Symptoms and cognitions during situational and hyperventilatory exposure in agoraphobic patients with and without panic

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between reported bodily symptoms and fearful cognitions in the anxiety episodes experienced by agoraphobic patients. Thirty-one inpatients, 16 with panic disorder (PD) with agoraphobia and 15 with agoraphobia without PD, performed a behavioral avoidance test (BAT) and a provoked hyperventilation test (PHT). The results of regression analyses indicated that feeling of unreality was related to number of reported thoughts concerning physical incapacitation during the BAT. On the PHT, shortness of breath was related to reported fears concerning physical incapacitation and loss of control. The results indicated that there were meaningful links between reported symptoms and catastrophic thoughts on both tests. Social/behavioral control fears were stable across the two tests, whereas physical fears, subjective anxiety increase, and number of symptoms reported showed no stability. More of the PD with agoraphobia patients than of the agoraphobia without PD patients reported fantasies of physical catastrophes associated with the BAT, whereas more of the agoraphobia without PD patients exhibited safety seeking behavior during the PHT.     

HIGH-FIDELITY PERCEPTUAL LONG-TERM MEMORY

Abstract— Visual long-term memory for spatial information was assessed by measuring discrimination thresholds for the spatial frequency of sinusoidal gratings in a delayed discrimination task, with various time intervals separating test and reference stimuli The results demonstrate perfect preservation of information across J-s to 50-hr retention tervals in the sense that the spatial frequency discrimination thresholds retained at the level defined by the spatial solution of the sensory analysis This high-fidelity spatial long-term memory may represent an elementary memory mechanism for precategorical storage of visual features     

Can learning potential in schizophrenia be assessed with the standard CVLT‐II? An exploratory study

This study examined the potential of using the regular administration of a common neuropsychological test, the CVLT-II, to assess learning potential in schizophrenia. Based on List A trial 1 performance and the learning slope, a schizophrenia sample was divided into three learning potential groups (non-learners, learners and high-achievers) that differed in the use of learning strategies. High-achievers utilized more semantic clustering than learners and non-learners, and non-learners were less consistent in words recalled than the other two groups. This standard administration approach is a promising, time-saving alternative to the modified tests of learning potential used so far.     

Recent critiques of the UCLA Young Autism Project

Lovaas and his associates at UCLA reported substantially better treatment outcomes for children with autism than had been reported previously. Many authors have closely scrutinized the UCLA research, and some have published major criticisms. Recently two critical reviews have appeared. Howlin ( 1997 ) evaluated the most common treatment approaches for children with autism, including the UCLA model. Additionally, the UK Department for Education and Employment commissioned a review of treatment research on autism written by Jordan, Jones, and Murray ( 1998 ). Although both reports contain useful information, they also contain inaccurate statements about the published results of the UCLA project. An aim of this paper is to illustrate the errors of fact and interpretation contained in the two papers and to clarify the existing data. A second aim is to identify points of agreement, which is also important when attempting to facilitate critical and accurate assessments of available scientific evidence. It is argued that Lovaas and colleagues made a convincing case for the efficacy of one model of early intensive behavioral treatment by presenting outcome data showing clinically meaningful, long‐term gains in a population historically characterized by a severe and chronic disability, and an unfortunate history of treatment failures. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparing structured mix and random rotation procedures to teach receptive labeling to children with autism

We compared two procedures using an alternating treatments design to teach receptive labeling to children with autism. The structured mix procedure followed seven steps entailing mass trials, intermixing, and random rotation. In the random rotation procedure, we trained all stimuli from the start. Study 1 included four children with a repertoire of four to 50 receptive labels and who primarily communicated with an alternative communication device. Results showed that the two conditions were comparable for one participant, structured mix was effective and random rotation was not effective for one participant, and that both conditions were ineffective for two participants. Study 2 included five children with over 200 receptive labels in their repertoire and with vocal speech as the primary form of communication. Four participants acquired the labels in both procedures, but random rotation was more effective. Results indicate that structured mix may be more effective for participants with a limited language repertoire and random rotation is more effective for participants with a larger language repertoire.     

Motivational predictors of learning strategies,participation, exertion,and performance in physical education: A randomized controlled trial

Teachers’ support of student autonomy in physical education (PE) is believed to be important for students’ motivation and outcomes in PE. We tested the hypothesis that an intervention designed to help teachers to be more autonomy supportive in teaching their students to use learning strategies (relative to standard teaching) would increase students’ perceived autonomy support from the teachers, perceived competence, autonomous motivation, use of learning strategies and their exertion, participation, and grades in PE over a school year. We also tested a self-determination theory (SDT) process model. Experimental effects of the intervention yielded significant positive effects on changes in perceived autonomy support, learning strategies defined as absorption and effort regulation, as well as for performance (i.e., grades). In testing the SDT process model with SEM, most of the predicted paths were significantly supported.     

Memory for a staged criminal event witnessed live and on video

Memory for a staged robbery was tested in two groups of participants witnessing the event either live (n = 62) or on video (n = 64). Immediately after the event participants filled out a questionnaire probing memory with emphasis on the timing of the event and robber characteristics. The results showed that participants who watched a video recording of the event reported more details and with a higher accuracy than participants who were present on the scene, but the pattern of memory errors were similar in the two conditions. It is concluded that laboratory experiments may overestimate the memory of eyewitnesses but are otherwise able to simulate essential aspects of memory performance in naturalistic contexts.     

What people believe about memory

Two representative samples of adult Norwegians (n=2000) were asked a set of general and specific questions regarding their beliefs and opinions about human memory. The results indicate that on many questions, such as time of the earliest memories, inhibiting effects of collaboration, and memory for dramatic versus ordinary events, the views of the general public concurred with current research findings, and people in general had realistic views about their own memory performance. On other questions, such as the reliability of olfactory as compared with visual and auditory memory, the memory of small children in comparison with that of adults, the likelihood of repression of adult traumatic memories, and on more general questions such as the possibility of training memory and the capacity limitations of long-term memory, a large proportion of the participants expressed views that are less supported by scientific evidence. Implications of these findings are briefly discussed.     

What Psychologists Know and Believe about Memory: A Survey of Practitioners

We surveyed 858 licensed psychologists, members of the Norwegian Psychological Association, about their knowledge and beliefs about human memory. The results were compared to the results of parallel surveys of legal professionals and lay persons, and evaluated in the light of the results of current memory science. The results indicate that psychologists are not memory experts qua psychologists; as a group, psychologists do not score above the level of knowledge of lay persons or trial judges on issues of eyewitness memory, and a substantial minority of the sample of respondents harbours scientifically unproven ideas of memory. The implications of these findings for psychological practice, with special reference to the court room, are briefly discussed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.