Social Information-processing Mechanisms Research Articles

The Development and Validation of the First German Open Scale of Social Information Processing

Introduction: This study introduces the first German Open Scale of Social Information Processing (GOSSIP) and evaluates its psychometric properties. Even though social information processing (SIP) and its important role in developmental psychopathology is a rising field of interest, model-based standardized assessment tools are still scarce. Methods: GOSSIP was developed to assess SI processes in boys and girls aged eight to 21 years. First, 61 vignettes (combinations of pictures and short written descriptions of the situation depicted) were evaluated by an expert group and piloted with 48 healthy participants (aged 8–21). The best-rated vignettes were then implemented in a Web-based application. 191 participants completed GOSSIP. Of those, 76 answered additional questionnaires to assess their social skills and psychopathology. Internal consistencies for the emotional and cognitive GOSSIP scales were determined. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was used to identify subgroups of children and adolescents characterized by specific SIP profiles (i.e., patterns of emotional, cognitive, and behavioral responses to the GOSSIP). Furthermore, the external validity of the participants’ attribution tendencies in GOSSIP was evaluated in real life by smartphone-based Ecological Momentary Assessments (EMA). Results: The internal consistencies for the emotional and cognitive scales (angry, ashamed, physical aggression, pro-social response, revenge, and outcome expectancy) were good to excellent. The scales of hostile interpretation, relation aggression, sadness, and exclusion showed borderline/acceptable internal consistency. Correlation analysis confirmed convergent validity with self-reported social skills and external validity with ratings of aggressive and pro-social behaviors. The LPA revealed three profiles as the best fit of the data. The first group is named “aggressors,” the second “social-emotional group,” and a third named “ashamed-internalizing group.” However, no significant association was found between the attribution tendencies derived from GOSSIP and EMA data. Discussion/Conclusion: GOSSIP is the first model-based German Web-based assessment for several SIP mechanisms that showed overall adequate psychometric properties. GOSSIP can be used to classify individuals into SIP profiles that differ in terms of their cognitive and emotional response tendencies and therefore could contribute to the development of targeted interventions. Integrating assessments of emotional responses into GOSSIP revealed an important role of “shame” in SIP and the development of psychopathology. Furthermore, the lack of external validity between GOSSIP and EMA calls into question how attribution tendencies are best assessed in future studies.

Social Information Processing in Deaf Adolescents.

The goal of this study was to compare the processing of social information in deaf and hearing adolescents. A task was developed to assess social information processing (SIP) skills of deaf adolescents based on Crick and Dodge's (1994; A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children's social adjustment. Psychological Bulletin, 115, 74-101) reformulated six-stage model. It consisted of a structured interview after watching 18 scenes of situations depicting participation in a peer group or provocations by peers. Participants included 32 deaf and 20 hearing adolescents and young adults aged between 13 and 21 years. Deaf adolescents and adults had lower scores than hearing participants in all the steps of the SIP model (coding, interpretation, goal formulation, response generation, response decision, and representation). However, deaf girls and women had better scores on social adjustment and on some SIP skills than deaf male participants.

Social Information Processing in Anger Expression and Partner Violence in Returning U.S. Veterans.

We examined social information processing factors that could represent pathways through which posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms relate to anger expression and intimate partner violence (IPV) perpetration in returning U.S. veterans. The sample included 92 male Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans, primarily Caucasian (77.4%), with smaller numbers of African American, Asian, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian or Alaskan Native, and other minority participants (9.7%, 2.2%, 2.2%, 3.2%, and 5.3% respectively). The average age was 40.37 (SD = 9.63) years. Data were collected through self-report questionnaires (PTSD Checklist, State-Trait Anger Expression Scale, Revised Conflict Tactics Scales) and the Articulated Thoughts in Simulated Situations experimental protocol. Laboratory-based assessment of cognitive biases and hostile attributions were tested as mediators of associations between PTSD symptoms and anger expression and IPV. Among the PTSD symptom clusters, hyperarousal symptoms were most strongly associated with anger expression (r = .50) and IPV perpetration (r = .27). Cognitive biases mediated associations between PTSD total scores and 3 of 4 PTSD cluster scores as well as anger expression. Hostile attribution biases were also associated with IPV perpetration (r = .23). We discuss the implications of these findings for understanding social information processing mechanisms for the relationship between PTSD symptoms and aggression.

Traitement de l’information sociale et profils dans le harcèlement scolaire chez les adolescents

IntroductionBullying is an insidious aggressive behavior characterized by repetitiveness, imbalance of power (a bully dominating his victim) and intent to do harm. People can fall into four different categories: bully, victim, bully/victim or not involved. While numerous researchers have explored the psychopathological consequences of intimidation, few of them have studied the way students with different profiles process social information. ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to explore whether there are specific ways of processing social information in relation to the bullying profile. We refer to the theoretical model of Crick and Dodge (1994) and assume that this information will be processed differently depending on the adolescent's bullying profile. MethodSeven hundred and seventeen (717) secondary school students took part in semi-structured individual interviews and answered several questionnaires related to bullying and social information processing mechanisms. ResultsThe main results show links between social information processing mechanisms and the bullying profiles. Bullies, victims and bully/victims show biases in their social information processing mechanisms at different stages of the model. ConclusionSpecific cognitive patterns seem to exist in relation to the bullying profile. These results provide a better understanding of the way adolescents process social information and open-up new perspectives for preventing bullying in schools.

Social Information Processing Mechanisms and Victimization

The aim of the current literature review, which is based on 64 empirical studies, was to assess to what extent mechanisms of the Social Information Processing (SIP) model of Crick and Dodge (1994) are related to victimization. The reviewed studies have provided support for the relation between victimization and several social information processing mechanisms, especially the interpretation of cues and self-efficacy (as part of the response decision). The relationship between victimization and other mechanisms, such as the response generation, was only studied in a few articles. Until now research has often focused on just one step of the model, instead of attempting to measure the associations between multiple mechanisms and victimization in multivariate analyses. Such analyses would be interesting to gain more insight into the SIP model and its relationship with victimization. The few available longitudinal studies show that mechanisms both predict victimization (internal locus of control, negative self-evaluations and less assertive response selection) and are predicted by victimization (hostile attribution of intent and negative evaluations of others). Associations between victimization and SIP mechanisms vary across different types and severity of victimization (stronger in personal and severe victimization), and different populations (stronger among young victims). Practice could focus on these stronger associations and the interpretation of cues. More research is needed however, to investigate whether intervention programs that address SIP mechanisms are suitable for victimization and all relevant populations.

Development and validation of the social information processing application: A Web-based measure of social information processing patterns in elementary school-age boys.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of an audio computer-assisted self-interviewing Web-based software application called the Social Information Processing Application (SIP-AP) that was designed to assess social information processing skills in boys in 3rd through 5th grades. This study included a racially and ethnically diverse sample of 244 boys ages 8 through 12 (M = 9.4) from public elementary schools in 3 states. The SIP-AP includes 8 videotaped vignettes, filmed from the first-person perspective, that depict common misunderstandings among boys. Each vignette shows a negative outcome for the victim and ambiguous intent on the part of the perpetrator. Boys responded to 16 Web-based questions representing the 5 social information processing mechanisms, after viewing each vignette. Parents and teachers completed measures assessing boys' antisocial behavior. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that a model positing the original 5 cognitive mechanisms fit the data well when the items representing prosocial cognitions were included on their own factor, creating a 6th factor. The internal consistencies for each of the 16 individual cognitions as well as for the 6 cognitive mechanism scales were excellent. Boys with elevated scores on 5 of the 6 cognitive mechanisms exhibited more antisocial behavior than boys whose scores were not elevated. These findings highlight the need for further research on the measurement of prosocial cognitions or cognitive strengths in boys in addition to assessing cognitive deficits. Findings suggest that the SIP-AP is a reliable and valid tool for use in future research of social information processing skills in boys.

Social information-processing patterns of maltreated children in two social domains

This study examined relations among social information-processing (SIP) variables in the domains of peer provocation and peer group entry. Using Crick and Dodge's [Crick, N. R., & Dodge, K. A. (1994). A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children's social adjustment. Psychological Bulletin, 115, 74–101] model, SIP variables were examined within and across domain to determine whether processing patterns varied with type of social situation. The ethnically varied sample included 188 (49% male) maltreated children ( M age = 6.5 years) who had either been neglected or neglected and physically-abused in early elementary school. Factor analyses indicated that the variables representing attribution and evaluation steps of processing were domain-specific, whereas encoding, problem-solving, and enactment were not. In the provocation domain, children who had experienced physical abuse in addition to neglect displayed more hostile attributions and aggressive responses, and fewer competent responses relative to neglected children and nonmaltreated comparison children. In peer group entry, the children in the neglect-only group displayed more processing deficits, generating more aggressive responses than the comparison children.

Children’s Intent Attributions and Feelings of Distress: Associations with Maternal and Paternal Parenting Practices

Many studies point to the importance of social information processing mechanisms in understanding distinct child behaviors such as aggression. However, few studies have assessed whether parenting might be related to such mechanisms. This study considers how aversive forms of parenting (i.e., corporal punishment, psychological control) as well as parental warmth and responsiveness might be concurrently associated with children's hostile intent attributions and emotional distress in response to ambiguous provocation scenarios (both instrumental and relational). A sample of 219 children (101 boys, 118 girls) and their parents participated. Bivariate associations showed that parenting dimensions and child variables were significantly associated in mostly expected ways, but only in father-child relationships (especially father-son relationships). Analyses generally showed dimensions of aversive parenting by fathers to be associated with a greater tendency toward hostile attributional bias in children. Moreover, paternal warmth and responsiveness, as well as corporal punishment, were associated with less emotional distress in boys. In contrast, paternal psychological control predicted greater emotional distress in boys. The findings suggest that the tone of the father-son relationship, in particular, may help set the tone for how boys interpret their social world. Psychological control figures prominently in this regard.

Emotions Matter: Making the Case for the Role of Young Children's Emotional Development for Early School Readiness

This Social Policy Report considers the importance of young children’s emotional development for their school readiness, suggesting that social scientists can provide policy makers with concrete ways to conceptualize, measure and target young children’s emotional adjustment in early educational and child care settings. This Report then reviews a recent and persuasive body of rigorous research, to determine whether children’s emotional adjustment can be significantly affected by interventions implemented in the preschool and early school years. Results of this review suggest that family early educational, and clinical interventions offer policy makers a wide array of choices in ways that they can make sound investments in young children’s emotional development and school readiness. This research suggests that, while young children’s emotional and behavioral problems are costly to their chances of school success, these problems are identifiable early, are amenable to change, and can be reduced over time. What kinds of investments should policy makers be advised to make, at what point in young children’s development, and in what settings? While modest investments in low-cost interventions initially may seem appealing, this report suggests that there are few bargains to be had when investing in young children’s emotional adjustment. With this caveat in mind, the findings of this report suggest that policy makers should broaden early elementary educational mandates for school readiness to include children’s emotional and behavioral adjustments as key programmatic goals. Policy makers should consider targeting young children’s emotional adjustment prior to school entry, in diverse settings such as Head Start, child care settings, as well as in the first few years of school. Finally, young children’s emotional adjustment can serve as an important benchmark of programmatic success in other policy arenas focusing on child welfare, family support, and economic self-sufficiency, as well as in education.

The relation between exposure to violence and social information processing among incarcerated adolescents.

Combining evidence from social learning theory with reports of the association between community violence exposure and aggressive behavior development, the authors examined the link between specific characteristics of violence exposure and social information-processing mechanisms (N. R. Crick & K. A. Dodge, 1994; K. A. Dodge, 1980, 1986) in a sample of highly aggressive, incarcerated adolescent boys (N = 110). Results demonstrated that victimization by severe violence was significantly related to approval of aggression as a social response, problems with the interpretation of social cues, and maladaptive social goals. Witnessing severe violence, in contrast, was related to perceived positive outcomes for the use of aggression. These data suggest the importance of examining the severity and modality of exposure to community violence for understanding patterns of social-cognitive functioning among adolescents exposed to violence.

The Instrumental Side of Corporal Punishment: Parents' Reported Practices and Outcome Expectancies

We conducted two studies to assess the relations between parental disciplinary practices and outcome expectancies. In the first study, mothers of 36-month-old children responded to vignettes about child misbehaviors. Mothers who reportedly used corporal punishment at least once a week believed that it was more likely to result in positive outcomes, including immediate child compliance, better child behavior in the long term, and less maternal guilt than mothers who never spanked or mothers who spanked only occasionally. Study 2 extended those findings by including fathers, other expectancies, and different types of misbehaviors. No significant differences between mothers and fathers were found, though effects due to membership in the group of parents who spanked were present. Key Words: corporal punishment, discipline, outcome expectancies, parenting. One of the most controversial parenting practices is the use of corporal punishment. Although the effects of corporal punishment on children is undergoing rigorous scientific debate (e.g., Larzerele, 1996; Straus, 1994), less attention has been devoted to why parents spank their children. The available research indicates that the determinants of corporal punishment are manifold, including cultural norms (Piesner, 1989), child characteristics (Day, Peterson, & McCracken, 1999), parental characteristics and beliefs (Socolar & Stein, 1995), and contextual effects, such as momentary outbursts of anger (e.g., Vasta, 1982). Our studies focus on examining aspects of parents' beliefs as determinants of parents' use of corporal punishment. Although spanking may, indeed, be the product of an angry interaction, there is evidence that many parents regard the disciplinary technique as appropriate, effective, and justifiable (Graziano, Hamblen, & Plante, 1996). Simons, Whitbeck, Conger, and Chyi-In (1991) reported that parents who believed in strict, physical discipline were more likely to use corporal punishment than other parents. In an interview study, Socolar and Stein (1995) found that mothers' beliefs in spanking were reliably correlated with their reported spanking practices, r[204] = .46, p But what drives these instrumental beliefs? A look at social information-processing mechanisms (Crick & Dodge, 1994) provides a theoretical model to more systematically examine the instrumental view of corporal punishment. The model includes steps of encoding of cues (e.g., perceiving the appropriate information), interpreting of cues (e.g., attributing the cause), clarifying goals (e.g., determining the objective), generating responses (e.g., response access or construction), selecting the response (e.g., response decision), and enacting behavior (e.g., engaging in the action). This approach prompts several hypotheses about why some parents use corporal punishment. For example, one parent may interpret a child's transgression as more serious and, therefore, more deserving of harsh discipline than another parent. At the stage when responses are generated, parents who resort to corporal punishment may not be able to think of as many alternative disciplinary strategies as other parents. Or when selecting a response, a parent may believe that corporal punishment will result in better outcomes than alternative responses. Among the different stages of information processing, most of the research concerning disciplinary encounters has been devoted to the interpretation of cues, with a focus on attributions. …

The distinction between beliefs legitimizing aggression and deviant processing of social cues: testing measurement validity and the hypothesis that biased processing mediates the effects of beliefs on aggression. Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group.

In 2 studies the authors examined knowledge and social information-processing mechanisms as 2 distinct sources of influence on child aggression. Data were collected from 387 boys and girls of diverse ethnicity in 3 successive years. In Study 1, confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated the discriminant validity of the knowledge construct of aggression beliefs and the processing constructs of hostile intent attributions, accessing of aggressive responses, and positive evaluation of aggressive outcomes. In Study 2, structural equation modeling analyses were used to test the mediation hypothesis that aggression beliefs would influence child aggression through the effects of deviant processing. A stronger belief that aggressive retaliation is acceptable predicted more deviant processing 1 year later and more aggression 2 years later. However, this latter effect was substantially accounted for by the intervening effects of deviant processing on aggression.

The distinction between beliefs legitimizing aggression and deviant processing of social cues: Testing measurement validity and the hypothesis that biased processing mediates the effects of beliefs on aggression.

In 2 studies the authors examined knowledge and social information-processing mechanisms as 2 distinct sources of influence on child aggression. Data were collected from 387 boys and girls of diverse ethnicity in 3 successive years. In Study 1, confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated the discriminant validity of the knowledge construct of aggression beliefs and the processing constructs of hostile intent attributions, accessing of aggressive responses, and positive evaluation of aggressive outcomes. In Study 2, structural equation modeling analyses were used to test the mediation hypothesis that aggression beliefs would influence child aggression through the effects of deviant processing. A stronger belief that aggressive retaliation is acceptable predicted more deviant processing 1 year later and more aggression 2 years later. However, this latter effect was substantially accounted for by the intervening effects of deviant processing on aggression.

Social Information-Processing Mechanisms in Reactive and Proactive Aggression

Social Information-Processing Mechanisms in Reactive and Proactive Aggression

Social Information-Processing Mechanisms in Reactive and Proactive Aggression

Theories of aggressive behavior and ethological observations in animals and children suggest the existence of distinct forms of reactive (hostile) and proactive (instrumental) aggression. Toward the validation of this distinction, groups of reactive aggressive, proactive aggressive, and nonaggressive children were identified (n = 624 9-12-year-olds). Social information-processing patterns were assessed in these groups by presenting hypothetical vignettes to subjects. 3 hypotheses were tested: (1) only the reactive-aggressive children would demonstrate hostile biases in their attributions of peers' intentions in provocation situations (because such biases are known to lead to reactive anger); (2) only proactive-aggressive children would evaluate aggression and its consequences in relatively positive ways (because proactive aggression is motivated by its expected external outcomes); and (3) proactive-aggressive children would select instrumental social goals rather than relational goals more often than nonaggressive children. All 3 hypotheses were at least partially supported.

A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children's social adjustment.

A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children's social adjustment.

A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children's social adjustment.

Research on the relation between social information processing and social adjustment in childhood is reviewed and interpreted within the framework of a reformulated model of human performance and social exchange. This reformulation proves to assimilate almost all previous studies and is a useful heuristic device for organizing the field. The review suggests that overwhelming evidence supports the empirical relation between characteristic processing styles and children's social adjustment, with some aspects of processing (e.g., hostile attributional biases, intention cue detection accuracy, response access patterns, and evaluation of response outcomes) likely to be causal of behaviors that lead to social status and other aspects (e.g., perceived self-competence) likely to be responsive to peer status

Utilization of Self-Schemas as a Mechanism of Interpretational Bias in Aggressive Children

The goal of this research was to examine social information-processing mechanisms that may be responsible for hostile interpretational biases among aggressive children. In Study 1, 32 aggressive and 42 nonaggressive adolescent boys and girls were presented with hypothetical stories in which they were to imagine being the object of an ambiguous provocation by a peer. Their task was to interpret the peer's intention. Equal numbers of cues supporting a hostile interpretation and a benign interpretation accompanied the stories. Aggressive subjects demonstrated a relative bias toward attributing hostile intent to the peer provocateur. It also was found that aggressive subjects were less likely than others to utilize presented cues and more likely than others to utilize self-schemas when asked to explain their decisions. This pattern of cue utilization was not responsible for the interpretational patterns, however. In Study 2, similar stories were presented, but the numbers of hostile and benign cues were weigh...