Reducing smoking among pregnant adolescents

Pregnant adolescents who smoke present a double obstetrical risk. Not only is the adolescent mother at risk from the biological, social, educational, and economic factors associated with childbearing at a young age, she and her developing infant also risk the complications associated with maternal smoking. This paper describes a psychosocial intervention designed to reduce smoking in a group of pregnant adolescents. Five modules are presented. Each is designed to: (1) heighten awareness of the issue, (2) provide motivational messages, (3) enhance the adolescent's social skills, and (4) teach specific smoking-cessation skills.     

Microgenesis as traced by the transient paired-forms paradigm

Two successive, spatially overlapping human faces were exposed for recognition with SOAs ranging from 20 to 160 msec. The subjects effectively perceived one face, which at short SOAs mostly resembled the first stimulus and with increasing SOAs gradually shifted towards the appearance of the second, dimmer stimulus. These results replicated those from the study by Calis, et al, and extended them to the experimental conditions of controlled simultaneity of each of the two temporally separate, extremely brief stimuli and to the conditions of personally unfamiliar stimulus-subjects. In the second experiment we employed a direct measurement of the microgenetic focus in real time by using a procedure by which the subjects' judgments about the relative temporal order of the critical visual stimulus and an auditory click were recorded. Via this procedure it was shown that one of the effects of the first visual stimulus is to speed up the microgenetic process for the second stimulus which then appears subjectively earlier as compared to the single-stimulus control.     

Occult participation: its impact on adolescent development

This study investigated the relationship between occult participation, substance abuse, and level of self-esteem in adolescents. Data were collected from 50 adolescents who ranged in age from 12 to 19 years and who spoke English as their primary language. The combined group of adolescents consisted of 25 clinical and 25 nonclinical youth. Participants completed a three-part questionnaire package which included Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale, the Adolescent Magic Questionnaire, and the Drug and Alcohol Assessment Scale. Results indicated that adolescent substance abuse and occult participation were significantly related. High and low occult participation groups were determined, and significant differences were found between the high versus low occult groups when compared on the primary variables of self-esteem and substance abuse. Significant differences were also noted when comparing the high versus low occult groups with various psychosocial developmental variables. Included is a discussion of the impact of occult participation on the psychosocial elements of adolescent self-esteem, self-concept, tolerance for deviance, and religious involvement.     

Dynamic organization of intersensory function

Issues related to infant intersensory functioning are reviewed. The argument is offered that limitations of sensory inputs during early stages of development are necessary and provide structure and organization which determine behavioural characteristics at later stages. It is also suggested that infant organisms respond to the intensity of stimulation rather than organizational characteristics and that this is responsible for the form of sensory equivalence apparent during early development. A scheme for the investigation of sources of intersensory organization is presented which involves a prospective analysis of how consideration of the times of onset of sensory functions helps us to understand intra- and intersensory development. The advantages of this experimental approach are outlined.     

A sermon from hell: Toward a theology of loneliness

Loneliness as part of the human condition is first explored from an experiential-philosophical perspective. A biblical survey suggests loneliness is normative to the faith experience and may portray a more realistic religiosity. Desert imagery in Scripture indicates a strong association among solitude, spiritual development, and potential dangers of spiritual deception. God's not yet-ness-itself a cause of existential loneliness—is paradoxically the way in which communion with God functions in the here and now. The creative use of solitude may enhance social, psychological, and spiritual well-being, and provide a way to theologize about personal isolation and disorientation.He is also editor of theHarding Journal of Religion and Psychiatry.     

Effects of aggressive and nonaggressive rock songs on projective and structured tests

The differences between hostility scores on projective and objective tests as a function of listening to aggressive or nonaggressive rock music were studied. While taking the Thematic Apperception Test (Cards 1, 3BM, 4, 9BM, and 10) and the Buss-Durkee (1957) Hostility Scale, subjects (N = 90) randomly assigned to one of three groups listened to a rock song with (a) nonaggressive music and nonaggressive lyrics, (b) aggressive music and nonaggressive lyrics, or (c) aggressive music and aggressive lyrics. TAT stories were scored for aggressive content according to Hafner and Kaplan's (1960) hostility rating scale. Hostility scores did not differ between groups. The findings are congruent with other investigators' reports that subjects do not pay attention to rock lyrics. Previous findings that music affects the emotional quality of TAT stories and hostility scores on the Buss-Durkee scale were not supported.     

Interhemispheric transfer in schizophrenics, depressives, and normals with schizoid tendencies

Although several studies suggest that schizophrenics suffer from an impairment in the interhemispheric transfer (IHT) of information, methodological weaknesses in these studies preclude clear interpretation of their results. This study addresses these criticisms in order to provide a clearer test of the IHT theory. Schizophrenics, depressives, normal controls, and normals with schizoid tendencies were assessed on five measures of IHT (verbal and nonverbal dichotic listening, intermanual transfer, bimanual block design, finger sequence repetition) and two measures of unilateral hemispheric processing (lateral eye movements, auditory thresholds). Results consistently failed to support an IHT deficit interpretation of schizophrenia. Schizoid normals had a significantly greater right-ear advantage on verbal dichotic listening than both psychiatric groups, a result suggesting enhanced left-hemisphere activation in schizoid normals. It is concluded that the IHT theory requires stronger empirical substantiation than has been obtained to date to warrant further consideration as a central theory of schizophrenia.     

COGNITIVE EFFECTS OF LOGO AMONG BLACK AND WHITE ZIMBABWEAN GIRLS AND BOYS

The cognitive effects of LOGO were examined among 11–12-year-old black and white Zimbabwean girls and boys. Fifty-two experimental group children were exposed to a BBC LOGO programme with a screen turtle. Forty-one control group children received no exposure to computers at school. Pre-tests on four WISC-R subscales were held in January, 1987 and post-tests on the same four WISC-R subscales were held in November/December, 1987. The data were analyzed with multivariate analysis of covariance, using pre-test scores as the covariate. The results suggested that children in the experimental group did better on the WISC-R Arithmetic scale and that black girls exposed to LOGO showed particular gains in spatial reasoning, as measured by the WISC-R Block Design scale. It is concluded that LOGO appears to facilitate cognitive growth. Methodological limitations of the present study are discussed and suggestions for future research are presented.