Ethical issues and the family doctor

Issues recognized as having ethical or moral components are becoming increasingly common, for society in general, the health care system and for general practitioner/family physicians in particular. Some of the peculiar problems for GP's relate to the provision of continuing, comprehensive, primary medical care to large numbers of individuals who provide extensive potential for conflict between all the involved elements: patients, physicians, families, consultants and societal attitudes. There is a need for more formal education programs.     

The effect of alcohol on male aggression toward female targets

This study attempted to determine the effects of alcohol, verbal provocation, and target strategy on male aggression toward female targets. Intoxicated and nonintoxicated male research participants competed with a female confederate in a reaction time task designed to measure aggression. Intoxicated participants responded more aggressively than did nonintoxicated participants. Verbal provocation had no effect on participants' aggressive response. Effects of target strategy and trial outcome lent support to a cognitive disorganization interpretation of the effect of alcohol on aggression.     

Evaluation of the relative effectiveness of methylphenidate and cognitive behavior modification in the treatment of kindergarten-aged hyperactive children

This study of kindergarten-aged hyperactive children evaluated the effects of three modes of treatment in relation to an untreated control group. The treatments were administered over a 3-month period and included cognitive behavior modification, methylphenidate, and the two treatments combined. A follow-up assessment was done approximately 1 year later at the end of the first grade. Analyses of psychological, rating scale observational, and interview data showed that hyperactive children became less symptomatic over time;the data did not provide evidence indicating that any of the treatments studied was more effective than any other or than no treatment at all.This research was supported by grants from the Ontario Mental Health Foundation (Grant No. 701-76/78) and The Hospital for Sick Children Foundation (Grant No. 77-22). The authors wish to thank Mr. Syl Sauro, of the Etobicoke Board of Education, and Mrs. M. Stijovic, of the Etobicoke Community Health Department, for their cooperation.     

A two-year follow-up study of a preventive mental health program for preschoolers

The long-term effects of a preschool intervention program for high-risk experimental children were assessed and compared to a high-risk placebo control group and low-risk normal controls. Seventy first-grade children were involved in this 2-year follow-up. The experimental treatment group was superior to that of the placebo control group at follow-up on the criteria measures of behavioral adjustment and achievement. The low-risk normal control group was significantly different from that of the placebo control groups, but generally not significantly different from that of the experimental groups, suggesting that the intervention had boosted the high-risk experimental treatment children to the point where their performance was comparable to that of children who had not experienced behavioral or learning difficulties.The study was supported by grants from the McGregor Fund and the Eloise and Richard Webber Foundation, and by the Detroit Public Schools, for which the authors express grateful appreciation. A version of this paper was presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association, New York, September 1979.     

Social perspective-taking and adjustment in emotionally disturbed,learning-disabled,and normal children

Preadolescent emotionally disturbed, learning-disabled, and normal boys were compared on social perspective-taking and behavioral measures to examine possible contributions of social cognitive deficits to children's adjustment problems. Antisocial-prosocial and withdrawn-gregarious behavior dimensions were studied through subscales derived from teacher ratings. Results indicated that across all groups, high perspective-taking was associated with significantly less withdrawal than was low perspective-taking; within groups, this finding was significant only for the emotionally disturbed boys. Contrary to theoretical assumptions, antisocial behavior was not significantly related to perspective-taking across the sample. Among emotionally disturbed boys, relatively higher affective perspectivetaking was significantly correlated with higher antisocial behavior. This positive correlation for the emotionally disturbed group was significantly different from the nonsignificant negative correlation between antisocial behavior and perspective-taking among normals. Findings for learning-disabled boys were intermediate. between results for emotionally disturbed and normal boys on both perspectivetaking and behavioral measures, and the learning-disabled group generally did not differ significantly from either other group. Theoretical and clinical implications of the findings are discussed The authors acknowledge the invaluable assistance and cooperation of many teachers and principals in Jefferson County School District in Colorado, especially Ms. Norma Sobesky, coordinator of the program for Significantly Impaired Emotionally and Behaviorally Disturbed Children, and Ms. Beth Young, coordinator of the program for Perceptual and Communicative Disorders.     

Mobility among young workers in a multi-ethnic community

The job experiences of a group of young people of English and Pakistani origin who had left school four years earlier at the age of 16 were investigated using interviews and retrospective data from careers-office files. Job-changing had been frequent during the first 18 months of employment, with changes being largely of a non-promotional kind. Those who had experienced regular non-promotional job-change tended to have had low attainment in basic educational skills and inadequately developed vocational attitudes and personalities when leaving school. Yet in the majority of cases early mobility had led to stability by the end of the fourth post-school year. It is suggested that early job-changing may serve a positive function for the individuals concerned Implications for careers guidance in school are discussed.     

The differential assessment of males and females as prospective employees by a sample of nonworking women

Thirty-eight women, members of a local parents' group, role-played personnel managers, assessing prospective employees in 12 occupations, defined a priori as masculine or feminine, and ranking the occupations in terms of a prestige hierarchy. Candidates described as female were somewhat devalued in high status masculine careers, but this trend was not consistent. Highly qualified applicants were preferred overall, but level of competence did not induce differential appraisals by sex of applicant. Failure to discover a more pervasive prejudice against women was postulated as reliant on subject sample, and exploitative advantage to the assessor was suggested as the strongest predictor of a promale bias.     

A counseling/pastoral approach to the homosexual client

This article focuses on a practical approach to dealing with homosexual concerns within a pastoral context. The manner in which a church worker and a mental health professional can practice co-therapy is detailed with some of the limitations and advantages associated with such a team outlined.     

Pastoral work,metacommunication and myth

The writer discusses two phenomena the pastoral counselor encounters in work with families and individuals: family survival myths and individual survival myths or fatal statements. Family survival myths are inefficient defense mechanisms, directed at the support of the parental relationship and the maintenance of the family balance. Fatal statements are expressions inherited from the family of origin. They function as myths and are intended to help one survive. From his perspective the pastor can, through a process of metacommunication, open the possibility to discuss the myth and so help people to free themselves from an unhealthy and life inhibiting bondage.     

A note on sufficient conditions that a common factor will be determinate in an infinite domain of variables

It is proved for the common factor model withr common factors that under certain condition s which maintain the distinctiveness of each common factor a given common factor will be determinate if there exists an unlimited number of variables in the model each having an absolute correlation with the factor greater than some arbitrarily small positive quantity.The author is indebted to R. P. McDonald for suggesting the proof of Guttman's determinantal equation for the squared multiple correlation in predicting a factor from the observed variables used in the parenthetical note.