Self‐reported psychopathology in a convicted serial killer

The following paper presents a case study of a convicted serial murderer. Through data from personal correspondence, police reports, a true crime novel, witness statements, medical examiner reports, court appeals, and crime scene reports from the actual murder cases, and most important, a series of psychological self‐report measures, a case study was developed. Included in the psychological measures were tests of general psychopathology, specific tests of psychopathy, anger and aggression scales, and sociological measures related to family, individual, situational, and community risk factors, as well as previous criminal behaviour, including weapon and drug use. The results of these various measures are incorporated into the life history and criminal activity of the individual. The purpose of this research was to develop a more complete psychological report of a serial killer than any other previously reported. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

“White” or “European American”? Self-identifying labels influence majority group members' interethnic attitudes

Multiculturalism (i.e., the recognition and celebration of cultural differences) has many potential benefits for society, including reduced prejudice among nonminorities and increased psychological well-being among ethnic minorities. Yet nonminorities generally tend to resist multiculturalism more than do minorities and believe that it is irrelevant to them. Two studies were conducted to examine why and under what conditions this is the case. In both studies, nonminority participants were randomly assigned to mark their race/ethnicity as either “White” or “European American” on a demographic survey, before answering questions about their interethnic attitudes. Results demonstrated that nonminorities primed to think of themselves as White (versus European American) were subsequently less supportive of multiculturalism and more racially prejudiced, due to decreases in identification with ethnic minorities. Implications for how to improve nonminorities' attitudes toward multiculturalism are discussed.     

Validation of the shortened cope for use with breast cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy

To study the relationship between cancer and emotional adjustment, investigation of situation-specific coping behaviors with respect to narrowly defined Stressors has recently been promoted. The development and validation of shorter instruments, designed to facilitate completion by clinical populations, has also been recommended. The current study examined the coping skills used by French-Canadian women undergoing radiation therapy for breast cancer. A factor analysis of the 28-item shortened COPE (Carver, Scheier, & Weintraub, 1989) yielded the following eight factors: disengagement, self-distraction, active coping, using emotional support from husband/ partner, using emotional support from friends, turning to religion, humor, and substance use. The test-retest and Cronbach alpha internal consistency reliability coefficients of the French-Canadian shortened COPE were actually higher than those observed in the full-length version of the instrument. In addition, the eight factor-based scores correlated in a theoretically meaningful manner with existing measures of coping skills with illness (Coping with Health Injuries and Problems; CHIP) and mood disturbance (Profile of Mood States; POMS), thus suggesting good construct convergent and concurrent criterion validity. In particular, the disengagement COPE scale was correlated highly with anxiety, depression, and anger. While further validation is recommended, the results show promise for the shortened COPE in assessing coping in women with breast cancer, and also provide continued evidence for the notion that specific coping skills are associated with particular mood states.     

Age-related differences in the course of cognitive skill acquisition: the role of regional cortical shrinkage and cognitive resources

This study examined the impact of age-related differences in regional cerebral volumes and cognitive resources on acquisition of a cognitive skill. Volumes of brain regions were measured on magnetic resonance images of healthy adults (aged 22-80). At the early stage of learning to solve the Tower of Hanoi puzzle, speed and efficiency were associated with age, prefrontal cortex volume, and working memory. A similar pattern of brain-behavior associations was observed with perseveration measured on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. None of the examined structural brain variables were important at the later stages of skill acquisition. When hypertensive participants were excluded, the effect of prefrontal shrinkage on executive aspects of performance was no longer significant, but the effect of working memory remained.     

Disability rights critique of prenatal genetic testing: reflections and recommendations

Using prenatal tests to prevent the birth of babies with disabilities seems to be self-evidently good to many people. Even if the testing will not help bring a healthy baby to term this time, it gives prospective parents a chance to try again to conceive. To others, however, prenatal testing looks rather different. If one thinks about the history of our society's treatment of people with disabilities, it is not hard to see why people identified with the disability rights movement might regard such testing as dangerous. For the members of this movement, living with disabling traits need not be detrimental to an individual's prospects of leading a worthwhile life, or to the families in which they grow up, or to society at large. Although the movement has no one position on prenatal diagnosis, many of its adherents believe that public support for prenatal diagnosis and abortion based on disability contravenes the movement's basic philosophy and goals.     

Strength of religious faith and psychological adjustment in intercollegiate athletes

In light of recent research examining the distress buffering properties of religion in intercollegiate athletes' lives, the present study investigated associations among religious faith and depressive symptoms, trait anxiety, and loneliness. Using self-report questionnaires, religious faith was not correlated with depressive symptoms, trait anxiety, and loneliness in 57 intercollegiate athletes.     

Using stimulus equivalence‐based instruction to teach young children their caregivers' contact information

Stimulus equivalence‐based instruction (EBI) was used to teach young children of typical development three 4‐member equivalence classes containing contact information from three caregivers (e.g., mother, father, and grandmother). Each class comprised the caregiver's (a) photograph, (b) printed name, (c) printed phone number, and (d) printed name of employer. A pretest‐train‐posttest‐maintenance design with a nontreatment control group comparison was used. Pretests and posttests assessed the degree to which class‐consistent responding occurred across both visual–visual matching tasks and intraverbals. Intraverbal responding was also probed with a novel instructor. Overall, EBI participants scored significantly higher during the posttests than the control participants across both the derived relations and intraverbal tests. These differences maintained 2 weeks later. Thus, responding generalized to (a) a different topography (i.e., intraverbal), (b) auditory versions of the stimuli, and (c) in the presence of a novel instructor. How such procedures may benefit lost children are discussed.     

A Window in Time: A Response to “Disorders of Temporality and The Subjective Experience of Time: Unresponsive Objects and the Vacuity of the Future” by Stephen Seligman

This response to Stephen Seligman’s “Disorders of Temporality and The Subjective Experience of Time: Unresponsive Objects and the Vacuity of the Future” considers Seligman’s ideas in the context of field theory. Seligman’s notion of becoming a self in time is elaborated through the concept, derived from field theory, of how time assumes an “essential ambiguity” that may facilitate analytic change and psychological development. This response suggests further that such “essential ambiguity” in relation to time opens both the patient and analyst up to a variety of complex, bidirectional influences, such as unconsciously mediated intergenerational transmissions of trauma. In addition, this response explores Seligman’s ideas associated with an analyst’s moment-to-moment recognitions and a patient’s corresponding development of a self in time in terms of their implications for analytic participation and analytic self-care.     

Rape Myth Acceptance among Social Work Students

It is important to examine rape myth acceptance and the pertinent situational factors that affect attitudes and beliefs concerning the act of rape, perpetrators, and survivors. This study examines the influence of alcohol consumption and perceptions of alcohol use on levels of rape myth acceptance among social work students. Results showed differences in levels of rape myth acceptance based on race or ethnicity and gender. Results also showed that the version of the vignette read by the participant was a significant predictor of rape myth acceptance. Respondents’ perceptions of alcohol consumption were also a strong predictor of rape myth acceptance levels. These results demonstrate there are multiple factors that influence social work students’ rape myth acceptance levels that need further examination.     

Natural sequence of recovery from child post-traumatic amnesia: A retrospective cohort study

The aim of this study was to determine the sequence of skills recovery during post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) in children with moderate to severe traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). Setting: Fifty children aged 8 to 15 years consecutively admitted to a children’s hospital with TBI and PTA>24 were tested in a retrospective cohort study where the main measure was the Westmead PTA Scale (WPTAS). The group analyses show that orientation to time took longer to recover than orientation to person and place, but not memory, while the individual analyses revealed that when orientation to time was grouped with memory, 94% of children recovered orientation to person and place before orientation to time and memory (examiner and pictures). Correlation coefficients between age and the number of days taken to recover skills were not found to be significant. It was established that, in terms of the natural sequence of skills recovery in children aged 8 to 15 years following moderate to severe TBI, recovery of orientation to time is more closely aligned to memory than to orientation to person and place. It was also established that WPTAS items are developmentally appropriate for children aged 8 to 15 years who have sustained TBI. These findings are clinically important because monitoring recovery from PTA both impacts the rehabilitation offered to individuals during acute care and aids discharge planning.