Social adjustment in the offspring of parents with bipolar affective disorder

The social adjustment of the adolescent offspring of parents with bipolar affective disorder (n=41) was compared to that of the offspring of parents with nonaffective psychiatric disorders (n=22) and the offspring of normal controls (n=26). In addition, the relationship between social adjustment and cyclothymia in offspring was determined. Social adjustment was assessed using the Life Activities Inventory, a new measure developed to assess social functioning in adolescents and young adults. Cyclothymia was assessed with the General Behavior Inventory. As a group, the offspring of bipolar parents did not differ significantly from either control group on social adjustment. However, the cyclothymic offspring of bipolar parents exhibited significantly poorer social adjustment than the noncyclothymic offspring of bipolars and the offspring of psychiatric and normal controls. These findings suggest that poor social functioning in the adolescent offspring of parents with bipolar illness may be associated with the early manifestations of affective disorder. In addition, these data indicate that despite its subsyndromal intensity, cyclothymia can result in significant social impairment.This study was supported in part by National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Research Grant MH-39782 to Daniel N. Klein and NIMH Grants MH-33083 and MH-37195 to Richard A. Depue.     

Spontaneous alternation behavior in animals: A review

Factors affecting spontaneous alternation behavior (SAB) in animals, for example, age, gender and species studied; type of apparatus and cues employed; and neuro-anatomical, neuro-chemical and motivational status of the organism, were reviewed. Despite a myriad of experiments showing interesting main effects of such variables, little research has been performed assessing the interactive affects of these factors on alternation behavior. For example, psychologists test rats in central nervous system (CNS) lesion studies, whereas psychopharmacologists tend to assess SAB in mice. Most importantly, studies have not been reported investigating the possible interactions among species, brain lesions and drugs. This is an unfortunate omission since several important alternation models include propositions relating to cholinergic and/or serotonergic coding in the hippocampus. Examination of behavioral studies revealed the primary cue for alternation among invertebrates to be body turn, whereas vertebrates rely primarily on directional and odor cues. Reference to the seeking of stimulus change remains the most compelling motivational account of why animals manifest this ubiquitious and reliable behavior pattern. This review and the unpublished studies were supported by Research Grants MH16962, MH21288, and MH36491 from the National Institute of Mental Health and the Wake Forest University Research and Publication Fund.     

The process of scapegoating in a neonatal nurses' group

This paper reviews the literature on scapegoating, elaborating on the underlying mechanisms before describing the process of scapegoating as it occurred in a neonatal nurse support group. Illustrative vignettes are used to discuss how scapegoating was used by group members to avoid painful feelings arising from their care of extremely ill infants. Group process is related to the stages of the group's development as feelings were addressed more directly and the need to use scapegoating as a defense decreased.     

Children's assumptions about the generalizability of sex-typed abilities

Children (mean age = 103 months) were provided with information about the relative abilities of two stimulus children at a specific activity. They then were asked to predict which child would likely be superior at a second highly related activity. The two stimulus children were either same sex or opposite sex, and the activities in each pair were sex typed as male or female. The design was a 2 (sex of subject) × 2 (age of subject) × 4 (stimulus pair—MM, FF, MF, FM) × 2 (sex type of activities) mixed design, with sex of subject and age of subject as the between-subjects factors. Each child responded to 32 instances, representing four replications of eight possible combinations. The dependent variable was the child's choice of the initially superior child or initially inferior child as better at the second activity. The prediction was that children would be less likely to assume that superiority could generalize to a second activity if the initial superiority contradicted sexstereotyped expectations. This result would indicate that sex stereotypes interfere with inferences processes, supporting a scehmatic model of sex stereotyping. The results were consistent with the prediction. Compared to a baseline condition in which sex stereotypes were not relevant, children were less likely to choose the initially superior child when the sex stereotype had been violated, and more likely to select that child when it had been confirmed.     

Effects of sex role identity and sex on definitions of sexual harassment

Individuals' own definitions of sexual harassment ultimately influence the success of their companies in responding to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) guidelines against sexual harassment. Previous research has consistently shown that women see more sexual harassment than do men. However, sex differences in definitions of sexual harassment could be explained by sex role identity. Results from a study of undergraduate business students and MBA students holding full-time jobs instead reaffirmed the existence of a sex effect and revealed the presence of a Sex X Masculinity interaction effect. Subjects' femininity had a minor effect on their definitions of sexual harassment.A previous version of this article was presented at the Academy of Management Meeting, Dallas, August, 1983. Appreciation is extended to Lisa A. Film for her assistance with data analysis.     

A model for courseware development in psychology

Many behavioral scientists are aware of the advantages of a systematic approach to research and the development of software used in research. However, coordinated and systematic efforts to develop instructional materials in the behavioral sciences are relatively rare. This paper and the symposium of which it is a part describe a systematic effort funded by FIPSE to assess the needs for microcomputer tools and courseware in the undergraduate curriculum in psychology and to stimulate the development of high-quality materials. The conceptual bases for development of materials are vertical and horizontal integration-the development of courseware that spans the curriculum from introductory to advanced, specialized, courses, and the systematic use of materials within a course and across courses and subject areas. The activities of the project, as well as implications for other computer-based development projects, are discussed.     

Death and dying in medicine: What questions are still worth asking?

Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics -     

An analysis of some sensitizing agents in the pathogenesis of stress-induced gastric erosive disease

Prior surgical implantation of a venous catheter sensitized rats to coldimmobilization stress. Three of six catheterized females succumbed during the stress. The remaining rats fell into two groups in terms of their core temperature at the end of the stress period: Male uncatheterized rats had higher temperatures than rats in the other three groups. No relation was found between catheter patency and magnitude of hypothermia. Degree of gastric disease paralleled the core temperature findings in that the male uncatheterized rats had significantly fewer gastric erosions than the rats in the other three groups. Additionally, a robust effect of gender was found with uncatheterized females showing more hypothermia and more gastric disease than uncatheterized males. A subsequent experiment was conducted to evaluate whether anesthesia or wearing the protective spring was responsible in part for the sensitization seen. Here, the gender difference was less although females consistently averaged lower core temperatures after stress than did males. Despite similar core temperatures after stress, females that were prepared with the protective spring apparatus developed more gastric disease than female controls or similarly treated males. Thus, the additional sensitization exhibited by females in the first experiment may relate to the fact that both catheterization and the taping procedure were sensitizers while only catheterization was a sensitizer for males.     

Decision making styles and progress in occupational decision making

This study provides a reexamination of the role of different decisional strategies in facilitating progress in occupational decision making. Although the assumptions that a rational decision making style is the preferred mode of vocational functioning has been endorsed in a variety of career theories and interventions, there has been conflicting evidence about the validity of this assumption. To examine the role of different decisional approaches in the progress of making an occupational decision, the rational, intuitive, and dependent decision making style scores of 71 undergraduate students were used to predict progress in occupational decision making. The results of the regression analyses failed to provide support for the assumption that a rational style is the most effective in accomplishing this careerrelated task, but indicated strong support for the conclusion that the use of dependent decisional strategies is damaging, particularly in early stages of the decisional process.     

Potential Social Action As A Function Of Expectation-Outcome Discrepancies Among Employed And Unemployed University Graduates

Full-time employed (N = 255), partly employed (N = 48), and unemployed (N = 43) male and female university graduates completed a questionnaire that included measures designed to assess expected job levels and current job levels and two measures of potential social action (willingness to volunteer actions and hours to a fictional Campaign to Assist Unemployed Youth). Comparisons between groups and the results of multiple regression analyses provided mixed support for the prediction that larger negative gaps between expected and current employment status would be associated with a greater willingness to assist the Campaign. The unemployed respondents tended to volunteer more actions and more hours to the Campaign than did the other two groups. A multiple regression analysis showed that the current level by expected level interaction term was statistically significant as predicted, but only for the fully employed graduates. Within the full-time employed group, female graduates and those from the humanities/social sciences/education schools expressed more willingness to assist the Campaign than did male graduates and those from the sciences/medicine schools of the university. Results were discussed in relation to current research on relative deprivation and reported affect and to recent studies of job satisfaction.