The Use of the Social Cognition and Object Relations Scale in a Primary Care Setting

Research has indicated that as many as 10% to 15% of primary care patients have symptoms that are not well explained medically. These patients could be labeled as “somatizers.” This study assessed the extent to which underlying psychological characteristics contribute to a person's level of somatization and service utilization. The Social Cognition and Object Relations Scale–Global Rating Method (SCORS–G; Stein, Hilsenroth, Slavin-Mulford, & Pinsker, 2011; Westen, 1995) was used to rate early memory narratives of 100 patients in a suburban primary care setting. Using principal axis factoring, the SCORS–G was divided into 2 components and these components (cognitive and affective) were used in subsequent analyses. The affective component was significantly negatively correlated with 2 measures of somatization and positively related to physician ratings of global health. The affective component also showed a trend toward significance on overnight hospital stays and patient-rated health. The cognitive component showed a trend toward significance with both measures of somatization, but it was not correlated with other measures of health. This study demonstrates the value of assessing underlying processes (via SCORS–G ratings of early memory narratives) that contribute to increased rates of somatization and health care utilization. Clinical implications for the relationship between affect and physical health are explored.     

A Comparative Effectiveness Study of Two High-Frequency Word Interventions: Traditional Drill and WordSheets

Traditional drill and practice (TDP) has been shown to be both effective and efficient for increasing word recognition. WordSheets (WS) is a novel drill procedure similar to TDP with two key differences: (a) WS increases opportunities to respond, which may increase efficiency and (b) WS present instructional stimuli in a context that more closely resembles actual reading passages, which may enhance generalization to connected text. The study sought to compare the effectiveness and efficiency of TDP and WS in a sample of first-grade students (n = 27) identified by their teachers as struggling readers. Results indicated that, although WS led to significantly more opportunities to respond, it was both less effective and efficient than TDP with regard to cumulative retention. However, there were no significant differences across interventions in regard to the maintenance or generalization of treatment gains. Limitations and implications of the current study for school-based professionals are discussed.     

Discrimination of rotation from linear motion: influence of interference gratings and dichoptic viewing

Observers viewed a screen on which a number of patches containing horizontally moving pixels were presented. Target patches consisted of pixels whose motion simulated the rotation of a cylinder around its Y-axis; distractors, of pixels whose motion was linear. The task was to assess whether a display contained a target patch. Exp. 1 showed that the superposition of the displays with drifting sine-wave gratings interfered with rotation detection in a spatial- and temporal-frequency specific manner. In Exp. 2, dichoptic presentation greatly reduced the interference of the drifting gratings. It is argued on various grounds that the process(es) responsible for the detection and discrimination of rotating structure in depth exists at a low level of the visual system.     

Raised line drawings are spontaneously explored with a single finger

In this study we examine the strategies used by blindfolded subjects asked to freely explore raised line drawings and identify what is depicted in them. We were particularly interested in how often a single finger is spontaneously used because in several studies subjects are forced to use only one fingertip and the extent to which this restriction may depress haptic perception is unclear. The results suggest that despite a variety of strategies, people 'naturally' use single fingertips sufficiently often to allow confidence in conclusions that are based on studies imposing this restriction.     

Strategic use of familiarity in display-based problem solving

The authors report 4 experiments that investigated the role of recognition memory and plausibility in a display-based problem-solving task (computer menu search). It was found that both the familiarity of options and their plausibility played a role in determining choices when the correct options could not be recollected. The use of familiarity was adaptive: Participants relied less on familiarity when it was a less valid guide to correct choices. The implications of these findings for theories of problem solving and learning are discussed.     

The constituent structure of autobiographical memory: autobiographical fluency in people with chronic epilepsy

A total of 59 people with chronic epilepsy recalled autobiographical episodes and personal facts (such as the names of friends or teachers) from various lifetime periods. Also tested was their verbal fluency and their fluency in generating items from semantic categories (animals, vegetables, US presidents, and British prime ministers). Results of a cluster analysis and a common factor analysis confirmed a dissociation between the retrieval of autobiographical information and that of nonpersonal semantic information. There was a similar dissociation between the recall of personal episodes and the recall of the personal information, but the corresponding factors were highly correlated with one another. Finally, verbal fluency performance was significantly correlated with the retrieval of personal information, personal episodes, and common objects, but not with that of public figures. The constituent structure of autobiographical fluency is extremely robust across different populations.     

Friends, porn, and punk: sensation seeking in personal relationships, internet activities, and music preference among college students

One hundred thirty-eight college students completed a questionnaire assessing level of sensation seeking, number of close and casual friends, Internet usage, liking certain styles of music, and genre of music listened to most often. It was found that the number of casual and close friends was positively associated with sensation seeking. Individuals who reported using the Internet to get sex-oriented material, download or play music, play games, and chat/instant message with friends in the previous 24 hours had higher levels of sensation seeking. Liking punk, heavy metal, and reggae music were related to higher levels of sensation seeking. Higher sensation seeking was also associated with spending more time listening to punk music.