An A to Z guide to DSM-IV conundrums

The work on the 4th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) poses many puzzling conundrums that touch on complicated and important theoretical and practical issues. None of these can be resolved in the DSM-IV, but we hope that the Task Force's decisions will be informed by thorough reviews of the currently available evidence and extensive input from all sectors of the mental health field. In this article we provide an alphabetical guide to DSM-IV conundrums that we hope will stimulate comments, suggestions, and criticisms about the work of the Task Force.     

Equity of access: Adaptive technology

In this age of information technology, it is morally imperative that equal access to information via computer systems be afforded to people with disabilities. This paper addresses the problems that computer technology poses for students with disabilities and discusses what is needed to ensure equity of access. particularly in a university environment. A version of this paper was presented at ETHICOMP98, the Fourth International Conference on Ethical Issues of Information Technology. March 25–27, 1998, Erasmus University, the Netherlands. Frances S. Grodzinsky is a Professor of Computer Science and Information Technology. Her area of research is computer ethics.     

Family Communication and Genetic Counseling: The Case of Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer

In familial breast/ovarian cancer, the information that the proband is able to supply about other family members is of critical importance for genetic counseling. This frequently requires family communication. Forty-six women attending a cancer genetics clinic were interviewed as part of a longitudinal study. Nearly all reported affected maternal, rather than paternal relatives, which may indicate lack of awareness by women with paternal histories. There was also much more communication among female relatives. Mothers, where they were still alive, were key figures in supplying family information. Although the majority of the sample contacted at least one relative regarding counseling, most named a relative with whom they did not feel able to communicate on this subject. Probands balanced the perceived obligation of passing on information with that of not causing alarm. Communication, both obtaining and giving information, was impeded by adoption, divorce and remarriage, family rifts, and large age gaps between siblings.     

Issues in replicating the Trauma—Stren conversion

The Trauma--Stren (T-S) conversion procedure was examined at a large state university and the construct related to personality and cognitive process variables. Significantly more respondents reported T-S conversion than in the original studies. Conversion was not significantly correlated with personal variables. The presence of experiences in which an event was reported as simultaneously traumatic and strenful is reported, and the criteria for clearly identifying the conversion phenomenon are questioned.     

A Plumber's friend in need is a Plumber's friend indeed

In response to the critique of Gaes, Quigley-Fernandez, and Tedeschi (Journal of Research in Personality, 1978, 12, 189–192) it was acknowledged that the cell Ns were incorrect as originally reported, and the weakness of a postexperimental division of subjects was reaffirmed. Emphasis was placed on the comparability of a simple rating scale and an elaborate bogus pipeline in measuring attraction. The need for determining the way in which the bogus pipeline functions prior to its uncritical adoption in any given experimental situation was stressed as a point of agreement.     

Fear of success versus fear of gender-inappropriate behavior

To test the prediction that both males and females would show evidence of fear of success when success was achieved in a nontraditional field, male and female subjects wrote five-minute stories in response to cues depicting a male's or female's success in medical school or nursing school. Results showed that both sexes wrote more fear of success stories in gender-inappropriate than in gender-appropriate conditions. The need for a broader conception of fear of success motivation is discussed.Portions of this paper were presented at the meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association, Chicago, May 1975.     

Graphical and tabular aids for determining sample size when planning experiments which involve comparisons of percentages

When one knows in advance the minimum percentage difference which will be of practical interest in an investigation, principles of economy suggest the desirability of an accurate estimate of the size of the sample to be used. Charts are presented which eliminate any computation where the two groups involved are to be equal. A table is included for the case where one group will be from one to three times the size of the other. The charts are also useful for determining whether or not obtained differences are statistically significant at the 5 per cent or the 1 per cent level.     

Hope and Possibility: Advancing an Argument for a Habermasian Perspective in Educational Administration

The emergence of postmodernism has stimulateddiscourse on the potential for using reason tocreate a just society. The discourse hascaused confusion and dissension in the field ofeducational administration as scholars seek tofind a means to blend concepts inherent in themodern and postmodern. The works of JürgenHabermas provide a means of dealing with thisdilemma and have some specific applications tothe practice of educational administration.