Examining the effectiveness of an intervention designed for the restoration of competency to stand trial

This study examined the effectiveness of the Fitness Game, an intervention created for the restoration of competency to stand trial. Of 28 participants who completed either the experimental or control intervention at Hawai'i State Hospital (HSH), it was found that both groups had significant pretest to posttest improvements on Understanding and Appreciation subsets of the MacArthur Competence Assessment Tool-Criminal Adjudication (MacCAT-CA). However, there was no statistically significant difference between the groups on competency measures, indicating that the Fitness Game was not significantly more effective at restoring competency than non-legal programming. In other words, individuals committed to a psychiatric hospital for care and treatment were as likely to improve as those receiving additional specialized competency restoration treatment.     

The costs of crossing paths and switching tasks between audition and vision

Switching from one functional or cognitive operation to another is thought to rely on executive/control processes. The efficacy of these processes may depend on the extent of overlap between neural circuitry mediating the different tasks; more effective task preparation (and by extension smaller switch costs) is achieved when this overlap is small. We investigated the performance costs associated with switching tasks and/or switching sensory modalities. Participants discriminated either the identity or spatial location of objects that were presented either visually or acoustically. Switch costs between tasks were significantly smaller when the sensory modality of the task switched versus when it repeated. This was the case irrespective of whether the pre-trial cue informed participants only of the upcoming task, but not sensory modality (Experiment 1) or whether the pre-trial cue was informative about both the upcoming task and sensory modality (Experiment 2). In addition, in both experiments switch costs between the senses were positively correlated when the sensory modality of the task repeated across trials and not when it switched. The collective evidence supports the independence of control processes mediating task switching and modality switching and also the hypothesis that switch costs reflect competitive interference between neural circuits.     

Facing the Pariah of Science: The Frankenstein Myth as a Social and Ethical Reference for Scientists

Science and Engineering Ethics - Since its first publication in 1818, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus has transcended genres and cultures to become a foundational myth...     

Participation in Breast Cancer Genetic Counseling: The Influence of Educational Level, Ethnic Background, and Risk Perception

Genetic counseling has been suggested as a means of providing information and support to women with a family history of breast cancer. Yet women who undergo cancer genetic counseling in the United States generally consist of only a subset of those at risk, namely well-educated, upper-middle class, European American and Jewish women. We report outcomes from a study that provided a unique opportunity to determine whether women of African American, European American, Native American, or Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry have varying interest in having cancer genetic counseling. The study offered a genetic counseling session to 97 women with a family history of breast cancer who were participating in a larger interview study designed to assess attitudes toward genetic testing for breast cancer. The study offered genetic counseling free of charge to all study participants with a family history of breast cancer, removing the potential barriers of cost, the need for a physician referral, and lack of awareness of genetic counseling. Fifty women out of the 97 women offered genetic counseling (52%) accepted the offer by completing a session. Those who accepted genetic counseling had a higher educational level, a higher perceived risk of breast cancer, and were more likely to expect a positive BRCA1 or BRCA2 genetic test if they were to undergo genetic testing. When controlling for education level, there was no correlation between the participants' ethnic background and acceptance of a genetic counseling session. Outreach efforts to minority populations may increase awareness of the availability of genetic counseling and may facilitate participation by such populations.     

毛泽东、陈伯达和"马克思主义中国化"(1936-1938)

导言1938年毛泽东倡导的“马克思主义中国化”依然是中国共产党意识形态史上最有吸引力的话题之一。奇怪的是,虽然这个概念在大量的中国共产主义运动研究中受到过短暂的关注,但几乎没有被置于细致入微的历史和理论分析。①大致而言,这个概念包含两个相互独立又密切相关的维度。     

Patterns of alcohol use among rural and small-town adolescents

Much research has indicated that age, gender, grade in school, religiosity, socioeconomic status, and involvement in extracurricular activities are all related to adolescent alcohol use. However, most of such research focuses on urban youth. The present study examines patterns of rural adolescent alcohol use and factors associated with such use. The Student Alcohol Inventory was administered to 650 students in grades 7-12 in a small, middle-Atlantic town and surrounding county. The survey contained sections addressing demographic data, attitudes regarding students' alcohol use, and their parents' use. Along with standard SES measures, items were included on unemployment and receipt of government assistance. The dependent variables included age at first drink, frequency of drinking, amount of drinking, and a composite heavy-drinking index. Eighty-three percent of the respondents indicated that they had drunk alcohol and 57% had had their first drink by age 12. Gender and grade in school were significant predictors of alcohol use for all four dependent variables. Time spent in social activities was significant in predicting all but age at first drink. Religiosity was a significant predictor for only one dependent variable--age at first drink. The SES measures were also weak predictors of drinking behavior. Policy implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Couples Therapy Using the Technique of Construct Differentiation

A central problem in couples therapy is the clients' tendency to persist in endless and fruitless alternation between attacking the partner and justifying themselves. The technique of construct differentiation described in this article has proved helpful in coping with this situation. In three clearly structured steps, the therapist explores the personal constructs of each partner in the presence of the other. Instead of concentrating in the usual way on circularity of thoughts, feelings, and behavior, the partners are hindered from interacting and are confronted by the therapist's questions concerning their own inner process, independently of that of the partner. By becoming aware of their own ambivalent constructs and those of the partner, the eagerness to convert the partner to their own point of view can be reduced, and the construct system of each partner can be enriched by the other's constructs. Construct differentiation proves especially useful in the treatment of power struggles and narcissistic collusions.