TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. EDITORIAL - Pleading for efficient psychotherapy - Irina Holdevici

Page 2

2. High demands and uncertainty. Pilot study regarding the effects of workload and

job insecurity on work-family conflict - Cristiana Cătălina Cicei

Page 5

3. The construction and application of a questionnaire that highlights the correct and

incorrect recognition of details concerning gadget type products – pilot study ––

Tudor Caius Ciprian

Page 15

4. Brand parameters in Romanian financial-banking institutions – Alina Muscalu

Page 26

5. The concept of subconscious – a theoretical evolution synthesis - Andra Crăciun

Page 33

6. The relationship between teacher - student communication and the critical thinking

abilities of the students from a Romanian faculty of psychology – Mariana-Simona

Cocosila, Lucica Serban, Crenguta Oprea, Andreea Stan

Page 38

7. BOOK REVIEW - Short term psychotherapies by Irina Holdevici - Reviewed by

Vlad Burtaverde & Teodor Mihaila

Page 49

EDITORIAL

PLEADING FOR EFFICIENT PSYCHOTHERAPY

IRINA HOLDEVICI

The modern age is defined by a significant rise of stress factors’ influence that

act on both individuals and groups from and towards multiple directions. The fast

pace of changes in society, informational burst coming from mass-media networks,

internet and social networks, the more and more complex requests of the

professional and social environments, the tough competition in all fields of activity,

diminishing of religious and moral systems’ influence which enfold the

enhancement of fundamentalist organizations and last but not least, the effects of

economic crisis, all put pressure on all generations. Under these conditions, the

number of psychological and psychosomatic disorders is continuously rising. From

this perspective and not only, the intervention of psychological counseling and

psychotherapy specialists becomes necessary.

We’re entitled to say that nowadays the burn-out syndrome or panic attacks

are reported as being extremely present and frequent among many patients. These

are only some of the reasons why the work of psychotherapists and psychological

counselors is needed.

The costs of these interventions must be as low as possible, and the time of

period they involve should be as short as possible so they would be considered as

highly efficient.

While during the first half of the 20th century, Freudian psychoanalysis held

the supremacy of psychotherapy, being considered for a long time as the only

method worth considering in this field, things changed in the next 30-40 years. The

psychoanalytic approach is a long-term process, with high costs which uses several

criteria of accepting patients in such undertaking (age, intellectual and cultural

level, personality traits, and others).

In time, psychoanalysis started to be replaced by short-term types of

psychotherapy, out of which the most popular seems to be the Cognitive –

Behavioral approach, which benefits from integral discount through health

2

insurance companies from the United States of America and many of the European

Union Countries.

Besides Cognitive – Behavioral psychotherapy, some other short-term

psychotherapy systems were developed out of which we mention, with no intention

of making a hierarchy: short-time dynamic psychotherapy, strategic therapy,

systemic therapy, modular-contextual approach, problem-centered psychotherapy,

solution-centered psychotherapy, the approach of realistic choices or various types

of Ericksonian hypnotherapy.

As for the hypnotherapeutic techniques we may emphasize the role they play

in sustaining a more efficient therapy strategy. Making an algorithm out of a

therapy program takes several steps to be taken, and when we refer to

hypnotherapy, whether Ericksonian or classical, it is necessary to point out a few

aspects. In the psychotherapy cabinet any such intervention starts with evaluation

the client’s issues and breaking the myths related to hypnosis and relaxation

procedures. The explaining given during this process will assure good development

of applying hypnotherapeutic techniques assuring beneficial results for the client.

When we speak of psychotherapy efficiency it is necessary to emphasize that

compiling mixed interventions to contribute to treating disposition disorders,

improving communication and regaining functional equilibrium there’s the

condition of developing a modern and efficient therapy process.

In practice an intense labor is taking place and the package of used techniques

represents the tools that any psychotherapist uses, no matter the psychotherapeutic

approach. These are the arguments that today lead us to the urge of implementing

efficient therapeutic formulas that address solving, improving and, when possible,

healing the suffering that clients bring to therapy.

In other words, the psychotherapeutic process which also has a prophylactic,

repairing and self-forming character it is needed that the psychotherapy

interventions address clients with psychological, psycho-soma, non-psychotic

disorders or people interested in optimizing performance in several activity

domains (profession, sports, learning, and arts).

As for the cognitive-behavioral approaches, for example, we will consider the

fact that the psychotherapeutic process does not excessively analyze past conflicts,

while the present and the future are emphasized.

Also, the proper systematic character of this approach proves its efficiency

mostly when the client is approached in the social context of their activity.

Another way of improving the efficiency of the psychotherapy process is

using, during the cognitive-behavioral treatment, several given tasks (homework).

This system involves meeting or quantifying several activities, by practicing new

types of behavior or practicing relaxation or self-hypnosis according to the

therapist’s suggestions.

We must emphasize the fact that this type of psychotherapy does not involve

psychodiagnosis in its classical meaning, but using journals and self-evaluating

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scales of the problems and symptoms that the client brought to discussion in

therapy, and also obtaining measurable results regarding the degree of reaching the

client’s objectives.

The nosography indications of an efficient psychotherapy model we propose

include the following:

Emotional disorders: generalized anxious disorders, panic attacks, agoraphobia

with or without panic attacks, specific phobias, social phobia, moderate

depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorders.

Psycho-soma disorders: asthma, hypertension, colitis, gastritis and ulcers,

dermatologic conditions (pruritus, psoriasis), endocrinology conditions.

Alimentary disorders: anorexia, bulimic disorder, obesity.

Psychogenic sexual dysfunctions.

Motor neurosis: stuttering, nervous stereotypes.

Overcoming pain in chronic psychosomatic diseases or in the case of recovery

after accidents or physical trauma.

Couples and family relationships.

Behavioral disorders of children and teenagers.

Risk habits: smoking, abusive alcohol or drugs use, gambling.

Optimizing performance in professional, sports or learning activities.

Combating pre-competition or professional fright.

We must add that this type of psychotherapy does not apply to psychotic

patients (suffering from schizophrenia, paranoid disorder, unipolar or bipolar

disorder), people with mental deficiency, patients suffering from several types of

dementia or patients with personality disorders.

Based on a consistent clinical experience and as shown in several of our

volumes we may firmly assert that an efficient therapeutic process does not include

only a collection of randomly combined methods, but it’s most of all a rigorous

process based on a well-established therapeutic plan.

As a conclusion, we’d like to emphasize that the interventions that take place

in a psychotherapy cabinet need strong preparation and continuous professional

training of the psychotherapist. This training includes a series of well-defined steps

according to the specific of the psychotherapy approach each therapist chooses to

embrace, and also need for the psychotherapist to be a person interested and open

in understanding human psyche under each aspect.

We may say that psychotherapy efficiency represents, after all, the result of

the two creators that work together in the cabinet: the client and the

psychotherapist.

4

HIGH DEMANDS AND UNCERTAINTY. PILOT STUDY

REGARDING THE EFFECTS OF WORKLOAD AND JOB

INSECURITY ON WORK-FAMILY CONFLICT

CRISTIANA CĂTĂLINA CICEI

National School of Political and Administrative Sciences

College of Communication and Public Relations

Abstract

In the last years, organizations were faced with economic hardships that impacted

working conditions and affected employees’ well-being. Overtime work, workload, and job

insecurity can represent factors that increase the conflict between work and the family

domains. The current research is a pilot study based on a convenience sample of 98 dual-

couple employees working in private Romanian organizations (M=38.81, SD=8.81), that

were assessed using a multidimensional work-family scale (Carlson, Kackmar, & Williams,

2000), a global measure of job insecurity (Mauno, Leskinen, & Kinnunen, 2001) and the

workload subscale of Occupational Stress Scale (House, McMichael, Wells, Kaplan, &

Landerman, 1979). Results indicated that workload and job insecurity predict work-family

conflict, the strongest predictor being workload. Also, gender differences were highlighted

in experiencing WFC, women reporting higher levels of work-family conflict. However, due

to the small size and structure of the sample, the generalization of the results should be

made with cautions. Future studies might examine, on more balanced and diverse samples,

the relationship between the two stressors and work-family conflict.

Keywords: work-family conflict, workload, job insecurity, private organizations.

*Corresponding author: Cristiana Cătălina Cicei Email: catalina.cicei@gmail.com

5

1. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

According to Shirom (2003), in modern market economies, employees are

faced, among others, with increased job insecurity, pressures for working long

hours, and an ill-defined separation between work and family. The investigation of

the predictors and outcomes of work-family conflict (WFC) represents a leading

area of IO/OB research (Eby, Casper, Lockwood, Bordeaux and Brinley, 2005, p.

142), Bellavia and Frone (2005) considering that the individual, the family and the

work role environment represent sources from which the work-family predictors

can be traced from.

Comprehensive research examined gender differences in experiencing WFC,

but according to Eby et al. (2005), mixed evidences exist. For example, Geurts and

Demerouti (2003, p. 291) indicate that no or little differences are highlighted in

empirical studies, and Byron (2005, p. 186) provides evidence that very small

relationships can be identified in meta-analytic studies. Also, in their research, Hill,

Hawkins, Märtinson and Ferris (2003) indicated that fathers experienced equal

levels of work-family conflict in comparison with mothers; however differences

arose when examining family-work conflict (Hill et al., 2003). On the other side,

authors such as Carlson, Kacmar and Williams (2000) reported that women

experience higher levels FWC (time, strain and behavior-based) and WFC (only

strain-based) in comparison with men. In a Romanian study focused on the

validation and examination of the psychometric properties of Carlson et al. (2000)

multidimensional WFC scale, results highlighted that women experience higher

behavior-based work-family conflict and strain-based family-work conflict in

comparison with men, which reported higher levels of time-based work-family

conflict (Şulea, Vîrgă, & Galben, 2010).

If demographic variables can be considered weak predictors of WFC

(Kinnunen & Mauno, 2008, p. 134), in her meta-analysis, Byron (2005) indicates

that work factors have stronger associations with work-family conflict.

Work overload has consistently emerged as one of the strongest work-family

conflict predictors (Geurts & Demerouti, 2003, p. 294). Marshall and Barnett

(1993) suggest that workload represent a significant antecedent of the strains

between work and family. Workload concurs to high levels of WFC in national

(e.g. Netherlands: Bakker & Geurts, 2004), or cross-national studies (Spector et al.,

2007). In a longitudinal investigation, Ilies, Schwind, Wagner, Johnson, DeRue and

Ilgen (2007) indicated that the perception of daily workload represents a substantial

predictor of work-to-family conflict and affects.

From another angle of analysis, workload can also impact well-being through

the agency of work-family conflict (Geurts, Kompier, Roxburgh, & Houtman,

2003).

6

According to Probst (2005), research highlights that job insecurity, one major

economic stressor, is increasing in the contemporary workforce. O’Driscoll and

Brough (2010) state that during economic hardship, the number studies examining

the effects of role changes, including job insecurity, is increasing, Liu and Spector

(2005) indicating that job insecurity will be considered a more significant stressor

in countries with high unemployment rates.

In the research focused on job insecurity, one open problem is related to the

absence of a comprehensive definition and measure (Probst, 2005). However, a

general feature that can be extracted from the majority of the definitions is that,

according to Sverke and Hellgren (2002, p. 26), job insecurity is a subjective

aspect, grounded on the employees’ perceptions on their work environment. For

example, Probst (2003) defines job security as “the perceived stability and

continuance of one's job as one knows it” (p. 452), Sverke and Hellgren (2002, p.

26) considering that job insecurity regards „employees’ negative reactions to the

changes concerning their jobs”.

The relationship between job insecurity and work-family conflict begins to

draw researchers’ attention, but the number of studies is somewhat limited. For

example, Mauno and Kinnunen (2002) provide evidence that job insecurity is more

frequently encountered is the private sector, women from dual-earner couples

experiencing it stronger than their male counterparts. Also, Mauno and Kinnunen

(1998, as cited in Geurts & Demerouti, 2003, p. 294) indicate that job insecurity is

associated with both directions of WFC. Richter, Näswall, Richter and Sverke

(2010) examined job insecurity and WFC, workload partially mediating his

relationship, but only when having in view men. Jansen, Kant, Kristensen and

Nijhuis (2003) indicate that among other factors, such as shift work, work

demands, or dependent care responsibilities for sick family members, for men job

insecurity represents a risk criterion for work-family conflict.

2. OBJECTIVES AND HYPOTHESES

Starting from these theoretical considerations, the present paper investigates

the relationship between workload, job insecurity and work-family conflict, also

examining gender differences associated with experiencing WFC on a sample of

banking and retail employees from private organizations. The current study is

exploratory, focusing on employees from dual-earner couples, in occupations with

high levels of pressure, and in times of labor market uncertainty. Also, due to the

fact that according to Mauno and Kinnunen (2002), job insecurity is much

frequently experienced by employees from the private than the public sector, this

study does not analyze the differences between the two working sectors.

7

2.1. OBJECTIVES

Objective 1

The first objective of the study is to explore the relationship between

workload, job insecurity and work-family conflict on a sample of employees from

dual-earner couples working in the private sector.

Objective 2

Also, having in view the fact that according to Eby et al. (2005) mixed

evidence exists regarding the reports of WFC levels across gender, the second

objective of the study is to examine gender differences in experiencing work-

family conflict. Thus, two hypotheses were formulated:

2.2. HYPOTHESES

Hypothesis 1

Workload and job insecurity will predict the work-family conflict reported by

employees from private organizations.

Hypothesis 2

Gender differences prevail in experiencing WFC, women reporting higher

levels of work-family conflict in comparison with men.

3. METHOD

3.1. PARTICIPANTS

The research is based on a convenient non-probabilistic sample, consisting of

98 employees from three Romanian private organizations, 62 from the banking

sector and 36 from the retail sector. From the 98 participants in the research, 72

were women and 26 men, with ages ranging from 28 to 57 years (M=38.81,

SD=8.81). All were part from dual-earner couples, and 54 had at least one child.

Also, 9 participants had dependants in their care, other than children (older parents,

sick relatives). All the employees were working full-time, their organizational

tenure being of 4.5 years (SD=3.64).

3.2. INSTRUMENTS

Work-family conflict was measured using the multidimensional WFC scale of

Carlson, Kacmar and Williams (2000). The scale is composed of 18 items that

8

assess the direction of the conflict (work interference with family and family

interference with work) and the three forms of conflict (time, strain and behavior

based conflict). The scale was translated and adapted in Romanian by Şulea et al.

(2010). For the current study, the 9 items that measure the work-to-family direction

of the conflict were selected. The Cronbach alpha for this scale was .87.

Workload was measured using the workload subscale of Occupational Stress

Scale (House, McMichael, Wells, Kaplan, & Landerman, 1979). According to

Fields (2002, p. 135), the scale measures the frequency of work-related stressful

events, being composed of five subscales, namely: responsibility pressures, quality

concerns, role conflict, job vs. non-job conflict and workload. The workload

subscale is composed of three items, the internal consistency reliability being of

α=.73.

Job insecurity was assessed using a global measure composed of 4 items.

Mauno, Leskinen and Kinnunen (2001) examined, in a 3-year longitudinal study,

the stability of job insecurity and also tested the psychometric properties of four

job insecurity scales (a global, importance, probability, and a powerlessness scale).

The global scale was considered to be a reliable measure of the threat of job loss,

(Mauno et al., 2001, p. 930). Also, according to Mauno et al. (2001, p. 932) global

measures of job insecurity do not cause multiple collinearity problems when

examining other job stressors. The scale used in the study measures the threat of

job loss, being composed of 4 items (Mauno et al., 2002), low scores indicating

high job discontinuity. The scale was translated and back-translated by two experts

with English proficiency and the psychometric properties were examined. For

example, for the current sample, the Cronbach alpha for this scale was α=.75.

3.3. PROCEDURE

The current study has a cross-sectional design and is based on a convenience,

non-probabilistic, sample. The employees were informed about the topic of the

research; an online survey regarding work-family conflict was distributed to those

who agreed to participate. In average, the response rate was of 24%. The

employees were assured that the responses will be kept confidential and will be

used for research purposes only.

4. RESULTS

The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 16.0. The means and standard

deviations for each variable and the matrix correlation are presented in Table 1.

9

Table 1. Means. standard deviations and matrix correlations

for workload, job insecurity and work-family conflict

Variable Mean Std. Deviation 1 2 3

1. Workload 2.9702 .71509 -

2. Job insecurity 3.5437 .95666 .148 -

3. Work-family conflict 3.3659 .73757 .360** -.221* -

Correlations significant at *p < .05, **p < .01

As we can observe, a moderate correlation exists between workload and

work-family conflict (r=.360, p<.01), and a small negative correlation between job

insecurity and work-family conflict (r=-.221, p=.02). The negative correlation is

caused by the fact that higher scores of the global job insecurity scale reflect higher

job continuity. Thus, if the perceived workload is high, the employees experience a

stronger interference between the job and the family domains. Also, if the

employees perceive a higher job continuity, they will report smaller levels of work-

family conflict.

Multiple regression analysis was used to test if the two work stressors, namely

workload and job insecurity significantly predicted employees’ work-family

conflict. The two predictors explained 20.6% of the work-family conflict variance

(R²=.20, F(2, 95)=12.34, p<.01), with an effect size of f²=.25. Not surprisingly,

workload was the strongest WFC predictor (β=.401, p<.01), followed by job

insecurity (β=-.280, p=.003).

The second research objective consisted in examining gender differences in

experiencing work-family conflict. We hypothesized that women will report higher

levels of work-family conflict in comparison with men, due to the higher pressures

to which they are exposed. Thus, a t test for independent samples was calculated;

results indicated that women (M=3.47, SD=.73) experienced a higher work-family

conflict than men (M=3.08, SD= .71), t(96)=2.35, p=.02. Also, the effect size was

medium (d=.54). However, we must take into account the fact that, the composition

of the sample (a larger number of women, from dual-earner couples and some with

dependent responsibilities) and the peculiarities of the occupational sector (banking

and retail, in which the work demands are stronger) might influence these results.

5. CONCLUSIONS

The present study examined the relationship between workload and job

insecurity on a small sample of dual-earner employees in the Romanian private

sector. As predicted, women reported a stronger interference between work and

family domains. However, the results can be traced in the socio-demographical

traits of the sample (a large proportion of women from dual earner couples, over a

10

half having young children) and the specificity of the occupational sector. Also,

workload and job insecurity predicted work-family conflict, but the percent of

explained variance was moderate, the strongest predictor being workload.

The practical implications can be traced firstly in reducing the workload in the

banking and retail industries, enhancing job resources (Bakker & Geurts, 2004) and

introducing family-friendly arrangements, knowing that flexible work

arrangements and childcare benefits might help employees dealing with work-

family pressures (Allen, 2001). Also, organizations can reduce employees’ job

insecurity by enhancing organizational communication and constantly informing

employees on changes that might occur (Probst, 2005), or involving employees

more strongly in the decision-making processes (Probst, 2005).

However, a series of limitations must be highlighted, consisting primarily in

the small size, the structure of the sample, and the profile of the occupations. Thus,

larger and more diverse samples can be investigated in the future. Also, a

longitudinal research design is also appropriate when examining work-family

conflict (Geurts & Demerouti, 2003).

Focusing on the measurement of the constructs, job insecurity was assessed

using a global 4 item scale. Although Mauno et al. (2001) state that the current

measure can be used in studies that investigate job insecurity, Swerke and Hellgren

(2002, p. 25) suggest using multidimensional definition and measures in examining

job insecurity, Sverke, Hellgren and Näswall (2002, p. 256) enhancing the need for

developing and validating multidimensional job insecurity measures.

Furthermore, work-family conflict was measured having in view only one

direction (work interference with family), and the study did not focus on

investigating the interference between family and work or the three forms of WFC

(time, strain, and behavior-based); thus in a future study, the multidimensionality

of the constructs must be taken in consideration.

New directions of research consist in examining the differences between the

public and private sector, the moderating role of gender in the relationship between

workload and WFC, respectively job insecurity and WFC. Also, job insecurity and

work-family conflict might be examined through the mediating lens of workload

(as suggested by Richter et al., 2010). The positive effects of job resources (Lu et

al., 2009), and models testing the mediator role of work-family conflict on work-

demands and burnout (Peeters, Montgomery, Bakker & Schaufeli, 2005) should be

further examined on Romanian samples.

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14

THE CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATION OF A

QUESTIONNAIRE

THAT HIGHLIGHTS THE CORRECT AND INCORRECT

RECOGNITION OF DETAILS CONCERNING GADGET TYPE

PRODUCTS

– PILOT STUDY –

TUDOR CAIUS CIPRIAN

University of Bucharest, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences,

Department of Psychology

Abstract

The present research represents the pilot study that precedes the construction and

application of a questionnaire that highlights the correct and incorrect recognition of

details concerning gadget type products, applied on a group of youths. This is the first of

three studies conducted on the same group of students. Method: A total number of 60

students from the College of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of

Bucharest, participated in this study, which took place within the Zapan Experimental

Laboratory of the same college. Every subject was individually tested, in front of a

computer, wearing stereo headphones that provided music from an MP3 Player. This

experiment’s testing instruments were a PowerPoint presentation of eight slides which

contained the description of the products “for sale”, the questionnaire and two melodies of

different genre, chosen in accordance with a series of observations, certified by previous

experiments. we used a questionnaire with 8 questions The results showed that the correct

recognition percentage was different for each item of the questionnaire that corresponded

to a different gadget type product. For instance, only 47% of the participants responded

correctly to the 7th question, while 68% responded correctly to the first question. These

results complete the other two studies.

Keywords: consumer decisions, musical background, gadget products, slow musical

rhythm.

Autor corespondent:

Caius Ciprian Tudor Email: caiusciprian@yahoo.com

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1. INTRODUCERE TEORETICĂ

Cercetările din domeniul psihologiei sociale, materializate în studii, cercetări

şi experimente realizate pe stradă, în magazine, dar şi în contexte organizaţionale

obişnuite, arată că un individ obişnuit nu este întotdeauna în măsură să-şi

controleze conştient întreg comportamentul şi, de fapt, fără să ştie, se lasă uneori

manipulat de factori de influenţare care par atât de inofensivi, de anodini, încât

omul nu realizează că aceştia îl pot determina să facă lucruri pe care nu le-ar fi

făcut în mod spontan. De fapt, tehnicile de influenţare se definesc exact prin faptul

că niciodată nu se exercită vreo presiune fizică, morală sau economică pentru a

induce subiecţilor comportamentul dorit de către persoana sau grupul care le

foloseşte. Mai mult decât atât, unele metode pot declanşa apariţia unui

comportament aşa-zis „spontan”, chiar dacă acesta nici măcar nu a fost solicitat

explicit de nimeni (Guéguen, 2004).

Numeroase studii au relevat că, de cele mai multe ori, atunci când se produc

schimbări spontane de atitudine ele sunt, de fapt, reacţii de imitare automată a unor

comportamente stereotipe (învăţate şi acumulate de-a lungul timpului pentru

calităţile lor de eficienţă), care sunt declanşate „accidental” de un sunet, un cuvânt

sau chiar o informaţie aparent minoră. Consumul ocupă o poziţie centrală în

mecanismul vieţii sociale, întrucât faptul că oamenii cumpără sau nu cumpără ceea

ce li se oferă influenţează direct producţia de bunuri şi prestarea de servicii, iar

acestea – la rândul lor – determină nivelul de trai şi relaţiile din societate (Iliescu &

Petre, 2010). Ca atare, comportamentul consumatorului este una dintre

preocupările majore ale multor specialişti.

Într-o accepţiune extinsă, atunci când se face referire la comportamentul

consumatorului se însumează de fapt toate acele acte decizionale ce se desfăşoară

la nivel individual sau de grup, legate direct de obţinerea şi utilizarea unor bunuri

sau servicii, în vederea satisfacerii unor nevoi actuale sau viitoare (Cătoiu, 1996).

Primele teorii despre consumator şi modul său de acţiune au fost emise de

către economişti, însă natura diferită a proceselor de decizie ce compun

comportamentul consumatorului de azi, precum şi necesitatea unor analize

complete, capabile să ofere predicţii viabile, au impus rapid o abordare

interdisciplinară, în care psihologia joacă un rol important.

Pentru a putea stabili comportamentul cumpărătorului orice studiu trebuie să

afle când, de ce, cum şi unde îşi fac oamenii cumpărăturile. Studiile au arătat că

oamenii care se ataşează afectiv de o marcă au uneori „un comportament iraţional,

accentuat sentimental şi cu tendinţe explicative de disculpare, care seamănă pe

alocuri cu tendinţele obsesiv-compulsive” (Iliescu & Petre, 2010, p.107).

Conceptul de marcă de prestigiu a fost definit în multiple moduri de specialişti şi se

referă doar la acele produse care se poziţionează sus în ceea ce priveşte calitatea,

unicitatea sau preţul. Marca de lux include minim cinci valori care, de altfel, o şi

16

definesc: vizibilitatea, unicitatea, valoarea socială, valoarea hedonistă şi calitatea

instrinsecă a produsului (Vigneron & Johnson, 1999 cit in Iliescu &Petre, 2010). În

funcţie de valoarea pe care o caută atunci când cumpără un produs de calitate,

consumatorii mărcilor de prestigiu se încadrează în cinci mari tipologii:

Consumatorul lăudăros. Apreciază produsele de lux pentru vizibilitate şi

acordă mare importanţă preţului şi etichetelor, întrucât aceştia sunt indicatorii de

prestigiu care se văd cel mai bine. Obiectivul principal al acestui cumpărător este

să-i impresioneze pe ceilalţi.

Consumatorul „la modă”. Acesta este genul care nu acordă aşa de multă

importanţă preţului, cât mai ales efectului pe care produsul îl are asupra celorlalţi.

Acest consumator este interesat de valoarea socială a produsului.

Consumatorul hedonist. E genul interesat în principal de propriile gânduri şi

afecte, urmărind în primul rând obţinerea unor beneficii afective. Acest cumpărător

acordă o importanţă mai mică preţului sau efectului pe care produsul îl are asupra

celorlalţi, în schimb este interesat de starea afectivă pe care i-o inspiră produsele

cumpărate.

Consumatorul perfecţionist. Acest gen de consumator este interesat de preţ

doar pentru că acesta este un bun indicator al caracteristicilor care dau calitatea

intrinsecă a produsului. Pe un perfecţionist îl interesează mărcile de prestigiu

numai pentru că se aşteaptă ca produsele respective să fie de calitate altfel, renunţă

imediat la ele. De aceea preferă produsele autentice, cu o lungă tradiţie de

comercializare, mizând pe faptul că aceste mărci nu vor să-şi păteze renumele

vânzând produse de calitate îndoielnică.

Consumatorul snob. E genul care apreciază exclusivitatea unui produs şi va

percepe preţul mare ca fiind un semn al rarităţii. Ca să fie sigur de unicitatea

produsului pe care îl cumpără, acest gen de consumator caută mărfurile scumpe

doar pentru că ceilalţi nu şi le permit.

Promoţiile erodează loialitatea cumpărătorilor faţă de mărcile concurente şi,

dacă sunt practicate de toate companiile, ajung să erodeze loialitatea faţă de orice

produs sau marcă preferate. În tentativa de a explora natura posibilelor legături

dintre muzică şi comportamentul cumpărătorilor s-au studiat atât referinţele

teoretice şi experimentale legate de această temă, cât şi rezultatele celor două

cercetări legate de influenţa ritmului muzical asupra timpului de vizualizare a

produselor de tip gadget (Chraif, Tudor, & Aniţei, 2012) precum şi a influenţei

ritmului muzical asupra numărului de recunoaşteri corecte şi incorecte a

caracteristicilor/detaliilor produselor de tip gadget (Chraif, Tudor, & Aniţei, 2012)

destinate comertului on-line.

Considerând că tema ar putea fi relevantă mai ales sub aspectul finalităţii ei

practice, acest studiu se doreşte a fi o cercetare empirică rezultatele fiind utile

tuturor companiilor care îşi vând produsele sau serviciile exclusiv prin internet,

întrucât le oferă acestora câteva argumente serioase în favoarea deciziei de a

reconfigura website-urile pe care le folosesc, astfel încât acestea să îşi

17

îndeplinească mai eficient scopul de a vinde cât mai multe produse şi servicii prin

adăugarea muzicii în pachetul ambiental oferit clienţilor.

2. OBIECTIVE

Obiectivul cercetării de faţă este explorarea unei posibile legături între muzica

ambientală şi comportamentul clienţilor în magazinele virtuale şi a fost sugerat de

necesitatea obţinerii unor răspunsuri la cel puţin două întrebări care apar atunci

când vorbim de interacţiunea dintre muzică şi comerţul on-line:

Folosirea unui fundal sonor muzical influenţează sau nu decizia de cumpărare a

vizitatorilor unui site comercial?

Care este muzica ambientală cea mai potrivită pentru un magazin virtual?

3. METODA

3.1. PARTICIPANȚI

La acest studiu au participat în calitate de subiecţi 60 de studenţi ai Facultăţii

de Psihologie şi Ştiinţele Educaţiei din Universitatea Bucureşti. Pentru a putea

deveni voluntari, ei au semnat un formular de consimţământ, prin care au confirmat

că au fost informaţi cu privire la condiţiile de desfăşurare şi obiectivele studiului.

Toţi participanţii la această cercetare au avut, în momentul testării, vârste

cuprinse între 20 şi 25 de ani, au declarat că utilizează frecvent internetul şi atunci

când au fost întrebaţi dacă au probleme cu auzul au răspuns negativ.

Repartiţia pe sexe a subiecţilor a fost alterată de preferinţa pentru studiul

domeniului psihologiei, raportul fiind de 52 de fete / 8 băieţi (faţă de 32/28, cât ar

fi trebuit să fie dacă s-ar fi respectat proporţia între sexe la nivel naţional).

3.2. INSTRUMENTE ȘI MATERIALE FOLOSITE

Testarea s-a desfăşurat în Laboratorul Zapan al Facultăţii de Psihologie şi

Ştiinţele Educaţiei din Universitatea Bucureşti. Fiecare subiect a fost testat

individual, aşezat în faţa unui computer, iar muzica audiată a fost generată de un

MP3 Player, fiind difuzată într-o pereche de căşti stereo.

Instrumentele de testare proprii acestui experiment au fost powerpoint-ul cu

cele opt pagini în care sunt descrise produsele „de vânzare”, chestionarul şi cele

două melodii, de genuri diferite, alese în conformitate cu o serie de observaţii

certificate prin experimente anterioare, citate în cadrul capitolului de referinţe

teoretice.

18

Chestionarul a fost alcătuit din 8 întrebări, dintre care numai șapte au fost

legate direct de slide-uri, ordinea întrebărilor nefiind aceeaşi cu ordinea apariţiei

reclamelor din power-point. Scopul chestionarului a fost acela de a verifica în ce

măsură muzica a influenţat cantitatea de informaţii corecte reţinute de participanţii

la testare. Cum întrebarea cu numărul 5, „Câte produse merită să fie cumpărate?”,

nu a fost formulată în acest scop, fiind doar o modalitate directă de a testa intenţia

de cumpărare a unui potenţial client, ea nu a fost inclusă în verificarea ipotezelor

prin prelucrări statistice ale rezultatelor obţinute la chestionar.

4. REZULTATE

Rezultatele analizei statistice descriptive sunt prezentate integral în Anexa 9,

dar pentru o mai bună ilustrare a semnificaţiei lor vom proceda la prezentarea

datelor obţinute la fiecare dintre cele șapte întrebări de către toţi cei 60 de

participanţi la testare.

O primă observaţie ar fi aceea că niciunul dintre participanţii la testare nu a

obţinut șapte răspunsuri corecte, cel mai mare număr de puncte înregistrat fiind

șase, obţinut numai de patru dintre cei 60 de subiecţi. Numărul răspunsurilor bune

nu a fost însă nici zero, un singur subiect obţinând doar un punct. Repartiţia

răspunsurilor corecte la toate cele șapte întrebări este prezentată în Tabelul 1.

Tabelul 1. Total răspunsuri corecte

Intrebare Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

1 1 1.7 1.7

2 11 18.3 20.0 3 12 20.0 40.0

4 16 26.7 66.7

5 16 26.7 93.3 6 4 6.7 100.0

Total 60 100

ÎNTREBAREA 1: CÂT COSTĂ ASPIRATORUL PENTRU TASTATURĂ?

La această întrebare răspunsul corect era varianta „c”, adică 35 de lei. Peste

68% din participanţi au răspuns corect. Interesant este că numai 1,7% au considerat

că aspiratorul ar putea fi mai ieftin, adică au ales varianta „d”, cu 31 de lei, restul

subiecţilor care nu au reţinut preţul considerând a priori că acesta valorează mai

mult (au ales variantele „a = 40 lei” sau „b = 51 lei”). Tabelul 2 ilustrează aceste

date.

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Tabelul 2. Cât costă aspiratorul pentru tastatură?

ÎNTREBAREA 2: CE ACCESORIU NU ARE CRAVATA SPION ?

Răspunsul bun era varianta „d = ac de cravată” şi a fost dat de 45 dintre cei

60 de subiecţi, ceea ce reprezintă un procent de 75% răspunsuri corecte. Celelalte

răspunsuri, „a = cablu” USB, „b = baterie” şi „c = încărcător”, au avut frecvenţe

mult mai mici, conform Tabelului 6.

Tabelul 3. Ce accesoriu NU are cravata spion?

Accesoriu Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

cablu USB 5 8.3 8.3 baterie 3 5.0 13.3

incarcator 7 11.7 25.0

ac de cravata 45 75.0 100.0 Total 60 100.0

ÎNTREBAREA 3: PENTRU CÂTE MĂRIMI SUNT LANŢURILE DE

PANTOFI?

Răspunsul corect era varianta „b = două mărimi” şi a fost ales de 29 dintre

participanţi. Celelalte variante, „a = mărime universală”, „c = trei mărimi” şi „d =

la comandă”, au înregistrat scoruri destul de mari, cuprinse între aproape 12% şi

25%, după cum se poate vedea şi din Tabelul 4.

Tabelul 4. Pentru câte mărimi sunt lanţurile de pantofi?

Mărimi Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

universală 15 25.0 25.0

doua marimi 29 48.3 73.3 trei marimi 7 11.7 85.0

la comandă 9 15.0 100.0

Total 60 100.0

Preț Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

40 lei 7 11.7 11.7 51 lei 11 18.3 30.0

35 lei 41 68.3 98.3

31 lei 1 1.7 100.0 Total 60 100.0

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ÎNTREBAREA 4: CÂT COSTĂ MĂNUŞILE POLARE?

Răspunsul corect, adică varianta „a = 58 lei”, a fost ales de numai 17 dintre

cei 60 de participanţi, cel mai „popular” răspuns fiind varianta greşită „b= 48 lei”,

pentru care au optat 21 de subiecţi. Celelalte două răspunsuri, „c= 51 lei” şi „d= 41

lei” au înregistrat scoruri apropiate între ele, de 10% şi, respectiv, 12%. Valorile

din Tabelul 5.

Tabelul 5. Cât costă mănuşile polare?

Mărimi Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

58 lei 17 28.3 28.3 48 lei 21 35.0 63.3

51 lei 10 16.7 80.0

41 lei 12 20.0 100.0 Total 60 100.0

ÎNTREBAREA 5: CÂTE PRODUSE MERITĂ SĂ FIE CUMPĂRATE?

La această întrebare nu există răspuns corect, ea nefiind o întrebare de

verificare a atenţiei sau interesului cu care subiecţii au vizionat slide-urile. Cele

patru variante de răspuns erau: „a = niciunul” ; „b= două-trei”; „c= cinci-şase”; „d

= toate”, iar răspunsul preferat a fost varianta „b”, în proporţie de 75%, după cum

se vede şi în Tabelul 6.

Tabelul 6. Câte produse merită să fie cumpărate?

Nr. produse Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

niciunul 4 6.7 6.7 doua-trei 45 75.0 81.7 cinci-sase 4 6.7 88.3 toate 7 11.7 100.0

Total 60 100.0

ÎNTREBAREA 6: CÂTE RAFTURI ARE CEASUL SEIF ?

Varianta de răspuns corectă era „c = trei” şi a fost aleasă de 37 dintre cei 60

de participanţi adica de 61.7%. Restul au optat în general pentru varianta „b =

două”, doar foarte puţini alegând variantele „a = unul” sau „d = patru”. În Tabelul

7 se pot vedea toate răspunsurile.

21

Tabelul 7. Câte rafturi are ceasul seif?

Nr. rafturi Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

unu 4 6.7 6.7

doua 14 23.3 30.0

trei 37 61.7 91.7 patru 5 8.3 100.0

Total 60 100.0

ÎNTREBAREA 7: CÂT COSTĂ UMERAŞUL MULTIPLU?

La această întrebare răspunsul corect era varianta „b = 39 lei” şi a fost aleasă

de 27 dintre participanţi adica de 47%. Restul variantelor, „a = 31 lei”, „c = 41 lei”

şi „d = 49 lei”, au înregistrat frecvenţe mai mici. În Tabelul 8 se regăsesc

frecvenţele pentru fiecare răspuns.

Tabelul 8. Cât costă umeraşul multiplu?

Preț Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

31 lei 17 28.3 28.3

39 lei 27 45.0 73.3 41 lei 11 18.3 91.7

49 lei 5 8.3 100.0

Total 60 100.0

ÎNTREBAREA 8: CE CAPACITATE ARE TERMOSUL CU ROBINET ?

Varianta de răspuns „d = 6 litri” a fost aleasă de 33 dintre participanţi şi alţi

15 participanţi au optat pentru varianta „c = 5 litri”. Celelalte două variante de

răspuns, respectiv „a = 3 litri” şi „b = 4 litri” au întrunit mult mai puţine alegeri,

după cum se poate vedea şi din Tabelul 9.

Tabelul 9. Ce capacitate are termosul cu robinet?

Cantitate Frecvența Procent Procent cumulat

trei litri 7 11.7 11.7 patru litri 5 8.3 20.0

cinci litri 15 25.0 45.0

sase litri 33 55.0 100.0 Total 60 100.0

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5. CONCLUZII ŞI DIRECŢII VIITOARE

Internetul şi muzica ocupă împreună cea mai mare parte a timpului liber de

care dispune azi generaţia tânără. De altfel, parcă tocmai pentru a ilustra această

constatare, la începutul anilor ’90, când internetul abia începea să cucerească

lumea, cele mai multe site-uri erau concepute să difuzeze, simultan cu informaţiile

dorite, şi muzică ambientală. Totuşi, încet – încet numărul acestora s-a restrâns,

astfel încât astăzi un website cu muzică este extrem de rar întâlnit. Asta deşi cei

mai mulţi internauţi ascultă totuşi muzică în timp ce navighează pe net. Procedura

la modă se bazează însă pe accesarea a două sau chiar mai multe site-uri simultan,

dintre care unul este cel cu muzica preferată. Şi, pentru că fiecare poate asculta

gratis exact ce-i place, site-urile comerciale au încetat să mai folosească o muzică

proprie pentru ambianţă. Motivele „divorţului” dintre aşa-numitul e-Commerce

(comerţ on-line) şi muzică au fost multiple, dar cele mai multe au venit dinspre

latura tehnică a acestui fost „mariaj”.

Ca atare, acest studiu privind importanţa muzicii în proiectarea mediului

digital comercial este necesar, măcar sub forma unei analize preliminarii care să

puncteze validitatea unor ipoteze de lucru şi să ajute la stabilirea unor variabile

potrivite pentru cercetările viitoare.

Rezultatul certificat statistic al studiilor efectuate în urma construirii acestui

chestionar, şi anume faptul că muzica lentă îi determină pe internauţi să petreacă

mai mult timp citind reclamele, poate prin el însuşi să producă schimbări, atât în

modul de prezentare al reclamelor căt şi a detaliilor şi specificaţiilor produselor în

legatura cu preţul (Chraif, Tudor, & Anitei, 2012; 2013). Astfel, aceste două

cercetări evidenţiază faptul că muzica are, într-adevăr puterea de a determina

subiecţii să petreacă mai mult timp în magazin, iar muzica lentă pare a fi mai

eficientă în acest sens.

Totuşi, prima şi cea mai importantă observaţie ar fi că această cercetare

trebuie să fie completată folosind un număr considerabil mai mare de subiecţi, care

să includă şi persoane adulte sau de vârsta a treia, precum şi un chestionar a cărui

validitate de construct şi de criteriu să fie indubitabile, pentru a obţine mai multe

rezultate statistic semnificative, la fiecare dintre ipotezele de lucru.

Faptul că muzica ambientală este benefică magazinelor virtuale, în sensul că îi

determină pe clienţi să petreacă mai mult timp vizionând reclamele, este un prim

pas pozitiv, dar sunt necesare studii suplimentare pentru stabilirea genurilor de

muzică ce influenţează pozitiv clienţii, astfel încât arhitecţii site-urilor să ştie exact

ce muzică trebuie să folosească. Acest aspect ar putea fi testat separat, pentru a se

putea folosi mai multe melodii şi mai multe genuri muzicale, astfel încât rezultatele

selecţiei să fie statistic reprezentative prin toate metodele statistice şi pentru toţi

utilizatorii de internet, nu doar pentru tinerii studenţi.

23

Experimentele desfăşurate în magazine reale au arătat că toţi clienţii care

petrec mai mult timp în magazin cumpără mai multe produse iar muzica lentă

difuzată la un volum redus îi determină pe cei mai mulţi clienţi să stea mai mult

timp în magazin (Milliman, 1982; 1986). Şi în cazul concret analizat de acest

studiu, cel al comerţului on-line, s-au obţinut rezultate similare, ceea ce arată că

experimentul poate fi considerat drept o confirmare pentru studiile întreprinse în

mediul real.

Şi în ceea ce priveşte timpul de testare se pot face unele îmbunătăţiri. Acest

studiu a presupus vizionarea unui powerpoint care cuprindea numai 8 slide-uri cu

texte promoţionale şi fotografii ale unor produse reale. Cum textele magazinului

on-line erau reduse, timpul total de vizionare a slide-urilor a fost şi el redus. Astfel,

studenţii testaţi au petrecut în total între 57 şi 283 de secunde în faţa computerului,

ceea ce este totuşi destul de puţin, adică sub cinci minute. Pentru o mai mare

relevanţă a influenţei fondului muzical timpul total de vizionare ar trebui să ajungă

la 10-12 minute, iar acest lucru se poate obţine prin mărirea numărului de slide-uri

şi crearea unor texte promoţionale echilibrat de lungi şi de complicate pentru

fiecare slide.

Un chestionar cu mai mulţi itemi, testat în prelalabil pe un grup separat de

cercetare, pentru a i se verifica validitatea de construct şi de criteriu, care să

cuprindă mai mulţi itemi pentru fiecare slide ar fi oferit, probabil, rezultate

semnificative şi din punct de vedere statistic.

Un alt neajuns al acestui test a fost poate numărul mic de produse prezentate

în slide-uri, precum şi lungimea neuniformă a textelor promoţionale, care a

influenţat timpul de analiză al fiecărui produs într-un mod care nu a putut fi

cuantificat sau prelucrat statistic. Pentru o eventuală retestare viitoare slide-urile

din powerpoint ar trebui să fie nu doar mai multe, ci şi mai echilibrat alcătuite,

astfel încât textele să cuprindă pentru fiecare produs măcar trei-patru informaţii cu

grade de dificultate diferite (legate de caracteristicile tehnice, aspect general, gamă

de culori sau preţ), astfel încât comparaţiile ulterioare între răspunsurile obţinute la

chestionar să fie semnificative şi din punct de vedere statistic.

Received at: 05.01. 2012, Accepted for publication on: 09.02.2012

6. REFERECES

Cătoiu, I. (1997). Comportamentul consumatorului. Bucureşti: Editura Economică.

Chraif, M., Tudor, C.C. & Anitei, M. (2012). Diferenţe de gen și ritm muzical în studiul

timpului acordat pentru procesarea vizuală a prezentării unor produse comerciale de tip

„gadget”. In Proceeding of the sixth International Conference, Titu Maiorescu University

Chraif, M., Tudor, C.C. & Anitei, M. (in press). Musical rhythms influence in

consumer buyer behavior of retail gadget products. Procedia Behavioral Sciences.

24

Guéguen, N. (2004). Psychologie de la manipulation et de la soumission. Paris:Editura

Dunod.

Iliescu, D., & Petre, D. (2010). Psihologia reclamei şi a consumatorului. Bucureşti:

Editura Comunicare.ro.

Milliman, R. E. (1982). Using Background Music to Affect the Behavior of

Supermarket Shoppers. Journal of Marketing. http://www.jstor.org/pss/1251706, accesat la

4.03.2012.

Milliman, R. E. (1986). The Influence of Background on the Behaviour of Restaurant

Patrons. Journal of marketing. http://www.jstor.org/pss/2489234, accesat la 4.03.2012.

Mehrabian, A., & Russell, J. (1974). An Approach to environmental psychology.

Cambridge: MIT Press.

ANEXĂ: Chestionar Consumator produse tip gadget on-line (CPTG, 2012)

Item Variante de răspuns

1. Cât costă aspiratorul pentru tastatură? a.40 lei; b. 51 lei; c. 35 lei; d.31 lei.

2. Ce accesoriu NU are cravata spion? a.cablu USB; b. baterie; c. încărcător; d. ac de cravată.

3. Pentru câte mărimi sunt lanţurile de

pantofi?

a.mărime universală; b. două mărimi; c. trei mărimi; d. la

comandă

4. Cât costă mănuşile polare? a.58 lei; b. 48 lei; c. 51 lei; d. 41 lei.

5. Câte produse merită să fie cumpărate? a.niciunul; b. două-trei; c. cinci-şase; d. toate.

6. Câte rafturi are ceasul seif ? a.unul; b. două; c. trei; d. patru.

7. Cât costă umeraşul multiplu? a.31 lei; b. 39 lei; c. 41 lei; d. 49 lei

8. Ce capacitate are termosul cu robinet? a.3 litri; b. 4 litri; c. 5 litri; d. 6 litri.

REZUMAT

Obiectivul cercetării de faţă este explorarea unei posibile legături între muzica ambientală şi comportamentul clienţilor în magazinele virtuale şi a fost sugerat de necesitatea obţinerii unor răspunsuri la cel

puţin două întrebări care apar atunci când vorbim de interacţiunea dintre muzică şi comerţul on-line. O prima

întrebare urmărește influența pe care folosirea unui fundal sonor muzical o are asupra deciziei de cumpărare a vizitatorilor unui site comercial. O altă întrebare se referă la este muzica ambientală cea mai potrivită pentru un

magazin virtual. La acest studiu au participat în calitate de subiecţi 60 de studenţi ai Facultăţii de Psihologie şi

Ştiinţele Educaţiei din Universitatea Bucureşti. Testarea s-a desfăşurat în Laboratorul Zapan al Facultăţii de Psihologie şi Ştiinţele Educaţiei.. Fiecare subiect a fost testat individual, aşezat în faţa unui computer, iar muzica

audiată a fost generată de un MP3 Player, fiind difuzată într-o pereche de căşti stereo. A fost folosit un chestionar

alcătuit din 8 întrebări, dintre care numai șapte au fost legate direct de slide-uri, ordinea întrebărilor nefiind aceeaşi cu ordinea apariţiei reclamelor din power-point. Scopul chestionarului a fost acela de a verifica în ce măsură

muzica a influenţat cantitatea de informaţii corecte reţinute de participanţii la testare. Rezultatele au arătat un

procent de recunoaștere corectă diferit pentru fiecare item care corespundea unui produs diferit. De exemplu,

numai 47% dintre respondenți au răspuns corect la întrebarea a șaptea, în timp ce 68% au răspuns corect la prima

întrebare.

25

BRAND PARAMETERS IN ROMANIAN FINANCIAL-BANKING

INSTITUTIONS

ALINA MUSCALU University of Bucharest, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences,

Department of Doctoral School

Abstract

”Brand is that product, service, organization, person who transmits a feeling of

contentment and satisfaction for which the consumer does not find substitute" and could "

appeal to emotional resorts which are outlined in everyone's mind, influencing positive or

negative any decision at any level " (Cărămidă, 2010, p.58). According to Landor Lexicon,

the brand is "the sum of all tangible and intangible characteristics that can individualize an

offer and make it unique" (Anholt, 2005, p.116).

"The brand is developed as an answer to the identity of the needs of

consumers”(Winram, 1987, p.23), offering "a unique set of values and attributes (tangible

and intangible) that consumers could assimilate and who could arouse interest” (Murphy,

1987, p.3), ”creating significance and identification” (de Mooij și Hofstede, 2002, p. 64).

The brand is seen as ” a set of rational and emotional associations ... is a symbol, an

abstract structure able to generate lifestyles, consumer habits and communities who share

the same ideas. Brand is a social aggregator and is completely different than the product"

(Barbu, 2011, p.42). The brand is "an important asset, a significant competitive advantage

for which must be adopted that strategy that ensure development and valorization more

efficient" (Frone, 1999, p.18).

Therefore, we made a research whose main objective was aimed ” highlighting the

main characteristics of the institutional brand reported to the financial and banking

institutions for identifying market risks” whose hypothesis was ” is presumed that due to

specific work activity in financial - banking institutions will record specific notes of the

objectivity of institutional brand in relation to staff characteristics”.

The research was conducted on a total of 221 professionals working in finance. In

this research we have used a range of research methods: documentation method,

investigations method using Brand Questionnaire - built by me in 2012 and which is based

on an analysis model by identifying two poles: the institution - as a legal entity with

cultural and social values and the employee - with educational baggage, with regional

specificity of ethical and social values, systemic observation method and statistical

processing methods.

The research highlighted a number of specific elements regarding institutional brand

reflected in the financial - banking institutions in Romania.

Keywords: institutional brand, personal brand, organizational psychology.

26

1. INTRODUCTION

Brand issues, intensively studied, exceeded the boundaries of traditional

marketing, penetrating social and human sciences, with an emphasis on resource

quality involved in social valuation. Brand can be defined as a contract, an

engagement, a promise, a commitment, which is characterized by quality,

reliability, differentiation and satisfaction, and by raised values, culture and

personality. Brand is what one wants to convey, what is transmitted , what is

projected in the minds of others. Brand becomes a mark, a symbol, a "reflection".

S. Anholt defines brand in three ways: refers to all modern methods of sale

(popular method), refers to the way in which the identity of a company, product or

service is defined and recognized (easy method), refers primarily to people,

purpose and reputation, and never to money (advanced method) (2005, p.116).

"A brand is developed in response to consumer demand identification"

(Winram 1987, p.23), providing "a unique set of values and attributes (tangible and

intangible) that consumers assimilate and arouse interest" (Murphy, 1987, p.3),

"creating meaning and identity" (by Mooij și Hofstede, 2002, p. 64

S. Anholt defines brand in three ways: refers to all modern methods of sale

(popular method), refers to the way in which the identity of a company, product or

service is defined and recognized (easy method), refers primarily to people,

purpose and reputation, and never to money (advanced method) (2005, p.116).

The road to a successful brand requires a unique discernment of offered

values , followed by vision, patience and perseverance. Combining these features

with the method of execution, large organizations can exit mediocrity. The way

from obscurity to providing reliable products and services follows a disciplined

process The Branding Triad or the ABC of Branding: Attribute (attributes),

behavior (Behavior) and circumstances (Circumstances) (Nissim, 2007).

"There is a double view on brand: brand reality (as it is perceived by

consumers, as it is seen in people's minds) and brand vision (as the company wants

to be perceived). Of course in employer branding this duality is a touchstone

because employees are faced every day with this difference.

To what has been said before, the imperative past of the company is added.

Brands are changing because the world is changing. But at the same time a brand

has a history. In this case, although difficult, it is important to be creative and keep

the continuity of the brand, integrating coherently the past and the future.

"(Ionescu, 2008, p 53).

27

2. OBJECTIVE AND HYPOTHESIS

2.1. OBJECTIVE

Given the theoretical considerations presented in a summative manner, I

thought to elaborate a work whose general objective is aimed at "highlighting the

main features of the institutional brand reported to financial and banking

institutions so as to identify market risks".

3. METHOD

3.1. PARTICIPANTS

Analyzing specialty literature and considering the overall objective of this

research we formulated the following hypothesis "it is presumed due to specific

work activities of financial institutions - banks will record specific notes of

institutional brand objectification in relation to staff characteristics".

In order to achieve the objectives of this work, research group consisted of

221 subjects working in financial institutions - banks in Romania. Of these, 162

women and 59 men, with a representation of 73.3%% and 26.7% (see Figure 1).

Figura nr.1. – Bach variation of subjects in relation to sex

We attempted to spread the sample as homogeneous both in terms of age and

of experience (both in terms of total experience in employment and in terms of

experience in current job). We selected subjects aged between 21 and 47 years

(with an average of 28.5204 years, median 27 years) with professional experience

ranging from 6 months to 28 years (with an average of 6.9630 years, a median of

28

5.3333 years) and professional experience to current job from 6 months to 11 years

(with an average of 2.8005 years, median 3 years).

3.2. INSTRUMENTS

The following research methods were used: documentation of actual

investigation, for which Brand questionnaire was applied- proposes an analysis

model by identifying two poles: the institution - as a legal entity with cultural

values - social worker - with education baggage available, with specific regional

ethical and social values (Cronbach Alpha internal consistency coefficient is .838

and test-retest stability coefficient is .773), systemic observation method and

statistical processing methods.

4. RESULTS

Brand factor analysis was performed globally by two factors identified by us,

namely institutional generic brand coefficient and institutional brand coefficient

related to employee.

We found that between the two brand coefficients investigated there are

differentiating notes. First, overall value between the two investigated coefficients

is smaller on the institutional brand coefficient level related to employee than the

generic institutional brand ratio.

This situation primarily means that institutional brand related to employee, is

perceived by the employee in relation to the actual time that has past since

activation within the organization on one hand, and on the other hand, it is a

sublimation of institutional brand components related to the employee, meaning

that the employee feels generic institutional brand as a normal state which

distinguishes it from other professionals categories. All these factors combined to

the leveling level make different variations of interpretation reported to parameters.

We also found that institutional generic brand leveling level is felt in a

significant percentage. This means that generic brand manifesto in the market to

customers (beneficiaries of services and products offered by the bank) exerts

effects in the sense that before being hired by the banking financial organization,

the employee is regarded as a potential customer.

As such, brand perception exists essentially in terms of the benefits you get as

a customer. Beyond that, institutional generic brand perception is enhanced by

advertising campaigns, statistics and quotations of financial banking organisms in

relation to performance criteria (profit, turnover). Under these conditions the

elements that shape a financial institution employee's job description are less

relevant than performance (constant yield) that all employees currently have.

29

Brand coefficients variation in the batch of subjects investigated is shown in

Figure 2.

0%5%

10%15%20%25%30%35%40%45%

Nivelul foarte

scăzut

Nivelul scăzut

Nivelul mediu

Nivelul ridicat

Nivelul foarte ridicat

Fre

cve

nța

pe

r n

ivel

Coeficienții de brand instituțional per nivel nivelar

Coeficientul de brand instituțional generic

Coeficientulde brandinstituționalraportat laangajat

Figura nr.2. Brand distribution coefficients per level of intensity

In contrast, the coefficient of institutional brand reported to employee,

presented in a little percentage on higher levels, reveals the differentiation of

benefits obtained by the employee through constant fine discrimination, through

assessment strategies specific to internal parameters outlining organizational

effectiveness. These internal parameters have a greater flexibility and dynamics in

relation to a number of conditions / dominants of professional field and lead to a

less specific internalization of the meaning assigned to the brand.

For this reason, the coefficient of institutional brand related to employee is

more the expression of reporting institutional brand generic to current, constant /

professional needs; the size of services effects offered to employee by management

that does not have built-in job specific tasks. In other words, we are talking about

the internalization of institutional generic brand significance in relation to different

levels of tasks and rules of direct relevance in the market, according to the global

context of manifestation of the professional field.

A more subtle analysis of the values obtained from the coefficients brand was

made in relation to age, total work experience, years in current organization, sex

and occupied positions.

In subjects aged 18-40 years working in banking and financial institutions

there is a confusion between institutional brand and organization of origin

typology, and information dynamic, and especially the needs of the group, which

means that in this case the generic institutional brand coefficient works as a social

label. This label works bilateral allowing on one hand to identify belonging

members, and on the other hand their differentiation within the professional field. \

As the maturation process of emotional and developmental functions was

achieved, the brand experienced a greater impact (share of meaning towards higher

30

levels), a situation which means interest accumulating in all tasks and effort to

achieve them by each employee.

The situation can be explained by the fact that with age, criteria behind some

actions, skills are no longer valued as relevant to current activity in the workplace

and institutional membership is objectified through a series of stereotypes modeled

socio-culturally (a constant approach, a stereotype which solves a specific request

from employees accessing the organizational hierarchy), all of which not being a

challenge except to the extent in which coexistence rules change in the banking and

financial organization.

It (the banking system) is a system in which change regarding organizational

behavior is reduced, the rules are very stable, which leads to institutional brand per

employee to be felt at the lower levels.

Institutional brand generic coefficient dose not behave according to the total

period of employment a long-term significance given to generic brand, but also

requires openness to change, how the subject / subjects react.

Brand coefficient related to the employee manifests differently in relation to

the period of time spent in the current organization, so for those with less than 1

year old, it has low and very low significance in that size really does not realize the

implications of membership to certain banking institution and limited to specific

performance action-relational dictated by the job (duties described in the job

description). Highest relevance of institutional brand coefficient reported to

employees was record in subjects working for at least 3-5 years in the current

organization.

As the current job experience increases (especially when it comes to those

working in the same organization for more than 10 years) we see closeness in

meaning and value between two factors (institutional brand and generic

institutional brand reported to employee), so we can speak of a fundamental

institutional brand.

Institutional generic brand is experienced more intensely by women than men,

which is explained by the fact that women live the formal group membership

experience more intensely and internalize more dynamic the professional and

occupational status membership than men.

Related to the institutional brand reported to each employee it is observed that

women feel more intense, internalizing better the operating organizations policies,

resulting conflicts from the interaction of tasks listed in the job description and

internal rules on one hand, and on the other hand the organization hierarchy.

5. CONCLUSIONS

These findings allow us to state that the research objective has been achieved

and the hypothesis confirmed.

31

6. REFERENCES

Anholt, S. (2005). Some important distinctions in place branding. Place Branding.

vol.1., no.2, Henry Steward Publications, p.116- 121.

Barbu, O. (2011). Publicitatea ca formă a comunicării. Arad: Editura Concordia.

Cărămidă, C. (2009). Brand & Branding. Volumul I - Identitate vizuală. Bucureşti:

Editura Brandmark.

De Mooij, M.; Hofstede, G. (2002). Convergence and divergence in consumer

behavior: implications for international retailing. Journal of Retailing, No.78.p.61-69.

Frone, F.D. (1999). Dicţionar de marketing. Bucureşti: Editura Oscar Print.

Ionescu, M.A. (2008). Brandingul de angajator. Iaşi: Editura Institutul European.

Murphy, J. (1987). What is Branding?. XXX Branding: a Key Marketing Tool, New

York, McGraw – Hill Book Company.

Winram, S. (1984). The opportunity for world brands.International Journal for

Advertising, 3(1), p.17-26.

7. SUMMARY

”Brand is that product, service, organization, person who transmits a feeling of contentment and satisfaction for

which the consumer does not find substitute" and could " appeal to emotional resorts which are outlined in everyone's mind, influencing positive or negative any decision at any level " (Cărămidă, 2010, p.58). According to

Landor Lexicon, the brand is "the sum of all tangible and intangible characteristics that can individualize an offer

and make it unique" (Anholt, 2005, p.116). "The brand is developed as an answer to the identify of the needs of consumers”(Winram, 1987, p.23), offering "a

unique set of values and attributes (tangible and intangible) that consumers could assimilate and who could arouse

interest” (Murphy, 1987, p.3), ”creating significance and identification” (de Mooij și Hofstede, 2002, p. 64). The brand is seen as ” a set of rational and emotional associations ... is a symbol, an abstract structure able to generate

lifestyles, consumer habits and communities who share the same ideas. Brand is a social aggregator and is

completely different than the product" (Barbu, 2011, p.42). The brand is "an important asset, a significant competitive advantage for which must be adopted that strategy that ensure development and valorisation more

efficient" (Frone, 1999, p.18).

Therefore, we made a research whose main objective was aimed ” highlighting the main characteristics of the institutional brand reported to the financial and banking institutions for identifying market risks” whose hypothesis

was ” is presumed that due to specific work activity in financial - banking institutions will record specific notes of the objectivity of institutional brand in relation to staff characteristics”.

The research was conducted on a total of 221 professionals working in finance. In this research we have used a

range of research methods: documentation method, investigations method using Brand Questionnaire - built by me in 2012 and which is based on an analysis model by identifying two poles: the institution - as a legal entity with

cultural and social values and the employee - with educational baggage, with regional specificity of ethical and

social values, systemic observation method and statistical processing methods. The research highlighted a number of specific elements regarding institutional brand reflected in the financial -

banking institutions in Romania.

32

THE CONCEPT OF SUBCONSCIOUS – A THEORETICAL

EVOLUTION SYNTHESIS

ANDRA CRĂCIUN

University of Bucharest, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences,

Department of Psychology

Abstract

The psyche is known to have a complex and contradictious structure. The process that

leads to delimiting these defining notes of the psyche consists of reporting it to an external

criterion to emphasize its own identity. Wallon was the one who, in 1924, contributed to

launching a new conception on the subconscious. He tried to discover the representation

ways of the subconscious states, because accepting the primary idea, according to which

the reproduce conscious states leads to idea of considering it the only expression of the

psyche. Freud defined the subconscious as a descriptive form of the unconscious. The

subconscious took two main steps to be defined and to be discovered in its every dimension.

Thus, in the first step, it was considered to be a form of the unconscious, a simple latent

container of what once was conscious and might be once “activated”. The subconscious,

controversy instance of our psyche, is remarked through multiple aspects, from its

intermediary position between the unconscious and consciousness to its own qualities and

derived functions of this position. In time the conclusion was reached that these

conceptions could be inconsistent, so the subconscious was given a new status, of psyche

state that disposes of its own processes and even creative qualities.

Keywords: Subconscious, psychoanalysis, psychological states, psyche state.

1. THEORETHICAL FRAMEWORK

The psyche is known to have a complex and contradictious structure. The

process that leads to delimiting these defining notes of the psyche consists of

reporting it to an external criterion to emphasise its own identity. Thus, the psyche

can the characterised as “an expression of the relational life, phenomena which is

inseparably connected to material structures, a subjective replication of the

33

objective world, a product of conditionals and social, historical and cultural

factors” (Zlate, 2007).

The psyche manifests in various ways. It has its moments of clear, lucid

activity, and other when it manifests in an obscure way. The source of these

manifestations is found in the three stated of our psyche structure – conscious,

subconscious and unconscious.

The conscious is the first state of subjective and active integration of all forms

of the psyche life which allows the individual’s report to the environment, the

subconscious keeps a memory of all the actions that once had been conscious but in

present lack the usual control. The unconscious level represents a basic level,

source and influence for the psyche.

The subconscious can also be met under other names such as pre-

consciousness or post-consciousness. In the “Grand dictionary of psychology” it is

defined as “an assembly of psychological states that the subject is not aware about

the influence of his behaviour”. Even if some authors don’t agree and this notion or

claim that the subconscious usually tends to merge with the unconscious, it is kept,

under a definition or another and is commonly used in psychology. Because the

subconscious presents such a customised content and also specific mechanisms and

goals, its identity cannot be ignored or reduced to being equalled to other

psychological states.

Understanding the concept of subconscious took several steps itself. In the

first phase, most of the authors accepted the subconscious as a psyche level that

contains actions that once were conscious but at the present time they lack the

conscious control. Here, all the memories, motor stereotypes, abilities,

compulsions, stereotypes ideas are kept, with other words, all the actions that once

were consumed and in the present are steady, having the possibility to become

active once again, passing to a conscious level.

Freud (2003) used the term of “subconscious” in his first writings but then he

abandoned it to avoid confusion. “When someone speaks about the subconscious, I

can’t tell if they understand it as a topic: something that we find deep in the soul

under the consciousness – or in its quantity meaning: a different consciousness,

sort to say, an underground one (Lapache &Pontalis, 1994).

He explains the subconscious as any other phenomena that can switch the

unconscious state to the conscious one. Also, any process which is usually

conscious, no matter how complicated it might be, can remain subconscious.

Separating these two states of the psyche is cannot be done in a permanent matter –

preconscious elements become conscious without us making an effort, and the

unconscious can become conscious through a process of overcoming resistances.

At the same time, the preconscious content can sometimes become unreachable,

blocked by resistances (like temporary forgetfulness), or in the case of humour,

when such a thought can be commuted to the unconscious. These transformations

34

can take place spontaneously or with man’s contribution. At that time it was

admitted that the subconscious was closer as a state to the conscious.

Also, Freud (2004) defined the subconscious as a descriptive form of the

unconscious, saving the former one to describe the meaning of slumping, a

dynamic structure. He sustained the idea that using the three terms to describe the

psyche states don’t rise any trouble unless we take in account the idea that

descriptively there are two types of unconscious. In several processes he did not

considered to be important any distinction between the unconscious and

subconscious while in other cases this distinction became essential. Thus, admitting

that though a double sense of the unconscious did not bring any benefit, it cannot

be ignored.

The idea of separating pre-conscious thoughts from the subconscious once

had been abandoned from the classifications domain, the result being an image of

functional and dynamic relations of the psychological activity. Thus it has been

discovered that an active preconscious level that easily passed to consciousness and

an active unconscious, separated from it.

The difference between a presentation or an unconscious idea and a

preconscious one consists of reporting the first one to an unknown material, while

the second one was associated to a verbal representation. This is the first attempt to

characterise the first two hypotheses in a different matter than by reporting them to

consciousness. Another aspect could have become subconscious by associating it

to verbal corresponding representations. These represent remains from the

memory, old perceptions that might become conscious – thus, nothing can become

conscious unless it once passed the level of concrete perception.

Henri Wallon was the one who, in 1924, contributed to launching a new

conception on the subconscious. He tried to discover the representation ways of the

subconscious states, because accepting the primary idea, according to which the

reproduce conscious states leads to idea of considering it the only expression of the

psyche. Wallon considered this conception to be superficial. He succeeded in

separating the subconscious both from the unconscious and the conscious levels by

offering it a self-standing position. Thus, the subconscious states modify, being

connected to relations of cause-effect and influencing each other. Wallon defined

the subconscious as “latent brain work” under “the apparent simplicity of

perception” (1982).

The characteristics of the subconscious result from its position as a

connection between the conscious and subconscious. Its latency and potentiality

assume keeping the content in a latent state until the moment they will be

reactivated and used by the consciousness. The subconscious can also be

characterised by its co-existence with the consciousness – most of the time, it

represents an alternative expression, more condense, as the two states permanently

coexist. Also, the preconscious can be seen as a “servant” of the consciousness.

35

Their content passing from a level to another are filtered and mediated by the

subconscious – they don’t pass directly to it (Zlate, 2007).

Paul Popescu Neveanu (1976) resumed these features discussing the

“proximity of the subconscious to the consciousness” and their compatibility.

There are many similarities between them than between the conscious-unconscious

pair. Thus, the latter state is viewed as an information and operation contained that

sometimes constitutes the source of the conscious facts. This idea is met in the

work of other authors too: “The subconscious contains what is out of the

attention’s focus, but can affect the consciousness”. To avoid returning to the first

step of defining, that claimed that the preconscious is a simple container, it was

proven that is benefits from its own mechanisms. Aside from conservation it is

capable of independent processing, restricting and creation. The obtained material

is not identical to those initially introduced in the subconscious. Several factors,

such as time, emotions, distraction lead to this material modification of the

subconscious, because of the new relations it involves in. A creative function of the

subconscious is also mentioned: “The dynamics of the subconscious life is

spontaneously organised based on a schema of data spread through the psyche,

mixing them into a new structure (Biberi, 1970, p. 58).

Over time, two directions were faced when approaching the psychological

states. Whether accepting Freud’s conception of the three main levels which we’ve

already mentioned or trying to figure out if that’s really how we should view the

structure of our minds (Freud, 2003, 2004). Believing only in the conscious level

has its consequences – it’s like stating that we don’t evolve at all since the first

months of our lives, when our mind only functions based on concrete information

we come in contact with. The idea is sustained that the subconscious starts to

function when the baby starts to feel the need of naming objects. It seems that this

state finds its foundation in the reaction of people around the baby; he tries to

correctly name each object because he know that this way he will trigger positive

and encouraging reactions. Therefore, the subconscious is a container of both

concreter information and its meaning. Another important function is that the

subconscious develops defence mechanisms, as all of the psychological harm is

produced on a conscious level.

The subconscious, controversy instance of our psyche, is remarked through

multiple aspects, from its intermediary position between the unconscious and

consciousness to its own qualities and derived functions of this position. Despite

the discussions generated through time, its importance cannot be neglected.

36

2. REFERECES

Biberi, I. (1970). Arta de a trǎi. Bucureşti: Editura Enciclopedicǎ Românǎ

Freud, S. (2005). Compendiu de psihanaliză. Bucureşti: Editura Trei.

Freud, S. (2004). Psihologia inconştientului. Bucureşti: Editura Trei.

Laplanche, J., & Pontalis, J.-B. (1994). Vocabularul psihanalizei. Bucureşti: Editura

Humanitas.

Neveanu, P.-P. (1976). Curs de psihologie generală. Bucureşti: Tipografia Universitǎţii

Bucureşti.

Wallon, H. (1982). La Vie mentale. Paris : Éd. Sociales.

Zlate, M. (2007). Introducere în psihologie. Iaşi: Editura Polirom.

3. REZUMAT

Psihicul este cunoscut ca având o structură complexă și contradictorie. Procesul care conduce spre

delimitarea acesor note definitorii ale psihicului constă în raportarea sa la criterii externe pentru a-i evidenția

identitatea. Henri Wallon este cel care a lansat noul concept de subconștient în anul 1924. Acesta a încercat să descopere modalitățile de reprezentare ale stărilor subconștiente pentru că acceptarea ideii primare conform căreia

stările de conștiință reproduce conduce spre ideea conisderării lor ca singura formă de existență a psihicului. Sigmund Freud definea subconștientul ca fiind o formă descriptivă a inconștientului. Subconștientul a făcut doi

pași importanți spre definirea sa și spre identificarea sa în fiecare dimensiune. Astfel, în prima etapă, a fost

considerat o formă a inconștientului, un container latent a ceea ce a fost cândva conștient și care ar putea fi activat la un moment dat. Subconștientul, instant controversată a psihicului, se remarcă prin multiple aspect, de la poziția

sa intermediară înte inconștient și conștient, până la calitățile sale și funcțiile derivate din această poziție. Pe

parcursul timpului, s-a ajuns la concluzia că aceste concepții sunt inconsistente, astfel subconștientului i-a fost acordat un nou statut, de instant a psihicului care dispune de propriile procese și chiar de propriile calități creative.

37

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TEACHER - STUDENT

COMMUNICATION AND THE CRITICAL THINKING

ABILITIES OF THE STUDENTS FROM A ROMANIAN

FACULTY OF PSYCHOLOGY

MARIANA – SIMONA COCOSILA

Arges County Police Inspectorate/Human Resources Department

LUCICA SERBAN

Olt County Police Inspectorate/Human Resources Department

CRENGUTA OPREA

University of Pitesti, Psychology Department

ANDREEA STAN1

University of Pitesti, Psychology Department

Abstract Development of the critical thinking is a priority in modern education. The purpose of

this research is to evaluate the relationship between teacher-student communication and

the critical thinking abilities of the students from a Romanian Faculty of Psychology. The

following objectives are being pursued: to build a questionnaire in order to examine the

teacher-student communication; to evaluate the critical thinking abilities of the students; to

analyze the relationship between these two dimensions. Method: Participants: The

participants in this study were a number of 164 students from a Faculty of Psychology in

Romania. From the entire number of participants 136 (82,9%) were women and 28 (17,1%)

male. Instruments: Three instruments were used to meet the objectives of the study: The

questionnaire of the teacher-student communication assessment (with three sub factors:

Barriers to communication, Communication – information, Communication –

relationships), The Analytical Reasoning Test, The Analogical Transfer Test. The study

reveals a statistically significant association between critical thinking skills (analytical

reasoning and analogical transfer) and the Communication - information sub factor.

Results: The average scores obtained by our research subjects on the three sub factors:

Barriers to communication (m=3.54); Communication – information (m=3.61) and

Communication – relationships (m=3.32) and on the general score – The teacher-student

communication (m=3.47) were reported to the standard of the questionnaire. Conclusions:

1 Corresponding author:

Andreea Stan

Email: andreea_stan_2@yahoo.com

38

The findings of this research allow us to underline the teacher-student communication

aspects correlated with critical thinking abilities.

Keywords: teacher-student communication, critical thinking, teaching, Analogical

Transfer Test.

1. THEORETHICAL FRAMEWORK

1.1. TEACHER-STUDENT COMMUNICATION

In the school context, teacher-student relationship is based on communication.

The term derives from the Latin communicare what means the action “to share”.

Luminita Iacob defines human communication as “the relationship based on co-

sharing of meanings” (Cosmovici, Iacob, 2005, p. 181). David Crystal, in An

Encyclopedic Dictionary of Language and Languages, underlines the complexity of

communication, which involve the formulation and coding the messages, the

transmission, decoding and the reception by the receiver (cited by Sălăvăstru,

2004).

The teacher-student communication is essential for successfully achieving the

teaching objectives, how it is done having a major impact on relations between the

interlocutors and on activities finalities. The teacher-student communication it is

seen as an interaction between individuals, interaction followed by behavioral

changes (Sălăvăstru, 2004).

The teacher-student communication is not reduced to cognitive aspect namely

the transmission of knowledge or information exchange, it involves other issues

such as: the empathy in communication, the persuasion, the tolerance of different

points of view, mutual respect, responsiveness, accountability, flexibility,

spontaneity.

A particularly important aspect in any communication, and especially in the

teaching communication, is the manner in which the feedback is made. This

provides the adjustment of the interlocutors’ behavior to the followed purpose

(Sălăvăstru, 2004).

The researches show that teacher-student relationship exerts a major influence

on the development of young people and their success in school. This influence

stems from the important roles that teachers have in their relationship with the

students. The teachers are perceived as examples to follow, both sources of

knowledge and support, counselors and advisers. A positive relationship with

teachers can lead in students a higher interest for the contents taught, offers new

opportunities for learning and the opportunity to obtain guidance and

encouragement from their teachers regarding the socio-professional aspects of their

life (Arredondo, 1995, cited by Chang, 2005).

39

1.2. THE CRITICAL THINKING ABILITIES

The development of critical thinking skills has become a priority in modern

education.

As Fok Shui Che (2002) claims the critical thinking is essential to achieve the

success in a personal, social and professional level, in a continuous changing

society. It is important that young people know how to apply knowledge acquired

in school in new and complex situations that will confront in the workplace. The

same author analyses the difficulties that can arise when we are trying to develop

the critical thinking skills. These difficulties can be both intellectual and especially

psychological. The critical thinking requires reconsideration and a review of the

ideas and beliefs that we have and we are used to. This represents a challenge for

the individual even when these beliefs are irrational or wrong (Fok Shui Che,

2002).

In the literature there is no consensus on the definition of critical thinking

concept. Reed (1998) analyses the definitions and theoretical models of this

concept in two disciplines relevant to the study of critical thinking: philosophy and

psychology. From the philosophical perspective, Richard Paul offers the following

definition “thinking about your thinking while you’re thinking to make your

thinking better” (Paul, 1993, p. 91, cited by Reed, 1998, p. 18). Within psychology,

critical thinking has been associated with problems solving. Halpern (1996)

outlines the goal-oriented nature of critical thinking, „the kind of thinking involved

in solving problems, formulating inferences, calculating likelihoods and making

decisions” (Halpern, 1996, p. 5, cited by Reed, 1998, p. 22).

The critical thinking skills are, according to Li and his colleagues (1999, p.

44) those abilities “to think analytically and solve problems effectively”.

The complexity of the concept of critical thinking lies in the multitude of

skills that include them. Among these are mentioned: „identifying assumptions,

identifying and dealing with equivocation, making value judgments, analyzing

arguments, asking and answering questions of clarification and/or challenge,

judging the credibility of a source” (Anderson et al., 2001, p. 2). Trying to make a

taxonomy of critical thinking skills, Ennis (1987) identifies 118 subcategories

(cited by Anderson et al., 2001).

Linn (2000) argues that critical thinking involves a number of skills such as

identifying the source of information, checking its credibility, comparing new

information with previous knowledge of the individual and making judgments

based on critical thinking (cited by Miri, 2007).

The critical thinking is a topic widely debated in the field of psychology and

science education. In a discussion on subjects which emphasize the development of

critical thinking skills it is necessary to recall the distinction made by Biglan

(1973) between disciplines based on a single paradigm (hard) and disciplines based

on multiple paradigms (soft). According to the author, psychology is part of the

40

second category of disciplines which subscribe to different theoretical perspectives

(Biglan, 1973, cited by Li, 1999). The researches assert that there are differences

between the academic cultures of the two types of disciplines, in case of the

disciplines based on multiple paradigms the teachers focus on the development of

cognitive skills of higher level such as critical thinking (Braxton, 1995; Lattuca,

Stark, 1995) on the character development of the students (Braxton, 1995; Smart,

Elton, 1982), on the development of the students’ communication skills (Lattuca,

Stark, 1995) and intellectual self-realization (Smart, Elton, 1982) (cited by Li,

1999).

According to American Psychological Association, among the skills that the

graduates of faculties of Psychology should acquire are: reading critically, avoid

bias and preconceptions in information searches, dealing with inconsistent

information, translate information into meaningful conclusions, recommendations,

or plans of action, structuring and evaluating arguments, experience in identifying

the most important problem(s) to be addressed from ambiguously defined problem

statements, can both solve general problems and focus on details, understanding

that there may be more than one route to problem solving, understanding that there

might not be only one right answer (American Psychological Association, Science

Directorate). All these abilities are included in the concept of critical thinking.

The specialists in educational field support the possibility to develop the

critical thinking skills on students, by conceiving programs for this purpose.

Tsui (1999) notes some of the instructional process characteristics that have

been identified by various authors as being associated with higher scores obtained

by the students on tests of critical thinking: the emphasis, in the process of

learning, on solving problems or on critical thinking (Bailey, 1979), centering on

the search for meaning through reading, writing and active participation in classes

(Gibson, 1985), classes that emphasize the investigation and operations of higher

level thinking (Suksringarm, 1976), by providing feedback to optimize the quality

and quantity of the student responses (Kaplan, Kies, 1994), the stimulation of the

participation of students, the support from the teacher and the interaction between

students (Smith, 1977) (cited by Tsui, 1999).

Although the development of the critical thinking skills is a stated objective,

the research in this field stresses that this is not easy to be achieved (Pitts, 2004).

Pitts (2004) highlights the fact that in psychology, more than in other disciplines,

convey of the myths and other information collected without a scientific basis often

causes non-critical acceptance of theories on human behavior. The author draws

attention to the role of media in this explosion of pseudo-scientific knowledge of

psychology sent to a large segment of the population. Keith Stanovich argues that

the information held by the public, even the educated one, about the psychology

are not often conform to reality; furthermore, the dissemination of these biased

messages prevent the public to independently evaluate the claims relating to human

behavior. The same author draws attention to the minor impact that the classes of

41

Introduction in psychology have on the students misconceptions (Higbee, Clay,

1998; Vaughn, 1977, cited by Pitts, 2004). This is another reason to develop the

critical thinking skills to the students in psychology.

2. OBJECTIVE AND HYPOTHESES

The present study is a descriptive one. Using data collected from students of a

Faculty of Psychology in Romania, the main objective of this research was to

examine the relationship between the teacher-student communication and the

critical thinking skills within this educational institution.

For this purpose, we propose the following objectives:

• the examination of the aspects of teacher-student communication in the

Faculties of Psychology in Romania;

• the evaluation of critical thinking skills (analytical reasoning and

analogical transfer) of the students from a university in Romania.

3. METHOD

3.1. PARTICIPANTS

The participants in this study were a number of 164 students from a Faculty of

Psychology in Romania. From the entire number of participants 136 (82,9%) were

women and 28 (17,1%) male. The average age of the subjects is 21,51 years,

minimum age is 18 years and maximum age is 29 years. The subjects were

randomly selected from the students in the three years of this cycle of education.

3.2. INSTRUMENTS

The questionnaire of the teacher-student communication assessment. To

evaluate the teacher-student communication a questionnaire was constructed

according to the following steps (Constantin, 2004):

• we asked to a group of subjects belonging to the target peoples to make

statements about the investigated dimension namely „teacher-student

communication”;

• we collected the statements and wrote them on a common list, correcting

any grammar mistakes and sentences miswriting and we removed the assertions

not related to the investigated dimension; it resulted a number of 82 statements; to

this list a table with demographic data and a scale for assessing the responses were

added (the Likert scale with 5 response choices);

• the initial questionnaire was applied to a group of 195 subjects

representative for the population covered by the final questionnaire;

42

• the obtained data were entered into SPSS and was performed the factorial

analysis; the analysis highlighted a general factor „the teacher-student

communication” and three sub factors; it followed the examination of the

statements of each of these sub factors and their name:

• the sub factor “barriers to communication” (expresses a teacher-student

communication lacks efficiency, there are bottlenecks in communication);

• the sub factor “Communication – information” (teacher-student

communication is seen as a transmission and exchange of expertise, interactivity in

the transmission of messages with scientific character);

• the sub factor “Communication – relationships” (teacher-student

communication is seen as a positive relationship in which free expression, mutual

respect, tolerance towards different points of view, flexibility and responsiveness

are valued).

• the intermediate outcome questionnaire was applied to a sample of 177

subjects; the obtained data were entered into SPSS to verify the “regularity” of

distribution of the responses on each item separately and internal consistency of the

items for each factor evaluated; were excluded the statements with means higher or

lower with a point than the theoretical average of the scale (3). The fidelity

characteristic of the questionnaire was verified by the analysis of internal

consistency. The internal consistency coefficients of the factors were: 0.889

(Barriers to communication), 0.765 (Communication – Information) and 0.836

(Communication – relationships). The Alpha Cronbach coefficient for the

questionnaire is 0.905.

• the final questionnaire was formulated and established the final standard to

which each individual data will be refereed .

The questionnaire consists of 31 items. The general factor “teacher-student

communication” includes all items from 1 to 31, the sub factor “Barriers to

Communication” - 9 items, the sub factor “Communication – Information” - 9

items and the sub factor ‘Communication – relationships” - 13 items.

The evaluation of critical thinking skills

In literature, the analytical reasoning and the analogical transfer are presented

as two important components of the critical thinking. This observation has

determined the authors of the study to focus on these skills of critical thinking,

considering their need to develop in the academic environment. Another reason for

our choice was the existence of some instruments which measure analytical

reasoning and analogical transfer, constructed and validated for the Romanian

population, which ensure the correctness of the inferences made starting with the

results that the students have obtained in those tests.

The Analytical Reasoning Test. This test measures the ability of individual to

discover rules and to use these rules to solve reasoning problems. The test contains

two subscales: the subscale of inductive reasoning and the subscale of deductive

reasoning. Each subscale is composed of 12 items.

43

The subscale of inductive reasoning contains two types of items: series of

letters and series of images. Subject is required to identify for each item the

forming rule of the series and to choose that option which continuous the series

according to the rule. The deductive reasoning contains items as premise

(situations) and four conclusions of which the individual must choose the one

which necessarily result from the premises (Cognitrom, Manualul Testelor de

Aptitudini Cognitive, 2007).

The Analogical Transfer Test. This test measures the individual’s ability to

apply the previously assimilated knowledge in new situations. The test consists of

two subscales: the verbal contents (22 items) and the figure contents (18 items).

Each item consists of a pair of elements between which there is a relationship,

a third element and four possible relationships. The individual is required to

identify the relationship of the first part of the items and to apply in the second

part, between the third element and one of the four answers (Cognitrom, Manualul

Testelor de Aptitudini Cognitive, 2007).

3.3. PROCEDURE

The administration of the questionnaires took place in a single step; the

participants received all the tools to complete the questionnaire, in paper-pencil

version. Initially they were asked to fill in some demographic data. Subsequently,

the subjects responded to the teacher-student communication questionnaire. In the

end, we administered samples for evaluation of critical thinking skills: analytical

reasoning and analogical transfer. Each subject received the tests and answer sheet.

There were presented the purpose of the evaluation and the instructions of each

test, as well as examples of items to ensure that the subjects have understood the

task. The participants were informed about the time allowed for each test sample

and also about the conditions for solving the items.

4. RESULTS

For the questionnaire of the teacher-student communication assessment, we

calculated the scores on the three factors: Barriers to communication,

Communication – information and Communication – relationships and a general

score – The teacher-student communication.

The average scores obtained by our research subjects on the three sub factors:

Barriers to communication (m=3.54); Communication – information (m=3.61) and

Communication – relationships (m=3.32) and on the general score – The teacher-

student communication (m=3.47) were reported to the standard of the

questionnaire. The factor Teacher-student communication and the sub factor

Communication – information have an average intensity of manifestation, and the

44

sub factors Barriers to communication and Communication – relationship have a

weak to medium intensity of the manifestation.

Regarding the critical thinking skills, we calculated the mean scores obtained

by female subjects and male subjects at the Analytical Reasoning Test and at the

Analogical Transfer Test and we refereed the results to the standards according to

sex and age.

At the Analytical Reasoning Test, the average scores obtained by the male

subjects is 14.71, which means, related to the standards (age category 19-29 years),

an average level of the ability to find logical rules and to use these rules to solve

problems. Regarding the subjects of female gender, the average scores obtained is

14.88, which indicates an average level of the analytical reasoning ability.

At the Analogical Transfer Test the average scores obtained by the male

subjects is 28.43, which means, related to the standards (age category 19-29 years),

an average level of the ability to apply the previously assimilated knowledge in

new situations. Regarding the subjects of female gender, the average scores

obtained is 31.41, which indicates an average to good level of the analogical

transfer ability.

The main objective of this research was to examine the relationship between

teacher-student communication and critical thinking skills in a Psychology Faculty

from Romania.

For this purpose, we used the correlation analysis in order to investigate the

association between the two variables of the study.

It had been evaluated the relationship between student performances on

analytical reasoning test and the perceived teacher-student communication. The

results indicate a significant correlation, positive, moderate (p<0.05, r=0.460)

between the analytical reasoning and the Communication-information sub factor,

that is to say the bigger the ability of individual to discover rules and to use these

rules to solve reasoning problems grows, the better the teacher-student

communication is seen as a transmission and exchange of expertise.

Concerning other aspects of the teacher-student communication (barriers to

communication, Communication - relations), we didn’t obtained significant

correlations with the analytical reasoning.

Another evaluated relationship was between the performance of students at

the analogical transfer test and teacher-student perceived communication. The

results indicate a significant correlation, positive, moderate (p<0.05, r=0.530)

between the analogical transfer and the Communication-information sub factor,

that is to say the bigger the ability of individual to apply the previously assimilated

knowledge in new situations grows, the better the teacher-student communication

is seen as a transmission and exchange of expertise.

45

The data do not indicate a statistically significant association between the

analogical transfer and other aspects of teacher-student communication (Barriers to

communication, Communication - relationships).

5. CONCLUSIONS

The development of the critical thinking skills is a stated objective in

academic environment. Optimizing the thinking skills of students is a necessity,

taking in consideration the constant changes in society, the diversity and

complexity of transmitted messages and the pressure to make the proper decisions

in different contexts.

As the authors show (Keith Stanovich, Shane Pitts), in psychology, perhaps

more than in other areas, it is necessary to provide the students with the “tools”

through which they understand and critically evaluate the messages received, so

that they can reach to the valid conclusions.

In this study we wanted to assess the critical thinking skills of the students

from a faculty of psychology and how they are associated with different aspects of

teacher-student communication.

First aspect that we want to discuss concern the low scores obtained by the

investigated group for Communication - relationships sub factor. Although the

interviewed subjects perceive the teacher-student communication as being held

without obvious obstructions (the existing barriers are perceived by the students as

having a minor impact on the communication), the low score on the

Communication - relationships factor indicates that subjects did not perceive the

student-teacher communication within the faculty that attend as an opportunity to

establish positive relationships with teachers, based on free expression, mutual

respect, tolerance to different points of view, flexibility and responsiveness. It is

important that teachers take into consideration this result, the more the study was

conducted in a psychology faculty and is expected that the students of this kind of

faculty to develop and acquire skills such as communication skills and establish

adaptive relationships with others.

The average level of critical thinking skills identified on the investigated

group indicates that it is necessary to take decisions for the future development of

these skills.

The study reveals a statistically significant association between critical

thinking skills (analytical reasoning and analogical transfer) and the

Communication - information sub factor, namely the high scores on critical

thinking skills positively correlate with the perception of teacher-student

communication based on informing the students, the exchange of scientific

information and the communication of the expertise. In our study, this factor of the

teacher-student communication is referring to the interactive dimension of

communication where the exchange of the information takes place and to the

46

modern methods used in the transmission of specialized knowledge. Thus, the

Communication-information sub factor should not be understood as a traditional

form of the unidirectional convey of knowledge from teacher to student, but as an

exchange of information, in which messages are transmitted and received in both

directions. The interactivity in communication can be materialized in the

transmission of scientific information, but also in questions about this information,

the debate of the pointed issues, and critical evaluation of the discussed materials.

The results are relevant for the group of subjects investigated. These may

direct the individuals involved in outline intervention strategies to improve teacher-

student communication and to develop critical thinking skills. We can not

generalize the information derived from this study, but these may become points of

departure for future studies on the topic discussed.

It is important that the presented results to be treated with caution due to the

limits of the study (small number of subjects, the existing limits in construction of

the questionnaire for assessing teacher-student communication).

47

6. REFERENCES

American Psychological Association, Science Directorate, Skills (That May Be)

Obtained During Graduate Study in Psychology http://www.apa.org/science/skills.html

[Accessed 27.05.2012].

Anderson, T., Howe, C., Soden, R., Halliday, J., & Low, J. (2001). Peer interaction and

the learning of critical thinking skills in further education students. Instructional Science,

Vol. 29, No. 1, pp. 1-32.

Chang, J. C. (2005). Faculty-student interaction at the community college: A Focus on

Students of Color. Research in Higher Education, Vol. 46, No. 7, pp. 769-802.

Che Fok Shui (2002). Teaching Critical Thinking Skills in a Hong Kong Secondary

School. Asia Pacific Education Review, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 83-91.

Constantin, T. (2004). Evaluarea psihologică a personalului. Iaşi, Romania: Polirom.

Cosmovici A., & Iacob, L. (coord.) (2005). Psihologie şcolară. Iaşi, Romania: Polirom.

Li, G., Long, S., & Simpson, M. E. (1999). Self-perceived gains in critical thinking and

communication skills: are there disciplinary differences? Research in Higher Education,

Vol. 40, No. 1, pp. 43-60.

Manualul Testelor de Aptitudini Cognitive (2007). Cluj-Napoca: Editura ASCR.

Miri, B., David, B.-C., & Uri, Z. (2007). Purposely Teaching for the Promotion of

Higher-order Thinking Skills: A Case of Critical Thinking. Research in Science Education,

Vol. 37. No. 4, pp. 353-369.

Pitts, S. (2004). Critical Thinking in Psychology. A proposal for an ACS Teaching with

Technology Fellowship

http://www.colleges.org/techcenter/Fellowships/grants/fellows04/pitts.pdf [Accessed

27.05.2012].

Reed, J. H.. (1998). Effect of a model for critical thinking on student achievement in

primary source document analysis and interpretation, argumentative reasoning, critical

thinking dispositions, and history content in a community college history course, Ph.D.

Dissertation http://www.criticalthinking.org/resources/JReed-Dissertation.pdf [Accessed

26.05.2012].

Rickards, T., & Fisher, D. (1999). Teacher-Student Classroom Interactions Among

Science Students of Different Sex and Cultural Background. Research in Science

Education, Vol. 29, No. 4, pp. 445-455.

Sălăvăstru, D. (2004). Psihologia educaţiei. Iaşi, Romania: Polirom.

Tsui, L. (1999). Courses and instruction affecting critical thinking. Research in Higher

Education, Vol. 40, No. 2, pp. 185-200.

48

SHORT TERM PSYCHOTHERAPIES

AUTHOR: IRINA HOLDEVICI

REVIEWD BY: VLAD BURTAVERDE & TEODOR MIHAILA

The book "short term psychotherapies" introduces therapeutic effectiveness

and efficiency as central elements of the premises for limiting the number of

treatment sessions, maintaining therapeutic focus on the central theme and active

avoidance of the psychotherapist-client addiction development.

These are just a few specific elements of short-term therapy, with practical

applicability and the patient may return to work, to his family and social life, after

a total of 6-12 sessions

The book contains fifteen chapters, each structured after a type of short-term

therapy. Thus, the second chapter presents the brief dynamic psychotherapy that

has an increased efficiency among patients with emotional disorders and resistance

toward psychotherapy.

Chapter III presents brief cognitive behavioral therapies that have as a central

element the therapeutic approach based on a well-developed therapeutic plan

starting from the modification of maladaptive character cognitions. Thus,

behavioral and affective processes are determined by how the subject interprets.

The author presents in detail examples of therapy sessions, strategies and

additional techniques such as "imagination guided technique”. A strong point of

this chapter is the "strategies of therapy and cognitive-behavioral counseling that

facilitate change" presentation.

Chapter IV "Ericksonian orientation hypnotherapy" brings into the readers

focus the principles of Milton Erickson's therapy where the therapist's role is to

observe how the patient communicates at all levels investigating the way patients

think and what patterns of communication they use.

The author, a specialist in clinical hypnosis, presents elements of

Ericksonian hypnosis and case studies with examples of patients treated with

hypnosis. The fifth chapter highlights "paradoxical" strategies applied by Erickson

49

in therapeutic treatments, where therapeutic plans, and other classic treatment

strategies do not work.

The VI-th chapter "Metaphor and Ritual in Psychotherapy" reveals metaphors

used in therapy and their role. Thus, metaphorical imagining technique or

metaphorical stories technique are just some of the techniques covered in this

chapter.

Chapters VII and VIII bring into focus short-term psychotherapy and

psychotherapy focused on solution-centered strategic solutions. These two modern

models of care put emphasis on patient resources and availability and not on

pathological weaknesses. The author states that specific for each solution centered

therapy is "combining strategic therapy focus with solution centered therapy,

clarifying the problem on the details."

Next, the book captures the specific elements of "constructivist brief strategic

psychotherapy," "interpersonal psychotherapy" and "feminist psychotherapy" in a

complete guide for exploring the presented case law and the basic theoretical

foundation in the practice of short-term psychotherapy.

Given the complexity of this work, because of both the types of short term

psychotherapies as well as the cases and examples presented, the book is

recommended for undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral students or psychologists

who want to specialize in short-term therapy, as well as readers from other fields

who wish to enrich their knowledge in short-term therapies.

50