A Latvian version of the Revised Paranormal Belief Scale (RPBS) was completed by 229 Latvian university students. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses revealed six relatively independent factors labeled Magical Abilities, Psychokinesis, Traditional Religious Belief, Superstition, Spirit Travel, and Extraordinary Life Forms. Based on the motivational-control model, it was hypothesized that the societal stressors affecting Latvian society during the last 50 yr. have led to a reduced sense of personal control which, in turn, has resulted in increased endorsement of paranormal beliefs to re-establish a sense of control. The motivational-control hypothesis was not supported. Results indicated that (except for Traditional Religious Belief in women), the majority of these students were disbelievers in paranormal phenomena. As hypothesized, Latvian women reported significantly greater paranormal belief than men.

Previous research focusing on gender-roles and self-concept suggests a positive relationship between masculinity and self-concept. The present study explores self-perceptions of being a "tomboy," gender-role and ratings of self-confidence in later success. Higher self-ratings on the tomboy scale correlated with confidence in career success but not with confidence in passing a college course or jogging for 20 min. There was a positive correlation between masculinity scores but not femininity scores with tomboy ratings. Masculine characteristics such as independence, aggression competitiveness, leadership ability, ability to defend, stand by beliefs, mediated by compassion appear to be positively correlated with perceptions of success.

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Previous research in work-family conflict focused on current conflict and yielded contradictory findings. The present study is among the first to examine the relationships among sex, measures of sex role and of anticipated work-family conflict. Anticipated conflict was measured using a modified version of the Interrole Conflict Scale. In a sample of 256 university students, men more than women anticipated greater career conflict. Pieck's 1977 hypothesis of “asymmetrical permeability” was posited as a potential explanation for this finding. The expected relationship between sex-role orientation as measured on the Bern Sex-role Inventory and work-family conflict was not obtained.