A pilot investigation of the effects of stress on neuropsychological performance in Asian-Indians in the United States

The present study evaluated the effects of stress and the ethnicity of the examiner on neuropsychological performance in a sample of Asian-Indian males in the United States. Participants were 60 Asian-Indian college students randomly assigned to one of four conditions in a 2 x 2 factorial design. The first factor was level of stress induction and the second was ethnicity of examiners. Results suggested that both stress inducing instructions and examiner ethnicity impacted highly demanding tasks, while moderately difficult tasks were less sensitive to ethnicity of the examiner. Results also indicate that examiners should recognize the potential impact of ethnicity and heightened level of stress when administering and interpreting neuropsychological measures.     

Actor–partner interdependence of humility and relationship quality among couples transitioning to parenthood

The transition to parenthood is a challenging experience that often strains relationships, but perceiving one’s partner as humble (actor relational humility) and being perceived by one’s partner as humble (partner relational humility) were hypothesized to benefit couples during this transition. Married couples (N = 69) were tracked from the third trimester of pregnancy through 21 months postpartum. Husbands and wives provided ratings of relational humility and dyadic adjustment. Actor–partner interdependence models tested actor and partner effects of relational humility on dyadic adjustment across the transition. Although couples declined in dyadic adjustment over the transition at the same rate regardless of relational humility (counter to Hypothesis 2), those higher in relational humility reported greater dyadic adjustment at each time point during the transition (consistent with Hypothesis 1). These findings support the benefits of relational humility to relationship quality, and we call for further research into humility’s benefits during times of relationship transition.     

Enhancing job-site training of supported workers with autism: a reemphasis on simulation

Currently recommended practice in supported work emphasizes training job skills to workers with severe disabilities while on the job. Early behavioral research indicated that skills needed in natural environments could also be trained in simulated settings. We compared job-site plus simulation training for teaching job skills to supported workers with autism to provision of training exclusively on the job. Job-site training occurred in a small publishing company during the regular work routine, and simulation training occurred in an adult education site for people with severe disabilities. Two pairs of workers received training on two job skills; one skill was trained at the job site and the other was trained using job-site plus simulation training. Results indicated that for 3 of the 4 comparisons, job-site plus simulation training resulted in a higher level of skill or more rapid skill acquisition than did job-site-only training. Results suggested that job-site training, the assumed best practice for teaching vocational skills, is likely to be more effective if supplemented with simulation training. Directions for future research include expanding applications of behavioral technologies to other aspects of the current support paradigm.     

Exploring the validity of the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) with established emotions measures

Emotions measures represent an important means of obtaining construct validity evidence for emotional intelligence (EI) tests because they have the same theoretical underpinnings. Additionally, the extent to which both emotions and EI measures relate to intelligence is poorly understood. The current study was designed to address these issues. Participants (N = 138) completed the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT), two emotions measures, as well as four intelligence tests. Results provide mixed support for the model hypothesized to underlie the MSCEIT, with emotions research and EI measures failing to load on the same factor. The emotions measures loaded on the same factor as intelligence measures. The validity of certain EI components (in particular, Emotion Perception), as currently assessed, appears equivocal.     

An enriched teaching program for reducing resistance and indices of unhappiness among individuals with profound multiple disabilities

We evaluated an enriched teaching program for reducing resistance and indices of unhappiness displayed by 3 individuals with profound multiple disabilities during teaching sessions. The program involved presentation of preferred activities before, during, and after each teaching session, discontinuation of identified nonpreferred activities, and a brief break and preferred activity following occurrence of resistance. Implementation of the enriched teaching program was accompanied by reductions in resistance and indices of unhappiness for each participant. Results also indicated no negative impact of the program on participant performance of the teaching steps or staff teaching proficiency. Staff questionnaire responses provided a degree of social validation for the observed changes in that staff reported the participants liked the enriched teaching program more than the traditional teaching process. Directions for future research discussed include identifying critical aspects of the overall program and the potential relation between teaching proficiency and the program's enrichment effectiveness.     

Imagery and psychotic symptoms: a preliminary investigation

Recent cognitive accounts of psychotic symptoms have suggested that processes involved in the maintenance of emotional disorders may also be implicated in the maintenance of hallucinations and delusions, and particularly emphasise the appraisals of such symptoms as important. Imaginal appraisals have been identified in emotional disorders, and many studies have reported spontaneously occurring images in patients with anxiety disorders. Such images appear to be linked to affect, beliefs and memories. This study examined the occurrence of imagery, using a semi-structured interview, in 35 patients who were experiencing hallucinations and/or delusions and receiving cognitive therapy. The majority of patients (74.3%) reported images, and most of these were recurrent and associated with affect, beliefs and memories. Common themes included images about feared catastrophes associated with paranoia, traumatic memories, and images about the perceived source or content of voices. The theoretical and clinical implications of these findings are discussed and directions for further research considered.     

Evidence for an association between gender-role identity and a measure of executive function

Two studies assessed the relation between gender role and executive function. In Study One (N = 234) analyses indicated that among college students executive function, assessed by the Coolidge and Griego scale, is related to masculine gender-role classification, measured by the Bem Sex-role Inventory. This relationship remained significant when biological sex was controlled. Further, factor analysis of the Bem Sex-role Inventory identified six components, three related to executive function. Two of these scales were associated with masculine characteristics, and the third was associated with the denial of several feminine items. Study Two (N = 53) further assessed the relationship among undergraduates through additional measures of executive functions and mood, in addition to the Bem Sex-role Inventory. In this study, executive functioning, as measured by the Coolidge and Griego scale, was again generally related to masculinity. Psychological well-being was not related to gender identity or executive functioning.