The Development of a Clinical Rating Scale the McMaster Model of Family Functioning

This article describes the development and validation of the McMaster Clinical Rating Scale (MCRS). The MCRS is a 7-item scale designed to be completed by a trained rater after completion of an in-depth interview of the family. We present data from four new studies and review previously published articles concerning the reliability, validity, and clinical utility of the MCRS. Adequate interrater reliability and rater stability were obtained. The MCRS was found to correlate significantly with the self-report Family Assessment Device and to discriminate between families in different phases of a depressive disorder.     

TEAM-BASED EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT PROGRAMS: EFFECTS OF DESIGN AND ADMINISTRATION

In recent years, many organizations have attempted to pursue continuous improvement through team-based employee involvement programs (EIPs). As a result, increased practical emphasis has been placed on how to design and administer EIPs, though empirical work has been slow to emerge. In the present research, a pilot study of 68 EIP administrators was used to identify those design and administrative variables thought to be associated with EIP effectiveness. Data were then collected from 72 EIP teams in two organizations and associated with participant and supervisory assessments of EIP effectiveness. Results suggest that the significant predictors of team effectiveness were the degree of openness of a team's information access structure, the degree of heterogeneity in the job functions performed by team members, and the team's size. Implications for EIP research and practice are discussed.     

A Stage Approach to Career Counseling With Christian Women

Almost 75% of married women ages 25–54 years are in the labor force in the United States. Many are in occupations that are below their potential or are not personally satisfying. Lack of role satisfaction can result in depression, but the career issues of women in treatment are often ignored. Christian women may be particularly vulnerable to role dissatisfaction. The authors offer a stage model for assessment of Christian women who present with symptoms of depression, in hopes of addressing issues of role satisfaction from work and lessening depressive symptoms.     

Cognitive Style, Schizophrenia, and the Family: Methodological Implications of Contextual Effects

The study of a single case of a family with one schizophrenic daughter is reported here. A variety of measures were used in the study and it was carried out in a number of different contexts. The study has substantive interest in regard to the inter-connections of schizophrenia and of individual and familial patterns of cognition and perception. In addition it raises important methodological considerations stemming from the variability of the measures across differing contexts.     

A Field Experiment Comparing Anchored and Unanchored Criteria Weights in the Analytic Hierarchy Process

This study reports the results of a field experiment comparing the predictive validity of two approaches to multicriteria assessments: the absolute measurement mode of AHP and the absolute measurement mode of linking pin AHP. The questioning procedures of the two differ only in that the former employs unanchored criteria weight assessments and the latter anchored criteria weight assessments. The decision task required insurance agents to respond to a mailed questionnaire in which they evaluated non-monetary incentives (contests) according to (1) the public recognition received from winning, (2) the criteria for winning and (3) the nature of the reward. There were four levels for each dimension. A between subjects design was used, with each subject receiving one of the two methods. In addition, all subjects divided 100 points among four contests and these hold-out assignments were employed as a validity check. Linking pin AHP was found to be superior to conventional AHP in this experiment, lending weight to the argument that the use of unanchored criteria weights is problematic. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. J. Multi-Crit. Decis. Anal. 6 : 140–149 (1997) No. of Figures: 3. No. of Tables: 5. No. of References: 24.     

A New Question about Color

Philosophers of art have advanced our understanding of the role of color in realistic representation in painting. This article addresses a new question about how color functions expressively in art. I sketch some ways to answer this question, using examples of paintings by Mark Rothko and light art installation works by James Turrell and Olafur Eliasson.     

EFFECTS OF SELF-EFFICACY and GOAL-ORIENTATION TRAINING ON NEGOTIATION SKILL MAINTENANCE: WHAT ARE THE MECHANISMS?

In a replication and extension of Gist, Stevens, and Bavetta (1991), we examined the effects of self-efficacy and a performance- versus a mastery-oriented post-training session on trainees' negotiation skill maintenance. Sixty MBA students received salary-negotiation training and engaged in practice negotiations with a confederate. They then attended either a performance- or a mastery-oriented post-training session. A second practice negotiation was conducted 7 weeks later. Results indicated that mastery-oriented trainees engaged in more interim skill-maintenance activities, planned to exert more effort, and showed more positive affect than did performance-oriented trainees. In addition, self-efficacy interacted with the post-training condition on Time 2 performance: Low self-efficacy trainees performed more poorly than high self-efficacy trainees in the performance- but not in the mastery-oriented post-training condition. Analyses indicated that trainees' cognitive withdrawal mediated this effect. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.