Eric Klopp

This study investigates the effects of an epistemological sensitization on domain-specific epistemological beliefs. An epistemological sensitization is a short-term intervention that presents a domain’s epistemological features to elicit epistemological doubt when these features are dissonant with a person’s current epistemological beliefs. In a pre–post-test design, two sensitization interventions (argumentative vs. informative) were compared with a control condition in their ability to reduce absolutist and multiplicist beliefs and foster evaluativist beliefs with a sample of psychology students. Two different measures of domain-specific epistemological beliefs were used as dependent variables. The results show that while there is evidence for a reduction in either absolutism or multiplicism, there are, at the same time, backfire effects. There was no evidence for an increase in evaluativism. However, these effects depend on the epistemological belief measure. We finally discuss possible reasons for the findings and present the study’s limitations.

The ability to competently research and critically evaluate online information is essential for students, yet many struggle to identify reliable sources. Prior research has identified links between students’ Epistemological Beliefs (EBs) and their engagement with critical thinking, as well as their ability to evaluate arguments and information. This study examines the relation of EBs, students’ self-reported critical online reasoning (COR) skills, and domain-specific Internet-specific EBs during online search. We conducted an online survey of first-year students ( N = 1939) of economics, medicine, sociology, and physics at eight German universities at the beginning of the winter term 2023/2024. Our multi-group regression analysis revealed that EBs predict COR skills and Internet-specific EBs across all the domains analyzed. Further analysis identified domain-specific differences in the interplay between the EBs and COR skills, which have far-reaching implications for further research and practice.

(1) Background: Although social cognitive theory (SCT) has been widely tested and applied in numerous interventions aimed at optimizing physical activity behavior, the complete theory has rarely been tested in its entirety. Only selected elements have been tested, and specific samples, some of them pathological, have been studied rather than the general population, for whom a lack of physical activity is a huge problem. The present study addresses these two research gaps and tests the tenability of the theoretical assumptions of SCT to explain physical activity behavior in the general population. (2) Methods: A total of 194 German adults (109 male, 85 female) with a mean age of 26.03 years (SD = 10.33) completed two validated questionnaires concerning their expressions on SCT components (t1) and their physical activity (t2). SCT was modeled using a structural equation model with latent variables. (3) Results: The results showed the very good fit of the structural model, indicating that the theoretically stated relations between the constructs in SCT seem to be corroborated, despite some paths seeming to be more important than others. (4) Conclusions: The use of SCT to explain and predict behavior can be seen as justified, even though it once again appears that some aspects (i.e., self-efficacy) are more crucial than others.

The present study showcases attitudes toward inclusive education in a new light. It contributes to the ongoing debate regarding the extent of inclusive education and highlights the importance of teachers in a process toward inclusion. Based on a framework that involves the reciprocal relation between models of disability, learning theory, and placement of persons with disabilities, attitudes of student teachers and psychology students from a German university are analyzed and mapped through the application of a network approach. This facilitates visualization and categorization based on their statistical relation. An online questionnaire consisting of established and newly developed scales was answered by (n=) 132 student teachers and (n=) 59 psychology students, resulting in n = 191 participants. The study was publicly promoted, and participants were offered study credentials. Using a Spinglass algorithm to analyze the data, we detected two distinct communities in the network: an Exclusion Community and an Inclusion Community. These are supported by further variables (Empathy, Contact, Authoritarianism, and Social Darwinism). The findings demonstrate an especially firm Exclusion Community, whereas inclusive attitudes appear to be varied.

In this study, we exploratively investigate the relation between students’ epistemological beliefs and their declarative knowledge about scientific explanations and their practical skills to explain psychological phenomena drawing on scientific theories before and after a training intervention using a person-centered approach. We theoretically derive profiles of epistemological beliefs that should be beneficial for constructing scientific explanations. We those having higher explanation skills show a profile of epistemological beliefs that is beneficial for explanations skills. Using a latent profile transition analysis and a sample with N = 108 students, we explore which profiles of epistemological beliefs, declarative knowledge about explanations, and explanation skills empirically emerge before and after an intervention that aimed and fostering students’ skills to construct scientific explanations. Before the intervention, two profiles emerged that differed in epistemological beliefs and explanation skills, but both did not in declarative knowledge about explanation. The intervention, in general, yielded a gain in declarative knowledge about explanations and explanation skills. After the intervention, again, two profiles emerged. However, these profiles did not differ in their epistemological beliefs but only in declarative knowledge about explanations and explanation skills. Thus, the intervention seems to level out the effects of epistemological beliefs. Additionally, the pattern of change in epistemological beliefs is consistent with theoretical expectations about which epistemological beliefs are beneficial for explanations. We discuss the results and their implications, as well as their limitations. Finally, we provide an outlook of using the person-oriented approach and this study’s type of intervention in the research on changing epistemological beliefs.

This paper aims at clarifying the questions regarding the effects of the scaling method on the discrepancy function of the metric measurement invariance model. We provide examples and a formal account showing that neither the choice of the scaling method in general nor the choice of a particular referent indicator affects the value of the discrepancy function. Thus, the test statistic is not affected by the scaling method, either. The results rely on an appropriate application of the scaling restrictions, which can be phrased as a simple rule: "Apply the scaling restriction in one group only!" We develop formulas to calculate the degrees of freedom of χ²-difference tests comparing metric models to the corresponding configural model. Our findings show that it is impossible to test the invariance of the estimated loading of exactly one indicator, because metric MI models aimed at doing so are actually equivalent to the configural model.

Based on different theories in media research (₃AM, catalyst model of violent crime, reinforcing spirals model), we further explore the relationship between pornography use, sexual fantasy, and behavior. We suggest that pornography use appears so persistent across time and culture because it is related to a human universal, the ability to fantasize. Consequently, pornography use seems to be an opportunity to acquire media-mediated sexual fantasies, and we believe that pornography use interacts with sexual fantasies and, to a much weaker extent, with sexual behavior. To assess our assumptions, we conducted a network analysis with a large and diverse sample of N = 1338 hetero- and bisexual participants from Germany. Analyses were done separately for men and women. Our network analysis clustered parts of the psychological processes around the interaction of sexual fantasies, pornography use, and behavior into communities of especially strong interacting items. We detected meaningful communities (orgasm-centered intercourse, BDSM) consisting of sexual fantasies and behavior, with some containing pornography. However, pornography use was not part of communities we perceive to account for mainstream/everyday sexuality. Instead, our results show that non-mainstream behavior (e.g., BDSM) is affected by pornography use. Our study highlights the interaction between sexual fantasies, sexual behavior, and (parts of) pornography use. It advocates for a more interactionist view of human sexuality and media use.

Retrospective self‐reports are commonly used to assess dietary intake. Yet, their use is criticized as it is unclear whether the underlying assumptions for valid self‐reports are met: Individuals have to consider the behavior of all days in the retention interval and weigh the behavior of all days equally. This study examines whether these assumptions for retrospective self‐reports are met and whether interindividual differences in self‐report performance are relevant regarding these assumptions. Ninety‐two participants aged 18–61 years participated in seven sequential 24‐h recalls and one retrospective 7‐day recall concerning their intake of fruit, vegetables, and eggs. A multiple linear regression approach was used to examine the relation between the daily reported dietary intake and the 7‐day recall. In the overall sample, the requirements for retrospective self‐reports were not tenable. Distinguishing good and poor self‐reporters based on a rational criterion showed that the requirements can be taken as given for good self‐reporters, whereas poor self‐reporters base their retrospective self‐reports mostly on recency effects. The underlying requirements for retrospective self‐reports appear to be met in two thirds of the sample, supporting the use of retrospective self‐reports to capture dietary behavior. Future research should investigate characteristics separating good from poor self‐reporters.

The present study investigates the combination of an epistemological sensitization and two different critical thinking instructions, i.e., the general and infusion approach, in the context of epistemological change induced by the presentation of resolvable scientific controversies. In a randomized study, we tested the hypothesis that the presentation of resolvable controversies generally reduces absolutism and multiplicism and increases evaluativism. We assume that these effects are strongest when the controversies are presented with an epistemological sensitization and the infusion approach. The results indicate an increase in absolutism when the general approach is employed without an epistemological sensitization. Combined with an epistemological sensitization, the increase in absolutism is only detected when the infusion approach is used. Concerning multiplicism, there is a reduction in all conditions, but the reduction is more effective without an epistemological sensitization. The general approach yields a larger increase in evaluativism without an epistemological sensitization, while the infusion approach fosters evaluativism only in combination with the sensitization. However, an argumentation task revealed that the desired level of an evaluativist argumentation only seems to emerge without an epistemological sensitization in combination with the infusion approach. In sum, the results show that there is no general way to reduce absolutism and multiplicism and increase evaluativism.

The present study investigates the effects of an intervention presenting resolvable, scientific controversies and an epistemological sensitization measure on the changes in psychology students’ epistemological beliefs. Drawing on the notion that the presentation of resolvable scientific controversies induces epistemological doubt and the notion that inducing epistemological doubt is eased in the presence of an epistemological sensitization, we used an epistemological beliefs intervention consisting of five resolvable controversies that were applied in a sample consisting of psychology students. We hypothesized that the intervention would reduce absolutist and multiplist epistemological beliefs while, at the same time, increasing evaluativist beliefs. We also assumed that the epistemological sensitization would enhance the effect of the intervention. For a domain-specific questionnaire, the results indicated a reduction of absolutist epistemological beliefs regardless of the presence of the epistemological sensitization. Unexpectedly, there was a backfire effect indicated by a rise of multiplist beliefs. For a domain- and topic-specific questionnaire, there was no significant reduction of absolutist and multiplist beliefs but a significant increase in evaluativist beliefs when the epistemological sensitization was present. A measure assessing argumentation skills revealed an increase in argumentation skills only when the epistemological sensitization is present. Finally, we discuss limitations, educational implications, and directions for future research.