Editorial

Abstract

This paper will examine the current crisis in psychoanalysis in terms of the profession's decline, the apparent lack of patients, the ongoing debate over what constitutes psychoanalysis versus other therapies, and the lack of clinical focus in those debates. The concept of analytic contact will be introduced, and clinical material is used to showcase this concept as a bridge from the circular political debates to a more meaningful examination of what is psychoanalytic. In addition, case material will explore how patients tend to fight off the establishment of analytic contact in favor of safer, less threatening modes of relating. The author suggests that most patients fight off analytic contact and try to shift the treatment into something less analytic. It is up to the analyst to detect this, interpret it, and notice any countertransference collusion that may occur. Although the state of psychoanalysis as a profession is less than stellar in the eyes of the public, and the profession is apt to sabotage itself with endless debates about what constitutes true analytic work, the end is not necessary near. This paper proposes analytic contact to be the more useful focus of research and productive area of clinical exploration. If the decline of our field is to turn around, it will be on the clinical battlefront, not in terms of the theorizing among disagreeing groups of territorial analysts afraid of losing their political high-ground. The concept of analytic contact assumes that a deep exploration of intrapsychic phenomena, conflicts, and defenses, all within the realm of the transference, is the best clinical method of helping the mentally troubled individual. This genuine chance of change is best administered by a trained psychoanalyst. This simple idea is something the profession has contaminated with its often pointless arguments over frequency, analyzability, couch, and so forth. The clinical material will show that what happens in the room between analyst and patient is what best defines the true psychoanalytic treatment.     

An In-Depth Look at Dispositional Reasoning and Interviewer Accuracy

Dispositional reasoning is defined as general reasoning about traits, behaviors, and situations. Although earlier accuracy studies found that it predicted interview judgment accuracy, they did not distinguish between its underlying components (i.e., trait induction, trait extrapolation, and trait contextualization). This drawback has hampered insight into the nature of the dispositional reasoning construct. Therefore, we use a componential approach to test if dispositional reasoning adheres to classical criteria for an intelligence. Results from 146 managerial interviewers who observed videotaped interviewees showed that the dispositional reasoning components had positive manifold and predicted interview accuracy. Moreover, they demonstrated discriminant validity with personality and incremental validity over cognitive ability in predicting interview accuracy. Together, findings suggest that dispositional reasoning broadly adheres to the classical criteria for an intelligence.     

Prospective and retrospective time perception are related to mental time travel: Evidence from Alzheimer’s disease

Unlike prospective time perception paradigms, in which participants are aware that they have to estimate forthcoming time, little is known about retrospective time perception in normal aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Our paper addresses this shortcoming by comparing prospective and retrospective time estimation in younger adults, older adults, and AD patients. In four prospective tasks (lasting 30 s, 60 s, 90 s, or 120 s) participants were asked to read a series of numbers and to provide a verbal estimation of the reading time. In four other retrospective tasks, they were not informed about time judgment until they were asked to provide a verbal estimation of four elapsed time intervals (lasting 30 s, 60 s, 90 s, or 120 s). AD participants gave shorter verbal time estimations than older adults and younger participants did, suggesting that time is perceived to pass quickly in these patients. For all participants, the duration of the retrospective tasks was underestimated as compared to the prospective tasks and both estimations were shorter than the real time interval. Prospective time estimation was further correlated with mental time travel, as measured with the Remember/Know paradigm. Mental time travel was even higher correlated with retrospective time estimation. Our findings shed light on the relationship between time perception and the ability to mentally project oneself into time, two skills contributing to human memory functioning. Finally, time perception deficits, as observed in AD patients, can be interpreted in terms of dramatic changes occurring in frontal lobes and hippocampus.     

Starting to Solve the Method Puzzle in Salesperson Self-Report Evaluations

The performance effect is used to explain the significant differences between salespersons’ self-evaluation and supervisors’ ratings of job performance. It is shown that bottom performers overestimate, whereas top salespeople underestimate their performance. Also, results indicate that bottom performers are significantly more inaccurate than top salespeople in their job performance estimation. Finally, results indicate that the relationship between inaccuracy of self-evaluation and job performance is curvilinear. Managerial implications are provided as well as directions for future research and limitations.     

High-efficiency single-layer organic light-emitting diode based on green fluorescent protein

We have fabricated a molecular organic light-emitting device comprising indium–tin oxide/a molecular organic layer/aluminum in which the organic layer is a green fluorescent protein. The device exhibits peak external quantum and power efficiencies of 8?±?0.2% and 13?±?0.7?lm?W?^??1 at a current of J?=?1.5?A?m^?2, respectively. In addition, the turn-on voltage is 2.5?V for 1?cd?m^?2 and the maximum luminance achieved is 1275?cd?m^?2. This good performance can be explained by the presence of singlet-excited states, leading to a high internal efficiency.     

MENTAL HEALTH OF TRAUMA-EXPOSED FIREFIGHTERS AND CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS DEBRIEFING

Interest in critical incident stress debriefings for firefighters has grown over the last decade. Some researchers report that debriefings protect firefighters from stress-related disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Proponents of the interventions claim extraordinary need and success. Controlled and correlational studies have largely failed to demonstrate therapeutic effects, and some report iatrogenic effects. This study examined the relationships between debriefings and several mental health variables in a large sample of firefighters. Debriefing had a weak inverse correlation with negative affectivity and a weak positive correlation with positive world assumptions. No relationship was found between debriefing and PTSD.