Rape trauma syndrome

The relationship of rape trauma syndrome to the official diagnostic nomenclature of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in the DSM-III is extensively discussed. The theoretical and practical clinical issues involved in rape trauma are reviewed as well as the early court rulings on the admissibility of rape trauma syndrome in criminal and civil cases.     

Stress,coping, and life change in the single-parent family

Self-perceived competence in three roles (parent, social participant, self-supporter) was examined in relation to life satisfaction in a sample of 47 divorced, employed, single parent, middle-income women. Parenting was found to be the role of greatest perceived competence, and self-supporter the role of lowest perceived competence. Competence as a self-supporter was the strongest predictor of life satisfaction. Life satisfaction did not differ significantly between groups defined by length of time as single parents. For women separated less than 3 years, the social participant was the role of least perceived competence and the best predictor of life satisfaction. For those separated more than 3 years, the three roles were nearly equal in perceived competence, but competence as self-supporter was the best predictor of life satisfaction.     

Response selection and initiation in speeded reactions: a pupillometric analysis

Three studies are described in which the task-evoked pupillary response is recorded during simple and disjunctive reactions in order to examine its contribution as a measure of the motoric and cognitive aspects of performance in these tasks. In simple reactions a pupillary dilation began about 1.5 sec before the imperative stimulus and peaked about 1 sec after the stimulus. The rate of dilation was inversely related to the interstimulus interval. In disjunctive reactions, both "Go" and "No-Go" responses elicited significant dilations but the No-Go dilation was smaller than the Go dilation. When the response was delayed 2.5 sec after the discrimination stimulus, the dilation to both Go and No-Go responses was much reduced. The pupillary response related to response selection was estimated at 55% of that associated with motor preparation and execution. The probability of responding was found to affect the amplitude of the dilation to No-Go responses but not that to Go responses. The data point to a significant contribution of preparatory motor processing in No-Go reactions and to an overlap between decisional and motoric processing in disjunctive reactions.     

Retention deficit after d-amphetamine treatment: memory defect or performance change?

Retention deficits in discrete trial delayed alternation and delayed matching to sample tasks following administration of d-amphetamine have been interpreted to support the view that arousal facilitates the decay of information from shortterm memory (STM) (Kesner, 1973). But since amphetamine causes numerous changes in performance, alternative explanations of the deficit are also plausible. In an attempt to separate drug effects on memory from those on performance, the effects of d-amphetamine on spatial memory in the radial maze were studied in rats. The unusually long span of accurate working memory in this setting permits drug administration within the retention interval as well as prior to the to-be-remembered event (TBRE). In rats tested at a 5-hr retention interval d-amphetamine (2 mg/kg) disrupted retention when given 0.5 hr before or 4.5 hr after the TBRE, but the same treatment 0 or 2 hr after the TBRE or 3 hr before the TBRE was without effect. At a 5-hr retention interval 3 mg/kg d-amphetamine impaired performance if given 2 hr after the TBRE, but not when given 0 hr after the TBRE or 3 hr before the TBRE. However, when the retention interval was lengthened to 7 hr, administering 3 mg/kg d-amphetamine 2 hr after the TBRE did not disrupt performance. The effects of d-amphetamine on spatial memory are best explained in terms of the well established effects of the drug on motor activity and appetite. Similar changes in performance may account for the "memory" impairments observed after amphetamine treatment in other tasks.     

The effects of hand and direction parameter preknowledge on choice reaction times

The two studies undertaken investigated how reaction times are affected by preknowledge concerning hand and direction parameters, and the order in which these data are disclosed. In the first experiment, preknowledge was manipulated by selecting 2-CRT pairs which had either a common hand or direction component. Reaction signal information content (as defined by the number of unknown response parameters) was controlled, but no parameter differences emerged. When parameter order was manipulated by sequential precuing, the ‘hand then direction’ order conferred a significant advantage. Motor preparation and response selection explanations for this effect are considered. Various difficulties with the paradigms used are discussed, including those of distinguishing between response selection and motor programming contributions, controlling and inferring the strategies adopted by subjects, and defining task difficulty. The prospects for independently fostering either response identification or motor preparation by means of an appropriate selection of precues are also discussed.     

Do Students with Different Characteristics Take Part in Psychology Experiments at Different Times of the Semester?

ABSTRACT In this study we examined 15 personality and demographic differences between psychology students who took part in experiments at different times of the semester and different times of the day. In general, few significant relations were found and those that did emerge were small in magnitude. Females and freshmen signed up for experiments earlier in the semester. Females took part in their first experiment earlier in the semester, as did students who were Protestant and who came from smaller home towns. Students low in self-consciousness also tended to begin participating earlier. Extraverts participated earlier in the day than introverts. Results generally were consistent with previous findings of differences between research volunteers and non-volunteers. However, it was concluded that because of their small magnitude and inconsistency from site to site, with a few precautions experimenters probably need not be concerned that timing effects threaten the external validity of psychological research outcomes.     

Interview with Dr. Peter Rutter,author ofSex in the Forbidden Zone,July 27, 1990

Articles

Interview with Dr. Peter Rutter, author ofSex in the Forbidden Zone, July 27, 1990     

Men's and women's evaluations of menstrual-related excuses

Based on an attributional analysis of menstrual distress, the present study examined how a woman is evaluated when she attributes an instance of negative social behavior to the approach or onset of menstruation. College men and women were asked to imagine an interaction in which a woman behaves very irritably and then gives one of several excuses for her negative behavior, two of which were menstrual related. Subjects evaluated each excuse in terms of (1) degree of annoyance, (2) blameworthiness, and (3) internality versus externality. The results showed consistent relationships between these evaluations and both sex of subject and general attitudes about menstruation. Males tended to see menstrual-related excuses as less blameworthy and more external than did females. In addition, general attitudes regarding the debilitating effects of menstruation predicted greater tolerance toward the use of menstrual excuses. These results are discussed in terms of their implications for the socialization and continuing reinforcement of menstrual distress.The research reported in this article was supported by grants SOC-7602137 and SOC-7602179 from the National Science Foundation. The authors wish to thank Russ Fazio for his help in collecting the data and Al Rogers and Terry Balaban for their help in analyzing the data. Diane N. Ruble is now at New York University. Ann K. Boggiano is now at the University of Colorado.     

Assertion modeling and stimuli effects on assertive behavior and self-efficacy in adolescents

The present investigation examined variations of modeling and stimuli with 61 adolescents selected for unassertive or aggressive behavior toward teachers. A 3 × 2 × 2 factorial design evaluated the effects of type of assertion modeling (three sessions of overt vs covert vs no-modeling), type of training stimuli (single involving teachers only vs multiple involving teachers, parents and peers) and type of initial behavior (unassertive vs aggressive) on behavioral role-play and self-efficacy. Modeling, particularly overt modeling, improved assertive behavior in teacher situations, peer situations and total teacher, parent, and peer situations. The use of single type stimuli improved self-efficacy in total teacher, parent and peer situations, and in novel situations involving others. Behavior but not self-efficacy was differentially affected by initial unassertive or aggressive behavior of participants. Self-efficacy and behavior were only moderately correlated. Results suggest effectiveness of short-term modeling with adolescents and different specificity properties of self-efficacy and assertive behavior.