Psychoanalytic observation

The recent focus on empathy as the essential activity in psychoanalytic data gathering has underemphasized the complexity of psychoanalytic observation and has failed to identify what truly makes it unique among modes of psychological investigation. It is a process that includes introspection and empathy. However, it also includes the analyst's observation of the patient's behavior, and particularly verbal behavior, in a way that is not necessarily empathic. The psychoanalytic use of introspection and behavioral observation together, as they are modified by the analysand's free association and the analyst's evenly hovering attention, provides a unique method of data gathering. The transient, mutually related regressions of analyst and analysand which partly constitute the analyzing instrument modify the field of observation available to both, providing better access to derivatives of the analysand's unconscious mental functioning. This more complex concept of psychoanalytic observation, as opposed to that in which empathy is predominant, has important implications for psychoanalytic training, clinical work, and theory.     

The old homeless and the new homelessness in historical perspective

In the 1950s and 1960s homelessness declined to the point that researchers were predicting its virtual disappearance in the 1970s. Instead, in the 1980s, homelessness increased rapidly and drastically changed in composition. The "old homeless" of the 1950s were mainly old men living in cheap hotels on skid rows. The new homeless were much younger, more likely to be minority group members, suffering from greater poverty, and with access to poorer sleeping quarters. In addition, homeless women and families appeared in significant numbers. However, there were also points of similarity, especially high levels of mental illness and substance abuse.     

Processing distinctions between stems and affixes: evidence from a non-fluent aphasic patient

In this paper, we study the ability of a non-fluent aphasic patient, BN, to comprehend morphologically complex words when they appear in utterance contexts. We first establish that he is insensitive to the contextual appropriateness of both derived and inflected words. In a further experiment we show that he has no difficulty processing the stems of complex words and conclude that his problem is with the bound morphemes themselves. We then ask whether this problem is due to his inability to access either the phonological form of a morphologically complex word or its semantic and/or syntactic content. We find that only the access of semantic and syntactic content is impaired. We conclude from these six studies that: (a) BN presents a counter-example to the claim that non-fluent patients have particular difficulty with those aspects of morphology which have a syntactic function; (b) BN processes both derived and inflected words by mapping the sensory input onto the entire full-form of a complex word, but the semantic and syntactic content of the stem alone is accessed and integrated into the context. The semantic and syntactic implications of the suffix are never evaluated. This implies separate representation of the stems and suffixes of some types of morphologically complex words.     

Towards a theory of algorithm-determined cognitive test construction

A rationale for, and data from, a trial of a theory of item generation by algorithms whose origins are cognitive models of task performance are presented. Since Spearman (1904), intelligence has been operationally defined and assessed in human subjects by administering identical test items whose content and order have been fixed only after empirical iterations. In our approach, intelligence is ostensively defined by theoretically determined algorithms used for item construction and presentation. Knowledge of what cognitive factors limit human performance makes it possible to vary within tightly specified parameters those features of the tasks that contribute to difficulty, which we call radicals, to let those components of the tasks that do not contribute to difficulty vary randomly, and to counterbalance aspects of answer production that might induce biases of response. Empirical data are based on the generation of five different short tests demanding only functional literacy as a prerequisite for their execution. Four parallel forms of each test were administered to young male Army recruits whose scores were collated with their Army Entrance Test results, which were not previously known to us. Results show that the parallel, algorithm-generated item sets are statistically invariant, which item generation theory demands; and that the individual tests differentially predict Army Entrance Test scores. We conclude that IQ test performances are parsimoniously explained by individual differences in encoding, comparison and reconstructive memory processes.     

Gender, social competence, and symptomatology in schizophrenia: a longitudinal analysis

The relationship between gender and social skill measured by performance on a role play test was examined in a sample of 57 schizophrenics, 33 affective disorder patients, and 20 nonpatient controls. Female schizophrenics were more skilled than male schizophrenics, but no gender differences were present in the affective patients or the controls. Longitudinal analyses conducted on the schizophrenic group indicated that the superior social skill of women was stable over the year following a symptom exacerbation. Symptoms and social adjustment improved for both men and women over the year, but did not differ according to gender. The implications of the results for gender differences in the long-term outcome of schizophrenia are discussed.     

ASSESSING FOOD PREFERENCES AMONG PERSONS WITH PROFOUND MENTAL RETARDATION: PROVIDING OPPORTUNITIES TO MAKE CHOICES

Increased attention has been directed recently to assisting persons with severe handicaps to express preferences concerning events in their lives. We evaluated a program for assessing choice-making skills to provide opportunities for persons with profound mental retardation to express food and drink preferences. In Experiment 1, the assessment procedure involving repeated, paired-item presentations resulted in active choice making and the identification of preferences for all 5 participants. Results also indicated that caregiver opinion was not predictive of participant food and drink preferences. A survey of service providers supported the importance of meal-related choices in this population. In Experiment 2, the practicality of the assessment procedure was supported by demonstrating that (a) routine caregivers could apply the procedure with appropriate supervision to provide choice opportunities, and (b) results of the procedure were predictive of participant choices when a less structured and more normal opportunity to express a preference was provided during regular mealtimes. Results are discussed in terms of extending the developing technology of preference and reinforcer identification to other important areas for persons with severe disabilities.     

EFFECTS OF CHOSEN VERSUS ASSIGNED JOBS ON THE WORK PERFORMANCE OF PERSONS WITH SEVERE HANDICAPS

We evaluated the effects of several choice-related variables on the work performance of adults with severe handicaps. After assessing client work preferences, three choice-related situations were presented: (a) providing clients with the opportunity to choose a work task, (b) assigning a preferred task, and (c) assigning a nonpreferred task. Results indicated that clients attended to work tasks almost twice as much when they chose their tasks and when assigned to work on preferred tasks versus when assigned to work on nonpreferred tasks. Results are discussed regarding the need to assess systematically the effects of choice-related variables.     

Ecology of depression in late childhood and early adolescence: a profile of daily states and activities

This study investigated daily states and time use patterns associated with depression. Four hundred eighty-three 5th to 9th graders reported on their experience when signalled by pagers at random times. Depressed youth reported more negative affect and social emotions, lower psychological investment, lower energy, and greater variability in affect. These differences were weaker for 5th and 6th graders, suggesting that self-reported feeling states are a poor indicator of depression prior to adolescence. No differences were found in the daily activities of depressed youths nor in the amount of time spent alone, but depressed youths experienced other people as less friendly and more often reported wanting to be alone, especially when with their families. They also spent less time in public places and more time in their bedrooms. Finally, depressed boys, but not girls, spent much less time with friends, particularly of the same sex, suggesting that social isolation is more strongly associated with depression for boys.     

Received and Perceived Social Support Following Natural Disaster1

Because they were participating in a concurrent panel study, 222 older adults had been asked how much help they would expect to receive in a hypothetical emergency before experiencing two separate floods. For the subsample suffering losses or injuries during the floods, Study 1 examined the accuracy of their expectations, as well as possible changes in them, as a result of help actually received. Generally, victims received much less help than they had expected to receive prior to the floods. Preflood expectation of support predicted help from kin, whereas loss and education predicted help from nonkin sources. However, subsequent expectations did not change as a result of the level of help received. Using the total sample, Study 2 examined the broader issue of whether the disaster itself affected subsequent perceptions of support. Flood exposure, as measured at both individual and community levels, was associated with declines in perceptions of support and social participation.