The desirability bias in personality-related syllogistic reasoning.

INTRODUCTION: The belief-bias effect is a tendency to evaluate syllogistic statements based on believability rather than on formal logic validity. Following this rationale, the study examines desirability bias as the tendency to evaluate syllogistic conclusions based on their desirability when reasoning is conducted on personality-relevant categorical syllogisms. METHODS: For this purpose, 60 syllogisms were constructed based on the items of the Big Five questionnaire. Syllogisms were subsequently categorized as desirable (e.g., "I empathize with others") and undesirable (e.g., "I am passive") based on their conclusion. In each task, the second premise and the conclusion were formulated in the first person to increase a respondent's identification with the content. A total of 300 university students (Mage = 20.08, SD = 2.02) participated in the study. RESULTS: A 2 (syllogism validity: valid, invalid) × 2 (syllogism desirability: desirable, undesirable) repeated measures ANOVA was employed. The analysis showed a greater tendency to accept desirable conclusions on valid syllogisms (valid desirable rather than valid undesirable) and reject undesirable conclusions on invalid syllogisms (invalid undesirable rather than invalid desirable). CONCLUSION: These findings have implications for socially desirable responding in cognitive tasks, which may be further developed as a source of self-relevant content as well as for further extension of belief bias in the form of desirability bias.

Medical students' vs. family physicians' assessment of practical and logical values of pathophysiology multiple-choice questions.

Testing strategies can either have a very positive or negative effect on the learning process. The aim of this study was to examine the degree of consistency in evaluating the practicality and logic of questions from a medical school pathophysiology test, between students and family medicine doctors. The study engaged 77 family medicine doctors and 51 students. Ten questions were taken from cardiac pathophysiology and 10 questions from pulmonary pathophysiology, and each question was assessed on the criteria of practicality and logic. A nonparametric Mann-Whitney test was used to test the difference between evaluators. On the criteria of logic, only four out of 20 items were evaluated differently by students in comparison to doctors, two items each from the fields of cardiology and pulmonology. On the criteria of practicality, for six of the 20 items there were statistically significant differences between the students and doctors, with three items each from cardiology and pulmonology. Based on these indicative results, students should be involved in the qualitative assessment of exam questions, which should be performed regularly under a strictly regulated process.

Therapist's interpersonal style and therapy benefit as the determinants of personality self-reports in clients.

UNLABELLED: BACKGROUND/AIM. In (counter)transference relationship therapist's interpersonal style, implying the perceived relation of therapist to a client (patient) in terms of control, autonomy, care and positive feedback, has been shown to be important. The aim of our study was to assess the relationship between therapist's interpersonal style and clients' personality self-reports. Within therapist's interpersonal style, preliminary validation of the Therapist's Interpersonal Style Scale has been conducted, which included double translation method, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, as well as the reliability tests of the derived components. METHODS: This research was conducted on a group of 206 clients, attending one of the four psychotherapy modalities: psychoanalysis, gestalt therapy, cognitive-behavioral and systemic family therapy. Beside Therapist's Interpersonal Style Scale, Big Five Questionnaire and Therapy Benefit Scale were administered, showing good internal consistency. RESULTS: Principal component analysis of therapist's interpersonal style singled out two components Supportive Autonomy and Ignoring Control, explaining 42% of variance. Two-factor model of the therapist's styles was better fitted in confirmatory factor analysis than the original 4-factor model. Structural model showing indirect and direct effects of therapist's interpersonal styles on self-reports in clients indicates good fitness (χ²(12) = 8.932, p = 0.709; goodness-of-fit index = 0.989), with Ignoring Control having direct effect on Stability, Supportive Autonomy on Therapy Benefit, and Therapy Benefit on Plasticity. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate the importance of further research on therapist's interpersonal style, as well as further validation of the instrument that measures this construct. Besides, a client's perception that the therapy is being helpful could instigate more explorative and approach-oriented behavior, what indirectly might contribute to a client's stability.

The relationship of Eysenck´s Giant Three with fluid and crystallized intelligence and learning potential among adolescents / A relação dos Três Gigantes de Eysenck com inteligência fluida e cristalizada e potencial de aprendizagem entre adolescentes / Relación de los Tres Gigantes de Eysenck con la inteligencia cristalizada y fluida, y el potencial de aprendizaje entre adolescentes

The aim of this study was to explore the relationship of Eysenck´s Giant Three with Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence and Learning Potential among adolescents. A total of 205 students of the sixth grade (50,44% male) of five elementary schools participated in the research. The average age of the participants was M = 12.56 (SD = 0.61). Fluid intelligence was measured by Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices and Cattell's free-culture test, crystallized intelligence was measured by the Mill Hill Vocabulary Scale and Learning potential was measured by Learning Potential Assessment, (EPA-2). Personality traits were measured by the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Junior. The results are consistent with the findings of other studies in which moderate correlations between personality traits and intelligence have been established. Psychoticism, Extraversion and Lay scale are related to fluid and crystallized intelligence measurements. The correlation between personality traits and learning potential is lower in comparison with the correlations between personality traits and fluid and crystallized intelligence. The results gained in our research are partly in accordance with Chamorro-Premuzic and Furnham's (2005) two-level conceptual framework. Namely, we are prone to interpret Extraversion as personality trait that, except for being related to intelligence test performance, has a long-term effect on intelligence development, prior through sociability and activity. (AU)

O objetivo do estudo foi explorar a relação entre os Três Gigantes de Eysenck e inteligência fluida e cristalizada e potencial de aprendizagem entre adolescentes. Um total de 205 alunos da sexta série (50,44% do sexo masculino) de cinco escolas de ensino fundamental participou da pesquisa. A idade média dos participantes foi de 12,56 (DP = 0,61). A inteligência fluida foi medida pelo teste das Matrizes Progressivas de Raven e pelo Cattell's free-culture test, a inteligência cristalizada foi medida pela Escala de Vocabulário Mill Hill, e o potencial de aprendizagem foi medido pela Avaliação do Potencial de Aprendizagem, (EPA-2). Os traços de personalidade foram medidos pelo Junior Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Os resultados obtidos são consistentes com os resultados de outros estudos, nos quais correlações moderadas entre traços de personalidade e inteligência têm sido estabelecidas. Psicoticismo, Extroversão e escala Lay estão relacionados com medidas de inteligência fluida e cristalizada. A correlação entre traços de personalidade e potencial de aprendizagem é menor em comparação com as correlações entre traços de personalidade e inteligência fluida e cristalizada. Os resultados obtidos em nossa pesquisa estão parcialmente de acordo com o quadro de dois níveis conceituais de Chamorro-Premuzic e Furnham (2005). Ou seja, estamos propensos a interpretar Extroversão como traço de personalidade que, exceto se for relacionado com desempenho em teste de inteligência, tem um efeito a longo prazo no desenvolvimento da inteligência, previamente através da sociabilidade e da atividade. Os resultados de nossa pesquisa argumentam a favor da suposição de que o método de teste dinâmico de inteligência diminui a correlação entre traços de personalidade e habilidades intelectuais, definidos como potencial de aprendizagem. (AU)

El objetivo del estudio fue explorar la relación de los Tres Gigantes de Eysenck con la inteligencia fluida y cristalizada y potencial de aprendizaje entre los adolescentes. Un total de 205 estudiantes del sexto grado (50,44% hombres), de cinco escuelas primarias participaron en la investigación. El promedio de edad de los participantes fue de M = 12,56 (SD = 0,61). La inteligencia fluida fue medida por las Matrices Progresivas Estándar de Raven y por el Cattell's free-culture test, la inteligencia cristalizada fue medida mediante la Escala de Vocabulario Mill Hill, y potencial de aprendizaje se midió por la Evaluación del Potencial de Aprendizaje, (EPA-2). Los rasgos de personalidad fueron medidos por el Junior Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Los resultados obtenidos son consistentes con los hallazgos de otros estudios, en los cuales las correlaciones moderadas entre los rasgos de personalidad y la inteligencia han sido establecidas. Psicoticismo, extraversión y escala Lay están relacionados con el fluido y medidas de inteligencia cristalizada. La correlación entre los rasgos de la personalidad y el potencial de aprendizaje es menor en comparación con las correlaciones entre rasgos de personalidad y la inteligencia fluida y la cristalizada. Los resultados obtenidos en nuestra investigación están, en parte, de acuerdo con el marco de dos niveles conceptuales de Chamorro-Premuzic y Furnham (2005), marco conceptual de dos niveles. Es decir, somos propensos a interpretar la extroversión como rasgo de personalidad que, salvo si es relacionado con el desempeño en la prueba de inteligencia, tiene un efecto a largo plazo en el desarrollo de la inteligencia, previo, a través de la sociabilidad y la actividad. (AU)