Achievement age-death age correlations alone cannot provide unequivocal support for the precocity-longevity hypothesis

This study is a further exploration (see S. J. H. McCann, 2001) of the capacity of the selection bias and life expectancy artifacts to produce correlations between peak achievement ages and death ages that could be mistakenly construed as support for the precocity-longevity hypothesis that those who reach career pinnacles earlier tend to have shorter lives. For 1,672 governors, 10 fake achievement age variables and 10 fake death age variables were randomly generated. Fake achievement age variables were correlated with real death age; fake death age variables were correlated with real achievement age. However, the real age correlations were much larger than the fake age correlations, and when the 2 artifacts were controlled through a subsample strategy, only real age correlations were significant. Overall, the results support the precocity-longevity hypothesis.     

Generalized anxiety disorder: acute and chronic treatment

Clinical and epidemiological data suggest that generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a chronic illness causing patients to suffer for many years leading to significant distress in daily life functioning. The literature suggests the several conclusions. GAD is a disorder in need of appropriate treatment and often has a chronic course with comorbid conditions, such as major depression and other anxiety disorders. Benzodiazepines, while effective anxiolytic agents acutely, when prescribed for >4 weeks cause rebound anxiety and following prolonged therapy may lead to withdrawal symptoms. Antidepressants cause significant anxiety relief compared with placebo and for psychosocial treatment cognitive-behavioral therapy is an efficacious psychosocial treatment. Many GAD patients are in need of long-term medication management. Furthermore, there is limited data for patients diagnosed with GAD the treatment outcome with the combination of medication and psychotherapy both acutely and long-term; how to best sequence these treatments; for those patients who do not meet remission criteria what is the ideal approach for augmentation; and for patients with treatment-refractory GAD the empirical evidence is lacking on medication switching and augmentation strategies. Research is needed in the area of developing treatment strategies for patients suffering from treatment-refractory GAD. There is still an urgent need to explore treatment combinations and duration strategies in the management of patients suffering with GAD.     

Potentiation, overshadowing, and blocking of spatial learning based on the shape of the environment

Rats were trained in Experiment 1 to find a submerged platform in 1 corner of either a rectangular or a kite-shaped pool. When the walls creating this corner were a different color than the opposite walls, then learning about the shape of the pool was potentiated in the kite but not in the rectangle. Experiments 2-4 revealed that learning about the rectangle can be overshadowed and blocked when information about the wall color indicates the location of the platform. The results mimic findings that have been obtained with Pavlovian conditioning, and they challenge the claim that learning about the shape of the environment takes places in a dedicated geometric module.     

Spatial learning based on the shape of the environment is influenced by properties of the objects forming the shape

In 3 experiments rats had to find a submerged platform that was located in a corner of a kite-shaped pool. The color of the walls creating this corner provided an additional cue for finding the platform in the shape + color condition but not the shape-only condition. During tests in a pool with walls of a uniform color but no platform, more time was spent in the corner where the platform was originally located after training in the shape + color than in the shape-only condition. The results challenge theories that assume either that learning about the shape of the environment takes place in a dedicated module or that cues compete for the control they acquire over behavior.     

Learning- and grade-orientation,sex, and prediction of self-reported academic performance

148 undergraduate students completed the LOGO-II scale, a measure of educational orientation, i.e., learning-oriented and grade-oriented attitudes and behaviors, and were asked to report their current and expected grades, as well as their self-assessed academic skill. Generally, learning orientation was positively correlated with academic performance, but grade orientation was negatively correlated with performance. Learning orientation and grade orientation predicted academic performance for men but not women. Implications of these findings, including the possibility of encouraging students to assume a more learning-oriented approach to their education, are discussed.     

Dependency and self-criticism as predictors of suicidal behavior

Individuals have been theorized to develop anaclitic and introjective depression to the extent that they may be characterized as dependent and self-critical, respectively (e.g., Blatt, 1990). Blatt's theory was applied to suicidal behavior to determine if suicidal behavior could also be reliably broken down into two distinctive types, with respect to a number of parameters. Sixty-four undergraduate students who had attempted suicide were interviewed, and the lethality of their attempts was assessed with the Risk-Rescue Rating scale (Weisman & Worden, 1972). Participants were also administered an Intent and Precipitating Events scale, a modified version of the BDI-II, and the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ). Self-critical individuals showed greater intent to die and greater lethality in their suicide attempts than did dependents. Self-critics were also more likely to attempt in response to an intrapsychic stressor, with the explicit motivation to escape. In contrast, dependents were more likely to attempt in response to an interpersonal stressor, with the motivation to communicate some form of unhappiness. Implications for suicide prediction and treatment are discussed, with special reference to the importance of identifying different suicidal subtypes.     

Intentional forgetting as a facilitator for recalling new product attributes

When market changes alter what product attributes are deemed important, consumers may intentionally try to forget old product information in an attempt to remember new product information. In Experiment 1, the authors demonstrated that intentional forgetting of this nature temporarily inhibits retrieval of old product information and leads to a benefit to memory for new product information. The results show that, after a short delay, benefits continue in the absence of costs, which is supportive of a multiple-process account of intentional forgetting. Experiment 2 extends these effects using an advertising message to stimulate forgetting. Across both experiments, results also show that brand preference is based on learning of new attribute information.     

Cognitions and depressive symptoms among ethnic minority adolescents

Cognitive models have guided effective intervention strategies in the treatment of depression. However, little is known about the cognitive model's relevance in different cultural ethnic groups in the United States. This study examines the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations among cognitive variables and depressive symptoms among African American, Caucasian, and Hispanic adolescents in the United States. Community adolescents (N = 450) ages 14-18 years (African American n = 79; Caucasian n = 273; Hispanic n = 98) provided information regarding their depressive symptoms and cognitions at two surveys, 6 months apart. Self-efficacy, cognitive errors, and hopelessness were associated with concurrent depressive symptoms at baseline. In addition, cognitive errors at baseline, controlling for baseline depressive symptoms and the occurrence of stressful events, predicted depressive symptoms at follow-up. Ethnic differences disappeared when parent education level was controlled. Our findings demonstrate support for the cognitive model of depression across ethnic groups. The importance of controlling for social class when examining ethnic differences in psychological variables is highlighted by our findings.     

Psychological Adjustment and Knowledge About Hereditary Hemochromatosis in a Clinic-Based Sample: A Prospective Study

This study assessed psychological adjustment and quality of life relative to population-based norms and knowledge about hereditary hemochromatosis in a sample of 101 patients who attended a hemochromatosis clinic. Participants were assessed prior to their clinic visit, and two weeks and 12 months after attendance, using self-administered questionnaires. Mean Mental Health Component Scores from the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) (45.3, 95% CI 43.2, 47.4) were as compromised as those found amongst stroke victims (45.9, 95% CI 42.8, 49.0) who had participated in a national health survey. Recall of the genetic testing result was less than optimal, in that only 69.3% of those with genetic testing results knew whether they carried one or two mutations. This study demonstrates that patients would benefit from routine assessment of psychological distress and referral to mental health professionals of those whose levels of distress suggest a need for clinical intervention. Results also show that patients may benefit from strategies aimed at improving recall of genetic testing results.