Breaking Confidentiality to Report Adolescent Risk-Taking Behavior by School Psychologists

School psychologists often break confidentiality if confronted with risky adolescent behavior. Members of the National Association of School Psychologists (N = 78) responded to a survey containing a vignette describing an adolescent engaging in risky behaviors and rated the degree to which it is ethical to break confidentiality for behaviors of varying frequency, intensity, and duration. Respondents generally found it ethical to break confidentiality when risky adolescent behaviors became more dangerous or potentially harmful, although there was considerable variability between respondents. Significant gender effects were found between male and female respondents for alcohol use, and a significant Form Type (i.e., male or female vignette) × Frequency/Duration interaction was observed for antisocial behaviors. School psychologists could benefit from further training in ethical decision making because these ethical dilemmas are not always clear-cut.     

Broadening (and narrowing) the scope of brand relationships

The Attachment–Aversion Relationship Model proposed by Park, Eisingerich, and Park represents the latest in a series of attempts to expand, refine, and validate the increasingly popular concept of brand relationships. We find much value in the effort. We suggest, however, that researchers should avoid indiscriminate use of the term and focus on identifying the unique contribution that the notion of brand relationships can make to theory and practice. We also note how the present model could be expanded to achieve this objective.     

The relationship between auditory discrimination and oral production of Spanish sounds in children and adults

The purpose of this study was to investigate the question of age in relation to second-language learning. Specific variables investigated were the auditory discrimination and oral production of Spanish sounds. Two test were constructed: (1) The auditory discrimination test used minimal pairs of Spanish sounds, and (2) the oral production test used words that differed in only one sound. Both tests were given individually to a group of randomly chosen English monolingual speakers. A group of children (1 st-graders) and a group of adults (12th-graders) were tested to determine if both tests taken together would show one group to have a higher foreign language aptitude than the other group. While it was hypothesized that children would perform better than adults, the multivariate analysis of variance indicated that, with both tests taken together, adults were superior in auditory discrimination and oral production, supporting the idea that adults because of their cognitive advantage and maturity are more efficient and successful in these two aspects of foreign-language learning. Children did not exhibit the facility that early-foreign-language-learning advocates have postulated.This article is based on a dissertation submitted by Alba A. Rosenman to the Department of Secondary, Higher, and Foundations of Education, Ball State University. The research was supported in part by a Graduate Student Research Grant from Ball State University. I am grateful to Dr. Larry Henriksen for his help in the statistical design and analysis of the data and to Dr. Herbert Stahlke for phonetic analysis.     

Reflex conditioning in a spinal man.

A man with a completely transected spinal cord and a spastic neurogenic bladder was conditioned to void upon the presentation of an external stimulus. A classical conditioning paradigm was employed in which strong abdominal shock (unconditioned stimulus) was paired with an initially neutral mild electrical stimulation of the thigh (conditioned stimulus; CS). After the pairing trials, a reliable conditioned response of urination was elicited by the CS alone. The conditioned response did not extinguish over time, and the procedure left the bladder with clinically safe residual amounts of urine. Practical implications of the conditioning technique for the treatment of spastic neurogenic bladder conditions in spinally injured patients are discussed, as is the theoretical significance of conditioning at the reflex level in the absence of cortical involvement.     

A multiple change score comparison of traditional and behavioral college teaching procedures

Seventy-six students in a college-level course in human development were divided into an experimental and a control group of approximately equal size. Both groups were given a pretest composed of fill-in and multiple-choice items. The control group was exposed to conventional educational practices while the experimental group was treated in a manner similar to that described by Johnston and Pennypacker (1971), performing only on fill-in items. Post-test results showed significantly greater changes in the experimental group, regardless of the type of test item, although the difference was greater in the case of the fill-in items. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for both future research and tactics in the development of improved teaching technologies.     

Predictive factors of quality of life in acquired brain injury

Background/ObjectiveThe sequelae and the disability and dependence that follow an acquired brain injury (ABI) may result in a significant reduction in the quality of life (QoL) of those affected. The objective was to assess the QoL of a sample of Spanish patients with an ABI and analyze the influence of certain sociodemographic and injury-related variables on their QoL. Method: The sample comprised 421 adults (60% male; M_age = 53.12; SD = 14.87). Professionals and relatives assessed the patients’ QoL through the CAVIDACE scale, an ABI-specific tool based on the eight-domain QoL model. Results: Univariate analyses showed statistically significant differences in the QoL scores in several sociodemographic (age, civil status, education level, prior employment status, type of home, level of supports, loss of legal capacity, recognized dependence, and degree of dependence) and injury-related (time since the injury, location of the injury, and presence of post-traumatic amnesia) variables. The multiple linear regression showed that loss of legal capacity, time since the injury, prior employment status, location of the injury, and degree of dependence were significant QoL predictors. Conclusions: These findings provide knowledge for the development of programs aimed at reducing the negative impact of ABI on QoL.     

Expanding Possibilities: Flexibility and Solidarity with Under-resourced Immigrant Families During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The novel coronavirus has added new anxieties and forms of grieving to the myriad practical and emotional burdens already present in the lives of underserved and uninsured immigrant families and communities. In this article, we relate our experiences since the COVID-19 crisis to the lessons we have learned over time as mental health professionals working with families in no-cost, student-managed community comprehensive health clinics in academic-community partnerships. We compare and contrast the learnings of flexibility of time, space, procedures, or attendance we acquired in this clinical community setting during regular times, with the new challenges families and therapists face, and the adaptations needed to continue to work with our clients in culturally responsive and empowering ways during the COVID-19 pandemic. We describe families, students, professionals, promotoras (community links), and IT support staff joining together in solidarity as the creative problem solvers of new possibilities when families do not have access to Wi-Fi, smartphones, or computers, or suffer overcrowding and lack of privacy. We describe many anxieties related to economic insecurity or fear of facing death alone, but also how to visualize expanding possibilities in styles of parenting or types of emotional support among family members as elements of hope that may endure beyond these unprecedented tragic times of loss and uncertainty.     

Pleasure principles: A review of research on hedonic consumption

Thirty years ago, Hirschman and Holbrook (1982) advocated greater attention to hedonic consumption and the myriad ways in which consumers seek pleasure and enjoyment. A thorough review finds that the topic has much appeal and that consumer research has made significant progress toward understanding some of its parameters. However, many questions remain unanswered, particularly with regard to understanding the sources of pleasure, the manner in which consumers seek it, and the ways in which consumers might alter their hedonic consumption decisions to maximize pleasure and happiness. We assess three decades of research on hedonic consumption, emphasizing areas of greatest potential for future exploration.     

ICD-11 prolonged grief disorder: Prevalence,predictors, and co-occurrence in a large representative sample

The International Classification of Diseases has recently defined Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD) with symptoms such as longing, worry, and intense emotional pain that exceed sociocultural norms more than 6 months after the loss. This study aims to (a) estimate the prevalence of this new diagnostic category, (b) identify its sociodemographic and loss-related predictors, and (c) assess the co-occurrence of PGD with other psychological disorders and substance abuse. A large representative sample of Spanish adults (N = 1498) participated. Several multivariate binary logistic regression and multivariate logistic regression models were used. Results showed a 9.95% prevalence in the total sample. Catholic beliefs were a positive predictor, while higher income and more time since loss significantly decreased the odds of PGD. PGD significantly increased the likelihood of anxiety, depression, somatisation, post-traumatic stress disorder, loneliness and substance use. Our study contributes to assessing the multicultural PGD validity, as our results from a large representative sample are comparable to those in other countries with the PGDS. Our findings have direct implications for the assessment and treatment of bereavement, identifying for practitioners variables that make individuals more vulnerable to PGD. Results highlighted the high co-occurrence of PGD with other psychological illnesses and increased drug use.     

Delay discounting in e-cigarette users,current and former smokers

Background/Objective: Despite the fact that electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, are being increasingly used as an alternative to smoking tobacco cigarettes, few studies have explored psychological factors associated with e-cigarette use. Prior studies aimed at exploring correlates of e-cigarette use have focused on sociodemographic and smoking-related characteristics. However, no previous work has examined psychological features such as impulsivity among e-cigarettes users. The main objective of this study was to compare impulsivity rates across four groups of participants: current e-cigarette users who were former smokers; current smokers; former smokers; and controls. Method: A sample of 136 participants completed a computerized delay discounting task for hypothetical monetary values. Results: Delay discounting was greater among e-cigarette users than former smokers. E-cigarette users also showed an intermediate discounting that did not differ from smokers and controls. Moreover, delay discounting was significantly greater among current smokers compared to former smokers and controls. Conclusions: Taken together, our results extend previous research on delay discounting by providing evidence on impulsivity levels among current e-cigarette users for the first time.