Social interaction is a central feature of people's life and engages a variety of cognitive resources. Thus, social interaction should facilitate general cognitive functioning. Previous studies suggest such a link, but they used special populations (e.g., elderly with cognitive impairment), measured social interaction indirectly (e.g., via marital status), and only assessed effects of extended interaction in correlational designs. Here the relation between mental functioning and direct indicators of social interaction was examined in a younger and healthier population. Study 1 using survey methodology found a positive relationship between social interaction, assessed via amount of actual social contact, and cognitive functioning in people from three age groups including younger adults. Study 2 using an experimental design found that a small amount of social interaction (10 min) can facilitate cognitive performance. The findings are discussed in the context of the benefits social relationships have for so many aspects of people's lives.

We propose that two psychological dimensions, one relevant to relationships and group life (communion, C) and the other to skill acquisition, talent, and accomplishment (agency, A), aid people in interpreting their social worlds. Moreover, our analysis demonstrates the privileged nature of the C dimension and its relative stability compared to the A dimension across contexts and cultures. In Study 1 we use a standard compilation of culturally universal practices and show that the C dimension accounts for the majority of these universals, implying that the meaning of A traits varies more across cultures than that of C traits. In Studies 2 and 3, we provide evidence for this proposal using different judgment paradigms and cultural groups. The findings indicate that there is greater similarity and consensus in how people make sense of and judge information from the C than A dimension. We discuss the findings in terms of the recurring challenges people face over time as a result of living in groups.

Two experiments were conducted to examine people's sensitivity to person information from the morality domain (relation-oriented) and the competence domain (task & achievement-oriented). In a lexical decision paradigm, the findings from Experiment 1 showed that younger adults were faster to identify person cues (trait words) from the morality than from the competence domain, especially cues that were related to immorality. Experiment 2 compared the responses of younger and older adults. Despite the slower responses of the older adults, the findings indicated that all participants were faster at identifying cues from the morality domain than from the competence domain, with no age interactions. The results from Experiment 2 also suggested that disparate findings in the literature regarding reaction times to morality/competence cues and valence (positive or negative) were a function of word frequency effects. The findings are discussed in terms of people's chronic concern with the moral aspects of others as invariant across the lifespan, given that the morality domain is where interpersonal costs and threats are most likely to be signaled. To act in the social field requires a knowledge of social facts-of persons and groups. To take our place with others we must perceive each other's existence and reach a measure of comprehension of one another's needs, emotions, and thoughts. (Asch, 1952, p. 139)

Warmth and competence are fundamental dimensions used to characterize people, animals, and even corporations. Based on observations from a preliminary survey (Study 1) on the impact of scandals on several brands, we predicted that an organization that caused a disaster would be judged more harshly if its warmth rather than competence reputation was called into question. Study 1 surveyed a nationally representative sample of American adults and results showed that not all scandals had the same consequences on the perception of warmth, competence, and on consumer attitudes. Study 2 suggested that framing the cause of a local environmental

Librarians with instructional responsibilities will base information literacy session content upon course syllabi and teaching faculty's assessments of student readiness. Often students' self-perceived competencies do not factor into the lesson planning process. The aim of this project is to collect the levels of self-confidence for a group of students who are primarily entering health care professions. This study observes students' levels of self-confidence in performing research-related activities and their corresponding ability to correctly answer content questions for those tasks. Students' self-confidence ratings are not reliable indicators for information literacy competence. The confidence levels for information literacy tasks of students entering health care professions may have clinical implications for future practice.