The driving anger expression inventory: a measure of how people express their anger on the road

Four ways people express their anger when driving were identified. Verbal Aggressive Expression (alpha=0.88) assesses verbally aggressive expression of anger (e.g., yelling or cursing at another driver); Personal Physical Aggressive Expression (alpha=0.81), the ways the person uses him/herself to express anger (e.g., trying to get out and tell off or have a physical fight with another driver); Use of the Vehicle to Express Anger (alpha=0.86), the ways the person uses his/her vehicle to express anger (e.g., flashing lights at or cutting another driver off in anger); and Adaptive/Constructive Expression (alpha=0.90), the ways the person copes positively with anger (e.g., focuses on safe driving or tries to relax). Aggressive forms can be summed into Total Aggressive Expression Index (alpha=0.90). Aggressive forms of expression correlated positively with each other (rs=0.39-0.48), but were uncorrelated or correlated negatively with adaptive/constructive expression (rs=-0.02 to -0.22). Aggressive forms of anger expression correlated positively with driving-related anger, aggression, and risky behavior; adaptive/constructive expression tended to correlate negatively with these variables. Differences in the strengths of correlations and regression analyses supported discriminant and incremental validity and suggested forms of anger expression contributed differentially to understanding driving-related behaviors. Theoretical and treatment implications were explored.     

Overview: Signal production and detection

Studies of signal production and detection are complicated by the diverse modalities used by animals, constraints of human signal perception, and limitations of a controlled laboratory environment. These complications can be addressed by creative approaches to studying anatomical adaptations for signal production and detection, innovative technology, and careful studies of signal production and detection in the field. These solutions should overcome the perceptual limitations of researchers as they explore Umwelten in other species.     

Memory-load interference in syntactic processing

Participants remembered a short set of words while reading syntactically complex sentences (object–extracted clefts) and syntactically simpler sentences (subject–extracted clefts) in a memory–load study. The study also manipulated whether the words in the set and the words in the sentence were of matched or unmatched types (common nouns vs. proper names). Performance in sentence comprehension was worse for complex sentences than for simpler sentences, and this effect was greater when the type of words in the memory load matched the type of words in the sentence. These results indicate that syntactic processing is not modular, instead suggesting that it relies on working memory resources that are used for other nonsyntactic processes. Further, the results indicate that similarity–based interference is an important constraint on information processing that can be overcome to some degree during language comprehension by using the coherence of language to construct integrated representations of meaning.     

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and methylphenidate: a dose-response analysis and parent-child comparison of somatic complaints

The authors examined parent and child ratings of somatic complaints in 65 children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) who received four doses (5 mg, 10 mg, 15 mg, 20 mg) of methylphenidate (MPH) in the context of a double-blind, placebo controlled, within-subject (crossover) experimental design. Results indicated that parent and child ratings of somatic complaints decreased in a linear fashion from baseline levels as a function of increasing MPH dose and showed minimal variation across MPH conditions. Statistical comparisons of specific somatic complaints indicated minimal agreement between parents and children in contrast to the nearly identical parent-child dose-response curves. The paradoxical findings of fewer somatic complaints associated with MPH, importance of obtaining children's perceptions of MPH treatment, and implications for measuring somatic complaints are discussed.     

If we had known then what we know now: a review of local and national surveys following September 11, 2001

There is little research on the consequences of large-scale violent disasters in a community despite their unfortunate prevalence over many decades. The primary source of epidemiological data for the greater New York community in dealing with the September 11, 2001, attacks was the Oklahoma City bombing. In the latter event, 45%; of directly exposed adults met criteria for a major psychiatric disorder 6 months later, including 34%; with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The first survey after the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks, conducted within one week, revealed a remarkable degree of symptomatology across the nation in both adults and children. Forty-four percent of adults reported at least 1 of 5 PTSD screening symptoms in the 3-5 days after the attacks; 35% of parents reported children who had at least one symptom, and 47% of children worried about their own or someone else's safety. Coping behaviors were consistent with a community mental health model and included turning to open discussion (98%), religion (90%), and community activities (60%) in order to cope with their reactions. Rates of disorder were also high in a survey conducted 5-8 weeks later in Manhattan below 110th Street, with 38% saying they directly witnessed the World Trade Center attack. The current prevalence of new-onset PTSD was 7.5%, and of new-onset major depressive disorder, 9.7%. This translates into 67,000 persons with PTSD and 87,000 persons with major depression. This survey also found a significant increase in tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use, but primarily among adults already using these substances. All surveys found strong associations between media exposure and symptomatology. The greatest need at this point in the literature is therapeutics research after such traumatic events.     

Individual differences in working memory capacity and enumeration

Two experiments are reported in which subjects performed working memory and enumeration tasks. In the first experiment, subjects scoring low on the working memory task also performed poorly on the attention-demanding "counting" portion of the enumeration task. Yet no span differences were found for the non-attention-demanding "subitizing" portion. In Experiment 2, conjunctive and disjunctive distractors were added to the enumeration task. Although both high and low working memory span subjects were adversely affected by the addition of conjunctive distractors, the effect was much greater for the low-span subjects. Implications from these findings are that differences in working memory capacity correspond to differences in capability for controlled attention.     

How the Opinions of Racial Minorities Influence Judgments of Discrimination

We investigated the influence of target versus non-target group members on judgments of racial discrimination. In Study 1, Black individuals were regarded as better sources of information about racial discrimination than White individuals. In Study 2, Black peers were more influential than White peers on judgments of discrimination. In Study 3, the influence of Black peers was moderated by internal concern with prejudice, and mediated by the perceived credibility of the peer. We discuss these findings in terms of targeted social referencing, whereby members of relevant target groups exert more influence than members of non-target groups over assessments of discrimination.     

Evaluating Addictions Counseling Programs: Promoting Best Practices,Accountability, and Advocacy

Program evaluation offers several benefits to addictions counselors, including identifying best practices, providing accountability to stakeholders, and advocating for minority client populations. This article reviews the benefits of addictions counseling program evaluation and outlines main steps in the evaluation process.     

From Sectarian to Secular Control of Education The Case of Newfoundland

On September 2, 1997, Newfoundland transitioned from church to state control over education. Prior to this change, education had been controlled by churches. Recently, on November 9, 2000, an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada by the Roman Catholic Church to declare the change unconstitutional was denied, settling the issue legally, although, perhaps, not politically. This article describes Newfoundland's educational system prior to the public referendum in 1997 that removed church control of education and explores some of the recent issues that have arisen since transition. It calls for further investigation into the effects of the change and the political, social, and economic forces that led to such a fundamental change.     

Control of Trajectory Modifications in Target-Directed Reaching

Human reaching movements to fixed and displaced visual targets were recorded and compared with simulated movements generated by using a two-joint arm model based on the equilibrium-point (EP) hypothesis (λ model) of motor control (Feldman, 1986). The aim was to investigate the form of central control signals underlying these movements. According to this hypothesis, movements result from changes in control variables that shift the equilibrium position (EP) of the arm. At any time, muscle activations and forces will depend on the difference between the arm's EP and its actual position and on the limb's velocity. In this article, we suggest that the direction of EP shift in reaching is specified at the hand level, whereas the rate of EP shift may be specified at the hand or joint level. A common mechanism underlying reaching to fixed and displaced targets is proposed whereby the EP of the hand shifts in a straight line toward the present target. After the target is displaced, the direction of the hand EP shift is modified toward the second target. The results suggest that the rate of shift of the hand EP may be modified for movements in different parts of the work space. The model, with control signals that vary in a simple fashion over time, is able to generate the kinematic patterns observed empirically.