Treatment of stammering by reinforcement of fluent speech

A series of small experimental studies was conducted with three stammerers. The studies show that stammering may be controlled by positive reinforcement of fluent speech in a machine reading task. This new procedure for the treatment of stammering is convenient and effective in producing fluent speech in the laboratory. Evidence suggests some generalization of a stable kind to outside settings.

Stammering interrupts speech and disturbs communication. It has been treated by a variety of methods, ranging from physical assault on the speech organs, through procedures designed to establish new speech patterns, training in deliberate speech control, and masking of auditory feedback, to psychotherapy and behaviour therapy.

Negative practice has brought about improvement in up to a third of cases (Dunlap, 1932; Fishman. 333 1937; Sheehan, 1953; Lehner, 1954; Jones, 1955; Case, 1960). The other common form of behaviour therapy has usually involved negative reinforcement or punishment. Flanagan, Goldiamond and Azrin (1958) used a loud blast of noise every time subjects stammered. Stammering rate was markedly depressed during the aversive conditioning, but when the aversive conditions were discontinued, stammering rate showed a pronounced increase. More recently, Goldiamond (1965) used fluency to terminate a noxious stimulus and reported a reduction in stammering.     

The dynamics of creation

A basic question in any great religion is, “What is the source of creation, how did order emerge from disorder, or how did we get here?” Among the myths proposed is the Genesis account of an original creation from a condition “without form and void” by a supernatural creator. Now the sciences reveal a more cogent explanation, a new myth of the process of self-creation in an evolutionary continuity of being. Instead of an external power of creation, my thesis is that a generalized concept of love as a generic power of attraction is the dynamics of creation.     

Perceived effectiveness of school psychological services: A comparative study

In order to isolate variables present in school psychologists which may enhance effective delivery of school psychological service, supervisors of psychological services, classroom teachers, and building principals within the state of Iowa were asked to evaluate the performance of their school psychologist in 10 functional areas. Both supervisors and classroom teachers perceived those school psychologists with 4–9 years experience as the most effective. Teaching experience, as a requirement for school psychology certification, did not receive support. The level of training for the psychologist (degree) yielded conflicting results among the raters.     

Helping as a function of feeling state and nature of the helping behavior

The proposition that positive feelings increase helping because they increase the perception of personal power implies that if the person prefers not to help, positive feelings would decrease helping. This was tested in an experiment that varied feelings and pleasantness of the helping task. False meter feedback was used to manipulate feelings, and an indirect check on the manipulation showed that it was effective in varying feelings. As expected from the notion that positive feelings allow the person to feel free to refuse to help, there was an interaction between feelings and pleasantness of the helping task; positive feelings produced less helping than neutral or negative feelings when the helping task was unpleasant.This research was supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation.     

Kindergarten predictors of three aspects of reading achievement

Kindergarten measures of intelligence, auditory perception, visual perception, and associative learning were used to predict three aspects of reading achievement (word attack, word recognition, and comprehension) at the end of Grades 1,2, and 3 for 79 subjects. The predictability of each measure was a function not only of grade, but also of the aspect of reading achievement being predicted. Multiple correlations of the predictors tended to increase across grade levels and were highest for the comprehension aspect of reading. The Number Facility subtest of the PMA was the over-all best predictor or reading achievement. Possible reasons for this and other findings are discussed.