Nondirectiveness and genetic counseling

Nondirectiveness is the generally required and professed standard for genetic counseling. However, studies are lacking in the field of human genetics and in other disciplines which address either the theory or practice of this type of therapeutic procedure in the context of genetic counseling. Moreover, there is no indication the further development this concept has undergone in client-centered therapy has been acknowledged in human genetics. This could be due tot he historical development of genetic counseling, its inherent conflicts and often undefined goals, and the latent need of human geneticists to defend themselves against being accused of eugenic tendencies. Nondirectiveness and directiveness, however, can neither adequately describe what takes place in genetic counseling, nor can they — according to their original meaning — be used to define an ethical standard of genetic counseling. Starting with the writings by Carl Rogers (1942), an experiential approach is described, in which counseling is seen as a process of influence, which is wished by all the persons involved, during which activities are oriented toward the experience of the client, and which allows the counselor to communicate openly and directly with the client. The present study illustrates the use of the experiential approach in genetic counseling and shows that it can uphold the principle of ethics, which nondirectiveness demands and, at the same time, prevent the inevitable and unresolvable contradictions. This means that in their training genetic counselors must learn to recognize and constantly reflect on the influence they can and want to exert. In order to be able to use this influence in a responsible manner, genetic counselors must also learn to have a certain degree of flexibility so that they are able to check at any time how their client responds to this influence.     

Individual differences in components of reaction time distributions and their relations to working memory and intelligence

The authors bring together approaches from cognitive and individual differences psychology to model characteristics of reaction time distributions beyond measures of central tendency. Ex-Gaussian distributions and a diffusion model approach are used to describe individuals' reaction time data. The authors identified common latent factors for each of the 3 ex-Gaussian parameters and for 3 parameters central to the diffusion model using structural equation modeling for a battery of choice reaction tasks. These factors had differential relations to criterion constructs. Parameters reflecting the tail of the distribution (i.e., tau in the ex-Gaussian and drift rate in the diffusion model) were the strongest unique predictors of working memory, reasoning, and psychometric speed. Theories of controlled attention and binding are discussed as potential theoretical explanations.     

The community alcohol use scale: A scale for use in prevention programs

The Community Alcohol Use Scale (CAUS) was developed as a continuous, reliable, valid, and acceptable measure for primary prevention studies. Items were written following a comprehensive review of the literature on alcohol dependence and alcoholism. Based upon the responses of 315 respondents to the 100-item initial version of the scale, the 45-item CAUS was developed. The CAUS was then cross-validated on a local sample (n = 274) and a provincial sample (n = 745). Estimates of internal consistency were .91, .96, and .94, respectively, for the initial and cross-validation samples. Correlations of .48 and .69 were obtained between the CAUS and the Michigan Alcohol Screening Test for the initial and local cross-validation samples. In the provincial cross-validation sample a correlation of .62 was obtained between the CAUS and the Usual Weekly Alcohol Index. Preliminary cutting scores were developed to identify those at risk for alcoholism, and alcoholics. The CAUS has potential use as an evaluative and predictive instrument in a variety of primary prevention programs.     

Child care and influence among the mekranoti of central brazil

Various researchers have argued that women's influence may be limited by child-care requirements. This study uses quantified data from the Mekranoti-Kayapó of Central Brazil to examine some specific arguments. Among the Mekranoti, women who spend more time caring for children rate lower on influence. But the reasons for this correlation are less clear. Child care does not seem to hinder a woman's ability to contribute to subsistence. Nor does it seem to have much effect on the personality characteristics that might affect the leadership potential of child caretakers. Child care may, however, restrict a woman's ability to acquire the personal connections needed to exercise influence.This article is based on a chapter from the author's doctoral dissertation. The author thanks Daniel R. Gross, Carol R. Ember, Madeline Ritter, Nancy Flowers, Daniel G. Bates, and Robert A. LeVine for their many helpful suggestions in preparing the study. The author also thanks various people for help in carrying out the fieldwork on which they study is based: S. Gross, G. Verswijver, R. Thomson, K. Jefferson, M. Stout, F. Leoi, and R. Cardoso de Oliveria, G. Diaz, K. Taylor, A. Ramos, G. Zarur, R. De Barros Laraia, L. Vidal, D. Montagner Melatti, J. C. Melatti, and J. Bispo dos Santos. The study was generously supported by NSF grants BNS 76-03378, BNS 73-25295, and BNS 78-24706.     

Book reviews

The I?varapratvabhijñākārikā of Utpaladeva with the Author's Vrtti. Critical edition and annotated translation. Serie Orientale Roma LXXI. Raffaele Toreha, 1994, Roma, Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente, LIV+ 273 pp., pb L. 110.000

Jung and Eastern Thought: a Dialogue with the Orient. John James Clarke, 1994, London, Routledge, vii +217 pp., £12.99

Abu Ya^cqub al‐Sijistani: Intellectual Missionary. Paul E. Walker, 1996, London, I. B. Tauris, xv + 132 pp.

Religious Pluralism and Truth: Essays on Cross‐cultural Philosophy of Religion. Edited by Thomas Dean, 1995, Albany, SUNY Press, xi + 271 pp., 0 7914 2123 6 hb, 0 7914 2124 4 pb, $19.95

The Body, Self‐cultivation, and Ki‐energy. Yuasa Yasuo, trans, by Shigenori Nagatomo and Monte S. Hull, 1993, Albany, SUNY Press, xxxvi + 229 pp. 814.95     

Perspectives in psychology

The Psychological Record - The traditional S-R position that in systematic psychology the IV’s are to be identified with environmental conditions is critically discussed. The advantages of...     

Book reviews

Confucianism and the Family. Walter H. Slote & George A. Devos, 1998, Albany, State University of New York Press, xiv + 390 pp.

Media and the Transformation of Religion in South Asia. Lawrence A. Babb & Susan S. Wadley (Eds), 1997, (1st edn, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1995), Delhi, Motilal Banarsidass, viii + 298 pp., hb Rs 295, ISBN 81 208 1448 7; pb Rs 195, ISBN 81 208 1453 3

Yoga. Discipline of freedom. The Yoga Sutra attributed to Patañjali (A translation of the text, with commentary, introduction and glossary of key words), Barbara Stoler Miller (Trans. & Ed.), 1996, Berkeley, University of California Press, xiv + 114 pp., ISBN 0 520 20190 6