Conservation of resources in community intervention

Evaluated the applications of principles of resource conservation and management in community interventions and compared these to a more individual, perception-based psychological perspective. Conservation of resource theory suggests that promotion of well-being and prevention of disease depend on the availability and successful management of resources. When resources are lacking, lost, or when invested without consequent gain, people become vulnerable to psychological and physical disorder and debilitated functioning. Resources, in this context, are defined as those things people value or those things that may help people obtain that which they value. Conservation of resource theory further suggests that resources are to a large extent common to all people, more common within a given culture and time in the developmental cycle, and only to a small extent idiographic. Further, conservation of resource theory posits that resources operate within an ecological context where feedback, sharing, and exchange operate between the individual, social context, and environment. Given these principles, it is reasoned that community interventions must acknowledge the solid base of most problems and accept that interventions must target resources and be intensive enough to change the ecology in which resources operate.     

The Acquaintance Predicament of a Rape Victim1

The acquaintance predicament of a rape victim was examined in six experiments with between-subjects designs with samples drawn from the undergraduate student population of the University of Bombay. The experiments used rape vignettes for the manipulation of all independent variables except subject's sex and were done in three pairs such that each pair had the same independent variables and first dependent measure, namely, recommended years of imprisonment for the rapist. The second dependent measure was attributed victim's fault in the first experiment and perceived likelihood of rape in the second experiment of each pair. The first pair of experiments had a 2 (subject's sex) × 2 (acquainted vs. unacquainted rapist) × 3 (rapist's status: manager, stenotypist, or watchman) × 2 (complaint vs. no complaint by victim) design, with the rape victim being described as a stenotypist. The second pair of experiments differed from the first pair in only one respect, with victim's marital status (married vs. divorced victim) replacing the independent variable of complaint of the first pair. The third pair of experiments had a 2 (subject's sex) × 2 (physically hurt vs. not hurt victim) × 5 (rapist's relationship with victim: husband, fiance, friend, acquaintance, or stranger) design. Female subjects, as compared to male subjects, recommended longer imprisonment for the rapist, attributed less fault to the victim, and perceived greater likelihood of rape. The victim was attributed less fault in case of stranger rape versus acquaintance rape and also less fault in the complaint versus the no complaint condition. Longer imprisonment was recommended for the rapist when the victim was physically hurt rather than not hurt.     

The Role of Mothers and Fathers

The development of personality characteristics appears to differ by sex of child and role of parent, with interpersonal concerns tending to characterize mothers and instrumental concerns describing fathers. Using a semi-structured interview protocol and paper-and-pencil questionnaires, we examined the effects of parenting, as reported by middle-class high school senior boys and girls, on the development of two aspects of personality. Ego development and self-esteem both have demonstrated sex differences, with girls displaying more advanced ego development and boys displaying higher self-esteem. We expected that mothers, because of their greater interpersonal orientation, would influence the development of ego development more than would fathers, and that, based on past findings, the opposite-sex parent would exert the primary influence on self-esteem. While ego development was found to relate to more encouraging, warmer mothering in boys, it related weakly to mothering in girls. Boys and girls who perceived their cross-sex parent to be warm and supportive were found to have higher self-esteem.     

Facilitation of auditory word recognition

An experiment that investigated facilitation of recognition of spoken words presented in noise IS described, Prior to the test session, the subjects either read words or heard them spoken in one of two. voices while making a semantic judgment upon them. There was a large effect of auditory priming on word recognition that did not depend upon the voice (male or female) of presentation, There were much smaller, but significant, effects of prior visual experience of the words. The implications of these data for the logogen model are discussed.     

Patient and Family Descriptions of Ethical Concerns

Abstract

Ethically challenging situations routinely arise in the course of illness and healthcare. However, very few studies have surveyed patients and family members about their experiences with ethically challenging situations. To address this gap in the literature, we surveyed patients and family members at three hospitals. We conducted a content analysis of their responses to open-ended questions about their most memorable experience with an ethical concern for them or their family member. Participants (N?=?196) described 219 unique ethical experiences that spanned many of the prevailing themes of bioethics, including the patient-physician relationship, end-of-life care, decision-making capacity, healthcare costs, and genetic testing. Participants focused on relational issues in the course of experiencing illness and receiving medical care and concerns regarding the patient-physician encounters. Many concerns arose outside of a healthcare setting. These data indicate areas for improvement for healthcare providers but some concerns may be better addressed outside of the traditional healthcare setting.     

Use of temperature variations to combat drivers' drowsiness

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the efficiency of temperature variations as a measure against drivers' drowsiness. A system for regulation of the air temperature in the cab was installed in two trucks. Irregular temperature reductions of about 8 degrees C were introduced. The periods between the temperature reductions varied among 5, 6, 7, and 8 min. The periods for the temperature reductions varied between 2, 4, 6, and 8 min. The system was tested with 6 drivers on 54 trips. The system was applied for periods varying between 30 to 300 min. Changes in wakefulness were analysed using subjective ratings by the lorry drivers. The application of the system significantly improved subjectively rated wakefulness. The wakefulness was rated with a questionnaire completed after 10 min. use of a cooling system and at the end of its use. Analysis showed individual differences in the usefulness of the system: 3 of the 6 truck drivers reported positive reactions to the use of the temperature cooling system.     

Implicit and explicit attitudes toward high-fat foods in obesity

This study examined implicit and explicit attitudes toward high-fat foods in obese (n = 30) and normal-weight controls (n = 31). The Implicit Association Test (A. G. Greenwald, D. E. McGee, & J. L. K. Schwartz, 1998) was used to measure the differential association of the 2 target categories--high-fat vs. low-fat food words--with an attribute dimension (positive vs. negative). Results suggest that obese people are characterized by a significantly stronger implicit negative attitude toward high-fat foods than are normal-weight controls. This implicit negative attitude is contradictory to their preferences and behavior: Several studies indicate that obese people prefer and consume high-fat foods. Apparently, obese people like the taste of high-fat foods but not the fat content itself, not only on the explicit but also on the implicit level.     

Characterizing the ADHD phenotype for genetic studies

The genetic study of ADHD has made considerable progress. Further developments in the field will be reliant in part on identifying the most appropriate phenotypes for genetic analysis. The use of both categorical and dimensional measures of symptoms related to ADHD has been productive. The use of multiple reporters is a valuable feature of the characterization of psychopathology in children. It is argued that the use of aggregated measures to characterize the ADHD phenotype, particularly to establish its pervasiveness, is desirable. The recognition of the multiple comorbidities of ADHD can help to isolate more specific genetic influences. In relation to both reading disability and conduct disorder there is evidence that genes may be involved in the comorbid condition that are different from pure ADHD. To date, progress with the investigation of endophenotypes for ADHD has been disappointing. It is suggested that extending such studies beyond cognitive underpinnings to include physiological and metabolic markers might facilitate progress.