An experimental analysis of the civil commitment recommendations of psychologists and psychiatrists

Legal and nonlegal factors influencing the civil commitment recommendations of psychologists and psychiatrists separately and as a whole were investigated using an experimental design. One hundred and seventy-six psychologists and psychiatrists made recommendations for or against commitment for a series of clinical vignettes wherein the five facets of commitment criterion, legal committability, clinical treatability, alternative resources and presence of psychosis were systematically varied. Results revealed that all facets contributed independently and in combination to the commitment decisions of participants as a whole. It was concluded that mental health professionals may utilize a variety of types of information, beyond the relevant legal criteria, in making actual decisions to initiate civil commitments.     

Written spelling agraphia

When a disorder of single word writing is seen in conjunction with preserved oral spelling and intact written grapheme formation ("written spelling agraphia"), the deficit may be presumed to lie somewhere between letter choice and written motor output. Two potential deficits are considered: (1) visual letter codes are not activated properly and (2) the information contained within properly activated visual letter codes fails to reach intact graphic motor patterns. Two patients with written spelling agraphia were each given a series of tests aimed at distinguishing between the two possibilities. Results suggest that the written spelling agraphia seen in these two patients arises from different underlying deficits. The results are discussed in terms of the patients' CT scan lesion sites, which were markedly different.     

Influence of sport participation upon sex role orientation of caucasian males and their attitudes toward women

Differences in psychological androgyny and attitudes toward women were examined in male Caucasian intercollegiate contact and noncontact sport athletes and male Caucasian college nonathletes. Contact athletes in the sports of football and wrestling, noncontact athletes in the sports of baseball and track and field, and nonathletes completed the Attitudes Toward Women Scale (ATWS) and the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) to assess egalitarian attitudes toward women and sex role orientation. Results of analyses of variance (ANOVAs) on the ATWS indicate that athletes as a group possessed more conservative, traditional attitudes toward women than did nonathletes, but that no differences existed between contact sport athletes and noncontact sport athletes. Results of ANOVAs and chi-square analyses on the BSRI indicated no differences between groups regarding sex role orientation based upon self-perceptions of masculinity and femininity.     

The effects of staff self-management on positive social interactions in a group home setting

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a participative management (self-management) procedure directed toward increasing the frequency of positive interactions between direct-care staff and group home residents. A component of the self-management procedure, goal setting, was also evaluated. This study took place in two group homes housing a total of 16 male and female adults with moderate to mild mental retardation. Ten direct-care staff served as subjects. It was found that self-management produced an increase in the frequency of positive interactions of staff and residents, but did not produce changes in other behaviors being measured (e.g., negative interactions, self-stimulation, etc.). Goal setting did not result in changes in positive interactions or other target behaviors. Reasons for the different results of self-management versus goal-setting are discussed and further research is suggested.     

Making family therapy easier for the therapist: burnout prevention

Burnout prevention for family therapists can be enhanced by careful consideration of the degree of responsibility taken by the therapist contrasted with responsibility placed on the family. Attention to issues of expectations, role definition, sharing of feelings, and therapeutic ambition can ease the strain on the therapist.     

Physical self-efficacy and actualization

In his theorizing about self-actualization, Maslow speculated that physical ability and physical self-confidence were two aspects of cooperative dominance which were associated positively with actualization. These aspects of dominance bear close resemblance to the Perceived Physical Ability (PPA) and the Physical Self-Presentation Confidence (PSPC) dimensions of the Physical Self-Efficacy (PSE) Inventory. Accordingly, the PPA and PSPC scores of undergraduate men and women were correlated with their scores on the Personal Orientation Inventory (POI), a popular measure of actualization, to test Maslow's hypotheses. The results showed that, contrary to Maslow's claims, PPA is not a positive correlate of self-actualization. However, strong support was found for Maslow's contention that high-PSPC individuals are more likely to be actualizing than low-PSPC people. Also, Maslow's hypothesis that actualizers are high in global sensation seeking (SS) was tested. The data indicated that only male actualizers were high in various aspects of SS, but female actualizers were not. Multiple regression analyses revealed further that both SS and PSPC are primary contributors to POI for men, but only PSPC contributes significantly to POI for women. Discussion focused on the reasons why research findings showing that increases in physical fitness lead to increases in self-esteem cannot be used to support the view that physical fitness and actualization are linked positively.     

Visual information processing speed in hypnotized and nonhypnotized subjects

Using a backward-masking paradigm with a bias-free and ceiling-free psychophysical task, we tested hypnotized and control subjects for speed of visual information processing. Approximately half of each group received visual imagery suggestions in an attempt to influence attention. Imagery produced no significant differential effect. Although an absence of a hypnotizability-performance relationship was in keeping with findings of a previous study, those subjects in the present study who performed under hypnosis were, as a group, significantly superior to the other subjects in speed of information processing.     

Families of Adolescent Drug Abusers Are “Rigid”: Are These Families Either “Disengaged” or “Enmeshed,” or Both?

The FACES instrument, based on Olson's Circumplex Model of family functioning, was administered to 96 adolescent drug-abuse clients and their parents. The majority of these families categorized themselves as "disengaged" (rather than "enmeshed") on the cohesion dimension, and as "rigid" (rather than "chaotic") on the adaptability dimension. These findings were unexpected as they were substantially different from published findings on families with other types of problems. Family therapists, utilizing Olson's Clinical Rating Scale for the Circumplex Model, characterized significantly more of these same families as "enmeshed," rather than "disengaged." Possible explanations for the difference between the therapists' perceptions and the families' self-perceptions are discussed.     

Target Groups for Preventing AIDS Among Intravenous Drug Users

The acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) has rapidly become the most serious medical consequence of injecting illicit drugs. Its potential impact on intravenous (IV) drug use is enormous. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV, also known as HTLV-III and LAV), the virus that causes AIDS, appears, usually, to lead to lifelong infection. At present there is no effective treatment, and the treatments under development may require lifelong antiviral therapy. Since most of the antibody produced in response to HIV infection does not neutralize the virus, and since there is substantial genetic variation in the virus, it will be difficult to develop a vaccine. Even after vaccines are developed, testing their safety and efficacy will be formidable problems. Until either effective treatment or vaccines are developed, control of the epidemic among IV drug users must be attempted through behavior change/prevention efforts. In this paper we will review the epidemiology of AIDS among IV drug users and characteristics of the IV drug-use subculture relevant to prevention efforts. We will then identify different target groups for these prevention efforts, present available evidence about behavior change in these groups, and then briefly discuss how to prevent transmission of HIV to heterosexual partners who are not themselves IV drug users and to the children of IV drug users.