Effectiveness of biofeedback and relaxation training in reducing the side effects of cancer chemotherapy.

Assessed the effectiveness of electromyographic (EMG) and skin-temperature (ST) biofeedback and relaxation training (RT) in reducing the aversiveness of cancer chemotherapy. Eighty-one cancer patients, equated on several individual-difference variables, were randomized to one of six groups formed by a 3 (EMG Biofeedback, ST Biofeedback, No Biofeedback) x 2 (RT, No RT) factorial design. Outcome was assessed with physiological, patient-reported, and nurse-reported indices taken over five consecutive chemotherapy treatments. RT patients showed decreases in nausea and anxiety during chemotherapy and physiological arousal after chemotherapy. EMG and ST biofeedback reduced some indices of physiological arousal but had no other effects on chemotherapy side effects. These findings suggest that RT can be effective in reducing the adverse consequences of chemotherapy and that the positive effects found for biofeedback in prior research were due to the RT that was given with the biofeedback, not to the biofeedback alone.     

Battered women in the criminal justice system: An analysis of gender stereotypes

Battered women charged with killing their abusers present a dilemma to the criminal justice system. Myths and stereo-types about women and battered women play a prominent role in the courtroom presentation of both defense and prosecution cases. While the prosecution may attempt to discredit the defendant for not living up to the standard of a ‘good woman’, the defense counters with an equally distorted portrayal of the defendant as ultra-feminine: the passive, helpless victim. Ten court cases of battered women charged with the death of their partners form the basis for a gender analysis of the social construction of the trial setting. This analysis includes the structure of the trial, the language of the trial interchange, the participants in the process, and the role the defendant played in her own defense.     

Spatial limits to the detection of transpositional symmetry in dynamic dot textures

If a set of random dots is translated along a uniform axis and superimposed on itself, then the resulting texture is seen to have three possible perceptual outcomes depending on the degree of translation: pairedness, striation, and randomness. Similar perceptual effects are obtained by plotting identical point-pairs randomly in space and uniformly over time. The threshold between striation and randomness in dynamic dot textures was investigated, since it represents a spatial limit to the detection of transpositional symmetry. This limit was found to vary as a function of three factors: stimulus field diameter, retinal eccentricity, and high frequency attenuation. The limit was found to be invariant over a fourfold range of texture density. It is proposed that the ability of the human visual system to detect correlations in dynamic transpositionally symmetric textures is the result of the activation of populations of orientationally selective cells identified in the mammalian visual cortex. It is also proposed that the limits to this ability could be related to the average size of the receptive fields of such cells within a given region of the retina.     

Identification of vowels in “vowelless” syllables

Traditionally, it has been held that the primary information for vowel identification is provided by formant frequencies in the quasi-steady-state portion of the spoken syllable. Recent search has advanced an alternative view that emphasizes the role of temporal factors and dynamic (time-varying) spectral information in determining the perception of vowels. Nine vowels spoken in /b/ + vowel + /b/ syllables were recorded. The syllables were modified electronically in several ways to suppress various sources of spectral and durational information. Two vowel-perception experiments were performed, testing subjects’ ability to identify vowels in these modified syllables. Results of both experiments revealed the importance of dynamic spectral information at syllable onset and offset (in its proper temporal relation) in permitting vowel identification. On the other hand, steady-state spectral information, deprived of its durational variation, was a poor basis for identification. Results constitute a challenge to traditional accounts of vowel perception and point toward important sources of dynamic information.     

Effects of semantic and nonsemantic cued orienting tasks on associative clustering in free recall

Memory & Cognition - During presentation of a randomized list of nonadjacent associative pairs, Ss heard a cue after each word designating the task to be performed. All Ss performed two tasks....     

'Paradox: a pivotal point in therapy'

This paper describes a family who had been known to the professional caring agencies for some five years. At the time of treatment, the family had fifteen-year old twin sons whose frequently aggressive behaviour was the focus of the referred problem. It was agreed that the author would attempt to work with this family should they be re-referred, with a view to offering an alternative mode of treatment. A structural framework of therapy was tried, but very shortly therapeutic attempts to help solve the problems were assimilated by the family and seemed to serve only to ensure their continuation. At this point, a powerful paradoxical intervention was tried in order to free both family and therapists from perpetuating a 'more of the same'. This tactic allowed time for treatment from a more structural base to continue. In this context, consideration is given to the nature of pathological and therapeutic double binding. Some of the difficulties inherent in attempting new methods of treatment from within a traditional casework setting with its statutory responsibilities are also discussed.