Psychology of spaceflight: II. Suggested bases of space motion sickness: perceptual disorientation and elevated stomach pH

Suggested causes of space-motion sickness are inferred from the experiences of a group of astronaut candidates and from the vomit pH values of nonastronauts. Both groups experienced stimulated weightlessness in an airplane.     

Training class inclusion responding in typically developing children and individuals with autism

In a class inclusion task, a child must respond to stimuli as being involved in two different though hierarchically related categories. This study used a Relational Frame Theory (RFT) paradigm to assess and train this ability in three typically developing preschoolers and three individuals with autism spectrum disorder, all of whom had failed class inclusion tests. For all subjects, relational training successfully established the target repertoire and subsequent testing demonstrated both maintenance and generalization. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.     

A Review of Scientific Progress in Flow in Sport and Exercise: Normal Science,Crisis, and a Progressive Shift

Flow is highly relevant and desirable in sport and exercise. Drawing on ideas from iconic philosophers of science—Thomas Kuhn, Karl Popper, and Imre Lakatos—we argue that research in this field has followed a pattern of “normal science.” With a series of accumulating criticisms and “anomalies,” we propose flow research is approaching a “crisis point.” We highlight problems with research based on the traditional nine-dimensions conceptualization of flow. Then, drawing on the work of Popper and Lakatos, we offer theoretical and methodological suggestions for developing a more progressive and practically useful theory for researchers and practitioners.     

A simultaneous test of the relationship between identified psychosocial risk factors and recurrent events in coronary artery disease patients

Psychosocial factors are increasingly recognized as risk indicators for coronary artery disease (CAD) prognosis and they are likely interrelated. The objective of this study is to simultaneously test the relationship between key psychosocial constructs as independent factor scores and recurrent events in CAD patients. There were 1268 CAD outpatients of 97 cardiologists surveyed at two points. Recurrent events or hospitalization in the intervening nine months were reported. Factor analysis of items from the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, the ENRICHD Social Support Inventory, and Hostile Attitudes Scale was performed to generate orthogonal factor scores. With adjustment for prognostic variables, logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the relationship between these factor scores and recurrent events. Factor analysis resulted in a six-factor solution: hostility, stress, anxiety, depressive symptoms, support, and resilience. Logistic regression revealed that functional status and anxiety, with a trend for depressive symptoms, were related to experiencing a recurrent event. In this simultaneous test of psychosocial constructs hypothesized to relate to cardiac prognosis, anxiety may be a particularly hazardous psychosocial factor. While replication is warranted, efforts to investigate the potential benefits of screening and to investigate treatments are needed.     

Relieving career anxiety and indecision: the role of undergraduate students’ perceived control and faculty affiliations

As educators and mentors, we often focus on helping undergraduate students make career decisions. However, there is also value in helping alleviate career anxiety and indecision, both of which impede decision-making and are not automatically resolved once a decision is made. This research examined the role of individual differences (age, gender, and perceived control) and learning environment variables (year in university, participation in an orientation program, and faculty affiliations) as predictors of undergraduates’ (n = 844) career-related anxiety and indecision. Traditional individual difference variables like age and gender had little effect whereas perceived control (primary and secondary) predicted lower levels of career anxiety and indecision. The outcomes were not influenced by environmental factors such as year in university or completion of an orientation program, but students’ self-reported faculty affiliation had significant effects. Students who were not affiliated with any specific faculty reported more indecision than students in arts, science, and professional faculties. Likewise, students in professional faculties had less career anxiety and career indecision than arts students. The implications of these results for potential interventions and future research are discussed.     

Why do they exercise less? Barriers to exercise in high-anxiety-sensitive women

Anxiety sensitivity (AS; fear of arousal sensations) is a risk factor for mental and physical health problems, including physical inactivity. Because of the many mental and physical health benefits of exercise, it is important to better understand why high-AS individuals may be less likely to exercise. The present study's aim was to understand the role of barriers to exercise in explaining lower levels of physical exercise in high-AS individuals. Participants were undergraduate women who were selected as high (n = 82) or low (n = 72) AS. High-AS women participated in less physical exercise and perceived themselves as less fit than low-AS women. Mediation analyses revealed that barriers to exercise accounted for the inverse relationships between AS group and physical exercise/fitness levels. Findings suggest that efforts to increase physical exercise in at-risk populations, such as high-AS individuals, should not focus exclusively on benefits to exercise but should also target reasons why these individuals are exercising less.     

Nonmonotone backward masking functions and brightness reversals

Increasing the target-field luminance aids detection for a simultaneously presented black target disc and a black masking annulus. At an intermediate interval separating the onset of the target from the mask, increasing the target-field luminance reduces target detection. This decrease in performance occurs with both temporal and spatial forced choice tasks. With a spatial forced choice, an observer's performance can fall below chance. We associate below-chance performance with a brightness reversal of the black target disc, such that the target disc appears brighter than its surround. The occurrence of brightness reversals follows from our model of the Broca-Sulzer effect, and nonmonotone masking functions result from a generalization of luminance summation.     

Raids upon the random in family therapy training: Discovering what becomes significant

How do you provide family therapy training in a primarily rural state with limited resources? A model for training therapists and supervisors that well may offer guidance to other states that face such a challenge is described here. A meta supervision approach over long distance was used in the three-year project that is described in this paper. Self-reports from the 31 participants who completed the program reveal some interesting positive reactions.     

WAIS-III percentile scores by education and sex for U.S. and Canadian populations

Tables are presented for the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition (WAIS-III) IQ and index scores by education level for both the U.S. and Canadian normative samples. This allows clinicians to provide more accurate identification of relative strengths or weaknesses, compared to expectations from an individual's background, rather than the general population. Because sex differences are notable on the Processing Speed Index, data for this measure are presented separately. The similarities and differences between the two national samples are noted, with particular reference to the relatively weaker demographic effects found in the Canadian sample.