The Nature of Preference: A Response to Grantham and Gordon

Grantham and Gordon (1986) contended that preference was inadequately understood as a construct and that a more incisive conceptualization was needed to promote research and theoretical considerations. We contend that their offering adds to the terminological confusion. A brief critique of Grantham and Gordon's notions and an alternative conceptualization and schema are offered.     

Abuse and Older Persons: Issues and Implications for Counselors

Counselors can play a vital role in addressing the needs of increasing numbers of older persons subject to and at risk for abuse from their families, caretakers, and themselves.     

Family planning needs and behavior of Mexican American women: a study of health care professionals and their clientele

"A random sample of Mexican American women and a sample of family planning health care professionals, both from two major southwestern cities in the United States, were compared in terms of their reports of birth control methods used, problems in obtaining family planning services, and values involved in making fertility-related decisions, within the Mexican American population.... While there were points of agreement between the two samples, discrepancies were found in reports of problems in obtaining family planning services, fertility-related values, and in the acceptability of female sterilization as a birth control method. It was concluded that family planning professionals in these service areas tend to stereotype Mexican American women, and may not yet realize that the family planning attitudes and behavior of these women are probably changing in significant ways." (SUMMARY IN SPA)     

Automatic detection of transient potentials in the EEG

A classifier based on the linear regression model was developed to automatically detect sharp transients in EEG, matching the definition of spikes and sharp waves accepted by IFSECN. Practical applications proved the accuracy of the method which succeeded in detecting 84% of sharp transients previously found by an experienced electronencephalographer. Computerized search for sharp transients in EEG records will be particularly useful in long term EEG records obtained from epileptic patients.     

Clinical trial of contemnol tablets (lithium retard Spofa)

A report on the clinical testing of the lithium-retard medicament Contemnol (Spofa). It details the way lithium-retard treatment is objectively and subjectively superior to the earlier and still current general lithium treatment.     

Status of perfusion scintigraphy in the diagnostic strategy in cerebrovascular disorders and space-occupying lesions

The results of an evaluation of the perfusion scintigraphy findings of 350 hospitalised neurological patients and 55 more strictly selected neurosurgical patients with cerebrovascular complaints, revealed an accuraty of 83%, a sensitivity of 89%, and a specificity of 83%. The selection of the patients had no influence on the results as a whole. Compared with contrast-medium angiography, incorrect diagnosis must be expected in 17% of the cases. This includes erroneous negative findings in 10% of the cases. Grounds for misinterpretations are suggested, and the biological and methodological limitations of the method are set forth.     

Neurochemical knowledge in electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

The paper is concerned with an attempt to generalize and categorize current hypotheses on the biochemical basis of ECT. The hypotheses are critically evaluated with respect to the relevance of their experimental fundamentals. Thus, certain hypotheses are valid only in a qualified sense. Particular interest is focussed on those conceptions which try to correlate ECT-induced changes in synaptic receptor sensitivities (up-/down-regulation) with super- resp. subsensitivity hypotheses of psychoses. In this connection, noradrenergic and opioid systems on the one hand, and the axis hypothalamus-hypophysis on the other hand seem to play a dominant role.