The Factor Structure of Anxiety and Depressive Disorders in a Sample of Clinic-Referred Adolescents

The current study used confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to examine the factor structure of anxiety and depressive disorders in a sample of clinic-referred adolescents, aged between 12 and 18 years, for diagnoses based on parent (N?=?655; male?=?441) and adolescent (N?=?626; male?=?417) interviews. Three models were examined: a 1-factor model, with all anxiety and depressive disorders in a single factor; a DSM-based 2-factor model, with anxiety disorders in one factor, and depressive disorders in another factor; and an alternate 2-factor model, with fear related anxiety disorders in one factor, and other anxiety and depressive disorders in another factor. The findings indicated support for all three models. Also, ADHD and ODD/CD were associated with only the shared variances between the latent factors in the 2-factor models, and not their unique variance. The implications of the findings for taxonomy, comorbidity, and clinical practice are discussed.     

COMPARING PLEASURE AND PAIN: THE FUNDAMENTAL MATHEMATICAL EQUIVALENCE OF REWARD GAIN AND SHOCK REDUCTION UNDER VARIABLE INTERVAL SCHEDULES

The relationship between positive and negative reinforcement and the symmetry of Thorndike's law of effect are unresolved issues in operant psychology. Here we show that, for a given pattern of responding on variable interval (VI) schedules with the same programmed rate of food rewards (positive reinforcement VI) or electric shocks (negative reinforcement VI), there is a fundamental mathematical equivalence between reward gain and shock reduction. We also provide the first normative account of how animals should respond on a negative VI schedule, showing that it is better to space responses evenly than to respond with a variable interresponse time (IRT). Published data from rats, however, indicate that these animals respond irregularly, often with a burst of activity immediately following a shock. While this is irrational in the experimental setting, it may represent an appropriate response to the heterogeneity of stimuli commonly encountered in natural environments. We discuss the broader implications of our analysis for understanding how animals evaluate appetitive and aversive stimuli.     

Lesbian Identities: An Examination of Sexual Behavior and Sex. Role Attribution as Related to Age of Initial Same-Sex Sexual Encounter

To investigate some of the differences among lesbians proposed by Ponse (1978), 43 self-defined lesbians were interviewed and administered questionnaires. Three groups were distinguished on the basis of age of initial lesbian sexual experience, and those in the earliest and latest age groups were compared. Group 1 lesbians engaged in same-sex sexual relations prior to age 17 (perhaps before the establishment of their personal identity), were more sexually active at an earlier age, see themselves as having more stereotypic masculine traits, and define themselves as exclusively homosexual. Group 2 lesbians did not engage in same-sex sexual relations until after the age 20, were typically emotionally involved heterosexually prior to defining themselves as lesbians, and may be somewhat bisexual in activity. Both groups see themselves as being high in stereotypic feminine traits and have fairly active heterosexual histories. The heterogeneous nature of the "coming out" process for lesbians and its implications for future research are discussed.