The influence of complexes on implicit learning

A century ago, Jung looked into the unconscious through complexes by using word association tests. Jung wrote, 'modern psychology with its investigation of complexes has opened up a psychic taboo area riddled with hopes and fears', and complexes remain an unexplored taboo area of research. In the present study, we have investigated the influence of complexes on unconscious cognitive processing, in particular on implicit learning. We have found that complexes shown to disturb conscious cognitive processing in fact enhanced the attention of the subjects and their performance on an implicit learning task. These results suggest that complexes are not just abstractions, but have various actual influences on both conscious and unconscious processing.     

The Relationship Between Multicultural Counseling Training and the Evaluation of Culturally Sensitive and Culturally Insensitive Counselors

In a study, multicultural counseling training contributed significantly to the variance in ratings of a culturally sensitive counselor. No significant contribution was made to the variance in ratings of the culturally insensitive counselor. Possible explanations and implications of these results in multicultural counseling supervision are discussed.     

Tripartite Mushroom Body Architecture Revealed by Antigenic Markers

We have explored the organization of the axonal lobes in Drosophila mushroom bodies by using a panel of immunohistochemical markers. These markers consist of antibodies to eight proteins expressed preferentially in the mushroom bodies: DAMB, DCO, DRK, FASII, LEO, OAMB, PKA RII, and RUT. Previous to this work, four axonal lobes, two projecting dorsally (α and α′) and two medially (β and γ), had been described in Drosophila mushroom bodies. However, our analysis of immunohistochemically stained frontal and sagittal sections of the brain revealed three medially projecting lobes. The newly distinguished lobe, which we term β′, lies along the dorsal surface of β, just posterior to γ. In addition to resolving a fifth lobe, our studies revealed that there are specific lobe sets defined by equivalent marker expression levels. These sets are (1) the α and β lobes, (2) the α′ and β′ lobes, and (3) the γ lobe and heel (a lateral projection formed by a hairpin turn of some of the peduncle fibers). All of the markers we have examined are consistent with these three sets. Previous Golgi studies demonstrate that each mushroom body cell projects one axon that branches into a dorsal lobe and a medial lobe, or one unbranched axon that projects medially. Taken together with the lobe sets listed above, we propose that there are three major projection configurations of mushroom body cell axons: (1) one branch in the α and one in the β lobe, (2) one branch in the α′ and one in the β′ lobe, and (3) one unbranched axon projecting to the heel and the γ lobe. The fact that these neuron types exhibit differential expression levels of a number of mushroom body genes suggests that they may have corresponding functional differences. These functions may be conserved in the larvae, as several of these genes were expressed in larval and embryonic mushroom bodies as well. The basic mushroom body structure, including the denritic calyx, peduncle, and lobes, was already visible by the late stages of embryogenesis. With new insights into mushroom body organization, and the characterization of markers for developing mushroom bodies, we are beginning to understand how these structures form and function.     

Searching for conscientiousness on the MMPI-2

It has been argued that the revised Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2) fails to measure the Big Five dimension of conscientiousness (C) an assertion supported by the research finding that none of the factors underlying the MMPI correlate substantially with the C factor of the NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI)-a popular operationalization of the Big Five model. In this study we reconsidered the relationship between the MMPI-2 item pool and the C factor of the NEO-PI-R (Form S). Collections of MMPI-2 C markers did not correlate much higher than .5 with the NEO-PI-R factor scale in cross-validation hold-out samples. Most pervasive, however, was the finding that MMPI-2 item markers of C were also strongly (in many cases, more highly) related to the NEO-PI-R factor of neuroticism (N). Efforts to purify collections of MMPI-2 C markers, first by careful item selection and then by suppression of N variance, were met with limited success. Intercorrelations among NEO-PI-R scales suggest that the difficulty in finding markers that discriminate between N and C extends beyond any shortcomings of the MMPI-2 item pool.     

Mothers' beliefs and children's long-term cognitive change: A developmental task interpretation

A longitudinal study was used to explore the following hypotheses concerning the relation between mothers' beliefs, their use of high distancing utterances and children's cognitive development: (1) beliefs moderate the impact of high-distancing utterances on children's development, and (2) beliefs reflect mothers' normative expectations that motivate themselves and their children to try to satisfy them. The participants consisted of 34 children and their mothers and teachers. Results for the motherchild dialogues indicated that the distancing–cognitive performance relationship was strongest for children whose mothers had the most positive beliefs. In addition, mothers' beliefs about a 4-year-old child were more strongly related to children's cognitive performance at ages 6 and 10 than to cognitive performance at age 4. Characteristics of both verbal parent–child and verbal teacher–child interactions at age 4 supported a developmental task interpretation of these findings.     

Child and adolescent psychotherapy outcomes in experiments versus clinics: Why the disparity?

In a recent article, Weisz, Weiss, and Donenberg (1992) compared the effects of child and adolescent psychotherapy in experimental studies and in studies of clinic practice. Here we update that report with new information and we explore 10 possible reasons why, to date, therapy in experiments appears to have shown larger effect sizes than therapy in clinics. We find that beneficial therapy effects are associated with three factors which are more common in research therapy than in clinic therapy: (a) the use of behavioral (including cognitive-behavioral) methods, (b) reliance on specific, focused therapy methods rather than mixed and eclectic approaches, and (c) provision of structure (e.g., through treatment manuals) and monitoring (e.g., through review of therapy tapes) to foster adherence to treatment plans. These three factors all involve dimensions along which clinic procedures could be altered.