Notes on the Tenacity of Therapeutic Presuppositions in Process Research: Examining the Artfulness of Blamings in Family Therapy

In their recent contribution to the Journal of Family Therapy , Frosh et al . apply discourse analytic methods to the study of 'process' in family therapy. While we welcome this contribution, we suggest that the authors' reading of the data has been affected by a number of fundamental presuppositions, which have led them to neglect the skilful rhetorical work taking place in the session. In this paper, we have undertaken an alternative analysis of the data, examining its rhetorical features and suspending judgement on the efficacy of the therapeutic project and on the truth status of statements made by participants in the session. While acknowledging that our microanalytic method has some shortcomings, we contend that attention to the situated and strategic nature of 'therapy talk' has exposed the primacy of notions of responsibility and blame in family work, and has shown how these issues are artfully negotiated by therapist and family in the cut and thrust of the therapeutic interview.     

Personality and charismatic experience among adult christians

A sample of 368 committed Christian adults completed the Index of Charismatic Experience together with the short form Revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire and the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). The data demonstrate that, according to the MBTI typology, Christians who prefer “thinking” are likely to score higher on the Index of Charismatic Experience than Christians who prefer “feeling”. According to the Eysenckian dimensional model of personality, the charismatic experience is associated with stable extraversion.     

Codependency: An interpersonal phenomenon

An alternative perspective to the clinical model of codependency is that codependency is contextual and reflects inequality within a relationship. This study examined whether the evaluation of codependent behavior depends on the context of the relationship, i.e., the reciprocity of the person’s partner, and the gender of the stimulus person (SP). College students (N=302, 46% non-Caucasian) read one of six scenarios in which the codependent SP’s behavior was held constant but the reciprocity of the partner and the gender of the SP were varied. The stimulus person and her/his relationship were rated significantly more healthy in the reciprocal condition than in the nonreciprocal or control conditions, but a better partner in the nonreciprocal condition. Codependent female SPs were judged less healthy but better partners than codependent male SPs. Judgments of codependent behavior and persons are contextual in nature, may reflect inequality within relationships, and to some extent, depend upon the gender of the codependent person.     

The Balance of Power in Romantic Heterosexual Couples Over Time from “His” and “Her” Perspectives

In this investigation, the balance of power between men and women in romantic relationships was examined with a sample of 101 heterosexual couples, some of whom were surveyed up to jive times over a four-year period. A majority of the participants (who were primarily Caucasian and middle class) reported some imbalance in power in their relationship (53% of the men and 52% of the women on a global measure of power; 67% of the men and 65% of the women on a measure of decision making). The longitudinal data indicated that perceptions of power were quite stable over time. When power imbalances in relationships occurred, the male partner was more likely than the female to be seen as the power holder, although these differences were statistically significant only for men (full sample). In support of W. Waller's principle of least interest [(1937) The Family: A Dynamic Interpretation, New York: Gordon], being the less emotionally involved partner in the relationship was associated with greater power. We further found that men were more likely than women to perceive themselves as the less emotionally invested partner. Perceptions of power balance were generally unrelated to either relationship satisfaction or to the likelihood that the couple broke up over time. In one exception, men who perceived their relationship to be equal in power (but not decision making) reported the highest level of satisfaction. We conclude that the balance of power still often favors men in these romantic couples (especially in decision making), although couples do not always agree on their perceptions, with male partners tending to see more male dominance than females.     

Some correlates of health locus of control among multicultural individuals

The relationship of locus of control to depression, anxiety, hostility, and physical health was assessed in a sample of multicultural college students (N = 162). Powerful Others Health Locus of Control was correlated with depression, anxiety, hostility, and recent physical symptoms while Chance Health Locus of Control (CHLC) was correlated with all of the above as well as chronic physical symptoms and major health problems. When controlling for a variety of health risk factors (viz., age, sex, body mass, exercise, smoking, salt, alcohol, and caffeine), only CHLC remained significant in the physical health models. Results support the cognitive model of mental health which emphasize the importance of adaptive beliefs. Specifically, they suggest that issues about control are related to negative affect and indicate that the often-cited relationship of an external locus of control to depression and anxiety also holds for hostility. The findings do not, however, support the view that anxiety and depression are associated with different types of external locus of control but rather suggest a unified set of locus of control beliefs underlying the three types of negative affect. In addition, evidence is provided for the external validity of the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control (MHLC) Scales with respect to mental health. Further, the results indicate that belief about one’s health may play a significant role in one’s physical health and that the health behavior model of the relationship between locus of control and physical health is insufficient to explain the relationship. As the Chance and Powerful Others MHLC scales were not related to health habits in this sample but were related to mental health (viz., depression, anxiety, and hostility), locus of control beliefs may be related to physical health via their relationship with mental health.     

Burnout in Spurned Medical Caregivers and the Impact of Job Expectancy Training

This study represents an extrapolation to the practical realm of a theoretical model that has been supported thus far only by laboratory studies. The model regards the rejection of help by people in need as being stressful for caregivers partly because it violates their expectations of acceptance and threatens their self-image as competent caregivers. It was hypothesized that high levels of perceived rejection by patients and others at work would contribute to burnout in medical caregivers. It was also predicted that high levels of stress preparation in caregivers' training with regard to job expectancies and patient (non)compliance would lessen burnout and buffer the effects of spurning. Responses to a questionnaire by a sample of physicians and hospital nurses revealed a direct association of perceived spurning, as well as an inverse association of stress preparation with burnout, and gave some indication of buffering, as hypothesized. Expressions of violated expectancies and of job disillusionment were directly associated with burnout and inversely associated with stress preparation. Informal job expectancy shaped by coworkers was found to be directly associated with burnout in physicians, but it was inversely associated with burn out in nurses. The implications of these findings are considered     

College Students' Attitudes Toward Abortion: The Role of Knowledge and Demographic Variables1

The present study sought to determine the role that knowledge of abortion information and various demographic variables play in discriminating between those who approve and those who disapprove of abortion. Four hundred and fifty-four college students completed the Abortion Knowledge Test, constructed by the researchers, as well as an abortion attitudes questionnaire which asked subjects to indicate their degree of approval or disapproval of abortion in the case of 7 different scenarios. Attitudes toward abortion were significantly predicted by knowledge of abortion-related information above and beyond the significant influence of degree of religiosity, religion, and age. No significant gender differences were found. Respondents who indicated approval of abortion scored significantly higher on the Abortion Knowledge Test and tended to be older, less religious, and non-Catholic compared to those who disapproved of abortion.     

Evaluating the Impact of a National AIDS Prevention Radio Campaign in St. Vincent and the Grenadines1

Based on extensive formative research in the three Eastern Caribbean countries of St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada (Fishbein, Middlestadt, & Trafimow, 1993; Fishbein, Trafimow, et al., 1993), a three-nation, mass media, condom use campaign was developed. In order to assess the impact of the campaign, a follow-up survey was conducted in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. This paper examines the effectiveness of the campaign by comparing responses on this survey by respondents who were or were not exposed to the campaign. A statistically significant impact of exposure to the campaign was obtained, indicating that a well-designed, empirically based, mass media campaign can be an effective tool in the battle to prevent the spread of AIDS.     

Occupational conditions and workers' sense of community: Variations by gender and race

The literature is reviewed to define a sense of community in the workplace and to identify factors that may foster it. A model is developed and estimated with survey data from a culturally diverse sample of men and women performing lower-level jobs at a medium-sized manufacturing firm. Results of regression analyses are reported that correct for sample selection bias resulting from the lower response rates of minority workers. Findings suggest that well-designed jobs and supportive workplace relationships and policies are important in explaining workers' sense of community, defined as workers' perceptions of mutual commitment between employee and employer. Informal sources of support play a larger role in explaining men's sense of community, while formal sources of support are more important in explaining women's sense of community. Findings further suggest that African American workers, especially women, have a difficult time experiencing a sense of community at work. The authors thank the employees of Fel-Pro for their participation in this study and Melissa Roderick, Michael Sosin, and anonymous reviewers for their thoughtful comments. This research was funded by the Fel-Pro/Mecklenberger Foundation and the Lois and Samuel Silberman Fund.