Beatrice A. Wright: Broad Lens,Sharp Focus

Beatrice A. Wright, a prominent rehabilitation psychologist, was interviewed about various aspects of her personal life, scholarly contributions, professional development, and the field of rehabilitation psychology and counseling in general.     

TIME-SPENT RESPONSES AS TIME ALLOCATION STRATEGIES: RELATIONS WITH SALES PERFORMANCE IN A STOCKBROKER SAMPLE

Most research on job analysis treats within-job interrater disagreement on structured job analysis surveys as measurement error. The present research conceptualized time-spent responses as expressions of time allocation strategies for the relatively autonomous stockbroker job, and differences between responses as reflecting different strategies. Stockbrokers ( n = 580) in a large financial services firm provided time-spent data on a job analysis survey, and results showed that for relatively inexperienced stockbrokers (with 1-4 years'job experience), and for more experienced stockbrokers with more than 4 years'experience, adjusted RS between sales performance and time spent on activity factors were both .49. Also, there was evidence suggesting that the relatively inexperienced and experienced stockbrokers spend significantly different amounts of time on some activities and that different patterns of relationships between time spent and sales performance exist for the two groups. Discussion focuses on difficulties with interpreting certain time-spent/performance relationships, and research approaches that might better separate differential time allocation strategies from measurement error.     

DEVELOPMENT OF MULTIPLE JOB PERFORMANCE MEASURES IN A REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE OF JOBS

The goal of criterion development in Project A was to construct multiple measures of the major components of job performance such that the total performance domain for a representative sample of the population of entry-level enlisted positions in the U.S. Army was covered. These measures were to be used as criteria against which to validate both experimental and existing predictors of job performance. The initial model specified that performance is multidimensional within two major categories of dimensions designated as organization-wide and job specific. The development strategy involved describing the total domain of job content via extensive task analyses and critical incident analyses, generating the critical performance dimensions that constitute it, constructing measures for each dimension, and evaluating each measure using expert judgment and field test data. The specific measures developed consisted of rating scales, tests of job knowledge, hands-on job samples, and archival records. The major steps in the job analyses, content sampling, instrument construction, and instrument evaluation are described, and the final array of criterion measures is presented.     

Creativity and the Rules of Rhetoric

The rules of rhetoric do not incorporate the conditions necessary for creativity, and hence some of these rules may stifle. Creativity, however, seems to follow a vague pattern involving relatively long, and sometimes laborious sub-steps that must be carefully executed if the final product is to be of worth. The speaker or writer must undergo a preparation period, involving both direct preparation and indirect preparation. Usually, he will also experience a plateau period. The moment of insight may occur suddenly, and often while he is indulging in relaxing activity. The period of refining, which is necessary to make the final product perceptably of merit involves checking, proving and stating the insight. These processes do not lead inevitably to creativity, and some of them may be repeated more than others; nevertheless, speakers and writers may be more creative by intentionally trying to follow them.     

The Disappearing Family: The Role of Counselors in Creating Surrogate Families

For most of the world the nuclear and extended family provide the psychological support needed to mature and deal with life's crises. In the United States the family is changing rapidly. The changes sharply limit the ability of the institution to provide the support and role models formerly available. This article documents the emerging issues counselors and clients need to face. It suggests the value of creating surrogate families to fill the void created by the disappearing family.     

Stages in the Family Therapy of Adolescents

Family therapy is considered from the systems point of view as a process with a series of stages including definitive beginning and end points. The stages are identified as crisis points in family therapy - i.e., moments in the therapy process when the equilibrium of the family is upset and when stress reactions among family members are most likely to be intense. Since times of crisis also provide special opportunities for growth and change, they can be utilized therapeutically provided the therapist is knowledgeable about the kinds of upheavals that a family may experience and the time sequence in which they may occur. Eight such crisis points and their relation to therapeutic intervention are presented. The purpose of this paper is to outline the role of the crisis as therapeutic opportunity in the course of family therapy.