Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS): Preliminary Australian normative data

The aim of the present study was to establish demographically adjusted normative data for the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) in an Australian context. RBANS data from 172 healthy Australian community dwelling adults enrolled in the “Using our Brains” (UoB) Brain Tissue Donor program between April 2002 and September 2005 were included in this study. The present study group differed from the original North American normative sample on all 12 subtests and five RBANS indices. Education and to a lesser degree age were related to RBANS performance. The present study provides complementary RBANS normative data for clinicians and researchers when interpreting RBANS results for Australian individuals closely matching those reported in this study.     

A review of domestic dogs' (Canis familiaris) human-like behaviors: or why behavior analysts should stop worrying and love their dogs

Dogs likely were the first animals to be domesticated and as such have shared a common environment with humans for over ten thousand years. Only recently, however, has this species' behavior been subject to scientific scrutiny. Most of this work has been inspired by research in human cognitive psychology and suggests that in many ways dogs are more human-like than any other species, including nonhuman primates. Behavior analysts should add their expertise to the study of dog behavior, both to add objective behavioral analyses of experimental data and to effectively integrate this new knowledge into applied work with dogs.     

Domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) use human gestures but not nonhuman tokens to find hidden food

The authors examined the ability of domestic dogs to use human body cues (gestures) and equivalent-sized nonhuman cues to find hidden food in an object choice paradigm. In Experiment 1 the authors addressed the importance of the human element of the cue, and the effects of size, topography, and familiarity on dogs' success in using cues. Experiment 2 further explored the role of the human as cue-giver, and the impact of a change in the experimenter's attentional state during cue presentation. This included a systematic test of the role inanimate tokens play as cues apart from human placement. Our results indicate that dogs are more sensitive to human cues than equivalent nonhuman cues, and that the size of the cue is a critical element in determining dogs' success in following it.     

Dogs don't always prefer their owners and can quickly form strong preferences for certain strangers over others.

The unique relationship between dog and owner has been demonstrated in several experimental procedures, including tests in which dogs are left alone or with a stranger, tests of dogs’ appeasement or social approach when petted by their owner or a stranger, and their ability to learn when taught by their owner or a stranger. In all cases, dogs responded differently to their owner, which has been referred to as a specific attachment, and likely a product of a prolonged history of reinforcement. In the current study, we used a concurrent choice paradigm in which dogs could interact with two people, both of whom provided the same petting interaction, to test whether owned dogs would prefer their owner over a stranger and whether the familiarity of the testing context would influence preference. We also investigated whether shelter and owned dogs tested with two strangers would show a preference between strangers and whether that preference would be similar in magnitude to any preference between the owner and stranger. Owned dogs preferred to interact with their owners when in an unfamiliar context, but allocated more time to the stranger in a familiar context. Both shelter and owned dogs tested with two strangers showed a magnitude of preference for one stranger over the other similar to owned dogs’ preference for owners in an unfamiliar context. These results parallel what has been found in strange situation tests with owned dogs tested with their owners, but the strength of preference shown for one of two strangers indicates dogs can form a preference for one person quickly.     

The predictive validity of individual psychological assessments in selecting UK public sector senior managers

Individual Psychological Assessment (IPA) is a very widely offered service in Organizational Psychology. It generally consists of a psychologist or HR practitioner using a combination of interview and psychometrics to arrive at a detailed assessment of an individual's capabilities in relation to a job they are being considered for. Although much used, this practice has limited supporting evidence of its validity—not least because of the methodological difficulties in conducting research on this subject—and has been criticized accordingly. The current study examines the use of IPAs with 115 middle and senior management level candidates in a civil service context. All candidates completed a set of psychometric measures and had an in‐depth interview with a psychologist as part of a standardized process. The ratings made by the assessors were correlated with a criterion measure of potential for promotion derived from multisource feedback ratings obtained on these candidates some months later. Analysis of the results indicated that three of the four attributes rated by assessors correlated significantly with the criterion measure. Further, assessors’ ratings were found to show incremental validity over that provided by psychometric test scores alone. These findings are discussed in terms of the use of IPAs in senior level assessment.     

A Cultural Adaptation of Dialectical Behavior Therapy in Nepal

Growing evidence exists on the potential for adapting evidence-based interventions for low- and-middle-income countries (LMIC). One opportunity that has received limited attention is the adaptation of psychotherapies developed in high-income countries (HIC) based on principles from LMIC cultural groups. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is one such treatment with significant potential for acceptability in South Asian settings with high suicide rates. We describe a tri-phasic approach to adapt DBT in Nepal that consists of qualitative interviews with major Nepali mental health stakeholders (Study 1), an adaptation workshop with 15 Nepali counselors (Study 2), and a small-scale treatment pilot with eligible clients in one rural district (Study 3). Due to low literacy levels, distinct conceptualizations of mind and body, and program adherence barriers, numerous adaptations were required. DBT concepts attributable to Asian belief systems were least comprehensible to clients. However, the 82% program completion rate suggests utility of a structured, skills-based treatment. This adaptation process informs future research regarding the effectiveness of culturally adapted DBT in South Asia.     

Sociotropy,autonomy, and personality disorder criteria in psychiatric patients

Sociotropy and autonomy (Beck, 1983) are sets of beliefs, concerns, and behavioral tendencies that are proposed to create vulnerability to depression and other psychopathology and to influence its manifestation and treatment response. Other theoretical frameworks (Blatt, 1974) have made similar suggestions. We investigated the differential relations of sociotropy and autonomy to dimensional scores for each DSM-III-R personality disorder (PD) in a sample of 188 psychiatric patients, controlling for the other set of characteristics and for the other PDs. Histrionic and dependent PD traits were related specifically to sociotropy. Paranoid, schizoid, schizotypal, and passive-aggressive PD traits were related specifically to autonomy. Borderline, narcissistic, avoidant, and self-defeating PD traits were related significantly and about equally to both sociotropy and autonomy. Obsessive-compulsive PD traits were not related consistently to either. Results were mostly as predicted and suggest that sociotropy and autonomy may be useful constructs for understanding and treating PDs.