Previous personal experience and reactions to depression and physical disability.

Conducted 2 experiments with 121 undergraduates to examine the effects of prior experience with people with disability on interpersonal reactions to depression expressed by a person with a disability. In the 1st study, Ss rejected further involvement with the depressed person and perceived this person to be socially impaired. In the 2nd study, Ss ascribed significantly more negative personal characteristics to the depressed person and evidenced more stereotypic attitudes toward persons with disability than Ss who viewed the nondepressed person. Results provide evidence that prior personal experience with people with disability does not moderate negative reactions to social displays of depressive behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexual attitudes and self-reported behavior of congenitally disabled adults.

A 1–3 hr personal interview was conducted and a questionnaire was administered to 45 18–35 yr old physically disabled Ss. The questionnaire dealt with (a) attitudes towards pornography, masturbation, and other aspects of sexuality; (b) degree of personal interest in sex; and (c) the extent and form of Ss' intimate sexual behavior. Results indicate that while Ss tended to express liberal attitudes toward sexuality, they did not indicate a high degree of personal interest in sex. Nearly all of the Ss were unmarried, and over half had never had a serious relationship with the opposite sex or any intimate sexual experience. There were indications that many Ss were uninformed about sexual matters. Ss' negative attitudes toward sex could be attributed to restrictive living conditions and insufficient sex education and guidance. As a group, females expressed more conservative attitudes toward sexuality than did males. Findings suggest the need for reorientation on the part of parents, educators, and society toward recognizing and accepting the emotional and sexual needs of disabled persons. (French summary) (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perception of disability labels: Effect of attitude and stimulus presentation.

60 undergraduates aged (18–25 yrs) were classified as having high or low attitudes toward disabled persons based on responses to the Scale to Measure Attitudes Toward Disabled Persons. Ss made all possible comparisons between pairs of disabilities; half the Ss completed a general disability label matrix, and half completed a specific disability label matrix. Results suggest an interaction between attitude and type of disability label. High attitude Ss generated a perceptual space different from low attitude Ss when the disability labels were specific. When the disability labels were general, the perceptual space generated between the 2 attitude conditions was similar. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Same- and cross-gender attitudes toward persons with physical disabilities.

Used the Disability Factor Scale-General (DFS-G) of J. Siller et al (1967) to measure 147 male and 139 female 11th-graders' attitudes toward persons with physical disabilities. A subgroup of Ss responded to a specially prepared version of the DFS-G that referred to males with disabilities, while a 2nd subgroup responded to a 2nd version of the questionnaire that referred to females with disabilities. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed, with scores on the 6 attitude scales of the DFS-G as the dependent variables. The 2 independent variables were Ss' gender and the sex of the person with the disability. Attitudes toward females with disabilities were less positive than attitudes toward males with disabilities. These less positive attitudes were expressed more by boys than by girls. Findings support the theoretical assumption that being disabled and female represents a double minority status. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical impressions of depression and physical stigma.

Examined 58 rehabilitation psychology trainees' reactions to individuals who were varied in interpersonal behavior and physical stigma. According to traditional notions, graduate students in clinical and counseling psychology programs should differ from graduate students in a rehabilitation counseling program in their emotional and cognitive reactions to persons with physical disabilities. Alternatively, interpersonal models of depression suggest that all trainees should have more pronounced emotional reactions and different cognitive expectations of a person who displays depressive behavior. Affective reactions and clinical impressions of Ss were moderated neither by the nature of their training nor by the presence of physical stigma. Trainees reported more feelings of sadness after seeing the depressed targets, and also reported more negative expectations of these persons in counseling. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attitudes toward retarded children: Effects of labeling and behavioral aggressiveness.

Examined effects of the label "mentally retarded" on attitudes of peers among 48 3rd graders. Half of the Ss were shown a videotape of an actor displaying acting-out behavior, while the remaining half were shown a videotape with the same actor engaging in passive behavior. Half of the Ss in each of these 2 groups were told that the actor was a 5th grader, and the other half were told that he was a mentally retarded boy in a special class. Analysis of variance results revealed a significant interaction between label and behavior, which indicated that Ss responded more negatively to the "mentally retarded" actor who displayed acting-out behavior than to the same actor who exhibited identical behavior but was not labeled. It is concluded that labels should be considered only as they interact with specific behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationship of client preferences and counselor's physical disability.

Investigated the effects on a client of a counselor's obvious physical disability. In a counseling analog, 24 able-bodied and 24 physically handicapped male undergraduates were shown 3 slides-a counselor in a wheelchair, a counselor with crutches, and a counselor with no apparent physical disability. Ss were asked to respond to a series of hypothetical counseling situations. Results suggest that both able-bodied and disabled Ss preferred disabled counselors for discussing personal problems. Able-bodied Ss who appeared most maladjusted tended to reject the disabled counselor. Implications for counselor selection and job assignment are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The attributional norm of internality and depressive sensitivity to social information.

Two experiments with 209 undergraduates examined the existence in an achievement-related context of a social norm favoring internal explanations for task performances. In Exp I, Ss' reactions to a male actor's high, moderate, or low self-attribution of causal responsibility for his negative performance outcome on an ostensibly standardized aptitude test were assessed. Results indicate that the actor was evaluated more positively to the degree that he accepted more personal responsibility for his performance. In Exp II, Ss were classified as depressed or nondepressed, based on their scores on the Beck Depression Inventory. Ss' reactions to an actor's high or low self-attributions of causal responsibility for his poor performance on a test of analytical ability were assessed. On the basis of the notion that the chronic lack of control and resultant uncertainty, presumably characteristic of depressed persons, motivates attributional information processing, it was expected that depressed Ss would be more sensitive to the actor's violation of the norm of internality and would respond with more social disapproval than nondepressed Ss. Results are generally consistent with this reasoning. Findings are discussed in terms of the interpersonal implications of expressed attributions. (26 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinician's reactions to depressive behavior and ill health.

Psychotherapists are susceptible to prevailing negative stereotypes that exist in society at large. Inappropriate negative attitudes toward depressed and ill patients can adversely affect interactions with such clients. The authors examined the reactions of 410 psychologists to vignettes that described a client who emitted either depressed or nondepressed behavior and who varied in terms of cancer prognosis. Clinicians had negative mood reactions after reading the vignette of the depressed client; they also believed the depressed client possessed many undesirable personal attributes. Practicing psychologists are urged to reflect on their attitudes and beliefs so they do not negatively affect assessment and therapy services. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Imagined empathy and attributions concerning activity preferences of physically disabled college students.

Investigated 89 college students' attributions about the activity preferences of able-bodied vs physically disabled peers and evaluated the effects of imagined empathy on attributional patterns and attitudes toward disabled people. Ss were asked to predict the responses of either a male or a female able-bodied or wheelchair-user college student to items on a 20-item questionnaire offering choices between gregarious–nongregarious activities and between active–passive activities. Results indicate that there was considerable variability in able-bodied students' attributions about disabled peers' activity preferences. Previous contact with disabled people was unrelated either to attitudes toward disabled people or to activity preference attributions. Asking students to imagine empathy for a disabled peer was not an effective technique to change either attributional patterns or attitudes toward disabled people. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Presence versus absence of others: The effect on verbally expressed attitudes toward the disabled.

Tested the hypothesis that individuals express more favorable attitudes toward the disabled when in the presence of others than when alone. 36 students in a graduate rehabilitation course completed a 7-point rating scale pretest concerning 5 rehabilitation concepts, and adjective pairs were developed following the semantic differential model of C. E. Osgood et al (1957). Ss then viewed a film about meeting a blind person, following which they heard a presentation by and interacted with a blind model. Ss were randomly assigned to either individual or group conditions. Individual Ss again completed the 7-point rating scale in isolation. Ss in the groups discussed the film and the presentation together for 15 min before completing the posttest. All Ss were retested at 30-day follow-up. Results fail to reveal differences between conditions; however, Ss in both conditions demonstrated a significant shift in their attitudes toward blind persons. It is suggested that while the presence or absence of others did not contribute to an attitude change, the specificity of the attitude change strategy may bring about attitude change. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perception of social interactions in depressed psychiatric patients.

20 21–61 yr old depressed females, 20 depressed Ss in remission, and 20 control Ss were shown videotapes of positive (involving praise), negative (involving criticism), and neutral social interactions. Half of the Ss in each group were instructed to imagine the interactions being directed toward them, and half were instructed to imagine the interactions being directed toward another person. Ss rated each interaction on 11 semantic differential scales. Following a principal components analysis with varimax rotation, analysis of component scores indicated that depressed Ss rated negative interactions lower (i.e., in a more socially undesirable way) than controls only when the interactions were directed toward them. The question of whether or not the perception of negative interactions by depressed persons is distorted is discussed. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nurse and patient reactions to social displays of depression.

Examined the interpersonal responses of 27 nurses and 27 hospitalized patients with chronic medical conditions to a target who appeared either to have a chronic physical impairment or to be able-bodied, and who enacted either a depressed or nondepressed role. It was predicted that while nurses and patients would have negative reactions to the depressed targets, patient reactions to the depressed target with a physical impairment would be less negative than nurse reactions on the basis of perceived similarity. Results indicated that both groups had negative perceptions of the depressed targets. The similarity hypothesis, however, was not explicitly supported. The reactions of health-care staff to depressed medical patients may reinforce the patients' depressive behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Learning disabilities, locus of control, and mother attitudes.

Academic locus of control and mothers' school-related reactions and expectations were studied in 81 learning disabled (LD) and 81 normally achieving (control) children in Grades 3–6. The Intellectual Achievement Responsibility Questionnaire, the Intellectual subscale of the Parent Reaction Questionnaire, and the Parents Version of the Projected Academic Performance Scale were used. LD Ss indicated more external perceptions of control with respect to successful academic experiences. For failure outcomes, no difference between LD and control Ss was found; however, a trend toward increased internality was noted over grade levels for both groups. Mothers of LD Ss reported more negative and fewer positive reactions to their children. They also held lower academic performance expectations for their children than control mothers. Results are discussed in terms of the need to develop more internal control perceptions in LD children and the role of parental attitudes and expectations in school learning. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Multidimensional scaling of the causes for negative interpersonal behavior.

Conducted studies to determine empirically the dimensions underlying attributions made for negative behavior in a close interpersonal relationship (a marriage). 96 university students rated the similarity of 13 causes given either by the enactor of a negative behavior (i.e., the actor) or by the person affected by the behavior (the partner or spouse). A multidimensional scaling analysis of these data yielded 2 dimensions in each condition. The interpretation of these dimensions was guided by data from 68 additional Ss who rated the 13 causes on bipolar scales (e.g., temporary–permanent). Dimension 1 in both conditions was interpreted as "positive vs negative attitude toward spouse." Dimension 2 of the actor condition was interpreted as "intentional vs unintentional" and Dimension 2 of the partner condition as "actor's traits vs circumstances or states." These dimensions are discussed in relation to the a priori causal distinctions made in current attribution writings and previous findings concerning actor–observer biases. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of actor depression on observer attributions: Existence and impact of negative attributions toward the depressed.

This experiment examined whether others explain the successes and failures of depressed versus nondepressed people differently and how these attributions are related to affective and behavioral reactions to a request for psychological help. Ss reported attributions about the success and failure experiences of hypothetical depressed and nondepressed people. Ss also responded to a hypothetical request for psychological help by indicating their attributions, affective reactions, willingness to help, and desire for future social contact. As hypothesized, Ss displayed more negative attributions toward depressed people. Replicating prior research (W. P. Sacco et al; see record 1986-12000-001), Ss responded to the depressive's request for help with mixed emotional and behavioral reactions. Path analyses revealed that attributions influenced affective reactions, which influenced willingness to help; but a more complex pattern emerged from the analysis of desire for future social contact. Results are discussed in terms of the interpersonal impact and possible causes of negative attributions about the experiences of depressed people. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychosocial adjustment of adolescent children of a depressed, arthritic, or normal parent.

Examined the joint effects of having a parent with a psychological or physical disability and stressful life events on the mental health of 3 groups of adolescents: 16 adolescent children of a depressed parent, 16 adolescent children of a parent with rheumatoid arthritis, and 16 adolescent children of parents free from psychological or physical disability. Ss were asked to complete a battery of assessments, including the SCL-90, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Family Environment Scale, and scales assessing life events and satisfaction with school. It was found that, in contrast to the normal group, Ss with arthritic parents reported lower self-esteem, whereas Ss with depressed parents reported lower self-esteem and more symptomatology. However, the 2 risk groups did not differ in terms of mental health or family and school adjustment. Both negative and positive life events were strongly related to poorer adjustment, but only for Ss with depressed and arthritic parents. There was a significant interaction effect of parental disability (depressed vs normal) and negative life events on symptomatology, with the Ss with depressed parents who experienced few negative life events reporting symptom levels equivalent to that of the normal group. Within-group analyses revealed that a positive familial social climate was related to better adjustment among all 3 groups: satisfactory school involvements were related to better adjustment among the depressed-parent and normal groups. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexual standards and reactions to pornography: Enhancing behavioral consistency through self-focused attention.

Reports 3 studies which tested the hypothesis, derived from self-awareness theory, that behavior would be more consistent with personal attitudes or standards when attention was self-focused. In the 1st study, 52 male undergraduates' attitudes toward erotica were measured, and 1 mo later the Ss were asked to rate pictures of nude women, while either self-focused (in front of a mirror) or not. There was little relationship between pretested attitudes and reactions toward the pictures for the non-self-focused group; however, the same relationship was very strong for the group that rated pictures in front of a mirror. In the 2nd and 3rd studies, female Ss (51 and 48 undergraduates, respectively) were first pretested on the Mosher Sex-Guilt Scale. Two weeks later they read and rated pornographic passages, again, while either self-focused or not. The relationship between pretested standards (sex guilt) and reactions to sexual literature was weak in the non-self-aware condition, but considerably stronger for the self-focused Ss. Results suggest that focusing attention upon the self tends to inhibit behaviors that are inconsistent with personal attitudes or standards. (35 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of self-esteem manipulation on arousal and reactions to sad models in depressed and nondepressed college students.

24 depressed and 24 nondepressed college students were given spurious feedback, either positive or negative, about the results of personality tests. They then watched a film of an intensive encounter group. Psychophysiological reactions to both feedback and observation of sad film models were recorded. Depressed Ss showed greater arousal than nondepressed Ss only after negative feedback. Depressed Ss reacted emotionally to the sad models after negative feedback; nondepressed Ss, after positive feedback. Arousal results indicate that depressed Ss were particularly reactive to a "loss" of self-esteem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality factors associated with severe traumatic disability.

Investigated whether persons with traumatic injuries are more extraverted than nontraumatically disabled persons. 111 rehabilitation patients with either traumatic or nontraumatic disabilities associated with either chronic pain or motor loss completed the Eysenck Personality Inventory and the SCL-90. Results show that the traumatically disabled Ss with motor loss (paraplegia or quadriplegia) were more extraverted and less distressed than Ss with nontraumatic disabilities or with traumatically induced pain. It is contended that the external orientation characteristic of extraversion and the style of learning through actively and repeatedly challenging the environment may account for the prominence of extraversion within the traumatically disabled group with motor loss and for the relative absence of distress for this group in the highly structured medical/rehabilitation environment. It is suggested that the psychological adjustment of more extraverted personalities to disability involving motor loss may be better facilitated by interventions that encourage experiential learning and challenging environmental limits than by introspective psychotherapy or counseling. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)