The Practice of Counselling HIV/AIDS Clients

AIDS/HIV has been described as one of the most pressing medical and social problems of this century. A review of the psychosocial and counselling literature relating to it indicates that the predominant psychotherapeutic approach with clients is symptom-focused and presents psychological problems as being inevitable in the course of illness. A systems approach is considered to have a good fit' with HIV-related problems because of issues relating to unpredictability, relationships, interaction, complexity and secrecy which arise in the course of the illness and its management. Some of the counselling tasks of an AIDS counsellor are set out. Consideration of these can help the system (client, family, health care team, counsellor) both to define problems and to find solutions to them without resorting to prior assumptions about either.     

The marriage of perception and memory: Creating two-way illusions with words and voices

By most theories of lexical access, idiosyncratic aspects of speech (such as voice details) are considered noise and are filtered in perception. However, episodic theories suggest that perceptual details are stored in memory and mediate later perception. By this view, perception and memory are intimately linked. The present investigation tested this hypothesis by creating symmetric illusions, using words and voices. In two experiments, listeners gave reduced noise estimates to previously heard words, but only when the original voices were preserved. Conversely, in two recognition memory experiments, listeners gave increased old responses to words (or voices) presented in relatively soft background noise. The data suggest that memory can be mistaken for perceptual fluency, and perceptual fluency can be mistaken for memory. The data also underscore the role of detailed episodes in lexical access.     

Landmark Discrimination Learning in the Dog

Allocentric spatial memory was studied in dogs of varying ages and sources using a landmark discrimination task. The primary goal of this study was to develop a protocol to test landmark discrimination learning in the dog. Using a modified version of a landmark test developed for use in monkeys, we successfully trained dogs to make a spatial discrimination on the basis of the position of a visual landmark relative to two identical discriminanda. Task performance decreased, however, as the distance between the landmark and the “discriminandum” was increased. A subgroup of these dogs was also tested on a delayed nonmatching to position spatial memory task (DNMP), which relies on egocentric spatial cues. These findings suggest that dogs can acquire both allocentric and egocentric spatial tasks. These data provide a useful tool for evaluating the ability of canines to use allocentric cues in spatial learning.     

Social Cognition and Evolutionary Psychology: Physical Attractiveness and Contrast Effects on Women's Self-perceived Body Image

Self-evaluations of body image were examined in a 2 (attractiveness of stimulus person) × 2 (sex of stimulus person) design to determine if contrast effects consistent with evolutionary psychology occur for women's self-perceptions of their body image. Main effects for attractiveness were hypothesized. Higher self-ratings for figure-related aspects of body image were predicted for women exposed to an unattractive male or female. These effects were significant. Women exposed to an unnattractive male or female had more positive feelings about figure-related aspects of their body image than women exposed to an attractive male or female. Contrast effects in accordance with evolutionary theory occur for aspects of body image that play a role in inferences regarding reproductive fitness.     

Racial Identity as Mediator of the Relationship Between Gender Role Conflict and Severity of Psychological Symptoms in Black, Latino, and Asian Men

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the extent to which racial identity attitudes mediate the relationship between gender role conflict and psychological symptoms in Men of Color. The mediating role of racial identity was tested in Study 1 with a sample of Black men and in Study 2 with a sample of Asian and Latino men. The results of Study 1 provided support for full mediation, whereas in Study 2 evidence was found for partial mediation. The combination of the studies' findings underscores the importance of considering the extent to which Men of Color identify with their own racial group when examining the relationship between gender role conflict and psychological symptoms.     

Primacy of Affect Over Cognition in Determining Adult Men's Condom–Use Behavior: A Review1

Prior research suggests that failure to use condoms can be understood within the context of condom‐related attitudes. We reviewed quantitative and qualitative literature on adult men's condom‐use attitudes; condom‐related attitudinal beliefs were classified as cognitive (e.g., effectiveness) or affective (e.g., pleasure‐related), and their relationships to behavior were examined. To determine differences in the effects of cognitive and affective beliefs, we conducted a critical qualitative review, a meta‐analysis, and a “vote‐count.” In support of the primacy of affect hypothesis (Zajonc, 1984), cognitive beliefs were weaker predictors of condom use than were affective beliefs. Results suggest that HIV‐prevention interventions will have greater success by addressing negative affective reactions to condom use in addition to promoting the protective value of condoms.     

Peer victimization and social anxiety in adolescence: a prospective study

This study reports a one‐year prospective investigation of the relations between overt and relational victimization and social anxiety and phobia in a sample of adolescents. The Social Experience Questionnaire—Self Report Form (SEQ‐S), Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS‐A), and Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children (SPAI‐C) were administered to 144 ninth grade adolescents. A follow‐up assessment with the SEQ‐S, SAS‐A, and SPAI‐C was conducted one year later. Results indicated that relational victimization predicted symptoms of social phobia but not general social anxiety and avoidance one year later. Overt victimization was not a significant predictor of social anxiety and phobia one year later. Social anxiety and phobia did not predict peer victimization one year later. However, increases in social anxiety and social phobia symptoms (for boys) over time were positively associated with increases in relational victimization over time. Implications of these findings for peer victimization and social anxiety in the development of social phobia and negative peer experiences are discussed. Aggr. Behav. 00:1–16, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Three Rs of Interpersonal Consumer Guilt: Relationship,Reciprocity, Reparation

This article explores the role of consumer guilt in a retail context. The results of a field study indicate that a consumer's lack of purchase can lead to a guilt response when social connectedness with a salesperson exists and the consumer perceives he or she has control over the purchase decision. A subsequent laboratory study established that when consumers experience guilt, they intend to pursue reparative actions during future purchase interactions with the salesperson to reciprocate the initial connection they established. This reparation is directed specifically toward the salesperson and not the firm.