Previous studies by Holmes, Miller, and Lerner (2002) support the norm of self-interest and exchange fiction hypotheses. Together these arguments state that people want to act on compassionate feelings (e.g., by donating to charities) but are reluctant to do so if they cannot justify their behavior as being in line with their own self-interest.…

The purpose of this study was to determine alcohol use (particularly heavy drinking) and social normative estimations of alcohol use according to student residence (fraternity, sorority, residence hall, or apartment complex). To achieve this purpose, a survey was conducted in all 34 sections of a general education core English class at a…

Understanding the intentional actions of others is a fundamental part of human social cognition and behavior. An important question is therefore whether other animal species, especially our nearest relatives the chimpanzees, also understand the intentional actions of others. Here we show that chimpanzees spontaneously (without training) behave…

Quoting literary and scientific works, the duality of good and evil in human nature is analyzed. Article discusses mankind's detrimental behavior towards the environment and extreme acts of violence among human beings while examining similar violent behavior in animals. It is concluded that humanity's deeds stem from shared cultural traits,…

This article examines how 31 triads of 6- to 10-year-old children from 3 cultural backgrounds organized their interactions while folding Origami figures. Triads of children whose families had immigrated to the United States from indigenous heritage regions of Mexico (and whose mothers averaged only 7 grades of schooling) coordinated more often as…

This paper derives from a two-year ethnographic study conducted in single-gendered classes in two Tasmanian government coeducational schools in socio-economically disadvantaged areas. These schools specifically adopted proactive strategies to address the educational disengagement of boys whose social behaviour affected their own education and that…

This study investigated tenth- and twelfth-grade adolescents' (N less than or equal to 264) judgments about the acceptability of same-sex peers who varied in terms of their sexual orientation (straight, gay or lesbian) and their conformity to gender conventions or norms in regard to appearance and mannerisms or activity. Overall, the results of…

Tested on a sample of 1,365 Hong Kong primary school students from five grades, teacher preference or the extent to which the classroom teacher likes a child in the class was found to both mediate and, to a lesser extent, moderate the relations between children's social behaviors and peer acceptance across age groups. The mediating effect suggests…

Kohlberg's (1966) hypothesis that the attainment of gender constancy motivates children to attend to gender norms was reevaluated by examining these links in relation to age. Ninety-four 3- to 7-year-old children were interviewed to assess whether and how constancy mediates age-related changes in gender-related beliefs. As expected, results…

Parents and teachers reported that 6- to 8-year-old boys with developmental delays were less able to regulate their emotions than nondelayed boys matched on chronological age. Compared to nondelayed boys, boys with developmental delays had more social problems, which persisted and increased over a 3-year period. Children's ability to regulate…

This study of 61 preschool children used an observational, longitudinal design to examine the degree to which social dominance relationships account for time-related change in rates of aggression and affiliation across a school year. Specific hypotheses reflected the view that, over time, behavioral function should change in accord with the…

Several lines of theory and research suggest that power (e.g., social dominance) and status (e.g., social prominence and positive peer regard) are enjoyed by those blessed with good looks. The present work addresses the relations among physical attractiveness, power, status, and aggression from a resource control theoretic perspective that…

Because young adult drinking occurs primarily in peer groups, this should be taken into account when studying influences on drinking behaviour. This paper aimed to assess influences on drinking by observing existing peer groups in a naturalistic setting. We first analysed the basic levels at which two types of influence take place. The first,…

"Guanxi," the Chinese word for personal bonds or connections, is a recurring theme in the research forum, and researchers tend to agree that it is essential to establish "guanxi" with Chinese businesses. Much has been written about "guanxi" regarding doing business in the Chinese business economies such as Hong Kong,…

We developed an instrument for HIV/AIDS behavioral surveillance applicable to youth living in urban West Africa. The instrument includes a comprehensive set of constructs borrowed from the sociocognitive theory of planned behavior as well as measures of parental and peer communication An exploratory (n = 189) and validation sample (n = 342) of…