ADOLESCENTs' EXPECTATIONS OF FUTURE EVENTS - A CROSS-CULTURAL STUDY OF AUSTRALIANS,AMERICANS, AND INDIANS

An important developmental task of adolescents is to consider future possibilities and begin to make choices and plans. In this investigation, samples of 15-year-olds of both sexes from small towns in India, the United States, and Australia were asked to list seven important events they expected in the future, to indicate the approximate time that would elapse before the occurrence of each, and whether each was pleasant or unpleasant. Raters categorized responses for content. The two American samples, twelve years apart, were very similar in their responses. All groups listed predominantly pleasant events. Australian girls showed longer time spans than American girls; and Indian boys, but not girls, produced longer time spans than most of the Australians or Americans. A number of significant differences in the content of responses appeared.     

Observations on the behaviour of patients in a state mental hospital and a general hospital psychiatric unit: A comparative study

The study sought to compare the naturally occurring behaviour of psychiatric patients within a traditional mental hospital ward and a general hospital psychiatric unit. Direct behavioural observations were undertaken to determine the pattern of behaviour exhibited by patients, the amount of time spent in interaction, with whom interaction took place and the content of that interaction. Data were reliably collected by trained observers, using a 10 category behaviour scale. Within each setting 10 psychotic patients, matched for age, sex and diagnosis, were the subjects and 30 min of behaviour was recorded for each subject. Observations revealed that patients in the mental hospital exhibited more disturbed behaviour, and spent less time in interaction, than did those in the general hospital unit. However, the amount of time patients spent interacting with staff was comparable in the two settings, despite marked differences in staffing levels. Analysis of the content of interaction that did occur indicated that the manner in which staff responded to patients' behaviour was not consistent with the application of a behavioural engineering approach to the modification of abnormal behaviour. While staff in both settings were indiscriminate in the way in which they responded to appropriate and inappropriate patient behaviour, a rather more punitive style of interaction was observed in the mental hospital environment. It is concluded that, from a behavioural perspective, neither setting achieved an optimum therapeutic environment.     

The rapid-smoking technique: Therapeutic effectiveness

The study examined the effectiveness of the rapid-smoking technique in terms of two measures of outcome—post-treatment abstinence rate and reduction in smoking achieved by non-abstinent subjects. A total of 75 volunteers (40 men and 35 women) participated in treatment and were randomly allocated to one of four conditions—rapid-smoking alone; rapid-smoking and relaxation training; rapid-smoking, relaxation and contingency contracting; or contingent rapid-smoking. No significant differences between treatment conditions were obtained. For the total sample, abstinence was achieved by 64% of the subjects immediately post-treatment but the probability of remaining abstinent 12 months later was only 0.33. Immediately post-treatment the non-abstinent subjects reduced their rate of cigarette consumption to 34.2% (SD = 29.3) of baseline smoking but by 12 months average consumption had increased to 82.4% (SD = 28.3) of baseline. It is concluded that rapid-smoking gives rise to substantial short-term changes in smoking behaviour but these effects are not sustained.     

The future of public-private sector partnerships for the provision of human services: problem and possibilities.

This article examines the responses of states, localities, and the private sector to recent attempts by the federal government to realign domestic responsibilities for the provision of human services. In exploring this issue, the author conducted a study of agencies assisting the developmentally disabled in Greater Richmond, Virginia. The author finds that the nation is experiencing a fundamental paradigm shift--a reconceptualization of structure, goals, and responsibilities--with respect to social welfare, with new public-private sector partnerships emerging to meet human needs.     

Rhetorical theory and family therapy practice

The study found that a connection exists between rhetoric and therapy because both fields are interested in using language as a tool for generating change. Persuasion is viewed as inherent in human communication, even though people do not necessarily intentionally attempt to persuade others. Following a brief (but detailed) explanation of the theoretical stance which informs the implementation of rhetorical techniques in therapy, three pragmatic exemplars are offered to demonstrate the employment of two classical rhetorical concepts, the parastasis catalogue and syncrisis.The authors are grateful to Sandra Kodner, MS for her participation in the development of this project.     

Attributions related to wife abuse: A comparison of the perceptions of volunteer advocate-counselors and marriage and family therapists

Attributions related to wife abuse held by advocate-counselors working in women's shelter home settings and marriage and family therapists were compared. The major finding was that the two groups were surprisingly similar in their attributions even though their theoretical backgrounds and training were considerably different. Implications for practice and training are presented.     

The need for developing standardized family pedigree nomenclature

To assess the variation in usage of symbols used in recording a genetic family history, full members of the National Society of Genetic Counselors were surveyed by questionnaire. The questionnaire return rate was 55.3% and genetic counselors from a broad range of clinical experience, genetic counseling training programs and geographic regions responded. There was striking variation in symbols used for recording routine medical information in a genetic family history (i.e., pregnancy, spontaneous abortion, termination of pregnancy). There was even less consensus in recording situations representing new reproductive technologies (i.e., artificial insemination by donor semen, donor ovum, surrogate motherhood). The results of this survey document the need for developing standardized nomenclature in recording genetic family histories as a quality assurance measure in the delivery of genetic services. Such standardization will reduce the chance of incorrect interpretation of patient and family medical and genetic information.     

Attending to the shame: Working with addicted populations

Shame is a potent emotion that plays a major role in the life of addicted individuals. Shame's ability to penetrate and skew major motivational systems may play a part in the formation of addicted lifestyles. The shame-based or shame-prone individual, such as the addicted client, poses unique problems for the therapist. This paper explicates the processes and consequences of shame and offers guidelines to help clinicians work with addicted clients.Mitchell B. Young, MS, is a third-year doctoral student in the department of counseling and development at Purdue University.The author wishes to express appreciation to Kate Kerr, PhD, for her fine editorial work.     

Learning for Life: An Ecological Approach to Pedagogical Research

ABSTRACT— The trend to convert laboratory findings on the conditions associated with optimal memory into recommendations for teaching strategies and learning aids will harm students if findings fail to generalize to students' usual learning environments. Moreover, it is likely that pedagogies function differently for students with different degrees of background knowledge, time, and interest in the subject matter; that some support activities will prevent students from honing their ability learn from narrative material without guided learning; and that an overuse of learning aids will tax students' ability to use them effectively. We contrast two approaches to developing pedagogy—memory first and pedagogical ecology—and explain how the human factors approach of pedagogical ecology could be a more satisfying model for the scholarship of teaching and learning.