Interhemispheric transfer in schizophrenics, depressives, and normals with schizoid tendencies

Although several studies suggest that schizophrenics suffer from an impairment in the interhemispheric transfer (IHT) of information, methodological weaknesses in these studies preclude clear interpretation of their results. This study addresses these criticisms in order to provide a clearer test of the IHT theory. Schizophrenics, depressives, normal controls, and normals with schizoid tendencies were assessed on five measures of IHT (verbal and nonverbal dichotic listening, intermanual transfer, bimanual block design, finger sequence repetition) and two measures of unilateral hemispheric processing (lateral eye movements, auditory thresholds). Results consistently failed to support an IHT deficit interpretation of schizophrenia. Schizoid normals had a significantly greater right-ear advantage on verbal dichotic listening than both psychiatric groups, a result suggesting enhanced left-hemisphere activation in schizoid normals. It is concluded that the IHT theory requires stronger empirical substantiation than has been obtained to date to warrant further consideration as a central theory of schizophrenia.     

Patterns of adaptation to conflict and schizoid personality scale scores

A previous investigation gave no evidence of a significant relationship of patterns of adaptation to conflict, as measured with the Serial Color-Word Test, with the Schizoid Personality Scale of the Coolidge Axis II Inventory. As a new scoring algorithm has subsequently been proposed for the latter scale, a replication was done with the modified schizoid scale. A group of 75 consecutive nonpsychotic women outpatients was given the Serial Color-Word Test and Coolidge's inventory. Both multiple and logistic regressions selected two significant predictors of schizoid personality, corresponding to high values of linear change in reading times during Trials 3 and 5 of the Serial Color-Word Test, i.e., to an increasingly rigid and inflexible style of the adaptive process. A multivariate analysis of variance yielded an effect size of .22 (partial eta2).     

The treatment of borderline personalities with rational emotive behavior therapy

The rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) theory holds that individuals with severe personality disorders in general, and borderline personalities in particular usually are biologically different from “normal” neurotics and are born with a predisposition to be highly vulnerable to stressful environmental conditions. They tend to have cognitive, emotional, and behavioral deficits or disabilities that handicap them socially, vocationally, and in other important aspects of their lives. But they also have distinct, and sometimes exceptionally strong, neurotic tendencies to demand that they absolutely must perform well, that other people have to treat them kindly and fairly, and that frustrating conditions ought not exist. Their neurosis exacerbates their cognitive-emotive-behavioral handicaps, produces even greater life difficulties, and often interferes with their working hard at therapy. A summary is presented of how borderline personalities can be treated with rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT).     

Loneliness as a specific risk factor for depressive symptoms: cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses

The extent to which loneliness is a unique risk factor for depressive symptoms was determined in 2 population-based studies of middle-aged to older adults, and the possible causal influences between loneliness and depressive symptoms were examined longitudinally in the 2nd study. In Study 1, a nationally representative sample of persons aged 54 and older completed a telephone interview as part of a study of health and aging. Higher levels of loneliness were associated with more depressive symptoms, net of the effects of age, gender, ethnicity, education, income, marital status, social support, and perceived stress. In Study 2, detailed measures of loneliness, social support, perceived stress, hostility, and demographic characteristics were collected over a 3-year period from a population-based sample of adults ages 50-67 years from Cook County, Illinois. Loneliness was again associated with more depressive symptoms, net of demographic covariates, marital status, social support, hostility, and perceived stress. Latent variable growth models revealed reciprocal influences over time between loneliness and depressive symptomatology. These data suggest that loneliness and depressive symptomatology can act in a synergistic effect to diminish well-being in middle-aged and older adults.     

Differentiating ego functions of borderline and narcissistic personalities

This study investigated differences in ego functions of borderline and narcissistic personality disorders through examining responses to Rorschach structural and content variables. Reality testing, thought process, affective regulation, impulse control, and the defenses of splitting and grandiosity were examined from Rorschach protocols of 50 borderlines and 26 narcissists. The borderlines produced greater distortion in reality testing, p less than .05; the narcissists produced more insidious thought process disturbance, p less than .05; and higher functioning groups demonstrated greater control of impulses, p less than .05. Borderlines in this sample demonstrated more affective constriction than the narcissists and used more splitting, p less than .05; narcissists used more grandiosity, p less than .05. Implications of this study are (a) ego functions mature inconsistently, (b) affective responsivity influences ego disorganization, and (c) level of functioning and IQ are related to the production of Rorschach variables.     

Authoritarian personalities in the natural and social sciences

This research is an extension of a previous finding, that authoritarian personalities are predisposed to the social sciences and nonauthoritarians to the natural sciences. Two hypotheses were tested: (1) Within the social sciences, more authoritarian personalities enter economics and geography than psychology, social work, or sociology; and (2) between the first and last years in college, in “authoritarian departments” there is an increase, while in “nonauthoritarian departments” there is a decrease in the students' authoritarianism.