ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews research on anxiety, anger, and moral judgment, on which I have worked for more than a decade. It also notes how participation in the Interamerican Society of Psychology (Sociedad Interamericana de Psicologia: SIP) has focused my attention on specific areas of research. The intertwining of theoretical hypotheses, methodological approaches, and research findings with reminiscences about my involvement in SIP are described. These topics are presented in the spirit of Albert Bandura, who cogently observed that the casual encounters of personal life often have significant impact on one's professional career. The main results that are reported include the discussion of how moral dilemmas arouse cognitive conflict and state anxiety, how these processes are involved in moral development, and gender differences in the relation of trait anxiety to moral judgment. The development of a Portuguese adaptation of Spielberger's State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI) is also described. Correlations between the Portuguese STAXI scale scores and extrapunitiveness and impunitiveness, as measured by Rosenzweig's Picture Frustration Test, provide evidence of the validity of this instrument.
