A prospective study of the distribution of illness within the menstrual cycle

The cyclic physiological variations during the menstrual cycle are thought to be associated with change in emotional state, in susceptibility to illness, and in frequency of illness-related behavior. Variations in frequency of illness with the phases of the menstrual cycle were examined using data from a 3-year prospective study of social and psychological antecedents of viral illness in 94 student nurses. Reported illnesses, accidents, medical consultations, and hospital admissions were randomly distributed throughout the menstrual cycle. Subjects took more medication on the 1st day of menses than on any other day of the cycle; howeverreported menstrual symptoms were infrequent, with only 4% of the population reporting two or more such episodes. It was concluded that there was an increase in discomfort on the data of onset of menses which was self-medicated but not defined as illness. There was no discernible relationship of illness or disability to any phase of the cycle.This work was supported in part by Center for Oral Health Research (COHR) grant DEO 2116, and Oral Medicine Training Grant ST01-DE-77. The authors wish to recognize the contribution of Carol Ram, R. N., who was the administrator of this study and responsible for the collection and organization of the large bank of information from which the material for this paper was abstracted. Without her care, diligence, and intelligent management, this study could not have been completed. We also wish to acknowledge the consultive advice of Dr. Larry Laster, Director, Division of Biometrics, School of Dental Medicine, in choice of analytic techniques, and the help of Dr. Arthur Segal in the early stages of data analysis.     

The changing pattern of perceptual analytic strategies and response selection with practice in a two-choice reaction time task

In the experiment reported here the primary hypothesis proposed, which was supported by the data, was that subjects performing a two-choice self-paced serial RT task would learn to change their strategy of perceptual analysis of signals presented to them as they became progressively more practised. Early in practice each signal is identified as a particular state of the display and an appropriate response is then made. Well practised subjects, however, select their responses by reference to the change or constancy between successive displays. This strategy implies that the assumptions made by the generally accepted simple S-R connectionist model of two-choice serial RT may be quite misleading, since the choice of any particular response must be determined not only by the display state but also by what the previous response had been.     

Alphanumeric category effects: Evidence against the sufficiency of a localization explanation

The Hatfield Polytechnic, Hatfield, Herts ALIO 9AB, England The experiment utilized a serial choice reaction time (RT) paradigm in which only one alphanumeric stimulus was presented per trial, and the target set consisted of a single identified item. The categorical relationship between the target and nontarget items was varied as a property of blocks of trials. Target and nontarget RTs were smaller when the specified target item (e.g., the number 6) was categorically distinct from the nontargets (e.g., letters) than when it was from the same category (e.g., digits). The processing of catch-trial stimuli (items from the alternate category to the nontargets) and homographie category-ambiguous items was inhibited only in the former, between-category, condition. The results are contrasted with those obtained in visual search tasks. They suggest that a “locational-cue” explanation of alphanumeric category effects is inadequate.     

Sexual preference,feminism, and women's perceptions of their parents

In an attempt to clarify the relation between parental variables, sexual preference, and sex-role attitudes, three groups of women were studied: lesbian feminists, heterosexual feminists, and heterosexual traditional women. The women were asked about their perceptions of their parents when they were in high school. The groups differed more from each other with respect to their perceptions of their fathers than their mothers. The perceived attitudes of the father were much more important in differentiating lesbian feminists from heterosexuals than in differentiating heterosexual feminists from heterosexual traditionals. Both the heterosexual groups (feminist and traditionals) reported having a more affectionate and involved father who also encouraged them more in the expression of anger than the lesbian feminists reported. The results suggest women's father relationships must not be obscured in research and support Johnson's hypothesis that the father relationship is more central than the mother relationship in sex typing and especially in the specifically sexual aspects of sex typing.     

An instrumented method for assessment and remediation of stuttering: A single-subject case study

A single-subject experimental design was used to investigate the feasibility of applying non-invasive laboratory instrumentation for examining speech physiology to assessment and biofeedback-based remediation of stuttering. Physiologic assessment facilitated the development of behavioral goals directed at changing respiratory and phonatory behaviors for this subject. Visual biofeedback therapy produced reduction in respiratory discontinuities and increased phonatory continuity, concomitant with reduced perceivable molar dysfluency. Methods used in this case illustrate a variety of options and problems related to clinical use of instrumentation. Results suggest that signals which represent respiratory, phonatory, and articulatory physiologic events may be clinically practical for evaluating and altering perceivable dysfluency.     

Personality factors in dysphoria: A psychometric refinement of beck's Sociotropy-Autonomy Scale

The Sociotropy-Autonomy Scale (SAS) was developed as a means of assessing two cognitive-personality constructs postulated as vulnerability factors in depression (Beck, 1983). While studies have confirmed the validity of the SAS Sociotropy Scale, the construct validity of the Autonomy Scale has not been well supported. The present study was conducted to improve on the measurement of autonomy by generating additional items which were added to the original questionnaire. This 93-item SAS was administered to 485 undergraduates along with the Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, PRF Affiliation and Autonomy Scales, Positive and Negative Emotionality Measures, and Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale. Four factors labeled Sociotropy, Solitude/Interpersonal Insensitivity, Independence, and Individualistic Achievement emerged from a principal-factor analysis of the SAS item pool. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that positive emotionality and solitude/interpersonal insensitivity were specifically related to dysphoria, while negative emotionality and sociotropy had significant associations with both anxious and depressed mood states.This research was supported by University of New Brunswick Research Grant 22–51 awarded to the first author.     

Health care cost containment strategies: A double-edged sword?

This paper presents a review of health care cost containment strategies adopted by organizations and explores the hidden costs associated with several of these alternatives. The role of mental health is discussed within this context.     

A faith for all seasons

A FAITH FOR ALL SEASONS:ISLAM AND WESTERN MODERNITY. By Shabbir Akhtar. London: Bellew Publishing, 1990. 251pp. Hb. £25.00. ISBN 0–947792–41–4.     

The social origins of male dominance

Writings in psychoanalytic theory and social science that discuss the basis of men's motive to dominate women are reviewed. Both men's fear and envy of women and men's tenuous masculine identity arise from the exclusive early mother-child tie. It is suggested that an important step in altering the development of the motive underlying male dominance would be to have men, as well as women, care for infants. The possibility of greater equality in the family and in the economy is discussed.This article represents a considerable expansion of the first part of a paper entitled Sex Role Development and Sex Discrimination: A Theoretical Perspective by Jean Stockard, Miriam M. Johnson, Joan Acker, and Marion Goldman, presented at the annual meetings of the American Sociological Association in San Francisco in 1975. We wish to thank Joan Acker and Marion Goldman for the earlier discussions we had with them which led to this article.     

Fantasy as a medium for the reduction of trait versus state aggression

In the first phase of an experiment reducing hostility through fantasy, 203 first and second-year high school students completed a daydreaming scale, Rotter ISB, and a sociometric scale designed to ascertain which of their peers behave aggressively. The students of the upper and lower quarters of the daydreaming scale were classified as high and low fantasy, and as aggressive or nonaggressive subjects. The second phase, two weeks later, consisted of 94 subjects forming three groups: a trait aggressive group, a nonaggressive control group, and a group of nonaggressive subjects experimentally manipulated for aggression. Half of the subjects composed stories to four high-cue aggressive TAT cards; the other half read neutral stories. All the subjects then again completed the Rotter ISB which was scored for aggression. Analysis of covariance of the scores indicated that a reduction in hostility occurred only for the group experimentally aroused to aggression in the TAT condition. The scores of the trait-aggressive subjects, tested in a before-after analysis, showed an increase in their hostility level. Fantasy capacity did not influence the scores.