Disulfiram maintenance employee alcoholism treatment: A three-phase evaluation

Absenteeism rates of industrial employees (N = 21) referred by their employers to alcoholism treatment were evaluated during three phases: pre-treatment (the 24 months immediately prior to treatment); treatment (the period of continuous treatment enrolment, averaging 10.6 months); and post-treatment (the period immediately following treatment, averaging 4.4 months). Treatment consisted of disulfiram maintenance—routine supervised ingestion of disulfiram—without scheduled counseling. The median per cent of scheduled work days absent for each phase was: pre-treatment, 9.8%; treatment, 1.7%; post-treatment, 6.7%. Absenteeism during the treatment phase was significantly less (p < 0.01) than that during pre-treatment and post-treatment, which did not differ significantly from one another. The five-fold reduction in absenteeism was specifically related to treatment delivery, and appears superior to the two-fold reduction reported for traditional employee alcoholism treatment via counseling.     

Temperament, distraction, and learning in toddlerhood

The word- and nonword-learning abilities of toddlers were tested under various conditions of environmental distraction, and evaluated with respect to children's temperamental attentional focus. Thirty-nine children and their mothers visited the lab at child age 21-months, where children were exposed to fast-mapping word-learning trials and nonlinguistic sequential learning trials. It was found that both word- and nonword-learning were adversely affected by the presentation of environmental distractions. But it was also found that the effect of the distractions sometimes depended on children's level of attentional focus. Specifically, children high in attentional focus were less affected by environmental distractions than children low in attentional focus when attempting to learn from a model, whereas children low in attentional focus demonstrated little learning from the model. Translationally, these results may be of use to child health-care providers investigating possible sources of cognitive and language delay.     

Sex differences in cerebral laterality of language and visuospatial processing

Sex differences on language and visuospatial tasks are of great interest, with differences in hemispheric laterality hypothesized to exist between males and females. Some functional imaging studies examining sex differences have shown that males are more left lateralized on language tasks and females are more right lateralized on visuospatial tasks; however, findings are inconsistent. Here we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to study thirty participants, matched on task performance, during phonological and visuospatial tasks. For each task, region-of-interest analyses were used to test differences in cerebral laterality. Results indicate that lateralization differences exist, with males more left lateralized during the phonological task and showing greater bilateral activity during the visuospatial task, whereas females showed greater bilateral activity during the phonological task and were more right lateralized during the visuospatial task. Our data provide clear evidence for differences in laterality between males and females when processing language versus visuospatial information.     

Physiologic and motor conditioning and generalization in children with minimal brain dysfunction

Twenty-six children diagnosed as having minimal brain dysfunctions (MBD) were compared with 26 controls in a conditinoing and generalization procedure. Skin resistance, heart rate, and muscle action potentials were monitored throughout. Success involved learning which of two tones signalled the accessibility of a penny. Whereas 92 per cent of controls reached the criterion of five successive correct responses, only 62 per cent of MBD’s did. Further, a third of the MBD’s were so maladaptive as to force procedural variations, while only a few minor irregularities occurred with the controls. Quality of performance was related to age, intelligence, and ability to discriminate and remember tones. Controls were more physiologically reactive than MBD’s, especially in skin resistance. Physiologic differentiation of the two tones was significant in both groups of children and appeared concurrently with motor differentiation. The only evidence of physiologic generalization was in the SR data of controls. The possibility that defective arousal structures, or defective coupling of arousal structures and other perceptual and motor structures, could account for the decreased physiologic reactivity, short attention spans, and poor concentration ofsome MBD’s is discussed. This research, in conformity with other laboratory studies of the brain, indicates that motivational as well as cognitive defects may be organically based.     

Factors Related to Reported Problems of Adolescents

A randomly selected group of 720 adolescents responded to the Mooney Problem Check List. The relationship between the problems reported for each of the 11 problem areas of the MPCL (dependent variables) and the 14 independent variables was analyzed statistically by employing the least-squares analysis of variance technique. This analysis yielded significant differences for 7 of the 14 independent variables. Possible implications of the findings of this study for educational planning are discussed, and recommendations made for a more comprehensive study of the problems of adolescents at the local level.     

The depression proneness rating scale: Reliability, validity, and factor structure

This study describes the development of the Depression Proneness Rating Scale (DPRS), a brief, self-administered measure of the tendency to experience frequent, long-lasting, and severe depressions, and three investigations into the scale’s reliability, validity, and factor structure. Study 1, using 100 university students, found a stability coefficient of .82 for the DPRS over a test-retest interval of nine weeks. Further, Time 1 (T1) DPRS scores predicted Time 2 (T2) symptoms of depression, even after adjusting for Time 1 symptoms (R² Change=.03). Study 2, using 440 university students, found the DPRS to be a better predictor of past depressive episodes (r=.41 to .47) than was the Beck Depression Inventory (r=.32). Study 3, using 1101 university students, found that all 13 items of the DPRS loaded .40 or greater on a single factor for both males and females. Overall, results provide substantial evidence for the DPRS as a valid, unidimensional, and practical measure of depression proneness.     

The depression proneness rating scale: Reliability,validity, and factor structure

This study describes the development of the Depression Proneness Rating Scale (DPRS), a brief, self-administered measure of the tendency to experience frequent, long-lasting, and severe depressions, and three investigations into the scale’s reliability, validity, and factor structure. Study 1, using 100 university students, found a stability coefficient of .82 for the DPRS over a test-retest interval of nine weeks. Further, Time 1 (T1) DPRS scores predicted Time 2 (T2) symptoms of depression, even after adjusting for Time 1 symptoms (R² Change=.03). Study 2, using 440 university students, found the DPRS to be a better predictor of past depressive episodes (r=.41 to .47) than was the Beck Depression Inventory (r=.32). Study 3, using 1101 university students, found that all 13 items of the DPRS loaded .40 or greater on a single factor for both males and females. Overall, results provide substantial evidence for the DPRS as a valid, unidimensional, and practical measure of depression proneness.     

TEACHING SELECTED MICROCOMPUTER SKILLS TO RETARDED STUDENTS VIA PICTURE PROMPTS

Five retarded students were taught to use picture prompts to help them access and terminate a microcomputer program. Training was provided within a multiple baseline format. Posttesting (picture prompts without feedback), and a return to baseline were later conducted for boththe training program and an untrained (generalization) program. The results indicate thatthe program was successful in teachingthe microcomputer skills tothe students. In addition, all students were able to maintain their skills over a 7-day interval in which they did not have access tothe microcomputer.     

Sex trait stereotypes in Malaysian children

To examine the development of sex trait stereotypes in Malaysia, 40 5-year-old and 40 8-year-old children were tested with the Sex Stereotype Measurement II. Data were subjected to an item-level analysis, a 2×2×2 mixed design analysis of variance, and cross-cultural comparisons. Results revealed that (1) stereotyping increases with age (p.005), (2) male traits are identified more correctly than female traits (p.005), and (3) boys are more familiar with the male stereotype than are girls (p.025). Cross-cultural comparisons indicate that, relative to 23 other countries, Malaysian 5 year olds produce high stereotype scores but that data from 8 year olds fall more within the median range. The results are interpreted in terms of cognitive development and socialization patterns in Malaysia's multiracial developing society.This research is adapted from a paper presented at the Asian Regional Workshop on Child and Adolescent Development, Bangkok, February 1982.