Do fears summate?—III

The primary purpose of this investigation was to learn whether fears summate. Thirty Ss who reported and displayed fear in response to a snake and to a spider were shown each stimulus separately and then both stimuli simultaneously, in order to see if their fear responses would summate. They did, overall; however, if Stimulus 1 provoked greater fear than Stimulus 2, the simultaneous presentation of both stimuli was followed by a subtraction. Summation occurred when the second stimulus produced a larger fear response than the first stimulus, and the two were then presented simultaneously.     

A simple method for determining the functional independence of two or more fears—IV

A rationale for a simple method for determining the inter-relatedness of two discrete fears was developed and subjected to experimental test. A system for making such distinctions proved to be satisfactory, but we found no relationship between the person's own estimation of the similarity of the two fears and the index of independence that was derived experimentally. Possible uses of the method are suggested.     

Cognitive determinants of lactate-induced anxiety

The effects of lactate infusion on subjective mood change were studied in two differently instructed groups, in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study. Ss who were told that infusions would produce anxiety reported a significant change in the expected direction after lactate but not after glucose. Ss who were told that infusions would produce a state of pleasant excitement showed no change after either infusion. The possible role of cognitive parameters in experimentally-induced anxiety is discussed.     

Containment theory and juvenile delinquency: a reevaluation through factor analysis

All seven variables of containment theory were operationalized for questionnaires. Data were collected from 677 adolescents in a variety of high schools and correctional institutions, and divided into categories by race and sex. Factor analysis indicated that the structure of the relationships among the seven containment variables and delinquency was substantially different among black females.     

Parental preferences regarding sex education topics for sixth graders

The purpose of this study was to ascertain which sex education topics parents of preadolescents regarded as appropriate for their children. The sample was comprised of 146 respondents randomly selected from a class list of sixth graders in a suburban school district. A mailed, self-administered questionnaire listing 48 possible topics was used to elicit parental response. Pretesting found the questionnaire to be highly reliable (Cronbach's alpha = .95). Overall, parents strongly supported the inclusion of a broad range of sex education topics regardless of parental age, sex, marital status, income, education, or child's sex. Moreover, parents were largely in agreement with the inclusion of sensitive topics in addition to those which were more physiological or behavioral. Catholics more often than Protestants agreed with the inclusion of birth control, abortion, and sterilization even after controlling for income and education. Thus, the findings suggest that parents of sixth graders find a broad sex education program in the school appropriate. To this end, school officials and sex educators should not overlook the needs of preadolescents for sex education solely on the basis of perceived parental opposition.     

Shyness, group dependence and self-concept: attributes of the imaginary audience

The imaginary audience of 328 early and late adolescents was studied from the viewpoint of providing educators and clinicians with insight into its attributes--those which both facilitate and hinder youths' development. Early adolescents (about 14 or 15 years of age) displayed a greater awareness of an imaginary audience which probably contributed to their observed, elevated group dependence. Unexpectedly, the shyness of adolescents highly sensitive to an imaginary audience increased with age, possibly because they are unwilling to provide themselves with the social experiences necessary for decentering. Likewise, those highly sensitive to an imaginary audience projected low self-concepts and thus imply that their audience is relatively critical; thus, they probably validate a self-fulfilling prophecy, oblivious to a possible contradictory external reality. The anticipated fact that females appeared to be less socially bold and more group dependent than males might account, in part, for females' greater responsiveness to an imaginary audience. It is suggested that educators and clinicians encourage youth to validate social hypotheses in order to promote the dissolution of the imaginary audience, especially of those who are shy and display self-deprecatory tendencies.     

Prevalence of DSM-III conduct and adjustment disorders for adolescent psychiatric inpatients

The prevalence of DSM-III conduct and adjustment disorders in two adolescent psychiatric facilities, both located near large U.S. cities, was investigated. Overall, 31.6% of the adolescent inpatients were conduct disordered while 12.5% were adjustment disordered. The conduct disorders were primarily "aggressive" subtypes suggesting that this characteristic may influence hospitalization and diagnostic decisions. Such data on prevalence assists future treatment planning, allowing anticipation of case loads.     

Students' attitudes toward university health services

This study measured students' attitudes toward a university's student health services (SHS) and identified factors that were related to their attitudes. A questionnaire surveying students' attitudes was administered to a sample of 150 students at the Oxford Campus of the University of Mississippi. Analysis of the data revealed that students' attitudes had a statistically significant correlation with the following variables: perceived medical care cost, amount of health information/education received during medical encounters, time spent in the waiting room of the SHS, sex of the student, and income of the student. There was no significant relationship between attitude and age.     

Adolescents' perception of aspects of the home environment and their attitudes toward parents, self, and external authority

Although there is extensive literature on the home environment as a socializing agent and on the perception of self and others, research relating home environment variables to adolescents' perception of themselves and others is not common. The present study, using a survey of 480 students, attempts to define and relate these two domains. Factor analyses of 16 semantic differential scales generated three dimensions--evaluation, understandability, and potency--for specifying attitudes toward self, parents, and certain external authority figures (teachers and police). In addition, factor analysis of 20 variables relating to adolescents' perception of their home environment suggested five factors: (1) extent of punishment, (2) amount of chores at home, (3) perceived parental control, (4) absence of parents, and (5) parents' attitude toward authority figures. Controlling for sex and age, these home environment factors were found to account for sizable portions of variance in certain components of the person perception domain. Particular relevance for several of these factors are discussed.