Journal Articles
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/7915
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Item Mindfulness as practice: A network analysis of FMI data(John Wiley and Sons Inc on behalf of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, 2021-12-01) Smith JH; Kempton HM; Williams MN; van Ommen CMindfulness research implicitly conceives of mindfulness as an identifiable real ‘thing’ that exists beyond what is directly observed. Recently, a new methodology has been developed which allows mindfulness to be modelled as a complex system or network at the level of self-report. In these models, items become a network's nodes, and the statistical relations between them, edges. Interpreted causally, nodes are thought to increasingly influence each other via their edges, such that they become increasingly correlated. This study hypothesises that at a cross-sectional level, this may result in differences in overall network connectivity (density) between practitioners and non-practitioners. Mindfulness networks were estimated for practitioners and non-practitioners using the Friedberg Mindfulness Inventory (FMI). A total of 371 regular mindfulness practitioners and 283 non-practitioners (including 59 irregular practitioners) were recruited online from Amazon Mechanical Turk. Comparisons of practitioners’ and non-practitioners’ networks indicated that network density did not significantly differ, whereas evidence was found in support of a significant difference in network structure. An exploratory analysis revealed substantive group differences in how items (practices) were connected. In particular, the practice of Acceptance appeared more central to the practitioners’ network relative to the non-practitioners' network, indicating Acceptance may be particularly useful for engagement in mindfulness practices. The study supports investigating mindfulness as a complex network at the level of self-report, with implications for how the development of mindfulness is conceptualised. The lack of difference in network density indicates that research is needed to examine network dynamics in the context of regular mindfulness practice.Item Contribution to O’Donnell et al. (2017, in press). Registered replication report: Dijksterhuis & van Knippenberg (1998).(Association for Psychological Science, 2018) Philipp MC; Williams MN; Cannon PC; Drummond ADijksterhuis and van Knippenberg (1998) reported that participants primed with a category associated with intelligence (“professor”) subsequently performed 13% better on a trivia test than participants primed with a category associated with a lack of intelligence (“soccer hooligans”). In two unpublished replications of this study designed to verify the appropriate testing procedures, Dijksterhuis, van Knippenberg, and Holland observed a smaller difference between conditions (2%–3%) as well as a gender difference: Men showed the effect (9.3% and 7.6%), but women did not (0.3% and −0.3%). The procedure used in those replications served as the basis for this multilab Registered Replication Report. A total of 40 laboratories collected data for this project, and 23 of these laboratories met all inclusion criteria. Here we report the meta-analytic results for those 23 direct replications (total N = 4,493), which tested whether performance on a 30-item general-knowledge trivia task differed between these two priming conditions (results of supplementary analyses of the data from all 40 labs, N = 6,454, are also reported). We observed no overall difference in trivia performance between participants primed with the “professor” category and those primed with the “hooligan” category (0.14%) and no moderation by gender.Item Autism in Aotearoa: Is the RAADS-14 a valid tool for a New Zealand population?(Hogrefe for the European Association of Psychological Assessment (EAPA), 6/07/2020) Kember S; Williams MNScreening measures for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are important tools for clinicians and researchers. However, where a measure developed and validated for one population is used with another, its performance in this new context must be carefully examined. The RAADS-14, a brief ASD screen developed in Sweden, was evaluated with a sample of New Zealand adults (N = 387), 41 of whom self-reported a prior diagnosis of ASD. The convergent validity of the RAADS-14 (Hypothesis 2) was supported by a strong positive correlation with the AQ-10 (short version of the Autism Spectrum Quotient), r = .81. Discriminant validity (Hypothesis 3) was also supported by a strong negative correlation with the EQ-Short (short version of the Empathy Quotient), r = −.75. However, the measure did not meet inferential criteria for internal consistency (Hypothesis 1), and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) found a poor fit of the proposed three-factor model (Hypothesis 4) to the data. A cut-off score of 14/42 provided adequate sensitivity (95%) to detect participants with self-reported ASD diagnoses, but not adequate specificity (70%), suggesting a very high rate of false positives should be expected if relying on RAADS-14 scores alone to interpret presence of ASD. In sum, our results do not provide sufficient evidence of reliability and validity to support the use of the RAADS-14 with the New Zealand population. We provide suggestions for refinement of the RAADS-14 that may lead to increased reliability and validity.Item Validating a measure of children's monitoring-blunting coping styles in dental situations(Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, 2012) Williams MN; Jones LMThe monitoring-blunting theory of coping suggests that when faced with a threatening situation, individuals can respond by either monitoring or avoiding (blunting) threatening information. The current study sought to validate a scale of children's preferences for monitoring or blunting in dental situations (the Monitoring Blunting Dental Scale or MBDS). The psychometric characteristics of the scale were assessed in a sample of 240 New Zealand children aged 11-13. Reliability was adequate for both monitoring (α = 0.74) and blunting (α = 0.76) subscale scores. Convergent validity was indicated by strong correlations (>0.6) between the measure's subscales and those of a related scale, although discriminant validity with respect to dental anxiety was problematic for the blunting subscale. Exploratory factor analysis supported a two-factor monitoring-blunting model, although confirmatory factor analysis indicated reasonable but imperfect fit for this model, SBχ²(251) = 510.7, p < 0.001, RMSEA = 0.066. We reflect on conceptual issues which may underlie the difficulties experienced here and elsewhere in developing psychometrically sound measures of Miller's blunting construct and suggest that the monitoring subscale of the study scale may be most useful to other researchers.Item The psychometric properties of a brief version of the systemizing quotient(Hogrefe, 28/08/2016) Veale JF; Williams MNThe construct of systemizing – the drive to construct or understand systems – has an important role in the Extreme Male Brain theory of autism. While a brief version of the Systemizing Quotient (SQ) has been proposed, there is a need to assess its psychometric properties. This study assessed factorial and construct validity of an 8-item version of the SQ on a sample of 627 participants. A single-factor latent variable model with a single correlated error term showed adequate fit in a confirmatory factor analysis. This model also demonstrated metric invariance across genders when controlling for an effect of age on item responses. Reliability was acceptable, α = .72. As further evidence for construct validity, SQ scores showed expected relationships with mental rotation performance, trait anxiety, childhood extroversion, childhood agreeableness, and gender. Overall, the results indicated good psychometric properties for the brief version of the SQ, suggesting that this scale could be useful when researchers require a systemizing measure that is minimally burdensome to complete.Item What makes for the most intense regrets? Comparing the effects of several theoretical predictors of regret intensity(Frontiers in Psychology, 15/12/2016) Towers A; Williams MN; Hill SR; Philipp MC; Flett RSeveral theories have been proposed to account for variation in the intensity of life regrets. Variables hypothesized to affect the intensity of regret include: whether the regretted decision was an action or an inaction, the degree to which the decision was justified, and the life domain of the regret. No previous study has compared the effects of these key predictors in a single model in order to identify which are most strongly associated with the intensity of life regret. In this study, respondents (N D 500) to a postal survey answered questions concerning the nature of their greatest life regret. A Bayesian regression analysis suggested that regret intensity was greater for—in order of importance—decisions that breached participants’ personal life rules, decisions in social life domains than non-social domains, and decisions that lacked an explicit justification. Although regrets of inaction were more frequent than regrets of action, regrets relating to actions were slightly more intense.Item Do hotter temperatures increase the incidence of self-harm hospitalisations?(Routledge, 2016) Williams MN; Hill SR; Spicer JA relationship between air temperature and the incidence of suicide has been established in a number of previous studies. Interestingly, the relationship between geographical variation in temperature and suicide incidence has generally been found to be negative, while the relationship between temporal variation in temperature and suicide incidence has generally been found to be positive. It is less clear, however, how temperature relates to the incidence of self-harm. This topic is of particular importance given the presence of ongoing global warming. This study investigated the relationship between temperature and the incidence of self-harm resulting in hospitalisation in New Zealand. Self-harm hospitalisations by date and district for 1993-2009 were obtained from the Ministry of Health. Meteorological data was obtained from NIWA. Generalised linear mixed models were used to estimate the effects of three different components of variation in temperature: geographical, seasonal and irregular. Irregular (random) daily variation in temperature had a modest positive relationship with the incidence of acts of self-harm resulting in hospitalisation, with about 0.7% extra incidents for every 1 °C increase in temperature. However, there was no strong evidence for a positive effect of either seasonal or geographical variation in temperature. We conclude that temperature does appear to bear some relation to the incidence of self-harm, with irregular daily variation in temperature having a positive effect. However, inconsistencies in the effects of different components of variation in temperature make it challenging to accurately predict how global warming will influence the incidence of self-harm.Item Maximising potential: The psychological effects of the youth development programme project K(New Zealand Psychological Society, 2017) Furness K; Williams MN; Veale JF; Gardner DHProject K is a positive youth development programme targeting 13-15 year old students with low self-efficacy. It involves three components: wilderness adventure, community challenge and individual mentoring. This longitudinal study aimed to investigate changes in self-efficacy, resilience, connectedness and wellbeing in students participating in Project K. Eighty students (59% male) were recruited from five secondary schools across the North Island of New Zealand for a quasi-experimental study. Participants displaying delinquent behaviour, self-harm, suicidal ideation, or an eating disorder were excluded. Over 14 months, six waves of measurement were completed by Project K participants (n = 49), while four waves of measurement were completed by a control group (n = 31). Analyses using multilevel models showed that completion of Project K had substantial positive effects on selfefficacy, resilience, and wellbeing, although the effect on connectedness was not significant. We conclude that Project K appears to be an effective positive youth development programme for adolescents with low self-efficacy.Item Australasian Public Awareness and Belief in Conspiracy Theories: Motivational Correlates(1/02/2022) Marques MD; Ling M; Williams MN; Kerr JR; McLennan JBelief in conspiracies is not restricted to the fringe dwellers of society. International research suggests that such beliefs are quite common and that conspiracy theories may serve three basic psychological motives (i.e., epistemic, existential, and relational) for individuals. Yet, little is known about conspiracy theory awareness or belief in Australasia. We report the first large systematic investigation of system-justifying motives using two nationally representative samples of Australians (n = 1011) and New Zealanders (n = 754). Our findings show that almost all are aware of local and international conspiracies, the majority endorse one or more, and that all three psychological motives consistently relate to conspiracy belief, but not to awareness. In a series of hierarchical multiple regressions, we find that relational (i.e., increased anomie and disillusionment with the government) and existential motives (i.e., less trust in others and increased religiosity) are uniquely and relatively more important than epistemic needs (i.e., decreased analytic thinking) as predictors of increased local and international conspiracy belief. Findings are discussed in terms of the importance of understanding conspiracy theories as an ideological belief system that may function to serve underlying psychological motives.Item Perceptions of Powerlessness Are Negatively Associated with Taking Action on Climate Change: A Preregistered Replication(Mary Ann Liebert, Inc, 2/12/2020) Williams MN; Jaftha BADespite segments of skepticism, the majority of the general public in most countries believe that climate change is occurring and caused by human activities. Behavior changes by individuals can reduce greenhouse gas emissions to at least some extent, but a range of psychological and economic barriers can prevent individuals from taking action. A survey of New Zealanders by Aitken, Chapman, and McClure (2011) reported that belief in human influence on climate change and the risks of climate change were positively correlated with taking action on climate change. Conversely, perceptions of powerlessness and the commons dilemma were negatively correlated with taking action on climate change. Feeling powerless was associated with placing less importance on climate change as an influence on actions. Although the study by Aitken et al. has been influential, it was exploratory in nature, had a moderate sample size, was not preregistered, and has not previously been replicated. In this study, we report a preregistered replication with a sample of 352 Australians testing four hypotheses based on Aitken et al.'s findings (as summarized above). All four hypotheses were supported, reproducing Aitken et al.'s key findings
