A PRELIMINARY COMPARISON OF REINFORCER ASSESSMENT METHODS FOR CHILDREN WITH ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER

We evaluated the relative treatment utility of a verbal forced-choice questionnaire, child nomination, and direct observation for identifying the most potent reinforcers for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Results demonstrated that all three methods were more likely to disagree than to agree, that a forced-choice format may enhance verbal reinforcer assessment, and that further development and evaluation of verbal reinforcer-assessment methods are needed.     

Gender-Role Differences in Decision-Making Orientations and Decision-Making Skills1

The relationship between gender role identification and decision making orientations was examined. Decision making was analyzed in terms of decision making orientation (behavioral, cognitive, and emotional) and decision making skills (problem definition and formulation, generation of alternative solutions, choice process, solution implementation, and verification). The results revealed a 2-factor characterization of general decision making in terms of approach-avoidance tendencies and self-appraisals of decision skills. A masculinity model was supported for decision making orientation, with masculinity serving as the only significant predictor. In contrast, an androgyny model was supported for decision making skills, with masculinity and femininity serving as significant predictors.     

The conversion of Paul

This essay extrapolates from recent psychological data on the phenomena of guilt and splitting to possible implications for the understanding of the experience of the Apostle Paul.     

When More is Better than Less; Three Theories of Psychosis—Projection, Double Bind, and Possession

Three psychological theories of psychosis are described, each of which has standing in psychiatry. Defined by the terms projection, double bind, and possession, they initially appear to have little or nothing in common to explain psychosis, but converge at four points: (1) A high degree of anxiety precipitated by a dilemma or conflict perceived to be unsolvable by the person; (2) the anxiety triggers a shift from one thought or motive in the direction of its opposite, because the original was believed too antagonistic to the wishes of significant others; (3) the opposite, in order to remain opposite, requires that the original thought or motive be forgotten, (4) a singular means to produce and reinforce forgetting is the interposition of psychiatric symptoms. In psychiatry today treatment would fit more consistently with the three theories taken as a whole rather than any one, and a rationale for this viewpoint is elaborated.     

Fetal brain tissue transplants reduce visual deficits in adult rats with bilateral lesions of the occipital cortex

Fetal brain tissue from the occipital or the frontal cortex was implanted into the damaged occipital cortex of adult rats. The animals receiving grafts of embryonic frontal cortex showed partial restoration of brightness discrimination while recipients given homologous implants of occipital cortex were as impaired as those animals with lesions alone. Neither frontal nor occipital grafts aided in the performance of a pattern discrimination problem; both groups of brain-damaged animals were unable to learn the task. Nonetheless, both groups of animals had viable and enlarged grafts with similar neuronal and glial profiles.     

Predictability,controllability, and inoculation against learned helplessness

Nondepressed human subjects were divided into seven groups. On a series of discrimination problems, a helplessness group received insoluble problems, a solvable group received contingent feedback, and a no treatment control group received no feedback. For two other groups insoluble problems were preceded by success feedback on a different task presented according to a fixed ratio (FR) or variable ratio (VR) schedule of reinforcement. Two control groups received either FR or VR schedules of success but were not examined on the discrimination problems. All groups were tested for escape/avoidance performance on a human shuttle box. Both FR and VR schedules produced an inoculation against learned helplessness; escape performance by the helplessness group was significantly worse than that of FR and VR inoculation groups. These latter groups performed similar to the solvable and three control groups. Significantly worse than that of FR and VR inoculation groups. These latter groups performed similar to the solvable and three control groups. Significantly fewer subjects in the VR inoculation group exhibited avoidance responses than their counterparts in the FR inoculation group. despite similar escape performance. The findings indicate that learned helplessness can be prevented in humans and suggest different sources of interference produced by unpredictable and uncontrollable events.     

The interrelationships and reliability of a multilevel behavior-based assessment package for distressed couples

Twenty-six couples interested in improving their marital relationships participated in a multi-level behavior based assessment battery. The measures included self-reported, self-monitored, and observed components, all of which were examined for their interrelationships. Test-retest reliability was carried out with six of the couples. Self-reported measures, self-monitored pleasing behaviors, observed positive nonverbal and some negative verbal interactions were found to be consistent. In general, the various levels of measurement were found to be significantly related to each other. Some of the findings were applied to coercion and reciprocity formulations of marital interactions.     

Perceived Responsibility and Blame for Economic Success and Failure: Social Class and Employment Status Comparisons

The present study tested the proposition that social class and employment status would differentially affect attributions of responsibility and blame concerning positive and negative economic outcomes. The hypothesis here is that subjects will not blame a person who fails to get a job after taking a retraining program. The hypothesis is based upon the assumption that individuals on the lower rung of the economic ladder are aware of the external circumstances operating against economic security. As predicted, the person experiencing failure was neither held responsible nor blamed for his outcome. Also social class and employment status affected perceptions of the reasons for the successful outcome.