An overview of malingering and deception in neuropsychiatric cases

Forensic practitioners must shoulder special responsibilities when evaluating over-stated pathology (e.g., malingering) as well as simulated adjustment. Such determinations may modify or even override other clinical findings. As a result, practitioners must be alert to their own misassumptions that may unintentionally bias their conclusions about response styles. Detection strategies for malingering—based on unlikely or markedly amplified presentations—are highlighted in this article. Given page constraints, assessment methods for feigning are succinctly presented with their applications to administrative, civil, and criminal referrals.     

Implicit motives and basic psychological needs

The present article starts with discussing similarities and differences between conceptualizations of human needs in self‐determination theory (SDT; Deci & Ryan [1985], Intrinsic motivation and self‐determination in human behavior; Deci & Ryan [2000], Nebraska symposium on motivation: Perspectives on motivation) and motive disposition theory (MDT; McClelland, Human motivation, 1985). The second section focuses on the two‐process model of psychological needs (Sheldon [2011], Psychological Review, 118: 552), which aims to integrate the two approaches, whereas the third section highlights some aspects of both theories that are still decoupled or even contradictory, but nevertheless still have a high potential to be linked. These three aspects are (a) the noncorresponding concepts of implicit power motive (MDT) and basic need for autonomy (SDT); (b) the differentiation of needs into hope and fear components, which is theoretically embedded in MDT, but not in SDT; and (c) MDT researchers’ differentiation into an implicit and explicit motivational system, which is not included in SDT. Particularly, the last section highlights the potential for areas in which further integration is possible, which provides a foundation for comprehensive and exciting research on human motivation.     

Autobiographical memory and social skills of men and women

This study investigated gender‐specific relationships between autobiographical memory (AM) performance and two social skills, namely empathy and assertiveness. One hundred and fourteen male and female students were tested with a questionnaire on AM and two test scales for empathy and assertiveness. The results revealed positive correlations between AM performance and both social skills, thus underscoring the social function of AM. In addition we found several gender differences. Women showed superior AM performance and also scored higher in empathy, while men scored higher in assertiveness. We propose that AM, empathy, and assertiveness develop in gender‐specific mutual dependencies reflecting parental socialization. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Intra-individual reaction time variability in schizophrenia, depression and borderline personality disorder

Intra-individual reaction time variability (IIV) in neuropsychological task performance reflects short term fluctuations in performance. Increased IIV has been reported in patients with schizophrenia and could be related to a deficient neural timing mechanism, but the role of IIV in adult patients with other psychiatric disorders has not been established. Therefore, we compared IIV measures obtained in a Go/Nogo task from patients with schizophrenia, major depression and borderline personality disorder. IIV was increased for patients with schizophrenia. When correcting for differences in mean reaction time, depressive and borderline patients also showed increased IIV. Importantly, all groups showed a strong association between IIV and accuracy of task performance. This suggests that increased IIV might be a sensitive marker for the efficiency of top-down attentional control in all diagnostic groups. Aside from these similarities, the complete results including measures of IIV, mean reaction time and accuracy show differential patterns for patients with schizophrenia compared to those with borderline personality disorder or depression. These results are discussed with respect to common versus disorder-specific neural mechanisms underlying increased IIV.     

On the assessment of genetic technology: Reaching ethical judgments in the light of modern technology

The “Model for Reaching Ethical Judgments in the context of Modern Technologies — the Case of Genetic Technology”, which is presented here, has arisen from the project “Ethical Criteria bearing upon Decisions taken in the field of Biotechnology”. This project has been pursued since 1991 in the Zentrum für interdisziplinäre Technikforschung (ZIT) of the Technical University of Darmstadt, with the purpose of examining decision-making in selected activities involving the production of transgenic plants that have a useful application. The model is the basis of an outline for interviews to investigate how far decisions concerning the development of such plants with genetic techniques take ethical criteria into account. It was necessary to design this new model because other models for reaching judgments of this kind were not conceptually suited for concrete application. This model represents a problem related approach and combines methodological with substantive typology. In this it differs from comparable models for reaching ethical judgments.     

Individual psychotherapy as an adjunct to group psychotherapy

This paper describes a form of combined psychotherapy in which the individual sessions are used as an adjunct to group therapy. Each group member is seen regularly in individual sessions to focus primarily on the member's ongoing group work. The individual sessions are scheduled on a rotating basis. Typically, each group member is seen in an individual session once every four weeks. Additional individual sessions are available only when immediate attention is appropriate and necessary. The group is viewed as the primary therapeutic component. A cost-effective therapeutic approach that uses both individual and group methods, this modality lends itself well to a clinic and to a private practice setting.     

Permanence and change in memory II. Reproduction of words in sentences

Abstract.— A retroactive interference paradigm was employed for studying qualitative memory changes. Sentences, containing an ambiguous word that was defined differently by succeeding words, were used as stimulus material. Such retroactive definitions of meaning were found to lead to qualitative changes in reproduction. It is suggested that the issue of permanence and change in memory may be related to the choice of lists of independent items or contextual units as stimulus material. A contextual theory of memory, implying the conception of memory in a stream, is advocated.     

Social risk and protective factors for suicide attempts in low income African American men and women

A case-control study was conducted to examine a broad array of potential social risk and protective factors for suicide attempt among 200 African American men and women receiving care at a large, public, urban hospital. Specifically, we examined the effect of the following potential risk factors for suicide attempt: life hassles, partner abuse, partner dissatisfaction, and racist events; as well as the following potential protective factors: effectiveness of obtaining resources, social embeddedness, and social support. Using logistic regression, suicide attempter status was predicted by two independently significant social variables: one risk factor (life hassles) and one protective factor (social support). Male versus female suicide attempters were not distinguished by the social variables. These findings, which support the utility of an ecological conceptualization of risk and protective factors for suicide attempt, help to clarify the independently significant social environment risk and protective factors for suicide attempts among economically disadvantaged African Americans in particular. Research on both risk factors and protective factors provide a basis for culturally competent interventions aimed at reducing both the risk of future suicide attempts and completions.     

Axis I and axis II disorders as predictors of prospective suicide attempts: findings from the collaborative longitudinal personality disorders study

This study examined diagnostic predictors of prospectively observed suicide attempts in a personality disorder (PD) sample. During 2 years of follow-up, 58 participants (9%) reported at least 1 definitive suicide attempt. Predictors that were examined include 4 PD diagnoses and selected Axis I diagnoses (baseline and course). Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated that baseline borderline personality disorder (BPD) and drug use disorders significantly predicted prospective suicide attempts. Controlling for baseline BPD diagnosis, proportional hazards analyses showed that worsening in the course of major depressive disorder (MDD) and of substance use disorders in the month preceding the attempt were also significant predictors. Therefore, among individuals diagnosed with PDs. exacerbation of Axis I conditions, particularly MDD and substance use, heightens risk for a suicide attempt.