The Concurrent Validity of the PAT in the Selection of Tabulating Machine Operators

Summary: Thirty-five elementary school children received the WISC, Rorschach, CAT, anti Sentence Completion Test in counterbalanced order with a test-test interval of approximately 24 hours. State and trait anxiety measures were assessed immediately prior to and immediately following each test administration. Results indicated that state anxiety measures increased significantly following administration of the more ambigious and school related assessment tests, namely the Rorschach and WISC. In contrast, the more structured, less amorphous CAT and Sentence Completion Test, did not induce any significant changes in state anxiety. In all cases, trait anxiety measures remained relatively stable. Implications for assessment techniques with children were discussed.     

The Image of the Salesperson: Prestige and Other Dimensions

Abstract

In this study the general public rated sales and other occupations on prestige and nine other attributes. It was found that the prestige of professional sales occupations was related to the attributes tested such as education. On some, but not all attributes, different sales jobs were found to vary. Differences were found in public perceptions of sales in comparison to other occupations and generally professional salespeople ranked below an engineer or physician. The image of salespersons did not involve a single stereotype. Steps that could be taken to advance the prestige of salespeople are discussed.     

Behavioral control of exercise in adults: Studies 7 and 8

Abstract

Building on our previous six study series, the current studies 7 and 8 evaluated behavioral methods of improving adherence to exercise in adults. The studies tested the effectiveness of a single exercise modality versus choice of a variety of exercises and were conducted as part of a 12-week extended studies college course in San Diego, CA. Recruitment efforts were targeted to individuals who reported that they were sedentary and/or had experienced difficulty adhering to regular exercise. Participants were 42 adults (32F, 10M; mean age = 42.0) in Study 7 and 48 adults (35F, 8M; mean age = 47.9) in Study 8. In each study, subjects were randomly assigned to a single focus or variety exercise condition. There were no significant group differences in class attendance or out-of-class exercise adherence rates in Studies 7 or 8. In Study 7, significantly lower drop-out rates were detected in the single focus group (19%) than the variety condition (47.6%) (p = 0.04). No significant group differences were detected for drop-out rates in Study 8. Suggestions for further research are offered.     

Social cognitions measured in 4 to 6 year olds are predictive of objectively measured physical activity

Objective: This study tested whether social cognitions from the reasoned action approach (RAA) can be reliably measured in a sample of primary school children (aged 4–6 years) and whether these RAA measures are predictive of physical activity.

Design: Longitudinal observational study with repeated measures over six months.

Measures: RAA variables were measured using a novel choice paradigm between physically active and sedentary pastimes. Relative reinforcing value, covariates (sex, age, deprivation and BMI) and physical activity by accelerometry (primary outcome) were also measured.

Results: RAA cognitions could be measured with acceptable retest reliability and discriminant validity and social norms regarding parents and teachers (but not friends) were correlated with physical activity and change in physical activity when relative reinforcing value and other covariates were controlled for.

Conclusions: RAA cognitions can be reliably measured in primary school children aged 4–6 and RRA measures appear useful in understanding children’s activity choices and may potentially inform future interventions.     

Personality predictors of smoking behavior in a sample of physicians

Abstract

The smoking status of 239 physicians was obtained from a mail survey in 1981. MMPI data, which had been obtained from these men 25 years earlier, was used to prospectively predict smoking status at follow-up. Those who never smoked had scores indicative of social conventionality (low scores on L, Pd, and Schubert scales; high scores on Ego-control). A similar pattern was found among smokers who quit after a relatively short smoking history. Compared to ex-smokers, those who continued to smoke at the time of follow-up were characterized by high scores on the Pd and Ma scales. These results were discussed in terms of a multi-stage conceptualization of the smoking cessation process.     

Wisconsin card sorting test and Halstead Category Test performances of children and adolescents who exhibit the syndrome of nonverbal learning disabilities

Abstract

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) and Halstead Category Test (HCT) performances of 15 children/adolescents (age range 9 to 17 years) diagnosed with the syndrome of nonverbal learning disabilities (NLD) and 15 age-, gender-, and FSIQ-matched verbal learning-disabled (VLD) controls were examined. The VLD group made significantly fewer errors on the HCT than did the NLD group. In addition, the VLD controls significantly outperformed the NLD participants on seven of the nine WCST index scores (all except failure to maintain set and learning to learn scores). Consistent with the adult literature, the common variance between the HCT and WCST was modest, indicating that these two neuropsychological measures gauge different domains of functioning. It is suggested that the HCT assesses conceptualization/higher order reasoning abilities, whereas the WCST taps dimensions of executive functioning.     

Multi-wave Prospective Examination of the Stress-Reactivity Extension of Response Styles Theory of Depression in High-Risk Children and Early Adolescents

The current study tested the stress-reactivity extension of response styles theory of depression (Nolen-Hoeksema Journal of Abnormal Psychology 100:569–582, 1991) in a sample of high-risk children and early adolescents from a vulnerability-stress perspective using a multi-wave longitudinal design. In addition, we examined whether obtained results varied as a function of either age or sex. During an initial assessment, 56 high-risk children (offspring of depressed parents; ages 7–14) completed measures assessing rumination and depressive symptoms. Children were subsequently given a handheld personal computer which signalled them to complete measures assessing depressive symptoms and negative events at six randomly selected times over an 8-week follow-up interval. In line with hypotheses, higher levels of rumination were associated with prospective elevations in depressive symptoms following the occurrence of negative events. Sex, but not age, moderated this association. Rumination was more strongly associated with elevations in depressive symptoms following the occurrence of negative events in girls than in boys.