The family-of-origin framework: A model for clinical training

Family-of-origin work is defined as a person's attempt to examine and/or change the patterns of interaction that occur in the family in which s/he was raised. This article outlines a model of family-of-origin work that is used in the clinical psychology training program at St. Louis University. The family therapy literature, particularly the work of Bowen, provides its theoretical underpinnings. An integral part of family-of-origin presentations is the genogram, or visual depiction of a family tree. Many ethical issues arise from the use of family-of-origin work within the context of clinical training, including confidentiality, responsibility, informed consent, values, and the boundaries of the supervisory relationship.     

GENDER COMPARISONS OF MATHEMATICS ATTITUDES AND AFFECT

This article reports the complex results of meta-analyses of gender differences in attitudes and affect specific to mathematics. Overall, effect sizes were small and were similar in size to gender differences in mathematics performance. When differences exist, the pattern is for females to hold more negative attitudes. Gender differences in self-confidence and general mathematics attitudes are larger among high school and college students than among younger students. Effect sizes for mathematics anxiety differ depending upon the sample (highly selected or general). One exception to the general pattern is in stereotyping mathematics as a male domain, where males hold much more stereotyped attitudes ( d = -.90). While affect and attitudes toward mathematics are not the only influences on the development of gender differences in mathematics performance, they are important, and both male and female affect and attitudes should be considered in conjunction with other social and political influences as explanations.     

Knowing the meaning, getting the point, bridging the gap, and carrying the message: aspects of discourse following closed head injury in childhood and adolescence

Pragmatic communication or discourse was studied in 33 children and adolescents following closed head injury. Three-quarters of the sample was impaired on at least one of four discourse tests (knowing the alternate meanings of ambiguous words in context; getting the point of figurative or metaphoric expressions; bridging the inferential gaps between events in stereotyped social situations; and producing speech acts that express the apparent intentions of others). Resolution of ambiguity was correlated with word fluency and verbal domain knowledge, but not with object naming; understanding of metaphor was correlated with verbal domain knowledge, but not with literal sentence comprehension or with the formation of analogies; making inferences was correlated with working memory capacity but not with social knowledge; and producing speech acts was not correlated either with sentence construction or with social knowledge. These associations and dissociations reveal some of the correlates of impaired discourse processing after closed head injury in childhood and adolescence, as well as bearing on theoretical questions concerning the nature of normally developing discourse processes.     

Orientation to visual stimuli and the superior colliculus in the rat

Rats were trained in a six-choice jumping stand apparatus to enter the dark door, and avoid the five bright doors. Rats with bilateral superior collicular lesions were found to be severely impaired in this task, although further experiments showed that they were able to discriminate bright from dark stimuli and could perform correctly if allowed to approach each door in turn. It is suggested that the superior colliculus is important in orientation to visual cues, and there is some evidence that it is involved in orientation to brightness but not visual form cues.     

Simultaneous electronic recording of video and digital information on the video channel of a VTR or VCR

A technique is described that permits precise synchronization of video recorded behavior with discrete stimuli and responses. These discrete events are recorded as digital data on the video channel of a video recorder on a horizontal line that lies above the visible video information. These data may be observed in single-frame playback mode by underscanning the playback monitor. A circuit is described for computerized decoding of the digital data. Because each video field is uniquely coded, an updating of the data is possible 60 times each second. The described technique has several advantages over current approaches for synchronizing discrete stimulus and response events with video recorded behavior.     

What is Apple-Psych?

Apple Psych, a system of software subroutines written in Apple Pascal and 6502 assembly language, was designed to run real-time psychological experiments on the Apple II, II+, and IIe microcomputers. This paper describes the minimum system requirements necessary to run Apple-Psych, the capabilities of the basic system, and the advantages and disadvantages of using Apple-Psych. Because the utility of a system to a researcher is often linked to its flexibility and expandability, this paper includes a brief discussion of hardware expansions already supported by the Apple Psych software and hardware expansions that would require additional software support.     

Catecholamine training effects from exercise programs: A bridge to exercise-temperament relationships

Three studies were conducted to test whether a catecholamine training effect results from a long-term aerobic exercise program. Study I showed significant increases in urinary adrenaline and noradrenaline following moderate mental stress/challenge for male aerobics subjects after a semester of training. Control groups of nonexercisers and continuously in-condition marathoners showed no comparable pre- to post semester catecholamine increases. Male and female Aerobics subjects were contrasted with nonexercisers across a semester in Study 2; the hypothesis was confirmed that postsemester increases in catecholamines occurred only following an episode of mental challenges/stress, and not following base-rate-rest conditions. Under conditions of more active challenge than in Studies 1 and 2, women subjects in Study 3 provided directional but nonsignificant support for the Study 2 findings. The results are discussed in the context of literature on the relationship of catecholamine availability during challenge/stress to temperament and on the relationship of aerobic training to temperament. At a theoretical level, the question is discussed of increased catecholamine availability being a likely mediator in the exercise program to temperament relationship.This research was supported by a grant from the Research Council of the University of Nebraska Lincoln. Our thanks to Prof. James Crabbe for assistance in recruiting subjects in Study 2, and to Pamela Brown and Prof. Wes Sime for assistance with Study 3.