Sex differences in infant-mother attachment

A sex difference in security of infant attachment was found in a sample of 52 infant-mother dyads. The infants were enrolled in early care and education programs within a predominantly small-town geographic area in the southwest. Security of attachment was assessed using the Strange Situation procedure. Male infants (76%) were significantly more likely to be securely attached than female infants (39%). No other variables related to the infants' early care and education experience or mothers' age, race, marital status, and education were significantly associated with infants' attachment status.     

The NASA/LRC computerized test system

A new testing package, including apparatus and tasks, is described for the study of behavior of a variety of species in a variety of experiments. The package is described with respect to the kinds of comparative psychological investigations for which it is well suited. The preliminary data generated within this new testing paradigm demonstrate that the NASA/LRC Computerized Test System provides a flexible yet powerful environment for the investigation of behavioral and psychological processes.     

Assessment and significance of behavioral avoidance in agoraphobia

Two behavioral avoidance tests were administered, before and after in vivo exposure treatment, to 39 female patients with chronic and severe agoraphobia. The first test consisted of walking alone along a standard course covering several city blocks, and the second of entering and remaining in five different, individually selected phobic situations. Although significant improvement on the tests was observed in the sample as a whole, neither test had a high nosographic sensitivity (nearly two-thirds of the patients completed them initially) and subgroups of avoiders and nonavoiders, classified simultaneously on both tests, did not differ significantly in their clinical characteristics or response to treatment. The difficulty for the behavioral test to account for the majority of variance in phobic avoidance, and the severity of agoraphobia in general, is discussed with particular reference to the differences between the going to and the being in types of phobic situations and the essentially anticipatory nature of anxiety and fear.This research was supported by Grants MH40141 and MH34177 from the National Institute of Mental Health.     

Qualitative undergraduate project supervision in psychology: current practices and support needs of supervisors across North East England and Scotland

The dissertation is a core component of a psychology undergraduate degree, though very little research has been conducted into supervision processes at undergraduate level. This study examined the accounts of supervisors of qualitative dissertations in order to identify current practices of supervision and possible resources that might support supervision. Seventeen supervisors from psychology departments in North East England and Scotland were interviewed, and three main themes were identified using thematic analysis: the quantitative culture in psychology teaching, supervisors’ expertise, and the supervision process. Supervisors noted that students were typically constrained in their choice of methodology due to limited qualitative methods teaching, lack of training and guidance for supervisors, and concerns about the risks of demanding qualitative projects. Supervisors therefore often reported staying within their comfort zone, electing where possible to supervise only the methods that they themselves use. Recommendations for practical resources are provided to help support students and supervisors in the process of undertaking qualitative psychology dissertations.     

The responsibilities of counsellor supervisors: A qualitative study

A study was carried out to investigate whether supervisors of counsellors considered themselves to be clinically responsible for the work of their supervisees, what responsibilities they considered themselves to have for the counsellors' work, and how they managed their responsibilities. The purpose of the study was to enhance the counselling profession's understanding of the responsibility of supervisors and of the supervisory relationship. The study was confined to supervisors working in private practice. Ten experts in the field of counselling and supervision were interviewed, using a semi-structured questionnaire. The interviews were analysed using the 'constant comparative method'. They revealed that the participants would not use the term 'clinical responsibility' to describe their responsibilities. There were mixed views about the nature of the responsibility of the supervisor when supervising counsellors practising independently. The participants indicated a preference to supervise only the most experienced counsellors, with whose practice they were already familiar and in whose work they already had considerable confidence. None of the supervisors interviewed considered themselves to be legally responsible for the counsellors' work. All the participants were aware that the risks associated with counselling in private practice could be considerable and had an acute sense of responsibility for the content of the work. Reluctance to take action against supervisees who were in breach of the code of ethics was expressed. There was scepticism about the requirement for them to have supervision for their supervisory work. Implications for the practice of counselling supervision and for the profession are discussed.     

The effect of duration of exposure on systematic desensitization and extinction.

An important variable which has only recently received attention (Proctor, 1968; Watts, 1971) is the influence of intra-item exposure time to aversive stimuli on systematic desensitization. Long single exposure to hierarchy items was more effective in reducing avoidance behavior than short exposure (Ross and Proctor, 1973). It is possible, therefore, for duration of exposure to be a confounding variable in previous desensitization research.In studies where exposure only conditions were ineffective (Davison, 1968; Lomont and Edwards, 1967), the visualization time was less than 15 sec. Successful utilization of extinction-like procedures employed longer exposure times (Vodde and Gilner, 1971 for 20–30 sec; Crowder and Thornton, 1970 for 30 sec; Sue, 1972 for 20 sec; Nawas, Welsch and Fishman, 1970 for 60 sec: Wolpin and Raines, 1966 for up to 10 min).Intra-item exposure time may also account for the discrepant findings on the influence of cognitive variables on the efficacy of systematic desensitization. In the studies where expectations or therapeutic instructions were important (Leitenberg et al., 1969; Valins and Ray, 1967), subjects were exposed to aversive stimuli for 10–15 sec. Where positive expectations were unimportant, the exposure time was longer (McGlynn and Mapp, 1970 for 20–30 sec; McGlynn, Gaynor and Puhr, 1972 for 20–30 sec; McGlynn, Reynolds and Linder, 1971 for 20–40 sec; Lomont and Brock, 1971 for 60 sec). Therapeutic expectations, relaxation, and other variables may assume importance during periods of short exposure.So far, there has been no adequate investigation of intra-item exposure time on both extinction and desensitization. The procedures employed by Watts (1971) and Proctor (1968) do not allow such a comparison to be made. The purpose of the present study is to examine the influence of short (5 sec) and lengthy (30 sec) exposure to aversive stimuli on extinction and desensitization conditions.In line with the results of Davison (1968) and Lomont and Edwards (1967), it was predicted that exposure of short duration would be less effective than exposure of longer duration under the extinction condition (Vodde and Gilner, 1971 ; Crowder and Thronton, 1970; Nawas et al., 1970; Wolpin and Raines, 1966). No specific predictions were made on the desensitization groups. There were four experimental groups: (1) two exposure only groups (visualization for either 5 sec or 30 sec), and (2) two systematic desensitization groups (visualization for 5 sec or 30 sec). A no-treatment control group was also employed.