Sexualität und Gewalt

Sexual assault as defined by law, psychiatry and sociological research is contrasted to the everyday definition of rape. Official figures on the frequency of sexual assaults as communicated in annual reports by the police differ greatly from figures found by research on sexual victimization or representative studies using different definitions of violence and abuse in sexual relations. Overpowering and violence is not a rare phenomenon in sexual relations – nearly every second woman and 10% of men are familiar with such situations. There are not only biological conditions (individual variance in neurophysiological parameters) but also psychological conditions favoring the use of power and threat instead of courting in sexual partnerships. External conditions are certain popular opinions in parts of society and certain subcultures which may also be more or less in favor of male superiority, thus helping the perpetrator to justify his assault or on the contrary helping the victim to find support in court procedures and therapy if necessary. Prevention therefore has two targets: a general one by changing popular opinions which are in favor of the use of power in sexual relations and informing persons in danger of becoming victims about the risks and the possibilities to protect themselves and an individual one by treating victims to overcome their psychological injuries and to treat perpetrators inside and outside the judicial system. The current discussion on increased availability of pornography in the internet shows both aspects: a general target to reduce negative influences of pornography which produces devaluating views on sexuality and women and the more individual task of tackling new forms of pathology created by the media at least for some of the consumers.     

Over‐imitation in children with autism and Down syndrome

Typically developing children have been shown to imitate the specific means used by an adult to achieve an object‐directed outcome, even if a more efficient method is available. It has been argued that this behaviour can be attributed to social and communicative motivations. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), relative to children with Down syndrome (DS), show a reduced tendency to copy the exact means used by an adult to produce a novel outcome. To achieve this a sample of 34 children (22 with ASD and 12 with DS) were given a test of object‐directed imitation. Contrary to expectation, children in both groups imitated the specific method of the model to the same high extent. This finding is in line with suggestions that object‐directed imitation is relatively spared in children with autism but is surprising given arguments linking such imitation to socially based motivations. Nevertheless, children's ability to successfully copy the model was associated with their communicative ability, providing some support for the link between imitation and communication.     

Academic success in adolescence: Relationships among verbal IQ,social support and emotional intelligence

The objective of this study was to examine, by gender, whether emotional intelligence (EI), peer social support, and/or family social support partially mediated the influence of verbal IQ on Grade 10 grade point average (GPA) for 192 students (96 male, 96 female). For male students, EI and peer social support predicted GPA and EI mediated the association between verbal IQ and GPA. For female students, EI, peer social support, and family support predicted GPA but did not mediate the association between verbal IQ and GPA. This study further examined whether subscales of EI (intrapersonal, interpersonal, adaptability, and stress management abilities), peer social support and family social support (emotional, socialising, practical, financial, and advice) added to the prediction of GPA after verbal IQ, gender, and socioeconomic status were controlled. Adaptability, stress management and practical family social support each added to the explanation of variability. None of the peer social support subscales predicted additional variance in GPA.     

Development of ASB 1: The development of antisocial behaviour in adolescents and young adults

A substantial proportion of adolescent antisocial behaviour (ASB) research has focused on identifying the chronic offender; comparatively little research has investigated developmental patterns among the general adolescent population, who account for a large proportion of ASB participation. A modified version of the Mak Self‐Report Behaviour Scale was administered to 233 (relatively advantaged) community adolescents (aged 9–17), and 193 young adults (aged 18–25). Not available in previous instruments, in addition to prevalence rates, the Adolescent ASB Scale (AASBS) accurately identifies specifically when adolescents enter, exit, and peak in their ASB participation. An earlier age of ASB participation was associated with greater frequency, severity and duration. The most noteworthy finding was a mid‐adolescent peak in ASB participation, which was shorter and more dramatic for girls. These findings provide knowledge critical for informing future research into causal explanations for the temporary and dramatic increase in adolescent ASB, and for developing more effective intervention practices with mainstream youth.     

Stress and depression of facing death: Investigation of psychological symptoms in patients with mesothelioma

Cancer often results in psychological impairment, and lung cancer has been associated with greater morbidity and higher levels of psychological distress than any other form. Chronic exposure to asbestos is a significant risk factor for development of lung cancer, called mesothelioma. Few have studied the psychological consequences of chronic asbestos exposure and mesothelioma. This study investigated stress and depression symptoms in 49 men (M = 51.1 years, SD = 6.0) diagnosed with mesothelioma. Participants completed traumatic stress, depression and general psychological health questionnaires. All participants reported significant levels of traumatic stress symptoms, which was associated with increased symptoms of depression, anxiety, somatic complaints and social dysfunction. The results provide important suggestions for clinicians treating such terminally ill patients.     

The Australian Psychology Workforce 3: A national profile of psychologists in salaried employment or in independent private practice

A detailed analysis of the different sectors of the psychology workforce was conducted as part of the National Psychology Workforce Survey: Independent Private Practice (IPP), Employed in Public Sector (EPuS) and Employed in Private Sector (EPrS). A total of 11,897 psychologists responded to the workforce survey, a response rate of 48%. Of these 8,086 were fully registered and currently working in a psychology role. Sectors were compared on a range of practice characteristics and differences were explored using a series of ANOVAs and post‐hoc analyses. Results of analyses revealed qualitative differences between the three sectors. Strategies for maintaining the employed workforce were also collected and are reported to be as much about increasing work satisfaction and support for professional and development opportunities as about salary.     

Measurement of ability emotional intelligence: Results for two new tests

Emotional intelligence (EI) has attracted considerable interest amongst both individual differences researchers and those in other areas of psychology who are interested in how EI relates to criteria such as well‐being and career success. Both trait (self‐report) and ability EI measures have been developed; the focus of this paper is on ability EI. The associations of two new ability EI tests with psychometric intelligence, emotion perception, and the Mayer–Salovey–Caruso EI test (MSCEIT) were examined. The new EI tests were the Situational Test of Emotion Management (STEM) and the Situational Test of Emotional Understanding (STEU). Only the STEU and the MSCEIT Understanding Emotions branch were significantly correlated with psychometric intelligence, suggesting that only understanding emotions can be regarded as a candidate new intelligence component. These understanding emotions tests were also positively correlated with emotion perception tests, and STEM and STEU scores were positively correlated with MSCEIT total score and most branch scores. Neither the STEM nor the STEU were significantly correlated with trait EI tests, confirming the distinctness of trait and ability EI. Taking the present results as a starting‐point, approaches to the development of new ability EI tests and models of EI are suggested.     

Predicting children's word‐reading accuracy for common English words: The effect of word transparency and complexity

The effects of printed word frequency and transparency measures on single word reading accuracy were examined in 105 six‐year‐old children. The results indicated that it may be necessary to re‐appraise notions of orthography‐to‐phonology correspondences for children of this age. The influence of orthographic neighbourhood size appeared to derive from word frequency and graphemic complexity. The results also indicated that sonograph frequency was more predictive of reading accuracy than the GPC rules and weighted correspondences currently embodied in dual route and connectionist models of skilled reading.     

Psychopharmakotherapie der Essstörungen

Es gibt eine Reihe von Studien zur Pharmakotherapie der Essst?rungen. Empfehlungen für die pharmakologische Behandlung von Essst?rungen (Anorexia nervosa (AN), Bulimia nervosa (BN), Binge Eating Disorder (BED)), basierend auf der verfügbaren Literatur, werden vorgestellt: Für AN gibt es Hinweise, dass eine ,,Zinksupplementierung“ oder der Einsatz von atypischen Antipsychotika hilfreich sein kann. Für BN zeigen die Studien positive Ergebnisse hinsichtlich des Einsatzes von Antidepressiva, insbesondere für Fluvoxamin und Fluoxetin. Auch für das Antiepilektum Topiramat gibt es positive Studienergebnisse. Bei BED k?nnen bestimmte Antidepressiva und Antiepileptika erfolgreich eingesetzt werden. Jedoch wird weitere Forschung für die Verbesserung der Behandlung von Essst?rungen ben?tigt. Speziell für Anorexia nervosa besteht ein Bedarf für weitere pharmakologische Behandlungsstrategien.