Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale,Mini‐Mental State Examination and General Practitioner Assessment of Cognition in a multicultural cohort of community‐dwelling older persons with early dementia

Early dementia can be difficult to diagnose in older persons from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. The Folstein Mini‐Mental State Examination (MMSE), the General Practitioner Assessment of Cognition (GPCOG) and the Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale (RUDAS) were compared in 151 older, community‐dwelling persons. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate diagnostic accuracy, while logistic regression was used to evaluate the influence of age, gender, CALD status and years of education. All three instruments were equally accurate in predicting dementia (ROC area under curve 0.92–0.97, p > 0.05 for all comparisons). At the recommended cut‐offs, the RUDAS was best for ruling in dementia (positive LR = 8.77), while the GPCOG was best for ruling out dementia (negative LR = 0.03). All three instruments were influenced by concomitant depression. Whereas the MMSE was influenced by CALD status, the RUDAS and GPCOG were not. While the GPCOG combines participant and informant data, the RUDAS is a stand‐alone measure specifically designed for, and validated in, multicultural populations.     

Self-reported Attitude Towards Speeding and Its Possible Consequences in Five Different Road Contexts

Driving above the permitted speed limit is a common violation on the roads of Great Britain. Moreover, speeding is associated with negative consequences in the form of damage, injury and fatal road traffic accidents. The aim of this study was to assess, by means of self-report, the prevalence of this social problem across five different contexts: a residential road, a busy shopping street, a dual carriageway, a winding country road, and a motorway. The extent to which speeding was perceived to be associated with negative consequences was also assessed. Results suggest that most drivers make judgements about the type of road on which they are driving and the degree of speeding that is acceptable, and that their intentions to speed vary accordingly. Some drivers reported a consistent intention to speed, however, and these people were characterized by greater general deviance on the road (e.g. high violation score), rather than by a stronger tendency to underestimate the negative consequences. In general, however, younger people and those with less regard for negative consequences reported stronger intentions to speed. These results are discussed with reference to strategies for addressing the problem of speeding. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fairy Tales: Visions for Problem Resolution in Eating Disorders

This article introduces a framework that uses fairy tales, such as Cinderella, as a vision-to-action treatment alternative for psychological dysfunctions focusing on eating disorders. Clinical examples are provided that integrate guided imagery, cognitive reframing, and behavioral assignments.