Extended Schema Mode conceptualizations for specific personality disorders: an empirical study

The aim of this study was to investigate newly formulated schema mode models for cluster-C, paranoid, histrionic and narcissistic personality disorders. In order to assess 18 hypothesized modes, the Schema Mode Inventory (SMI) was modified into the SMI-2. The SMI-2 was administered to a sample of 323 patients (with a main diagnosis on one of the PDs mentioned) and 121 nonpatients. The SMI-2 was successful in distinguishing patients and controls. Newly formulated modes proved to be appropriate for histrionic, avoidant, and dependent PD. The modification of the Overcontroller mode into the Perfectionistic and Suspicious Overcontroller mode was valuable for characterizing paranoid and obsessive-compulsive PD. The results support recent theoretical developments in Schema Therapy, and are useful for application in clinical practice.     

The pitfalls of empathy as a default intergroup interaction strategy: Distinct effects of trying to empathize with a lower status outgroup member who does versus does not express distress

This experiment examined the hypothesis that trying to be empathic during intergroup interaction has positive effects on behavior when an outgroup interaction partner discloses significant hardships and thus expresses a need for support, but negative effects in the absence of a call for help. The results from an ostensible interaction study supported this hypothesis, and revealed that worries regarding negative evaluation partially accounted for the moderating role of partner hardship. Specifically, previous research indicates that trying to be empathic during intergroup interaction prompts individuals to reflect on their own evaluation by their outgroup partner, which for lower-prejudice individuals leads to positive metaperceptions and complacency and for higher-prejudice individuals leads to negative metaperceptions and enhanced effort. In the present study, having the outgroup partner disclose difficulties and distress increased the perceived likelihood of negative evaluation and appeared to trigger stronger efforts to convey positive signals for lower- and higher-prejudice individuals alike.     

Developmental changes in colour constancy in a naturalistic object selection task

When the illumination falling on a surface change, so does the reflected light. Despite this, adult observers are good at perceiving surfaces as relatively unchanging—an ability termed colour constancy. Very few studies have investigated colour constancy in infants, and even fewer in children. Here we asked whether there is a difference in colour constancy between children and adults; what the developmental trajectory is between six and 11 years; and whether the pattern of constancy across illuminations and reflectances differs between adults and children. To this end, we developed a novel, child-friendly computer-based object selection task. In this, observers saw a dragon's favourite sweet under a neutral illumination and picked the matching sweet from an array of eight seen under a different illumination (blue, yellow, red, or green). This set contained a reflectance match (colour constant; perfect performance) and a tristimulus match (colour inconstant). We ran two experiments, with two-dimensional scenes in one and three-dimensional renderings in the other. Twenty-six adults and 33 children took part in the first experiment; 26 adults and 40 children took part in the second. Children performed better than adults on this task, and their performance decreased with age in both experiments. We found differences across illuminations and sweets, but a similar pattern across both age groups. This unexpected finding might reflect a real decrease in colour constancy from childhood to adulthood, explained by developmental changes in the perceptual and cognitive mechanisms underpinning colour constancy, or differences in task strategies between children and adults.

Highlights

• Six- to 11-year-old children demonstrated better performance than adults on a colour constancy object selection task.
• Performance decreased with age over childhood.
• These findings may indicate development of cognitive strategies used to overcome automatic colour constancy mechanisms.

     

Suicide Ideation and Attempts among Inhalant Users: Results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions

Few studies have examined associations of inhalant use and inhalant use disorders (IUDs) to suicide ideation and attempts. We investigated these relationships in the largest comorbidity survey conducted in the United States. Suicidal ideation was significantly more prevalent among inhalant users than nonusers and severity of inhalant use problems was positively related to suicidal ideation. Among persons with IUDs, 67.4% had thought about committing suicide and 20.2% had attempted suicide. Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated that respondents with IUDs reported significantly higher levels of suicide ideation than inhalant nonusers. Inhalant use is associated with significantly increased risk for suicide ideation, especially among women and persons with DSM‐IV IUDs.     

The Stress-Buffering Effects of Control on Task Satisfaction and Perceived Goal Attainment: An Experimental Study of the Moderating Influence of Desire for Control

The purpose of the present study was to examine the extent to which Desire for Control (DFC) interacts with experimental manipulations of demand and control, and the consequences of these interactions on task satisfaction and perceived goal attainment (i.e. task performance and task mastery). It was expected that the proposed stress‐buffering effects of control would be evident only for individuals high in DFC. Moreover, it was anticipated that control may have a stress‐exacerbating effect for those low in DFC. These hypotheses were tested on a sample of 137 first year psychology students who participated in an in‐basket activity under low and high conditions of demand and control. Results revealed that the proposed stress‐buffering effect of control was found only for those high in DFC and a stress‐exacerbating effect of increased control was evident for those low in DFC on task performance and task mastery perceptions. Future research directions and the implications of these findings to applied settings are discussed. Cette recherche avait pour objet de voir dans quelle mesure le besoin de maîtriser la situation (DFC) interagit avec des manipulations expérimentales portant sur les exigences et le contrôle, ainsi que d’observer les conséquences de ces interactions sur la satisfaction liée à la tâche et à la réussite perçue (relative à la performance et à la maîtrise de la tâche). On a fait l’hypothèse que seuls les individus présentant un haut niveau de DFC verraient leur stress atténué par la possibilité de maîtriser la situation. En outre, on pensait que la maîtrise de la situation pouvait accroître le stress de ceux ayant un faible niveau de DFC. Ces hypothèses ont été mises à l’épreuve sur un échantillon de 137 étudiants de première année de psychologie qui subirent un in‐basket test dans des conditions de haut et de bas niveaux d’exigence et de contrôle. Les résultats montrent que l’atténuation du stress par la maîtrise de la situation n’existe que pour les hauts niveaux de DFC, alors qu’une maîtrise accrue stimule le stress chez les bas niveaux, aussi bien sur la perception de la performance que sur celle de la domination de la tâche. On propose des orientations pour de futures recherches et l’on réfléchit aux retombées de ces résultats sur la vie pratique.