WISC-R deaf norms reconsidered

Deaf norms have been published for the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised Performance Scale, (WISC-R PS). Argument requiring separate deaf norms are evaluated with data describing deaf and hearing children's performances on nonverbal IQ tests. It is concluded that deaf norms are not required for deaf children. The issue of which norms a psychologist should select for scoring WISC- R PS protocols is discussed with reference to the impact that deaf and hearing norms have upon inter- and intraindividual comparisons.     

Measurement Invariance and Informant Discrepancies of the KIDSCREEN-27 in Children with Mental Disorder

Applied Research in Quality of Life - Study objectives were to examine measurement invariance of the KIDSCREEN-27 between children with mental disorder and their parents; compare health-related...     

Mood Regulation and Memory: Repairing Sad Moods with Happy Memories

A total of 106 undergraduates participated in a study examining how individuals retrieve memories to repair negative moods. Participants first completed a measure of depression. Two weeks later, participants were assigned to either a sad or neutral mood induction. After mood induction, they recalled two memories, rated their affective responses to the memories, and indicated why they chose the valence and order of the memories. Consistent with mood-congruent recall, participants in the sad condition reported sadder memories than those in the neutral condition. However, participants with prior low depression scores tended to recall more positive second memories, whereas participants with higher prior depression scores recalled consecutive negative memories. Sixty-eight per cent of sad participants who retrieved a negative first and positive second memory mentioned mood repair as motivating the recruitment of the more positive second memory.     

You’ve Got to Believe: Core Beliefs that Underlie Effective Psychotherapy

A mixture of core beliefs may lay the foundation for effective psychotherapy. Sincere trust in these beliefs may help to promote therapeutic change. The therapist must have faith in the power of words to promote change. Clients usually change in a gradual manner, and the initial plan for therapy can be simplified by focusing on strategies for changing actions and attitudes. Also, therapy can help to improve various aspects of clients’ intimate relationships. However, before attempting to promote therapeutic change, it is important for the therapist to begin by understanding the client’s life situation, current distress, and natural tendencies. Clients benefit from emotional tolerance of stressors by recognizing that many negative life events turn out better than initially expected. A tendency to dwell on past events can perpetuate problems, while it can be more helpful to accept and grow from negative events. Therapists are encouraged to view a client’s emotions as natural reactions, not deviant dysfunctions that need to be blocked or suppressed through medications. In a similar manner, most labels, including many psychiatric diagnoses, pose a danger through societal discrimination and self-stigma. When therapists adopt these core beliefs, they can more effectively help clients move forward, making adaptive psychological changes.     

Will Improving My Marriage Improve My Sleep?

An essential component to overall health and well-being is sleep. Likewise, being happily married is associated with better physical, mental, and emotional health. In the present study, we examined links between marital satisfaction (MS) and aspects of sleep quality (SQ) among married individuals (N = 88) aged 39 to 64 years. Data were collected at baseline and 6-month follow-up. Regression analyses showed that MS at baseline was positively associated with overall SQ and sleep disturbance frequency at baseline and was negatively associated with minutes to fall asleep at follow-up. Results suggested that participants with greater MS at baseline reported better overall SQ at baseline and falling asleep faster at follow-up. However, results varied when controlling for other relevant covariates (e.g., age, depression, pain). Additionally, a negative change in MS between baseline and follow-up was a positive predictor of sleep disturbance frequency at follow-up, suggesting that participants whose MS decreased over time were more likely to report more frequent sleep disturbances 6 months later. Findings indicate that MS is linked with various aspects of SQ in married, middle-aged adults. Clinical implications, limitations of the current study, and areas for future research are discussed.     

Electrical potentials of the cerebral cortex and psychometric intelligence

Contradictory findings concerning relationships between intelligence-test scores and different EEG evoked-potential (EP) measures have been reported. The positive findings suggest that intelligence is correlated with the number and amplitude of components in the EP waveform. Since there is evidence that both of these parameters are influenced by stimulus intensity, we examined the extent to which an EP/intelligence relationship may depend on stimulus intensity. In a sample of 22 Ss a relationship between EP amplitude and intelligence was found and the magnitude of this correlation was related systematically to stimulus intensity. The maximum correlation (r = 0.69) with scores on the Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices was obtained at an intermediate level of intensity. These findings may account for some of the inconsistencies in the literature. Moreover, they suggest an explanation for higher general intelligence in terms of greater central activation of neural processes in response to normal levels of stimulation.