Accelerating stimuli for two classes of coercive behaviors

The analyses focused on a means by which classes of events may be derived from sequential data. A prior analyses of family interaction has derived two classes labeled Hostile and Social Aggression. Events in a class were initiated by a common network of antecedent behaviors. The current analyses showed that class members also shared a common set of maintaining consequences. These events correlated with altered probabilities for the immediate recurrence of a target event.     

Aphasia, dyslexia and the phonological coding of written words

A possible account of the reading difficulty of certain aphasic-dyslexic patients includes the notion that they are impaired in translating the written word into a phonological code via grapheme-phoneme conversion rules. This notion was tested in two experiments, both utilizing orthographically regular non-words (like dake) as stimuli. The first experiment provides an analysis of two patients' (largely successful) attempts to repeat non-words, and their (almost totally unsuccessful) attempts to read them. Second, in a lexical decision task (is this written letter-string a word or not?), the finding that normals are slowed by non-words homophonic with real words (like flore) was replicated using a modified technique. This effect, attributable to phonological coding, was not shown by the patients. At the same time, their ability to discriminate between words and non-words was essentially intact. Consideration was given to mechanisms which might underlie such patients' correct and erroneous readings of words and non-words.     

Serial,parallel, or holistic identification of single words in the two visual fields?

Subjects made timed manual responses in judging whether laterally presented four-letter words were identical to targets. In Experiment 1, nontargets differed by a single letter from targets. A right-field superiority occurred only for targets (which were detected fastest of all) and for nontargets where a letter changed at Position 2 or Position 3. Changes at initial and final positions were detected faster than the two middle positions, and there were no significant field differences. In Experiment 2, ascenders and descenders were controlled and changes were made in nontargets at all four letter positions, at Positions 1 and 4, at Positions 2 and 3, or at 2 alone. Response times for nontargets varied inversely with the number of differing letters, regardless of position. Significant field differences again only appeared for changes in the two middle positions. Letters at the beginning and end of a word seem to be processed faster than and differently from those within, where field differences are strongest. Vowel-consonant differences probably do not account for these effects, which are more compatible with some form of parallel, rather than either serial or holistic, processing.     

Some effects of counsellor training

The first two classes of the University of Aston's Diploma in Counselling course (1971/72, N = 5; 1972/73, N = 11) were measured on their ability to respond empathically and on their ability to discriminate the quality of other counsellors' responses at the beginning and the end of an academic year of full-time graduate study. Additionally, the 1972/73 group were administered a counsellor attitude scale. Significant differences were found between pre-and post-test means on all three measures for the 1972/73 group and on the communication of empathy for the 1971/72 group. The findings for the two Aston groups are discussed in relation both to each other and also to comparable American data.     

A positional discriminability model of linear-order judgments

The process of judging the relative order of stimuli in a visual array was investigated in three experiments. In the basic paradigm, a linear array of six colored lines was presented briefly, and subject decided which of two target lines was the leftmost or rightmost (Experiment 1). The target lines appeared in all possible combinations of serial positions and reaction time (RT) was measured. Distance and semantic congruity effects were obtained, as well as a bowed serial position function. The RT pattern resembled that observed in comparable studies with memorized linear orderings. The serial position function was flattened when the background lines were homogeneously dissimilar to the target lines (Experiment 2). Both a distance effect and bowed serial position functions were obtained when subjects judged which of two target lines was below a black bar cue (Experiment 3). The results favored and analog positional discriminability model over a serial ends-inward scanning model. The positional discriminability model was proposed as a "core model" for the processes involved in judging relative order or magnitude in the domains of memory and perception.     

Depth separation and lateral interference

In four experiments, the perceptual interaction between an annulus and a Landolt C enclosed within it was investigated as a function of their perceived relative depth positions and of the perceived lateral distance between the inner edge of the annulus and the outer edge of the C. To permit facile and unconfounded manipulation of perceived depth, the stimuli were stereoscopic contours formed from dynamic random-lement stereograms. Either one or both stimuli were visible continuously. The effect of the annulus on the Landolt C was assessed by forced-choice recognition thresholds of the C and by judgments of its apparent clarity. The main results were: (1) For both threshold recognition and apparent clarity, perceived depth separation has a strong effect on the strength of perceptual interaction; (2) the effect is asymmetrical in that the stimulus perceived as in front of its partner and closer to the observer has greater perceptual potency; and (3) as spacing between the elements increases, perceptual interaction declines independently of depth position. The implications of these data for general theories of stimulus interaction in three-dimensional space are discussed.     

Sex bias in the newspaper treatment of male-centered and female-centered news stories

Differences in the newspaper treatment of men and women were examined in two sets of news stories collected a year apart, in the fall of 1976 and 1977. In both samples, coverage of women was more likely to include mention of personal appearance, marital status, and spouse than was coverage of men. These differences could not be attributed to the greater number of men in the news, nor to differences in the sections of the newspaper where stories about men and stories about women were usually found. They were equally true of locally written and national wire-service stories.     

Measurement of state and trait anxiety in elderly mental health clients

Anxiety in elderly persons is frequently discussed but rarely measured. Difficulties in measuring state and trait anxiety with mental health clients aged 55 and older using the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) led the authors to validate the use of the simpler, children's form of their scale. Four types of validity data were found: (1) the childrens' form was highly correlated with the adult form, (2) both scales were significantly correlated with objective ratings of anxiety made by staff, (3) the STAI measures were not correlated with behavioral ratings other than anxiety (discriminant validity), (4) the residential clients were significantly higher in A-trait than the day clients. The nonresidential clients were not more anxious than college students. Discussion emphasizes the necessity of distinguishing between and measuring both state and trait anxiety in order to understand anxiety in the elderly.     

BEACHES: AN OBSERVATIONAL SYSTEM FOR ASSESSING CHILDREN'S EATING AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY BEHAVIORS AND ASSOCIATED EVENTS

An integrated system for coding direct observations of children's dietary and physical activity behaviors was developed. Associated environmental events were also coded, including physical location, antecedents, and consequences. To assess the instrument's reliability and validity, 42 children, aged 4 to 8 years, were observed for 8 consecutive weeks at home and at school. Results indicated that four 60-min observations at home produced relatively stable estimates for most of the 10 dimensions. Interobserver reliabilities during live and videotaped observations were high, with the exception of “consequences” categories that occurred in less than 1% of observed intervals. Evidence of validity was provided by findings that antecedents were associated with respective dietary and physical activity behaviors. The five physical activity categories were validated by heart-rate monitoring in a second study. The Behaviors of Eating and Activity for Children's Health Evaluation System is appropriate for studying influences on diet and physical activity in children in a variety of settings.     

Pulling it all together: Meeting varying training requirements on national,state, and university levels for marriage and family therapy education

Marriage and family therapy programs face many challenge in trying to meet different sets of criteria including national, state, and university requirements. State regulation of the marriage and family therapy profession is a much sought after commodity. Currently 22 states have some type of MFT licensure or certification. MFT regulation criteria established by states to restrict title and function can differ in varying degrees from criteria established by the AAMFT's Commission on Accreditation. At the university level, MFT programs continue to be housed in a variety of schools including social work, education, psychology and home economics, as universities attempt to define a proper place for family therapy training. Confusion exists about whether MFT is a separate discipline or a specialization of another profession. The task of pulling it all together is addressed using one program's experience as an example.