Some implications for psychological research of early versus late term participation by college subjects

Several surveys of recent psychological literature have indicated that a large percentage of human subjects are introductory psychology students who are given the option of selecting when to participate in research which is either implicitly or explicitly required of them. The present study was conducted to investigate the possibility that those subjects who choose to participate early in the term differ in personality and in attitudes toward research from later term participants. Results indicated that early term males and females, as expected, were more academically oriented and more internally controlled than late term subjects; and early term males were more achievement oriented than their late term counterparts. Additionally, females were found to feel more positive toward research participation than males; while a large percentage of all subjects reported both suspiciousness of experimenter intent and a general and unexpected willingness to voluntarily participate as subjects. Possible effects of these findings on research results and conclusions were discussed, and suggestions for improvements aimed at reducing self-selection bias in college subject pools were made.     

Some psychological correlates of hemophilia

Personality characteristics, as measured by the Personality Research Form (PRF-E) and a specially designed questionnaire, of 33 male hemophiliacs were investigated. Subjects were subdivided into three separate categories, bases on the severity of their clinical manifestations of the disease. Results showed that, as a whole, all scored within plus or minus one standard deviation of the mean on all PRF-E scales. When the data were analyzed according to severity level, however, a significant difference appeared among the groups on the Harmavoidance scale, which indicated that those suffering from the most severe form of the disease were the least likely to avoid potentially hazardous activities. These findings and those from the questionnaire were discussed. It was suggested that when the disease is quite severe subjects may abandon attempts to seek and control life-style antecedents of the occurrence of bleeding episodes.     

Social psychological implications of the narcissism theory]

The author recapitulates various conceptions of narcissism that are in psychoanalytic discussion and attempts to set up a new theoretical frame for the socio-psychological topoi "authoritarian character" and "narcissistic personality" by means of Kohut's conceptions of the "grandiose self" and the "idealized parental imago". Based on M. Mahler's observations, Kernberg's critique of Kohut is rejected.     

Clinical and research implications of revising psychological tests

This article integrates those of other contributors to this special section, "Methods and Implications of Revising Assessment Instruments," to underscore important conceptual factors to consider when undertaking test revisions. These considerations include determination of when test measures have become sufficiently understood to be incorporated in a test revision, cohort effects, revision of administration formats and test instructions, and comparisons of performance levels across test versions. The discussion of these factors also takes into consideration clinical practice and educational implications of making a transition to revised test versions.