The effect of token reinforcement on McCarthy Scale performance for white preschoolers of low and high social position

In Study 1, the effect of making tokens contingent on correct performance of low social position preschoolers on the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilitieswas examined. Preschoolers in a token reinforcement group scored significantly higher (mean=8 IQ points) than subjects in a control group. In Study 2, the effect of tokens on McCarthyresults was examined as a function of social position in a 2×2 design. The high social position control group scored significantly above the low social position control. The low social position token reinforcement group, however, performed as well as both the high social position control and token reinforcement groups. Use of systematic reinforcement contingencies to reduce test error is discussed.     

The development of aggression in toddlers: A study of low-income families

The effort by developmental psychopathologists to understand the etiology of antisocial behavior has resulted in several significant findings. First, aggressive behavior is highly stable from early childhood into adolescence and adulthood. Second, parental factors including rearing practices and parental psychopathology, are correlated with childhood behavior problems. It was the aim of the present study to examine the correlates and stability of aggressive behavior in a sample of toddlers from low income families. Eight-nine mother-child dyads (52 boys and 37 girls) were observed in laboratory assessments when the child was 18- and 24-months old. Frequency and pervasiveness of aggression were coded from videotapes. Familial criminality, maternal depressive symptomatology, child noncompliance, and difficult child temperament were examined as contributors to the prediction of aggression in toddlers. Stability of aggression was moderate, especially for aggression occurring in low-stress situations. While there were few sex differences in the frequency and stability of aggression, there were marked differences in the correlates and predictors of aggression. Gender-specific, interactional models of the development of aggression are proposed.This study was supported by grants to Daniel Shaw and Joan Vondra from the following organizations within the University of Pittsburgh: the Mental Health Clinical Research Center for Affective Disorders, the Office of Child Development, the School of Education in conjunction with the Buhl Foundation, and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Portions of this paper were presented at the Meeting for the Society for Life History Research, Philadelphia, April 1992. The authors would like to acknowledge the contribution of Julie Alley, Jodi Chusta, and Kevin Cosley for their invaluable assistance in behavioral coding. Special thanks is given to the mothers and children who participated in this research.     

Taking an individualized approach to the assessment of self-efficacy and the prediction of alcoholic relapse

The present study reports on a clinical instrument designed for assessing self-efficacy in alcoholics. In contrast to studies that construct general measures, it was proposed that taking an individualized approach to assessment might offer an effective methodology. Thirty-four alcoholics in an outpatient, behaviorally oriented treatment program participated as subjects. During therapy, an Individualized Self-Efficacy Survey (ISS) was developed for each subject. The ISS was developed by (a) administering the Drinking Patterns Questionnaire (DPQ) to identify important problem areas (e.g., work, children, marital) and specific drinking antecedents and (b) constructing a 15-item scale using each drinker's most important cues. The utility of having clients choose their own items was supported by finding a significant relationship between problem areas identified as important on the DPQ and the areas reported as surrounding relapse. ISS ratings were reflective of efficacy changes during treatment, while posttreatment ISS scores were predictive of subsequent relapse. Situation-specific prediction of relapse was not found. The advantages of this methodology for clinical use are discussed, while general directions for future research are suggested.     

An additional measure of availability derived from theOxford English Dictionary

In order to develop an additional measure of availability for the nouns from Paivio, Yuille, and Madigan’s (1968) list, we used a CD-ROM version of theOxford English Dictionary (OED) to obtain the number of times a word was used to define other words. This variable was added to Rubin and Friendly’s (1986) set of measures for these words. In multiple regression analyses, our measure proved to be a useful predictor of free recall. These results suggest that the OED may be useful for providing additional psycholinguistic measures.     

The Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale: Confirmatory Factor Analytic Findings

The psychometric properties of the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) have recently been heavily examined. Specifically, a number of researchers have been interested in determining the factor structure of this scale to find whether it best forms a one, two, or three factor model. The present study continued this examination by considering different scaling models using confirmatory factor analysis with a sample of individuals diagnosed with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). One hundred and forty-six individuals diagnosed with OCD participated and were administered the Y-BOCS and scales measuring depression (Hamilton Depression Rating Scale) and anxiety (Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale). It was found that the Y-BOCS forms two different two-factor models. One model consisted of an obsessions and compulsions factor; the other composed of disturbance and symptom severity factors. It was likewise found that depression and anxiety were related to both factors in one model (disturbance and symptom severity). The finding that depression was related to obsessions and anxiety to compulsions was found, as in a previous factor analysis of the Y-BOCS. These findings suggest that OCD may be best characterized as a multidimensional syndrome that may not be adequately examined by a single unitary factor as described in the Y-BOCS.     

Iterated Belief Revision, Reliability, and Inductive Amnesia

Belief revision theory concerns methods for reformulating an agent's epistemic state when the agent's beliefs are refuted by new information. The usual guiding principle in the design of such methods is to preserve as much of the agent's epistemic state as possible when the state is revised. Learning theoretic research focuses, instead, on a learning method's reliability or ability to converge to true, informative beliefs over a wide range of possible environments. This paper bridges the two perspectives by assessing the reliability of several proposed belief revision operators. Stringent conceptions of minimal change are shown to occasion a limitation called inductive amnesia: they can predict the future only if they cannot remember the past. Avoidance of inductive amnesia can therefore function as a plausible and hitherto unrecognized constraint on the design of belief revision operators.     

Wisdom and Life Experience: How Grandfathers Mentor Their Grandchildren

This exploratory study uses qualitative methods to focus on the largely unexamined role of the grandfather and to examine men's experiences as grandfathers. We gathered information through both surveys and individual interviews to explore men's feelings and attitudes toward the grandfather role. Of the 51 grandfathers that completed a survey, 20 participated in interviews. Our examination of the data collected reveals the life lessons men teach their grandchildren. The grandfathers in this study expressed strong desires for purposeful involvement in their grandchildren's lives and indicated desires for transferring values to grandchildren and teaching interpersonal relationships. Through this involvement, they educate through life experiences and serve as mentors for their grandchildren. We suggest that this mentoring role makes a positive contribution to the lives of grandchildren and to the identity of grandfathers.