Development of differences in response latencies to right and left visual fields

Robust lateralization developed in right-handed adults who were asked to judge letter pairs as "same" or "different" during 4608 trials. By the end of the first two blocks (768 trials) "same" responses were favored when presented in the RVF (transmitted directly to the left hemisphere) and "different" responses were favored when presented in the LVF (transmitted direction to the right hemisphere). This gradually reversed over sessions with "same" responses becoming faster for letters presented in the LVF, and "different" responses becoming faster for stimuli presented in the RVF. The laterality acquired under these conditions was cumulative and reproducible, appeared in all 16 subjects, and was preserved between sessions a week apart. The data suggest that laterality is a flexible and reversible characteristic of the human brain even when stimulus and task remain constant.     

Self-efficacy,nicotine-fading/self-monitoring and cigarette-smoking behaviour

An attempt to replicate and extend the successful results of Foxx and Brown's (1979) nicotine-fading, self-monitoring procedure for smoking abstinence or controlled smoking was undertaken using a combination of their procedure and cognitive-behavioural interventions. The latter consisted of: (1) a variation of Meichenbaum's (1977) self-instructional training and (2) a simple, direct manipulation of Bandura's (1977) concept of self-efficacy. Evidence was found to support Foxx and Brown's (1979) procedure with respect to reduced smoking rate and nicotine/tar intake. Combinations of treatments did not result in an enhancement of these effects. However, with respect to smoking abstinence, comparable results were only found in groups receiving specific training in self-efficacy. It was suggested that the variability of findings in this study as well as those in the literature subsequent and relating to Foxx and Brown's (1979) procedure might be accounted for using Bandura's (1977) self-efficacy concept.     

Non-accidental injury to children—I: A review of behavioural interventions

The history of the growth of interest in child abuse in the Western World over the last two decades is described chronologically. Problems of definition of a phenomenon which is a deviation from social norms are discussed, including the problem of distinguishing acceptable discipline from abuse. The literature on parent-training approaches to the treatment of abusive parents is reviewed. It is argued that researchers in the U.S.A. and the U.K. are working within different statutory frameworks, from different definitional criteria and with different conceptualizations of successful outcome. The need for multiple outcome measures, in terms of quality of life for the abused child, and for long-term follow-up is stressed, together with the importance of clinical experience in the planning and execution of evaluative treatment research.     

The behavioural treatment of school refusal—A comparative study

A consecutive series of 30 school refusers received behavioural treatment (BTA). Their outcome is compared with that of 16 school refusers who were hospitalized and 20 who received psychotherapy and home tuition. The BTA group showed superior outcome compared to the other two groups. The Home-tuition group did very badly. There was no evidence of symptom substitution in the 28 cases treated successfully by behaviour therapy.     

Structural complexity and the quality of stepfather-stepchild relationships

This research examined the effects of structural complexity and sex of stepchild on the quality of stepfather-stepchild relationships. Sixteen simple stepfather families (the wife had custody of a child from a previous marriage, but the stepfather has no biological children) and 16 complex stepfather families (the wife had custody of a child from a previous marriage, and the stepfather was a noncustodial biological parent) with half of each type (N = 8) having a male and half having a female, 9-12-year-old target child participated in a multimethod-multimeasure assessment of the stepfather-stepchild relationship. Families were recruited from marriage license records, and data collection was accomplished in a single three-and-a-half-hour home visit. Dependent variables included: (a) questionnaire measures of love and detachment relationship dimensions independently obtained from parents, stepparents, and (step)children, and (b) proportions of positive and negative stepparent and stepchild communication behaviors derived from videotaped interaction tasks. Findings revealed that simple and complex stepfather families did not differ on any questionnaire or behavioral measures. Girls, however, engaged in a lower proportion of positive verbal and greater proportion of negative problem-solving behaviors toward their stepfathers than boys did. Stepfathers did not differ on proportions of communication behaviors emitted toward boys and girls. No sex-of-child differences were obtained on the questionnaire measures. Directions for future research on structural complexity and stepfather families are discussed.     

CONTINGENT REINFORCEMENT FOR CARBON MONOXIDE REDUCTION: WITHIN-SUBJECT EFFECTS OF PAY AMOUNT

The relationship between reinforcer amount and daytime smoking reduction in smokers offered money for reduced afternoon breath carbon monoxide (CO) levels was examined. Twenty-three hired regular smokers with average baseline CO levels of about 30 ppm were exposed in random order to five sliding scale payment schedules that changed daily or weekly. Money was available for afternoon CO readings between 0 and 21 ppm with pay amount inversely related to the absolute CO reading obtained. Maximum pay amount for readings below 7 ppm varied among $0, $1.50, $3, $6, and $12 per day. Contingent reinforcement promoted CO and daytime cigarette reduction within individuals with the amount of behavior change related to the amount of payment available. Average CO levels decreased from 30 to 15 ppm as a function of pay amount whereas self-reported daytime cigarettes decreased from 12 to 5 per day. Average minutes of cigarette abstinence prior to the afternoon study contact increased from 62 to 319 minutes as a function of pay amount, whereas the percentage of available money earned increased from 22% to 48%. Nontargeted evening cigarette use also decreased during periods of daytime smoking reduction. The orderly effects of this contingent reinforcement intervention on daytime smoking of regular smoker volunteers suggest that this is a sensitive model for continued evaluation of factors that influence smoking reduction and cessation.     

CO-WORKER SOCIAL SUPPORT IN A WORKSITE SMOKING CONTROL PROGRAM

We evaluated the effects of adding a social support component to a worksite controlled smoking treatment program. Twenty-four participants were randomly assigned to either a controlled smoking or a controlled smoking plus partner support condition. Within a multiple baseline across behaviors design, smokers in both conditions made efforts to achieve sequential 50% reductions in: (a) nicotine content of brand smoked, (b) number of cigarettes smoked per day, and (c) percentage of each cigarette smoked. Self-monitoring records, laboratory analyses of spent cigarette butts, and carbon monoxide determinations indicated that both conditions were effective in producing significant reductions in each of the three target behaviors and in carbon monoxide levels. All participants who quit smoking during the program maintained their abstinence at a 6-month follow-up, and those who did not quit were smoking less at follow-up than they had at pretest on all dependent variables. However, few differences were observed between controlled smoking and controlled smoking plus partner support conditions either during treatment or at the 6-month follow-up. Results are discussed with regard to previous worksite studies, future directions for research on social support, and variables that may have mediated treatment outcome.