Effects of Couples' Perceptions of Genogram Construction on Therapeutic Alliance and Session Impact: A Growth Curve Analysis

The purpose of this study was to examine how the construction of a therapist-administered genogram (TAGE) versus a self-administered genogram (SAGE) would affect therapeutic alliance and session character in couples therapy across time. Eight student marriage and family therapists conducting therapy with 17 couples administered a TAGE, SAGE, or control treatment intervention in the second therapy session. Measurements were taken following the first five sessions. Results of a growth curve analysis showed no significant differences in couple members' growth curves based on their participation in one of the three treatment groups. Recommendations for clinicians and future genogram researchers are provided.of the Marriage and Family Therapy program at     

Effects of expectations on loudness and loudness difference

To determine how expectations affect loudness and loudness difference, in two experiments we induced some subjects to expect loud sounds (condition L), some to expect soft sounds (condition S), and others to have no particular expectations (control). In Experiment 1, all subjects estimated the loudnesses of the same set of three moderately loud 1-kHz tones. Estimates were greatest for subjects in condition S and smallest for subjects in condition L. Control subjects’ estimates were intermediate but closer to those of condition S subjects. In Experiment 2, subjects estimated the difference in loudness for pairs of moderately loud 1-kHz tones. Again, estimates were smallest for condition L subjects; estimates were greatest for control subjects, and condition S subjects’ estimates were closer to control estimates than to condition L estimates. This pattern of results is explainable by a combination of (1) Parducci’s (1995) range-frequency theory and (2) a gain control mechanism in the auditory system under top-down governance (Schneider, Parker, & Murphy, 2011).     

Book and Website Reviews

After first demonstrating that definitions of customer relationship management (CRM) vary widely, we build upon stakeholder and network theories and argue that there are two fundamental categories of participants in any CRM initiative: (1) “core” stakeholders (i.e., the firm selling its products or services as well as its customers), and (2) various “noncore” stakeholders (e.g., CRM consultants). We then develop a process-based framework and related propositions capturing the various stakeholders involved in a CRM initiative as well as several important mediating and moderating relationships yet to receive attention in the literature. Next, we highlight the specific frame of reference and inherent biases of each type of CRM stakeholder, with particular emphasis on how each attempts to sell its offerings, services, or wares. At the core of our framework is a little-commented-upon mediating construct that we label “Shared Understanding of CRM.” The paper next offers an additional, and perhaps more pragmatic, framework for managers to garner a better understanding of which specific stakeholders are at work in any given CRM initiative, which type of customers might be involved, and which outcome variables or metrics might be salient. The paper’s conclusion offers insights into how the elusive goal of shared understanding of CRM might best be achieved.     

The role of drug use in a conceptual model of intimate partner violence in men and women arrested for domestic violence.

In a previous study, alcohol problems in perpetrators and their partners contributed directly and indirectly to intimate partner violence (IPV), even after including other correlates of violence in the model (G. L. Stuart et al., 2006). The present study extends these findings by examining the role of illicit drug use. We recruited 271 men and 135 women arrested for IPV and used structural equation modeling to examine the data. Results showed that drug use, as reported by the perpetrators, was a stronger predictor of IPV than were alcohol problems in perpetrators and their partners. Arrested males' marijuana use and stimulant use (i.e., cocaine and amphetamines) were associated with perpetration of IPV, and their report of their female partners' stimulant use was associated with her violence perpetration. In arrested women, specific substances used did not predict violence perpetration beyond other model variables; however, female perpetrators' report of male partners' stimulant use predicted male psychological and physical aggression, after controlling for other variables. These results provide further evidence that drug problems by both partners may be important in the evolution of aggression. Implications for batterer intervention programs are discussed.     

From Janet T. Spence’s Manifest Anxiety Scale to the Present Day: Exploring Math Anxiety and its Relation to Math Achievement

Janet Taylor Spence conducted a great deal of foundational work establishing the negative relation between anxiety and performance. Spence operationalized trait anxiety by creating the Manifest Anxiety Scale, and she conducted numerous studies linking scores on this scale to performance across a variety of cognitive tasks. The field of math anxiety research has built from her work to examine the ways in which negative emotions regarding math can hinder math performance. We discuss the antecedents and development of math anxiety, as well as the ways in which other individual differences, such as working memory, affect the relation between anxiety and performance. Although a rich literature has sprung from Spence’s early work, there is much left to do in terms of fully understanding how specific types of anxiety interact with each other, as well as with other individual differences, to determine performance outcomes.     

Making Choices: Ethical Decisions in a Global Context

The changing milieu of research—increasingly global, interdisciplinary and collaborative—prompts greater emphasis on cultural context and upon partnership with international scholars and diverse community groups. Ethics training, however, tends to ignore the cross-cultural challenges of making ethical choices. This paper confronts those challenges by presenting a new curricular model developed by an international team. It examines ethics across a very broad range of situations, using case studies and employing the perspectives of social science, humanities and the sciences. The course has been developed and taught in a highly collaborative way, involving researchers and students at Zhejiang University, the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay and Brown University. The article presents the curricular modules of the course, learning outcomes, an assessment framework developed for the project, and a discussion of evaluation findings.     

Gender differences in object location memory: A meta-analysis

The goal of the present study was to quantify the magnitude of gender differences in object location memory tasks. A total of 123 effect sizes (d) drawn from 36 studies were included in a meta-analysis using a hierarchical approach. Object identity memory (37 effect sizes) and object location memory (86 effect sizes) tasks were analyzed separately. Object identity memory task showed significant gender differences that were homogeneous and in favor of women. For the object location memory tasks, effect sizes had to be partitioned by age (younger than 13, between 13 and 18, older than 18), object type (common, uncommon, gender neutral, geometric, masculine, feminine), scoring method (accuracy, time, distance), and type of measure (recall, recognition) to achieve homogeneity. Significant gender differences in favor of females were obtained in all clusters above the age of 13, with the exception of feminine, uncommon, and gender-neutral objects. Masculine objects and measures of distance produced significant effects in favor of males. Implications of these results for future work and for theoretical interpretations are discussed.     

Males' Greater Tolerance of Same-Sex Peers

ABSTRACT— Three studies were conducted to examine the often-cited conclusion that human females are more sociable than males. Using perceptions of roommates, roommate changes at three collegiate institutions, and an experimental manipulation of friendship beliefs, the studies demonstrated unequivocally that males exhibit a higher threshold of tolerance for genetically unrelated same-sex individuals than females do. Tolerance was defined as acceptance of the stresses and strains within relationships. Results are discussed in terms of potential underlying mechanisms and ultimate explanations.     

Assessing Professional Boundaries in Clinical Settings: The Development of the Boundaries in Practice Scale

This article reports on the Boundaries in Practice (BIP) Scale developed to measure knowledge, comfort, ethical decision making, and experience. Few instruments used in studies conducted on professional/?client boundaries have been validated. The BIP demonstrated sound face, content and construct validity, and adequate internal consistency reliability. The BIP Scale provides the first reliable and valid means of investigating multiple boundary domains across health disciplines and teams. The sensitivity and complexity of boundary issues and the serious consequences of breaches highlight the importance of a valid and reliable measure in building empirical knowledge in this field.     

A Genetic Counselor’s Guide to Using Next-Generation Sequencing in Clinical Practice

Advances in next-generation sequencing (NGS) and rapid reductions in cost have increased the use of such technologies in research and clinical practice. However, many barriers exist to translating NGS for routine clinical use, including issues related to the interpretation of results, and the potential to find results that are secondary or incidental to the specific application of NGS. Nonetheless, NGS has become sufficiently affordable to be offered by several clinical laboratories, and increasingly it is becoming an attractive and viable option for clinicians and patients. This article reviews current NGS technologies, highlighting the information genetic counselors need to know to make informed-decisions about utilizing NGS in the clinic, and underscoring the impact of this new testing modality on the practice of genetic counseling.