Test Review: Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV)

Objective: Evaluate neuropsychological functioning in children with non-syndromic cleft of the lip and/or palate (NSCL/P) through profile variance within type of cleft and comparisons to controls.

Methods: Children ages 7 to 17 years participated; 66 had a diagnosis of NSCL/P and 87 were healthy controls. Neuropsychological tests of language, visual-perceptual, executive functioning, and memory skills were administered. Between- and within-group differences were assessed.

Results: Within cleft types, children with NSCLP had an even profile with equal Verbal and Performance IQ (VIQ and PIQ, respectively). Children with non-syndromic cleft palate only (NSCP) had significantly lower VIQ than PIQ, while children with non-syndromic cleft lip only (NSCL) showed a nonsignificant trend for higher VIQ than PIQ. Overall, subjects with NSCL/P performed lower on measures of expressive language and verbal memory than controls.

Conclusions: While deficits in verbal and memory skills for children with NSCL/P remain apparent, there is still uncertainty around the possible influence of cleft type on the pattern of deficits.     

Effects of repeated collaborative retrieval on individual memory vary as a function of recall versus recognition tasks

Our research examines how prior group collaboration modulates later individual memory. We recently showed that repeated collaborative recall sessions benefit later individual recall more than a single collaborative recall session (Blumen & Rajaram, 2008). Current research compared the effects of repeated collaborative recall and repeated collaborative recognition on later individual recall and later individual recognition. A total of 192 participants studied a list of nouns and then completed three successive retrieval sessions in one of four conditions. While two collaborative recall sessions and two collaborative recognition sessions generated comparable levels of individual recall (CRecall-CRecall-I Recall ～ CRecognition-CRecognition-I Recall , Experiment 1a), two collaborative recognition sessions generated greater levels of individual recognition than two collaborative recall sessions (CRecognition-CRecognition- IRecognition > CRecall-CRecall- I Recognition , Experiment 1b). These findings are discussed in terms of two opposing mechanisms that operate during collaborative retrieval—re-exposure and retrieval disruption—and in terms of transfer-appropriate processing across collaborative and individual retrieval sessions.     

A Review of “Mind to Mind: Infant Research,Neuroscience, and Psychoanalysis”

Abstract

This article examines current research pertaining to the relationship between a mother and her children, and how this relationship may affect sibling interactions. Issues such as temperament, gender, and the age gap between children are also explored to ascertain their impact on the sibling relationship.

The displacement of the first-born child and the ensuing sense of loss and anger he may experience as a result of this is explored. The mother's second pregnancy is also discussed in regard to the impact of unresolved issues relating to her own sibling relations. The mother's interactions with each child, her role as a model for identification, and marital relations are discussed in light of their impact on sibling relations.

The evolution of a positive attachment between siblings is explored. Rivalrous behavior between siblings is also discussed, particularly in association to the mother's treatment of her own children and the manner in which the mother deals with her own aggression.     

The “Mind's Eye” and Metered-Memory Search

The effects of imagery value of noun stimuli were investigated in a metered-memory search paradigm. A within-subjects design was used with two levels of imagery (high or low) and three transformation levels. Response latency increased significantly with transformation level and was significantly faster when high-imagery nouns composed the memory set. The imagery effect was not found to lead to differential search rates. The hypothesis that metered-memory search would include a component of visually regenerating the memory set and holding it for the actual search was supported. No evidence was found against the notion that the search itself was verbal in nature.     

Interactive effects of proactive personality and display rules on emotional labor in organizations

Emotional labor is the management of emotional displays that happens in the context of a work role. Past research has shown that organizational display rules (standards for emotions that should be shown and hidden from customers) influence emotional labor, but little research has examined the individual differences that make employees more or less responsive to these display rules. The present study draws on concepts from the control theory model of emotional labor to address this limitation by examining the moderating role of proactive personality. Results indicate that proactive individuals are highly responsive to different types of display rules that prompt the use of different emotional labor strategies, highlighting the importance of how display expectations are framed for employees.     

Evaluating the performance of departments of psychotherapy

Conceptual and practical issues which surround attempts at assessing the efficiency of psychotherapy departments are surveyed and the advantages and disadvantages associated with performance indicators reviewed. The issues of assessing efficiency in general and the selection of appropriate indicators at both national and local levels are discussed. It is concluded that it is possible to find indicators which reflect the value of a psychotherapeutic service to the community within which it is based, and that the identification of a generally agreed set of such parameters is a matter of priority.     

THE NELSON‐DENNY READING TEST AS A PREDICTOR OF COLLEGE GRADES

ABSTRACT

This report studied the predictive validity of the Nelson‐Denny Reading Test (NDRT). Using a sample of over 12,000 college students, the ability of the NDRT was compared to the ability of the Scholastic Aptitude Verbal Tests (SAT‐V) in predicting freshman grade point average and grades in English composition. For each test regression equations were calculated using a calibration group and then crossvalidated with a test group of the sample. The effectiveness of each test was compared applying three evaluation indices: multiple correlation coefficient, mean absolute error of prediction, and the proportion whose predicted grade was within 0.20 units of their actual grade. Essentially, the NDRT and SAT‐V were of equal value in predicting the criteria