Correction: Adaptation and validation of the Johnson-Lecci scale to assess anti-white bias among black UK minority group members.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277077.].

Anosognosia in Alzheimer's Pathology: Validation of a New Measure.

OBJECTIVE: Two studies were performed to validate a brief measure of cognitive insight and compare it to an empirical model - the Cognitive Awareness Model (CAM). METHOD: A pilot study included 31 (52% male; Mage = 69.42) patients from an outpatient neuropsychological assessment clinic. Seven patients were diagnosed with likely Alzheimer's dementia (AD), 15 mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and 9 no diagnosis (i.e., cognitively normal; CN). The Cognitive Coding Form (CCF) and several other measures were administered. Study 2 entailed archival data extraction of 240 patients (80 CN, 80 MCI, and 80 AD; 53.3% female; Mage = 72.8) to examine whether the CCF predicts memory (Wechsler Memory Scale - IV) and executive functioning (Trail-Making Test B). RESULTS: The pilot study found preliminary evidence of convergent and discriminant validity for the 8-item CCF. Study 2 confirmed that both patient-reported cognitive concerns (F(2,237) = 10.40, p < .001, ω2 = .07, power = .99) and, more strongly, CCF informant-patient discrepancy scores (F(2,237) = 24.52, p < .001, ω2 = .16, power = .99) can distinguish CNs from those with MCI and AD. A regression indicated that depression (5.5%; ß = -.38, p < .001) and TMT-B (13%; ß = -.43, p < .001), together accounted for 18.5% of the variance in insight (R2 = .19, F(2,219) = 26.10, p < .001), supporting the CAM. CONCLUSIONS: These studies establish an efficient measure of insight with high clinical utility and inform the literature on the role of insight in predicting performance in those with Alzheimer's pathology.

White Americans' blame attributions and empathy towards Black victims of police violence: How pejorative stereotypes 'engulf the field'.

We examined the dynamics of minority-directed police violence by considering how our White participants' empathy for Black victims may be influenced by critical intragroup differences related to racial stereotyping. Although the role of stereotyping in reactions to Black Americans accused of crime is well-established, we explore the influence of pejorative Black stereotypes on reactions to Black victims of police violence. Specifically, we investigated the roles of individual differences in the endorsement of the Black criminal stereotype among White observers and manipulated the crime-unrelated stereotypicality (i.e. stereotypical, counterstereotypical) of Black victims of police violence. White US MTurk participants read about a White policeman shooting a Black man (Study 1, n = 140) or sexually assaulting a Black woman (Study 2, n = 166). Across both studies, strong stereotype endorsers reported relatively low empathy for stereotypical victims, mediated by greater blame towards those victims. This finding demonstrates the relevance of heretofore untested motivated reasoning processes in the outgroup empathy deficits literature. Weak stereotype endorsers showed relatively high empathy and low victim blame regardless of Black victim stereotypicality, indicating limited sensitivity to outgroup member suffering is not inevitable. We consider the practical implications of the findings for policing and for citizenship education.

Adaptation and validation of the Johnson-Lecci scale to assess anti-white bias among black UK minority group members.

The present study (total N = 901) set out to construct and validate a culturally sensitive instrument to examine anti-White bias among Black UK minority group members. Our novel measure of anti-White bias-which we called the AWB scale-was based upon the Johnson-Lecci scale (JLS; 2003) a questionnaire designed to measure anti-White attitudes among Black Americans. Studies 1 and 2 provided converging evidence for the AWB's four-factor dimensionality, its structural characteristics, its temporal stability and its external validity in Black UK samples, attesting to the consistency of minorities' experience of anti-majority bias in two very different societal contexts. Moreover, Study 3 evidenced our measure's utility for understanding reactions to various relevant contemporary societal events. Theoretical contributions to the literature on intergroup bias are delineated and compared with majority-to-minority prejudice.

The Effects of Health Anxiety and Litigation Potential on Symptom Endorsement, Cognitive Performance, and Physiological Functioning in the Context of a Food and Drug Administration Drug Recall Announcement.

Drug recalls and lawsuits against pharmaceutical manufacturers are accompanied by announcements emphasizing harmful drug side-effects. Those with elevated health anxiety may be more reactive to such announcements. We evaluated whether health anxiety and financial incentives affect subjective symptom endorsement, and objective outcomes of cognitive and physiological functioning during a mock drug recall. Hundred and sixty-one participants reported use of over-the-counter pain medications and presented with a fictitious medication recall via a mock Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website. The opportunity to join a class-action lawsuit was manipulated. We assessed health anxiety, recalled drug usage, blood pressure, heart rate, and performance on a computerized Trail Making Test (TMT). Symptom endorsement was strongly predicted by health anxiety. When combined, three health anxiety measures explained 28.5% variance (Cohen's d = 1.26). These effects remain strong after controlling for depression and anxiety. Litigation condition did not predict symptom endorsement. Blood pressure and heart rate were modestly predicted by health anxiety, but not by litigation condition. TMT performance was consistently predicted by health anxiety, with higher scores associated with poorer performance. Although there were no main effects for litigation, interactions consistently emerged for the TMT, with generally poorer performance for those with higher health anxiety in the non-litigation condition; whereas health anxiety was unrelated to performance for the litigation condition. All but one participant joined the litigation when given the opportunity, despite a healthy sample and minimal use of pain medication. Subsequent data from 67 individuals with no mention of the FDA scenario or litigation showed that health anxiety still significantly predicts symptom endorsement (12.6% variance), but the explained variance is less than half that obtained in the FDA scenario. The findings suggest that health anxiety plays a significant role in adverse symptom reporting, beyond anxiety or depression, and this effect is independent of the presence of the FDA recall. The lack of differences for health anxiety and symptom endorsement between litigation and non-litigation conditions rules out malingering. Although it is general practice in drug recalls to list potential adverse side effects caused by medications, this may elicit unintended symptom experiences and health anxious individuals may be more susceptible.

Baseline Concussion Testing Increases Agreement With Favorable Concussion Safety Decisions in Hypothetical Scenarios.

BACKGROUND: Dangers of sports-related concussion are well documented, and those participating in sports involving significant contact are at an even higher risk relative to the general population. Despite extensive concussion education, athletes still make decisions that would be considered unsafe, such as underreporting and continuing to play despite experiencing symptoms. Although baseline testing is an increasingly common practice at all levels of sport, little is known about its ability to improve player safety perceptions. AIMS: The current study examines whether taking part in a standardized baseline concussion assessment changes athletes' knowledge, attitudes, or perceptions of concussion safety decisions. METHOD: A total of 229 club and National Collegiate Athletic Association athletes completed a modified Rosenbaum Concussion Knowledge and Attitudes Survey-Student Version (RoCKAS-ST), which was used to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions of concussion safety decisions in hypothetical scenarios. Athletes were randomly assigned to either complete baseline concussion testing prior to the RoCKAS-ST or complete baseline testing after the RoCKAS-ST. RESULTS: Athletes randomly assigned to complete baseline testing before the RoCKAS-ST demonstrated greater agreement with favorable concussion safety decisions in hypothetical scenarios relative to athletes completing baseline testing after the RoCKAS-ST. The two conditions did not differ with respect to concussion knowledge or attitudes. DISCUSSION: Baseline testing appears to have an added benefit of resulting in more favorable perceptions toward making safe decisions following suspected concussions. CONCLUSION: Baseline testing may provide an effective means of improving a broader constellation of concussion safety behavior, particularly in club athletes, who are typically underserved in terms of concussion-related resources and care.

Sexualized Music Videos Desensitize Fijian Women to Intimate Partner Violence Suffering: The Mediating Role of Culpability Attributions.

Although there is growing evidence that receiving positive emotional support (e.g., empathy) facilitates improved mental health outcomes among intimate partner violence (IPV) victims, there has been minimal exploration of factors that might undermine the likelihood of such supportive responses. The current study addressed this issue by examining whether exposure to sexualized music videos would affect IPV victim-directed empathic responding of third-party respondents. In a three-condition design, 243 female Fijian university students viewed sexualized, nonsexualized, or neutral music videos. They then read about a male-to-female IPV incident involving a university student victim who focused heavily on academic success and rated aspiration-related culpability and empathic responding for the victim. Relative to those who viewed neutral and nonsexualized videos, those who viewed the sexualized video reported less victim-directed empathy. Moreover, the impact of video type on empathy was mediated by aspiration-related culpability (i.e., the perception that the victim studied too much). The present research examined, in an understudied, patriarchal population (Fijian women) with an extremely high rate of IPV, how exposure to sexualized music videos can contribute to both greater blame and greater desensitization to the suffering of an IPV victim. The importance of studying third-party responders (bystanders) is that they may represent a fundamental resource for the victim, or by contrast, if they fail to respond empathically, they would be unsupportive to a victim. This provides some directions for facilitating social controls and decreasing social tolerance for harmful patriarchal beliefs and gender-based violence in the Pacific Region of the world.

Validation of a Concussion Screening Battery for Use in Medical Settings: Predicting Centers for Disease Control Concussion Symptoms in Children and Adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: Effective screening for concussion is increasingly important, and medical professionals play a critical role in diagnostic and return-to-play decisions. However, few well-validated measures are available to assist in those decisions. This study aims to determine whether previously validated measures assessing neurocognitive and neurobehavioral abilities can predict Centers for Disease Control (CDC) concussion symptom endorsement in a sample of child or youth athletes. METHOD: Participants were 113 individuals, aged 6-17, representing 29 consecutive cases undergoing a post-concussion evaluation by a pediatric neurologist and 84 consecutive cases completing standardized baseline assessments (i.e., not being evaluated as a follow-up to a concussion). All participants completed the same standardized battery of tests comprised of the Connors' Continuous Performance Test (CPT 3), the Balance Error Scoring System (BESS), and the NIH 4-Meter Gait Test as well as completing a checklist of CDC concussion symptoms. RESULTS: Regression analyses indicate that the screening battery explained 33% of the variance (d = 1.4) in concussion symptom endorsement, after controlling for age. The neurocognitive test alone (CPT 3) accounts for 21.5% of the variance (d = 1.05) in symptoms after controlling for age, and the neurobehavioral measures (BESS and NIH 4-Meter Gait) then account for an additional 11.5% variance (accounting for 18.6% variance, d = .96, when entered first). These effect sizes are considered large to very large and reflect a marked increase in predictive validity relative to existing measures commonly used in concussion assessments. CONCLUSIONS: A relatively brief screening battery can function in medical settings to predict significant and substantial variability in CDC concussion symptoms in a pediatric sample.

Receiving Leniency After Hurting a Female Norm-Violator: The Mediating Role of Victim and Harm-Doer Empathy.

Data from 140 participants from the South Pacific, where domestic violence rates are high, demonstrated less punitive responding toward the male harm-doer of a female sexual norm-violator (SNV) relative to a control victim. The impact of victim type on punitive responding was mediated by empathy toward the victim and harm-doer. In Study 2, data from 240 individuals from the South Pacific demonstrated less punitive responding toward the harm-doer of an SNV victim relative to a control and a career-focused mother victim. The victim type-punitive responding relationship was also mediated by victim blame attributions and victim moral outrage.

Does empathy undermine justice? Moderating the impact of empathic concern for a White policeman on responses to police interracial violence.

White participants completed a measure of White guilt and read a passage describing a White police officer who shot an unarmed Black man. The victim's Facebook page information and picture indicated that he engaged in stereotypical or counterstereotypical activities in his everyday life. Participants then reported their empathic concern for the officer, perceptions of whether they thought the officer had racist motives for his actions, and their perceptions regarding the appropriate punishment for the officer. For the stereotypical victim, regardless of White guilt level, greater empathy for the officer was associated with lower perceived officer racism and less punitive responding towards the officer. In the counterstereotypical condition, the inverse association between officer empathy and the central outcome variables (perceived racism and punitive responding) was reduced for high White guilt participants. Thus, under certain conditions feelings of White guilt reduce the likelihood that empathic responding towards the officer leads to greater 'punitive leniency' for his harmful actions towards a disadvantaged group member.

The Impact of Clinical Diagnosis and Plaintiff's Award Request on Mock Juror Damage Awards and Injury Perceptions.

A total of 250 participants read a case summary and partial transcript including the expert testimony of a neuropsychologist who evaluated the plaintiff for a suspected mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) in a personal injury trial. There were three diagnostic conditions (organic injury, psychogenic reaction, or malingering) to which participants were randomly assigned, along with two requested award amounts ($10,000 or $5 million). Both pre- and postdeliberation effects emerged for the diagnosis (largest awards for the organic mTBI condition) and for the award request (larger requests resulted in larger awards), with the effect size for award request being substantially larger than the clinical diagnosis. A significant interaction also emerged, whereby the effect of the clinical diagnosis was only present when the award request was large. Thus, factors that are potentially less relevant to pain and suffering (award request) may disproportionately impact mock juror decisions in personal injury trials relative to factors that should be more salient (the expert witness's diagnosis). However, the award request had no impact on mock juror perceptions of the injury's life impact, sympathy for the plaintiff, or perceived plaintiff credibility, but the diagnosis did influence these outcomes. Implications for civil litigation in mTBI trials are discussed.

Self-Reported Mindful Attention and Awareness, Go/No-Go Response-Time Variability, and Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

The abilities to stabilize the focus of attention, notice attention lapses, and return attention to an intended object following lapses are precursors for mindfulness. Individuals diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are deficient in the attentional and self-control skills that characterize mindfulness. The present study assessed the relationship between mindfulness and ADHD in young adults using the Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale (MAAS), a computerized Go/No-Go task (the Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA)), the World Health Organization Adult Self-Report Scale (ASRS), a tool used as an adult ADHD screen, the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). We recruited 151 adult volunteers (ages 18 to 40); 100 with confirmed ADHD diagnoses and 51 control participants. Overall, participants with prior diagnoses of ADHD scored lower on the MAAS than controls and ASRS scores were strongly negatively correlated MAAS scores. Attention performance index, response time, and response-time variability subscales of the TOVA were positively correlated with MAAS scores and negatively correlated with ASRS scores. Intrasubject response-time variability on the TOVA, a parameter associated with attention lapses, was also strongly negatively correlated with MAAS scores. Overall, participants' self-reported mindfulness, as measured by the MAAS, was strongly related to self-reports on a clinical measure of attention disorders, anxiety, depression, and multiple indices of concentration and mind wandering on a standardized Go/No-Go task, the TOVA.

Comparing the MMPI-2 scale scores of parents involved in parental competency and child custody assessments.

MMPI-2 scores from a parent competency sample (N = 136 parents) are compared with a previously published data set of MMPI-2 scores for child custody litigants (N = 508 parents; Bathurst et al., 1997). Independent samples t tests yielded significant and in some cases substantial differences on the standard MMPI-2 clinical scales (especially Scales 4, 8, 2, and 0), with the competency sample obtaining higher clinical scores as well as higher scores on F, FB, VRIN, TRIN, and L, but lower scores on K, relative to the custody sample. Despite the higher scores in the competency sample, MMPI-2 mean scores did not exceed the clinical cutoff (T > 65). Moreover, the present competency sample essentially replicates the MMPI-2 scores of a previously published competency sample, suggesting that the present findings are representative of that population. The present findings suggest that separate reference groups be used when conducting child custody vs. parental competency evaluations, as these appear to be distinct populations despite there being similarities in the testing circumstances.

Experimentally Manipulated Somatic Information and Somatization Tendencies and their Impact on Physical Symptom Reporting and Performance in a Physically Strenuous Task.

This study attempts to determine whether the presentation of an experimentally manipulated somatic experience during a physically strenuous task can influence physical performance and symptom reporting. The study also compares the relative influence of experimentally manipulated somatic information (state somatization) with stable individual differences in the tendency to amplify physical symptoms (trait somatization) on performance and symptom reporting. 194 participants completed standardized measures of somatization tendencies, state anxiety, neuroticism and conscientiousness. Participants where then given a mock physical exam, with individuals randomly assigned to receive either favorable or unfavorable somatic information. All participants then had their body mass index assessed and completed a rigorous exercise task, with quantification of performance. Physiological measures of blood pressure and pulse were also assessed before and after the exercise task. The experimentally manipulated presentation of somatic information predicted both performance and physical symptoms, even after controlling for BMI, neuroticism, conscientiousness, and state anxiety. Moreover, expected performance uniquely and significantly predicted performance above and beyond condition, anxiety, BMI, neuroticism, and conscientiousness. Somatosensory amplification tendencies also predicted symptom endorsement, but not performance. Findings suggest that both state and trait expectations with respect to somatic experiences influence symptom reporting and to a lesser extent performance, even after controlling for variables known to strongly influence each of these outcomes. Results are consistent with the cognitive-perceptual and the cognitive-appraisal models of somatic interpretation.

Assessing anti-White attitudes and predicting perceived racism: the Johnson-Lecci scale.

Five studies are herein reported to describe the development and preliminary validation of the Johnson-Lecci Scale (JLS), a multicomponent self-report measure of anti-White attitudes held among Blacks. Items were generated from the everyday experiences of Black respondents using an act-frequency approach, and the scale configuration was derived using factor analysis. The factor structure was shown to be robust because it was cross-validated in an independent sample. The resulting JLS factors (subscales) were ingroup-directed stigmatization and discriminatory expectations, outgroup-directed negative beliefs, negative views toward ingroup-outgroup relations, and negative verbal expression toward the outgroup. These subscales were shown to predict the interpretations of ambiguously racist scenarios (i.e., perceived racism) and converged with peer evaluations of the target's anti-White attitudes. The subscales also demonstrate both convergent and discriminant validity with other self-report assessments of bias relating to age, gender, education, socioeconomic status, and race.

Personal goals as predictors of college student drinking motives, alcohol use and related problems.

OBJECTIVE: Although there has been extensive research examining drinking motives, relatively little of that research has focused on those factors that might underlie drinking motives. The present study examines whether nonalcohol-related motives (personal goals) can predict drinking motives, self-reported drinking and alcohol-related problems in a college student sample. METHOD: For an experiment on "attitudes and drinking," 290 volunteer undergraduate students (169 women and 121 men) completed measures of daily goal functioning (Personal Projects Analysis), drinking motives (Drinking Motives Questionnaire), frequency and quantity of alcohol consumed and alcohol-related problems (Drinkers Inventory of Consequences). RESULTS: Using path analysis, it was found that nonalcohol-related goals serve as significant distal predictors of alcohol-related problems, with their effects almost entirely mediated by drinking motives and/or drinking level. Perceptions of life goals involving goal self-efficacy, meaningfulness and social support appear to be significant protective factors, and goal-related distress is a significant risk factor. CONCLUSIONS: The present study extends previous research by focusing on a more idiographic, personally meaningful manifestation of motivation through the evaluation of nonalcohol-related personal goals. The daily pursuits of college students were shown to be predictive of drinking and drinking-related problems, especially as mediated through drinking motives. The findings suggest that several goal mechanisms could be considered for their potential role in improving interventions.

Examining the construct validity of the original and revised JBS: a cross-validation of sample and method.

Factor analysis is a statistical technique that can provide an understanding of construct validity. Previous research examining the factor structure of the Juror Bias Scale (JBS) has uncovered problems in the scale's assessment of the constructs of probability of commission (PC) and reasonable doubt (RD). We here reevaluate the scale's constructs to better our understanding of the pretrial biases involved in the juror decision-making process. Importantly, previous findings have been limited to college student samples and trial material that has involved rape evidence. This study examines the construct validity of the JBS in a sample of 617 jury-eligible adults drawn from the community, and the predictive validity of the JBS is examined across 3 distinct trial scenarios. The results parallel earlier findings, indicating that although RD is a tenable and useful construct affecting juror decision-making, PC may be a less relevant pretrial bias. We therefore suggest that future research emphasize alternative constructs, such as confidence and cynicism in the criminal justice system.

Perceptual consequences of an illness-concern induction and its relation to hypochondriacal tendencies.

This article examines the perceptual consequences of activating illness concern as a function of hypochondriacal tendencies. In 2 independent samples, hypochondriacal tendencies were associated with slower reaction times on a modified emotional Stroop task when the stimulus words were illness related, but only when illness concern was activated. Moreover, these findings emerged when hypochondriacal tendencies were defined as a sensitivity to bodily sensations. When defined as illness preoccupation and fear, hypochondriacal tendencies were associated with a generalized pattern of perseveration to all stimuli when health concern was activated. Finally, the results persisted even after statistically controlling for state anxiety. Findings are discussed within the context of an activation hypothesis and highlight the importance of the operational definition and assessment of hypochondriacal tendencies when examining perceptual biases.