Exploratory analyses are an important first step in psychological research, particularly in problem-based research where various variables are often included from multiple theoretical perspectives not studied together in combination before. Notably, exploratory analyses aim to give first insights into how items and variables included in a study relate to each other. Typically, exploratory analyses involve computing bivariate correlations between items and variables and presenting them in a table. While this is suitable for relatively small data sets, such tables can easily become overwhelming when datasets contain a broad set of variables from multiple theories. We propose the Gaussian graphical model as a novel exploratory analyses tool and present a systematic roadmap to apply this model to explore relationships between items and variables in environmental psychology research. We demonstrate the use and value of the Gaussian graphical model to study relationships between a broad set of items and variables that are expected to explain the effectiveness of community energy initiatives in promoting sustainable energy behaviors.
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In a multinational project (N = 3707), we factor analyzed a commonly used self-report measure of intrasexual competition and found a three-dimensional system. We called these factors envy (i.e., wanting what others have), jealousy (i.e., protecting what one has), and competitiveness (i.e., beliefs that one is better). To better understand these factors and test whether the solution is sensible, we examined sex differences and correlations with the Dark Triad traits (i.e., psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism), life history strategies, and age. Results are discussed using an adaptationist lens.
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The revolutionary dimension of technological developments is all too often placed in the foreground, painting a picture of a future we can hardly imagine, let alone perceive. This book emphasises the evolutionary dimension of developments, and how we take small steps. How certain underlying, invariable aspects survive hype after hype, and have their own rhythm or longue durée. It is the search for where change meets inertia. Progression is a balance between the familiar and the unfamiliar. The essays bundled in this book have as a leitmotiv this attention to how progression is a matter of locating the small steps we can take and the invariables that lie beneath developments that stimulate or hinder certain big steps forward. It concentrates on the zone of proximal development, to use the term of Vygotsky. This collection of essays represents a personal view of the area where psychology, media, technology, and culture meet in the context of technological and social developments. These crossroads are addressed through topics such as digital identities, interactive media, the museum visitor in a digital world, and growing up in a digital society.
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