The effects of covert and overt modeling on assertive behavior

Three modeling therapy formats (overt modeling with a standard hierarchy of situations. covert modeling with the standard hierarchy, and covert modeling with a self-tailored hierarchy) were compared to assess their relative efficacy in developing assertive skills. Half the subjects in each treatment condition received or did not receive generalization training. Significant within-group improvement was indicated on four self-report measures. Overall, the results suggest that covert modeling was as effective as overt modeling or covert modeling plus self-tailoring for instating assertion among nonassertive college women.     

Concept attainment, transfer, and retention through observation and rule-provision

The effects of observing a model and of providing a response rule on the learning, transfer, and retention of a dial-reading, numerical concept were studied in 144 third graders. Different Es conducted the immediate learning procedures versus the measurements of retention. No extrinsic reinforcers were promised or dispensed. The children profited both from modeling and from rule-provision, with the strongest learning, transfer, and retention displayed by the group that watched the model and also received the rule summary. Sequence of presenting the sets of retention stimuli (including a series of novel generalization items not previously encountered) did not influence the strength of concept retention 6 weeks after training.     

Associative responding versus analogical reasoning by children

Following upon work which showed that college and high school students' analogy solutions were predictable from ratings of the relatedness of the words comprising the analogy choices, this study extended those results to children's analogy solutions. Achenbach's Children's Associative Responding Test was used as the criterion to determine (1) whether analogy solutions by children were as related to word relatedness ratings as analogy solutions were in previous subject samples, (2) whether individual differences in using associative responding versus analogical reasoning processes could enhance the predictability estimates, and (3) whether associative priming can affect analogy solutions. Two correlational studies were done, one on an American and another on a Nigerian sample. A third study was an experimental manipulation of choices on analogy items on an American sample. The results suggest that the answer to questions (1) and (3) is yes, but the answer to question (2) is no.     

Early Election Returns and the Voting Behavior of Adolescent Voters1

High school students participated in a field experiment that tested the effects of exposure to early election returns in a nonpartisan referendum. On a pretest of attitudes, students stated their preferences on the issue of the school's grading policy. One week later, just before voting, subjects in the experimental condition received information announcing the probable outcome of the election. There was a significant relationship between class achievement level and (a) likelihood of changing vote, and (b) the direction of change. Students in the brighter classes changed their votes less frequently, but when they changed their preferences they showed a greater bandwagon effect. Students in the classes of lower academic achievement changed their votes more frequently, but when they changed their preferences they showed a greater underdog effect. Differences between the more typical political election in which bandwagon and underdog effects are seldom reported and the experimental election were discussed.     

Counselor and client personality as determinants of counselor expectancy effects

Seventy-eight students enrolled in summer-session college courses were randomly assigned to serve either as counselors or as clients for a 20-min, role-played peer counseling session. All of the subjects completed a battery of standardized personality measures. Each counselor interacted with two clients. Prior to the sessions, the counselor was led to believe that one of the clients was especially introverted and that the other client was especially extraverted. Dependent measures were based on clients' change scores on a mood adjective rating scale administered before and after the peer counseling sessions. Analyses showed that counselors who were more successful at biasing their clients in the direction of their expectancies (a) scored higher on measures of Dogmatism, Nurturance, and Social Recognition, (b) scored lower on Impulsivity, and (c) were more likely to be women. Clients who were more susceptible to counselor bias scored higher on the Self-Monitoring Scale, the Self-Monitoring Other-Directedness subscale, and Social Recognition. These results are discussed in light of previous research and their implications for research on interpersonal expectancy effects.     

Posed and spontaneous communication of emotion via facial and vocal cues1

Subjects' facial expressions were videotaped without their knowledge while they watched two pleasant and two unpleasant videotaped scenes (spontaneous facial encoding). Later, subjects' voices were audiotaped while describing their reactions to the scenes (vocal encoding). Finally, subjects were videotaped with their knowledge while they posed appropriate facial expressions to the scenes (posed facial encoding). The videotaped expressions were presented for decoding to the same subjects. The vocal material, both the original version and an electronically filtered version, was rated by judges other than the original senders. Results were as follows: (a) accuracy of vocal encoding (measured by ratings of both the filtered and unfiltered versions) was positively related to accuracy of facial encoding; (b) posing increased the accuracy of facial communication, particularly for more pleasant affects and less intense affects; (c) encoding of posed cues was correlated with encoding of spontaneous cues and decoding of posed cues was correlated with decoding of spontaneous cues; (d) correlations, within encoding and decoding, of similar scenes were positive while those among dissimilar scenes were low or negative; (e) while correlations between total encoding and total decoding were positive and low, correlations between encoding and decoding of the same scene were negative; (f) there were sex differences in decoding ability and in the relationships of personality variables with encoding and decoding of facial cues.     

Group aversion by imaginal, vicarious and shared recipient-observer shocks

Sixty college students completed waiting control or alternative group aversion conditions, matched for severity and chronicity of nail-biting. Treatments spanned four sessions. Imaginai aversion (covert sensitization) clients visualized shocks to themselves. Vicarious aversion clients observed shocks to a trained model. A ‘hotseat’ format randomized a few actual shocks to each client with observing peers shocked on remaining trials. The predominant pattern of outcome and subjective impact results was as follows: Hotseat consistently best; vicarious typically second; imaginal usually third; controls worst. Clinical and conceptual issues are raised.