As I strolled through the vestibule of memories past, I witnessed the unfolding of hell’s fire. The caterwauling of the desperate and disarmed provided the shadowy overcast as a young man of stealthy step and demoniacal eyes lay hold of a 45 caliber pistol, and with superior marksmanship, picked off the pristine, one by one. What bedeviled such a man that he could, without compassion or bereft of charity, take aim at his own, and with calculated thievery, deprive a man/woman of his last breath?

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Professor Robert Sternberg is a scholar that needs no introduction for all those who are in contact with fields such as intelligence and creativity, thinking and problem solving, social relations and leadership, and thus, more generally, with the discipline of psychology. His prodigious scientific activity has greatly shaped our understanding of the human mind, of intelligent and creative behaviour, of the development of the intellect. Professor Sternberg’s research stands out not only as a fundamental contribution to psychological theory but, above all, as an example of how psychological research can be extremely useful for different fields of human activity, from educational to organisational settings. In this interview Professor Sternberg talks about the past an present of intelligence and creativity research, and also about his career and current projects, a source of inspiration for graduate students, young scholars and psychologists at large.

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Hélène Brisebois
University of Quebec in Montreal

Abstract
The present study examines the moderating effects of the anger characteristics of violent husbands on the relationships between a set of predictors and both psychological and physical husband violence. Based on data from 76 married violent men recruited through community organizations that work with abusive males, a series of moderated multiple regression analyses showed that anger repression and felt intensity of anger does moderate the effects of attachment, dyadic adjustment, and childhood victimization on physical violence, but not on psychological violence. Considering that anger repression and felt intensity of anger are the more internally-related anger characteristics experienced in the couple relationship leads to the suggestion that the more covert characteristics of anger are more likely to play a moderating role than the overt characteristics, and reinforce the idea that it would be advantageous to consider anger as a multidimensional construct in studies of violence.

Keywords: support seeking, care giving, conflict management, observational data.

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Bahman Baluch
Middlesex University

Abstract
Word reading and short-term memory performance of forty two developmental dyslexics (mean age 10.1 years, SD = .7) and thirty three unimpaired reading age matched (mean age of 8.5, SD = .5) and thirty six unimpaired chronological age matched children (mean age of 10.6, SD = .7) was investigated in transparent Polish orthography. Fifty of the children were instructed that they were expected to recall the list of (12 high frequency mainly concrete) words after reading them aloud (Condition A), whilst others had no such instructions (Condition B). Word reading was tested by recording the time taken to read aloud the list of words in seconds and by taking into account errors in pronunciation. Overall, word reading was significantly slower for developmental dyslexics compared to reading age (RA) and chronological age (CA) controls. However, developmental dyslexics’ recall of words was comparable to CA and significantly superior to RA both in conditions A and B of the experiment. The implications of these results in relation to the impact of spelling transparency on memory performance of impaired and unimpaired readers are discussed.

Keywords: spelling transparency; Polish; developmental dyslexia; word reading; memory

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Mustafa Koyuncu
Nevsehir University

Lisa Fiksenbaum
York University

Abstract
This exploratory study examined the relationship between self-reports of burnout and indicators of work satisfaction and engagement, perceptions of hospital functioning and quality of nursing care, and psychological well-being of nursing staff. Data were collected from 224 staff nurses using anonymously completed questionnaires, a 37 percent response rate. Three indicators of burnout were considered: emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and lack of personal efficacy. Hierarchical regression analyses, controlling for both personal demographic and work situation characteristics, indicated that burnout accounted for significant increments in explained variance on most outcome measures. Explanations for the association of burnout with various outcomes are offered along with potentially practical implications.

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Eugenia Tuchendria
Senior researcher
Department of Food Hygiene and Nutrition, Institute of Public Health, Iasi, Romania

Iliana Palamaru
Senior researcher
Department of Food Hygiene and Nutrition, Institute of Public Health, Iasi, Romania

Abstract
Zinc is an essential nutrient having a complex biological role, including neuropsychological aspects. The study aimed to compare zinc level and psychic features in two pupils groups from different socioeconomic backgrounds. It also ascertains the relationship between zinc levels and aspects of intellectual development (attention, memory, intelligence) and personality features (psychoticism, neuroticism and extraversion). 103 pupils from an orphanage and 100 pupils from a regular state school were investigated. They were 11-15 years old and apparently healthy. Serum and erythrocyte zinc mean values were higher in the regular state school group (p=0.001 in both cases). The distribution of subjects regarding intellectual development was different in the two groups (p=0.000 in all cases) and personality features differed regarding psychoticism and neuroticism tendencies (p=0.019 and p=0.012 respectively). The U-test showed a significant difference between the subjects with deficient serum zinc and those with normal serum zinc as regarding attention (p=0.024) and intelligence (p=0.035) and between the subjects with deficient erythrocyte zinc and those with normal erythrocyte zinc as regards extraversion (p=0.011) in the group from the orphanage. Subjects with normal zinc status obtained higher (better) scores for psychological traits in all these situations. In conclusion, zinc levels and psychological features were different in the two groups of pupils. Our study pointed out a positive connection between zinc level and some aspects of intellectual developmental and personality features, emphasizing the importance of this trace element for the normal psychological status of children.

Key words: zinc, intellectual development, personality features, children (11-15 years), different socioeconomic conditions.

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Abstract
This study examined the relationships of mentoring and satisfaction with mentoring with work attitudes of nurses and the moderating roles of gender and social support in the relationships. Questionnaires were used to collect data on mentoring, satisfaction with mentoring, social support (from friends, family, professional association members, co-workers and supervisors) work attitudes, (job involvement, job satisfaction, organizational commitment) and demographic factors from 470 nurses (males =230, females = 240) from five states in Southwestern Nigeria. Data analysis included regressing work attitudes on mentoring, satisfaction with mentoring, social support and gender. Results revealed that mentoring, satisfaction with mentoring and social support predicted work attitudes and social support moderated the relationships but gender did not. The relationships were stronger for nurses who scored high on social support than for nurses who scored low on social support. The implication of the findings is that mentoring programmes should be developed by counselling and personnel psychologists for work organizations and these should be complemented with social support from family members, friends, and co-workers, professional association members and supervisors to improve the nurses’ work attitudes.

Keywords: Mentoring, job involvement, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, nurses, Nigeria.

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Abstract
The present article discusses the three main approaches to violence risk assessment, clinical judgement, actuarial assessment, and structured clinical judgement, informing the reader of the comparative benefits and short-comings of these methods of violence risk assessment. In particular, the present article highlights the controversy within the literature surrounding clinical judgement in comparison to actuarial assessments of violence risk, and proposes that the statistically significant ‘improvements’ of violence prediction when using actuarial scales in comparison to clinical predictions of dangerousness do not necessarily measure the skill of the clinician adequately. Specifically, an assessment of ‘dangerousness’ does not equal a prediction of violent recidivism. It is argued that clinicians are not predictive forecasters of risk, as in actuarial scales, but are, rather, trained to manage risk. In addition, suggestions for future research directions in the field of improving violence risk assessments are made.

Keywords – clinical judgement, actuarial assessment, structured clinical judgement, violence, violence risk assessment.

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Reviewed by Professor Jessica Hellings
Kansas University

Notable in the growing literature base on attentional difficulties, distractibility and impulsivity currently described and studied as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), is that studies focusing on the non-hyperactive subtype of the disorder or Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) are relatively lacking. While the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Text - Revised, 4th edition includes the diagnostic category ADHD, Predominately Inattentive Type, much study is still needed of this disorder in terms of phenomenology, treatment and outcomes in individuals of all ages. In addition, nomenclature of this and other ADHD subtypes is likely to change in the next edition of this diagnostic manual, anticipated in 2012.

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The Conference will address interdisciplinary practices across the social sciences, and between the social sciences and the natural sciences, applied sciences and the professions. Plenary speakers will include some of the world’s leading thinkers in the social sciences, as well as numerous paper, colloquium and workshop presentations. All are encouraged to register and attend this significant and timely Conference.

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Following the high standards set by the International Organization of Psychophysiology, the Program of this 15th World Congress of Psychophysiology will be composed of Invited Keynote Presentations, Symposia and Poster Sessions on the most advanced findings on all aspects, branches and areas of Psychophysiology as a leading Neuroscience (see Main Topics of the World Congress). All accepted abstracts will be published in the International Journal of Psychophysiology which will be distributed to all registered Delegates at the World Congress site in Budapest.

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The last decade cognitive neuroscience has seen a growing interest in an embodied view of cognition, according to which higher-level cognition is supported by basic sensory-motor structures. However, the embodied view of cognition has not gone unchallenged and has been criticized on both methodological and philosophical grounds. In addition, researchers from within the field differ in their views, ranging from strong claims about embodied processes as a necessary prerequisite for thinking to weaker claims about embodiment as merely accompanying higher-order cognitive processes. Crucial questions that remain unanswered include: “How conclusive is the support for strong or weak claims of embodied cognition?”, “How does an embodied view of cognition account for higher-order abstract thinking?” and “How do we represent concepts that we have never experienced ourselves?”. This workshop aims to shed light on these issues by getting together empirical researchers of embodied cognition from different backgrounds.

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Department of Psychology
Franklin & Marshall College
Lancaster, PA 17604

and

Institute for Advanced Computer Studies
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742

Recent advances in theoretical cognitive science can be fruitfully characterized as part of the ongoing attempt to come to grips with the very idea of homo sapiens—an entity at once biological and intelligent—and among the more striking developments has been the emergence of a philosophical anthropology that, contra Descartes and his thinking thing, instead puts doing at the center of human being. This shift to a more “enactive” understanding of human nature is owed proximally to the work of Heidegger and Merleau-Ponty, but also has clear precursors in such figures as William James and Hegel—and more specifically Marx and Marxist interpreters of Hegel such as Kojève. Naturally, Darwin must be considered as central as any philosopher, and many of the recent developments also echo the Aristotelian sense that being-at-work is the primary way of being anything at all.

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Health research, principally with a focus on student mental health and well-being, is a rising field in school psychology. The importance of the topic needs no explanation and yet, at the same time, there are both possibilities and challenges school psychologists face when engaging with this particular type of research, especially when studying cultural differences. One of the leading experts in this emerging field is Prof. Bonnie Nastasi who kindly accepted to answer our questions about the present state and the future of mental health research within school psychology.

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Abstract
The study tested the extent to which positive and negative affect at work mediate emotional intelligence effects on psychological distress. Participants were 200 middle-level managers who completed the Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale, 20-item affectivity scale, and a measure of psychological distress. Results using covariance based structural equation modeling indicated that only negative affect fully mediated the relationship between emotional intelligence and psychological distress. Furthermore, the direct effect of emotional intelligence was stronger for positive affect as compared to its influence on negative affect. Finally, negative affect had a significant direct influence on psychological distress, whereas the relationship between positive affect and psychological distress was insignificant.

Keywords – Emotional intelligence; affectivity; distress; mediation.

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