Do Undergraduate Student Research Participants Read Psychological Research Consent Forms? Examining Memory Effects,Condition Effects,and Individual Differences

Although research has examined factors influencing understanding of informed consent in biomedical and forensic research, less is known about participants' attention to details in consent documents in psychological survey research. The present study used a randomized experimental design and found the majority of participants were unable to recall information from the consent form in both in-person and online formats. Participants were also relatively poor at recognizing important aspects of the consent form including risks to participants and confidentiality procedures. Memory effects and individual difference characteristics also appeared to influence recall and recognition of consent form information.     

The Bulimia Workshop: A Unique Integration of Group Treatment Approaches

The time constraints of weekly group therapy and the slow evolution of group cohesion attenuate the direct confrontation that is essential with bulimic patients. Consequently, a three-phase, multidimensional group program was devised to accelerate the treatment process. Treatment begins with an intensive weekend workshop during which members formulate contracts for interrupting the binge–purge cycle and changing symptomatic behavior. During a follow-up session problems in fulfilling the contracts are dealt with and successes are reinforced, in the final phase, group members convene without their therapists to provide peer support, reevaluate contracts, and share feelings regarding treatment progress. The unique implications for treatment process and therapist interventions prompted by this new format are discussed, and preliminary research findings are highlighted.     

Hobbes and the Imitation of God

This note discusses the implications of an incorrect quotation that appeared in Ted H. Miller's article, 'Thomas Hobbes and the Constraints that Enable the Imitation of God', from Inquiry42.2 (1999). Although surely inadvertent, this error is significant because the author uses it to support the thesis that Hobbes envisions philosophers imitating God by creating order out of chaos. The correct quotation from Leviathandoes not support such a thesis, and the paragraph in Leviathanfrom which it is taken actually runs counter to it. The correct quotation, taken in its context, and a passage from De Corporecited by Professor Miller reveal that Hobbes encourages philosophers to imitate God by following the order of creation in contemplation. In other words, philosophers imitate God by imitating the creation.     

The threat of moral refusers for one's self-concept and the protective function of physical cleansing

We investigated how people respond to moral threats and the consequences this has for one's moral self-concept. In two experiments, participants first tasted a sausage and were then confronted with a bogus participant who had refused to taste the sausage because of moral or non-moral reasons. People disliked the moral refuser more than the non-moral refuser. The self-threatening effect of having one's morals questioned was also reflected in specific patterns of cardiovascular responses and negatively affected participants' self-evaluations. We further show that the negative effects of a moral threat can be prevented by a simple intervention of physical cleansing: Participants who had cleansed their hands before being confronted with a moral refuser did not show the negative effects on self- and refuser evaluations. Importantly, the protective effects of physical cleansing were most pronounced for people with a strong moral identity. Taken together, these results underline the importance of one's self-concept when confronted with a moral refuser, and introduce an effective intervention to prevent these negative consequences.     

Sequential Aiming with Two Limbs and the One-Target Advantage

Movement times to the first target in a 2-target sequence are typically slower than in 1-target aiming tasks. The 1-target movement time advantage has been shown to emerge regardless of hand preference, the hand used, the amount of practice, and the availability of visual feedback. The authors tested central and peripheral explanations of the 1-target advantage, as postulated by the movement integration hypothesis, by asking participants to perform single-target movements, 2-target movements with 1 limb, and 2-target movements in which they switched limbs at the first target. Reaction time and movement time data showed a 1-target advantage that was similar for both 1- and 2-limb sequential aiming movements. This outcome demonstrates that the processes underlying the increase in movement time to the 1st target in 2-target sequences are not specific to the limb, suggesting that the 1-target advantage originates at a central rather than a peripheral level.     

Repetition and Lag Effects in Movement Recognition

Whether repetition and lag improve the recognition of movement patterns was investigated. Recognition memory was tested for one repetition, two-repetitions massed, and two-repetitions distributed with movement patterns repeated at lags of 3, 5, 7, and 13. Recognition performance was examined both immediately afterwards and following a 48 hour delay. Both repetition and lag effects failed to be demonstrated, providing some support for the claim that memory is unaffected by repetition at a constant level of processing (Craik & Lockhart, 1972). There was, as expected, a significant decrease in recognition memory following the retention interval, but this appeared unrelated to repetition or lag.     

Associations Between the Repressive Adaptive Style and Self-Reported Hope in Mexican American and Euro-American Children

The investigators factor-analyzed abstract art preferences and correlated art factors with traits on the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey. Factors were derived from preference ratings on the “Abstract Art Test” developed by Knapp and Green in a previous study. Two of the three multiple loading factors were “non-geometric” or expressionistic; one was “geometric,” rationalistic. Only 2 of the 30 correlations with the GZTS scales were significant at the .10 level, and these could have been due to chance. There is support for dichotomizing abstract art types into “geometric” and “non-geometric” but little support for the role of temperament in aesthetic preference.     

Building a Bridge of Trust: Collaborative Assessment With a Person With Serious Mental Illness

Collaborative assessment utilizes psychological testing to help people make positive changes in their lives. Limited research has evaluated the utility of collaborative assessment for persons with serious mental illness. This case example uses the Personality Assessment Inventory to illustrate the usefulness of collaborative assessment with a person with serious mental illness. This approach informed not only diagnostic considerations but also revealed the client's current level of distress, contributed to enhanced therapeutic alliance, and directly pointed to psychiatric rehabilitation strategies.