Feasibility of Using Video to Teach a Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skill to Clients With Borderline Personality Disorder

This study tested the feasibility of using a psychoeducational video recording to teach a behavioral skill from the Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT; Linehan, 1993a, 1993b) skills training program to individuals meeting criteria for borderline personality disorder. A video presenting a DBT emotion-regulation skill was developed and the extent to which viewers learned the skill material was evaluated via a randomized controlled trial (RCT), utilizing a within-subjects design. Thirty individuals meeting DSM-IV criteria for borderline personality disorder participated. Participants were recruited from mental health treatment settings and were naïve to DBT. Viewing the video was associated with significant increases in knowledge of the skill, relative to viewing a control video, and with increases in participants' expectations of positive outcomes for skill use. In addition, participants rated the video as relevant and helpful. A remarkably high number (80%) utilized the skill taught subsequent to viewing the video when assigned to do so, and overall reported significant decreases in negative affect after using the skill. Video appears to be feasible as a medium for teaching DBT skills material under controlled conditions; future research is needed to examine the effectiveness of video in more naturalistic settings.     

Modeling individual differences in working memory performance: a source activation account

Working memory resources are needed for processing and maintenance of information during cognitive tasks. Many models have been developed to capture the effects of limited working memory resources on performance. However, most of these models do not account for the finding that different individuals show different sensitivities to working memory demands, and none of the models predicts individual subjects' patterns of performance. We propose a computational model that accounts for differences in working memory capacity in terms of a quantity called source activation , which is used to maintain goal-relevant information in an available state. We apply this model to capture the working memory effects of individual subjects at a fine level of detail across two experiments. This, we argue, strengthens the interpretation of source activation as working memory capacity.     

The Siblings of Individuals with Mental Retardation: A Quantitative Integration of the Literature

The sibling relationship has recently become the focus of much research in developmental psychology. The family system perspective implies the presence of a sibling with mental retardation will impact on the psychological development and functioning of their typically developing siblings. Past reviews of the literature have found this impact to be negative but there is the suggestion of positive consequences to having a sibling with mental retardation. The present meta-analysis sought to quantitatively integrate 25 studies and 79 effect sizes from the literature on the siblings of individuals with mental retardation. A small negative effect for having a sibling with mental retardation was discovered that could not be attributed to a publication bias or some other artifact. This negative effect was greatest for direct observation measures, measures of psychological functioning, especially depression, and for children. Limitations to this meta-analysis and directions for future research are discussed.     

Intraindividual variability in perceived locus of control in adults: P-technique factor analyses of short-term change

Multivariate correlational methods such as P-technique factor analysis provide a way to structure intraindividual change by identifying dimensions of covariation in intensive longitudinal measurements. For example, for 20 years or more researchers have acknowledged that some major personality constructs such as anxiety exhibit both trait (relatively stable, interindividual) and state (intraindividual) variability. However, the consideration that state variability might be quite general and can “intrude” in the measurement of putatively more stable attributes has not generally entered into construct validation work and other manifestations of theoretical development. Locus of control, as with many personality constructs, is considered to be a dimension of relatively stable interindividual differences. Levenson's three-dimensional locus of control scale was adapted for use in a measurement-intensive P-technique study involving 10 participants (5 mothers and fathers who were expecting their first child) to examine the extent to which responses manifested systematic liability. The data indicated that perceived locus of control exhibits coherent, day-to-day variability; especially the dimensions identified as internality and powerful others. Such state variation manifestations are discussed in relation to their important implications for measurement, long-term prediction, and theorizing about the nature of personality.     

Preventing harm and promoting ethical discourse in the helping professions: conceptual, research, analytical, and action frameworks

The first in a series of 4 articles, this article provides an overview of the concepts and methods developed by a team of researchers concerned with preventing harm and promoting ethical discourse in the helping professions. In this article we introduce conceptual, research, analytical, and action frameworks employed to promote the centrality of ethical discourse in mental health practice. We employ recursive processes whereby knowledge gained from case studies refines our emerging conceptual model of applied ethics. Our participatory conceptual framework differs markedly from the restrictive model typically used in applied ethics. Our research relies on lived experiences of ethics, while our analytical framework draws attention to the multiple levels and contexts in which ethical dilemmas take place. Finally, our action framework is designed to collaborate with research participants and practitioners in making use of our data and interpretations. We demonstrate how the various frameworks inform each other in an integrative fashion. The article sets the stage for 2 case studies presented in subsequent articles.     

Dietary restraint of bulimic subjects following cognitive-behavioral or pharmacological treatment

The pre and posttreatment self-monitored caloric intake of bulimic subjects treated with either cognitive-behavioral therapy or imipramine was compared. Results indicated that both groups equally and successfully reduced purged calories but that only cognitive-behaviorally treated subjects increased non-purged caloric intake. These results show that cognitive-behavioral treatment lessens dietary restraint whereas imipramine treatment of bulimia nervosa does not. These findings are discussed and it is suggested that they may account for the superior therapeutic maintenance following cognitive-behavioral treatment when compared with pharmacological treatment of bulimia nervosa.     

EXPANDING THE IMPACT OF BEHAVIORAL STAFF MANAGEMENT: A LARGE-SCALE,LONG-TERM APPLICATION IN SCHOOLS SERVING SEVERELY HANDICAPPED STUDENTS

Experimental evaluations of behavioral staff management procedures usually have been limited to relatively small-scale demonstration studies. We evaluated a large-scale, long-term application of a staff management program designed to improve the functional utility of educational services for severely handicapped persons. The intervention, involving a brief in-service program followed by supervisory prompts and feedback, was implemented by three principals in four schools involving 21 classrooms. Implementation of the management procedures was consistently accompanied by increases in student involvement in functional educational tasks in each classroom. Further, the improved services continued throughout a 2-year follow-up period. Staff responses to a questionnaire indicated a high degree of staff acceptance of the management program. Results are discussed in terms of expanding the use of behavioral supervisory procedures from experimental demonstrations to actual adoption by existing human service agencies.     

Workplace Bullying and Burnout: The Moderating Effects of Social Support

This study aims to investigate the moderating effects of social support on the link between workplace bullying and burnout. This correlational study includes 222 employees recruited from various industry sectors. Participants completed the Revised Negative Acts Questionnaire, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and the Social Support Scale. Colleague and supervisor support moderated the relationship between both work- and person-related bullying with burnout, whereas family and senior management support moderated the links between burnout and person-related and physically intimidating bullying, respectively. High levels of emotional support were associated with greater emotional exhaustion in work-related and overall bullying. Different forms of social support moderated the links between different forms of workplace bullying and different components of burnout. The present findings may inform anti-bullying prevention programs and interventions supporting bullying victims.