DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION OF AN INFANT-CARE TRAINING PROGRAM WITH FIRST-TIME FATHERS

We evaluated the effectiveness of a multicomponent package in training infant-care skills to first-time fathers. After developing and socially validating a set of infant-care skills, we assessed the effects of training in a hospital-based program with expectant fathers (Experiment 1) and in a home-based program with fathers having varied degrees of experience with their infants (Experiment 2). In both experiments, a multiple probe design demonstrated that the training package was responsible for producing criterion performance by the expectant and first-time fathers. A 1-month generalization probe in Experiment 1 showed that the effects transferred across training conditions (training doll to human infant) and settings (hospital to home). An increase in the number of infant-stimulation activities performed by fathers was also observed in both experiments.     

DEFINING,VALIDATING, AND INCREASING INDICES OF HAPPINESS AMONG PEOPLE WITH PROFOUND MULTIPLE DISABILITIES

In this study we attempted to operationalize, measure, and increase happiness among people with profound disabilities. Happiness indices were defined and observed among 5 individuals. Validation measures indicated that (a) increases in happiness indices were observed when individuals were presented with most preferred stimuli relative to least preferred stimuli, (b) increases in unhappiness indices were observed when they were presented with least preferred relative to most preferred stimuli, and (c) practitioner ratings of participant happiness coincided with observed indices. Subsequently, classroom staff increased happiness indices through presentation and contingent withdrawal of activities. Results suggested that a behavioral approach can enhance happiness as one aspect of quality of life among people with profound disabilities. Research directions are offered that focus on using a behavioral approach to investigate other private events that are important among people with disabilities.     

Basic human values: The ethos for methodology

This paper draws on the personal experiences of part of a research project where the original methodology was flawed and needed to change to properly encompass the lives and experiences of the people who the research was for, namely users of mental health services living in supported housing. The change in methodology involved a recognition that the research could not be termed ‘value-free’; that researchers are not objective. It is argued that it was important to demonstrate that the information obtained in the research was ‘valid’, and that despite the subjective nature of the research, there are steps that can be taken to convince others that the information received is ‘real’. It is further argued that the traditional approach to research of separating theory (or knowledge) from practice was not only inappropriate in this sort of research, but is a false notion in any sort of action research that aims to promote change. The importance of the influence and power of service providers in action research is recognised, as well as the constraints placed on short-term funded projects. It was important for the methodology to be non-oppressive so that researchers adopted an open and honest approach and for researchers to become involved with the research participants. The implications of this ‘involvement’ are discussed. There is a concluding discussion about whether non-users of mental health services can be considered as allies in research. It is argued that all oppressed groups need their allies and if the research is led by basic human values, then working alongside people who depend on services can lead to emancipatory outcomes.     

Factors affecting the social validity of a role-play test of children's social skills

The social validity of a role-play test of children's social skills, the Social Skills Test for Children (SST-C), was evaluated by 63 subjects (33 adults and 30 children) who subjectively judged the quality of three children's role-play performances. The three children were selected as having high, medium, or low social skill based upon their performance on the SST-C. Assessment of the effects of subject characteristics upon judgments of social skill suggested that similarities in age and race between the subjects and the three children tended to diminish perceived differences in social skill among the three children. It was concluded that the social validity of the role-play test was supported only if the persons evaluating social behavior were dissimilar in age and racial characteristics from the persons who were being evaluated.     

Training public-speaking behavior: an experimental analysis and social validation

The effect of an instructional package on public-speaking behaviors was analyzed in two experiments. The instructional package was designed to teach public-speaking trainees to look at the audience, make gestures, and perform a number of speaking behaviors. The results of Experiment I, with a university student serving as the trainee, showed that the percentage of each category of public-speaking target behavior increased only after the instructional package was introduced for that category. The results of Experiment 2, with three low-income paraprofessional staff members of a neighborhood service center serving as trainees, showed that the percentage of target behaviors increased after the instructional package was introduced for the respective trainee. Audience ratings of public-speaking performance were correlated with direct observations of target responses. All trainees showed marked improvements in audience ratings from pretraining to posttraining. This study demonstrated an effective procedure for training public-speaking behaviors.     

TRAINING COUNSELING SKILLS: AN EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS AND SOCIAL VALIDATION

A community development perspective suggests the value of using local resources to solve local problems. Two low-income staff of a community service center served as nonprofessional counselors after receiving a training program consisting of written instructions, practice, and performance feedback. The effects of the 40-hour training program were positive for both counseling and problem-solving skills. There was also evidence of generalization of counseling performance across clients, problems, and time. In addition, expert judges' ratings of performance were obtained as a measure of social validity. These findings suggest that the training procedures are effective in enhancing the counseling and problem-solving skills of low-income nonprofessionals.     

Argentine validation of the Purpose in Life Test / Validación argentina del Test de Propósito en la Vida

Despite the fact that the Purpose in Life Test developed by James Crumbaugh and Leonard Maholick in the 1960s is considered to be one of the most commonly used measures in positive psychology, there are no validations of it into the Argentine context. This paper aims to assess the psychometric properties of PIL in a sample of 336 university students residing in Buenos Aires. The results suggest that PIL has adequate psychometric properties for the Argentine context. The confirmatory factor analysis presents a good fit of the data as proposed by the authors. These results favour the assessment of psychological well-being in this local context. Future studies should use different samples in order to provide more robust support to the construct.     

Capturing the noonday demon: development and validation of the State Boredom Inventory

For centuries, scholars have positioned state boredom as an impediment to organizational productivity and performance given its unpleasant and distracting qualities. However, research on state boredom has been impeded by a lack of definitional consensus and measurement issues. In this article, we sought to advance organizational research on state boredom by developing the State Boredom Inventory (SBI), an 11-item measure grounded in a theoretically derived definition of state boredom. Across five studies using 10 independent samples, we develop the SBI and provide validity evidence for our measure, including content validity and convergent and discriminant validity. Our data support the conceptualization of state boredom as a higher-order multidimensional construct with three underlying dimensions: disengagement, unpleasant low arousal, and inattention.