Sex, Gullibility, and the Barnum Effect

1998 ◽  
Vol 82 (2) ◽  
pp. 571-576 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcella L. Piper-Terry ◽  
Jerrold L. Downey

The term “Barnum effect” refers to the tendency of people to accept personality interpretations containing vague statements that are universally true of the population at large. Some researchers have attributed the high acceptance rate of such statements to the gullibility of their subjects, while others suggested that factors such as social desirability, situational insecurity, or prestige of the interpreter may be significant contributors. Previous research has not shown sex to have significant main effects on acceptance of bogus personality interpretations but has suggested that sex may interact with certain variables that are situation-specific. In the present study, 75 undergraduate students administered projective ‘personality tests’ to friends who were approximately the same age. After a waiting period of two days, all subjects who had been ‘tested’ were given feedback consisting of a set of those general statements. They then rated the accuracy of their friends' interpretation. As in previous studies of this type, accuracy of the statements was rated very high, and women rated the interpretations as more accurate than men. The effects of a desire to be helpful were examined as a possible contributing factor in situations where the ‘test administrator’ and the subject were friends. Results suggest that helpfulness may interact with sex and situation, but further research is needed to evaluate the nature of this interaction.

1985 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 367-382 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. H. Dickson ◽  
I. W. Kelly

This review summarizes to date the research on the Barnum effect, the tendency for people to accept vague, ambiguous, and general statements as descriptive of their unique personalities. Studies examined address interpretation variables of the Barnum profiles in regard to generality and supposed relevance of the interpretation, favorability of interpretation, type of assessment procedure, and origin and format of interpretation. Also the role of personal factors such as characteristics of the subject and test administrator are examined. It is concluded that the level of acceptance of Barnum profiles depends on the relevance and favorability of the profile and to some extent on the type of assessment utilized. Directions for research on the Barnum effect are provided.


Author(s):  
Mihály Bakonyi ◽  
Hugo J. Woerdeman

Intensive research in matrix completions, moments, and sums of Hermitian squares has yielded a multitude of results in recent decades. This book provides a comprehensive account of this quickly developing area of mathematics and applications and gives complete proofs of many recently solved problems. With MATLAB codes and more than two hundred exercises, the book is ideal for a special topics course for graduate or advanced undergraduate students in mathematics or engineering, and will also be a valuable resource for researchers. Often driven by questions from signal processing, control theory, and quantum information, the subject of this book has inspired mathematicians from many subdisciplines, including linear algebra, operator theory, measure theory, and complex function theory. In turn, the applications are being pursued by researchers in areas such as electrical engineering, computer science, and physics. The book is self-contained, has many examples, and for the most part requires only a basic background in undergraduate mathematics, primarily linear algebra and some complex analysis. The book also includes an extensive discussion of the literature, with close to six hundred references from books and journals from a wide variety of disciplines.


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (34) ◽  
pp. 391-422
Author(s):  
اشواق حسن حميد صالح

Climate change and its impact on water resources is the problem of the times. Therefore, this study is concerned with the subject of climate change and its impact on the water ration of the grape harvest in Diyala Governorate. The study was based on the data of the Khanaqin climate station for the period 1973-2017, (1986-2017) due to lack of data at governorate level. The general trend of the elements of the climate and its effect on the water formula was extracted. The equation of change was extracted for the duration of the study. The statistical analysis was also used between the elements of the climate (actual brightness, normal temperature, micro and maximum degrees Celsius, wind speed m / s, relative humidity% The results of the statistical analysis confirm that the water ration for the study area is based mainly on the X7 evaporation / netting variable, which is affected by a set of independent variables X1 Solar Brightness X4 X5 Extreme Temperature Wind Speed ​​3X Minimal Temperature and Very High Level .


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1505
Author(s):  
Ignacio Menéndez Pidal ◽  
Jose Antonio Mancebo Piqueras ◽  
Eugenio Sanz Pérez ◽  
Clemente Sáenz Sanz

Many of the large number of underground works constructed or under construction in recent years are in unfavorable terrains facing unusual situations and construction conditions. This is the case of the subject under study in this paper: a tunnel excavated in evaporitic rocks that experienced significant karstification problems very quickly over time. As a result of this situation, the causes that may underlie this rapid karstification are investigated and a novel methodology is presented in civil engineering where the use of saturation indices for the different mineral specimens present has been crucial. The drainage of the rock massif of El Regajal (Madrid-Toledo, Spain, in the Madrid-Valencia high-speed train line) was studied and permitted the in-situ study of the hydrogeochemical evolution of water flow in the Miocene evaporitic materials of the Tajo Basin as a full-scale testing laboratory, that are conforms as a whole, a single aquifer. The work provides a novel methodology based on the calculation of activities through the hydrogeochemical study of water samples in different piezometers, estimating the saturation index of different saline materials and the dissolution capacity of the brine, which is surprisingly very high despite the high electrical conductivity. The circulating brine appears unsaturated with respect to thenardite, mirabilite, epsomite, glauberite, and halite. The alteration of the underground flow and the consequent renewal of the water of the aquifer by the infiltration water of rain and irrigation is the cause of the hydrogeochemical imbalance and the modification of the characteristics of the massif. These modifications include very important loss of material by dissolution, altering the resistance of the terrain and the increase of the porosity. Simultaneously, different expansive and recrystallization processes that decrease the porosity of the massif were identified in the present work. The hydrogeochemical study allows the evolution of these phenomena to be followed over time, and this, in turn, may facilitate the implementation of preventive works in civil engineering.


1881 ◽  
Vol 32 (212-215) ◽  
pp. 407-408

During the progress of the investigations which I have from time to time had the honour of bringing under the notice of the Royal Society, I have again and again noticed the apparent disappearance of gases inclosed in vessels of various materials when the disappearance could not be accounted for upon the assumption of ordinary leakage. After a careful examination of the subject I found that the solids absorbed or dissolved the gases, giving rise to a striking example of the fixation of a gas in a solid without chemical action. In carrying out that most troublesome investigation, the crystalline separation of carbon from its compounds, the tubes used for experiment have been in nine cases out of ten found to be empty on opening them, and in most cases a careful testing by hydraulic press showed no leakage. The gases seemed to go through the solid iron, although it was 2 inches thick. A series of experiments with various linings were tried. The tube was electro-plated with copper, silver, and gold, but with no greater success. Siliceous linings were tried fusible enamels and glass—but still the' tubes refused to hold the contents. Out of thirty-four experiments made since my last results were published, only four contained any liquid or condensed gaseous matter after the furnacing. I became convinced that the solid matter at the very high pressure and temperature used must be pervious to gases.


2019 ◽  
Vol 161 (A4) ◽  

The various functions desired from a frontline warship such as a frigate, corvette or a destroyer, coupled with the requirement of very high speeds and economic viability restricting the size, necessitates a very dense arrangement of weapons and sensors on the top deck and superstructure. Accordingly, Navies across the world have faced several problems with respect to functions for which a good aerodynamic design for these structures is essential. Major issues include smoke nuisance created due to impinging of the ship's exhaust gases on to the top deck leading to possible suction by engine intakes and high turbulence in the ship's air-wake leading to ship aircraft interface concerns. The flow field on the helodeck is extremely complex due to its geometry and interaction with the wake of the ship’s superstructure. A knowledge of this complexity is essential for ensuring safe helo operations on the helodeck. The problem of ship helicopter interaction has hogged the lime light in recent times, due to rising demand for design of warships for increased stealth, especially in the past two decades. Consequently, several researchers in countries with advanced Navies have invested considerable resources towards evolving both experimental and numerical solutions for the problem. However, given the military nature of the operations, open literature on the subject containing details of such research, which can be used as reference material for present work, are limited. Considering the complexities involved in the problem, an attempt has been made in this paper to holistically review the widely scattered and limited literature in this field. A good amount of literature on marine helo applications emerge from the offshore industry. Keeping in mind that the fields of warship design and offshore structures are dissimilar and have their peculiar problems, informed conclusions have been made in drawing lessons from available literature.


Author(s):  
Ray Titus ◽  
Bhavika Veeramachaneni

Understanding and responding to the quintessential customer is the only way marketers will survive high density competition in the market place. Giving the consumer what he needs, when he needs it and where he needs it is the key to smart marketing. Providing consumer solutions in turn require marketers to know their target consumers’ psyche and the sociological influences that bear down on them. This research study uses multiple qualitative tools like personality tests, perception tests, in depth interviews and projective techniques to understand the psyche, social cultural environment and the decision making framework of an individual research subject. The subject chosen for the single individual case study was a student at an MBA program in the metropolitan city of Bangalore. He is in his mid-20s looking to move on to a corporate job after the completion of graduate business program. The research primarily focussed on understanding the influences his social circumstances and his personal psyche had on consumption decision making.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 297-329
Author(s):  
Renan Holanda Montenegro

Nos últimos anos, houve uma proliferação de livros e artigos sobre aspectos diversos da atuação internacional da China, como relações comerciais, investimentos, participação em novos fóruns multilaterais, questões de defesa, etc. Por outro lado, existe uma relativa ausência de textos introdutórios resumidos sobre a política externa do país, principalmente em língua portuguesa. O presente trabalho busca preencher essa lacuna por meio de uma análise de três aspectos centrais para se compreender a China na contemporaneidade sob lentes macro: 1) a existência de uma grande estratégia; 2) o desenho administrativo interno e os principais atores de política externa; e 3) os instrumentos à disposição para se perseguir os objetivos internacionais do país. Estudantes de graduação de Relações Internacionais – e de Ciências Sociais em geral – em estágio inicial de contato com temas sobre a China são o público-alvo, além de outros possíveis interessados no assunto.     Abstract: Over the last years there has been a proliferation of books and articles on various aspects of China's international performance, such as trade relations, investment, participation in new multilateral arenas, defense issues, etc. On the other hand, there is a relative lack of summary introductory texts on the country's foreign policy, mainly in Portuguese. This paper seeks to fill this gap by analyzing three central aspects to understand China in the contemporary world under macro lens: 1) the existence of a great strategy; 2) the internal administrative division and the main foreign policy actors; and 3) the instruments available to pursue the country's international objectives. International Relations undergraduate students – and those of Social Sciences in general – in the initial stage of contact with topics related to China are the target audience, in addition to other people interested in the subject. Keywords: China. State and Government. Foreign Policy. International Relations.     Recebido em: maio/2019. Aprovado em: agosto/2019.  


2019 ◽  
Vol 72 (5) ◽  
pp. 1279-1287
Author(s):  
Cleina de Fátima Carvalho ◽  
Maria Amélia Zanon Ponce ◽  
Reinaldo Antonio da Silva-Sobrinho ◽  
Roberto Della Rosa Mendez ◽  
Mariana Alvina dos Santos ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Objective: To analyze the knowledge about tuberculosis among nursing undergraduate students of a Federal Higher Education Institution. Method: Descriptive cross-sectional study, with quantitative approach. Data were collected through a questionnaire based on the WHO’s guide to developing evaluation instruments on knowledge, attitudes and practices related to TB. Students were classified as “with knowledge” and “with little knowledge” based on the mean percentage of correct responses to the variables analyzed. Descriptive statistics techniques were used. Results: 60 nursing students were interviewed. “with little knowledge” was observed among students who were studying at the university for less time and who had no previous contact with the subject, and “with knowledge” was observed among those whose knowledge about tuberculosis was acquired in the health services. Conclusion: Knowledge gaps among undergraduate nursing students were identified, suggesting the need to rethink teaching-learning strategies on the subject.


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