Principles of computer-assisted classification in psychiatry

The use of computer based diagnostic decision and artificial intelligence are discussed in relation to the problems of validity and reliability of psychiatric diagnoses. The authors suggest a definition of a computer aided classificator as an existent decision system for an automatically analysis of findings.     

A view of aggression in phobic states

This article attempts to apply a theory of aggression as motivation to overcome obstacles to the understanding of phobic states and their formation. The role of aggression in the genesis of phobic conditions is discussed, and the traditional analytic view of aggression as instinctual drive is contrasted with a motivational approach. The motivational view offers the advantage of a clearer understanding of the stimulus contexts, representational connections, and both real and imaginary object connections that are lacking in the more traditional understanding of aggression as a biological drive.     

Psychopathology of progressive paralysis. Remarks on some personal cases

Four of our own cases that presented a clinical picture of dementia are discussed. A study of the relative literature has failed to reveal any "swing" in the pattern of the clinical condition: Just as it did ninety years age, paralytic dementia accounts today for well over 60% of all cases, those clinical pictures erroneously regarded as "typical" "classic", accounting for a mere 10%-15% of cases. The need for routine lues serology is pointed out.     

Psychometric detection of depressive mood conditions

An investigation into the diagnostic value of psychometric methods for the diagnosis of depressive states involved five psychometric questionnaires, one concentration test procedure, and one problem-solving approach to register cognitive processes. The data obtained for 80 depressive patients of varied aetiology were compared with those of sample of 80 neurotics without depressive aberration. Even univariate comparisons revealed statistically significant differences between the two samples. Multivariate methods (factor analysis, discriminative analysis) yielded more differentiated information. The "Scale for depression depth measurements" was found to be of particular diagnostic relevance; it was standardized for the time being.     

Personality and social resources in immediate and continued stress resistance among women

In this study we investigated the immediate and continued impact on women of a major stressful event, the outcome of pregnancy, and the mitigating effect of self-esteem and intimacy with their spouse on their reactions. Few other studies have investigated initial reactions to crisis events. Ninety-nine Israeli women who experienced either normal delivery or pregnancy complications were interviewed at the time of the event and 3 months later. High self-esteem was found to limit feelings of depression at both times. Intimacy with spouse limited depression at the event, but not at follow-up. High self-esteem was seen as always being exploitable by women who possessed it, whereas the benefit of intimacy with spouse was seen as being dependent on situational demands and environmental constraints. Cross-cultural implications were presented.     

Love deprivation, Wechsler performance greater than verbal discrepancy, and violent delinquency

This study explored the relationship among love deprivation, Performance greater than Verbal discrepancy, and violent crime in a sample of juvenile probationers. Love deprivation and P greater than V discrepancy was significantly related to violent delinquency after adjusting for the effects of both race and social class, two variables often closely associated with violent delinquency. Also, love deprivation was strongly related to P greater than V discrepancy. We speculated that high performance IQ scores relative to verbal scores are a function of a lack of disruption in the short-term memory mechanisms of high P greater than V subjects, that this nondisruption is a function of hyporeactive autonomic nervous systems, and that this hyporeactivity could itself be a function of early love deprivation.     

Age differences in adolescent body satisfaction

The purpose of this study was to explore differences in body satisfaction among female adolescents 14 to 18 years of age. Principal components analysis of a body cathexis measure completed by 751 high school cheerleaders indicated that six factors defined the adolescents' attitudes toward their bodies: satisfaction with the midsection and overall appearance, peripheral body parts, hair and face, mouth, hands, and height. An Age X Body Satisfaction multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted; a Bonferroni adjusted alpha of .007 was established for subsequent ANOVAs. Satisfaction with the mouth increased significantly as age increased, and a similar but nonsignificant trend was found for peripheral body parts. The findings contradict previous research reporting no age differences in the body satisfaction of adolescents. Role demands and physical maturation of the cheerleaders may explain differences based on age.