Development and analysis of a community-based resource recovery program

Five studies were conducted over a 10-month period to determine the effectiveness of specific procedures in encouraging recycling among residential neighborhoods. Results indicated that: (a) initial levels of participation in neighborhoods were frequently related to housing values; (b) weekly recycling pick-ups that coincided with garbage collection days resulted in higher levels of participation than pick-ups that occurred at other times; (c) notifying homes about the recycling program through distributed door-to-door brochures was more effective than soliciting participation through newspaper ads; (d) distributing containers to help residents separate recyclable from nonrecyclable material proved to be an effective procedure, especially when combined with frequent prompting (prompting alone did not have much effect); and (e) procedures that facilitated the greatest levels of participation were not always cost-effective. The subsequent combination of these procedures into a package program resulted in high levels of neighborhood participation that were cost-effective and maintained over a 6-month period.     

The effect of divorce on fathers: An overview of the literature

Divorce is becoming a major mental health problem in the United States. With rare exceptions psychological attention has usually focused on the effect of divorce on children and mothers. The author suggests that as some fathers become more involved in family nurturing they will be more intensely affected by marital disruption, particularly as it involves changes in the relationship to their children. A review of the recent psychological literature on divorce and custody is presented as a framework for understanding the divorcing father who is requesting psychiatric help.This paper is reprinted here from theAmerican Journal of Psychiatry, 1982,139:10, pp. 1235–1241, with the permission of the original publisher.     

A developmental examination of ratings of associative strength

Ratings of associative strength between members of pairs of categorically related words were obtained for children from Grades 3,4,6, and 8 and for college adults. Correlations of ratings were high among the five grade levels, indicating that associative relations are an early form of semantic representation that change minimally in development.     

Effects of four psychological primary colors on anxiety state.

Effects of the four psychological primary colors were assessed by randomly assigning 40 undergraduates (13 male, 27 female) to 4 treatment groups, with each group receiving either red, yellow, green, or blue illumination. Anxiety state was assessed at 5-min. intervals using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. The red and yellow groups had significantly higher A-state scores than the blue and green groups, and these values did not change significantly during the 15-min. testing session.     

Psychology and self-help groups. Predictions on a partnership

Continued growth and increased legitimacy are anticipated for the American self-help group (SHG) phenomenon. Currently estimated at six and a quarter million participants annually, self-help groups will assume a central role in the nation's mental health delivery system over the next two decades. The first part of this article illuminates the self-help group phenomenon itself. Its scope, characteristics, supporting social climate, and associated research issues are reviewed. The second part is a futuristic examination of its interface with the newly industrializing world of health care. Massive increases in mental health services are predicted, especially via the SHG format. Theory development, research sophistication, changing SHG formats, a place in public policy, and acceptance into graduate curricula are also expected, as are collaborative relationships with a variety of professional disciplines. Psychologists are urged to enhance the relevance of the profession by taking an early leadership role in these developments.     

Relativism,rationality and repression

This paper was presented at the Pacific Division Meeting of the APA on 28 March 1987.     

Safeguarding Student Records

Schools, and particularly Guidance Departments, are inundated with requests for information about both past and present students. The inquiries originate from a surprisingly wide variety of sources. Reflecting the increasing tendency in personnel work to accumulate more and more knowledge about the individual, colleges and industry particularly attempt to requisition as much information as possible about the student or potential employee. Student personnel records can be neither released wholesale nor totally locked away. Based on typological analysis of the student's cumulative record, suggested guidelines incorporating both ethical and legal considerations can be established. The recommendations contained herein should assist the custodian of the records in establishing certain necessary conditions pertaining to the release of information.