What should we expect after the next attack?

A test of any science is its ability to predict events under specified conditions. A test for the psychology represented in this special issue of the American Psychologist is its ability to predict individual and social behavior in the aftermath of a next terror attack. This article draws on that science to make such predictions. These predictions are conditioned on both the nature of the attack and our institutional preparations for it. Some attacks will test our resilience more than others. Whatever the attack, we will reduce its impacts if our institutions take advantage of psychological science. That science can reduce the scope of attacks by limiting terrorists' ability to organize their operations and by enhancing our ability to restrain them. It can reduce the impacts of any attacks that do occur by strengthening the institutions and civil society that must respond to them. Realizing these possibilities will require our social institutions to rely on science, rather than intuition, in dealing with these threats. It will require our profession to provide psychologists with rewards for public service, applied research, and interdisciplinary collaboration, as demanded by complex problems. Responding to these challenges could strengthen society and psychology.     

World benevolence beliefs and well-being across the life span

Do people's worldviews change across the life course? Beliefs in the benevolence (goodness) of the world and their relations with age and well-being were examined in a 2-year study of a nationally representative sample (N = 2,138) ranging in age from 18 to 101 years. Multilevel modeling analyses controlling for demographics, mental health history, prior experience with stressful life events, and other key beliefs indicated that benevolence beliefs were positively associated with well-being and that these associations were stronger with increasing age. Analyses also demonstrated that individuals' benevolence beliefs increased during the study, were positively associated with age, and increased with the experience of bereavement, although they declined with the experience of other negative events. Age-related worldview change may be a part of life-span adaptation.     

When accurate and inaccurate eyewitnesses look the same: a limitation of the ‘pop‐out’ effect and the 10‐ to 12‐second rule

Research has found support for a ‘pop‐out effect’ that occurs when witnesses who accurately identify a criminal from a lineup are faster and uses more automatic processing than inaccurate witnesses who misidentify a foil. We present evidence that this finding may not occur with biased lineups. Witnesses to a mock theft were asked to make a lineup identification and three types of witnesses were compared: (1) accurate witnesses who identified a thief, (2) inaccurate witnesses who misidentified a foil who was more similar looking to the thief than the other lineup foils and (3) inaccurate witnesses who misidentified a foil who was not more similar in appearance to the thief than the other lineup foils. Accurate witnesses who identified the thief and inaccurate witnesses who misidentified a foil more similar to the thief than the other lineup foils were indistinguishable; both were faster, used more automatic recognition processes and were more confident than inaccurate witnesses who identified other foils. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Psychoanalysis and Psychosis: Trends and Developments

This paper presents the basic principles of insight-oriented therapy for schizophrenia, emphasizing the effectiveness of this approach: each treatment effort is a unique adventure, fueled by hopefulness in both participants. Next, it reviews the history of such treatment efforts and current tensions in the field. It presents information on the International Society for the Psychological treatments of the Schizophrenias and other psychoses (I.S.P.S.) and its current mission, to promote quality care for patients suffering from schizophrenia, to promote and facilitate research into this work, and to provide organizational support and ongoing educational programs for clinicians involved in these efforts.     

Persistent symptoms among survivors of Hodgkin's disease: an explanatory model based on classical conditioning.

Persistent symptoms of nausea, distress, and vomiting triggered by reminders of cancer treatment were examined among 273 Hodgkin's disease survivors, 1 to 20 years posttreatment. Prevalence rates were high for distress and nausea but low for vomiting. Retrospective report of anticipatory symptoms during treatment was the strongest predictor of persistent symptoms, suggesting that treatment-induced symptoms are less likely to persist if conditioning does not occur initially. Time since treatment was also a significant predictor, with patients more recently treated more likely to experience persistent symptoms. Thus, an explanatory model based on classical conditioning theory successfully predicted presence of persistent symptoms. Symptoms also were associated with ongoing psychological distress, suggesting that quality of life is diminished among survivors with persistent symptoms. Recommendations for prevention and treatment of symptoms are discussed.     

Spared at Random: Survivor Reactions in the Gay Community1

Many gay men who have tested negative for HIV were sexually active prior to a general awareness of how HIV is transmitted. Based on the work of Lifton (1980), such HIV-negative gay men may be considered “survivors” since they have witnessed the deaths of many members of their community and have been spared. Survivors may be expected to manifest one or more of three survivor reactions: guilt about surviving (HIV-related guilt), anxiety about dying (AIDS-related death anxiety), and blunted affect. The present study employed structural equation modeling in samples of HIV-negative (N= 129) and HIV-positive (N= 95) gay men to assess psychological and behavioral variables predictive of the presence of a survivor reaction. Survivor reactions were uniquely predicted among HIV-negative gay men. The larger the number of sexual partners HIV-negative gay men reported having had prior to 1984, the more likely they were to experience a survivor reaction. Greater satisfaction with social support from gay friends, and, indirectly, gay-related community group involvement, was associated with being less likely to experience a survivor reaction.