Extending the study of autobiographical memory: Thinking back about life across the life span.

By combining a life perspective with a life span perspective, the authors present a basic framework for extending the study of autobiographical memory. The life perspective suggests not only the consideration of individual episodes of memory but how they are strung together into a life. The life span perspective takes into account the chronological age and life context of individuals and how these factors might affect abilities and motivations related to the use of autobiographical memory. The authors discuss how these 2 perspectives are combined to yield a useful framework for studying autobiographical memory and present 2 examples of work done using this framework. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Freer to be me: Development of executives at midlife.

This article describes a study of 8 senior executives who participated in a rigorous executive development process that includes 360-degree feedback from colleagues and family members. The study aimed to shed light on this practice of executive development by conducting an in-depth examination of the clients' experience of the process. In addition, the study assessed the degree to which these executives showed evidence of individuation, which is the developmental task that Jung associated with mid-life. Personal interviews and the Thematic Apperception Test were the primary methods used for data collection. Findings related to gender differences are reported in the article. The study suggested that executives have the potential to benefit, personally and professionally, from participation in this kind of development, at least as they see it. Implications for practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Metaphysics and Psychology: A Problem of the Personal.

This paper attempts to reexamine the relationship between metaphysics and psychology. It proposes that the rejection of metaphysics in psychology is due to a conception of metaphysics in more traditional terms, despite the fact that much of psychology is influenced by this traditional metaphysics. Our proposal is to look at metaphysics in a way that emphasizes the personal. By accomplishing this paradigm shift, psychology can be seen as intrinsically harmonious with an underlying metaphysical position accurately reflecting lived human existence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Exploring existential meaning: Optimizing human development across the life span.

Reviews the book, Exploring existenial meaning: Optimizing human development across the life span by Gary T. Reker and Kerry Chamberlain (2000). The form of personal meaning that constitutes the main focus for the volume is existential meaning, characterized by the editors in terms of "attempts to understand how events in life fit into a larger context," which involves both "a sense of coherence (order, reason for existence) and a sense of purpose (mission in life, direction)" (p. 1). This is a remarkably well integrated collection of essays, given the usual standards for edited volumes. The contributed chapters, sandwiched between the editors' brief Introduction and their longer integrative chapter at the end, are organized into distinct sections addressing, respectively, theoretical and conceptual issues, empirical research, and applications and interventions. This volume not only provides a comprehensive survey of recent work on existential meaning but is likely to have a broader appeal as well. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Positive and negative life changes following sexual assault.

A longitudinal study was conducted to investigate (a) the timing and course of posttraumatic growth and (b) the relations between positive and negative life changes and posttraumatic distress among recent female sexual assault survivors (N=171). Most survivors reported positive change even at 2 weeks postassault. Positive changes generally increased over time and negative changes decreased, although change in different domains followed different courses and there was significant individual variability in change patterns. Both positive and negative changes were associated with distress in expected ways, although the relations with negative changes were stronger. The least distress at 12 months was reported by those who noted positive life changes at both 2 weeks and 12 months postassault. Implications for theory and research on posttraumatic growth are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Hope and Mortality: Psychodynamic Approaches to AIDS and HIV.

Review of book: Mark J. Blechner. Hope and Mortality: Psychodynamic Approaches to AIDS and HIV. Hillsdale, NJ: Analytic Press, 1997, 288 pp. Reviewed by Morton Israel. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The psychology of existence: An integrative, clinical perspective.

Reviews the book, The psychology of existence: An integrative, clinical perspective by Kirk J. Schneider and Rollo May (see record 1994-98741-000). There are three goals of this book: 1) to introduce the present generation of graduate students to the richness and value of existential psychotherapy, 2) to show how existential principles and treatments can be integrated with other clinical perspectives and treatments, and 3) to provide a critical link between these goals of integrating existential theory with other clinical perspectives and therapies and showing how existential principles and treatments are applied in real cases. Dividing the text into three parts, the authors present the historical roots of existentialism and recent and future trends in existential-integrative psychology. In addition, they address therapeutic applications. The reviewer concludes that this book is a creative contribution to therapy literature. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Eriksonian lifespan theory and life history theory: An integration using the example of identity formation.

Furthering the cause of consilience in the social sciences a model is proposed in which Eriksonian life span theory and life history theory are integrated. The model explains individual differences in the Eriksonian developmental stages as a function of the individual differences in developmental trajectories of life history theory as conceptualized by Belsky, Steinberg, and Draper (1991). Erikson's fifth stage of identity formation is used to examine the model, with the results of three studies presented to illustrate the viability of the model. Future research should examine other aspects of the model and the relationship between the developmental trajectories in life history theory and the Eriksonian stages in greater detail. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Existing: An introduction to existential thought.

Reviews the book, Existing: An introduction to existential thought by Steven Luper (2000). This book is an anthology of existentialism. It presents work from Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Heidegger, and Sartre, as well as generous selections many other important 19th and 20th century existentialist authors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Long-term effects of the death of a child on parents' adjustment in midlife.

The death of a child is a traumatic event that can have long-term effects on the lives of parents. This study examined bereaved parents of deceased children (infancy to age 34) and comparison parents with similar backgrounds (n = 428 per group) identified in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. An average of 18.05 years following the death, when parents were age 53, bereaved parents reported more depressive symptoms, poorer well-being, and more health problems and were more likely to have experienced a depressive episode and marital disruption than were comparison parents. Recovery from grief was associated with having a sense of life purpose and having additional children but was unrelated to the cause of death or the amount of time since the death. The results point to the need for detection and intervention to help those parents who are experiencing lasting grief. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward a developmental psychology of Sehnsucht (life longings): The optimal (utopian) life.

The topic of an optimal or utopian life has received much attention across the humanities and the arts but not in psychology. The German concept of Sehnsucht captures individual and collective thoughts and feelings about one's optimal or utopian life. Sehnsucht (life longings; LLs) is defined as an intense desire for alternative states and realizations of life. Presenting a first effort at capturing this phenomenon, the authors conceptualize LLs as composed of 6 interrelated core characteristics: (a) utopian conceptions of ideal development; (b) sense of incompleteness and imperfection of life; (c) conjoint time focus on the past, present, and future; (d) ambivalent (bittersweet) emotions; (e) reflection and evaluation of one's life; and (f) symbolic richness. Self-report data from 299 adults (19-81 years) support the postulated structure and support predictions regarding the functional role of Sehnsucht. Having LLs was evaluated as providing direction to development and helping to manage life's incompleteness. At the same time, the frequent and intense experience of LLs was associated with lower well-being. When LLs were perceived as controllable, however, this negative association disappeared. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction to the special section: Growth following highly stressful life events--Current status and future directions.

Interest in the phenomenon of perceived growth following highly stressful experiences continues to proliferate. Already there is abundant evidence that perceptions of growth are commonly reported, often by the majority of people experiencing even the most traumatic of events. However, much remains to be learned about perceptions of growth. In this article, the authors pose 7 major theoretical and empirical questions regarding perceived growth, including issues of measurement, validity, mechanisms, links with well-being, and clinical implications. The authors summarize the current status of psychologists' knowledge, including articles in the present special section, and conclude that there is much to learn about perceived growth. The authors end with suggestions for future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Life reflection: A social–cognitive analysis of life review.

Life review and reminiscence are 2 concepts used to describe the phenomenon of people reflecting on their lives. Rather than used synonymously, these 2 concepts need to be distinguished on the basis of a social–cognitive process analysis. For that purpose, life reflection is introduced as a new term. Evidence shows that life reflection is a social–cognitive process that begins in adolescence and continues across the life span. It serves different functions across the life span, but at all ages it contributes to self-insight and a self-critical perspective. Striving for new insights about oneself and about life in general is challenging and taxing. Reflecting together with a trusted person, thus, may facilitate the process. A study testing and supporting some of these propositions is reported. Results are discussed in the context of lifespan theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An existential function of enemyship: Evidence that people attribute influence to personal and political enemies to compensate for threats to control.

Perceiving oneself as having powerful enemies, although superficially disagreeable, may serve an important psychological function. On the basis of E. Becker’s (1969) existential theorizing, the authors argue that people attribute exaggerated influence to enemies as a means of compensating for perceptions of reduced control over their environment. In Study 1, individuals dispositionally low in perceived control responded to a reminder of external hazards by attributing more influence to a personal enemy. In Study 2, a situational threat to control over external hazard strengthened participants’ belief in the conspiratorial power of a political enemy. Examining moderators and outcomes of this process, Study 3 showed that participants were especially likely to attribute influence over life events to an enemy when the broader social system appeared disordered, and Study 4 showed that perceiving an ambiguously powerful enemy under conditions of control threat decreased perceptions of external risk and bolstered feelings of personal control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gold medal award for life achievement in the practice of psychology: Herbert J. Freudenberger.

The American Psychological Foundation (APF) Gold Medal Awards recognize distinguished and enduring records of accomplishments in 4 areas of psychology. The 1999 recipient of the Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in the Practice of Psychology is Herbert J. Freudenberger. Freudenberger is cited for his exemplary professionalism as a psychologist and psychoanalyst dedicated to the alleviation of human suffering; for the sensitivity and conceptual genius that enabled him to establish the clinical construct of burnout; for his dedication to expanding our understanding of human behavior through theoretical contributions, teaching, and voluminous interdisciplinary and international publications; and for his innovative treatment of those afflicted with substance abuse problems. A citation, biography, and selected bibliography of Freudenberger's work are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A random walk down university avenue: Life paths, life events, and personality trait change at the transition to university life.

This longitudinal study examined the relation between continuity and change in the Big Five personality traits and life events. Approximately 2,000 German students were tracked from high school to university or to vocational training or work, with 3 assessments over 4 years. Life events were reported retrospectively at the 2nd and 3rd assessment. Latent curve analyses were used to assess change in personality traits, revealing 3 main findings. First, mean-level changes in the Big Five factors over the 4 years were in line with the maturity principle, indicating increasing psychological maturity from adolescence to young adulthood. Second, personality development was characterized by substantive individual differences relating to the life path followed; participants on a more vocationally oriented path showed higher increases in conscientiousness and lower increases in agreeableness than their peers at university. Third, initial level and change in the Big Five factors (especially Neuroticism and Extraversion) were linked to the occurrence of aggregated as well as single positive and negative life events. The analyses suggest that individual differences in personality development are associated with life transitions and individual life experiences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

A journal of interest: Review of Existential Psychology and Psychiatry.

The Review was founded in 1961 to bring an existential and phenomenological approach to the understanding of human experience. With a primary focus on the psychotherapeutic endeavor, the Review publishes original essays and first translations from the fields of literature and philosophy, as well as from psychology and psychiatry proper. The Review has published essays by nearly every major figure in the world, including Viktor Frankl, Eugene Gendlin, Jacques Lacan, R.D. Laing, RolloMay, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Jacob Needleman, Carl Rogers, and Jean-Paul Sartre. In addition to continuing to publish original essays on a wide variety of general topics, in recent years the Review has published a series of special issues devoted to major figures in the field of existential psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Work preferences, life values, and personal views of top math/science graduate students and the profoundly gifted: Developmental changes and gender differences during emerging adulthood and parenthood.

Work preferences, life values, and personal views of top math/science graduate students (275 men, 255 women) were assessed at ages 25 and 35 years. In Study 1, analyses of work preferences revealed developmental changes and gender differences in priorities: Some gender differences increased over time and increased more among parents than among childless participants, seemingly because the mothers’ priorities changed. In Study 2, gender differences in the graduate students’ life values and personal views at age 35 were compared with those of profoundly gifted participants (top 1 in 10,000, identified by age 13 and tracked for 20 years: 265 men, 84 women). Again, gender differences were larger among parents. Across both cohorts, men appeared to assume a more agentic, career-focused perspective than women did, placing more importance on creating high-impact products, receiving compensation, taking risks, and gaining recognition as the best in their fields. Women appeared to favor a more communal, holistic perspective, emphasizing community, family, friendships, and less time devoted to career. Gender differences in life priorities, which intensify during parenthood, anticipated differential male-female representation in high-level and time-intensive careers, even among talented men and women with similar profiles of abilities, vocational interests, and educational experiences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Supervising the reflective practitioner: An essential guide to theory and practice.

Reviews the book, Supervising the reflective practitioner: An essential guide to theory and practice by Joyce Scaife (see record 2010-09732-000). This review begins with an elaboration on the two key terms in the title. First, the book is about supervising rather than being or becoming a reflective practitioner. As Scaife notes, much of supervision involves modeling, and therefore, a supervisor must be reflective in order to encourage the student to become more reflective. However, a psychodynamic practitioner would think of this as parallel process, so that the reflection in supervision might ultimately be translated into reflection in psychotherapy. The more important term in the title is reflective practitioner. This immediately draws to mind the concept of reflective practitioner introduced by Donald Sch?n (1983), and there are some very important parallels that the reviewer points out. In conclusion, the reader will be rewarded by multiple exercises that will be useful in supervising and in classroom teaching. Scaife very helpfully points out that assessment often is contrary to the spirit of reflection, because the student attempting to satisfy the instructor is not attending to his or her own needs, as is necessary for successful reflection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changes in executive control across the life span: Examination of task-switching performance.

A study was conducted to examine changes in executive control processes over the life span. More specifically, changes in processes responsible for preparation and interference control that underlie the ability to flexibly alternate between two different tasks were examined. Individuals (N?=?152) ranging in age from 7 to 82 years participated in the study. A U-shaped function was obtained for switch costs (i.e., the time required to switch between tasks compared with a repeated-task baseline), with larger costs found for young children and older adults. Switch costs were reduced with practice, particularly for children. All age groups benefited from increased preparation time, with larger benefits observed for children and older adults. Adults benefited to a greater extent than children when the interval between the response to one task and the cue indicating which task to perform next was lengthened, which suggested faster decay of interference from the old task set for adults than for children. A series of hierarchical analyses indicated that the age-related variance in task-switching performance is independent, at least in part, from the age-related variance in other cognitive processes such as perceptual speed and working memory. The results are discussed in terms of the development and decline of executive control processes across the life span. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)