Functional analysis in public schools: a summary of 90 functional analyses

Several review and epidemiological studies have been conducted over recent years to inform behavior analysts of functional analysis outcomes. None to date have closely examined demographic and clinical data for functional analyses conducted exclusively in public school settings. The current paper presents a data-based summary of 90 functional analyses conducted in public school settings from 2006 through 2009 for 69 students. Specifically, we present data on gender, age, race, diagnosis, topography of target behaviors, number of conditions, duration of sessions, duration of analysis, functional outcomes, setting, and person serving the role of therapist. Results suggest that functional analyses in schools are possible, practical, and produce results that are comparable to those in past research.     

Public good provision in inter‐team conflicts: Effects of asymmetry and profit‐sharing rule

A fundamental problem in organizations is designing mechanisms for eliciting voluntary contributions from individual members of a team who are entrapped in a social dilemma. To solve the problem, we utilize a game‐theoretical framework that embeds the traditional within‐team social dilemma in a between‐team competition for an exogenously determined prize. In equilibrium, such competition enhances the incentive to contribute, thereby reducing free‐riding. Extending existing literature, we focus on asymmetric competitions between teams of unequal size, and competitions between more than two teams. Comparing two protocols for sharing the prize—egalitarian and proportional profit‐sharing rules—we find that (i) free‐riding diminishes and (ii) team members contribute more toward their team's effort when they belong to the larger team and when the profit‐sharing rule is proportional. (iii) Additionally, under the egalitarian profit‐sharing rule team members contribute more than predicted by the equilibrium solution. We discuss implications of our findings for eliciting contributions in competitive environments. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

他人定向变量影响青少年孤独感和社交焦虑:人际能力作中介

利用自我意识量表中的公众自我意识分量表和社交焦虑分量表,人际能力量表和青少年孤独感量表调查465名高中生,探索社会观点采择、公众自我意识和同伴交往中的人际能力对青少年情绪适应的影响。结果表明:青少年社会观点采择和公众自我意识直接正向预测其人际能力和社交焦虑;人际能力分别负向预测青少年的孤独感和社交焦虑;人际能力在青少年的社会观点采择和孤独感之间,以及在公众自我意识和孤独感之间分别起完全中介作用;人际能力在青少年的社会观点采择和社交焦虑之间,以及在公众自我意识和社交焦虑之间分别起部分中介作用。进一步分析表明,社会观点采择以及公众自我意识对不同情境下的人际能力的影响存在显著差异。讨论了从社会观点采择和公众自我意识出发,提高青少年人际能力,对缓解其孤独感和社交焦虑的重要意义。     

Negative self-focused cognitions mediate the effect of trait social anxiety on state anxiety

The cognitive model of social anxiety predicts that negative self-focused cognitions increase anxiety when anticipating social threat. To test this prediction, 36 individuals were asked to anticipate and perform a public-speaking task. During anticipation, negative self-focused cognitions or relaxation were experimentally induced while self-reported anxiety, autonomic arousal (heart rate, heart rate variability, skin conductance level), and acoustic eye-blink startle response were assessed. As predicted, negative self-focused cognitions mediated the effects of trait social anxiety on self-reported anxiety and heart rate variability during negative anticipation. Furthermore, trait social anxiety predicted increased startle amplitudes. These findings support a central assumption of the cognitive model of social anxiety.     

Between private and public: Towards a conception of the transitional subject

Elaborating upon Winnicott’s seminal contributions on the transitional object, the author proposes a conception of a transitional subject in which the patient comes into being simultaneously between private and public, subjective creation and material life, me and not‐me. By anchoring subjective creation in the real world (including the body), the patient creates a basis for authentic psychesoma as well as for both personal and symbolic contributions to the world beyond omnipotence, including the world of other subjects. In this sense, intersubjective life is seen as predicated upon transitionality, with the patient seen as simultaneously coming into being as a distinctly personal subject and, in part, as a symbol. Clinical phenomenology is described and is interpreted with respect to the need within psychoanalysis itself for a third, and for a realm of meaning‐creation that lies beyond privacy, omnipotence, and the dyad.     

MUSLIM PERSPECTIVES ON STEM CELL RESEARCH AND CLONING

In Islam, the acquisition of knowledge is a form of worship. But human achievement must be exercised in conformity with God's will. Warnings against feelings of superiority often are coupled with the command to remain within the confines of God's laws and limits. Because of the fear of arrogance and disregard of the balance created by God, any new knowledge or discovery must be applied with careful consideration to maintaining balance in the creation. Knowledge must be applied to ascertain equity and justice for all of humanity. Research in Islam must be linked to the broad ethical base set forth in the Qur'an and the Sunnah. Whether embryonic stem cell research or cloning is ethically acceptable in Islam depends on the benefits derived from such applications. What is most important for the scholars is to adhere to the concepts of compassion, mercy, and benefit to everyone.     

Fairness and bargaining power in threshold public goods experiments

Experiments on three two‐person threshold public good provision games, namely, the simultaneous, sequential, and dictator games, are conducted to explore the motives behind giving. Players who move simultaneously are endowed with equal bargaining power, and players who move first are endowed with more bargaining power than players who move subsequently. Dictators are indubitably endowed with complete bargaining power. Since the differences between the bargaining powers of two players increase from the simultaneous to the sequential to the dictator game, comparisons among games allow us to trace whether the contribution behavior is motivated by fairness or is simply due to the strategic concern. The experimental evidence shows that the strategic concern explains the overall contribution behavior better than the motive of fairness. However, in the final round 26% of the dictators share the threshold evenly with their opponents, suggesting that some subjects do play fairly. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

流动儿童的压力和社会支持状况及社会支持保护作用的研究

对流动儿童的领悟社会支持状况以及流动儿童的社会支持在压力与心理适应之间的关系中是否起调节作用进行了探索。给334名流动儿童和237名城市儿童及其家长施测青少年生活事件量表（ASLEC）、领悟社会支持量表（PSSS）和Achenbach儿童行为量表（家长版）（CBCL）。结果发现,流动儿童的领悟社会支持得分显著低于城市儿童,层次多元回归分析的结果表明,社会支持在压力与心理适应之间的关系中起调节作用,表明社会支持对流动儿童的心理适应起保护作用。     

公共领域中的集群效能研究述评

公共领域中的集群效能是指公众通过分享所在地区的公共信任和社会凝聚力, 从而对于共同努力实现所在地区特定目标的一种集体信念和预期。公共领域中的集群效能有其独特的测量方法和研究结论, 集群效能的相关前因变量可以分为社会认同、社会经济地位和社会参与, 集群效能的相关影响作用研究可以分为公共安全、政治行为、公共卫生三个领域内的研究。文章最后指出未来在公共领域中集群效能研究有必要加强作用机制、动态变化等方面的探讨。     

医疗社会工作：现实意义和发展趋向

医疗社会工作是社会工作专业的重要实务领域之一,在西方发达国家的医疗事业中扮演着不可替代的角色,具有解决患者及其家属问题、处理医患关系,并促进公共卫生政策的改善等多种功能。从我国目前的发展来看,尚处于起步阶段,还有诸多需要努力的方面,包括完善相关政策、提高服务质量、修正教育模式、突出中国特色等。