An assessment of factors contributing to instrumental performance for sexual reward in the rat

Male and female rats were gonadectomized, implanted in adulthood with capsules containing either testosterone propionate (TP) or cholesterol, and were trained to lever press for access to an oestrous female. When lever press performance was tested in extinction, only the male rats implanted with TP displayed significantly higher levels of responding than controls, demonstrating that lever pressing for oestrous females as a reward is sexually dimorphic. Ejaculation patterns from a separate assessment of these rats' copulatory ability were significantly correlated with their instrumental performance. In a second experiment, "masculinized" females exposed to TP postnatally and given TP implants responded in extinction at mean levels equivalent to those exhibited by adult males that were either intact or castrated with androgen replacement. These data suggest that organizational steroid exposure perinatally affects the actual reward value assigned to oestrous females inadulthood, in combination withconsummatory sexual experience.     

Suicide and Drug Abuse in the Medical Community

ABSTRACT: In the United States each year the equivalent of an average-size medical school graduating class commits suicide, with the highest incidence occurring in the decade following the completion of training. Of these suicides, 20% to 30% are associated with drug abuse and 40% with alcoholism. Various problem areas are considered. Role strain, leading to excessive drug use in an attempt to increase work efficiency, is coupled with a denial of the physician's own dependency needs and gratification. The problem of identity occurs in relation to the exaggerated sense of duty and obligation the physician feels in attending to the demands of the patients and their families. Medicine as magical thinking is also discussed, revealing the physician's belief in his own immunity, which is strenuously tested when he actually sets up in practice. The community's high regard for the physician further complicates the situation. Too little has been done about working with emotional problems of medical students during their training and after they begin to practice. Unfortunately, physicians feel uncomfortable in turning to colleagues for help; rather, they tend to isolate themselves, resorting to alcohol and drugs. One should question the selection of medical students and their overall training, not only in terms of academic learning but also with more consideration for the stresses and strains of the future career.     

Why academic women do not revolt

Low perceptions of sex discrimination among full-time women faculty interviewed at a multicampus northeastern university in a major metropolitan area are explained and compared with statistical data documenting inequities in salary, promotion, rank, and tenure. Structural reasons for the misperceptions are offered, such as concentration in lowest ranks, pluralistic ignorance, merit myths, and cooptation. Data are generalizable because similar patterns prevail at most educational institutions. The study highlights the irony of the way women perceive their status and their own documentation of the day-to-day inequities which cumulatively result in the statistical patterns now accepted by the United States Supreme Court as prima facie evidence of sex discrimination. Solving status inequalities requires strong social networks among women, according to the author. Affirmative action recommendations are outlined to close the gap between women faculty and administrators without resorting to the courts.