Self‐reported psychopathology in a convicted serial killer

The following paper presents a case study of a convicted serial murderer. Through data from personal correspondence, police reports, a true crime novel, witness statements, medical examiner reports, court appeals, and crime scene reports from the actual murder cases, and most important, a series of psychological self‐report measures, a case study was developed. Included in the psychological measures were tests of general psychopathology, specific tests of psychopathy, anger and aggression scales, and sociological measures related to family, individual, situational, and community risk factors, as well as previous criminal behaviour, including weapon and drug use. The results of these various measures are incorporated into the life history and criminal activity of the individual. The purpose of this research was to develop a more complete psychological report of a serial killer than any other previously reported. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The development of children’s early memory skills

A multitask battery tapping nonverbal memory and language skills was used to assess 60 children at 18, 24, and 30 months of age. Analyses focused on the degree to which language, working memory, and deliberate memory skills were linked concurrently to children’s Elicited Imitation task performance and whether the patterns of association varied across the different ages. Language ability emerged as a predictor of immediate Elicited Imitation performance by 24 months of age and predicted delayed performance at each age. In addition to the contributions of language, children’s abilities to search for and retrieve toys in the deliberate memory task were associated with their immediate Elicited Imitation performance at each age. In addition to language, working memory was positively associated with aspects of both immediate and delayed performance at all ages. The extent to which it was possible to replicate and extend previous cross-sectional work in this longitudinal study is discussed.     

Measuring and reducing college students' procrastination

We examined college students' procrastination when studying for weekly in-class quizzes. Two schedules of online practice quiz delivery were compared using a multiple baseline design. When online study material was made available noncontingently, students usually procrastinated. When access to additional study material was contingent on completing previous study material, studying was more evenly distributed. Overall, the mean gain in percentage correct scores on weekly in-class quizzes relative to pretests was greater during contingent access than during noncontingent access conditions.     

经验合作教学对教师课堂教学影响的实验研究

以"经验合作教学"的校本教师培训的新思路为依据,采用实验组、控制组前后测实验设计,选取初中语文和数学教师共33人,以年级学科组为单位施以为期8个月的经验合作教学干预,运用教育实验法考察经验合作教学对教师课堂教学(包括教学效能感、课堂情绪体验、教学效果)的影响。研究表明:(1)实验学校教师在一般教育效能感和教学效能感两个维度上的得分均较实验前有所提高,且个人教学效能感的提高量大于一般教育效能感;(2)实验学校教师轻松、愉快、满意的积极情绪体验的出现频率提高,失望的消极情绪出现频率降低;(3)实验学校教师在学生评价的课堂教学策略与互动、教学信息的总体把握与反馈两个维度的得分较实验前有所提高。     

Different approaches to understanding patients in general practice in Denmark: a qualitative study

General practitioners (GPs) treat more than 90% of common mental disorders. Their approaches to psychological interventions have been little studied and their process of understanding patients remains unexplored. This qualitative interview and observation study aimed to explore Danish GPs’ approaches to emotional problems and mental disorders in ‘talking therapy’ and in routine consultations. Different typical approaches were identified and could be described using the concept of mentalisation. Some participants used a basic reflective approach but no well-described method. Others were satisfied with the biomedical professional identity and did not engage in patients' emotional problems. The individual participant's approach in talking therapy was mirrored in routine consultations. Training a mentalising or reflective stance might promote more uniform therapeutic approaches to patients' emotional problems.     

Narcissism through the ages: What happens when narcissists grow older?

Three types of adult narcissism, as assessed with Wink’s (1991) observational rating method, were studied over a period of 25 years, with participants from the Intergenerational Studies of the Institute of Human Development, UC Berkeley. Narcissism was assessed on three occasions, from age 34 to age 59. Hypersensitive narcissism was found to decrease, Autonomous narcissism increased, and Willfulness narcissism did not change with age. At age 34, both Willfulness and Autonomous narcissism were related to agentic personality characteristics, but only Autonomous narcissism was related to the communal personality characteristic of empathy. Change in narcissism between age 34 and age 59 was shown to predict change in personality at age 71. The agentic personality characteristics that had been associated with Willfulness narcissism at age 34 were no longer characteristic of those individuals at age 71. In addition, in contrast to Autonomous narcissism, at age 34 Willfulness and Hypersensitivity were associated with emotional maladjustment, and predicted continuing maladjustment and less favorable life outcomes in later life.     

Emotional intelligence and its relation with hedonic and eudaimonic well-being: A prospective study

The primary aim of the current study was to replicate and extend previous findings by examining the relationship between emotional intelligence abilities and levels of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being in a 12-week follow-up study. Participants were 349 undergraduate students who completed an ability measure of emotional intelligence (MSCEIT), personality questionnaires, and hedonic and eudaimonic well-being measures at time 1. After 12 weeks, participants repeated the hedonic and eudaimonic measures at time 2. Focusing first on cross-sectional analysis, we found emotional intelligence scores to be moderately and significantly related to hedonic and eudaimonic well-being measures. Next, we found that ability EI predicted a modest but additional variance in prospective levels of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being over and above personality traits. Also, the explained variance of EI was higher for eudaimonic than for hedonic well-being. These findings provide some preliminary evidence on the prospective value of ability EI in the maintenance of positive mood and better outlook on life (hedonia) and, specifically, in the development of aspects of human functioning (eudaimonia).     

进修人员在双向转诊中作用的研究

我国人口分布范围广,医疗资源主要集中在大、中城市,合理利用有限的医疗资源,解决看病难,看病贵,实现有效转诊,是我们当前面临的一个难题。研究显示：通过进修医生转诊率高,迅速,患者及家属满意率高;对符合转诊要求,需要下转的患儿100例通过进修人员下转患者率96％,直接下转率65％。由此可见通过进修医生对患者进行双向转诊效果...     

My life is a longing: Child abuse and its adult sequelae Results of the Brody longitudinal study from birth to age 30

The psychoanalytically oriented Brody longitudinal study has followed the psychological development of 76 individuals from birth to age 30. Ten suffered severe maltreatment in childhood in the form of rejection and/or physical abuse at the hands of one or both parents. This report describes the effects of child abuse on the emerging personalities of the children, as well as on their adult personalities and mental health. Specifi cally, as adults the maltreated children had signifi cantly more psychiatric illness (typically depressions and anxiety disorders), less mature psychological defense mechanisms, more insecure mental representations of attachment to their parents as indicated by the adult attachment interview, and a lower Global Assessment of Functioning than their well-treated counterparts. Additionally, their prevailing moods were joyless. Case examples show the emergence of symptoms, personality disorders, and defenses over time, as well as the workings of ameliorating infl uences. Several of the maltreated children made relatively successful adaptations as adults, indicating children's potential for resilience. Resilience, however, may be a superfi cial concept, for, in this series of cases, seemingly adequate coping in formerly mistreated children always came at the price of emotional vulnerability and compromised potential.     

意识和无意识的关系--实证的视角

意识和无意识的相互关系曾经是纯粹的哲学问题,科学心理学的诞生促进了对这一问题的实证视角考察。实证取向认为,意识和无意识同属人类心理的机能,并能够在外在的任务操作中表现出来。现代认知心理学发现了对应意识机能的外显过程和对应无意识机能的内隐过程,两者相对独立又共生共存。任何认知过程都是意识和无意识共同作用的产物,两者之间存在复杂的相互作用,并表现出权衡的特点。神经生理学的研究揭示了意识和无意识在发生学意义上可能的先后关系。无意识在心理过程中起的作用是普遍的、抽象的、抗干扰的,而意识则建筑在无意识的基础之上,有着更大的变异性。