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Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences pp 464–466Cite as

Besser, Avi

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Avi Besser is a Full Professor of Psychology at Sapir Academic College, Israel.

Dr. Besser has a strong social awareness and sense of commitment; he places great importance on improving the well-being of others. This sense of commitment to others is also incorporated into his research efforts and is reflected clearly by the topics he pursues. His research is focused in the area of personality and social psychology, specifically, vulnerability factors to depression across the lifespan, and interpersonal functioning and relationships. His research topics include vulnerability factors in postpartum depression; attachment and psychological adjustment in children, adolescents, and mothers; perfectionism; self-esteem; self-criticism/dependency; distress and depression; suicidality; narcissism; Machiavellianism; psychopathy; spitefulness; humor styles; and PTSD. The factors that distinguish Dr. Besser’s work are his creative ability to identify important new research topics and the...

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Selected Bibliography

  • Besser, A., & Blatt, S. J. (2007). Identity consolidation and internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors in early adolescence. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 24, 126–149.

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  • Besser, A., & Neria, Y. (2009). PTSD symptoms, satisfaction with life and prejudicial attitudes towards the adversary among Israelis exposed to ongoing terrorist attacks. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 22, 268–275.

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  • Besser, A., & Neria, Y. (2010). The effects of insecure attachment orientations and perceived social support on posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms among civilians exposed to the 2009 Israel-Gaza war: A follow-up cross-lagged panel design study. Journal of Research in Personality, 44, 335–341.

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  • Besser, A., & Neria, Y. (2012). When home isn’t a safe haven: Insecure attachment orientations, perceived social support, and PTSD symptoms among Israeli evacuees under missile threat. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 4, 34–46.

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  • Besser, A., & Priel, B. (2003). A multisource approach to self-critical vulnerability to depression: The moderating role of attachment. Journal of Personality, 71, 515–555.

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  • Besser, A., & Priel, B. (2005). The apple does not fall far from the tree: Attachment styles and personality vulnerabilities to depression in three generations of women. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 31, 1052–1073.

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  • Besser, A., & Priel, B. (2006). Models of attachment, confirmation of positive affective expectations and satisfaction with vacation activities: A pre-post panel design study of leisure. Personality and Individual Differences, 41, 1055–1065.

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  • Besser, A., & Priel, B. (2009). Emotional responses to a romantic partner’s imaginary rejection: The roles of attachment anxiety, covert narcissism, and self-evaluation. Journal of Personality, 77, 287–325.

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  • Besser, A., & Shackelford, T. K. (2007). Mediation of the effects of the Big Five personality dimensions on negative mood and confirmed affective expectations by perceived situational stress: A quasi-field study of vacationers. Journal of Personality and Individual Differences, 42, 1333–1346.

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  • Besser, A., & Zeigler-Hill, V. (2010). The influence of pathological narcissism on emotional and motivational responses to negative events: The roles of visibility and concern about humiliation. Journal of Research in Personality, 44, 520–534.

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  • Besser, A., & Zeigler-Hill, V. (2014). Positive personality features and stress among first-year university students: Implications for psychological distress, functional impairment, and self-esteem. Self and Identity, 13, 24–44.

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  • Besser, A., Priel, B., & Wiznizer, A. (2002). Childbearing depressive symptomatology in high–risk pregnancies: The roles of working models and perceived spouse support. Personal Relationships, 9, 395–413.

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  • Besser, A., Flett, L. G., & Hewitt, P. L. (2004). Perfectionism, cognition, and affect in response to performance failure vs. success. Journal of Rational Emotive Cognitive Behavior Therapy, 22, 297–324.

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  • Besser, A., Priel, B., Flett, L. G., & Wiznitzer, A. (2007). Linear and nonlinear models in vulnerability to depression: Personality and postpartum depression in a high risk population. Individual Differences Research, 5, 1–29.

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  • Besser, A., Guez, J., & Priel, B. (2008a). The associations between self-criticism and dependency and incidental learning of interpersonal and achievement words. Personality and Individual Differences, 44, 1696–1710.

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  • Besser, A., Flett, G. L., Hewitt, P. L., & Guez, J. (2008b). Perfectionism, and cognitions, affect, self-esteem, and physiological reactions in a performance situation. Journal of Rational Emotive Cognitive Behavior Therapy, 26, 206–228.

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  • Besser, A., Neria, Y., & Haynes, M. (2009). Adult attachment, perceived stress, and PTSD among civilians continuously exposed to terrorism in southern Israel. Personality and Individual Differences, 47, 851–857.

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  • Besser, A., Luyten, P., & Blatt, S. J. (2011). Do humor styles mediate or moderate the relationship between self-criticism and neediness, and depressive symptoms? Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 10, 757–764.

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  • Besser, A., Zeigler-Hill, V., Pincus, A. L., & Neria, Y. (2013). Pathological narcissism and acute anxiety symptoms after trauma: A study of Israeli civilians exposed to war. Psychiatry: Interpersonal and Biological Processes, 76, 381–397.

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  • Besser, A., Zeigler-Hill, V., Weinberg, M., Pincus, A. L., & Neria, Y. (2015a). Intrapersonal resilience moderates the association between exposure and PTSD symptoms among civilians exposed to the 2014 Israel Gaza conflict. Self and Identity, 14, 1–15.

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  • Besser, A., Weinberg, M., Zeigler-Hill, V., Ataria, Y., & Neria, Y. (2015b). Humor and trauma-related psychopathology among survivors of terror attacks and their spouses. Psychiatry: Interpersonal and Biological Processes, 78, 341–353.

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  • Besser, A., Zeigler-Hill, V., Weinberg, M., & Pincus, A. L. (2016). Do great expectations lead to great disappointments? Pathological narcissism and the evaluation of vacation experiences. Personality and Individual Differences, 89, 75–79.

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  • Blatt, S. J., Besser, A., & Ford, R. Q. (2007). Two primary configurations of psychopathology and change in thought disorder in long-term, intensive, inpatient treatment of seriously disturbed young adults. American Journal of Psychiatry, 164, 1561–1567.

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  • Flett, G. L., Besser, A., & Hewitt. (2005). Perfectionism, ego defense styles, and depression: A comparison of self versus informant ratings. Journal of Personality, 73, 1355–1396.

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  • Neria, Y., Besser, A., Kipper, D., & Westphal, M. (2010). A longitudinal study of posttraumatic stress disorder, depression and generalized anxiety disorder in civilians exposed to war trauma. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 23, 322–330.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zeigler-Hill, V., & Besser, A. (2013). A glimpse behind the mask: Facets of narcissism and feelings of self-worth. Journal of Personality Assessment, 95, 249–260.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Research in Personality, Life Transitions, and Stressful Life Events, Sapir Academic College, D.N. Hof Ashkelon, Israel

    Avi Besser

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  1. Avi Besser
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Correspondence to Avi Besser .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland University, Rochester, MI, USA

    Virgil Zeigler-Hill

  2. Oakland University, Rochester, MI, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. Oakland University, Oakland, USA

    Virgil Zeigler-Hill

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Besser, A. (2020). Besser, Avi. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_2134

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