Self as the feminine principle

In analytical psychology, ego is associated with consciousness and the masculine principle. Although die feminine principle generally characterizes the unconscious, it was not assigned a psychic structure equivalent to the ego. This paper proposes a model of the psyche where self and ego are the major modes of psychic experience. The self as the 'being' mode represents the feminine principle and functions according to primary process; the ego represents 'doing', the masculine principle and secondary process. Feminine and masculine principles are considered to be of equal significance in both men and women and are not limited to gender.
Jung's concept of the self is related to the Hindu metaphysical concepts of Atman and Brahman, whose source was the older Aryan nature-oriented, pagan religion. The prominence of self in analytical psychology and its predominantly 'feminine' symbolism can be understood as Jung's reaction to the psychoanalytic emphasis on ego and to Freud's 'patriarchal' orientation. In Kabbalah, a similar development took place when the feminine principle of the Shekinah emerged in a central, redemptive role, as a mythic compensation to the overtly patriarchal Judaic religion.
In the proposed model of the psyche neither ego nor self represents the psychic totality. The interplay of both psychic modes/principles constitutes the psyche and the individuation process.     

Cultural orientation and psychological well-being in Chinese Americans

Examined cultural orientation in the domains of language proficiency, cultural activity, and social relationship, and its relationship with psychological well-being in a group of 143 Chinese Americans in San Francisco. Four indicators of psychological well-being were utilized, two assessing the experience of distress (depression level and negative affect) and two assessing positive well-being (positive affect and life satisfaction). Domain-specific cultural orientations were found to hold differential relationships with psychological well-being. For instance, bicultural activity orientation predicted the best psychological well-being (regardless as to how it was assessed), but socially separatist individuals experienced less negative affect than assimilated and bicultural respondents. Findings were discussed in the context of the multicultural setting of San Francisco. It is suggested that future research retain separate assessments of domain-specific cultural orientation, examine the contribution of the community's ethnic/cultural composition to its members' cultural orientations (i.e., address the role of person-environment fit) and study their impact on psychological well-being. The data reported here were collected as part of the author's doctoral dissertation. Ricardo F. Munoz and Guillermo Bernal guided and supported the implementation of this study; Sunwoo Lee assisted with the data analysis; and Edison J. Trickett and the anonymous reviewers offered helpful suggestions.     

Anxious attachment and psychological distress in cardiac rehabilitation patients

This study investigated the relevance of anxious attachment to the differentiation of psychologically distressed and non-psychologically distressed cardiac patients. Attachment is a biologically based behavioral system in which proximity to a special other is sought or maintained to achieve a sense of safety and security. Anxious attachment, as the name denotes, fails to achieve the function of attachment in the sense of individuals having little or no confidence in the availability of their attachment figures. Empirically, three scales (feared loss of the attachment figure, proximity seeking and separation protest) capture the features of anxious attachment as elaborated by Bowlby. These scales were administered to 178 cardiac rehabilitation patients drawn from the cardiac rehabilitation program of the Calgary General Hospital. The results indicate that feared loss and proximity seeking differentiated psychologically distressed from non-psychologically distressed patients. The implications of this finding for the understanding of psychologically distressed cardiac patients are discussed.     

Influences of character-based coping style on psychological health

This study explores the moderating effects of early adult character style on correlations between social relationships in adolescence and midlife psychological health. Participants were drawn from the ongoing longitudinal studies at the Institute of Human Development. Individuals who beat the odds of an adverse environment and those who failed to capitalize on beneficial environments were identified and compared at age 30 on the California Psychological Inventory, the Meredith-Millsap Component Scores, and the Thematic Apperception Test. Social relatedness and personal independence were characteristics at age 30 of all subjects who went on to develop good psychological health by age 50. Social relatedness was more associated with overcoming a difficult environment, while self-assurance was more associated with capitalizing on a good one.     

‘community psychology and politics’ by David Smail

Demystification, eschewing roles that disempower others and enhancing accessibility to the tools of knowledge, are consistent with the aims of community and applied social psychology. Although a focus on psychological empowerment can be a distraction from the need for actual power, it can also enhance it. Psychologists who avoid victim blaming and individual causal attribution biases can contribute to the discourse about social change. This requires both a reinterpretation of the known facts, and a reframing of social analysis. Social scientists and professionals are today's theologians and priests. Our power lies in our legitimation as interpreters of social reality. Teaching the psychology of empowerment, participative decision making and informed consent can influence the powerful as well as the powerless.     

中国传统情绪疗法及其应用

系统地探讨了中国传统情绪疗法：情志相胜疗法,相反情绪疗法,激情刺激疗法,与感觉刺激有关的情绪疗法,与别人有关的情绪疗法,顺情从欲疗法,抑情顺理疗法,移情易性疗法,情志导引疗法,七情合参疗法。这些中国传统心理疗法在现代仍有实用价值。     

The role of the psychologist expert witness: Provider of perspective and input

The definition and role of the expert witness is reviewed. Two conceptual systems for viewing the world, the scientific method and the adversarial system, are compared. The reconciliation and integration of these two discrepant systems are discussed in terms of input versus outcome. The rules of evidence, as well as problems of communication between the systems, are reviewed with the aim of providing expert witnesses with a better understanding of effective testimony. Finally, collaboration between the two systems is called for in order to provide guidelines for both neuropsychologists and attorneys.     

EVALUATION OF BIOFEEDBACK IN THE TREATMENT OF BORDERLINE ESSENTIAL HYPERTENSION1

Direct biofeedback of blood pressure was compared with frontal EMG biofeedback and with self-instructed relaxation for the treatment of essential hypertension in a controlled group outcome study. Patients were followed up for four months after the end of treatment. Generalization of treatment effects was assessed through pre- and posttreatment measurements of blood pressure under clinical conditions in a physician's office. There were no significant reductions in diastolic blood pressure. The systolic blood pressure (SBP) of the patients receiving blood pressure biofeedback decreased 8.1 mm mercury (p = 0.07) and the SBP of the patients in the relaxation condition decreased 9.5 mm mercury (p = 0.05). In the generalization measures, there were significant reductions in SBP for the relaxation group. The results are discussed in terms of the general lack of replicability within the area of biofeedback treatment of hypertension.     

THE ROLE OF FEEDBACK IN VOLUNTARY CONTROL OF BLOOD PRESSURE IN INSTRUCTED SUBJECTS1

Forty normal male volunteers were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions and instructed to raise and lower their systolic blood pressure. Subjects received either beat-to-beat feedback contingent on pressure changes, noncontingent beat-to-beat feedback, noncontingent feedback presented randomly with respect to the occurrence of each heart beat, or instructions alone. The order of increase and decrease trial blocks was counterbalanced across groups. Subjects receiving contingent feedback were monetarily rewarded for appropriate pressure changes. Subjects receiving noncontingent feedback received rewards and feedback equal to the mean received by the contingent group. Subjects in the instructions-only condition were also paid this bonus but were informed of their earnings only at the conclusion of the experiment. Results indicated that in the presence of instructions, feedback, whether contingent or noncontingent, added little to subjects' ability to control pressure during a single session. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.     

人工智能辅助下的心理健康新型测评

近年来,人工智能技术的飞速发展及应用催生了"智能化心理健康测评"这一领域。智能化心理健康测评能够弥补传统方法的不足,降低漏诊率并提高诊断效率,这对于心理健康问题的普查及预警具有重大意义。目前,智能化心理健康测评处于初步发展阶段,研究者基于在线行为数据、便携式设备数据等开展主要以数据驱动为导向的探索研究,旨在实现更高的预测准确率,但是测评结果的可解释性等指标尚不够理想。未来的智能化心理健康测评需要强调心理学领域知识和经验的深度介入,提高测评的针对性和精细化程度,加强信效度检验,这对于智能化心理健康测评工具的进一步发展和应用至关重要。