2006 Publications
A Three-Worldview of System Justification Theory
Christina Almstrom
Oklahoma State University
System Justification Theory (SJT) coalesced from many other foundational perspectives and must be conceptualized as a unified theory, where the pieces of the puzzle are not discarded but integrated. That is to say, while the whole is more than the sum of its parts, you can not fully appreciate why this is so without understanding the parts. In this sense, a unification theory is a theory about interactions where the combination of things brings into being a new something, a Gestalten, which, like the fluidity of water, is something very different than an oxygen-hydrogen compound; and while it must be comprehended in terms of its own uniqueness, its worth is not diminished but enhanced by knowing it is in fact a compound.
Christina Almstrom
Oklahoma State University
System Justification Theory (SJT) coalesced from many other foundational perspectives and must be conceptualized as a unified theory, where the pieces of the puzzle are not discarded but integrated. That is to say, while the whole is more than the sum of its parts, you can not fully appreciate why this is so without understanding the parts. In this sense, a unification theory is a theory about interactions where the combination of things brings into being a new something, a Gestalten, which, like the fluidity of water, is something very different than an oxygen-hydrogen compound; and while it must be comprehended in terms of its own uniqueness, its worth is not diminished but enhanced by knowing it is in fact a compound.
| A Three-Worldview of System Justification Theory |
Using Evolutionary Psychology to Account for Sex Differences and Similarities in Psychological Tendencies
Robert D. Mather
Texas Tech University
Shared evolutionary selection pressures have created many similar cognitive processes and interaction strategies in both sexes. However, evolutionary psychologists focus less on sex similarities than sex differences. In a study on mate preferences, participants rated the importance of nine items for either a long-term or a short-term relationship. Sex differences consistent with evolutionary theory were found for family background and body shape. Other findings supported the notion of sex similarities—participants rated ambition, meeting parents, and faithfulness as significantly more important in the long-term situation than in the short-term situation. Discussion focuses on the need of evolutionary psychological theories to account for both similarities and differences between the sexes.
Robert D. Mather
Texas Tech University
Shared evolutionary selection pressures have created many similar cognitive processes and interaction strategies in both sexes. However, evolutionary psychologists focus less on sex similarities than sex differences. In a study on mate preferences, participants rated the importance of nine items for either a long-term or a short-term relationship. Sex differences consistent with evolutionary theory were found for family background and body shape. Other findings supported the notion of sex similarities—participants rated ambition, meeting parents, and faithfulness as significantly more important in the long-term situation than in the short-term situation. Discussion focuses on the need of evolutionary psychological theories to account for both similarities and differences between the sexes.
| Using Evolutionary Psychology to Account for Sex Differences and Similarities in Psychological Tendencies |