of identification with a disadvantaged group resulting, in part, from interactions with ingroup friends.