Helps to Fostering Students' Spiritual Health [1]

Interviews with 98 teachers from a variety of schools were used to develop a definition of spiritual health, and to establish how these teachers thought spiritual health might best be fostered and what hindered its development in the school curriculum. A recurring theme, which seemed to be coming through the comments from teachers in this study, was the very important role that teachers play in helping students develop relationships. This was of vital importance as spiritual health was seen as being reflected in the quality of relationships that students develop with themselves, others, the environment, and with a Transcendent Other. The characteristics of teachers most frequently mentioned as desirable for the promotion of spiritual health were classified as follows:

? caring, sensitive, personal approach;

? concern for individuals;

? committed to personal beliefs and values.

Investigation of these teacher characteristics showed variation by gender, personal view of spiritual health, major curriculum concern, teacher and school type. Implications of these variations are discussed in this paper, together with the role of Spiritual Facilitator, to help nurture students' spiritual health.     

Research on the Internet: Validation of a World-Wide Web mediated personality scale

Two studies were performed to assess the validity of a World-Wide Web (WWW) measure of self-monitoring. In Study 1, Usenet Newsgroups likely to be read by high and low self-monitors were identified and a comparison was made of the extent to which contributors engaged in a form of self-presentation (use ofhandles orscreen names) likely to be influenced by self-monitoring tendencies. Handles were used significantly more frequently in thehigh self-monitoring Newsgroups, supporting the distinction made. In Study 2, participants recruited through these sets of Newsgroups completed the WWW-mediated test. Those from the high self-monitoring groups scored significantly higher. Self-reports of self-monitoring behavior also reflected scores on the scale. The results are interpreted as demonstrating the construct validity of the instrument used and the viability of criterion-group-oriented methods in Internet-mediated research.     

A delivery system for olfactory stimuli

This paper describes the design of a new method for controlling and administering olfactory stimuli—namely, thehood system. The hood system involves a stream of vaporized odor (at known concentrations) mixed with odorless air and pumped (at a constant flow rate) into an oxygen therapy hood. It is designed to be used with odorants in solution, such as essential oils, as the olfactory stimulus. The use of oxygen therapy hoods allows for the precise control of a constant concentration of odorized air over time, while allowing subjects to breathe normally. The hood system provides a natural administration of olfactory stimuli and the exact determination of the stimulus concentration. The use of this system will allow experimental conditions to be completely defined and results and replication studies to be accurately interpreted. The hood system is portable, cost effective, and constructed from readily available components. It is proposed that the hood system could be adopted to suit a wide range of olfactory research, particularly that in which the effects of chronic exposure to olfactory stimuli on cognition are examined.     

Perceptions of the Supervisory Relationship: Recovering and Nonrecovering Substance Abuse Counselors

The unique set of dynamics found in the substance abuse field (i.e., recovering and nonrecovering counselors and supervisors) calls for a separate examination of the supervisory relationship within this context. The authors examined differences in counselors' perceptions of the supervisory relationship based on counselor and supervisor recovery status, and the match or mismatch of counselor and supervisor recovery status. Substance abuse counselors (N = 547) working in a statewide public mental health system located in the Southeast rated satisfaction with supervision and reported perceptions of various dimensions of the supervisory relationship. Results of the 2 (counselor recovery status: nonrecovering and recovering) × 2 (supervisor recovery status: nonrecovering and recovering) multivariate analysis of variance indicated no significant differences in ratings of satisfaction or relationship dimensions based on either the counselors' or supervisors' recovery status. A significant interaction effect for counselor and supervisor recovery status (i.e., match or mismatch of recovery status) was found for all satisfaction and relationship measures.     

Predictors of Self-Reported Anxiety and Panic Symptoms: An Evaluation of Anxiety Sensitivity, Suffocation Fear, Heart-Focused Anxiety, and Breath-Holding Duration

The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which anxiety-related individual difference variables predict anxious responding when individuals experience aversive bodily sensations. Thus, we explore several psychological and behavioral predictors of response to a single 25-sec inhalation of 20% carbon dioxide-enriched air in 70 nonclinical participants. Predictor variables included anxiety sensitivity, suffocation fear, heart-focused anxiety, and breath-holding duration. Multiple regression analyses indicated that only anxiety sensitivity significantly predicted postchallenge panic symptoms, whereas both anxiety sensitivity and suffocation fear predicted postchallenge anxiety. These data are in accord with current models of panic disorder that emphasize the role of fear of fear in producing heightened anxiety and panic symptoms and help clarify specific predictors of anxiety-related responding to biological challenge.     

Integration of Cognitive-Behavioral and Interpersonal Therapies for Latinos: An Argument for Technical Eclecticism

The integration of psychotherapeutic techniques is a common practice among today's clinicians. However, most discussions on psychotherapy integration have focused on general theoretical issues without attention to special populations. Latinos now represent the largest ethnic minority population in the United States and the mental health needs of this population are increasing. Although there are few controlled outcome studies that focus on Latinos, basic research suggests that integrating components of interpersonal therapy (IPT) into cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) may be particularly effective with this population. Specific suggestions for integrating CBT and IPT techniques are presented, and ways in which this integration can be adapted in a culturally sensitive manner are reviewed. An ethical and culturally sensitive CBT-IPT integration for Latinos requires empirical verification. Future studies on CBT-IPT synthesis should demonstrate the effectiveness of such integration relative to CBT or IPT alone.     

A Lay Perspective on the Accuracy of Eyewitness Testimony1

To understand more about what laypeople think they “know” about eyewitness testimony, 276 jury-eligible university students were asked to indicate what factors they believe affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimony. In contrast to the large proportion of eyewitness-memory research that concerns system variables, the lay respondents overwhelmingly generated factors related to estimator variables, while system-variable factors such as police questioning and identification procedures were rarely mentioned. Respondents also reported that their own common sense and everyday life experiences were their most important sources of information about the accuracy of eyewitness testimony. Not only do these results clarify the need for further research on the lay perspective of eyewitness testimony, but they also provide some insight into the way in which many jurors might approach cases involving eyewitness evidence.