Determining the number of components from the matrix of partial correlations

A common problem for both principal component analysis and image component analysis is determining how many components to retain. A number of solutions have been proposed, none of which is totally satisfactory. An alternative solution which employs a matrix of partial correlations is considered. No components are extracted after the average squared partial correlation reaches a minimum. This approach gives an exact stopping point, has a direct operational interpretation, and can be applied to any type of component analysis. The method is most appropriate when component analysis is employed as an alternative to, or a first-stage solution for, factor analysis.     

A Recursive Partitioning Method for the Prediction of Preference Rankings Based Upon Kemeny Distances

Preference rankings usually depend on the characteristics of both the individuals judging a set of objects and the objects being judged. This topic has been handled in the literature with log-linear representations of the generalized Bradley-Terry model and, recently, with distance-based tree models for rankings. A limitation of these approaches is that they only work with full rankings or with a pre-specified pattern governing the presence of ties, and/or they are based on quite strict distributional assumptions. To overcome these limitations, we propose a new prediction tree method for ranking data that is totally distribution-free. It combines Kemeny’s axiomatic approach to define a unique distance between rankings with the CART approach to find a stable prediction tree. Furthermore, our method is not limited by any particular design of the pattern of ties. The method is evaluated in an extensive full-factorial Monte Carlo study with a new simulation design.     

Participatory Research's Contribution to a Conceptualization of Empowerment1

Empowerment has emerged in recent years as a popular strategy for addressing social issues. A potential intervention approach for applied researchers interested in studying empowerment is participatory research (PR). PR is a theory and intervention approach for involving oppressed people in the study of and solutions to social problems. It is a strategy that works to transform social structure to benefit oppressed people. This article examines PR's contribution to a conceptualization of empowerment on both a theoretical and applied level. First, PR literature and its conceptualization of empowerment are described. Following this, PR is proposed as an intervention approach for applied researchers interested in studying empowerment. A case study involving the formation of a Homeless Persons Union is provided as an example of applied PR.     

An improved apparatus for the aversive conditioning of cigarette smokers

An apparatus is described which permits the presentation of an aversive stimulus (smoke) and a reinforcing stimulus (fresh air) in such a way that it is possible to control their respective latencies and durations. Verbal stimuli may also be presented conjointly with the aversive and reinforcing stimuli. This apparatus was designed to overcome the shortcomings in previous investigations by permitting a more systematic approach to the study of the factors relevant to successful behaviour therapy with addicted smokers. Nine subjects completed a course of aversive conditioning and four were found to be totally abstinent after 6 months follow-up. The weaknesses of the present technique are pointed out and possible improvements briefly noted. In particular, a “broad spectrum” behavioural approach to smoking is advocated.     

Islamic Approach in Counseling

A religious approach is one of the matters emphasized in counseling today. Many researchers find that there is a need to apply the religious element in counseling because religion is important in a client’s life. The purpose of this research is to identify aspects of the Islamic approach applied in counseling clients by counselors at Pusat Kaunseling Majlis Agama Islam Negeri Sembilan (PKMAINS). In addition, this research also analyses the Islamic approach applied in counseling at PKMAINS with reference to al-Quran and al-Sunnah. This is a qualitative research in the form of case study at PKMAINS. The main method used in this research is interview. The research instrument used is interview protocol. The respondents in this study include 9 counselors who serve in one of the counseling centers in Malaysia. This study also uses questionnaire as an additional instrument, distributed to 36 clients who receive counseling service at the center. The findings of the study show that the Islamic approach applied in counseling at PKMAINS may be categorized into three main aspects: aqidah (faith), ibadah (worship/ultimate devotion and love for God) and akhlaq (moral conduct). Findings also show that the counseling in these aspects is in line with Islamic teachings as contained in al-Quran and al-Sunnah.     

Assessment of individual differences in faking

In recent years, change scores obtained under neutral conditions and under faking-inducing conditions have become one of the main alternatives for operationalizing faking. A pending issue regarding these measures is the relevance of individual differences under similar conditions of pressure. This study proposes a simple approach based on the classic test theory that allows the issue to be rigorously assessed. The approach, from which three indices are derived, is based on a pre-test post-test design with a control group, and models the amount of change as an individual parameter. The proposal is applied to an empirical study in personality, and some interesting initial results are obtained.     

Tactile diplopia (diplesthesia) on the human fingers

The third and fourth fingertips of five subjects were pressed against each other so as to produce a skin displacement. A single spherical stimulus was then applied simultaneously to the two fingertips in order to test perceptual experiences with different amounts of skin displacement. The results show that the probability of detecting one stimulus when a single stimulus was applied to the skin in the resting position was 0.90. This probability decreased with increments in skin displacement. At the maximum skin displacement tested the probability of detecting one stimulus when a single stimulus was applied to the two displaced fingertip surfaces was only 0.04: this means that the single stimulus was perceived to be double with a probability of 0.96. The occurrence of this doubling, similar to Aristotle's crossed-finger illusion, shows that a diplopia-like phenomenon is present in the somesthetic system. How this 'tactile diplopia' could represent an interesting approach to the study of tactile perception is discussed.     

An Inferential Conception of the Application of Mathematics

A number of people have recently argued for a structural approach to accounting for the applications of mathematics. Such an approach has been called “the mapping account”. According to this view, the applicability of mathematics is fully accounted for by appreciating the relevant structural similarities between the empirical system under study and the mathematics used in the investigation of that system. This account of applications requires the truth of applied mathematical assertions, but it does not require the existence of mathematical objects. In this paper, we discuss the shortcomings of this account, and show how these shortcomings can be overcome by a broader view of the application of mathematics: the inferential conception.     

Behavioral Treatment of Test Anxiety in a Drug Abuse Vocational Rehabilitation Day Program

Anxiety is one of the critical factors present in initiating and maintaining a drug-dependent pattern of behavior. This study examines test anxiety. The objective was to determine if a behavioral approach can be applied to the treatment of test anxiety in a vocational rehabilitation program for drug abuse clients. A case history is presented. Procedural details for applying behavioral techniques are discussed. The results of the study indicate that the treatment strategies selected were effective in reducing test anxiety. One of the side effects of using an approach that puts the technology of behavior change into the hands of the client is that the skills learned during treatment can be used to cope with problems other than those discussed with the counselor.     

A diagrammatic approach to computer instruction for the naive user

There are inherent difficulties with text as an instructional format. This research presents the development of a diagrammatic representation that overcomes some of those difficulties. A simple “language” is presented that includes both procedural and model information. This approach is applied to the instruction of word processing/text-editing skills. An experimental methodology is presented and preliminary results are reported that suggest that the diagrammatic approach results in improvements in both the amount of word processing accomplished and the speed with which modifications are made.     

Irrationality as a Selfdefeating Calue-Orientation: A further study of the SVO-12 scale

The SVO-12 is based on an emotive approach to the assessment of irrationality. In order to test its reliability and validity the scale was administered to a group of students and a group of psychiatric patients. The statistical analyses gave acceptable reliability coefficients in both groups. Furthermore the scale differentiated significantly between patients and students, both totally and for men and women separately, thus supporting its validity according to RET-theory.and maintains a small private practice in Laksevåg, Bergen, Norway.     

An Existential-Phenomenological Approach to the Psychology of Religion

A primary aspect of existential and phenomenological methodologies is an attempt to understand one’s experience. In particular, phenomenology attempts to understand one’s experience in as pure of a form as possible. From an existential perspective, additional emphasis is placed upon the lived aspects of one’s experience. This paper outlines an existential-phenomenological approach to the psychology of religion. First, a brief history and summary of major themes of existential psychology is introduced. Next, this is applied to the psychology of religion. Last, the existential-phenomenological approach is considered in the context of the existential givens.     

Auditory spatial responses of young guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) during and after ear blocking

Newborn guinea pigs were tested to determine their ability to approach an auditory stimulus early in development. Observations of the behavior of 1-4-day-old animals in a circular eight-choice maze revealed a pronounced tendency to orient toward and approach a tape-recorded signal of guinea pig vocalizations. The occurrence of approach responses was reduced to chance in animals tested with one ear occluded by wax ear plugs which attenuated but did not totally eliminate sound. The effect of monaural ear blocks was more severe than binaural blocks, which reflects the importance of binaural cues in the maintenance of approach responses to sound. In a second study, the ability of older animals, 11-31 days of age, was examined. Directional approach responses to sound were also evident at this age, and ear plugs disrupted performance only under monaural conditions. Furthermore, in animals raised from birth with monaural ear blocks but tested without ear plugs, there was a subsequent disruption of performance for at least 21 days. These results indicate the importance of binaural cues in the development of early auditory spatial responses and suggest the need for appropriate binaural experience for subsequent localization of sounds.     

A job half done: The road to intelligence testing in the year 2000

After a brief historical review of the development of the intelligence test and the study of individual differences, it is suggested that the major impediment to an understanding of human intelligence is the fragmented way it is studied. This fragmented approach is in contradiction to the very factors which make the intelligence test successful. An orientation is suggested which integrates the various aspects of the study of human intelligence. If this approach, or one like it, is adopted and applied until the year 2000 it is suggested that intelligence tests will have a very different appearance than they do today. They will be an integral, but indescriminable, part of a systematic theory of the acquisition of knowledge.     

Induction of depressed mood: a test of opponent-process theory

Solomon's (1980) opponent-process theory of acquired motivation has been used to explain many phenomena in which affective or hedonic contrasts appear to exist, but has not been applied to the induction of depressed mood. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to determine whether opponent-process theory can be applied to this area. Velten's (1968) mood-induction procedure was used and subjects were assigned either to a depression-induction condition or to one of two control groups. Self-report measures of depressed mood were taken before, during, and at several points after the mood induction. Results were not totally consistent with a rigorous set of criteria for supporting an opponent-process interpretation. This suggests that the opponent-process model may not be applicable to induced depressed mood. Possible weaknesses in the experimental design, along with implications for opponent-process theory, are discussed.     

Emotional Design; Application of a Research-Based Design Approach

In this paper, we discuss an approach to ‘design for wow’ that focuses on the emotions that constitute a wow-experience. In this approach, the eliciting conditions of these emotions are used to define a product character with a high wow-impact. In addition to the approach, a measurable wow-index is introduced. First, a concept of wow is described in which wow is explained as a combination of fascination, pleasant surprise, and desire. The eliciting conditions of these three emotions are examined and combined to a ‘wow-appraisal.’ This concept is applied in the design of a mobile telephone. A combination of qualitative and quantitative research methods was used to formulate concern themes relevant for the wow-appraisal. These themes were used to create a layered product character and a prototype of the final design. An evaluation study demonstrated that the product designed with this approach rated higher on the wow-index than alternative products.     

Flow and quiet eye: the role of attentional control in flow experience

This report was designed to investigate the role of effective attention control in flow states, by developing an experimental approach to the study of flow. A challenge-skill balance manipulation was applied to self-paced netball and basketball shooting tasks, with point of gaze recorded through mobile eye tracking. Quiet eye was used to index optimal control of visual attention. While the experimental manipulation was found to have no effect, quiet eye was associated with the experience of flow. Furthermore, mediation revealed an indirect effect of quiet eye on performance through flow experience. This study provides initial evidence that flow may be preceded by changes in visual attention, suggesting that further investigation of visual attention may elucidate the cognitive mechanisms behind flow experience.     

Structural couple therapy in the treatment of inhibited sexual drive

Abstract

This paper presents a study of a structural couple therapy approach to the treatment of inhibited sexual desire (ISD). ISD is first conceptualized as a relational phenomenon that may be most effectively treated in a couple context. Structural couple therapy is advanced and applied to the treatment of a clinical sample of couples presenting with ISD. Results of the study suggest that a structural couple therapy approach to ISD is effective in reducing symptoms of the sexual disorder and in increasing couple satisfaction.     

A work commitment typology of sales representatives in the college textbook industry

The paper presents the results of an empirical study designed to develop a work commitment typology of sales representatives based on the combination of scores for job involvement and organizational commitment. Four types are identified and profiled: the totally involved, the organizational prone, the job prone, and the unattached. A multiple discriminant analysis suggests the sales representative's view of work-related characteristics to be more useful than personal characteristics in predicting work commitment type. Strategies for influencing the predominant types are provided.     

A new archival approach to the study of values and value--behavior relations: validation of the value lexicon

The present effort employs a new archival approach to study values and value- behavior relations, which is likely to be particularly useful in applied settings. A value lexicon was developed on the basis of the Schwartz (1992) value theory to extract lexical indicators of values from texts. The convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity of this measure was established using American newspaper content from 1900 to 2000 vis-à-vis existing self-report measures of values and objective indicators of value-expressive behaviors. Results provide empirical support for the use of the value lexicon to study values and value- behavior relations. First, the value lexicon demonstrated convergence with self-report responses of values. Second, values in American newspapers were associated with objective indicators of their corresponding value-expressive behaviors compared with noncorresponding value- expressive behaviors. Third, patterns of values over this 101-year period exhibited meaningful fluctuations with major historical and political events. The discussion describes new possibilities for future research on values in many applied settings with the value lexicon. The discussion also suggests that the principles of the value lexicon could be adopted to measure other psychological constructs of interest to applied psychology.