Relative effects of modeling and role playing in the treatment of avoidance behavior.

Investigated the efficacy of symbolic modeling and role-playing therapy in the reduction of avoidance behaviors in 48 undergraduates. Carefully selected snake-phobic Ss were administered either self-regulated symbolic modeling, self-regulated role-playing instructions, or exposure to a snake-only videotape, or they received no treatment. After brief treatment periods role-playing Ss demonstrated significantly greater reductions in avoidance behavior than Ss in the modeling and control conditions. Subjective fear ratings reported before and during task performance on a behavioral approach test were significantly lower for role-playing Ss than for modeling Ss following treatment. Posttreatment attitude measures showed that role-playing Ss held significantly more positive attitudes toward harmless snakes than Ss who had undergone the symbolic modeling procedure. A 2-mo follow-up suggested that treatment gains had been maintained for both behavioral and subjective reports. Findings provide compelling evidence that a self-administered role-playing procedure can effect rapid and enduring changes within a variety of dependent variable measures associated with avoidance. Findings are explained in terms of the behavioral modality (covert-overt) toward which a treatment is directed. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Instructions, modeling, and rehearsal: Implications for training.

Studied the effects of instructions, modeling, and rehearsal in training 48 college students in empathic communication. Ss were assigned to 1 of 8 groups representing all possible factorial combinations of the variables which included instructions vs no instructions, modeling vs no modeling, and rehearsal vs no rehearsal. Training gains were assessed using written responses to the pre- and posttest administration of the Carkhuff Communication Index. Generalization effects were assessed using empathy ratings of a critical-incident interview. Analysis of written responses indicated that improvement in empathic communication occurred for all training groups. Specific instructions appeared to be a criticial factor in facilitating written performance. The interviews showed that a combination of training variables facilitated empathic responses during an interview more than each variable alone. Modeling seemed to be an effective procedure for the interview task. The instructional effect did not generalize very well. (31 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Increasing hypnotic susceptibility by means of positive expectancies and written instructions.

Investigated the extent to which hypnotic susceptibility could be modified by means of induced positive expectancies and written instructions that were designed to correct misconceptions concerning hypnosis as well as to provide concrete methods for experiencing hypnosis. 40 undergraduates were given a baseline test of hypnotic susceptibility and then randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions. Ss receiving the positive expectancy were given false personality test feedback that they were good hypnotic Ss prior to a criterion hypnotic scale. Ss receiving the written instructions were given 10 min to read the information prior to the hypnotic test. Other Ss browsed through magazines prior to testing in hypnosis. Both positive expectancies and written instructions were significantly effective in increasing susceptibility in comparison with practice only. Theoretical explanations are advanced and the implications of these findings are considered. (26 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypnosis, task-motivating instructions, and learning performance.

40 Ss, including 30 who had been previously rated as suggestible and 10 as nonsuggestible, were pretested and then retested on equivalent forms of 3 learning tasks: digit symbol substitution, memory for words, and abstract reasoning. All Ss received the pretests in the same way. The 30 suggestible Ss were retested under 1 of the following 3 experimental treatments with 10 Ss assigned at random to each treatment: task-motivating instructions, hypnotic induction procedure with task-motivating instructions, and control. The 10 nonsuggestible Ss were retested under a task-motivating-instructions treatment. Analyses of covariance indicated that (a) task-motivating instructions given alone or following a hypnotic induction procedure did not significantly affect performance on the memory for words or abstract reasoning tasks; and (b) task-motivating instructions produced a comparable enhancement of performance on the digit symbol substitution task in hypnotized and nonhypnotized Ss and in suggestible and nonsuggestible Ss. (33 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of instructions and modeling on self-disclosure.

Examined the relative effectiveness of modeling and instructional procedures in training college students to self-disclose. 48 male undergraduates were randomly assigned to 1 of the following instructional conditions: specific instructions to discuss personal feelings within specified topic areas, general instructions to discuss personal feelings within the same topics, or no instructions. Half of the Ss also listened to a model discussing his feelings within identical topic areas, and half did not receive a model. All Ss then participated in a brief monologue, which was scored for self-disclosure. Instructions and modeling, alone and in combination, increased the occurrence of self-disclosure, but the performance of the combination condition was not significantly greater than the performance of modeling or instructions alone. A post hoc analysis showed the instructional effect was due to the difference between specific instructions and no instructions. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-desensitization and meditation in the reduction of public speaking anxiety.

Assigned 38 speech-anxious students to the following self-administered treatment conditions: (a) systematic desensitization, (b) desensitization with meditation replacing progressive relaxation, (c) meditation only, and (d) no treatment. All 3 treatment manuals included coping-skill instructions. The results indicate that the 3 treatments were equally effective in reducing anxiety and produced a greater reduction in self-reported (but not behavioral) anxiety than that found in untreated Ss. Reliable changes in physiological manifestations of anxiety were found only in Ss who rated the treatment rationale as highly credible. High credibility ratings were also associated with significantly greater reductions in self-reported anxiety. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modeling and instructions in training for counselor empathy.

Assessed the relative contributions of modeling and instructions to training of counselor empathy in a factorial design incorporating 2 instruction conditions (instructions or no instructions) and 3 modeling conditions (high-empathy model, low-empathy model, or no model). Ss were 68 clergymen from various religious denominations. Ss wrote responses to a taped client in Phase 1, a training phase, and conducted an interview with a client (actor) in Phase 2, a generalization phase. Instructions had no effect on empathy offered by Ss, but Ss hearing a high-empathy model showed significantly higher empathy in Phase 1 responses than all other Ss. Findings were not significant in Phase 2. Reasons for lack of generalization and implications for further research and training are noted. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-directed treatment for premature ejaculation.

Tested the effects of self-administered treatment for premature ejaculation vs therapist-administered treatment by assigning 18 couples with premature ejaculation problems to (a) totally self-administered treatment, (b) self-administered treatment in conjunction with minimal therapist (telephone) contact, or (c) standard therapist-administered treatment. All Ss completed the Locke-Wallace Marital Adjustment Test and a sexual background inventory. Ss were successfully treated by therapists or by themselves when they maintained minimal contact with a therapist. Ss working without therapist contact failed to complete treatment successfully. Follow-up data indicate that although there was deterioration in therapeutic gain following the termination of treatment, improvement over pretreatment responses was maintained on all relevant measures. Data also indicate that greatest improvement in ejaculatory control occurred when Ss continued to use the squeeze or pause to delay ejaculation, but significant improvement in latency to ejaculation also occurred when Ss used neither technique to lengthen intercourse. (35 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Modeling, sensitivity training, and instruction: Implications for the training of college student volunteers and for outcome research.

Assigned 59 male undergraduate volunteers to 1 of 3 social skills training conditions-videotaped modeling, sensitivity training, or no training-and later placed them in a small group situation wherein each member presented a personal problem and attempted to understand the problem of another. Half of the groups received general instructions; 1/2 received specific instructions. Under general instructions, modeling- and sensitivity-trained Ss performed better than Ss with no training on both specific behavioral and global qualitative measures. However, under specific instructions, all Ss performed equally well. Results are discussed in terms of implications for the selection and training of nonprofessional mental health workers, and for outcome research on sensitivity training and modeling. (23 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bibliotherapy in the treatment of female orgasmic dysfunction.

13 inorgasmic women were assigned to a minimal-contact condition or delayed-treatment information control to evaluate a self-help manual for orgasmic dysfunction (J. Heiman et al, 1976). Between- and within-group analyses on questionnaires, including the Sexual Arousal and Sexual Interaction Inventories, consistently revealed greater improvement of Ss in the manual condition, and these gains were maintained at a 6-wk follow-up. (3 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Primary orgasmic dysfunction: Diagnostic considerations and review of treatment.

Reviews the literature on treatment for primary orgasmic dysfunction and for other female orgasmic disturbances. As a diagnostic category, primary orgasmic dysfunction includes all women who have never experienced orgasm under any circumstances except sleep or fantasy. However, the research samples of nonorgasmic women in clinical reports and empirical investigations are heterogeneous with regard to disruption of earlier phases of the sexual response cycle and emotional concomitants of the dysfunction. The major treatment models—systematic desensitization, sensate focus, directed masturbation, and hypnosis—are presented, and empirical support is reviewed. Separate discussion is included for investigations comparing treatment modalities. A strategy for future programmatic sex-therapy research is suggested within the broader context of psychotherapy outcome research. (92 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-reinforcement: A continuum of external cues.

Investigated the role of external influences in children's self-regulatory behavior under stringent-demand (SD) and lenient-demand (LD) conditions. The abilities of the SD condition (in the form of stringent instructional sets and criterion setting), the LD condition (in which lenient instructions were provided), and a control condition to maintain 33 male and 29 female 3rd and 4th graders' performance on an arithmetic task were examined. Following 5 trials in which Ss self-administered prizes, all Ss in the SD group performed significantly better, during both the incentive and the extinction conditions, on all 3 dependent variables than did Ss in both the LD and control groups. Factors contributing to the differential performances of Ss under the LD and SD conditions are discussed in light of the self-reinforcement literature. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Internal-external control as a determinant of the effectiveness of modeling and instructions.

Explored the relationship between locus of control and the issue of modeling and instructional effectiveness. From 132 male and female undergraduates, 24 were designated internals and 21 externals according to scores on Rotter's Internal-External Control Scale which accorded with H. L. Mirels's (1970) factor of personal internality. Ss were randomly assigned to 1 of the following conditions: (a) instructional (Ss instructed to be highly concrete in talking about their school, social, and family life experiences); (b) modeling (Ss exposed to a model who discussed each of the above topics in a highly concrete fashion); and (c) control (Ss received only general instructions to talk on the same 3 topics). All Ss then participated in a brief monologue which was scored for concreteness. Results indicate that modeling was an effective procedure. Also, as predicted, internal-modeling Ss were more concrete than the internal-instructions Ss. Findings are discussed in relation to instructional efficacy and response class. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moderating effects of contextual variables on the relationship between hypnotic susceptibility and suggested analgesia.

Assessed 75 undergraduates high, medium, or low on hypnotic susceptibility (the Carleton University Responsiveness to Suggestion Scale) on the cold pressor task before and after 1 of 3 instructional treatments. The treatments were (a) brief instructions to try to reduce pain, (b) the same analgesia instructions preceded by a hypnotic induction procedure, and (c) no hypnotic induction or instructions. In the hypnotic treatment, susceptibility correlated significantly with reductions in reported pain, and high-susceptible Ss reported significantly larger pain reductions than did control Ss. In the instruction-alone treatment, there was no significant relationship between susceptibility and pain reduction, and Ss at all 3 susceptibility levels reduced reported pain significantly more than did controls and as much as did high-susceptible hypnotic Ss. Findings suggest that the correlation between hypnotic susceptibility and hypnotic analgesia is moderated by Ss' attitudes and expectancies concerning their own performance in situations defined as related to hypnosis. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Biofeedback and relaxation therapy for chronic temporomandibular joint pain: Predicting successful outcomes.

57 patients with chronic temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain were randomly assigned to receive either relaxation or biofeedback therapy. 27 Ss (mean age 35.6 yrs) listened to tape-recorded relaxation once a week at the therapist's office for 3 sessions and were encouraged to practice daily. 30 Ss (mean age 43 yrs) participated in biofeedback sessions and were instructed to practice relaxation for 20 min/day between sessions. Results show no significant differences in outcomes. However, successful Ss in the 2 conditions differed from each other. Successful relaxation Ss tended to be younger, had TMJ pain for a shorter period of time, and reported problems with other psychophysiologic disorders. Successful biofeedback Ss were older, married, had TMJ pain for a longer period of time, and had not received prior equilibration treatment. Equilibration and presence of other disorders were related to both short- and long-term outcomes, suggesting they may be useful as predictors of outcome. It is also suggested that knowledge of pretherapy factors may allow for optimal assignment to therapy conditions. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of generic advance instructions on learning a classification task.

Investigated whether giving students generic advance instructions about how to learn a classification task would be effective in facilitating learning of a specific classification task. The effect of instructions was compared with the effects of adjunct postquestions, simply reading the materials (control group), and both instructions and adjunct postquestions. The experimental task involved learning to classify instances of several different categories. Ss were 72 US Navy enlisted personnel. It was hypothesized that advance instructions to Ss regarding how and what to learn would facilitate learning of classification material. Results show that the instruction group and adjunct questions group did equally well on classifying new and old instances of US Navy call signs. All groups did better than control groups. Results suggest that students can learn a general strategy for processing classification material and that providing students with generic information about how and what to learn is an effective instructional strategy. A text of the instructions used to teach Ss how to learn a classification task is appended. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of participant modeling on information acquisition and skill utilization.

Assessed the contribution of active participant modeling in coping skills training by evaluating 2 critical process variables: the retention of information about the threatening events and how to cope with them, and the visceral component of imaginal rehearsal. 38 8–13 yr old children, highly fearful of dentists (the Dental subscale of the Children's Fear Survey Schedule), were shown a videotape of 2 children practicing controlled respiration and imagery techniques while undergoing dental treatment. The participant modeling group was encouraged to practice these as they watched the film, whereas the symbolic modeling group was told that this might help them during their own dental treatment, which immediately followed videotape preparation. Ss who had the active participant instructions obtained more information from the videotape, reported greater reduction in dental anxiety, and showed lower respiratory rates as they watched the videotape. They reported greater use of imagery techniques and enhanced self-control. The degree of disruptiveness was significantly lower during subsequent actual dental treatment in Ss from the active practice group. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)