The effectiveness of therapeutic assessment with an adult client: a single-case study using a time-series design

This article presents the therapeutic assessment (TA; Finn, 2007) of a traumatized young woman named Claire. Claire reported feeling debilitated by academic demands and the expectations of her parents, and was finding it nearly impossible to progress in her studies. She was also finding it difficult to develop and sustain intimate relationships. The emotional aspects of close relationships were extremely difficult for her and she routinely blamed herself for her struggles in this arena. The assessor utilized the TA model for adults, with the exception of not including an optional intervention session. The steps of TA, particularly the extended inquiry and the discussion of test findings along the way, cultivated a supportive and empathic atmosphere with Claire. By employing the single-case time-series experimental design used in previous TA studies (e.g., Smith, Handler, & Nash, 2010; Smith, Wolf, Handler, & Nash, 2009), the authors demonstrated that Claire experienced statistically significant improvement correlated with the onset of TA. Results indicated that participation in TA coincided with a positive shift in the trajectory of her reported symptoms and with recognizing the affection she held for others in her life. This case illustrates the successful application of case-based time-series methodology in the evaluation of an adult TA. The potential implications for future study are discussed.     

Why and when peer prediction is superior to self-prediction: the weight given to future aspiration versus past achievement

Peer predictions of future behavior and achievement are often more accurate than those furnished by the self. Although both self- and peer predictions correlate equally with future outcomes, peers tend to avoid the degree of overoptimism so often seen in self-predictions. In 3 studies, the authors tested whether this differential accuracy arises because people give more weight to past behavior when predicting others, but emphasize agentic information, in particular data about their aspiration level, when predicting the self. Studies 1 and 3 showed that the exact same participants rated past behavior more diagnostic of future performance when predicting another person but viewed aspiration-level data as more valuable when someone else was trying to predict them. In Studies 2 and 3 (predicting an upcoming exam score and performance in a lab task, respectively), participants gave greater weight in self-predictions to aspiration-level data than did a yoked peer, who instead gave greater weight to evidence of past achievement. This differential weighting explained why peer predictions tended to be less optimistic and, thus, more accurate. Discussion centers on strategies for predicting future behavior and why people may remain ignorant of their own incompetence despite feedback.     

Loneliness and depressive symptoms: the mediating and moderating role of uncontrollable ruminative thoughts

Although feelings of loneliness often are accompanied by depressive symptoms, little is known about underlying mechanisms in this association. The present study sampled 370 college freshmen and investigated whether rumination (and its components of Uncontrollability, Causal Analysis, and Understanding) functioned as a mediator or moderator in the relationship between 2 types of loneliness (as experienced in the relationship with parents and with peers, respectively) and depressive symptoms. Results indicated that rumination partially mediated the relationship between peer-related loneliness and depressive symptoms and moderated the relationship between parent-related loneliness and depressive symptoms. In addition, the uncontrollable nature, rather than the content, of these ruminative thoughts about parent- and peer-related loneliness was particularly harmful in the development of depressive symptoms. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Validation of an italian version of the oxford happiness inventory in adolescence

An Italian adaptation of the Oxford Happiness Inventory was administered to 782 adolescents. Exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) was used to examine the first- and second-order factorial structure of the scale and its invariance across gender; internal consistency and construct validity were also investigated. ESEM underlined a 5-factor structure (mastery and self-fulfillment, satisfaction with life, vigor, social interest, and social cheerfulness) that measures positive psychological functioning. These dimensions form a single latent construct of general psychological well-being. The scale showed adequate internal consistency values and strong measurement invariance across gender. Finally, regarding convergent validity, both total scale and subscales were positively correlated with extraversion and self-esteem, were negatively correlated with neuroticism, and displayed no correlation with psychoticism.     

Perceptions of personal sex discrimination: the role of belief in a just world and situational ambiguity

The roles of belief in a just world (BJW) and discrimination against ones' group in perceptions of personal discrimination were examined. Female participants (n = 63) were personally discriminated against in a laboratory setting. We manipulated whether the experimenter appeared to discriminate against other participants, which presumably made the presence of personal discrimination less ambiguous, or did not appear to discriminate against others, which presumably made personal discrimination more ambiguous. In the no group discrimination condition, but not in the group discrimination condition, participants' perceptions of being personally discriminated against depended on individual differences in BJW: Women with a strong BJW perceived less personal discrimination than those with a weak BJW. Also, strong BJW women in the group discrimination condition perceived less personal discrimination than strong BJW women in the no group discrimination condition.     

Sinuosity and the Affect Grid: a method for adjusting repeated mood scores

Sinuosity is a measure of how much a travelled pathway deviates from a straight line. In this paper, sinuosity is applied to the measurement of mood. The Affect Grid is a mood scale that requires participants to place a mark on a 9 x 9 grid to indicate their current mood. The grid has two dimensions: pleasure-displeasure (horizontal) and arousal-sleepiness (vertical). In studies where repeated measurements are required, some participants may exaggerate their mood shifts due to faulty interpretation of the scale or a feeling of social obligation to the experimenter. A new equation is proposed, based on the sinuosity measure in hydrology, a measure of the meandering of rivers. The equation takes into account an individual's presumed tendency to exaggerate and meander to correct the score and reduce outliers. The usefulness of the equation is demonstrated by applying it to Affect Grid data from another study.     

Access to environmental stimulation via eyelid responses for persons with acquired brain injury and multiple disabilities: a new microswitch arrangement

This study assessed a new microswitch arrangement for eyelid responses using an optic sensor placed above the cheekbone and a small sticker on the person's eyelid. This new arrangement, which was designed to avoid interference of the microswitch with the person's visual functioning, was tested on three adults with acquired brain injury and multiple (consciousness, communication, and motor) disabilities. The study was carried out according to a non-concurrent multiple baseline design across participants. Data showed the new microswitch arrangement was suitable for all three participants, who increased their responding during the intervention phase of the study when their responses allowed them to access preferred stimulation. Practical implications of the findings are discussed.     

Effects of individual aerobic performance on finish time in mountain running

It was hypothesized that for each mountain running competition, there is a certain individual performance level below which running times increase dramatically. The running times of 869 finishers of 3 international mountain running competitions have been analysed. A hyperbolic association was demonstrated between finish times in mountain running competitions and individual performance at the anaerobic threshold (VO2AT(Race)). Due to the non-linear association, there is an increasing effect on both the finish time and the change of finish time with decreasing aerobic performance. In all three competitions, the change of finish time is about 7 times more pronounced in mountain runners with the lowest VO2ATL,, compared to those with the highest values of VO2AT(Race). Both athletes and organizers should keep in mind these effects of decreasing aerobic performance on running times and potentially associated risks.     

Toward effective forecast of professionally important sensorimotor cognitive abilities of young soccer players

Development of skill in young soccer players relies on progressive improvement in different professionally important sensorimotor cognitive abilities. Development of seven leading abilities was based on the results of 23 tests provided for experimental and control groups. 600 elite young soccer players of both sexes, ages 11 to 19 years, were assessed over a period of 4 years. Experimental groups were given different exercises to aid development of selected abilities. At the end of the monitoring period, the experimental groups demonstrated a significant improvement in contrast to the control groups, and the greatest improvements in different test performances were observed in the 11- to 13-year-olds. The test-retest ata show the testing process to be reliable. The study provides standard pedagogical models and data for trainers, coaches, and researchers working with young soccer players. Future research on talent identification and selection should adopt amultidimensional approach.     

On the measurement of criterion noise in signal detection theory: the case of recognition memory

Traditional approaches within the framework of signal detection theory (SDT; Green & Swets, 1966), especially in the field of recognition memory, assume that the positioning of response criteria is not a noisy process. Recent work (Benjamin, Diaz, & Wee, 2009; Mueller & Weidemann, 2008) has challenged this assumption, arguing not only for the existence of criterion noise but also for its large magnitude and substantive contribution to individuals' performance. A review of these recent approaches for the measurement of criterion noise in SDT identifies several shortcomings and confoundings. A reanalysis of Benjamin et al.'s (2009) data sets as well as the results from a new experimental method indicate that the different forms of criterion noise proposed in the recognition memory literature are of very low magnitudes, and they do not provide a significant improvement over the account already given by traditional SDT without criterion noise.