Evaluating the Social Acceptability of Persons with Habit Disorders: The Effects of Topography, Frequency, and Gender Manipulation

In this study, 120 undergraduate students were asked to rate the social acceptability of a male and female who portrayed different habit behaviors (motor tics, vocal tics, Tourette's disorder, and trichotillomania). The portrayals of these behaviors were clinically valid as viewed by mental health professionals. Each habit behavior was portrayed in a variety of frequency/topography combinations including low frequency/mild topography, low frequency/severe topography, high frequency/mild topography, and high frequency/ severe topography. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four habit conditions (motor tic, vocal tic, Tourette's disorder, and trichotillomania) and were asked to rate the social acceptability of the frequency/topography combinations exhibited by each actor. Results showed that across the various habit conditions, the man with the habit was seen as less socially acceptable than the woman with the habit. In addition, low-frequency habit behaviors were more acceptable than high-frequency behaviors, and behaviors with mild topographies were more acceptable than those with severe topography habits. Motor tics were seen as more acceptable than vocal tics, Tourette's disorder, or trichotillomania. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Empfehlungen zur Behandlungspraxis bei psychotherapeutischen Kriseninterventionen

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

The Fallacy of Many Questions: On the Notions of Complexity, Loadedness and Unfair Entrapment in Interrogative Theory

The traditional fallacy of many questions, also known as the fallacy of complex question, illustrated by the question, "Have you stopped sexually harassing your students?", has been known since ancient times, but is still alive and well. What is of practical importance about this fallacy is that it represents a tactic of entrapment that is very common in everyday argumentation, as well as in special kinds of argumentation like that in a legal trial or a parliamentary debate. The tactic combines the use of loaded questions with the complexity of the question. A key notion is that of the presupposition of the question. How to deal with such questions is a point of departure for interrogative theory, and for any attempts to construct formal dialogues of a kind that can be used as normative models of argumentation.     

Effects of methylphenidate on complex cognitive processing in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

Three experiments were conducted to explore the effects of methylphenidate (MPH), attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis, and age on performance on a complex visual-memory search task. Results showed that the effects of MPH varied with information load. On low-processing loads, all doses of MPH helped children with ADHD to improve accuracy with no cost to reaction time (RT), whereas on high loads, higher MPH doses improved error rates while slowing RT. Without medication, children with ADHD showed high error rates and slow RTs across both low and high loads, as did younger, normal control children. Because MPH slowed performance on only the most difficult, high-load conditions, it is argued that the drug improves self-regulatory ability, enabling children with ADHD to adapt differentially to high and low loads.     

Resume Characteristics as Predictors of an Invitation to Interview

The resume is the first contact between an organization and a job seeker, but little empirical evidence exits to guide resume development. This study examined the impact of resume characteristics on decisions to interview graduates. It was found that resume characteristics provided an advantage in obtaining an invitation to interview.     

A Gallery Tour: The Creative Project as an Assessment Mode in Theological Education

The purpose of this article is to provide information, from the perspective of both teacher and students, about the use of the creative project as an assessment mode in tertiary theological education. The discussion demonstrates a number of advantages for adult learners.     

Broadening behavioral decision research: Multiple levels of cognitive processing

The area of behavioral decision research—specifically, the work on heuristics and biases—has had a tremendous influence on basic research, applied research, and application over the last 25 years. Its unique juxtaposition against economics has provided important benefits, but at the cost of leaving it disconnected from too much of psychology. This paper explores an expanded definition of behavioral decision research through the consideration of multiple levels of cognitive processing. Rather than being limited to how decision makers depart from optimality, we offer a broader analysis of how decision makers define the decision problem and link decisions to goals, as well as a more detailed focus on processes associated with implementing decisions.     

Is heaven a possible world?

International Journal for Philosophy of Religion -     

Empowerment theory,research, and application

This introduction to the special issue briefly reviews the meaning and significance of the empowerment concept and problems associated with the proliferation of interest in empowerment. We identify some of the topics not included in this issue and relate those to the many broad and diverse areas of psychological empowerment theory and community-based research and intervention that are covered. We present synopses of each article along with some of the themes and lessons cutting across the frameworks, studies, and applications. These include a wide diversity of settings, fairly representative of empowerment interventions, and, at the same time, improved clarity (if not unanimity) of definitions and measurement, which has been a problem in much empowerment research and intervention.     

UTILIZING INCREASED RESPONSE EFFORT TO REDUCE CHRONIC HAND MOUTHING

The effects of increased response effort on levels of hand mouthing, leisure engagement, and adaptive elbow flexion were investigated with 2 individuals who had been diagnosed with profound disabilities. Arm restraints designed to alter the amount of physical effort necessary to engage in hand mouthing were used. Results indicated that the treatment strategy reduced levels of hand mouthing but produced only small to moderate reductions in levels of leisure engagement and adaptive elbow flexion. At follow-up, the effects of increased response effort on hand mouthing and leisure engagement were maintained for both participants; however, the restraints were associated with substantial reductions in adaptive elbow flexion for 1 participant.