Dialogue and Dominance in Couple Therapy for Depression: Exploring Therapists’ Responses in Creating Collaborative Moments

Previous investigations have found specific communication patterns in couples dealing with depression, specifically when depression concurs with conjugal conflicts. The presence of these patterns can reflect couples’ difficulties in engaging in collaborative communication during their sessions, posing a real challenge for therapists. This exploratory study uses a dialogical approach to examine issues of dominance and type of dialogue in two couples who differed in terms of their levels of dyadic adjustment. The therapists’ reactions were explored in order to detect the kinds of responses that were most effective at engendering a collaborative attitude in therapy sessions. The method used to analyze the dialogue was Dialogical Investigations of Happenings of Change (DIHC). Results on dominance indicated that the degree of quantitative and semantic dominance displayed by a different member of the couple in each case was illustrative of their relational dynamics, while in both cases interactional dominance was exercised by the therapists. Results on dialogue revealed that dialogic dialogue might help to coconstruct new shared meanings of depression. The findings indicated that certain responses by therapists as part of the dialogue could be useful in bringing about a reduction in hostility between the members of a couple, provided that the responses are maintained over the course of the session. Some research and clinical implications that emerge from the results are discussed.     

大脑前扣带回皮层与执行功能

回顾了近期有关大脑前扣带回皮层（ACC）参与执行功能的研究资料。结果显示,ACC可以对正在进行的目标定向行为实施在线监控,在出现反应冲突或错误时提供信号,以便能及时调整与分配注意资源,因此可能是一个行为规划与执行的高级调控结构。这两年来的新发现提示,ACC的执行监控作用可能是基于动机与奖赏期待做出的对“意志行动”的整合性控制,并可能具有对行动结果的情绪评价意义。     

EEG波形伪迹去除方法

EEG波形记录与ERP分析技术是认知科学和脑科学研究的新兴手段 ,但在实际研究和临床应用中 ,伪迹一直是困扰研究效度的重要因素。本文主要介绍了近年来兴起的回归方法、伪迹减法、主成分分析 (PCA)、独立成分分析 (ICA)、JADE分析等脑电伪迹去除技术。相对于传统方法 ,这些技术存在精度高、速度快、实用性强的优点 ,但它们都各自针对不同问题情境 ,均建立在特定假设基础上 ,所以应根据具体的研究目的和实验条件进行合理选择。通用性、实时性和稳定性将是伪迹去除技术的发展方向     

Global Economy,Justice and Sustainability

Although this paper attends to some extent to the question whether the global economy promotes or impedes either justice or sustainability, its main focus is on the relationship between justice and sustainability. Whilst sustainability itself as a normative goal is about sustaining inter alia justice, justice itself requires intergenerationally the sustaining of the conditions of a good life for all. At the heart of this is a conception of justice as realising the basic rights of all–in contrast to a more demanding distributive principle or a less demanding principle of not violating the liberty rights or other basic rights of others. Although Pogge’s analysis that the global economy causes harm by failing to realise basic rights is seen as a useful challenge to common libertarian assumptions, the acceptance of other positive correlative duties, following Shue, is advocated. Insofar as the global economy fails to realise basic justice, the question is ‘how far can it realistically be changed?’ and this is a function partly of the moral attitudes of individuals at large.     

大学生SCL－90测试结果的研究

采用ＳＣＬ－９０临床症状自评量表,对随机抽取的安徽大学１－４年级２００名学生进行测试,结果表明：大学生心理健康总体水平低于全国成人常模;生源于城市和农村的大学生相比,总体差异不显著;生源于应届高中毕业生和历届高中毕业的大学生相比,在恐怖和精神病性两因子上,前者的均分显著高于后者;男女大学生相比,女大学生在抑郁和恐怖两个因子上的均分显著高于男大学生。     

Emotional Processing Therapy for post traumatic stress disorder

While prolonged exposure is considered one of the “gold standard” and recommended treatments for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), it has been poorly utilised in clinical practice. Individuals with PTSD often find it too distressing to confront memories, and therapists may be uncomfortable using the therapy. A new Emotional Processing Therapy is described in which an emotional approach to prolonged exposure provides individuals with a new insight into how trauma is processed. A conceptual analysis of exposure suggests that it is exposure to distressing emotional experiences which is a key element. Viewing it as an emotion-based therapy, allows the creative addition of new emotional elements. Through exploring the individual’s emotional processing style, previously learned and unhelpful patterns can be addressed, and the addition of an “emotional preparation” phase helps them understand why it is important to face emotionally distressing memories before exposure sessions begin. Emotional Processing Therapy is intuitive and makes sense to those affected by PTSD. It is framed in an emotional context and is presented as part of a lifestyle change that may reduce the likelihood of psychological problems developing in the future.     

Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist

Several studies have employed confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to examine the latent structure of the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Checklist (PCL; Weathers, Litz, Herman, Huska, & Keane, 1993), a measure that assesses PTSD symptomatology. Findings have failed to support the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed., text revision [DSM–IV–TR]; American Psychiatric Association, 2000) PTSD model, consisting of reexperiencing, avoidance/numbing, and arousal factors, and no consensus has emerged regarding the best fitting alternative model. Additionally, most studies have utilized homogeneous trauma samples. This study used CFA to examine the PCL factor structure in a sample with exposure to various traumatic events. Superior fit was demonstrated by a model specifying reexperiencing, avoidance, dysphoria, and arousal factors.     

The Five-Factor model of personality and work behaviour in Greece

This study explores the validity of the five-factor model of personality (FFM) in occupational settings in Greece, examining its relationship to employees' overall job performance, job satisfaction, organizational citizenship behaviour, and generic work competencies. Two hundred and twenty-seven employees from various Greek SMEs participated in the study completing a personality and a job satisfaction measure. Their supervisors completed three questionnaires assessing their performance and their work competencies. Some of the most significant results of this study were the strong links identified between personality and job satisfaction and the moderating effect of job type on the criterion-related validity of some personality dimensions. These results are discussed in terms of the FFM literature taking into consideration the strong effect of Greek culture. The theoretical and practical implications for research and practice in Greece are also discussed.     

练习促进内隐策略生成：其发生过程及应用特点

本研究通过设置隐含算术策略的问题情境,比较不同顺序和设置条件的进程段行为反应和ERP数据差异,考察被试在不断练习条件下对隐含策略的习得过程及迁移应用特点。结果：被试在对隐含策略无意识的情况下,第1-4练习进程段的反应时、错误率显著低于第5进程段（探测段）。同时,不同进程段诱发的部分ERPs特征也呈现有规律的变化。结论：在存在隐含策略的算术策略任务情境中,通过练习人们可以在无意识情况下逐渐生成内隐策略,诱发的ERP成分P200、N400s可以部分地反映其生成过程。已生成的内隐策略,能部分地应用到相应的新情境中。