Nonverbal communication as a compensative strategy for severely nonfluent aphasics? A quantitative approach

Seven severely nonfluent aphasics and one relative or close friend were investigated in an interview situation. The conversation was videotaped and analyzed for the use of nonverbal communication between aphasic and partner. The results indicate that the group of aphasics used significantly more frequently and for a significantly longer period of time nonverbal channels of communication than their healthy partners. The aphasic patients also used significantly fewer speech-focused movements and significantly more codified gestures. Nonverbal elements were more frequently used as speech substitutes by the group of aphasics.     

S-R compatibility between response position and destination of apparent motion: evidence of the detection of affordances

In choice reaction time, stimuli and responses in some combinations (e.g., based on spatial arrangement) are faster than in other combinations. To test whether motion toward a position yields faster responses at that position, a computer-generated square in front of one hand appeared to move either toward that hand or toward the other hand. Compatible responses (e.g., motion toward left hand/left response) were faster than incompatible responses, even when that opposed traditional positional compatibility. In Experiment 2, subjects responded to the same stimuli but with both hands left, right, or on the body midline. Medial responses were the fastest, showing that destination, rather than mere relative position, was a critical variable. It was suggested that spatial compatibility effects are not unique to position but apply to a variety of task situations, describable by J.J. Gibson's theory of affordances, in which he claims that one perceives the actions (e.g., catching) permitted in a situation.     

Understanding the central processing limit in consistent-mapping visual search tasks

Effects of load (i.e., the number of stimuli in the display) have been observed in multiple-frame studies using a consistent mapping of stimuli to responses (e.g., Fisher, 1982, 1984). In a series of four experiments, it is shown that these effects are not the consequence of differences across the high- and low-load conditions in either decision noise or peripheral masking. Additionally, it is shown that of two modes of limited capacity (a limited-channel and divided-capacity model) considered as possible explanations of load effects in tasks where subjects are required to locate a target, only one--the limited-channel model--is consistent with the results from all three location tasks. Finally, it is argued that the limited-channel model predicts not only the behavior observed in the four consistent-mapping experiments reported in this article but also the behavior observed in several related consistent-mapping tasks (Kleiss & Lane, 1986; Shiffrin & Gardner, 1972).     

Race and Moral Judgment Development Scores

Black and White college students were studied to determine reactions to moral dilemmas when the race of the central character in the dilemma was changed.     

Work involvement among college-educated women: A methodological extension

This paper has two objectives: (1) to develop a more complex measure of work involvement than that typically used, and (2) to correlate this measure with selected lifestyle/family and work variables. The data were drawn primarily from a 1981 survey of 110 female graduates of a large Midwestern university who completed their undergraduate degrees in 1967. Respondents were categorized as high, moderate, or low on a work involvement index based on four variables: work continuity, work status, current or most recent occupation, and educational achievement. Findings in the area of lifestyle/family suggest that high work-involved women are more likely to be single and to marry later when they do marry, less likely to have children, and less likely to perceive conflicts between marriage/relationships and/or children and a career. Findings in the area of work suggest that high work-involved women are significantly more likely to work in male-dominated occupations and to earn salaries of $20,000 or more. High work-involved women are also significantly more likely to be supervisors, to report that most of the people in their work group or branch are below them in rank/position, to be working with all or predominantly men, to have men above them in rank, and to have experienced sex discrimination on the job. In the area of job satisfaction, the differences by work involvement are not as pronounced. High work-involved women are significantly more likely to be employed and not job hunting — one measure of job satisfaction. However, they are no more or less likely than moderate or low work-involved women to perceive their job as a compromise with what they expected or to report overall job satisfaction. Some directions for future research are discussed.Environmental Strategies, Inc.Preparation of this report was supported, in part, by the Providence College Fund to Aid Faculty Research. Thanks are due to the staff of The Henry A. Murray Research Center of Radcliffe College for access to the 1970 questionnaires, to Sharon R. Jenkins for data processing consultation, and to the anonymous reviewers for their helpful suggestions.     

Insight-oriented group psychotherapy of latency-age children in an acute care setting

Traditional approaches to group therapy with latency-age children have stressed activity and nonverbal therapeutic interventions. These approaches originated in the 1940s with Slavson's activity aroup therapy. A review of the literature of the past 25 years reveals that many clinicians have increasingly employed verbal techniques with latencyage groups. Most such reports describe groups for latency-age out-patients. In this paper, a verbal, interpretive technique for group therapy with latency-age inpatients is described. Clinical vignettes are included to illustrate this technique. Our experience suggests that such a technique can become an integral part of the inpatient treatment program for the latency-age child.     

Coping with victimization: The impact of rape on female survivors,male significant others,and parents

This paper reports on an unusual study of survivors of rape and the effects on the victim, her significant male other person, and her parents. All survivors were victims of the same rapist and were interviewed from 21 months to ten years after the event. The study indicates that the long-term effects of rape may be more significant than previous researchers and practitioners thought was the case. Recommendations are given for more effective help for survivors and those close to them.This study was funded by the Ohio Department of Mental Health, Office of Program Evaluation and Research, Columbus, Ohio, 1985.     

Confidence in judgments based on incomplete information: An investigation using both hypothetical and real gambles

This study assessed how confidence in judgments is affected by the need to make inferences about missing information. Subjects indicated their likelihood of taking each of a series of gambles based on both probability and payoff information or only one of these sources of information. They also rated their confidence in each likelihood judgment. Subjects in the Explicit Inference condition were asked to explicitly estimate the values of missing information before making their responses while subjects in the Implicit Inference condition were not. The manner in which probability information was framed was also manipulated. Experiment 1 employed hypothetical gambles and Experiment 2 employed gambles with real money. Expressed likelihood of taking gambles was higher when probability was phrased in terms of '% chance of winning' rather than '% chance of losing', but this difference was somewhat less with real gambles than with hypothetical gambles. Confidence ratings in each experiment were actually higher on incomplete information trials than on complete information trials in the Explicit Inference condition. Results were related to the general issue of confidence in judgments.     

Learning from lectures: The effect of varying the detail in lecture handouts on note-taking and recall

Previous research on the effect of lecture handouts on student learning indicates that students who are given skeletal handouts usually perform better in course examinations than students who take all their own notes. The present study investigates whether the amount of detail in the handout is a critical factor in this. A randomized groups experiment was conducted in the context of a course on dental surgery. Four lecture handout conditions (headings and full text; headings and key points; headings only; no supplementary materials) were compared on tests 2 days and 2 weeks after the lecture. The significant differences between conditions were: ‘headings only’ better than ‘headings and key points’ on the first test; ‘headings only’ better than ‘no supplementary materials’ on the second test; and ‘headings and full text’ better than ‘no supplementary materials’ on the second test. These results indicate that the amount of detail is a critical factor in handout effectiveness.     

Edward Kellog Strong,Jr.: First Author of the Strong Interest Inventory

Ralph Bedell, professor emeritus of educational and counseling psychology, was interviewed to gain insight into the influence of the National Defense Counseling and Guidance Institutes on the history of counseling and to learn about the man who was responsible for the NDEA program.