Computer program for standardization of curriculum-based probes

This computer program will compute standard scores with any desired mean and standard deviation. The program requires the user to enter the raw scores of each member of the sample to be standardized. The program accepts input from the computer keyboard, stores data in files on a floppy disk, and produces output on the printer.     

The role of work experience and individual beliefs in police officers' perceptions of date rape: An integration of quantitative and qualitative methods

Surveyed police officers from two police departments in the Midwest on their perceptions of date rape (N=91). The aim of this research was to examine the influence of officers' work experiences and general beliefs about women on their perceptions of date rape. Two approaches were utilized. First, using quantitative structural-equation modeling, a model that integrated work experiences and individual beliefs was evaluated using LISREL VII. Results suggest a direct path from the work experience variables to perceptions of date rape: Officers with more experience with rape cases held more sympathetic beliefs about data rape and date rape victims. Officers who found their training on rape to be very helpful, and those who reported that their work environment was sexualized and sexual harassment was a problem, were also less victim blaming. An indirect influence of these variables was also supported. Officers with more experience, those who perceived their training as helpful, and those with heightened awareness of sexual harassment in the workplace also held more favorable attitudes toward women, which, in turn, predicted less victim-blaming perceptions of date rape. Second, qualitative methods were used to have the police define and describe in their own words what has shaped their beliefs about date rape. These narratives were content analyzed by two raters. The qualitative results validated the quantitative findings as the officers were most likely to mention professional experience with rape cases and departmental trainings as important factors that changed their opinions. Work climate and personal experiences were also cited as influential. Implications for integrating qualitative and quantitative methods in research, and training interventions with police are discussed. The author thanks the Editor, Bill Davidson, Holly Angelique, Susan Englund, Doug Luke, Melody Scofield, and three anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on this paper. I also acknowledge Camille Johnson and Jody Venable for their assistance collecting and coding the data. This research was supported by a grant from the George W. Fairweather Fund.     

WOMEN WHO USE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS Changes in Depression Over Time

This study examined the levels of depression reported by women who had used a domestic violence shelter. Depressive symptoms were assessed three times: immediately after shelter exit, 10 weeks thereafter, and 6 months later. Whereas 83% of the women reported at least mild depression on the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression (CES-D) scale upon shelter exit, only 58% were depressed 10 weeks later. This did not change at the 6–month follow-up. An ecological, longitudinal model was evaluated to predict battered women's depression 8/12 months postshelter exit. Results of hierarchical regression analyses suggested that, after controlling for previous levels of depression, the women's feelings of powerlessness, experience of abuse, and decreased social support contributed to their depression symptoms. The women's scores on these three variables (feelings of powerlessness, abuse, and social support) at 10 weeks postshelter exit and at 6-month follow-up predicted depression at 6 months. Thus, there were both predictive and concurrent effects for these constructs. Implications for clinical and community interventions are discussed.     

A RESOURCE ACCOUNT OF INHIBITION

Abstract— In a letter-naming task, a letter will be named more slowly if it was a distractor on the previous trial. This negative priming effect has been instrumental in renewed interest in inhibition. The present research explored whether inhibition is a result of controlled attention. When the naming task was performed under a mental work load, negative priming was diminished as work load increased. This finding suggests that inhibition is a product of controlled resources and that group differences in inhibition may result from differences in controlled attentional resources, not from inefficient inhibitory mechanisms.     

Later-life depression: Influences of irrational thinking and cognitive impairment

The relationship of personality styles to depression at later-lifeand the influence of irrational thinking and cognitive impairment on this relationshp are addressed. Sixty older (>55) male psychiatric patients at a large medical center were given a battery of psychological tests, including the MCMI, BDI, the Idea Inventory, and the Hooper VOT. A record review for background/treatment factors was also conducted. Results showed that personality styles at later-life are distinctly related to depression, with four styles having an inverse relationship. The personality styles also have the same relationship to irrational thinking. When the influence of irrational thinking and cognitive impairment were removed from the relationship of each personality style to depression, there were only minimal changes in correlation coefficients. These components, therefore, are largely independent of the personality style and depression relationship with later-life inpatients.Leon Hyer, a clinical psychologist at the Veterans Administration Medical Center, Augusta, Georgia and assistant professor at the Medical College of Georgia, is Co-Director of the Psychogeriatric Unit at the Augusta VA Medical Center.William R. Harrison is the coordinator of the Augusta VA Medical Center's Psychodiagnostic Laboratory.Rebecca H. Jacobsen is currently a staff psychologist at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Augusta, Georgia, where she works with psychiatric inpatients on the Psychosocial Unit. Dr. Jacobsen also is an assistant professor at the Medical College of Georgia.     

Mentoring and participation: An application of the Vroom-Yetton model

Participative decision making is considered an important tool to develop subordinates. To explore how managers use PDM in mentoring relationships, we modified the Vroom-Yetton (1973) scenarios to include a protege/non-protege variable. One hundred and five managers completed the survey, and 68 of these completed a follow-up questionnaire concerning their own mentoring history. Contrary to our hypotheses, managers were neither more participative nor better decision makers with protege versus non-protege scenarios. Some differences in participation with certain situational attributes were found between protege and non-protege conditions suggesting that managers use PDM in different circumstances when dealing with proteges versus non-proteges. Mentoring history interacted with the protege variable in the scenarios. Unlike managers without mentors, managers who had been mentored showed significant differences when dealing with proteges versus non-proteges: they were both better decision makers (p=.001) and more participative with proteges (p=.004) than were managers who had not had mentors. Managers with mentors were alsoless participative in non-protege conditions (p<.05). Implications for mentoring as a developmental tool are discussed.We would like to express our appreciation to the anonymous reviewers who provided excellent guidance.     

Decision making of satisfied and dissatisfied married couples

Ten satisfied and ten dissatisfied married couples described how they make decisions of low, moderate, and high levels of difficulty. Responses were coded as reflecting the use of equity, need-based, situational, or other norms. Results were consistent with previous findings that a state of equity is associated with marital satisfaction but also indicated that multiple norms are used in decision making of both satisfied and dissatisfied couples. Decision difficulty influenced use of both situational and need-based norms. A trend was found for satisfied husbands but not wives, to make greater use of need-based norms than dissatisfied husbands when decisions were high in difficulty. The results are interpreted as supporting a distinction between equity as a state and equity as a process and as supporting an instrumental value theory of norm use.