Questioning the Link Between PTSD and Cognitive Dysfunction

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been linked with impairment in cognitive functioning, but anomalies appear to arise on several levels, masking the true nature of the relationship. On one level, there is a blurring of the emotional and physical causes of cognitive dysfunction, especially with memory problems that are similar to those due to neurological disorders. At other levels, problems are evident due to issues such as overgeneralizing from specific populations to the general population, and the use of narrow-focused neuropsychological assessment instruments that neither dissociate among precise memory components nor relate to everyday situations. In this review we highlight methodological problems and concerns, and make suggestions to establish valid links between PTSD and cognitive dysfunction.     

Contextual information modulates initial processes of syntactic integration: the role of inter- versus intrasentential predictions

The authors demonstrate that intersentential context may influence syntactic integration processes during online sentence comprehension, although this influence appears to be restricted to cases in which a contextual requirement must be fulfilled. By applying event-related brain potentials to the processing of clause-medial word order variations in German, the authors show that the local processing difficulty (a negativity from 300 to 450 ms) observed for object-initial sentences in a neutral context is also obtained in a (behaviorally) facilitating context in which the object is contextually given. By contrast, the processing pattern for a focused (questioned) initial object does not differ from that for a focused subject: both elicit a parietal positivity (280-480 ms) post-onset of the focused phrase. The authors interpret this early positivity as a general marker of focus integration, a process that appears to briefly supersede sentence-internal requirements.     

Telephone-administered cognitive behavior therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder

Exposure with response prevention and cognitive behavior therapy are widely recognized as effective treatments for obsessive-compulsive disorder. Unfortunately, many people with obsessive-compulsive disorder--particularly those living in rural areas--do not have access to therapists providing these treatments. Accordingly, we investigated the efficacy of telephone-administered cognitive behavior therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder. Two open trials are reported, for a total of 33 people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (without major depression). The first trial consisted of 12 weeks on a waiting list followed by 12 weeks of treatment (delayed treatment). The second trial consisted of 12 weeks of immediate treatment. Obsessive-compulsive symptoms did not change during the waiting period. Symptoms declined from pre- to post-treatment, with gains maintained at 12-week follow-up. For the pooled sample our pre-to-post-treatment effect size was as large or larger than those obtained in other studies of reduced contact treatment, and similar to those of face-to-face exposure with response prevention. Our proportion of treatment dropouts tended to be lower than those of other reduced contact interventions. The results suggest that telephone-administered cognitive behavior therapy is effective and well-tolerated, at least for people with obsessive-compulsive disorder without major depression. It remains to be seen whether this treatment is safe and effective when comorbid major depression is present.     

Sentence interference in the Stroop task

In two experiments on Stroop interference, we examined whether sentences can be processed without the intention of the reader. Participants named the ink colors in which words in sentences were printed, and the ink colors in which the same words, randomly arranged, were printed. In Experiment 1, sentences yielded longer response times (RTs) and more errors than did nonsentences, but only when they included words that were highly relevant to the color-naming task (i.e., color and color-related words). In Experiment 2, sentences yielded more errors than did nonsentences, and sentences in which the color words matched the set of ink colors yielded longer RTs than did nonsentences. The results indicate that sentence processing can be obligatory when the component words are highly relevant to the task.     

Expectancies About the Effects of Alcohol on the Self and on Others as Determinants of Alcohol Policy Attitudes1

The present study brings together 2 separate lines of research in the alcohol field: alcohol expectancies and policy attitudes. Expectancies concerning the short- and long-term effects of drinking (e.g., aggression), were predicted to be stronger determinants of support for alcohol availability control when the target person was another, compared to when discussing effects of one's own drinking. In a population-based survey conducted in 1992, 804 current drinkers were asked about self and other alcohol expectancies, as well as attitudes toward various alcohol policies. Results showed a distinct self-other discrepancy, with people more likely to expect alcohol to have a greater effect over others than over themselves. Further, it was found that these other-expectancies were among the strongest predictors of favoring tighter alcohol controls. These findings lend support to findings of a self-other bias in social psychology, and provide insight as to the structure of public opinion on alcohol policy.     

Brief psychodynamic counselling with young adults

Short-term counselling is frequently employed within university counselling services in which there can often be an inherent institutional objective of returning students to the academic treadmill as soon as possible (Coren, 1996). On the other hand, this is perhaps tempered by the availability of counselling throughout the student's academic career, affording them the opportunity to return for further intensive short-term work (or longer-term if indicated or required). However, research into the effectiveness of short-term counselling suggests that interventions of less than eight sessions are as effective as those lasting significantly longer (Barkham, 1989). This may be particularly true in the case of students experiencing transitory problems relating to their life at university. This paper uses a case illustration to examine the value of short-term psychodynamic counselling in a university situation.     

Empfehlungen zur Behandlungspraxis bei psychotherapeutischen Kriseninterventionen

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

First-Pass versus Second-Pass Parsing Processes in a Wernicke''s and a Broca''s Aphasic: Electrophysiological Evidence for a Double Dissociation

The present paper is a first attempt to integrate the classical brain lesion behavioral impairment approach of functional neuroanatomy and the electrophysiological brain mapping approach in the domain of syntactic processing. In a group of normal age-matched controls we identified three electrophysiological components previously observed in correlation with language comprehension processes: an early left anterior negativity normally seen in correlation with syntactic first-pass parsing processes (ELAN), a centroparietal negativity seen in correlation with processes of lexical-semantic integration (N400), and a late centroparietal positivity observed in correlation with secondary syntactic processes of reanalysis and repair (P600). The early left anterior negativity was absent in a patient with an extended lesion in the anterior part of the left hemisphere sparing the temporal lobe, although the late centroparietal positivity and the centroparietal N400 were present. In a patient with a left temporal-parietal lesion the early left anterior negativity was found to be present, whereas the N400 component was absent. These findings suggest that first-pass parsing and secondary processes are subserved by distinct brain systems.     

The use and abuse of touch in therapy and counselling

Sexual exploitation within therapy is founded upon inappropriate physical contact. Yet the use of touch in therapy remains a contentious issue. Some therapists purport that touch is a primary source of communication of which many clients, as children, were deprived. They argue that refraining from the appropriate use of touch in the counselling situation can be damaging to the client. This article considers the argument for the use of physical contact in therapy and counselling and its potential therapeutic value.     

Judgments of a Woman's Emotions: The Influence of Observer Attitudes1

The influence that observers' attitudes toward lesbians have on their judgments of a lesbian target's emotional display was examined. In Phase One, college undergraduates' attitudes toward lesbians were measured. In Phase Two, 185 subjects returned and viewed a videotape in which a female target described as a lesbian, a novel individual, or a heterosexual, responded to an interviewer's questions regarding her recent romantic breakup. The subjects then judged the appropriateness of the target's display of 11 emotions. Contrary to predictions, attitudinally negative subjects evaluated the Lesbian target as highly appropriate. The potential applications of this result for social psychologists interested in examining the contact hypothesis, as well as for outgroup members themselves, are discussed.