Who Are the Next Generation of Genetic Counselors? A Survey of Students

Genetic counseling students were surveyed about their backgrounds, application process to genetic counseling programs, and career motivations and plans. Program directors from 27 accredited programs were asked to distribute 362 surveys to students. Fifty-two survey items assess demographics; sources of support for pursuing a genetic counseling career (information about genetic counseling, encouragement/discouragement from others); career motivations (reasons for applying and for becoming a genetic counselor); and career certainty. Two hundred and thirty-five usable surveys were returned (64.9% usable return rate). Most respondents were Caucasian females (mean age = 25.4 years). About 13% identified as ethnic minorities, and about one-third reported family histories of a genetic condition(s). Most respondents learned about the field in classes, and most were strongly encouraged by family and friends to pursue genetic counseling. Reasons rated as most important for becoming a genetic counselor included helping others and intellectual stimulation. Recruitment, training, and research recommendations are given.     

国别属性重要吗？代言人与广告效果关系研究的新视角

随着全球市场的形成, 一些中国企业开始选取外国明星作为产品的代言人, 目的是希望借外籍代言人提升品牌的吸引力, 获得消费者的喜爱与购买。与此同时, 一些跨国企业也开始使用中国明星为其产品代言, 以期通过“本土化”加强消费者对品牌的认同, 从而最终接受这一品牌。然而, 这种做法是否令消费者认可和接受, 其广告效果到底如何还是未知数。从目前来看, 这一作法既缺乏理论论证也缺乏实践的检验。根据代言人匹配假说, 作者认为代言人国别属性与产品国别色彩的一致性对广告效果也具有重要的影响。通过3(中、外、无国别特色产品)×2(功能性产品、享乐性产品)×2(中、外代言人)的实验设计, 验证了代言人与产品国别一致性作为调节变量对代言人特征与广告效果关系具有正向的影响, 即当代言人国别属性与产品国别色彩一致时, 广告效果明显优于不一致的情形。对于中国特色产品, 中国代言人的广告效果更好, 而对于外国文化色彩以及无国别色彩的产品, 外国代言人的广告效果要明显高于中国代言人。     

收益—风险并存情境中海洛因戒除者的行为冲动性

以64名男性生理脱瘾后处于不同康复阶段的海洛因戒除者和30名男性无毒品依赖行为的社会招募人员为被试,采用Iowa赌博任务探讨了收益-风险并存情境中海洛因戒除者的冲动性行为模式。结果发现,相对于正常人群,海洛因戒除者表现出"即时收益优先"的决策模式和对高风险的耐受性,且该特征不随戒除期的延长而改善。该研究为解释海洛因戒除者不顾其潜在的严重不利后果仍维持其复吸行为的现象提供了实验证据。     

Social indicators as indexes of neuroticism and extraversion

Lynn and Hampson (1975) and recently Lester (2000) suggested that national level of extraversion (E) and neuroticism (N) could be assessed by using certain national indicators like suicide and divorce rates. In this study, Lynn and Hampson’s (1975) and Lester’s (2000) models were assessed by using 1990s data. Although Lynn and Hampson’s original N and E factors correlated with EPQ N (r=0.48) and E (r=0.60) scores as hypothesised, the factor structure did not recur in the 1990s data. Factor analysis supported Lester’s (2000) model of N and E. However, the factor loadings for EPQ N and E were rather modest (0.49 for N and 0.36 for E). It was concluded that more research with larger datasets and new social indicators are needed before social indicators could replace the EPQ in comparisons of national characteristics of nations.     

Finishing on time: When do predictions influence completion times?

People typically predict they will finish projects earlier than they do. Whereas previous research has examined the determinants of this prediction bias, the present research explored potential consequences for behavior. In particular, we examined whether and when task completion predictions influence actual completion times. In four experiments we used anchoring manipulations to induce participants to make relatively early or late task completion predictions, and then examined when they started and/or finished the target tasks. As hypothesized, the prediction manipulation influenced completion times under certain conditions defined by the nature of the target task. Manipulated predictions affected completion times of closed tasks, defined as tasks carried out within a single, continuous session but not of open tasks, defined as tasks requiring multiple work sessions. This implies that task completion predictions help to initiate action, but their impact diminishes over the course of extensive, multi-stage projects.     

A receiver operator characteristics analysis of treatment outcome in binge eating disorder to identify patterns of rapid response

The purpose of this study was to perform a receiver operator characteristics (ROC) analysis on a treatment sample from a randomized controlled treatment trial of participants with binge eating disorder (BED). An ROC analysis was completed with 179 adults in a 20-week treatment trial for BED to predict abstinence from binge eating at end of treatment. Percent reductions in binge eating episodes were examined following weeks 1 through 10 of treatment. The rate of percent decrease in binge eating episodes during treatment for BED was a significant predictor of clinical outcome at end of treatment. Participants who demonstrated a 15% reduction in binge eating episodes at week one were more likely to respond positively to treatment and achieve clinical remission. Findings from the current study suggest that a significant reduction in binge eating during the first week of treatment may be predictive of end of treatment remission in those with BED.     

The Australian Psychology Workforce 1: A national profile of psychologists in practice

Existing workforce data on Australian psychologists are limited and data that exist are problematic. An online survey instrument was developed to profile psychologists including demographics and work characteristics including setting, role, service location and client type. A total of 11,897 completed the survey (response rate 48%) and a subset of these (N = 9,330) who held full registration were included in the current investigation. Participant demographics show a high (75%) proportion of females in the workforce which is particularly evident in the younger age range. Participation in the workforce was high (68%), with main psychology jobs spread relatively equally between the public and private sectors. Over a quarter of participants held a second psychology position, with the majority of second jobs being in private practice. For both first and second jobs the largest proportion spend their time providing counselling and mental health interventions one‐to‐one to adults. One quarter provide services in non‐metropolitan regions, a higher rate than previously reported. Specific population groups such as culturally and linguistically diverse and indigenous clients were prominent in workloads. This study provides a comprehensive profile and provides a rich data source for further exploration of the characteristics of specific groups within the workforce.     

The Mental Vulnerability Questionnaire: A psychometric evaluation

Eplov, L.F., Petersen, J., Jørgensen, T., Johansen, C., Birket‐Smith, M., Lyngberg, A. C. & Mortensen, E. L. (2010). The Mental Vulnerability Questionnaire: A psychometric evaluation. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 51, 548–554. The Mental Vulnerability Questionnaire was originally a 22 item scale, later reduced to a 12 item scale. In population studies the 12 item scale has been a significant predictor of health and illness. The scale has not been psychometrically evaluated for more than 30 years, and the aim of the present study was both to evaluate the psychometric properties of the 22 and 12 item scales and of three new scales. The main study sample was a community sample comprising more than 6,000 men and women. In this sample the coefficients of homogeneity were all over 0.30 for the three new scales, but below 0.30 for the 12 and the 22 item scales. All five Mental Vulnerability scales had positively skewed score distributions which were associated significantly with both SCL‐90‐R symptom scores and NEO‐PI‐R personality scales (primarily Neuroticism and Extraversion). Coefficient alpha was highest for the 22 and 12 item scales, and the two scales also showed the highest long‐term stability. The three new scales reflect relatively independent dimensions of Psychosomatic Symptoms, Mental Symptoms, and Interpersonal Problems, but because of reliability problems it remains an open question whether they will prove useful as predictors of health and morbidity.