SOCIAL IDENTITY IN PUERTO RICO*

This study examines the social identity of 384 high school students from four age levels (10, 12, 15 and 17 years-old) in Puerto Rico. This complex society represents an interesting context because of the potential relevance of a number of dimensions for identity including language, cultural heritage, economic status, religion and political beliefs. An important methodological refinement is introduced in order to permit simultaneous examination of these various dimensions in terms of Puerto Rican identity. Three major dimensions of the students' social identity emerged from multidimensional scaling analyses and these were seen to contrast with previous research on ethnic identity in Canada, the United States and Wales.     

The science, fiction, and reality of embryo cloning.

Although many scientists view cloning as a useful procedure for scientific research into early embryo development -- one that cannot currently be used to produce multiple copies of humans -- the popular literature has led some individuals to view it as sinister. To address the concerns of the public, various conceptions of cloning are distinguished and their basis in fact analyzed. The possible uses, benefits, and detriments of both embryo splitting and nuclear transplantation are explained. Once the nature and purposes of cloning are understood, and the distinctive ethical dilemmas created by embryo splitting and nuclear transplantation are sorted out, these procedures should be clinically implemented to assist in vitro fertilization treatment for those who are infertile and to further other therapeutic and investigational efforts in medicine.     

Suicide without explicit precursors: a state of secret despair?

Although it is usually assumed that all those who commit suicide give some prior indication of their intention to take their own life, there is growing evidence that a small but significant proportion of suicides occur without any clear, explicit indicators. It is proposed that these suicides share similar pathways to other suicides but that the despair involved is not expressed so clearly, often being kept secret. In order to identify such suicides and potential suicides it is helpful to have an indicator of the dominant sub‐sets of constituents that are precursors to suicide. A 14‐item Suicide Precursors Scale (SPS) was therefore developed. This was applied to 128 cases of suicide that occurred between January 1997 and December 2000 in Stockport (South Manchester, UK). A very high alpha coefficient of 0.98 supported the reliability and homogeneity of the SPS. A Multi‐Dimensional Scaling (MDS) analysis of the SPS revealed three prototypical sub‐sets of expressions of suicidal actions—illness, life circumstances, and depressive history. These are offered as coherent themes in the life of potential suicides, which may be of assistance both in determining whether an equivocal death is suicide or not, and in alerting caring agencies to the potential for suicide even when the despair is kept secret. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Behavioral and genetic characterization of habituation using Caenorhabditis elegans

This review surveys the literature that investigates the behavioral characterization and cellular and molecular mechanisms of habituation using the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans. In 1990, C. elegans was first observed to show habituation to a non-localized mechanical tap. The parameters that govern this behavioral plasticity in C. elegans were subsequently characterized, which lead to the important hypothesis that habituation is mediated by multiple mechanisms. Many tools are available to C. elegans researchers that allow for relatively easy genetic manipulation. This has lead to a number of recent genetic studies that have begun to identify key genes and molecules that play a role in the mechanisms of habituation. Some of these genes include a vesicular glutamate transporter, a glutamate receptor subunit, a dopamine receptor and downstream intracellular signaling molecules, such as G proteins and kinases. Some of these genes only affect certain parameters of habituation, but not others supporting the hypothesis that multiple mechanisms mediate habituation. The field of research has also led to the dissection of different phases of memory (short-term vs. long-term memory for habituation), which are triggered by different training paradigms. The differences in mechanism between these various forms of memory are also beginning to be revealed.     

Reliability of the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths-Mental Health (CANS-MH) Scale

We examined the interrater reliability of the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths-Mental Health (CANS-MH) scale among researchers and between researchers and clinicians. All children presenting to a treatment facility for either protective or mental health needs were eligible to be included in the study. As part of standard assessment procedure, all children entering the facility were described by caseworkers using the CANS-MH. A random sample of 60 cases was selected and researchers made retrospective assessments using the CANS-MH based on chart review. Results of the interrater reliability support previous findings that the CANS-MH is a reliable measure of clinical and psychosocial needs and strengths. Results also suggest that ratings on the CANS-MH based on medical record abstraction by researchers relate to ratings performed by clinical staff, demonstrating the clinical and research utility of the CANS-MH. The CANS-MH can be used reliably to assess the type and severity of problem presentation, risk behaviors, functioning, care intensity and organization, caregiver capacity and strengths among children with protective and mental health needs. In addition, items of the CANS-MH appear to be reliable supporting the use of these items individually. Findings are relevant to the ongoing delivery of clinical services, monitoring of quality assurance, and outcomes.     

Selecting for Creativity and Innovation: The relationship between the innovation potential indicator and the team selection inventory

This article describes a study carried out to investigate the relationship between individual scores on the Innovation Potential Indicator (IPI), a measure of individual innovation behaviors for use in personnel selection, and the Team Selection Inventory (TSI), an individual‐level measure of a person's preferred team‐working climate for innovation. Results from a sample of 142 Greek employees found that the Motivation to Change scale of the IPI positively correlated with all of the TSI scales, and that the Adaptation scale positively correlated with the TSI's Vision and Task Orientation scales. Findings are discussed.     

The interactive effects of job advertisement characteristics and applicant experience on reactions to recruitment messages

Job seekers often use job advertisements presented during the early stages of recruitment to gather important information about potential employers. Content of these advertisements as well as associated peripheral cues have the potential to influence job seekers' organizational attitudes. Using the elaboration likelihood model as a theoretical framework, the authors proposed that job seekers' previous work and job search experience moderate the extent to which these job advertisement characteristics influence attitudes towards organizations. Results suggest that the content of job advertisements influence the organizational attitudes of experienced job seekers more than their inexperienced counterparts. Additionally, the presence of peripheral cues (i.e. physical attractiveness of those persons shown in recruitment material) appears to have a greater effect on the organizational attractiveness perceptions of job seekers having less work and job search experience versus those having more experience. Implications of the findings regarding organizational recruitment practices are discussed.     

A Spinozan lens onto the confusions of borderline relations

In this paper the author describes how, in his analytic work with difficult personality disorders, he uses a neo-Spinozan position or attitude of alpha-thinking and functioning to understand, clarify, and so to manage confused and confusing psychosomatic 'body-mind' and emotional relations, both internally and inter-personally. Two case examples are given, followed by reflections on technique and on the limits of mourning, transformation and irony. The author suggests that a private, ideational double-aspect, mind-body position may be helpful in working with these analysands. This analytic mode may create a radically different understanding by incorporating a relational system of containment, self-containment, observation and memory. In addition, the author gives his own version of the aetiology and dynamics of borderline states and relations, and weaves the two cases he reports on into reflections on his countertransferential responses, reactions, inter-actions and 'reverie' through the lens of a neo-Spinozan conceptual system.