Structural models of psychotherapy groups and their effect on inpatients with borderline personality disorders: Patients' perceptions

This research compares the way in which various group structural models affect self-understanding, interpersonal relationships and catharsis in hospitalized patients with borderline personality disorders. Each of the models is characterized by a different combination of group focus and leadership style. Three psychotherapy groups were chosen as paradigms: the dynamic psychotherapy group; the therapeutic games group, and psychodrama group. Sixty three inpatients with borderline personality disorders participated in the study. The one-way ANOVA yielded significant differences between the group models. Results of the post-hoc t-test showed that the dynamic and the games groups were perceived by the patients as more beneficial than psychodrama.     

Effects of differential reinforcement on the behavior and self-esteem of children with emotional and behavioral disorders

Students in a residential special school for children with emotional and behavioral disorders participated in a study designed to reduce their levels of inappropriate behavior. The residential care staff rated the students' behavioral problems and their class teachers rated their overt self-esteem pre and post intervention. In addition, the students completed self-ratings of their self-esteem. The students were divided into two groups, experimental and control. A multiple baseline across behaviors design was used to assess behavioral changes in the experimental group. Both groups received tangible rewards to the same level but only the experimental group received them contingent upon behaving appropriately. Results showed that the experimental group students made substantial reductions in their levels of inappropriate behavior, which were maintained at a three-month followup. Also, ratings of their behavioral problems by residential child care staff suggested that this improvement in behavior had generalized beyond the classroom to the residential setting. However, no significant differences were found between the pre- and post-intervention ratings of their self-esteem or teacher ratings of their overt self-esteem.     

The use of the psychological stress evaluator with stutterers

A lie detection instrument, the Psychological Stress Evaluator, has been reported by the manufacturer as being capable of quantifying changes in the degree of “stress” as reflected by a subject's voice. Speech pathologists might consider the use of the instrument in clinical and research activities concerning the stutterer's emotional (stress) reaction to stuttering.To test the validity of the instrument, four stutterers and four normal speakers were recorded while making consecutive telephone calls. Randomized recordings were analyzed by a company trained technical to determine the degree of stress for each speech sample.Results indicated that both groups had a significant reduction of stress from the first to the fourth telephone call. However, the groups did not differ in the degree of stress during the ordered series of calls. Due to the inability of the Psychological Stress Evaluator to differentiate between the groups, the validity of the instruments is questioned.     

The psychologic of forgiving

Psychologic is an attempt to systematize the commonsense psychology embedded in ordinary language. In this system, the concepts of respect, anger, and guilt, are directly linked, since messages of disrespect, and only those, create anger in the receiver and guilt in the sender. This paper deals with the process of forgiving, whereby respect is reaffirmed and anger and guilt are alleviated. Forgiving depends on clarification of misunderstanding as well as on apology and atonement. The distinction between forgiving others and forgiving oneself is treated. It is concluded that what goes on inside persons and between persons has the same structure.     

Behavioral assessment and treatment of acquired visuoperceptual disorders

Visuoperceptual deficits are common sequelae of damage to either hemisphere of the brain, but are typically more pronounced following injuries involving the right cerebral hemisphere. Common visuoperceptual disorders include visual field cuts, hemi-inattention and hemi-spatial neglect, hemi-perceptual deficits, and gaze and visual pursuit disturbances. A number of behavioral interventions have been developed to teach patients to compensate for acquired visual deficits. Studies addressing assessment and treatment issues in this area are reviewed, and future directions for research are outlined.     

高低特质攻击个体对威胁面部表情识别的差异研究——来自ERP的证据

为揭示高特质攻击个体对愤怒、恐惧威胁面部表情识别的特点及其电生理机制，本研究采用Buss-Perry攻击问卷选取高低特质攻击个体26名和27名为被试，采用面孔识别范式对高低特质攻击个体识别威胁面部表情时的ERP差异进行研究。结果发现，在愤怒、恐惧表情上，高特质攻击组在N170成分的潜伏期都显著短于低特质攻击组；在愤怒、恐惧表情上，高特质攻击组在P200成分的波幅都显著高于低特质攻击组。这表明高特质攻击个体对愤怒、恐惧威胁面部表情的识别具有高度敏感性，这种敏感性体现在面部表情识别的早期和中期阶段，而非晚期阶段，即高特质攻击个体在早期的前注意阶段就对愤怒、恐惧威胁面部表情进行优先注意；在中期的注意阶段，高特质攻击个体可以很好地确认愤怒、恐惧威胁面部表情。     

Interoceptive Awareness and Suicidal Ideation in a Clinical Eating Disorder Sample: The Role of Body Trust

Previous research has demonstrated that both suicidal ideation (SI) and eating disorders (EDs) are associated with poor interoceptive awareness (IA). Suicidality research has demonstrated that the IA dimension of lower body trust is associated with SI, suicide plans, and suicide attempts. Similarly, in ED samples, recent research supports that low body trust has been the most robust dimension of IA associated with eating pathology. However, to date, research is lacking in how dimensions of IA may be associated with SI in an ED sample, above and beyond the impact of eating pathology on SI. Thus, in a clinical ED sample, the present study sought to determine which IA dimensions predict the presence and severity of SI, above and beyond ED symptoms. Participants (N = 102) completed a clinical interview assessing SI and self-report assessments including the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA). Results demonstrated that patients with current SI reported greater ED psychopathology, lower MAIA Attention Regulation, MAIA Self-Regulation, and MAIA Trusting scores compared to patients without SI. Higher ED psychopathology and lower MAIA Attention Regulation, Self-Regulation, and Trusting subscale scores were all significantly associated with the presence of SI. However, only low MAIA Trusting scores predicted the presence of SI, above and beyond covariates (age, depression, and eating pathology). No MAIA subscales were correlated with the severity of SI. Consistent with previous research, results suggest low MAIA Trusting scores may be associated with SI in ED samples and highlight the need for future research on mechanisms of these associations.     

Neurodualism: People Assume that the Brain Affects the Mind more than the Mind Affects the Brain

People commonly think of the mind and the brain as distinct entities that interact, a view known as dualism. At the same time, the public widely acknowledges that science attributes all mental phenomena to the workings of a material brain, a view at odds with dualism. How do people reconcile these conflicting perspectives? We propose that people distort claims about the brain from the wider culture to fit their dualist belief that minds and brains are distinct, interacting entities: Exposure to cultural discourse about the brain as the physical basis for the mind prompts people to posit that mind–brain interactions are asymmetric, such that the brain is able to affect the mind more than vice versa. We term this hybrid intuitive theory neurodualism. Five studies involving both thought experiments and naturalistic scenarios provided evidence of neurodualism among laypeople and, to some extent, even practicing psychotherapists. For example, lay participants reported that “a change in a person's brain” is accompanied by “a change in the person's mind” more often than vice versa. Similarly, when asked to imagine that “future scientists were able to alter exactly 25% of a person's brain,” participants reported larger corresponding changes in the person's mind than in the opposite direction. Participants also showed a similarly asymmetric pattern favoring the brain over the mind in naturalistic scenarios. By uncovering people's intuitive theories of the mind–brain relation, the results provide insights into societal phenomena such as the allure of neuroscience and common misperceptions of mental health treatments.     

Investigating sex,masculinity and femininity in relation to impulsive driving and driving anger expression

Human factors constitute a class of prominent road safety related factors. In the present study, human factors of driving were studied by investigating sex differences and gender roles in relation to impulsive driving and driving anger expression. A total of 425 drivers between the ages of 18 and 56 (M = 25.46, SD = 7.58) participated to the study and completed a series of questionnaires including a demographic information form, the Bem Sex Roles Inventory, the Impulsive Driver Behaviour Scale and the Driving Anger Expression Inventory. According to the ANCOVA results, male drivers showed higher functional impulsivity, lack of premeditation and use of the vehicle to express anger than female drivers. Additionally, hierarchical regression analyses showed that masculinity was positively associated with functional impulsivity, urgency and the dimensions of aggressive anger expression. However, femininity was positively associated with functional impulsivity and adaptive/constructive anger expression, but negatively associated with the dimensions of dysfunctional impulsivity and aggressive anger expression. Overall, the results showed the significant solo effects of masculinity and femininity on impulsive driver behaviours and driving anger expression, over and above the effects of sex, and the interaction between sex and gender roles. In the present study, previously reported findings indicating the relationships between sex and gender roles and driving anger expression were supported and extended by providing the literature with the contribution of answering the question how sex and gender roles are related to impulsive driver behaviours. The findings of the two related concepts of impulsive driving and driving anger expression were discussed in light of the current literature. Contributions, implications and future research directions concerning road safety practices were presented.