The susceptibility of the Rorschach to malingering: a critical review

Empirical studies of malingering on the Rorschach are reviewed. Results from these studies are to this point inconsistent and inconclusive. Although several indices are related to malingering in individual studies, no specific malingering pattern has been found that replicates across studies. A methodological problem specific to this literature is discussed and future research designs are recommended.     

Genetic and environmental variation on the California Psychological Inventory vector scales

Three recently introduced vector scales for the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) were scored for the National Merit Twin Sample and subjected to a heredity-environment analysis. Confidence intervals for genetic and environmental parameters were obtained by a bootstrap method. Two of the scales, Internality (Vector 1) and Self-Realization (Vector 3), showed the substantial heritability and near-zero family environment effects typically found for personality scales, whereas Norm-Favoring (Vector 2) showed an appreciable effect of family environment and a nonsignificant heritability.     

Four Systems Anxiety Questionnaire (FSAQ): a self-report measure of somatic, cognitive, behavioral, and feeling components

This article presents the development of a 60-item self-report known as the Four Systems Anxiety Questionnaire (FSAQ). The FSAQ assesses anxiety on four components: somatic, cognitive, behavioral, and feeling. The FSAQ was given to 218 first-year university students, 54 anxiety patients attending clinical psychology departments, and 14 agoraphobic patients pre- and postpsychological treatment. Results reveal satisfactory reliability and validity levels. In addition, we proved that the FSAQ is sensitive to change following psychological treatment.     

Effects of alcohol and extended practice on divided-attention performance

The effects of alcohol and extended practice on divided attention were investigated using a visual tracking task and an auditory detection task. Subjects performed the tasks with and without alcohol, under single-task (S) and dual-task (D) conditions, both before and after they had received extended practice under single-task conditions without alcohol. Tracking accuracy improved with practice and was impaired under divided-attention conditions but was not affected by alcohol. Speed of detection was impaired by alcohol, improved by practice, and impaired by divided attention. Extended practice did not reduce the influence of alcohol. The effects of both alcohol and practice on speed of detection were significantly greater under dual-task conditions than under single-task conditions. Analysis of detection-task reaction times in terms of relative divided-attention costs, (D-S)/S, showed no effect of alcohol, but a highly significant reduction in costs with extended practice. It is concluded that (1) alcohol and practice can have quantitatively, but not qualitatively, similar effects on speeded performance, and (2) the effect of alcohol is not influenced by the attentional requirements of the task.     

Letter identification declines with increasing retinal eccentricity at the same rate for normal and dyslexic readers

It has recently been claimed (Geiger & Lettvin, 1987; Perry, Dember, Warm, & Sacks, 1989) that the acuity/eccentricity function is flatter in dyslexics than in normal subjects, with dyslexics showing better performance in the periphery and worse performance at fixation. In these studies, all target letters were presented to the right of fixation, a procedural flaw inviting subjects to optimize performance by directing attention and/or gaze to the right of the designated fixation point. It is suggested that dyslexic and normal readers may differ in the degree to which they might adopt the optimal strategy in this situation. To overcome this problem, target letters were briefly presented at 16 randomly intermixed locations derived from the orthogonal combination of four eccentricities and four directions from fixation (above, below, right, left). The accuracy of letter identification declined with increasing eccentricity at the same rate for good and poor adult readers and dyslexic teenagers. This finding provides no support for the view that the acuity/eccentricity function might vary with and possibly cause differences in reading level.     

Reaction time and index of difficulty in target-striking tasks with changes in direction

Reaction time (RT) for two three-segment target-striking responses involving changes in direction of movement was studied as a function of differences in their additive index . . . index of difficulty (A-ID). In one condition the A-ID was 9.96 and in the other, 6.76. For 16 right-handed university students, mean RT was significantly faster for the condition in which the index was 6.76. Movement times were consistent with Fitts' Law. The data support Sidaway, Christina, and Shea's 1988 prediction that for target-striking movements with changes of direction, RT is a function of the cumulative series of movement constraints.     

PROJECT A: SPECIFICATION OF THE PREDICTOR DOMAIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF NEW SELECTION/ CLASSIFICATION TESTS

A major goal of the Army Selection and Classification Project was to develop an experimental predictor battery that would best supplement the Armed Forces Vocational Aptitude Battery for making selection and classification decisions for entry-level enlisted personnel. That is, what predictor measures would best serve the needs of all the jobs in an entire selection/classification system? This paper describes the characteristics of the new test battery and the procedures that were used to develop it. The major steps in the procedure were a structured literature search using a standard protocol, an extensive expert judgment study of expected true validities for a population of predictor variables against a population of performance components, fabrication of modularized software and a special response pedestal for computerized measurement of perceptual and psychomotor abilities, evaluations of experimental measures in three iterative pilot tests and one major field test, and a series of reviews by a panel of scientific advisers. The test battery that resulted from this 2 1/2-year development effort is described. The basic psychometric properties of each measure, as determined in a large concurrent validation sample, are also described.