Stable vs unstable weight history, body-image, and weight concern in women of average body weight

The focus of this study was the effect of unstable weight history on current body-image among women. Participants were 45 college women of average weight (median age = 23 yr.); 15 had stable weight histories, 15 had past lowest weights 15% or more below current weight, and 15 had past highest weights 15% or more above current weight. The women were assessed on perceptual and attitudinal measures of body-image and a self-report measure of preoccupation with weight. In comparison to women with stable weight histories, those with unstable weight histories indicated greater dissatisfaction with the shape and size of their bodies, expressed more negative body attitudes, and reported increased concern about weight. Women with high weight histories overestimated their frontal body-size and expressed greater dissatisfaction with frontal size than women with low weight histories, but the two groups did not differ significantly on any of the other dependent measures. Possible explanations for increased body-image disturbance and weight concern among women with unstable weight histories are presented.     

Self-rated competence, current weight, and body-image among college women

125 female undergraduates (M age = 19.7 yr.) self-rated their academic, social, and psychological competence and were assessed with respect to current weight, weight concern, and body attitudes. Self-rated academic, social, and psychological competence were not related to current weight; however, less positive self-evaluations of social competence were related to weight concern, negative appraisals of appearance, and dissatisfaction with body parts. Subjective ratings of academic and psychological competence were not significantly associated with any of these variables.     

A preliminary investigation of multicultural perspective and life satisfaction

The present study represents a preliminary investigation of Ramirez' contention that developing a multicultural identity would lead to better mental health and more life satisfaction. Using a tentative index of a multicultural perspective analysis indicated that, although a multicultural perspective is associated with more life satisfaction, it accounts for only 8% of the variance. Further, one of the measures used by Ramirez to measure an aspect of a multicultural perspective was not correlated with life satisfaction, and another correlated negatively. This latter measure accounts for only 6% of the variance in life satisfaction. Combined, these findings provide limited support for Ramirez perspective by explaining 14% of the overall variance in life satisfaction.     

The effect of computer response time on user performance and satisfaction: A preliminary investigation

The present study was designed to investigate the effect of delays in the response of the computer on the performance of the user and his satisfaction with the system. While it is generally assumed that computer responses should be no longer than several seconds, the present study showed no effect of 5- or 10-sec fixed or variable delays on subjects debugging a simple BASIC program. These results have important implications for the design of large, multiuser timesharing systems.     

Perceived coach-autonomy support, basic need satisfaction and the well- and ill-being of elite youth soccer players: A longitudinal investigation

Objectives

Drawing from the basic needs theory [BNT; Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2002). An overview of self-determination theory. In E. L. Deci, & R. M. Ryan (Eds.), Handbook of self-determination research (pp. 3-33). Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press], the major purpose of the present study was to test a hypothesized sequence of temporal relationships between perceptions of coach-autonomy support, basic need satisfaction and indices of well- and ill-being. A subsidiary aim was to ascertain the assumed mediational role of basic need satisfaction in explicating the perceived autonomy support and well-/ill-being relationships over time.

Design

A field-based longitudinal design was employed.

Methods

Participants (N = 54 males) from an elite youth soccer academy in the UK completed a multi-section questionnaire tapping the targeted variables on six occasions across two competitive seasons.

Results

Multi-level regression analyses revealed that perceptions of coach-autonomy support positively predicted within-person changes and between-person mean differences in basic need satisfaction and well-being over time. Satisfaction scores for the needs for competence and relatedness were found to predict within-person changes in subjective vitality. These same needs partially mediated the coach-autonomy support-subjective vitality link over the two seasons.

Conclusions

The findings partially support the tenets of BNT, and are discussed in terms of their practical application to participants involved in an elite youth sport setting.     

Group exercise reduces depression in obese women without weight loss

Given participation in a 6-mo. exercise and relaxation training 8 obese women showed significant change in scores on the Beck Depression Inventory over the 6-mo. interval, but not on Body Mass Index or Medical Outcome Study Short-Form-36.     

Marriage encounter casualties: A preliminary investigation

Abstract

The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate the relationship between participation in Marriage Encounter, the largest marriage enrichment program in the world, and subsequent marital or family distress. Analyzing 13 case reports from seven marital therapists, the authors suggest that Marriage Encounter weekends can cause marital or family deterioration for some couples through increased marital conflict, avoidance of constructive problem solving, or marital enmeshment at the expense of children. It appears that the most harmful aspect of the Marriage Encounter experience is its induction of intense couple-centered communication, leading to emotional overload in some couples. The authors offer several recommendations intended to lower the risks associated with participation in Marriage Encounter.     

Delineating generalized anxiety: A preliminary investigation

The present study examined the nature of generalized anxiety, which was defined as the constellation of symptoms listed as diagnostic criteria for generalized anxiety disorder in DSM-III-R. Generalized anxiety was assessed by means of a questionnaire that was especially constructed for this study. Although multidimensional scaling of symptoms reported by a clinically anxious sample produced orthogonal anxiety and panic dimensions, many symptoms were common to both dimensions. Whereas worry was found to be the cardinal feature of generalized anxiety, respiratory symptoms were found to associate closely with panic. These dimensions were replicated in a student sample. It is argued that while generalized anxiety symptoms constitute a unique dimension in the field of anxiety disorders, both panic and generalized anxiety may be linked with a basic anxiety response system. The findings also indicated that worry associated more closely with generalized anxiety than did apprehensive expectations. The heuristic value of the findings are discussed in light of the issue relating to an anxiety-panic continuum.     

A preliminary investigation of the relationship between induced rumination and state body image dissatisfaction and anxiety

The current study investigated the relationship between cognitive rumination and state body image distress using an experimental design. Specifically, the study examined whether participants induced to ruminate about an imagined negative body image event would report more body image dissatisfaction and anxiety compared to those induced to distract themselves. Ninety-nine undergraduate women completed two measures to assess depressive symptomology and baseline body image distress. All participants then silently read a body image scenario intended to evoke negative emotions. After reading the scenario, participants were randomized into one of two conditions, rumination or distraction, and were then re-administered the self-report measures. Statistical analyses revealed that the rumination group reported more state body image dissatisfaction and anxiety after the manipulation. The findings provide preliminary support for the hypothesis that a ruminative response style, specifically within a body image domain, predicts body image dissatisfaction and anxiety.     

Knowledge of spatial relations: A preliminary investigation

The mechanism underlying our knowledge of spatial relationships was investigated. In the first experiment subjects were asked to examine an array of circles, located in different positions on a background; after removal of the array, they answered questions about the spatial relations between the circles. The array was constructed so that the number of circles and the number of relations between circles could be independently varied. The results showed that the number of correct answers decreased as the number of circles increased, but was unaffected by the number of relations between circles. This suggests that subjects learn the positions of the circles, from which relations between circles can be computed, rather than learning the relations directly. Evidence from the second experiment, using a similar experimental paradigm, suggests that the positions of the circles are learned by organizing them into higher-order units or groups.     

Perceived dyadic coping,anxiety, depression and satisfaction with life of women diagnosed with fibromyalgia

Women diagnosed with fibromyalgia face a wide range of challenges impacting multiple aspects of their lives, such as their relationship with their partner. This study aims to examine how women diagnosed with fibromyalgia manage stress in their own couple and to investigate the role of dyadic coping in anxiety and depression symptoms, and in life satisfaction. Seventy-three women diagnosed with fibromyalgia and 73 matched women filled questionnaires to examine dyadic coping, anxiety and depression symptoms, and life satisfaction. Results show that women diagnosed with fibromyalgia perceived themselves and their partner as using more negative dyadic coping, more delegated dyadic coping and less common dyadic coping. Moreover, negative dyadic coping predicted higher anxiety symptoms and poorer life satisfaction. Overall, our findings highlight the importance of dyadic stress management in understanding psychological adjustment better in women diagnosed with fibromyalgia and the need to develop better-adapted interventions to support them effectively.     

Changing eating behaviour vs. losing weight: the role of goal focus for weight loss in overweight women

A 6-week longitudinal study with N?=?126 overweight women participating in a weight-loss programme investigated the hypothesis that focusing on the process (dietary behaviours) rather than on the outcome of dieting (weight loss) is associated with more successful goal pursuit and achievement. As expected, process focus was related positively to subjective daily success in dieting as well as to actual weight loss, and negatively to deviations from the diet. In contrast, outcome focus had a negative impact on successful dieting: focusing on weight loss was marginally negatively related to actual weight loss and was associated with more disinhibition after lapses. Confirming hypotheses, self-regulation failure (i.e. deviations from the diet, disinhibition) was negatively related to daily affective well-being. Contrary to hypotheses, however, goal focus was not directly associated with affective well-being but only indirectly through self-regulation. Focusing on the process rather than on the outcome of dieting, then, might help achieving difficult health-related goals and support self-regulation but does not contribute directly to affective well-being.     

Narrative ability in school-age stuttering boys: A preliminary investigation

In a preliminary investigation, narrative ability was compared in stuttering and nonstuttering school-age boys using tasks known to be sensitive to narrative deficits. The groups were also compared on the broader domains of receptive and expressive language development using the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals - Revised (CELF-R). The results did not support the popular view that stutterers, as a group, are more vulnerable to language disorders than their nonstuttering peers. A recent hypothesis that stuttering behavior might be a causal factor in delayed expressive language development was also not supported. The importance of examining individual differences in stuttering children is emphasized for both clinical and research purposes.     

Developmental auditory agnosia in retarded adolescents: A preliminary investigation

Four mentally retarded adolescents who showed little or no expressive or receptive language were given a series of tests to determine if they could respond to meaningful nonlinguistic sounds. The tests required the subjects to respond to sounds on the basis of meaning by classifying the sounds according to the objects which produced them, i.e., the sound sources. The results show that the subject could not classify the sounds on the basis of their source although they could discriminate between them. These results are in contrast to the near perfect classification by another retarded subject who lacked speech due to a motor disorder but, nevertheless, showed good understanding of language. The finding that some nonverbal children have difficulty in responding to the meaning of nonlinguistic sounds suggests the possibility that the failure of these children to develop language may have been due to an agnosia not unlike that found in adult stroke patients.     

Moral approval of aggressive acts: A preliminary investigation

A questionnaire was used to investigate 1) the approval of various kinds of aggressive behaviour under different specified circumstances and 2) the arousal of feelings of aggression in imagined situations. In addition, an attitude test was presented which discriminated between the two highest of Kohlberg's levels of moral reasoning [1969]. The subjects were a very varied group of 83 adults (aged 17–68 years) from municipal evening courses in Finland. Aggression was most approved when it was given altruistic purpose. Self-defense was rated as the second highest justification for aggression. Aggression was found least legitimate when the reasons were emotional (drunk, rage). The justification of some types of aggressive behaviour were dependent on the conditions under which they occurred, whereas others appeared independent. Killing and torture were the most disapproved kinds of aggressive behaviour. Another's attack was the most powerful instigator of feelings of aggression, whereas frustration seemed relatively unimportant. Females approved of emotional expressions of aggression to a greater extent than did males. The moral test did not correlate with approval of aggression in general, but a couple of more specific predictions about the effects of level of moral reasoning on attitudes to socially sanctioned forms of aggression were tentatively confirmed.     

The effects of outcome expectations and satisfaction on weight loss and maintenance: correlational and experimental analyses--a randomized trial.

This study examines the hypothesis that highly favorable outcome expectations promote weight loss and hinder weight maintenance. To investigate the effects of outcome expectations and satisfaction with treatment outcomes on weight loss, 349 adults were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 weight loss programs that emphasize either (a) an "optimistic" message, focusing exclusively on the positive aspects of weight loss, or (b) a "balanced" message, giving equal time to positive and negative aspects of weight loss. Participants changed their weight loss cognitions in response to the intervention, but there was no significant difference between the intervention treatment groups in short-term or long-term (18-month) weight loss. Independent of treatment message, positive outcome expectations and satisfaction were both associated with weight loss.