Factor analysis of the domain of client expectancies about counseling.

446 college students completed a questionnaire measuring 20 expectancies regarding counseling. After item analysis, the instrument was reduced to 135 items comprising 17 expectancy scales. Scale scores were calculated for each S, and data analyzed using principal-components analysis with varimax rotation. Evidence of 4 expectancy factors was obtained: Personal Commitment, Facilitative Conditions, Counselor Expertise, and Nurturance. To clarify interpretation, scores on the 4 factors were correlated with Ss' responses to 13 items measuring how realistic respondents' expectancies were. (48 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Results of screening for tuberculosis in foreign-born persons applying for adjustment of immigration status

As part of the required screening process of illegal aliens applying for adjustment of status by the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 7,573 persons were evaluated for tuberculous infection by the Denver Department of Health and Hospitals from May 1987 through December 1988. Applicants were screened with tuberculin skin testing, chest radiographs, or both. Review of 6,520 charts that were available found that 4,840 applicants had tuberculin skin tests, of which 2,039 (42 percent) were > or = 10 mm and 1,528 had further evaluation at the Denver Metro Tuberculosis Clinic. Seventy-five percent of the applicants were between the ages of 15 and 34 years, and 91 percent were from Mexico. Evidence of past or current tuberculous infection on chest radiograph was present in 273 (17 percent) and 16 (7 percent) had sputum cultures obtained that identified four new cases of active tuberculosis. Isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) was recommended to 1,029 applicants, of whom 29 (3 percent) were 35 years of age or older; 716 (70 percent) completed at least six months of treatment. We conclude that there is a high prevalence of tuberculous infection in foreign-born persons applying for adjustment of immigration status, but a low prevalence of clinically apparent tuberculosis. This population is an excellent target for IPT, which can be achieved with good success. Proactive screening and preventive therapy is likely to significantly reduce tuberculosis reactivation and morbidity, prevent secondary infection of contacts, and be cost-effective.     

Bias in the Ivory Tower: An unintended consequence of the Buckley Amendment for graduate admissions?

Sought to determine if graduate admissions officers would favor applicants whose credentials appeared in dossiers that were confidential as opposed to open. The dossiers of 253 applicants for graduate study in psychology were examined. Graduate Record Examination scores and grades were used to classify Ss as high or low in academic competence. Other information abstracted from each S's dossier included the doctoral program to which the S had applied, the type of dossier S had submitted (open or confidential), and S's admission status (accepted or rejected). An Ability?×?Doctoral Program?×?Type of Dossier ANOVA of Ss' admission status scores revealed that admissions personnel did favor applicants with confidential dossiers. Moreover, this favoritism was apparent at each level of S competence and in each of the 4 doctoral programs involved. (3 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Physical attractiveness: Interactive effects of counselor and client on counseling processes.

192 college students, selected on the basis of their scores on an attractiveness battery, assumed the role of a client having social skill problems during 3 counseling sessions. Exp I was a factorial design in which the major variables were counselor's physical attractiveness, client's physical attractiveness, and sex of client. Exp II studied the interaction between physical attractiveness of the counselor and client's susceptibility to attractiveness as determinants of outcome. In both experiments, Ss roleplayed a client who interacted with a female counselor. The counselor's physical attractiveness had a major impact on her perceived therapeutic effectiveness and the client's expectancies about future success, irrespective of the client's physical attractiveness or sex. Male clients generally attributed a higher level of skill to the female counselor than did female clients. When the counselor was unattractive, clients who were more susceptible to attractiveness perceived her as less skillful than clients who were less susceptible to attractiveness. Physical attractiveness of the counselor accounted for over 50% of the variance in perceived effectiveness and future expectancy measures in both experiments. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessment and treatment of suicidal clients in a university counseling center.

Two studies addressed assessment and treatment issues pertaining to suicidal student-clients. In Study 1, the theoretical construction and psychometric properties of the Suicide Status Form (SSF) were described. Results suggest that SSF items have good convergent validity, strong criterion-prediction validity, and moderate test-retest reliability. In Study 2, the SSF was applied to a sample of suicidal student-clients. Results suggest differences between client and clinician pretreatment SSF ratings. Client (not clinician) pretreatment SSF ratings could be used to correctly classify clients into acute resolver and chronic nonresolver treatment-outcome groups. Whereas all suicidal student-clients globally improved with treatment, chronic nonresolvers remained suicidally preoccupied throughout the academic year. These findings are discussed with regard to training, clinical practice, and future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cost of comprehensive pharmaceutical services in a 45-bed rural hospital

The financial impact of a comprehensive pharmacy program on patient charges and hospital operating costs in a 45-bed community hospital was studied. Data were collected retrospectively for the fiscal year prior to initiating pharmacy services (FY73), the fiscal year during program development (FY74) and the fiscal year following full operations (FY75). The total cost of pharmacy services increased 75% from FY73 to FY75, with the largest dollar increase being in pharmacy salaries. Large increases among other cost items also were noted. The average total cost for pharmacy services increased from $3.28 per patient day in FY73 to $6.04 in FY75 (84%). Total hospital cost per patient day increased by approximately $35 from FY73 to FY75 (5%). The pharmaceutical services fee per dose of medication administered did not change from FY73 to FY75. Patient charges per day for medications and pharmaceutical services increased $0.55 (9.8%) from FY73 to FY75. There was a 55% reduction in the number of items carried in pharmacy inventory from FY73 to FY74 following the initiation of a formulary and a unit dose drug distribution system.     

Development of a biographical inventory blank to predict faking on personality tests.

14 Biographical Inventory Blank items significantly predicted the propensity to fake personality inventories in a socially desirable manner, as measured by the K Scale of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personal Inventory. Item analyses were performed on the responses of 76 job applicants, and the derived scoring weights were cross-validated on the responses of 42 other job applicants (r = .66, p     

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory—2 in police officer selection: Normative data and relation to the Inwald Personality Inventory.

Normative data on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) for police officer applicants can be useful to psychologists involved in law enforcement selection. The relation of the MMPI-2 to an established police officer screening tool—the Inwald Personality Inventory (IPI)—helps practitioners evaluate the validity of the MMPI-2. The MMPI-2 and IPI were administered to 467 police officer applicants. MMPI-2 profiles were defensive, with elevations on L and K, low scores on Scales 2 and 0, and extreme Scale 5 scores. Correlations with the IPI were moderate for MMPI-2 clinical scales but substantial for two validity scales. MMPI-2 K correction influenced correlations considerably, a finding with implications for interpretation of MMPI-2 data on police officer applicants. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Government support of psychological research: Fiscal year 1959.

"The report presents information on the amount and sources of funds for the support of psychological research and reflects the relative emphasis being placed on specific areas of psychology… . In the fiscal year 1959 (ending June 30, 1959) there was a substantial increase over the preceding year in federal support of psychological research. Approximately $31,300,000 was obligated by some 12 departments and subdivisions of the federal government for the conduct of research in psychology and closely related areas." 4 tables indicating annual rate of support of extramural research in psychology and related fields are provided; a 5th table indicates obligations by scientific fields for fiscal years 1958, 1959, and 1960. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What do applicants look for when selecting internal medicine residency programs? A comparison of rating scale and open-ended responses

OBJECTIVE: To develop reliable scale measures of factors most important to applicants when they select internal medicine residencies and to assess their validity by comparing scores from these measures with responses to open-ended questions. DESIGN: All 353 applicants ranked by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) for the 1988 National Residency Match Program received a questionnaire after submitting their match lists. First, they listed the three most important factors considered in ranking residency programs and starred the single most important factor out of the three. Then, they rated 41 items on a five-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important). SETTING: Categorical internal medicine residency program at an academic medical center. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: 315 (88%) applicants responded to the survey. Three reliable scales, Interpersonal Issues (7 items, alpha = 0.78), Reputation (5 items, alpha = 0.77), and Work Issues (11 items, alpha = 0.89), were developed using exploratory factor analysis of applicants' responses to the 41 items. Applicants felt interpersonal issues were very important (mean score = 4.2 +/- 0.5), academic reputation was important (3.3 +/- 0.8), and work issues were less important (2.8 +/- 0.7). The differences between these scores were significant (F = 3.76, p < 0.05). The ratings for the top five items not in these scales also indicated that education and location were very important. These results were corroborated by applicants' responses to the open-ended request to list the three most important factors in ranking residencies. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that work issues are important, but greater emphasis is placed on interpersonal issues, education, location, and a program's reputation when applicants select residency programs. Furthermore, this study provides evidence supporting the reliability and validity of the three scales.     

Personality processes reflected in client vocal style and Rorschach performance.

Proposed vocal style as a useful variable with which to classify groups of clients in order to study the differential effects of various therapeutic maneuvers. Relationships between voice quality ratings in early psychotherapy interviews and pretherapy Rorschach and MMPI scores were investigated in order to explore the nature and generality of this variable. For 52 clients in time-limited, client-centered psychotherapy, significant relationships were found between 3 of the vocal styles and Rorschach variables developed to measure qualities commonly observed in creative individuals. Vocal styles were substantially unrelated to MMPI scores. Implications for differential prognosis are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of age-specific mortality on the average life expectancy in Bulgaria

Using a concise method, we estimated the effect of mortality in specific age groups on the average life expectancy in Bulgaria. The method enables the calculation of the index from all causes of death as well as hypothetically, eliminating the mortality of the age groups involved in the study: under 1 year of age, 1 to 14-year-olds, 15 to 59-year-olds, and 60-year-olds and over 60. The detailed dynamic analysis of the influence of these four age groups mortality showed that the decrease in child mortality influenced positively the average life expectancy making it rise. This was especially clearly seen in the period until the mid-1960s. In the late 1960s the influence of the child mortality became insignificant and the major reserve for increasing the average life expectancy remained the decrease in active-life mortality.     

Effects of the testing situation on item responding: Cause for concern.

The effects of faking on personality test scores have been studied previously by comparing (a) experimental groups instructed to fake or answer honestly, (b) subgroups created from a single sample of applicants or nonapplicants by using impression management scores, and (c) job applicants and nonapplicants. In this investigation, the latter 2 methods were used to study the effects of faking on the functioning of the items and scales of the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire. A variety of item response theory methods were used to detect differential item/test functioning, interpreted as evidence of faking. The presence of differential item/test functioning across testing situations suggests that faking adversely affects the construct validity of personality scales and that it is problematic to study faking by comparing groups defined by impression management scores. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training and dissemination of cognitive behavior therapy for depression in adults: A preliminary examination of therapist competence and client outcomes.

Objective: In this study, the authors examined the feasibility and effectiveness of training community therapists to deliver cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for depression. Method: Participants were therapists (n = 12) and clients (n = 116; mean age = 41 years, 63% women) presenting for treatment of depression at a not-for-profit and designated community mental health center for St. Joseph County, Indiana. The training model included a 2-day workshop followed by 1 year of phone consultations. CBT competence ratings from the Cognitive Therapy Scale were obtained prior to training and at 6 and 12 months posttraining. Two different groups of clients, a treatment-as-usual (TAU) group (n = 74) and a CBT group (n = 42), were compared with respect to decrease in symptoms of depression (assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory) and anxiety (assessed with the Beck Anxiety Inventory). Results: Therapists showed significant increases in total scores from pretraining to 6 months posttraining, increases that were maintained at 12 months. The increase in the total score reflected gains on items that specifically measure CBT skills and structure. Although both TAU and CBT resulted in a significant decrease in depressive symptoms, the CBT clients showed significantly greater change than the TAU clients, F(2, 113) = 53.40, p     

Self-fulfilling prophecy and hypnotic response are not the same thing

The authors used the "bogus-item" methodology originally used by C. Wickless and I. Kirsch (1989) to examine the effects of response expectancy manipulations on subjects' subsequently measured hypnotizability scores. The results of the first experiment failed to replicate Wickless and Kirsch's (1989) findings that surreptitious confirmation of suggested items (the bogus-item manipulation) leads to higher scores on subsequently measured hypnotic responsiveness. The second experiment tested if, in fact, response expectancies were enhanced by the bogus-item manipulation, and the manipulation's effect on behavioral and subjective responsiveness to hypnosis was reexamined. A significant increase was found in response expectancies as a result of the bogus item expectancy manipulation, but again no evidence that this manipulation led to increased hypnotic responsiveness was found. Hypnotic responsiveness may not be as reactive to expectancy manipulations as previously claimed, and it is suggested that the notion of hypnotic responsiveness as a trait-like ability is viable.     

The Generalized Expectancy for Success Scale: A new measure.

Assessed the psychometric properties of a new measure of generalized expectancy for success. Three samples of White, middle-class undergraduates participated in the study. The 1st sample of 59 females and 41 males received a preliminary version of the Generalized Expectancy for Success Scale (GESS). Item analysis yielded 30 items that were substantially correlated with the total score but were not significantly related to social desirability. The 2nd sample of 63 females and 41 males received the 30-item GESS twice at a 6-wk interval. The 3rd sample of 69 females and 34 males received the GESS, the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale, Rotter's Internal–External Locus of Control Scale, the Self-Rating Depression Scale, the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Hopelessness Scale. Results indicate that the GESS has acceptable test–retest reliability, high internal consistency, and minimal relationship with social desirability. Predicted relationships between high generalized expectancy for success, depressive symptomatology, and internality were supported. Factor analysis indicated that GESS scores are a function of one general factor. Further construct validation is reviewed, and implications for future use of the GESS are discussed. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changes in neurokinin A (NKA) airway responsiveness with inhaled frusemide in asthma

OBJECTIVE: The relationships between clinical outcomes and predictors used to screen applicants for entrance into a Master in Occupational Therapy (MOT) program were examined. METHOD: MOT student records from 1986 to 1992 were used to gather data for three dependent variables and six predictor (independent) variables. The dependent variables used to gauge student success were grade point average in occupational therapy courses (OT-GPA), client attendance at an on-site clinic, and therapy outcomes of clients at that clinic. The predictor variables were undergraduate GPA, scores on the three sections of the Graduate Record Examination, reference forms, and essays. RESULTS: The models used to predict OT-GPA and therapy outcomes were significant (p < .05), and the incremental validity of several predictors was established. The model used to predict client attendance was not significant. CONCLUSION: The findings regarding OT-GPA support the continued use of all the predictors except the reference forms. Although it was possible to develop a model to predict client outcomes, the usefulness of the model is difficult to interpret.     

Comments on the clinical internship application process.

Suggests ways the application process for internships in clinical psychology could be improved. The present author recommends additional items that could be included in the directory of internship centers, the establishment of a national application deadline date, guidelines regarding the time frame within which interviews are conducted and the proportion of applicants invited for on-site interviews, and caveats against internship sites requiring feedback from applicants far in advance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Visual acuity measurements by wall charts and ortho-rater tests.

Visual acuity scores obtained on Ortho-Rater plates were compared with visual acuity scores on duplicate wall charts, using letter and modified Landolt ring targets. Test and retest scores were obtained for 117 soldiers. (1) The two methods were of equal difficulty, except for slight discrepancies introduced by photographic reduction of the charts used in the Ortho-Rater. (2) The Ortho-Rater test-retest reliabilities were significantly higher than the wall chart reliabilities. (3) The correlations between the Ortho-Rater and wall chart scores were about as high as the reliabilities of the scores. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)