Chimpanzee minds: suspiciously human?

Chimpanzees undoubtedly form concepts related to the statistical regularities in behavior. But do they also construe such abstractions in terms of mental states - that is, do they possess a 'theory of mind'? Although both anecdotal and experimental data have been marshaled to support this idea, we show that no explanatory power or economy of expression is gained by such an assumption. We suggest that additional experiments will be unhelpful as long as they continue to rely upon determining whether subjects interpret behavioral invariances in terms of mental states. We propose a paradigm shift to overcome this limitation.     

Public Attitudes Toward the Use of Bioremediation to Clean Up Toxic Contamination

Bioremediation is an innovative approach to environmental management that uses microorganisms or plants to clean up toxic contamination in the environment. This research examines public attitudes toward the use of bioremediation at 2 sites in California: an urban site (Avila Beach) and a natural site (Guadalupe Dunes). At both sites, the study participants preferred excavation of the contaminated soil to bioremediation. The survey results help to explain the reasons why there is limited support for the use of bioremediation.     

Marital History and Current Marital Satisfaction in Chronic Depression

Marital functioning is an important consideration in the treatment of depression. Although there are several studies of the marriages of depressed individuals, there is little data on the marital lives of those with chronic depression. In this article, we compare the marital history and marital satisfaction in a sample of carefully diagnosed outpatients with chronic depression compared to those with nonchronic depression. The groups were similar in terms of a history of divorce and for the percentage who had ever been married. However, the chronic group had significantly lower levels of marital satisfaction. Increased attention to marital functioning in this group may be beneficial during treatment.     

Judaism, Brain Plasticity and the Making of the Self

Modifications of the self, that is to say, transformation of the psychological, physical and spiritual make up of an individual to achieve or approximate an ideal individual is one of the main goals of religion, medicine and psychology. However, these fields approach self-modification from their own perspective, with little intercorrelations between them. This article explores how mechanisms for self modification delineated by Judaic sources are very much in line with new discoveries in neurosciences, especially with recent scientific data indicating that the brain is in a constant state of structural and functional change, a property denominated brain plasticity.     

Correlates of colorectal cancer screening compliance and stage of adoption among siblings of individuals with early onset colorectal cancer.

Concepts from the health belief, transtheoretical, and dual process models were used to examine how siblings of individuals diagnosed with colorectal cancer (CRC) before age 56 made decisions about CRC screening. Siblings (N = 504) were assessed for CRC screening practices and intentions, pros, cons, processes-of-change, perceived risk of CRC, perceived severity of CRC, preventability of CRC, cancer-related distress, and sibling relationship closeness. Physician and family recommendation and knowledge were also assessed. Fifty-seven percent of participants (n = 287) were compliant with CRC screening. Logistic regression indicated that perceived pros and cons, perceived risk, commitment to screening, health care avoidance, and sibling closeness were associated with screening compliance. Physician and family recommendation were also strong correlates. A similar set of factors was associated with stage of adoption of CRC screening.     

Separation‐Individuation,Adult Attachment Style,and College Adjustment

The authors examined the relationship between separation‐individuation, adult attachment styles, and college adjustment. One hundred fifty‐six young adults completed the Psychological Separation Inventory (J. A. Hoffman, 1984; J. A. Hoffman & B. Weiss, 1987), 2 subscales from the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (R. W. Baker & B. Siryk, 1989), a measure of pathology of separation‐individuation (R. M. Christenson & W. P. Wilson, 1985), and assessments of adult attachment style (K. Bartholomew & L. Horowitz, 1991). College adjustment was positively associated with secure adult attachment and counterindicated by fearful and preoccupied attachments. Implications for counseling practice and directions for future research are discussed.     

INTERDEPENDENCE OF STRESS PROCESSES AMONG AFRICAN AMERICAN FAMILY MEMBERS: INFLUENCE OF HIV SEROSTATUS AND A NEW INFANT

This study makes a theoretical contribution to stress process research by using a systemic approach to contextualize individual outcomes within the framework of other family members' experience. Utilizing a mixed model approach, indicators of the stress process of urban low-income HIV(+) African American recent mothers were found to affect the psychological distress and perceived adequacy of coping of multiple other family members. These relationships were found to be strongest proximal to birth and to be exacerbated by HIV infection. Social support to the mother was found to have differential effects depending on whether it was from the immediate family or outside sources. HIV infection of the recent mother was found to affect family members both through relationships of the mother's stress process and through their own coping responses.     

Inhibiting children's memory of an interactive event: the effectiveness of a cover‐up

Children are generally more susceptible than adults to suggestive interview techniques. Children's memories of an event can be altered and added to by presenting post‐event information (PEI). What is not known is whether embedding silence about a particular scene within the PEI makes that scene less likely to be reported. Children aged 5–6 years made cakes with an agent ‘Mrs Flour’. The following day they received PEI in which a target scene from the original event was omitted, resulting in children reporting the target scene significantly less often than did controls (control= 57% and omit= 23% correct responses). There was direct evidence from the children's language that the omission led to a detriment in memory for the original scene itself. Allowing children to draw during the interview did not reduce the effect. Implications are discussed in terms of child victims and witnesses particularly regarding child sexual abuse. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bringing actors together around large-scale water systems: Participatory modeling and other innovations

Conclusion The five areas of innovation found in the three case studies have brought actors together in new ways around water management strategies. We paid special attention to the role of participatory modeling, because it has been able to generate new policy options. For such complex and often deadlocked water management issues, new options are at a premium. The cases demonstrate that participatory modeling efforts are a key part of successfully addressing these major water management issues faced in the U.S. as well as elsewhere. Recent publications include Ecology, Engineering and Management: Reconciling Ecosystem Rehabilitation and Service Reliability (with Emery Roe; Oxford: Oxford University Press). Current research interest include the reliability of critical infrastructures (such as electricity, water, telecommunications and the internet) and the development of methods to recast the intractable policy issues. Since 1999, he has been a Visiting Scholar at the University of California, Berkeley and Mills College, Oakland. where he teaches and directs research in the application of economic theory and systems analysis methods to the solution of environmental and regional water resources problems. He has authored numerous articles and book chapters, served on various committees of the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences, and was a U.S. member of an advisory committee for the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Laxenburg, Austria. Emery Roe has published widely on science, technology and environmental controversies, including the debates over large technical systems, sustainable development, and ecosystem management. His books include Narrative Policy Analysis (Duke University Press, 1994), Taking Complexity Seriously: Policy Analysis, Triangulation and Sustainable Development (Kluwer, 1998), Except-Africa: Remaking Development, Rethinking Power (Transaction, 1999), and Ecology, Engineering and Management: Reconciling Ecosystem Rehabilitation and Service Reliability (with Michel van Eeten; Oxford: Oxford University Press).