A Visual Representation and the Control of Manual Aiming Movements

Three experiments were conducted to determine if a representation of the movement environment is functional in the organization and control of limb movements, when direct visual contact with the environment is prevented. In Experiment 1, a visual rearrangement procedure was employed to show that a representation of the environment that provides inaccurate information about the spatial location of a target can disrupt manual target aiming. In Experiment 2, we demonstrated that spatial information about the position of a target can be destroyed by a visual pattern mask, supporting our claim that the representation is visual. A target-cuing procedure was used in Experiment 3 to show that representation of target position can be useful for premovement organization in a targetaiming task. Together our findings suggest that a short-lived visual representation of the movement environment may serve a useful role in the organization and control of limb movements.     

A one-year concurrent validity study of the Rorschach prognostic Rating Scale

A study was conducted of one year's referrals to a Juvenile Court Clinic, comparing the ratings of psychiatrists and social workers regarding a child's prognosis for psychotherapy with ratings from the Rorschach Prognostic Rating Scale (RPRS). The RPRS proved to be highly reliable and to correlate significantly with psychiatric ratings. Intelligence did not appear to be a confounding factor, and no difference was suggested in RPRS prognosis for Caucasian or Negro subjects.     

Alterations in Rorschach's Experience Balance under Conditions of Food and Sleep Deprivation: A Construct Validation Study

Clinard, Marshall B. (Ed.), Anomie and Deviant Behavior: A Discussion and Critique. New York, Toronto, London: Collier-Macmillan, Ltd., 1964, Free Press of Glencoe, xii, pp. 324. Reviewed by Leon J. Whitsell     

Associations Between Symptom Validity Test Failure and Scores on the MMPI–2–RF Validity and Substantive Scales

Existing measures of approval motivation attempt to assess this dimension of personality indirectly through evaluation of socially desirable response tendencies. The Martin-Larsen Approval Motivation (MLAM) Scale takes a more direct approach by focusing on individual differences in need for social approval. Since the original version of the MLAM scale is subject to acquiescence response bias, fully balanced and partially balanced scales were created to minimize this response style. Results indicated that the revised measures arc equivalent to the original version and that balancing affects the magnitude but not the pattern of correlates with other scales. Comparisons with the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability (MCSD) Scale revealed a divergent pattern of correlates with several measures of personality suggesting a basic difference between the MLAM and MCSD in their conceptualization of approval motivation.     

Psychological Researches in Schizophrenic Language and Thought

Seventy-two five- to seven-year-old boys were exposed to televised adult models and were then administered tests of resistance to deviation (moral behavior), moral choice, and moral judgment level. Boys exposed to a model who said he would resist deviating from a prohibition and who supported his statement with a morally realistic justification were subsequently more likely to use that model's statements to guide their own moral behavior and moral choice than were boys exposed to a model advocating resistance to deviation with a morally autonomous justification. Realistic models expressing a deviating moral choice led to more deviating moral choices in observers than did autonomous deviating models. The moral judgment levels of the boys were not significantly affected by the models. The boys' moral behavior was predictive of their moral choice while moral judgment level was not significantly related to the other two indices of morality.     

Deconstructing the construct: A network perspective on psychological phenomena

In psychological measurement, two interpretations of measurement systems have been developed: the reflective interpretation, in which the measured attribute is conceptualized as the common cause of the observables, and the formative interpretation, in which the measured attribute is seen as the common effect of the observables. We advocate a third interpretation, in which attributes are conceptualized as systems of causally coupled (observable) variables. In such a view, a construct like ’depression’ is not seen as a latent variable that underlies symptoms like ’lack of sleep’ or ’fatigue’, and neither as a composite constructed out of these symptoms, but as a system of causal relations between the symptoms themselves (e.g., lack of sleep → fatigue, etc.). We discuss methodological strategies to investigate such systems as well as theoretical consequences that bear on the question in which sense such a construct could be interpreted as real.     

Posttraumatic Stress,Depression, and Insomnia Among U.S. Air Force Pararescuemen

Few studies have examined rates of mental health problems among special duty military personnel, who often have frequent deployments and high exposure to operational stressors and trauma. The current study examined the severity and rates of positive screening for posttraumatic stress, depression, and insomnia among 194 U.S. Air Force pararescuemen (PJs) in the active duty (AD) and National Guard/Reserve (NG/R) components. Overall estimated rates were 11.6% for probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), 1.6% for probable depression, and 16.1% for clinical insomnia. PJs in the NG/R reported significantly more severe posttraumatic stress symptoms (F(1, 162) = 10.031, p = .002, partial η² = .058) and were approximately twice as likely to screen positive for probable PTSD (8.5% vs. 19.1%; χ²[1] = 3.679, p = .055). No differences in the rate or severity of depression or insomnia symptoms were found. Rates of positive screens are comparable to or lower than previously published rates among military personnel.     

Factors Affecting the Adequacy and Preferability of Semiparametric Groups-Based Approximations of Continuous Growth Trajectories

Psychologists have long been interested in characterizing individual differences in change over time. It is often plausible to assume that the distribution of these individual differences is continuous in nature, yet theory is seldom so specific as to designate its parametric form (e.g., normal). Semiparametric groups-based trajectory models (SPGMs) were thus developed to provide a discrete approximation for continuously distributed growth of unknown form. Previous research has demonstrated the adequacy of the approximation provided by SPGM but only under relatively narrow, theoretically optimal conditions. Under alternative conditions, which may be more common in practice (e.g., higher dimension random effects, smaller sample sizes), this study shows that approximation adequacy can suffer. Furthermore, this study also evaluates whether SPGM's discrete approximation is preferable to a parametric trajectory model that assumes normally distributed random effects when in fact the distribution is modestly nonnormal. The answer is shown to depend on distributional characteristics of both repeated measures (binary or continuous) and random effects (bimodal or skewed). Implications for practice are discussed in light of empirical examples on externalizing behavior.     

Beloved of the Beloved: When the Male Muse Appears

Serious illness puts us in touch with an acute sense of our own vulnerability and mortality. Loss of ego identity creates an urgent longing to find meaning within the experience of illness or impending death. Inspired by his own near-death experiences in later life, Jung wrote about the goal of the second half of life: “to be ready to die with life.” This article reflects upon three individuals’ stories illustrating how palliative care embraces the needs of the whole person and prepares individuals to participate consciously in their final journey in life. This interprofessional model of care can help individuals and their loved ones experience the highest quality of life possible and bring completion to life's relationships. These stories demonstrate a synergy between Jung's beliefs regarding the goal of the second half of life and the soul work necessary for healing, wholeness, and individuation.