Usability of the remote console for virtual reality telerehabilitation: formative evaluation.

The Remote Console (ReCon) is a telerehabilitation application that allows therapists to remotely communicate with patients while monitoring and controlling their virtual rehabilitation exercises. It provides therapists visual feedback of patients' movements, their exercise simulations replicated in real time and with tools to conduct training without a face-to-face session. The Recon underwent a formative evaluation (a type of usability engineering methodology) used to refine its design. Five physical therapists from different practice settings acted as representative users. During the evaluation, these users made errors related to manipulation and finding and understanding controls. Technical issues with the server and audio communication were identified. These findings were used to fine-tune the ReCon system.     

Is the seductive details effect moderated by mood? An eye‐tracking study

According to the seductive details (SD) effect, interesting, but irrelevant information in learning materials reduces learning outcomes. Basic research suggests that subjects in positive mood are more distractible by task‐irrelevant stimuli than subjects in negative mood. Hence, mood could moderate the SD effect. We tested this assumption by comparing eye movements to seductive pictures in participants in positive versus negative mood. As expected, participants in positive mood fixated pictures longer and more frequently than participants in negative mood, which can be interpreted in terms of mood‐based higher distractibility. However, this did not translate to a more pronounced SD effect in the learning test. Unexpectedly, there was no SD effect in either mood condition. We discuss implications of the eye‐tracking data as well as potential reasons for the nonexistent SD effect in our study.     

What Drives OCD Symptom Change During CBT Treatment? Temporal Relationships Among Obsessions and Compulsions

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, less is known about how obsessions and compulsions change during treatment, either in tandem, sequentially, or independently. The current study used latent difference score analysis to show path-analytic dynamic modeling of OCD symptom change during CBT. Four competing models of the temporal relationship between obsessions and compulsions were examined: no coupling (obsessions and compulsions are not dynamically related), goal directed (obsessions lead to subsequent changes in compulsions), habit driven (compulsions lead to subsequent changes in obsessions), and reciprocal. Treatment seeking participants (N = 84) with a principal diagnosis of OCD completed 12 weeks of CBT group therapy and completed measures assessing obsession and compulsion severity at pretreatment, Sessions 4 and 8, and end of treatment. Bivariate results supported the goal directed traditional CBT model, where obsession scores are temporally associated with subsequent changes in compulsion scores. These results have implications for theoretical and treatment modelling of obsessions and compulsions in OCD treatment.     

Bringing the world to your desk: Evolution of an international resource*

Traces the historical development of an international resource as it has evolved through seven versions from International Directory of Psychologists published as a book in 1958 to Psychology: IUPsyS Global Resource published as a CD‐ROM in 2001 to address the communication needs of the international psychology community in particular and the scholarly community in general.     

Aging and decision‐making competence: an analysis of comprehension and consistency skills in older versus younger adults considering health‐plan options

Older adults need to maintain strong decision‐making capabilities as they age. However, we know little about how age‐related physical and psychological changes affect older adults' judgment and decision processes. This paper reports the results of research comparing older versus younger adults' performance on evaluation and choice tasks about health‐plan options. In particular, comprehension and consistency in judgments (across separate versus joint evaluation contexts) were examined. Results indicated that increasing age was related to greater comprehension errors and inconsistent preferences, even when covariates (education, income, gender, self‐perceived skill and health, decision style, and attitude toward delegation) were taken into account. Discussion of the results emphasizes difficulties in interpreting the meaning of age differences in performance on decision tasks and the need for research that ascertains the seriousness of the consequences of age differences in real‐life tasks. The implications for providing decision‐aiding interventions for older adults are highlighted. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The effects of sex steroids on spatial performance: a review and an experimental clinical investigation

Males typically surpass females in spatial performance, an outcome that may be linked to testosterone and estrogen. The authors (a) review physiological mechanisms, developmental periods, and past empirical work relevant to sex steroids' effects on human spatial performance and (b) report an experimental study of the role of actively circulating sex steroids in adolescents being treated for delayed puberty (N = 55; mean age = 13.70 years). Sex steroids (simulating early, middle, and late puberty) and placebos were given alternately over 21 months and spatial tests were given every 3 months. Spatial performance showed traditional sex differences but did not vary with levels of actively circulating sex steroids.