Factors Influencing Word-Association Responses: A Reanalysis

In a reanalysis of data previously published (Merten, 1992, 1993b), the relations between a variety of indicators of word-association tests (WATs) and personality variables, verbal intelligence, age, and self-reflected thought and speech disorders were studied. Multiple regression analyses performed with a group of 46 healthy individuals showed pyschoticism to be a strong predictor for response creativity. On the basis of the data, more stringent methodological approaches to the WAT (common and individual response condition) are suggested for personality and creativity research. A cluster analysis of WAT data from 43 schizophrenics, 15 affective psychotics, and 46 control revealed different response patterns to be related to a number of variables, such as psychopathology, verbal intelligence, and personality. Although there seemed to exist a clear relation between the dimension of conformity/nonconformity and WAT responses, this relation is far more complex than correlational analyses or group comparisons can reflect. This work is relevant to creative studies in several ways. It extends associative theory, for example, which is often used to describe creative thinking. Similarly, it clarifies how originality of thought--and its antitheses, conformity and commonness--arise and are judged while thinking. Additionally, it contrasts groups that have varying levels of creativity, including individuals with mood disorders.     

THE CONCEPTUAL DOMAIN OF INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION BEHAVIOR: A FACTOR-ANALYTIC STUDY

A provisional taxonomy of interpersonal behavior, ordered as a circumplex, was empirically derived from both the phenomenological and public communication ratings of subjects. At both levels, ratings were most prominently influenced by a Control dimension, made up of the perceptions of socially undesirable behaviors. The circular arrangements of the variables showed that a gap existed in the active and passive affective quadrants. It was suggested that revision of the IBI incorporate the affective dimensions associated with the findings of interpersonal competence research and that communication researchers give appropriate emphasis to the affective domain of interpersonal behavior.     

Personality traits in late adolescence predict mental disorders in early adulthood: a prospective-epidemiological study

Prospective relations between personality traits and mental disorders were assessed in a longitudinal study of a representative birth cohort of young men and women from Dunedin, New Zealand. Personality traits were assessed via self-report questionnaire at age 18, and mental disorders were assessed via diagnostic interview at both ages 18 and 21. High "negative emotionality" (a propensity to experience aversive affective states) at age 18 was linked with affective, anxiety, substance dependence, and antisocial personality disorders at age 21 when corresponding mental disorders at age 18 were controlled. Low "constraint" (difficulty inhibiting the expression of affect and impulse) at age 18 was linked with substance dependence and antisocial personality disorders at age 21 when corresponding mental disorders at age 18 were controlled. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for the development and treatment of mental disorders in young adulthood.     

Accepting personality test feedback: A review of the Barnum effect

This article attempts a comprehensive and critical review of the by-now fairly extensive literature on the Barnum effect—the approval/acceptance by subjects of bogus personality interpretations supposedly derived from standard tests. Since the last major review eight years ago various methodological extensions have occurred and various rival hypotheses for established findings have been proposed. The present review is divided into three major sections: client and clinician characteristics; feedback statements and test format; and implications for personality assessment and measurement. Nearly 50 studies on the acceptance of personality interpretations are systematically reviewed and criticized.     

Angstzustände bei Patienten mit schweren Persönlichkeitsstörungen

States of anxiety are very common problems in patients with severe personality disorders. All phenomena of anxiety can be observed. In this connection a continuum of the severity of impairment of structural personality organisation can be postulated. In many cases proper anxiety disorders exist as comorbid disorders. Anxiety is esteemed to be the central affective problem of borderline patients. In spite of these relations, states of anxiety in patients with personality disorders are often underdiagnosed or misdiagnosed. For the treatment of neurotic anxiety disorders (for example panic disorders), there exist disorder-specific therapy manuals that proceed from behavioural as well as psychodynamic perspectives. Nevertheless, for the treatment of anxiety states in personality disordered patients, the techniques that focus heavily on symptomatology appear often contraindicated. In our opinion, treatment of these typically severe anxieties must be contained within a therapeutic framework, which essentially takes into account the personality organisation of this group of patients. Such treatment makes special demands on the therapist for working with transference and countertransference processes. From a disorder-specific psychodynamic perspective recommendations are given for psychotherapy.     

A logical learning theory explanation of why personality scales predict behavior

An explanation of why personality scales predict is drawn from the tenets of logical learning theory (Rychlak, 1977). This theory holds that behavior is not only responsive in nature, but also telosponsive, i.e., enacted intentionally for the sake of premises. Personality scales tap the subject's premises concerning some aspect of behavior, the meanings of which are then extended in behavior telosponsively so that a prediction to some criterion performance becomes possible. The subject in effect creates the behavior based on his or her premises. An important telosponse inhuman learning is that of affective assessment, which is operationalized as reinforcement value (like-dislike). Two experiments establish the role of reinforcement value in scale measurement and prediction. The first demonstrates that subjects score higher on personality dimensions which they like very much than on dimensions which they greatly dislike. The second experiment then establishes that a personality dimension which a subject both likes and scores highly on is more predictive to an independently assessed manifestation of this personality characteristic than is a comparable dimension which is disliked.     

Enhancing the Conceptualization and Measurement of Implicit and Explicit Affective Evaluations: A Case Study in Disordered Eating

Affective evaluations (i.e., evaluations of affectively evocative stimuli) play important roles in many behaviors, including clinically relevant behaviors like disordered eating. Understanding automatic and controlled affective evaluations can enhance prediction and treatment of more deliberate versus more impulsive clinical behaviors, respectively. However, methodological and theoretical shortcomings cloud the implicit affective evaluation literature, particularly as applied in clinical psychology. This article aims to improve the clinical science of implicit and explicit affective evaluation by capitalizing on theoretical and methodological advancements drawn from implicit social cognition. We recommend three key enhancements to the affective evaluation literature: improve the structural comparability between indirect and direct measures, assess evaluations on both valence and arousal dimensions of affect, and carefully characterize and select stimuli. Additional improvements to analytic approaches (e.g., mixed effects modeling and process dissociation) are also recommended. Such efforts will advance our theoretical understanding of the relative contributions of automatic and controlled processes to clinically relevant affective evaluation, thereby informing assessment and improving intervention. Applying advanced methodologies of implicit cognition to clinical phenomena will also reiterate and reinforce the use of these advances in social psychology.     

Dissociation and self-awareness in directed daydreaming

Self-awareness, as the ability to be the observer of one's own cognitive. affective, and volitional states, was explored in directed daydreaming. Self-awareness of varying complexity and depth was found in the dissociated ego states, which were experienced as relatively discontinuous with each other in space and time, and discontinuous with the subjects' usual experience of a cohesive self. An extreme expression of shallow self-awareness was found for a few subjects who reported a fantasy with no experience of a self. The most elaborate form of self-awareness, coconsciousness , was found for the majority of subjects in the two-ego state group, where both of their ego states were associated with an identity feeling, and where one ego state evidenced full awareness of the thoughts and feelings of the other state. Coconsciousness was found to be a prerequisite for deep self-awareness in directed daydreaming.     

Affective dimension in cognitive maps of Barcelona and São Paulo

This paper analyses the relationship between city and affection as revealed through an investigation into the feelings and emotions of a sample of inhabitants of Barcelona and São Paulo towards their cities. A study of affection in the context of a city has its origin in the assumption that it is possible to develop an ethical‐affective rationality in the creation of spaces of both public and private interest, a dimension that can serve to optimize the action of the inhabitants of a city. The theoretical/methodological approach adopted was essentially interdisciplinary, with a basis in social psychology, as can be seen in the data‐gathering instrument. In order to assess the city's affective dimension, individual interviews were carried out and a questionnaire was applied to individuals in groups. In the latter subjects were asked to make a drawing representing their city and to answer some questions regarding this pictorial representation. The sample consisted of 200 subjects, half of whom were from Barcelona and half from São Paulo. Most were in the age range 18–35, undergraduate or graduate students, with females and residents of the metropolitan areas of the two cities studied being in the majority. The qualitative data were classified according to their meaning and content, using the categories that had been established in the pilot study, namely contrasts, insecurity, pleasantness, and belonging. A statistical analysis was then performed on the resulting categories. After being categorized, catalogued, and qualified by metaphors, the responses gave the following images: city of contrast, city of attraction, city of destruction, city of surprises, city of movement, and pleasant city. These images show feelings and emotions about Barcelona and São Paulo that act as representations. This presents the need to revise the affective dimension in the meaning structure of cognitive maps as proposed by Lynch. As a result, the new category of affective maps is therefore proposed, as being the category that expresses affective meanings and serves as an indication of the level of esteem for the city, two aspects that act as reference points for the involvement and participation of a city's inhabitants.     

Support for Returning to Work for a Patient of Social Behavior Disorder with Impaired Self-awareness

Social behavioral disorders and impaired self-awareness, which are sequelae of brain injuries, have negative effects on interpersonal relationships and employment. In this study, we performed a long-term client-centered approach to help the patient diagnosed with a social behavior disorder and impaired self-awareness return to work. Cognitive rehabilitation, cognitive-behavioral treatment, and positive behavioral support were provided while assessing the self-awareness using the Japanese version of the Self-Regulation Skills Interview. This patient exemplifies the importance of establishing methods for self-monitoring and rebuilding a positive self-identity while considering the complexities of self-awareness when helping patients with impaired self-awareness. The patient took the initiative in managing problematic behaviors due to social behavior disorder, and as a result, was able to achieve stable self-awareness. The strategies described in this patient can be used in the future to treat patients with social behavior disorder due to inadequate self-awareness. In order to practice a client-centered approach while assessing the patient's level of self-awareness, it is important to build a trusting relationship over a long period. To assess the level of self-awareness, existing interviews, questionnaires, and work to express one's mental and physical state as seen by the patient may be effective.

     

The effect of induced anxiety on cognition: threat of shock enhances aversive processing in healthy individuals

Individuals with anxiety disorders demonstrate altered cognitive performance including (1) cognitive biases towards negative stimuli (affective biases) and (2) increased cognitive rigidity (e.g., impaired conflict adaptation) on affective Stroop tasks. Threat of electric shock is frequently used to induce anxiety in healthy individuals, but the extent to which this manipulation mimics the cognitive impairment seen in anxiety disorders is unclear. In this study, 31 healthy individuals completed an affective Stroop task under safe and threat-of-shock conditions. We showed that threat (1) enhanced aversive processing and abolished a positive affective bias but (2) had no effect on conflict adaptation. Threat of shock thus partially models the effects of anxiety disorders on affective Stroop tasks. We suggest that the affective state of anxiety—which is common to both threat and anxiety disorders—modulates the neural inhibition of subcortical aversive processing, whilst pathologies unique to anxiety disorders modulate conflict adaptation.     

Affect at the different phases of cognitive behavioral therapy: An evaluation of psychotherapy provided by candidates

The purpose of this study was to investigate the affect, as measured by “Positive and Negative Affect Schedule” (PANAS), its influence on psychopathology, and to examine the effect of changing affect during cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The study was carried out at the psychotherapy training center, Karlstad University. The hypothesis was whether clients with mental disorders have a self‐destructive affective personality (low PA and high NA) and healthy individuals have a self‐actualizing personality (high PA and low NA). Thirty‐two healthy participants and 44 clients participated in the study. The clients were asked to fill in the PANAS once throughout CBT, either during evaluation, treatment or finishing phase, accordingly there were three different groups at different therapy phases. The healthy subjects were also asked to fill in the self‐report scale once. The comparison of the three phases of therapy and the four affective personality types showed a significant difference between the phases of therapy and the four affective personality types: totally 16 (of 22) and eight (of nine) clients measured at the evaluation and treatment phases, respectively, had a self‐destructive personality. However, at the end of therapy five (of 13) clients had a self‐actualizing personality characteristics, while only three of them were self‐destructive. Furthermore, the results indicate that affective personality does not seem to be a basic and stable personality trait, which could be altered by therapy. The affections measured by PANAS may be influenced by psychopathology and CBT, when conducted by candidate therapists it can be effective in terms of affect changes.     

A study of temperament and personality in anorexia and bulimia nervosa

Although temperament and personality traits could influence the development and course of eating disorders, only a few studies examined the similarities and differences in personality between anorexia and bulimia nervosa. We compared 72 patients with DSM-IV eating disorders and 30 healthy controls. Dimensions of personality and personality disorders were evaluated with the Eysenck's EPQ, Cloninger's TCI, and the SCID-II questionnaires. The rates of impulsivity and clinical features were evaluated using specific rating scales. A comorbid personality disorder was found in 61.8% of patients with eating disorder. Avoidant personality disorder appeared was relatively common in anorexia nervosa restricting type; borderline personality disorder was most frequent in bulimia nervosa and the binge eating-purging type of anorexia nervosa. From a dimensional perspective, anorexic patients presented high scores in the dimension of persistence. Higher harm avoidance and impulsivity was found in bulimic patients. The overall eating disorders group presented high scores in neuroticism and low scores in self-directedness. Eating disorder patients have heterogeneous features of temperament and personality traits. Cluster C personality disorders seem more common in anorexia nervosa restricting type and impulsive personality features are associated with bulimic symptoms. Impulsivity seems to be a key aspect of temperament of bulimic patients, whereas anorexic symptoms are linked to persistent temperament traits.     

Social anxiety and premorbid personality disorders in paranoid schizophrenic patients treated with clozapine

The concept of anxiety as a distinct comorbid disorder in schizophrenia has recently been rediscovered after having been neglected for a long period of time due to both theoretical and clinical approaches adopted from the appearance of the first edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders in 1950. This rediscovery was accentuated by the fact that the concept of comorbidity in various psychiatric disorders has recently won widespread favor within the scientific community, and that the use of atypical neuroleptic medication to treat patients with schizophrenia has been reported to lead to the emergence of anxiety symptoms. Of the atypical neuroleptic medications used to treat schizophrenia, clozapine has most frequently been reported to induce anxiety symptoms. In this paper, 12 cases of patients with paranoid schizophrenia who developed social phobia during clozapine treatment are reported, and their response to fluoxetine augmentation is assessed. Premorbid personality disorders were also investigated; patients were assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R-Patient Version and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Personality Disorders (DSM-III-R=Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Third Edition Revised; DSM-IV=Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition). In addition, the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms, the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms, the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS), the Frankfurt Beschwerde Fragebogen (Frankfurt Questionnaire of Complaints), and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale were used to rate clinical symptomatology. All patients were reevaluated after 12 weeks of cotreatment with clozapine and fluoxetine. In 8 (66.6%) of the 12 cases, symptoms responded (>/=35% LSAS score reduction) to an adjunctive regimen of fluoxetine. Furthermore, in 7 (58.3%) of the 12 cases, an anxious personality disorder (avoidant=33.3%; dependent=25%) was identified, but no significant differences in the prevalence of comorbid personality disorders emerged in comparison with a group of 16 patients with paranoid schizophrenia treated with clozapine who did not show symptoms of social phobia. The clinical relevance of the assessment and treatment of anxiety disorders is discussed in light of a clinical therapeutic approach that overcomes the implicit hierarchy of classification. Considering that the onset of anxiety-spectrum disorders (such as social phobia) can occur during the remission of psychotic symptoms in clozapine-treated patients with schizophrenia, a comprehensive approach to pharmacological therapy for patients with schizophrenia (or, at least for those treated with clozapine) should be adopted.     

情感触摸对心理健康的影响及应用

情感触摸指那些用来表达爱、关心、欣赏等感情或者被认为传递了这类信息的触摸行为。触摸愉悦感的产生与存在于人类多毛皮肤中名为C触觉的一组低阈值机械感受传入神经有关。早期经验和社会文化因素共同塑造了个体的触摸体验模式,积极的体验模式能够增强社会联系,促进亲密关系,触摸回避则与某些心理障碍有关。情感触摸具有治疗功能,但在心理治疗领域的应用涉及伦理问题,中介触摸和替代触摸可以作为解决触摸回避和伦理问题的新方法。     

A Primary Role for Nonverbal Communication in Psychoanalysis

How a person speaks says as much, if not more, than what they say. Nonverbal cues, such as facial expression, posture and tone of voice are part of all interpersonal relatedness. Nonverbal cues not only express emotion, but also regulate the body physiology, emotions and behaviors between individuals. The homeostatic regulatory mechanisms and affective exchanges between mother and infant proceed nonverbally. Neuroscience data now indicates these same nonverbal mechanisms occur between adults to facilitate attachment, regulate affect and physiology and to provide a sense of being understood. The impact of nonverbal cues is mediated by circuits involving limbic structures in the brain which activate nonverbal cues along with changes in hormone levels, neurotransmitters and the autonomic nervous system. Clinical vignettes are used to illustrate how nonverbal cues function in the analytic treatment setting to shape both transference and countertransference phenomena. Since nonverbal mechanisms can be activated without conscious awareness, neither patient nor analysand may be directly aware of their impact. Analysts must pay attention to their own feelings, behaviors and body sensations as indirect indicators of the affective state and meanings of the patient.     

Motivational factors related to differences in self-schemas

This research attempts to integrate self-determination theory with the construct of self-schema. Forty-nine schematic subjects (i.e., extreme on a personality dimension) received counterschematic feedback in either an ego-involving or non-ego-involving condition. Subjects’ autonomy versus control orientations were assessed. Results indicated that subjects with higher autonomy orientations changed less in response to counterschematic feedback than those with lower autonomy orientations. As well, subjects in the ego-involving condition changed more in the direction of the counterschematic feedback than those in the non-ego-involving condition. Findings suggest that both dispositional and situational factors account for differences in the degree to which individuals display consistency and self-awareness in processing information about themselves. Results are interpreted as support for the notion that greater autonomy is associated with a higher degree of self-knowledge and self-concept stability. This research was supported in part by the Frances L. Hiatt School of Psychology, Clark University.     

Co-occurring disorders among mentally ill jail detainees. Implications for public policy.

Studies have demonstrated that police often arrest the mentally ill when treatment alternatives would be preferable but are unavailable. Thus, jails may contain disproportionate numbers of severely mentally ill persons who have co-occurring disorders. Data on the co-occurrence of severe mental disorder, substance abuse, and antisocial personality disorders were gathered from 728 randomly selected male urban jail detainees. Using difference of proportions tests and loglinear analysis, the authors demonstrated that most subjects with a severe mental disorder (schizophrenia or a major affective disorder) also meet criteria for a substance abuse or antisocial personality disorder. These findings suggest several changes in public policy regarding health care delivery in correctional settings and for the general population.     

The displaced aggression questionnaire

Previous measures of aggressive personality have focused on direct aggression (i.e., retaliation toward the provoking agent). An original self-report measure of trait displaced aggression is presented. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses provided support for a 3-factor conceptualization of the construct. These analyses identified an affective dimension (angry rumination), a cognitive dimension (revenge planning), and a behavioral dimension (general tendency to engage in displaced aggression). The trait measure demonstrated good internal consistency and test-retest reliability as well as convergent and discriminant construct validity. Unlike other related personality measures, trait displaced aggression significantly predicted indirect indicators of real-world displaced aggression (i.e., self-reported domestic abuse and road rage) as well as laboratory displaced aggression in 2 experiments.     

The Relationship Between Personality and Subjective Well-Being: Different Association Patterns When Measuring the Affective Component in Frequency and Intensity

The aim was to determine whether the relationship between personality traits and Subjective Well-Being (SWB) differs when the affective component of SWB is measured in terms of frequency or intensity. Extraversion and Neuroticism were expected to show significant but different associations to SWB depending on the dimension of the affective component. Swedish undergraduate students (N = 153) self-reported personality, life satisfaction (LS), and affect measured in both frequency (i.e., how often they feel certain affects) and intensity (i.e., how strongly they feel certain affects). Two types of SWB-scores were constructed by merging LS with affect measured in either frequency or intensity. While Extraversion had a similar effect on both types of SWB, Neuroticism had a significantly stronger effect on SWB when the affective component was measured in frequency. More importantly, the effect of Neuroticism, compared to Extraversion, was stronger on SWB regardless of the dimension of the affective component. These findings suggest that future research should clearly distinguish between intensity and frequency when measuring the affective component of SWB. The distinction is important, not only due to the distinctiveness of the affective dimensions per se, but also due to different association patterns between personality traits and both dimensions.