Termination of psychoanalysis and September 11

In the United States, the last illusion of safety from problems in distant parts of the world was shattered on September 11, 2001. Psychoanalysts are in a unique position to both experience and examine how such a man-made social disaster becomes internalized and affects one's psychic reality by studying the effects of that day on patients already engaged in a psychoanalytic process. The author hypothesizes that in one such case, that of Mr. N, the termination phase was significantly affected. Furthermore, Mr. N's reaction to reading the analyst's clinical write-up further influenced the termination phase.     

Freud's great voyage of discovery

The author discusses some of Freud's most significant contributions: the psychoanalytic method, called free association by Freud; the discovery that symptoms have a meaning and that every symptom is a compromise formation; the interpretation of dreams; psychic determinism; the central role of infantile sexuality; and sublimation. Included is a brief review of the views of some noteworthy analysts, all of whom agree in ignoring the importance of infantile sexuality and/or in minimizing its importance.     

The comparative effectiveness of distributed and colocated team after-action reviews

Despite their frequent use in the military and private sectors, the comparative effectiveness of colocated and distributed after-action reviews (AARs) is relatively unknown. Consequently, this study examined the comparative effectiveness of colocated and distributed AARs across taskwork and teamwork outcomes. Data were obtained from 492 participants randomly assigned to 123 four-person teams who participated in one of six AAR conditions. The results indicated that teams in the AAR conditions had significantly higher performance and team efficacy scores than the teams in the non-AAR conditions. In summary, the findings highlight that regardless of the training environment or type of AAR, the AAR remains an effective method at increasing performance and other outcomes. Therefore, the use of distributed AARs does not engender the posited process losses that were hypothesized.     

Context affects the interpretation of low but not high numerical probabilities: A hypothesis testing account of subjective probability

Low numerical probabilities tend to be directionally ambiguous, meaning they can be interpreted either positively, suggesting the occurrence of the target event, or negatively, suggesting its non-occurrence. High numerical probabilities, however, are typically interpreted positively. We argue that the greater directional ambiguity of low numerical probabilities may make them more susceptible than high probabilities to contextual influences. Results from five experiments supported this premise, with perceived base rate affecting the interpretation of an event’s numerical posterior probability more when it was low than high. The effect is consistent with a confirmatory hypothesis testing process, with the relevant perceived base rate suggesting the directional hypothesis which people then test in a confirmatory manner.     

Going Gaga: Investigating,Creating, and Manipulating the Song Stuck in My Head

Summary: Having a song stuck in your head is a commonly experienced intrusive thought. We explored the intrusive song phenomenon through a survey, an experimental diary study, and three laboratory experiments. Contrary to the belief that only obnoxious songs get stuck, we found that songs people know and like frequently became intrusive. We also found that intrusive songs followed environmental cues. In addition, if a song continued to play in someone's head immediately after listening to it, the song was likely to return as an intrusive song within the next 24 hours. Similar to mind wandering, the return of intrusive songs depended on cognitive resources: people reported that intrusive songs returned during low cognitive load activities, and we found that overloading the cognitive systems with challenging activities increased intrusive song frequency. Throughout our studies, we easily created and manipulated intrusive song experiences. Songs provide a valuable method to investigate intrusive thoughts. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Shared Parenting Dysfunction

Joint custody of children is the most prevalent court ordered arrangement for families of divorce. The goal of joint custody is to provide children the benefit of both parents' involvement and influence in their lives. To achieve this goal, judges require parents to engage in shared parenting, where joint decision-making and co-operation are necessary. A growing body of literature indicates that many parents engage in behaviors that are incompatible with shared parenting. The present article provides specific criteria for a definition of Shared Parenting Dysfunction. Clinical aspects of the phenomenon are reviewed and directions for research are delineated.     

Flashbulb memories? The effects of when the initial memory report was obtained

Why have some researchers found reports of flashbulb memories to be stable, while others have observed inconsistencies? Paradoxically, it appears that relatively long delays between event and initial documentation have produced greater consistency of participants' reports. To investigate this directly, we collected the initial documentation of hearing about O.J. Simpson's acquittal either five hours or one week after the acquittal was read. Observed consistency of memories varied as a function of documentation time; following an eight-week retention, the delayed reports were more consistent. The delayed group also reported fewer propositions in their initial documentation. We proposed a consolidation model to explain these results: during the days immediately following a newsworthy event, the narrative structure of these memories changes in that some details are forgotten. After this consolidation period, the memories may solidify. Thus, it may have been easier for the delayed group to provide consistent memories at the two intervals.