The Voice in Dissociation: A Group Model for Helping Victims Integrate Trauma Representational Memory

The current article focuses on the subjective elements of voice in trauma and dissociation, and the manifestation of voice in four phases of group treatment for victims of extreme, catastrophic events. The voice discussed here is no ordinary voice: it captures an attribute of dissociated representational experience that, though not easily defined, is nonetheless replete with trauma messages from the depth of somatopsychic processes, expressed in the patient's nonverbal talking in gestures, tone of voice, posture, silences, facial expressions, and in rhythm, timbre, movement, and syntax. Dissociation, trauma representational memory, and the phases of a proposed group model are discussed in detail with their respective phase-specific voice.     

Applying Skill-Based Curriculum to Teach Feedback in Groups: An Evaluation Study

Group counseling theory and empirical research indicate that interpersonal feedback is an important element that can lead to insight and change in group members. Yet, managing interpersonal feedback is a difficult skill for novice group leaders to learn. This article examines (a) the role of feedback in counseling groups; (b) the implementation of a skill-based training program to teach novice group counselors how to give, receive, and facilitate interpersonal feedback; and (c) students' evaluation of such a program in which they participated. Recommendations are made to practitioners for incorporating feedback into counseling, and for counselor educators regarding the teaching of the intervention.     

Effects of information load, sensory modality, and age on paced inspection performance

The effects on paced inspection performance of amount of stimulus information, presentation of information visually, as opposed to visually and auditorily, and age were investigated. In comparison to performance with one sequence of visual information, correct identifications of signals declined and false alarms increased when two sequences of visual information were monitored. Increasing the number of classes of signals in the two sequences did not significantly affect performance. However, when one of the two sequences was presented visually and the other auditorily, performance improved. There was a tendency for performance to be lower among older subjects in most experimental conditions.     

The effects of background visual roll stimulation on postural and manual control and self-motion perception

The effects of background visual roll stimulation on postural control, manual controlf andselfmotion perception were investigated in this study. In the main experiment, 8 subjects were exposed to wide field-of-view background scenes that were tilted and static, continuously rotating, or sinusoidally rotating at frequencies between 0.03 and 0.50 Hz, as well as a baseline condition. The subjects performed either a postural control task (maintain an upright stance) or a manual control task (keep an unstable central display horizontally level). Root-mean square (RMS) error in both the postural and manual control tasks was low in the static tilt condition and extremely high in response to continuous rotation. Although the phases of the postural and manual responses were highly similar, the power and RMS error generated by the sinusoidal visual background stimulation peaked at a lower frequency in the postural task. Vection ratings recorded at the end of the postural and manual trials somewhat paralleled tbafrequency tuning differences between tasks, which a subsequent experiment showed to be the result of the differential motion of the central display rather than the differential positioning of the subject. In general, these results show that the dynamic characteristics of visual orientation systems vary according to the specific motor and/or perceptual system investigated.     

The psychology of the Persian Gulf war-part II. Congressional address—on the Issue of Veterans' Acquired Competence Gained Through National Defense Experience: Overcoming Psychological Impediments to Community Initiatives

This article highlights a number of impediments which have interfered with the ability of veterans to engage in meaningful community development. Many attempts at community building have failed because little or no attention had been given to veterans' psychological chains which have bound them to their traumatic past. Here, the application of behavioral science to understanding human action, and the guiding role it can play in social-community affairs is highlighted. Psychology can contribute immensely to bringing to professional and public awareness the reality (rather than the stereotype) of veterans' potential for goodness and positive community-building behavior. There are times when veterans need to seek psychotherapy to help integrate elements of their war trauma if they are to engage in vital actions in community development.Members of the Executive Committee of the Congressional Veterans Braintrust. Invited address presented at the 1990 Veterans' Braintrust Symposium, Black Veterans: From National Defense to Community Development, 20th Annual Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Legislative Weekend, September 28, 1990.     

The psychology of the persian gulf war — Part I. Gulf-Nam and Saddam Hussein's Nebuchadnezzar Imperial Complex: A political psychological analysis

Since Vietnam America lost its domestic and international face and has needed to regain collective self- respect, a sense of purpose, direction, and to reconstruct a set of values which will guide the nation's contemporary and future political and economic agenda at home and abroad. Saddam's invasion of Kuwait was a perfect opportunity for America to accomplish this — to raise America's image from the ashes of despair, self- doubt, and low credibility in the world. After the invasion, President Saddam Hussein was ejected out of obscurity into the light of world curiosity and intrigue. Seen as the leader who dared to steal an entire country in daylight, who took hostages and created human shields, and then arrogantly brushed aside the world's outrage, the entire world seemed to want to understand not Saddam's politics, but his mind. As the world threatened Hussein with ejection from Kuwait, he not only grandiosely retorted with threats of burning the entire planet, but became increasingly brazen, emboldened, dangerous, and resolute. Saddam's self organization fuels the Nebuchadnezzar Imperial Complex, which operate within the malignant narcissistic paranoid personality. The Iraqi leader's dynamics dovetailed with Gulf- Nam — the American post- Vietnam failure syndrome. This study focuses on Saddam's personality dynamics as a violent leader in the Arab world.     

The reparation of the self: Clinical and theoretical dimensions in the treatment of Vietnam combat veterans

This paper discusses a broad range of theoretical and clinical issues pertaining to a proposed approach to individual psychotherapy with Vietnam combat veterans. Called theself-reparative process, this approach features four phases, ranging in the first from anactive behavioral-cognitive approach to the fourth phase that utilizes a less active, psychoanalytic approach. This range of approaches is essential in order to adapt to the ongoing progressivespectrum-of-needs of the veterans, with the objective of increasing psychological control to resolving narcissistic rage and building a cohesive self.The views contained in this paper represent those of the author, who is solely responsible for its contents. As such, the views herein are not necessarily those of the Veterans Administration. Paper presented at a Queens Hospital Center (affiliation of Long Island Jewish-Hillside Medical Center) Department of Psychiatry, Grand Rounds in Jamaica, New York on April 10, 1981. The author acknowledges the gracious assistance of Doctors Scott Mykel and Robert Mednick of Queens Hospital Center during the first draft of this paper.