Positive Feedback as a Lever to Boost Students' STEM Outcomes.

Although many college students intend to major in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), dropout from these fields is high, especially among members of historically underrepresented groups, such as women and racial-ethnic minorities. We propose a minimal, yet potentially powerful intervention to broaden participation in STEM: giving positive feedback to students in STEM. Studies 1 and 2 found that giving positive feedback is less normative in math (vs.

Happiness-To enjoy now or later? Consequences of delaying happiness and living in the moment beliefs.

How do people think about happiness? Is it something best enjoyed as an investment over time, or is it something fleeting that should be savored? When people view happiness as an investment, they may endorse (DH)-the belief that working hard and sacrificing opportunities for happiness now will contribute to greater future happiness. When people view happiness as fleeting, they may endorse (LM)-the belief that one should seize proximal opportunities to experience happiness now, rather than later. Using a mix of cross-sectional, meta-analytic (Studies 1, 2a, 2b, 2c), experimental (Study 3), and daily diary methods (Study 4), people who endorsed DH or LM beliefs anticipated more positive affect upon goal attainment and experienced greater well-being, but only DH was related to more negative affect when pursuing nonfocal goals and less delay discounting of future rewards.

Open science, communal culture, and women's participation in the movement to improve science.

Science is undergoing rapid change with the movement to improve science focused largely on reproducibility/replicability and open science practices. This moment of change-in which science turns inward to examine its methods and practices-provides an opportunity to address its historic lack of diversity and noninclusive culture. Through network modeling and semantic analysis, we provide an initial exploration of the structure, cultural frames, and women's participation in the open science and reproducibility literatures ( = 2,926 articles and conference proceedings).

Can't Buy Me Love (or Friendship): Social Consequences of Financially Contingent Self-Worth.

Although people may think that money improves one's relationships, research suggests otherwise. Focusing on money is associated with spending less time maintaining relationships and less desire to rely on others for help. But does focusing on money relate to worse social outcomes? We propose that when people base their self-esteem on financial success-that is, have financially contingent self-worth-they are likely to feel pressured to pursue success in this domain, which may come at the expense of spending time with close others.

Positive Feedback From Male Authority Figures Boosts Women's Math Outcomes.

People often search for cues in the environment to determine whether or not they will be judged or treated negatively based on their social identities. Accordingly, feedback from gatekeepers-members of majority groups who hold authority and power in a field-may be an especially important cue for those at risk of experiencing social identity threat, such as women in math settings. Across a series of studies, women who received positive ("Good job!") versus objective (score only) feedback from a male (vs.

It's All About the Money (For Some): Consequences of Financially Contingent Self-Worth.

Financial success is an important goal, yet striving for it is often associated with negative outcomes. One reason for this paradox is that financial pressures may be tied to basing self-worth on financial success. Studies 1a to 1c developed a measure of Financial Contingency of Self-Worth (Financial CSW), and found that it predicted more financial social comparisons, financial hassles, stress, anxiety, and less autonomy.

(Psychological) Distance Makes the Heart Grow Fonder: Effects of Psychological Distance and Relative Intelligence on Men's Attraction to Women.

Interpersonal attraction may be shaped by (a) one's psychological distance from a target (the subjective experience that a target is close to or far from the self) and (b) the perceived standing of a target on a trait relative to the self (as better or worse than the self). We propose that when evaluating a psychologically distant target, individuals may rely on abstract schemas (e.g.

Effects of everyday romantic goal pursuit on women's attitudes toward math and science.

The present research examined the impact of everyday romantic goal strivings on women's attitudes toward science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). It was hypothesized that women may distance themselves from STEM when the goal to be romantically desirable is activated because pursuing intelligence goals in masculine domains (i.e.

Predicting excessive body image concerns among British university students: the unique role of Appearance-based Rejection Sensitivity.

The present research examined the extent to which interpersonal concerns about rejection based on appearance, or Appearance-based Rejection Sensitivity (Appearance-RS), serves as an indicator of risk for excessive body image concerns. Extending previous research, we examined the association between Appearance-RS and symptoms of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) and cosmetic surgery attitudes among 106 British university students. Consistent with predictions, Appearance-RS uniquely predicted greater degree of BDD symptoms after controlling for other known predictor variables.

Predicting interest in cosmetic surgery: interactive effects of appearance-based rejection sensitivity and negative appearance comments.

This study investigated effects of appearance-based rejection sensitivity (Appearance-RS) - the dispositional tendency to anxiously expect rejection based on one's appearance - in a sample of 133 American college students. Participants were randomly assigned to write an essay about either a negative or positive appearance comment they had received in the past. Compared to participants with lower Appearance-RS, those with higher Appearance-RS felt more rejected and expressed greater interest in cosmetic surgery after recalling a negative versus positive appearance comment.

Does self-threat promote social connection? The role of self-esteem and contingencies of self-worth.

Six studies examined the social motivations of people with high self-esteem (HSE) and low self-esteem (LSE) following a threat to a domain of contingent self-worth. Whether people desired social contact following self-threat depended on an interaction between an individual's trait self-esteem and contingencies of self-worth. HSE participants who strongly based self-worth on appearance sought to connect with close others following a threat to their physical attractiveness.

Contingencies of self-worth, academic failure, and goal pursuit.

Two studies examine the effects of failure on explicit and implicit self-esteem, affect, and self-presentation goals as a function of people's trait self-esteem and academic contingency of self-worth. Study 1 shows that participants with low self-esteem (LSE) who receive failure feedback experience lower state self-esteem, less positive affect, and less desire to be perceived as competent the more they base self-worth on academics. In contrast, participants with high self-esteem (HSE) who strongly base self-worth on academics show a slight boost in state self-esteem and desire to be perceived as competent following failure.

Appearance-based rejection sensitivity: implications for mental and physical health, affect, and motivation.

Appearance-Based Rejection Sensitivity (Appearance-RS) is a personality-processing system characterized by anxious concerns and expectations about being rejected based on one's physical attractiveness. People differ in their sensitivity to rejection based on appearance, with consequences for mental and physical health, self-esteem, affect, and feelings of belonging. Study 1 describes the development and validation of the Appearance-RS scale, its relation to personality variables and to health-related outcomes.

Interpersonal consequences of seeking self-esteem.

This study examines the interactive effects of self-esteem, contingencies of self-worth, and ego threat on supportiveness and liking. Targets high or low in self-esteem and academic contingency receive failure test feedback or no evaluative feedback. Then, targets interact with another participant who discloses a personal problem; afterward, both participants complete questionnaires assessing targets' supportiveness and liking.

Attachment styles and contingencies of self-worth.

Previous research on attachment theory has focused on mean differences in level of self-esteem among people with different attachment styles. The present study examines the associations between attachment styles and different bases of self-esteem, or contingencies of self-worth, among a sample of 795 college students. Results showed that attachment security was related to basing self-worth on family support.

The costly pursuit of self-esteem.

Researchers have recently questioned the benefits associated with having high self-esteem. The authors propose that the importance of self-esteem lies more in how people strive for it rather than whether it is high or low. They argue that in domains in which their self-worth is invested, people adopt the goal to validate their abilities and qualities, and hence their self-worth.