Psychology

Metaphors are a ubiquitous component of communication, which are either conventional (familiar) or novel phrases. Metaphors are useful for discussing abstract concepts such as emotions that can be difficult to discuss literally, and as such benefit social relationships (Nippold et al., 2017). Research on contributors to novel metaphor production is limited and previous methodologies have been flawed, however some research suggests a role for executive function (EF; e.g., Menashe et al., 2020). Additionally, figurative language comprehension and metaphor production have been demonstrated to rely on overlapping abilities (Benedek et al., 2014). The current study examined figurative language comprehension and EF in novel metaphor production in 112 young adults aged 17-29 years. Neither individual nor groupwise analyses revealed any relations between EF or figurative language comprehension and novel metaphor production. However, an association with nonverbal IQ was found, suggesting that abstract reasoning abilities may play an important role in metaphoric ability.

Author Keywords: Executive function, Figurative language comprehension, Metaphor generation, Novel metaphor

It is well known that pain can heighten sensitivity to stimuli that signal threat in most species. In rodents, exposure to predator odor, such as 2,5-dihydro-2,4,5-trimethylthiazoline (TMT), induces anxiety and alters pain sensitivity. This study explored the effect of predator odor stress on mechanical pain sensitivity in a rat model of acute inflammatory pain induced by suboptimal doses of Complete Freund's Adjuvant (CFA). Male Sprague-Dawley rats were injected intraplantarly with 50% or 25% (v/v) of CFA in the hindpaw and then exposed the next day to 5 minutes of either 10% TMT (synthetic fox urine) or a neutral odor. Both groups showed reduced paw withdrawal thresholds in the von Frey test. However, TMT-exposed rats displayed persistent mechanical hypersensitivity, which never returned to baseline (pre-CFA) levels when compared to CFA-rats exposed to the neutral odor or control rats exposed to TMT. In addition, TMT exposure after CFA induced greater anxiety-like behavior in the elevated plus maze without affecting locomotor activity in the open field or altering learned responses in a backward paired shock-tone conditioning task. Finally, systemic administration of a CCK2 antagonist before exposure to TMT partially rescued the mechanical hypersensitivity in these animals but had little effect on CFA-treated rats exposed to the neutral odor. These results suggest that naturalistic stress can lead to a long-lasting nociceptive sensitization that extends beyond the duration of the initial inflammatory injury. Our findings also highlight the importance of CCK2 signaling as a potential mediator of and therapeutic target for stress-induced pain hypersensitivity.

Author Keywords: allodynia, CCK, CFA, mechanical sensitivity, stress, TMT

Prevailing rates of sexual violence have necessitated research on sexual consentcommunication to remedy these issues. Research has found that individuals possess sophisticated knowledge of consent, and that discrepancies between people's attitudes and behaviours are resulting in sexual violence and compliance behaviours. The BDSM community–with its greater diversity and effective consent strategies–possess a model of consent that would be valuable in diminishing rates of adverse sexual outcomes. However, differences in consent between BDSM and non-BDSM individuals have not yet been quantified. 1,118 participants completed measures of consent attitudes, behaviours, and consequences. Results demonstrated negligible differences in consent parameters based on BDSM affiliation; however, BDSM role identity yielded large, significant trends. Dominant individuals were found to have less positive consent attitudes, less consent communication and more instances of sexual compliance compared to submissive or switch individuals. These results highlight the strength of cultural norms in dictating beliefs and behaviours.

Author Keywords: BDSM, Consent, Power, Sexual Scripts

The traditions of spirituality and meditation have been found to connect to psychological health in the form of increased happiness, empathy, and decreased anxiety. The present study aimed to better understand how these practices might connect to such beneficial outcomes. A sample of 363 undergraduate student participants completed a questionnaire that measured their meditation practice, mindfulness, spirituality, happiness, empathy, and anxiety. Contrary to expectations, meditators and non- meditators did not significantly differ in their psychological health outcomes. These findings have implications for how meditators and non-meditator groups should be differentiated in research. Regarding spirituality, the purpose and meaning and innerness dimensions of the construct significantly predicted happiness and decreased anxiety, while the unified interconnectedness dimension significantly predicted empathy. The transcendence dimension of spirituality did not significantly predict psychological health. This pattern of results has implications for spiritual care interventions that intend to augment psychological health.

Author Keywords: Anxiety, Empathy, Happiness, Meditation, Psychological health, Spirituality

Sexual agency is receiving more attention in sexuality research though its contribution to sexual well-being has yet to be determined. Sexual agency has been theorized as an overarching concept comprised of both internal and external components. Both feelings and behaviours in the sexual domain can be impacted by prevalent culturally prescribed sexual scripts. The present study assessed sexual assertiveness, sexual self-concept, and comfort in sexual communication (i.e., together conceptualized as sexual agency) to determine if greater levels of these indices led to more direct consent communication, more intrinsic motivations for engaging in sex, and more positive sexual evaluations. Analyses were run separately on two samples: a student and community participant pool. Results indicate that greater sexual agency predicts being more intrinsically driven to engage in sex, using more direct consent communication, and reporting more positive evaluations of one's most recent sexual encounter. Gendered analyses reveal that cismen and ciswomen have similar levels of sexual agency, and rate their encounters similarly. Having greater sexual agency was a better predictor of experiencing sexual well-being compared to gender. Implications for policy development and sexual education curriculum reform are discussed, and future research directions are suggested.

Author Keywords: Sexual Agency, Sexual Consent, Sexual Motivations, Sexual Regret, Sexual Well-being

Despite the extensive application of Baumrind's parenting style typology, some argue that it may not adequately capture the implicit warmth Chinese parents embrace. This study attempted to examine whether mind-mindedness could be a key indicator for helping children understand the benevolent intentions behind their mothers' authoritarian parenting practices. Specifically, this study investigated the variations in parenting styles, mind-mindedness, and children's behavior problems in Canada and China, the relationship among these variables, and the moderating effect of mind-mindedness on the relationship between authoritarian parenting and children's behavior problems. Participants were 83 Canadian and 136 Chinese mother-child dyads. Data on parenting styles, mind-mindedness, and problem behaviors were collected from maternal reports and lab observations. As expected, while Chinese mothers exhibited more authoritarian tendencies than Canadian mothers, their mind-mindedness buffer against the negative effect of maternal high-power strategies on children's behavior problems after controlling for maternal age and education. These results provide new perspectives on understanding Chinese parenting.

Author Keywords: culture, externalizing behaviors, internalizing behaviors, mind-mindedness, parenting styles, preschoolers

This study investigates associations between self-other differentiation (the ability to distinguish and coordinate the self and other perspective during social problem-solving) and specific ego functions (reality testing, judgement, sense of reality, object relations, and synthetic-integrative function) from a cognitive perspective in two groups of adolescents aged 12 to 18 years. One group was referred for mental health problems (clinic-referred, n = 129) and the other was a typically developing comparison group (control, n = 184). Clinic-referred adolescents scored significantly lower in both self-other differentiation and ego functions compared to nonclinic-referred adolescents, suggesting a potential relation with adolescent mental health. While self-other differentiation was generally associated with ego function, no moderating effect of clinic referral was observed. Findings suggest a link between self-other differentiation and different aspects of judgement (the ability to anticipate consequences, understand reactions, and learn from past mistakes).

Author Keywords: adolescence, ego function, interpersonal negotiation strategies, mental health problems, self-other differentiation, social problem solving

The COVID19 pandemic produced negative outcomes, but also opportunities for post-traumaticgrowth (PTG). This mixed-methods study explored experiences of distress, coping, and growth, and the role of perceived social support and trait emotional intelligence (EI) in those outcomes. Undergraduates (N = 732) completed self-report measures of negative life events, emotional distress, PTG, trait EI, coping, and perceived social support, as well as open-ended questions about any positive impacts of the pandemic. Moderate level of PTG was reported, especially in the appreciation of life domain. Distress and PTG were weakly or non-significantly correlated, indicating these outcomes are distinct and can co-exist. Perceived social support and trait EI (Interpersonal, Adaptability) predicted greater PTG, and Trait EI (Intrapersonal, Stress Management) predicted lower distress. These effects were partially mediated by coping. Five themes emerged through qualitative analysis: Social Connectedness, New Opportunities, Appreciation of Life, Helpful Strategies, and Income and Financial Supports.

Author Keywords: Coping, COVID19, Perceived Stress, Posttraumatic Growth, Social Support, Trait Emotional Intelligence

Sexual health education (SHE), specifically formal SHE, can play a key role in offering individuals the necessary information, motivation, and skills needed to maintain and improve their sexual health. This study used a survey-based approach to explore the relationship between Canadians' (N = 675) perceived quality of SHE and their feelings and behaviours related to sexual consent and communication, at two time points. This study was informed by two theoretical approaches: sexual script theory and the theory of planned behaviour. Hierarchical regressions were employed to determine how much the participants' education and demographics explained their attitudes, feelings, and behaviours. Perceived quality of SHE predicted consent feelings, and consent and communication behaviours during participants' first sexual experience, and only verbal communication during their most recent sexual experience. This research has furthered our understanding of the long-term impacts of SHE on feelings and behaviours related to sexual consent and communication.

Author Keywords: first sexual experiences, sexual communication, sexual consent, sexual health education, sexual script theory, theory of planned behaviour

Transracial adoption places the child with a family of a different ethnicity than their own. In the current study we qualitatively examine concerns associated with transracial adoption and investigate the relation between parent-child relationships and child social-emotional problems. Twenty-two adopted girls from China, 20 nonadopted Caucasian girls, and 23 nonadopted Chinese-Canadian girls, between 10-14 years, and their mothers were included. Thematic content analysis of interviews with adoptive mothers revealed that the transracial adoption experience had positive, negative, and neutral aspects. This included the parent-child relationship, the adopted child's view of their physical appearance, and the incorporation of cultural elements into the home. Quantitative analyses revealed no significant differences between the three groups on measures of parent-child relationship quality and child social-emotional functioning, which confirmed findings from the qualitative analysis. In the entire sample there were significant negative relations between quality of parent-child relationship and social-emotional functioning. These results suggest that early age of adoption may help decrease the likelihood of problematic parent-child relationships and social-emotional functioning in adopted children. It would be important to re-examine this question during adolescence when racial identity forms.

Author Keywords: Cultural Socialization, Developmental Psychology, Parent-Child Relationship, Social-Emotional Behaviour, Transracial Adoption