The Egocentricity Index and Self-Esteem in court ordered psychiatric evaluations

An attempt was made to test the hypothesis that the Egocentricity Index (Exner, 1974), a ratio which incorporates pair and reflection responses, is related to self-esteem. Sixty criminal defendants referred for psychiatric evaluation were routinely administered the Rorschach. After all other testing was completed the subjects were asked to complete the Coopersmith Self-esteem Inventory. Results found no significant relationships between the Egocentricity Index and self-esteem as measured by the Coopersmith. It was recommended that the Egocentricity Index not be used as a measure of self-esteem until research evidence to support its use in this manner is provided.     

Juvenile homicide: The need for an interdisciplinary approach

Most of the empirical literature on juvenile homicide has emerged from the clinical experience of mental health professionals who have diagnosed and/or treated youngsters who killed. After a critical review of this literature, data on 787 juvenile homicide offenders are presented and discussed. These data indicate that intrafamilial killings represent but a small fraction of all homicides perpetrated by juveniles and that there are clear differences between intrafamilial and extrafamilial juvenile homicides.     

Disturbances in exploratory behavior and functional recovery in the Y and radial mazes following dopamine depletion of the lateral septum

The effects of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) injected into the lateral septum in rats were investigated for spontaneous alternation behavior in a Y maze and for spatially oriented behavior in an 8-arm radial maze. The performance of the animals in these tests was assessed under two physiological states, food-satiated and food-deprived. The selective depletion of septal dopaminergic concentrations leads to behavioral disturbances in both the Y and the radial mazes. These deficits disappeared when the animals with 6-OHDA lesions were food-deprived. These results confirm other studies from our laboratory and support two conclusions. First, lesions of dopaminergic neurons lead to behavioral impairments which resemble those found after the total lesion of the structure they innervate. Second, these behavioral impairments are responsive to therapeutic treatments, manipulations of the internal or external environment, or the level of arousal, since under certain conditions a recovery of function can occur in the absence of dopaminergic neurons. These two points provide additional support for a nonspecific role for the dopaminergic neurons originating in the ventral tegmental area. These neurons could have a permissive role in the functioning of the forebrain structures they innervate.     

两例先天性无痛症患者的心理生理特点研究 Ⅰ.情绪特点

本工作研究两例先天性无痛症患者的心理特点,主要是其情绪特点,以探讨疼痛和情绪的关系,并借以检验疼痛学说的意义。例一,女,10岁,智力略低于正常,艾森克少年儿童人格问卷表评定人格正常。与身体损伤有关的恐惧感明显缺乏,但与社会和教育影响有联系的恐惧感却甚于正常儿童。情绪急躁,易发作暴发性脾气而不能控制。在突然刺激(强光、强铃声)下的反应和正常儿童相近。例二,男,13岁,智力明显落后,人格评定正常,各种恐惧感均明显缺乏。情绪经常呈明显欣快状态。突然刺激下有口语惊吓和动作反应但无相应的面部表情和植物性神经系统的变化。两例均有无目的的多动作表现。看来疼痛和情绪有某种关系,但本结果并不能证实疼痛的情绪学说。     

A Mimetic Reading of the Passover

The use of sacrificial animal blood in the Hebrew Bible has generated much discussion. While various scholars have attempted to explain the significance of these blood rites, each of these attempts has proved problematic. The current paper employs mimetic theory to develop a more robust and plausible model for exploring biblical animal sacrifice. Using the Passover ritual as a model, I develop a model of sacrificial blood rites as pantomimes of mimetic violence. These pantomimes re-create a violent yet transformative crisis from the community's collective memory. Such rituals allow the community to enter into and re-experience the cleansing violence of a mimetic crisis, albeit in a more controlled manner. Through these pantomimes, the community attempts to appease the primitive sacred's blood lust and re-discover the divine blessing secured through the original crisis. This model may prove helpful when applied to more opaque examples of biblical blood manipulation.     

A note on mathematical models for learning

It is shown that a rational learning curve developed by Estes for paired associate learning is a special case of a more general function. The latter is the product of two functions and assumes that the discovery and fixation aspects of learning are independent. The indications are that the form of one of the functions has not been tested sharply by Estes in the paired associate learning setting.