Social Interpretation Research Articles

Suicide Death and Post-suicide Cultural Practices in Southwest Nigeria: Implications for Suicide Reporting

Indeed, the underreporting of suicides and misclassification of causes of death has been acknowledged as a serious global concern among scholars and policymakers, especially in low and middle-income countries (LMIC). While studies have identified the criminal status of suicide as a factor responsible for the low reporting of suicide cases in Nigeria, religious and sociocultural underpinnings of suicide reporting have been ignored. This study, therefore, explores the social interpretations and cultural practices involved in handling suicide cases in 30 selected communities in southwest Nigeria. This is to unravel how these practices impact suicide reporting in the selected region. Purposive sampling was used to reach out to 90 traditional rulers, religious priests, and opinion leaders in the selected communities. The narratives of the study participants revealed that suicide is socially perceived as an abominable way to die, a revolt against one’s destiny, and a protest against the gods. Communities are in awe of the spiritual import of suicide deaths, which often informs the harsh treatment of bodies of suicide victims and secondary victimization of bereaved families, with implications for suicide reporting. The study suggests aligning cultural practices with the formal methods of handling suicide.

RESEPSI ASATIZAH RUMAH QUR’AN KAFFAH TERHADAP KANDUNGAN AYAT 17 SURAT AL-QAMAR

The diversity of responses from Al-Quran readers to the Al-Quran is increasing and varying. The description of social and religious events whose existence cannot be denied further strengthens the fact that Islamic society responds to the holy book Al-Qur'an with various practices. Likewise, the Kaffah Quran House brings the Koran to life through the Tahfizh Ummi-ummi program which teaches the Quran House. For the holy verses of the Al-Quran which are used as the basis for implementing this tahfizh program, in this article the author focuses on the response of the Ummi-ummis of the Koran Kaffah House in Understanding the Verses of the Al-Quran. The Koran is applied in the Koran memorization program in Tengah. Their daily activities are very busy. This is compared with the theory used by the author, namely reception theory with a phenomenological approach initiated by Edmund Husserl. The type of research carried out is mixed methods research, meaning it combines two research methods at once, namely quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative method is carried out systematically using numbers in percentage graphs to display the informative data results obtained. Then, the data obtained was analyzed and interpreted using qualitative methods. The results of this research conclude that the Al-Quran Kaffah House is reviewed functionally and exegetically. From this understanding, social interpretation emerged which was then applied in the practice of the weekly Tahfizh program. The informant's understanding of 84% of the contents of verse 17 of Surah Al-Qamar was an encouragement in the process of memorizing the Al-Quran. The truth about the miracles of the Qur'an as well as the guarantee for anyone who memorizes and takes irah from the Qur'an is based on the logic of pragmatic epistemology. The symbolism obtained from the external structure shows that the Ummi of the Al-Quran House in Kaffah belongs to the ustadz type. Meanwhile, the internal elements show the presence of a moral message, a means of friendship between fellow teachers, regardless of age, race and ethnicity. The symbolic meaning of this weekly tahfizh program activity can form a good personality, such as loving the Koran, increasing motivation to improve memorization, sharpening memorization skills, making use of free time, bringing happiness and soothing the heart and soul.

Borderline personality disorder features are associated with inflexible social interpretations

BackgroundBorderline personality disorder (BPD) is thought to involve aberrant social learning, including impaired revision of social interpretations with new evidence (social interpretation inflexibility). However, this topic has received little empirical attention outside of specific literatures, such as moral inference or behavioral economics. Further, the contribution of comorbid depression to BPD-related interpretation inflexibility has not yet been assessed. MethodsIn two independent samples (Study 1: N = 213; Study 2: N = 210, oversampled for BPD features), we assessed the associations between BPD symptoms, depressive symptoms, and task-based measures of social interpretation flexibility. ResultsWe found that BPD symptoms, particularly volatility of identity and relationships, were associated with less revision of social interpretations with both positive and negative evidence. Meanwhile, depressive symptoms were associated with a pattern of less revision of social interpretations with positive versus negative information. LimitationsThe use of cross-sectional, crowd sourced samples limits causal interpretations. Translation to clinical populations should be assessed in future studies. ConclusionsResults suggest that inflexible social interpretations across valences may be feature of BPD-related pathology, and could be connected to symptoms involving volatility in social contexts. Future studies should investigate whether treatments geared toward increasing the flexibility of social interpretations are effective in treating BPD symptoms, especially those involving interpersonal difficulties.

Vanguard of the Athletic Revolution: The Black Panther Party, Micki and Jack Scott, and the Sports Liberation Movement

Abstract: During the 1970s, the Black Panther Party believed in and provided sports programming that spoke to community embodiment. The Party's approach aligned with what Jack and Micki Scott called "the sports liberation movement." Though understudied in sports history, the Scotts endeavored to create a revolution motivated by the 1968 Olympics. They controversially wrote about and taught sports in a way that prioritized the needs and well-being of professional athletes and everyday people, rather than US patriotism and capitalism consumption. Influenced by fellow leftists like the Scotts, the Black Panthers circulated ideas on freedom and free movement, drawing inspiration from international role models in non-European, socialist countries too. They imagined that socialist sports could escape the militarization of sport in the US and find space for gender inclusion. Their interpretation of socialism showed up in both philosophy and pedagogy, on and off the mat. Using sports archives from the Party as well as broader newspaper research, I contend in this essay that the Panthers, representative of the larger Black Power movement, politicized sport as a necessary site to revolutionize the everyday person's life.

Endonezya Müslümanları Şura Meclisi’nin Bukittingi Lideri Derviş Tayyib’in ‘Merhametizm Doktrini’ Bağlamında Kur’an’ın Siyasi ve İçtimai Yorumu

Today, one of the issues that occupies the most tafsīr researchers is “the nature of tafsīr”. Different approaches have been presented regarding the issue of to what extent all interpretations of the Qur'an should be accepted as tafsīr. As a result of the dominance of the “social interpretation understanding”, which made its presence felt in the 20th century, the Qurʾān became the “book of guidance and life”; not just theoretical issues; The theme that it is a branch of science that produces solutions to individual and social problems has been brought to the agenda more. Especially in geographies affected by the Menar school and exposed to colonization, the Qurʾān and the related science of tafsīr are subject to re-reading; It is seen that it has gained functionality again as a source of information that “produces value” in different areas of life such as political, social, economic and education. Indonesians, who had a great struggle for independence and freedom in the 20th century, started to solve their own problems on this axis as a part of this process. In this study, the doctrine of Merhametizm (Marhamism), which was developed by the young leader of Bukittinggi of the Council of Indonesian Muslim Associations Darwis Thaib’s (1927-2008) texts of the Qurʾān and the basic starting points of socialism, against Sukarno’s (d. 1970) models such as Marhaenism and Tan Malaka’s (d. 1949) Murbaism was examined. Accordingly, a number of issues such as the relevance of Mercy to the science of tafsīr, the possibility of grounding it with revelation, the internal and external dynamics that were effective in the development of this thought, and the pros and cons of producing similar doctrines constitute the main subjects of our research. Darwis Thaib refers to Surah Beled as the basis of the doctrine of Mercy. According to him, “the struggle for freedom, independence and independence”, “social solidarity, cooperation and cooperation”, “the ability to empathize and think about others”, “love and respect”; Themes such as “the understanding of unity and togetherness” form the basis of the concept of “Social Justice”. Thus, Darwis Thaib came to the fore in Indonesia as the founder of a doctrine that we can call a kind of “practical commentary” by examining the theme of mercy, one of the key concepts of the Qurʾān, on a social and political level. Darwis Thaib stated that overcoming the “aqaba” (steep slope/hill) mentioned in the aforementioned surah requires serious effort and sacrifice and suggested that Muslims make this an agenda item. In our opinion, such efforts are meaningful and valuable as long as they do not conflict with the other main concepts of the Qurʾān. As a matter of fact, Buya Hamka (d. 1981) expressed his regrets that the doctrine of Mercy remained obsolete and criticized the politicians who did not take care of it. It is a fact that every step taken for the correct understanding of the Qurʾān is valuable, and it is equally necessary to produce new models based on a correct interpretation methodology for the problems of the period and to be able to present new proposals. This situation is also important in that it indicates the existence of an understanding and effort that goes beyond the literal level in the relationship with the Qurʾān and centers its thematic and systematics.

MULTIMODAL TARTIŞMA: İKİ SİYASİ REKLAM GÖRSELİ ÜZERİNE BİR ANALİZ

This study is interested in the persuasive and compelling modalities used by advertisers in political campaign advertising images, applied to persuade and impact their audiences. In this respect, this research focuses on two political campaigns posters, chosen by a non-random sampling procedure, commissioned by the Republic of Turkey current ruling party, and their main opposition, during the lead-up of the 2023 General Elections in Turkey. In this endeavour, a multimodal discourse analysis is utilised due to the study involving language and semiotic processes in a visual medium, serving as a foundation for the examination of the information gathered by Kress & van Leeuwen in 1996. In an effort to interpret the representational, interactional, and compositional meanings provided by the various parts of the chosen images, three metafunctions will be used. The results demonstrate that the visual grammar and multimodality-based theoretical framework may be adapted to the discourse of political advertisements. It was additionally found that the framework identified representational, interactional, and compositional processes, which contribute to the social interpretations of the images.

Misconceptions of the Sabbath as Rest: The Social Interpretation of Exodus 23:1-12 and Its Relevance

This article is driven by the many problems related to Sunday activities and land problems in the Moluccas. According to J.H Elliott, the authors analyze the text of Exodus 23:1–12 using the social sciences critique method. Meanwhile, the theory used as an analytical tool is the Structural-Functional theory proposed by Emile Durkheim and Jean Jacques Rousseau’s social contract theory. The results of the analysis are then discussed in relation to the church context in the Moluccas. The study's results found that originally, Sabbath meant to rest within the context of work. "Work," as understood by the concept of Sabbath, means working with God in promoting social care, economic sustainability, and environmental concern. Misunderstandings of the Sabbath as Rest cause certain elements in the structure of Moluccan society not to function as they should because the Sabbath is misconstrued to perpetuate laziness, ignore others, hinder economic growth, and ignore the environment. In actuality, the Sabbath provides balance, not only balancing work with rest but also balancing rest with work. The Sabbath needs to be interpreted as 'working' in the context of communion with God, social care, guaranteeing economic sustainability, and concern for the environment. Local wisdom and regional culture as a social contract are still necessary in caring for humanity and preserving the territory, so such local wisdom and particular aspects of regional culture must be preserved and strengthened.

Social interpretation inflexibility moderates emotional reactions to social situations in children and adolescents.

Interpretation biases and inflexibility (i.e., difficulties revising interpretations) have been linked to increased internalizing symptoms. Although adolescence is a developmental period characterized by novel social situations and increased vulnerability to internalizing disorders, no studies have examined interpretation inflexibility in adolescents. Additionally, no studies (on adolescents or adults) have examined interpretation flexibility as a protective factor against adverse outcomes of interpersonal events. Using a novel task and a 28-day diary we examined relations among interpretation bias and inflexibility, internalizing symptoms, and negative interpersonal events in a sample of children and adolescents (N = 159, ages 9-18). At baseline, negative interpretation bias was positively correlated with social anxiety symptoms, and positive interpretation bias negatively correlated with social anxiety and depressive symptoms. Inflexible positive interpretations were correlated with higher social anxiety and depressive symptoms, while inflexible negative interpretations were correlated with higher social anxiety. Finally, interpretation inflexibility moderated daily associations between negative interpersonal events and depressive symptoms in daily life, such that higher inflexibility was associated with stronger associations between interpersonal events and subsequent depressive symptoms, potentially increasing depressive symptom instability. These results suggest that interpretation biases and inflexibility may act as both risk and protective factors for adolescent anxiety and depression.

A Carolingian Helmet from Pohansko near Břeclav (Czech Republic): Its Archaeological Context and Social Interpretation

THIS PAPER PRESENTS THE REMAINS of an early medieval helmet found in 2015 at Pohansko near Břeclav (Czech Republic), one of the most important central places of an early medieval polity called Great Moravia. It is the first Carolingian helmet from Central Europe to be discovered in a settlement context during a conventional archaeological excavation. The helmet is dated by stratigraphic and radiocarbon methods, and placed in a broader European context based on the collected analogies. The authors also attempt a social interpretation of this extraordinary artefact and propose a hypothesis about the owner of this valuable piece of armour.

Burial of a warrior of the Rouran period from Northern Altai

The article introduces into scientific discourse cultural, chronological and social interpretation of the warrior burial, investigated during the excavations of the necropolis of the Bulan-Koby Culture of the Choburak-I funerary and ritual complex. The site is located on the right bank of the Katun River, to the south from the Elanda village of Chemal district, Altai Republic. During the research, a burial of a man with a horse and accompanying equipment, including a representative set of weapons (bow, a large number of arrows with iron tips, a sword, two combat knives), a belt decorated with numerous belt fittings, horse equipment, and other items were studied. A detailed description of the finds, including both widespread and very rare types of items, has been carried out. The indi-cated circle of analogies from the sites of the Bulan-Koby Culture of Altai, as well as complexes excavated in ad-jacent territories, allows us to determine the date of burial mound №30 to the 4th c. AD. This conclusion is con-firmed by the results of radiocarbon dating of a series of objects from the Choburak-I necropolis. The complex of elements of ritual practice indicates that the burial mound belongs to the previously identified Dialyan burial tradi-tion of the Altai population of the end of the 1st mil. BC — first half of the 1st mil. AD. This is suggested by the combination of the following features: an oval mound with a crepidoma, inhumation burial rite, northwest orienta-tion of the deceased, accompanying of the deceased by a horse laid “at the feet” of the person and its orientation with its head in the same direction as the deceased, inner grave construction in the form of a deck. The composi-tion of the grave goods allows us to conclude that the buried man was of a high social status, possibly a warrior who commanded a large unit of professional warriors, and also, possibly, the leader of a local group of pastoral-ists who left the Choburak-I necropolis. Some peculiar features of the analysed complex reflect the ideological paradigm of the Bulan-Koby population, such as placement into the grave of a broken (disassembled?) bow and a large number of arrows, covering the person’s body at the time of the burial.

The Story of Zahra

The aim of this paper is to narrates the lived experiences and story of a woman, a philanthropist, an engineer, and an academician who held from a remote part of Northern Nigeria. It is a part of the Biographical Narrative Method of qualitative research (Kutsyuruba & Mendes, 2023). Listening to and interpreting the narratives of a philanthropist, an engineer, and an academician is a motivational feature of a professional woman. Research methodologies don’t usually consider the psycho-social and biographical dynamics of individuals’ lives considering the dynamics in their geographical settings (Flynn, 2019). The paper draws from the experiences of a woman who hailed from an ethnicity, and shared a common culture, sourcing relevant literature. This is a biographic narrative story and lived experiences that reveal some of the challenges experienced by women dependent upon their psycho-social, socio-economic, and geographical setup. Mainly storytelling. Upon which experiences are driven by the story. A restorying was made and themes were obtained as struggle/challenges, motivation, strengths, and lessons from the experiences were highlighted (Cardenal, 2016). The analytic strategy focuses on the whole life history or story (biography), how it was told (narrative), and the social interpretation (interpretive). The story provides an overview of its potential application for motivation and change of perceptions of people. It said that “when we shift our perception, our experiences change”. The interview provides a useful tool to help with an in-depth qualitative exploration of her life story and experiences.

The dialectic of (menopause) zest: Breaking the mold of organizational irrelevance

AbstractDrawing from women's testimonials in The Guardian and from contributions of feminist writers, Virginia Woolf, Julia Kristeva, and Margaret Mead, we start a conversation on the positive and energizing aspects of menopause in the workplace. We propose a social interpretation of menopause that challenges a pervasive perspective of medical decline: A theorization of “the dialectic of zest,” as inspired by the writings of Margaret Mead. By problematizing the experiences of women going through this transition in the workplace, we reveal how well‐intentioned awareness campaigns can lead to further stigmatization. We thus encourage organizations to not only favor an approach of “education for all” but also extend their social imaginaries beyond medicalized perspectives and coping views. Organizations can then embrace the potential of “zest,” a positive side of menopause that remains largely unknown. We argue that organizations, inspired by a holistic view of menopause in the workplace, can creatively support the professional progressions and ambitions of not only women but also all employees.

A case study in animal products and urban site formation processes: Charleston, South Carolina (USA)

ABSTRACT Twenty-four zooarchaeological collections from Charleston, South Carolina (USA; ca. 1690s–1820s), suggest choices in the use of animals could extend beyond hierarchical social distinctions, food, and meat utility. The city’s economy incorporated animals and animal products from nonmarket sources for purposes other than meat. Some people raised cattle and smaller livestock on their properties, perhaps slaughtering animals there. Low-meat-utility portions from the Head and Foot are present in every collection. Associating faunal collections with cost and social identity is challenged by the multiethnic composition of residential sites and trash commingled on-site. Refuse disposal and drainage control in this low-lying coastal city further hamper social interpretations. Nonetheless, by the 1750s–1820s, the townhouse assemblage does contain more taxa and is more diverse than other, contemporary assemblages, perhaps because of the diversity of people living on townhouse properties. This reflects dynamic urban site formation processes, challenging efforts to infer social status from faunal remains.

The relationship between enterprise risk management and managerial judgement in decision‐making: A systematic literature review

AbstractEnterprise risk management (ERM) promises to improve decision‐making and help organizations avoid wicked problems. Consequently, risk artefacts may play a significant role in managers’ decision‐making processes, but little is known about the relationship between ERM and managerial judgement in decision‐making (MJDM). The purpose of this paper is to present a systematic literature review of ERM, thereby filling this knowledge gap and providing an evidence‐based foundation for improving practice and advancing knowledge and theory development. Based on an analysis and synthesis of 33 articles published between 2009 and 2021, we identify four contextual, five technical, three social and five cognitive factors that interact with MJDM. We find that regulation and corporate governance, ERM artefact design reconfiguration and use, social capital interactions and spaces and perceptions have the most support. We distinguish between three different modes of judgement: risk measurement, risk envisionment and risk qualculation. We find that risk qualculation, which employs quantitative and qualitative data and social interpretations of risks and uncertainties, is more likely to be useful in managerial decision‐making, particularly when attempting to address wicked problems. We also find that human cognition significantly impacts ERM design, implementation and use, and how those change over time. This paper also develops a new narrative and conceptualization of the relationship between ERM and MJDM, which is presented in an integrative framework. Finally, we encourage researchers to adopt cognitive theories and related concepts that are better suited for examining the ERM–MJDM relationship and to take a cognitive turn in future ERM research.

Tempered Radicalism: Zhang Dongsun and Chinese Guild Socialism, 1913–1922

AbstractIn the 1910s, guild socialism emerged as a response to the particular social and political problems of Britain and as a radical rebel against the established English socialist movement. From the beginning, guild socialism was characterized by its “Englishness”, and its global influences have largely been neglected. Through the case of Zhang Dongsun, a leading Chinese guild socialist, this article provides a transnational and comparative dimension of guild socialism and examines how its ideas were accepted, reinterpreted, and localized in a non-Western context. While English guildsmen propagated a strong anti-capitalist ideology and highlighted industrial democracy, mass self-government, and direct action, their Chinese comrades were advocating, at least temporarily, domination of the bourgeoisie and seeking to temper the radical social ethos motivated by the October Revolution. Guild socialism in China was deprived of its rebellious and militant elements and transformed into a moderate, wait-and-see theory that could, in Zhang's opinion, strike a perfect balance between elitism and mass democracy. Zhang's elitist interpretation of guild socialism showed his agency and ambition in pursuit of political modernity for China, but ironically it was his active reinterpretation that sealed the fate of Chinese guild socialism.

Racial Misclassification, Discrimination, Consciousness, and Self-Rated Health Among Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Adults in the USA.

Medical researchers have historically utilized the variable of race uncritically, rarely defining race, rarely acknowledging it as a social construct, and often omitting information about how it was measured. In this study, we use the following definition of race: "a system of structuring opportunity and assigning value based on the social interpretation of how one looks." We examine the influence of racial misclassification, racial discrimination, and racial consciousness on the self-rated health of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders (NHPI) living in the United States of America (USA). Our analysis used online survey data from a subgroup of NHPI adults living in the USA (n = 252) who were oversampled as part of a larger study of US adults (N = 2022). Respondents were recruited between September 7, 2021 and October 3, 2021, from an online opt-in panel of individuals across the USA. Statistical analyses include weighted and unweighted descriptive statistics for the sample, as well as a weighted logistic regression for poor/fair self-rated health. Odds of poor/fair self-rated health were greater for women (OR = 2.72; 95% CI [1.19, 6.21]) and those who experienced racial misclassification (OR = 2.90; 95% CI [1.20, 7.05]). No other sociodemographic, healthcare, or race-related variables were significantly associated with self-rated health in the fully adjusted results. Findings suggest that racial misclassification may be an important correlate of self-rated health among NHPI adults in the US context.

Arbaeen Event as an Alternative to Esxisting Bottlenecks

AbstractArbaeen event is the most significant religious tourism event for Shiites. Using the social interpretation approach, this study explores the context for Iranian Shiite participation and understanding of the Arbaeen event. The research methodology is qualitative. Data were collected using ethnography methods and analyzed by grounded theory. According to the results, the inefficiency of the internal decision‐making system as a result of the government and its administrative system facing a variety of crises in various political, economic, social, and cultural arenas, as well as social inequality, contribute to this event's attendance. A feeling of religious discrimination and a lack of rights for the participants leads to this inequality. The meaning reconstruction of the pilgrims’ experience and perception serves as a channel for social participation and solidarity, cultural change, and a bridge between stakeholders and officials. The core category also refers to the Arbaeen event as an alternative to existing bottlenecks.

Advocating for a dementia-inclusive visual communication.

This study examines the underlying visual communication strategies found in existing images of dementia in the public domain. By delineating how experiences of dementia are visualized and their consequent social interpretations, we aim to inform and advocate for a dementia-inclusive visual communication, that is, visual depictions that cultivate and represent a dementia-inclusive society. The visuals were analyzed by employing the Visual Discourses of Disability (ViDD) framework that juxtaposes the "perspectivizing-personizing" cline with the "enabling-disabling" continuum. The data studied comprise a total of 432 images sourced from three domains, namely (1) The Star, a Malaysian mainstream English newspaper (2012-2021); (2) Alzheimer's Disease Foundation Malaysia (ADFM) website (2019-2021); and (3) the Ministry of Health Malaysia (2019-2021) website. Findings from the visual analyses were corroborated by four representatives of ADFM in a group interview. There is a predominance of stigmatized images, constructing dementia as a loss and deficit, thus depicting individuals in distanced suffering. Generic representations of people through stock images, a unique focus on the hands, representations of brain degeneration through abstractions and missing puzzle pieces are also prevalent. Despite these, the interview data confirmed that the perspectivizing aspect may be necessary to educate the public on what dementia entails. While personizing images that depict personhood and actual persons living with dementia are ideal, the use of stock images may be necessary if there is a need to maintain confidentiality and observe sensitivities. Similarly, images with positive emotions are encouraged but disabling ones are equally important to reflect reality and inculcate empathy. When capturing, selecting and publishing images of dementia, organizations should deliberate on different visual elements which evoke empowerment, advocacy, handicapping and othering implications as outlined in the ViDD framework. Any decision should only be made after considering the purposes of publications and implications such images have on the intended audiences.

An Audience Facilitates Facial Feedback: A Social-Context Hypothesis Reconciling Original Study and Nonreplication.

Nonreplications of previously undisputed phenomena tend to leave a theoretical vacuum. This theoretical perspective seeks to fill the gap left by the failure to replicate unobtrusive facial feedback. In the emblematic original study, participants who held a pen between the teeth (i.e., requiring activity of the zygomaticus major muscle) rated cartoons more positively than participants who held the pen between the lips. We argue that the same social mechanisms (e.g., the presence of an audience) modulate facial feedback to emotion as are involved in the feed-forward shaping of facial actions by emotions. Differing social contexts could thus help explain the contrast between original findings and failures to obtain unobtrusive facial feedback. An exploratory analysis that included results only from (unobtrusive) facial-feedback studies without explicit reference to emotion in the facial manipulation provided preliminary support for this hypothesis. Studies with a social context (e.g., due to experimenter presence) showed a medium-sized aggregate facial-feedback effect, whereas studies without a social context (e.g., when facial actions were only filmed), revealed a small effect. Video awareness strengthened facial feedback considerably within an engaging social context, but seemed to reduce it without a social context. We provisionally conclude that a (pro-)social interpretation of facial actions facilitates feedback to (primarily positive) emotion, and suggest further research explicitly manipulating this context.

Social Interpretation Inflexibility and Functioning: Associations with Symptoms and Stress

Introduction: Interpretation inflexibility has been implicated in a range of mental health problems, including depression, social anxiety, and paranoia. Inflexible interpretation of social situations may be particularly important as it can set the stage for problems in social functioning, a symptom cutting across all three groups of disorders. Methods: This study aimed to examine the interrelations among interpretation inflexibility, social functioning impairment, and affective and psychotic symptoms. The study also explored the potential moderating effects of COVID-related preoccupation, as an example of a major stressor, on these relationships. Results: Based on a sample recruited from the general population (N = 247), interpretation inflexibility was found to be associated with social functioning impairment, with affective symptoms and paranoia as statistical mediators of the association. These relationships were magnified by ambient stress during the COVID-19 pandemic—a moderated mediation that was found only in relation to affective symptoms but not paranoia. A parallel network analysis further confirmed the moderating effects of COVID-related preoccupation on the relation between interpretation inflexibility and depression. Limitations: Measuring ambient stress with a self-report question on COVID-related preoccupation may not be representative of the amount of distress an individual experienced during the pandemic. Also, our mediation models were performed on cross-sectional data, thus not necessarily implying a feed-forward causal mediational relationship. Conclusions: These findings highlight the importance of examining social functioning as a crucial outcome, as well as the differential role of stress in modulating social interpretation flexibility with respect to affective vs. psychotic symptoms.