The Role of an Academic Department in Promoting Faculty Development: Recognizing Diversity and Leading to Excellence

The authors discuss the role of an academic department in promoting faculty development. Specifically, the authors (a) define faculty development from a departmental perspective, (b) discuss stages and seasons in academic careers, and (c) delineate specific faculty development goals and programs within the department.     

Examining the Association Between Self-Reported Multicultural Counseling Competencies and Demographic Variables Among Counselors

The authors examined the association between demographic variables and self-reported multicultural counseling competencies among counselors. A national sample of 220 counselors affiliated with university counseling centers participated in this investigation. Counselors responded to 40 Likert-type statements about multicultural awareness, knowledge, skills, and relationships. Results from a series of multivariate and univariate analyses indicated that Asian American and Hispanic counselors reported more multicultural knowledge than did White counselors, and African American, Asian American, and Hispanic counselors reported more competence in multicultural awareness and relationships than did White counselors. No effects were found for other demographic variables. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

DSM-IV: WhatY's New

The significant differences between the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III-R; American Psychiatric Association, 1987) and the DSM-IV (American Psychiatric Association, 1994) are described, focusing on the types of mental disorders counselors frequently diagnose and treat. These include several disorders included in the children's section as well as Adjustment Disorders, Substance-Related Disorders, Mood Disorders, Anxiety Disorders, and Personality Disorders.     

The Correlation of General Cognitive Ability and Psychomotor Tracking Tests

A study was conducted to investigate the nexus of cognitive and psychomotor tests as might be used for personnel selection and assessment. These two domains are frequently seen as independent. A multiple aptitude cognitive test battery and a psychomotor test battery were administered to 354 United States Air Force recruits. The average multiple correlation of the cognitive tests and each psychomotor score as a criterion was 0.34, corrected for range restriction. Confirmatory factor analyses disclosed general cognitive and general psychomotor factors, three lower-order psychomotor factors, and two lower-order cognitive factors. The general cognitive factor accounted for 39% of the variance and the general psychomotor factor accounted for 29% of the variance. Residualized, the lower-order factors accounted for between 10% and 3% of the variance. The average g saturations (loadings) of the cognitive and psychomotor tests were 0.82 and 0.34 respectively. An implication for personnel selection is that the incremental validity of psychomotor tracking tests beyond the validity of cognitive tests will be small due to the commonality of measurement. A further implication of findings is the need to study the validity of the general and specific psychomotor factors.     

An additional measure of availability derived from theOxford English Dictionary

In order to develop an additional measure of availability for the nouns from Paivio, Yuille, and Madigan’s (1968) list, we used a CD-ROM version of theOxford English Dictionary (OED) to obtain the number of times a word was used to define other words. This variable was added to Rubin and Friendly’s (1986) set of measures for these words. In multiple regression analyses, our measure proved to be a useful predictor of free recall. These results suggest that the OED may be useful for providing additional psycholinguistic measures.     

Adaptation effects and reversible figures: A comment on Horlitz and O’Leary

In a recent article, Horlitz and O’Leary (1993) offer a reinterpretation of the results of several studies over the past 40 years that have employed the prolonged-inspection technique in the investigation of reversible figures. Specifically, they contend that, contrary to the favored interpretation of neural adaptation effects, the results of these studies reveal the combined influence of such topdown processes as attention and perceptual learning as well as such methodological difficulties as unwanted demand characteristics. In this note, we examine their analysis of the literature, their alternative theoretical model, and the supporting conclusions they draw from their two experiments. We argue that there is considerable evidence from a variety of studies for the joint role of bottom-up and top-down processes in reversible figures. Moreover, we propose that Horlitz and O’Leary’s own research, rather than eliminating the possibility of neural-adaptation effects, is best conceptualized as providing additional evidence for the role of higher-order processes in these phenomena.     

Attribution of Responsibility and Trust in the Milgram Obedience Experiment1

The two primary theoretical explanations for the findings of the Milgram (1963, 1974) obedience studies are that of Milgram, stressing the role of relinquished responsibility to the authority on the one hand, and that of Mixon (1971, 1972), for whom trust in the experimenter is the key element on the other hand. The aim of the 2 studies reported in this article, using edited portions of the film Obedience (Milgram, 1965), was to explore the naive social perceiver's understanding of the dynamics of obedience to authority through his or her attributions about responsibility and trust, and thereby to provide some input into the theoretical controversy between Milgram and Mixon. Both studies were more supportive of Milgram's than of Mixon's position.     

CHOICE-MAKING TREATMENT OF YOUNG CHILDREN'S SEVERE BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS

The choice-making behavior of 5 young children with developmental disabilities who engaged in aberrant behavior was studied within a concurrent operants framework. Experimental analyses were conducted to identify reinforcers that maintained aberrant behavior, and functional communication training packages were implemented to teach the participants to gain reinforcement using mands. Next, a choice-making analysis, in which the participants chose one of two responses (either a mand or an alternative neutral response) to obtain different durations and qualities of reinforcement, was conducted. Finally, treatment packages involving choice making via manding were implemented to decrease inappropriate behavior and to increase mands. The results extended previous applications of choice making to severe behavior disorders and across behaviors maintained by positive and negative reinforcement.     

Dual diagnosis: Clinical issues in the treatment of substance abuse,and affective,personality, and psychotic disorders

Co-morbidity of alcohol and substance with the spectrum of other psychiatric diagnoses is examined with specific emphasis on diagnostic indicators for anxiety and mood disorders. Diagnostic issues for the chemically dependent person are examined with the context of borderline personality disorder, schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders. Clinical research related to the dually-diagnosed patient is explored