Existential Group Therapy and Death Anxiety

Existential therapy in groups for older adults can help to provide life meaning; to facilitate social support; and to improve coping with grief, loss, chronic illness, and ultimately death. A scenario is presented that provides a clinical illustration of the use of existentialism in groups with older adults.     

DECREASING CHILDREN'S RISK TAKING ON THE PLAYGROUND

Playground mishaps are some of the most common sources of injury and are the leading killer of children. The present study used a multiple baseline design across three classrooms (N = 379 children). With minimal teaching and rewards, children decreased and maintained decreased risky playground behaviors on slides. Floor effects on climbers prevented the demonstration of similar effects. The decreases seen in risky slide behavior are discussed within the context of preventive safety training for playground injuries.     

Maternal sensory sensitivity, mother-infant 9-month interaction, infant attachment status: predictors of mother-toddler interaction at 24 months

At 24-months of age, toddlers (N=62) and their mothers were observed in a free-play session to determine the contribution of (a) maternal sensory sensitivity to positive and negative infant facial expressions as measured in a signal detection task at 6 months, (b) maternal behavior and affect, infant behavior and affect, and dyadic interaction at 9 months, and (c) infant attachment status at 12 months in predicting maternal, toddler, and dyadic measures at 24 months. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that over and above early maternal behavior, which was predictive of later maternal behavior at 24 months, sensory sensitivity to the positive infant expression at 6 months predicted maternal behavior at 24 months and sensory sensitivity to both the positive and negative expression was associated with later maternal affect. Infant attachment status emerged as the variable which predicted toddler behavior and dyadic interaction at 24 months.     

Hemispatial asymmetries in judgment of stimulus size

Recent research has demonstrated a leftward bias in judgments of size. In the present experiments, hemispatial size bias was measured through simultaneous presentation of a circle and an ellipse varying in horizontal or vertical extent. A consistent leftward bias of horizontal size judgments (but not vertical) was obtained; at the point of subjective equality, the width of the objects that were presented in left hemispace was smaller than the width of the objects that were presented in right hemispace. These data suggest that the horizontal extent of stimuli appear larger in left hemispace than in right hemispace. Results also indicated that symmetrical stimulus presentation, with respect to the vertical meridian, is required for the bias to emerge. Furthermore, increasing or decreasing stimulus eccentricity weakened the effect. Attenuation of this bias upon the manipulation of parameters indicates that this phenomenon is context specific and is affected by similar parameters that are known to influence the magnitude of error in pseudoneglect.     

Work and motherhood: preliminary report of a psychoanalytic study

This paper reports preliminary findings of a systematic inquiry into the manifest experience of conflict between paid work and motherhood. Psychoanalytic principles inform the design of a questionnaire and a research interview and the interpretation of data derived from both sources. An initial review of material from 140 questionnaires and 65 clinical interview series suggests that women vary tremendously in the ease or difficulty with which they navigate real obstacles to the integration of paid work and motherhood. The quality of a woman's relationship with her mother emerges as a singularly powerful influence on her experience of work-family balance.     

Comparing Multicultural With General Counseling Knowledge and Skill Competency for Students Who Completed Counselor Training

This study evaluates the effectiveness of a counselor education program in teaching multicultural counseling knowledge and skills. Standardized examination scores and rater evaluations compare multicultural with general counseling knowledge and skill competency for students who completed a counseling master's program. The relationship between multicultural knowledge and multicultural and general skills is examined. Este estudio evalúa la efectividad de un programa educativo para consejeros a la hora de enseñar conocimientos y habilidades multiculturales en consejería. Se emplean tanto resultados estandarizados de exámenes como evaluaciones docentes para comparar los conocimientos de consejeria y la competencia en habilidades de tipo general con los multiculturales en estudiantes que han completado un Máster en Consejería. Se examina la relación entre conocimientos multiculturales y habilidades generales y multiculturales.     

Running on empty: neural signals for self-control failure

Past research shows that self-control is limited and becomes depleted after initial exertions. This study examined the neural processes underlying self-control failure by testing whether controlled, effortful behavior impairs subsequent attempts at control by depleting the neural system associated with conflict monitoring. Subjects either watched an emotional movie normally or tried to suppress their emotions while watching the movie; they then completed an ostensibly unrelated Stroop task while electroencephalographic activity was recorded. The error-related negativity (ERN)--a waveform associated with activity in the anterior cingulate--was measured to determine whether prior regulatory exertion constrained the conflict-monitoring system. Compared with subjects in the control condition, those who suppressed their emotions performed worse on the Stroop task, and this deficit was mediated by weaker ERN signals. These results offer a neural account for the self-regulatory-strength model and demonstrate the utility of the social neuroscience approach.