Neonatal hyperthyroidism in the rat: thyroxine accelerates the development of unconditioned but not learned responses to tastes

The effects of neonatal hyperthyroidism induced by thyroxine injection on the development of unconditioned and learned behaviors mediated by the gustatory system of the rat were investigated. The development of unconditioned ingestive responses evoked by 10% sucrose and 0.1% HCl taste solutions was advanced several days by thyroxine treatment. However, the emergence of taste aversion learning involving 10% sucrose and LiCl injection was not advanced and may have been slightly delayed. Thus, the ontogenesis of unconditioned and learned behaviors mediated by the gustatory system was not influenced uniformly by neonatal thyroxine treatment.     

On the application of program evaluation designs: Sorting out their use and abuse

Increasingly complex methodological options, as well as growing sophistication of users, means that the formulation of a research design prior to conducting an evaluation study is likely to be more demanding and time-consucting than previously. In fact, one of the most difficult problems in the entire evaluation endeavor is the development of an appropriate design.. But the issue is not only one of complexity—it is also one of the appropriateness of the designs to the questions at hand. The concern of this article is with tightening the linkage between questions asked and answers given—making sure that the design organizes and directs the evaluation efforts to provide relevant information germane to the needs of the policymakers. By tightening this linkage, it is presumed that the findings from evaluation studies can gain increased legitimacy and use. Appropriate uses and abuses of seven program evaluation designs are analyzed, stressing designs that are most appropriate to the types of informational questions asked by policymakers. Ray C. Rist is director of operations in the general government division of the United States General Accounting Office. He was previously a professor at Cornell University and has authored or edited sixteen books and written nearly one hundred articles. He is chair of the Working Group on Policy Evaluation whose members prepared the articles for this special symposium.     

Time decay of auditory stream biasing

In an experiment designed to investigate the time decay of auditory stream biasing (ASB), subjects were required to listen to a 10-sec induction sequence of repeated tones (AAAA …) designed to bias the listener’s percept toward hearing an A stream. The induction sequence was followed immediately by a silent interval (0–8 sec), and then a short ABAB … test sequence. To measure the amount of ASB remaining at the end of the silent interval, subjects were asked to indicate whether the test sequence was temporally coherent or had segregated into separate A and B streams. A plot of the mean number of segregation responses against silent-interval duration indicated that the overall time decay of ASB can be described by an exponential decay function with a time constant of t = 3.84 sec, with musicians having a longer time constant (τ = 7.84 sec) than nonmusicians (τ = 1.42 sec). The length of the time constants for musicians and nonmusicians suggests that the mechanism responsible for ASB is associated with long auditory storage and that future experiments investigating auditory streaming phenomena should use interstimulus intervals of at least 8 sec.     

Counselling older adults: Issues and awareness

This paper explores understanding and awareness among counsellors and counselling psychologists, of work with older people. The result of a piece of reasarch on this topic are presented. These tentatively confirm a relative lack of interest and insight into work with this age group and indicate that an age bias may exist among therapists. The reasons for this lack of awareness are explored and it is suggested that issue of the therapists' countertransference is crucial and that work with older persons may raise complex emotional issues for the counsellor. Possible future directions for research are discussed.     

The Adam and Eve syndrome

Conclusion The concept of divine forgiveness is incomprehensible to most, since it involves principles that defy rational interpretation on the level of human cognition. As a result, individuals, and especially those who present themselves for treatment, find themselves caught up in a repetition of self-judgment and selfpunishment, which is a reenactment of the original sin and the disobedience encountered in the Garden of Eden. It can be pointed out to patients that this continuous, repetitious acting out of the functions of self-judgment and selfpunishment represents the worst sin of all—the original sin in which the power and authority of God are usurped and assumed, resulting eventually in a denial of God along with symptoms that are often incapacitating. When these functions are returned to God, punishment can be expected to be much less severe and intense, because of the nature and characteristics of divine forgiveness.Ray O. Sexton, M.D., is a psychiatrist in private practice in Memphis, Tennessee, maintaining an active inpatient and outpatient practice of psychotherapy. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee Center for Health Sciences and is a clinical instructor in psychiatry at the Center. He was a Duke University fellow in psychiatry and served with the U.S. Navy as a medical officer from 1969 to 1971.Richard C. Maddock, S.T.M., Ph.D., is an Episcopal priest and a licensed psychologist in Arkansas and in Tennessee. He has published a number of scholarly articles in the areas of social and clinical psychology and in the psychology of religion. He is a member of the American Psychological Association and various state and regional associations, at which he has presented scientifie papers. With Dr. Sexton, he maintains a private practice in Memphis, Tennessee.