Evaluating societal change in attitude.

Presents a probabilistic response model for assessing attitude data from national surveys. The attendant statistical analysis by generalized least squares adjusts for the heterogeneous variances and covariances characterizing the data in such surveys. The flexibility of this approach in survey analysis is illustrated using attitude data from the Netherlands' Social and Cultural Report 1980. Estimation and testing procedures applied to these data demonstrate sharp shifts during the last decade toward easing social constraints on the feminine role. This illustration is suggestive of the types of lawful relationships that are demonstrable at the societal level of analysis. Other possible applications of the approach are suggested. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Applied psychology and judicial decision making: Corporal punishment as a case in point.

Examines the impact of psychological knowledge and data gleaned from applied settings on judicial decision making, using a review of 2 recent corporal punishment decisions: Baker v. Owen (1975) and Ingraham v. Wright (1977). The Supreme Court's decisions and the behavioral science data concerning corporal punishment are reviewed, and an expanding body of knowledge concerning corporal punishment, which the Court seemed to ignore, is considered. The application of psychological evidence with regard to judicial decision making is also discussed, with suggested reasons for its rejection and possible remedies for increasing its value in the future. (46 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A case study in a behavioral analysis of psychotherapy.

A content analysis guided by the points of view of psychoanalytic theory and learning theory was made of the verbalizations from the case history of a 24-year-old male. The content categories utilized were concerned with motivation and defense. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Children and social change: Social and behavioral problems: Section introduction.

This article introduces a special section on children and social change. The articles in this section will present topics concerning the effects of rapid social change on social and behavioral problems in children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality stability and change in early adulthood: A behavioral genetic analysis.

79 monozygotic and 48 same-sex dizygotic twin pairs completed the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire twice, averaging 20 yrs of age at 1st and 30 yrs at 2nd testing. There were significant mean decreases in measures of Negative Emotionality (NE), increases in measures of Constraint (CO), but no significant mean changes for measures of Positive Emotionality (PE). Variance decreased for measures of NE but remained stable for measures of PE and CO. Biometrical analyses revealed that (1) NE variance reduction was due to diminishing genetic influences, (2) personality stability was due largely to genetic factors, and (3) although some evidence for genetic influence on personality change was observed, change was determined largely by environmental factors. It is concluded that the stable core of personality is strongly associated with genetic factors but that personality change largely reflects environmental factors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Embedding comprehensive behavioral support in family ecology: An experimental, single case analysis.

The study evaluates a comprehensive, ecological approach to behavioral family intervention with a family of a child with severe disabilities and severe problem behaviors. A multiple-baseline design across family routines assessed the functional relationship between parent implementation of a multicomponent intervention and improvement in child behavior and successful completion of routines. Results indicate durable improvements in child behavior and routine completion. Associated outcomes included generalized improvements in child behavior and enhances activity patterns. Results verify the efficacy of the approach for ameliorating problem behaviors and empowering parents to build successful family routines. The value of collaborative research with families is briefly discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting natural resolution of alcohol-related problems: A prospective behavioral economic analysis.

This study investigated whether the relative allocation of discretionary monetary expenditures to alcoholic beverages versus savings (presumed to reflect relative preferences for immediate vs. delayed rewards) before quitting abusive drinking predicted natural resolution among untreated problem drinkers. Drinking, life events, income, and expenditures were assessed for the year before resolution and again 1 and 2 years later (N=50). Compared with those who relapsed, participants who remained resolved at 2 years reported proportionally more pre-resolution discretionary expenditures on savings and less on alcohol. Income and expenditures were similar across groups. The findings support the predictive utility of this functional index of relative reward preferences that operate over variable time horizons and suggest that temporal discounting is an important process in addictive behavior change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Extrapontine myelinolysis and behavioral change after transsphenoidal pituitary surgery: case report

OBJECTIVE AND IMPORTANCE: Rapid correction of hyponatremia is considered the usual cause of central pontine myelinolysis and extrapontine myelinolysis. Little has been reported about mental changes associated with this disorder or its occurrence after transsphenoidal surgery. CLINICAL PRESENTATION: A 24-year-old woman suddenly developed markedly abnormal behavior associated with rapid correction of hyponatremia 11 days after undergoing transsphenoidal surgery for a prolactin-secreting pituitary adenoma. INTERVENTION: Magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose showed bilateral caudate nuclei and putaminal lesions. Gradual, complete clinical resolution preceded the resolution that was revealed by magnetic resonance imaging. CONCLUSION: We emphasize the importance of cautious correction with frequent electrolyte determinations and attention to behavioral changes in the management of delayed hyponatremia after pituitary tumor surgery.     

Persuasive communications to change actions: An analysis of behavioral and cognitive impact in HIV prevention.

This meta-analysis examined the validity of various theoretical assumptions about cognitive and behavioral change following a communication recommending condom use. The synthesis comprised 82 treatment and 29 control groups included in 46 longitudinal reports with measures of perceived severity and susceptibility, attitudes and expectancies, norms, perceptions of control, intentions, knowledge, behavioral skills, or condom use. Results indicated that across the sample of studies, communications taught recipients about facts related to HIV and also induced favorable attitudes and expectancies, greater control perceptions, and stronger intentions to use condoms in the future. Moreover, messages that presented attitudinal information and modeled behavioral skills led to increased condom use. Results are discussed in the context of theories of human behavior and change and in reference to HIV-prevention interventions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social psychology: Comparative, societal and universal.

Noting that social psychology is necessarily rooted in a societal system, it is proposed that it is both desirable and possible to explore these societal bases in a broad range of sociocultural systems and to integrate these local social psychologies into a wider based discipline. Such an enterprise should proceed by employing the comparative method to test the usefulness of current social psychology (which is largely a Euro-American Discipline) in other sociocultural settings, to develop new theories and data in these other settings, and then to generate a more nearly universal social psychology that recognizes both cross-cultural communalities and varieties in social behavior. (91 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Freedom of choice and behavioral change.

Used a 3?×?2 (Treatment?×?Population) factorial design with repeated measures (pretest/posttest) to evaluate the effects of perceived freedom of choice on behavior change in a therapy analog study. 90 Ss were assigned to 3 groups that varied in the amount of perceived choice given to Ss in determining the type of training procedure used for speed-reading enhancement. Experimental conditions were crossed with 2 populations of Ss to examine 2 levels of perceived freedom. Half of the Ss were psychology undergraduates required to participate in psychology experiments, and the remaining half were volunteers. The main dependent variable was the amount of change in reading rate. A marginally significant increase in reading speed was obtained by volunteers in comparison to psychology student participants. Ss who perceived that they were given a choice in training procedures improved significantly more in reading speed than Ss who lost the freedom of choice. No changes in reading comprehension were noted. Findings are discussed in terms of the relationship between freedom of choice and performance in a behavior change program. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

School-based, behavioral self-management: A review and analysis.

Evaluated behavioral self-management interventions with elementary school students. Studies were selected from PsycINFO and ERIC databases if they investigated the use of school-based, behavioral, self-management interventions with children of normal intellectual functioning. The review presents an analysis of this technology including treatment effect size, generalization, social validity, and cost-effectiveness data. Results indicate that observation, evaluation, and selection and administration of reinforcers were the intervention components most frequently student-managed. Additionally, results show a positive relationship between the degree of student management and treatment effect size. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

点接触弹流问题的数值分析

利用复合直接迭代方法计算多组不同工况下点接触弹流问题,分析速度及载荷对压力分布及油膜厚度的影响,旨在为摩擦、磨损分析提供快速有效依据.     

Use of behavioral techniques in a case of compulsive stealing.

Demonstrates the use of behavioral principles in the modification of a deviant behavior. The "compulsive" stealing of a 10-yr-old resident of a home for mildly disturbed children was successfully eliminated over a 3?-mo period. Records indicate that the behavior had been a source of difficulty for at least 5 yr. The behavior "therapy" was carried out in a field situation and made use of minimal professional time. The use of non-professional individuals in the observation, recording, and modification of behavior is demonstrated. Implications are discussed for the role of the professional consultant as instructor in the application of behavior principles. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognition, commitment language, and behavioral change among cocaine-dependent patients.

Patients' cognitive abilities and verbal expressions of commitment to behavioral change predict different aspects of substance abuse treatment outcome, but these 2 traits have never been examined conjointly. The authors therefore investigated patients' cognitive abilities and verbal expressions of commitment to behavioral change as predictors of retention and drug use outcomes in an outpatient cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT) of adult cocaine-dependent patients. A neuropsychological battery was administered at baseline. Two independent raters used recordings of CBT sessions to code commitment language strength across the temporal segments (e.g., beginning, middle, and end) of 1 session per patient. Better cognitive abilities predicted treatment retention (p     

Self-injurious behavior: A behavioral analysis.

Discusses the phenomenon of self-injurious behavior (SIB) in terms of its frequency of occurrence, the people whom it effects, its various topographies, some treatment methods, and a behavioral analysis of its etiology. Studies that have used the positive reinforcement of alternative behaviors, withdrawal of positive reinforcement, extinction, and punishment to control SIB are reviewed and evaluated. Some ethical and practical considerations regarding the use of punishment for SIB are discussed. A discriminative stimulus-conditioned reinforcer hypothesis and an avoidance hypothesis are proposed to explain SIB in terms of learning principles. Some of the possible aberrant organic foundations of SIB are also discussed. (43 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cultural techniques in psychotherapy: A case in point.

Describes an incident in which a Bedouin 8th grader in Israel killed a classmate. The author describes how he applied S. Sue and N. Zane's (see record 1987-16319-001) interpretations of cross-cultural therapy research, which emphasize credibility and giving, to this situation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Corporate dyads in conflict: A case in point.

A case study is presented of a consulting psychology intervention with an executive dyad in conflict. This study presents the basic background information for understanding the case, including the referral question, the demographics of the company, and the background dynamics of the conflict. A process of intervention is outlined, including problem identification, problem exploration, and problem resolution phases. Exercises and techniques used to facilitate conflict resolution are explained and referenced. The results of the intervention and the follow-up are discussed. Future directions are outlined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Aging in rhesus monkeys: Different windows on behavioral continuity and change.

Rhesus monkeys were observed longitudinally from 6 to 20 years of age, the period encompassing early to late adulthood in this species. Repeated-measures analyses of the monkeys' behavioral repertoire revealed 3 quite different pictures of the aging process. First, there were significant systematic changes in the levels of many categories of behavior with increasing age, although the direction and timing of change varied from category to category. Second, for most categories, individual differences among the monkeys were highly stable from early to late adulthood. Finally, there was remarkable consistency within individual behavioral profiles across the entire study such that each monkey retained its distinctive behavioral features (personality) throughout its adult years. Thus, aging in rhesus monkeys is characterized by both continuity and change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Goals and strategies in behavioral treatment of homosexual pedophilia: Comments on a case study.

Offers a critical evaluation of a case report by R. J. Kohlenberg (see PA, Vol 52:Issue 5), in which a homosexual adult pedophile male learned to respond sexually to other adult males and less to male children. Kohlenberg's ethical decision to work toward a homosexual adjustment for his client is supported; however, the strategies adopted reflect an inadequate behavioral analysis of the client's problem. In particular, the initial decision to employ aversive procedures is questioned, given that the client's problems included anxiety in approaching male adults. It does not seem necessary to interrupt a prepotent pattern of sexual behavior before attempting more positively to instate another set of feelings and responses, and the apparently favorable outcome of the in vivo exposure regimen lends support to this view. It is hoped that publication of this unconventional case study will contribute to open debate of the social values that underlie decisions by clinicians as to their goals in therapy. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)