Prospective relations between rejection and depression in young adolescents

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to examine the relations between rejection and depression across 3 years in young adolescents who varied with regard to their risk for depression. The sample consisted of 240 adolescents who were assessed in grades 6, 7, and 8. The assessment of rejection was based on adolescent-, mother-, and teacher-report, and depression assessment was based on adolescent- and mother-report and clinician ratings. Structural equation modeling indicated that rejection prospectively predicted depression. The authors did not find that depression prospectively predicted rejection, but such a relation cannot be ruled out because of strong cross-sectional correlations between depression and rejection.     

Phonological alexia with vowel-consonant dissociation in non-word reading

We present a patient with alexia secondary to cerebral lesion whose errors in the reading of non-words affect vowels more than consonants. The interest of the case resides in: (1) the documentation of a vowel-consonant dissociation selectively affecting the reading of non-words; and (2) the localization of the alteration in a specific stage of the perilexical reading pathway, that is, the blending of phonetic chains. The case contributes to the discussion on the nature of representations and the processing of vowels and consonants.     

The psychological well-being of women of Menoufiya,Egypt. Relationships with family planning

Researchers surveyed the psychological well-being of 795 women of reproductive age from Menoufiya, Egypt. Five years earlier, these women had provided data relevant to their family planning behavior. This analysis links these data sets to investigate the impact of family planning on women's sense of well-being, within the context of beliefs about appropriate gender-related behaviors. Well-being measures are derived for trait and state dimensions. Use of family planning and number of children born within the preceding 5 years predicted state ratings of happiness, and number of children predicted anxious pride. Neither are related to any of the trait ratings. Further, 3 different gender-role attitudes are vital to the explanation of how women define and feel good about themselves.     

Modern Gnosticism: F.W.J. Schelling's Philosophy as an Expression of Valentinian Theology

According to scholars as influential as Hans Urs von Balthasar, Eric Voegelin and Cyril O'Regan, what was once rejected as an esoteric second century Christian heresy, has, and indeed continues to, exert a significant amount of influence over modern philosophy and theology in the form of ancient Gnosticism. While a variety of major studies have applied this hermeneutical lens to evaluate and better grasp Hegel's philosophical system, very few have sought to interpret Schelling's philosophy in this manner, when there seems to be ample evidence to suggest that Schelling consciously adopted Gnostic philosophy, particularly Valentinian speculation, alongside other theosophic proposals, when constructing his own ideas. And, given the rise of theological systems, notably from the East, although not exclusively, in the guise of Sergius Bulgakov, that are heavily indebted to Schelling and are currently exerting a notable influence on contemporary Anglophone systematic theology (theologians such as John Milbank), it would seem beneficial for such a study to be conducted to better grasp certain trends in current, mainstream, theological proposals.     

Effects of video self-modeling on the preference and reinforcer value of toys for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder

A primary characteristic of autism spectrum disorder includes restrictive and repetitive patterns of behavior. Because having few preferred items and activities can lead to social, communicative, and educational barriers, it is important to increase the number of preferred stimuli in the individual's environment. One way to do this is through conditioned reinforcement via observation. Such procedures involve the acquisition of a skill or change in behavior as a result of indirect contact (i.e., observation) with contingencies received by others. While conditioning through observation has been shown to be effective, one novel approach is video self-modeling. The purpose of the current study was to assess the effects of video self-modeling on the preference and reinforcer value of toys for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.     

Research on effects of color reversal on the visual perceptual and visuomotor performances of spastic cerebral palsied and other exceptional individuals

Research pertaining to the effects of color-reversal (black and white) on the visual perceptual and visuomotor performances of spastic cerebral-palsied children and other exceptional individuals was examined. In general, evidence to date suggests that spastic cerebral-palsied children show significant improvement in visuomotor and visual perceptual performance with the color-reversal of the standard black-on-white figure-ground relationship in stimulus and response materials of standardized tests.     

A rational-emotive theory of marital dysfunction and marital therapy

This article first discusses some rational-emotive perspectives on marital and couples therapy, including what constitutes a good relationship, some important differences between rational-emotive and other couples therapy approaches, and an RET classification of relationship problems. Second, this article also sketches out ways in which social exchange principles can be integrated into rational-emotive couples therapy.This is a revised version of a paper that originally appeared in A. Ellis and M. Bernard's (Eds.) 1985 text,Applications of Rational Emotive Therapy, Plenum Publishing Co., New York.     

Working memory in skilled and less skilled readers

This study assessed skilled and less skilled readers' working memory performance. Fifty skilled and less skilled readers at two age levels were presented with sentence span and concurrent memory tasks. The span task results indicated that working memory differences exist between reading groups. The concurrent task revealed performance deficits for less skilled readers across verbal and nonverbal conditions, suggesting a central processing deficiency. Age differences were isolated to skilled readers. It was concluded that less skilled readers' working memory deficiencies were pervasive in the sense that they involve deficiencies in memory components related to central executive processing.The authors are indebted to the University Laboratory School, University of Northern Colorado, and Greeley School District 6 for providing subjects for this study. Special appreciation is given to Dr. Neil Henderson, Sue Swaim, and Karen Cash for their administrative assistance. This study was supported by a grant from the U. S. Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services to the first author.