Prediction of complicated grief by positive and negative themes in narratives

A narrative coding system was employed to investigate the thematic parameters of complicated grief among participants who had recently experienced spousal loss. Two goals guided the research. First, we investigated the prevalence of and interrelationship between positive and negative themes in a narrative interview conducted 6 months into bereavement. The coding system was modeled after Erikson's (1982) scheme of crises solutions across the life span. Second, we examined the relationship of these themes to various symptom measures obtained at 6- and 14 months postloss. Results revealed no systematic relationship between corresponding positive and negative themes. Aggregated positive and negative themes showed significant correlations with 6-month measures of intrusion and avoidance and, as predicted, with various 14-month symptom levels. Regression analyses revealed that positive themes explained significant portions of 14-month symptom variance, even when 6-month symptom scores were controlled. Findings are discussed with regard to conceptualizations of grief as a stress response syndrome, where intrusive processes (e.g., in narration) are of importance.     

Spatial and verbal abilities in children's crossmodal recognition: A dual coding approach.

Conducted 2 experiments to study the relative importance of visuospatial (VSAs) and verbal referential abilities (VRAs) to 184 English-speaking children's (aged 4 yrs 11 mo to 8 yrs) crossmodal performance under imagery, naming, and control instructions. Using the Minnesota Paper Form(s) Board Test Revised, imagery instructions induced Ss to implement a visual imagery strategy that depended primarily on VSA, whereas naming instructions promoted use of a naming strategy that depended relatively more on VRA. No instructions resulted in use of a verbal/naming strategy similar to that used by naming Ss. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

An experimental study of the thematic structure of primal-scene imagery.

Describes an experimental method in which the affective reactions evoked by primal-scene imagination were quantitatively assessed and systematically compared with those reactions evoked by the imagination of other scenes that usually elicit various theoretically related themes. 50 college-age persons, 25 males and 25 females, imagined a scene of their parents engaging in sexual relations, as well as other scenes emphasizing incestuous sexuality, loss and aloneness, or cognitive-confusion themes, and rated their reactions to each. Commonalities in reactions to the primal scene and the other scenes indicated that incest and aloneness themes underlie reactions to primal-scene imagery for this population. Data are consistent with observations from the clinical situation. It is expected that the scene-comparison method, which is a new research technique, will have further application for studies of unconscious processes and mental imagery. (11 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mental imagery verbal processes: A developmental study.

Administered a battery of 9 tests, including verbal and imaginal measures, to 200 children in Grades 1-5 at 2 private suburban elementary schools. Results reveal that verbal processes and mental imagery developed in a curvilinear manner with parallel rates of change. Factor analyses also showed that the 2 components of imagery (cognitive and subjective) were distinct from each other and from verbal abilities. Conclusions drawn from this data support the theory of Piaget (1971) and A. Paivio (1971) claiming that verbal and imaginal processes are independent traits whose development parallels each other rather than one (imagery) being the predecessor of the other (verbal) as stated by J. S. Bruner (1966). (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Manipulation of smoking urges and affect through a brief-imagery procedure: Self-report, psychophysiological, and startle probe responses.

The extent to which sentence imagery elicits effects comparable to those produced by long narratives was investigated. Smokers imagined sentences with varying affective content and that either contained or were devoid of smoking cues. Physiological responses were monitored, and smokers rated their urges and affect. Startle responses were also collected as an index of negative affect processing. Smoking-cue sentences produced augmented urges and startle responding. Smoking material also elevated negative affect during imagery of positive affect sentences. The affect manipulation produced changes in self-reported affect and facial electromyography consistent with the affective valence of the sentences. This procedure is similar to narrative imagery in the manipulation of smoking urges and affect under laboratory conditions. Results support the hypothesis that smoking urges enhance negative affect processing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual difference factors in the efficacy of Covert Modeling and Self-Instructional Training for fear reduction.

Analyzed the relationship between individual differences in cognitive mediational processes and the efficacy of 2 training strategies for fear reduction: self-instructional training (SIT), based on self-verbalization, and covert modeling (CM), based on visual imagery. 26 undergraduate animal-phobics were randomly assigned to training conditions. Measures included ratings of imagery vividness, visual imagery performance, and measures of cognitive styles. Results indicate that reliance on imagery or verbal strategies to cope with fear was important in predicting treatment effects. Ss who used imagery to cope with fear benefited significantly more from CM than SIT. The reverse occurred for Ss using verbal strategies to cope with fear. These effects were exhibited on both behavioral avoidance and self-reported fear measures. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Telling tales: Aging, working memory, and the narrative cohesion of story retellings.

This study investigated adult age differences in the cohesion of narrative retellings in both the reference and conjunction discourse systems and explored the role of information-processing factors in accounting for any such differences. Twenty Ss in each of the age groups 18–25, 26–55, and 60–87 either read a story or its parallel cartoon version, then retold it twice. Stories were coded for recall, clarity of referencing, and types of propositional connectives. We also obtained Daneman's (1980) measure of sentence memory span. The oldest group scored significantly lower on the memory span measure, recalled less story information, and made more referential errors in retellings. There were no age differences in complexity of conjunction usage. Working memory span scores partly accounted for the differences observed in referential quality both within and between age groups. Results are generally consistent with an information-processing account of story telling and aging. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Induction of visual imagery during NREM sleep

In an attempt to induce eye movements (EMs) in non-rapid eye movement sleep, light and sound stimuli were presented to human subjects (at below-waking threshold) during stage 2 sleep. EMs were used as an indicator of ponto-geniculo-occipital (PGO) wave activity. When at least one concurrent EM in response to the stimuli was observed, the subjects were awakened and mentation reports collected. Compared to equivalent control periods with no stimulation, awakenings from the stage 2 stimulation condition showed a higher frequency of visual imagery reports, electroencephalogram alpha activity, and k-complexes. Additional control and stimulation conditions elicited from rapid eye movement sleep awakenings showed no significant differences in the frequency of visual imagery reports. When the amount of alpha activity before stage 2 awakenings from which imagery was reported was compared to that from which imagery was not reported, imagery awakenings showed significantly more alpha. Results can be interpreted as evidence for a link between PGO activity and dreaming in humans or in terms of an arousal-window hypothesis of visual hallucinations.     

Effects of alcohol and expectancy set on male sexual arousal.

Assigned 48 undergraduate males to 8 experimental groups. The 6 Ss within each group received 1 of 4 dose levels (.08, .4, .8, or 1.2 g/kg body weight) of beverage alcohol and 1 of 2 different sets of expectancy instructions regarding sexual arousal. Changes in penile tumescence, in response to an erotic film, were measured physiologically by a mercury-in-rubber strain gauge. Muscle tension levels were also monitored during the film viewing. The following adjunctive measures of sexual arousal were also employed: (a) sexual imagery, (b) the subjective report of arousal, and (c) the estimation of the extent of penile erection. Alcohol significantly reduced the levels of penile tumescence (negative linear relation). The expectancy instructions regarding alcohol's effect did not significantly influence the penile response. Sexual imagery was negatively correlated with penile tumescence, whereas the subjective reports of sexual arousal and the estimations of penile erection were positively correlated with the physiological measure of sexual arousal. Muscle tension levels were not significantly influenced by alcohol or the expectancy set; neither was muscle tension correlated with penile tumescence. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Visual imagery as a mnemonic aid for brain-injured persons.

Evaluated the efficacy of visual imagery as a mnemonic aid for brain-injured persons. Performance during acquisition and during recall after 30 min and after 1 wk were compared under imagery and nonimagery conditions in 19 brain-injured and 21 normal adults (mean ages 33.9–53.8 yrs) on 2 experimental tasks each consisting of 15 items: a paired-associate learning and a face/name task. Imagery Ss completed the WAIS Vocabulary scale and the Trail Making Test. All Ss completed the Sensory Perception and Aphasia Screening Tests. The results are as follows: (a) Normals performed better than the patients on all comparisons. (b) Visual imagery facilitated performance of both patients and normals on the paired-associate task and to a lesser extent on the face/name task during acquisition and for recall after 30 min but not after 1 wk. Implications for the usefulness of visual imagery as a mnemonic device and more general issues concerning the development of effective intervention techniques for patients with memory inefficiency are discussed. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Imagery assessment through self-report: What do imagery questionnaires measure?

Assessment difficulties have impeded progress in evaluating the therapeutic role of visual imagery. Four studies with 445 undergraduates examined imagery questionnaires and addressed the issues of (a) reliability, (b) agreement among different questionnaires, (c) social desirability, and (d) construct validity. The (Betts) Questionnaire Upon Mental Imagery, Gordon Test of Visual Imagery Control, and a newer inventory, the Paivio Individual Differences Questionnaire, were examined. Reliability of the Paivio inventory was found to be satisfactory and equivalent to that of other imagery questionnaires. In 2 studies, the Betts and Paivio questionnaires were correlated at the .45–.50 level, but correlations involving the Gordon scale were inconsistent from one study to the next. In general, imagery measures were not influenced by social desirability (Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale). Factor analysis indicated that subjective and objective measures of visualization are independent. The final study revealed a relationship between imagery questionnaire scores and reported values and interests. It is suggested that imagery is not a unitary construct and that criteria other than visuospatial tests may be appropriate for validating imagery questionnaires. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Experiences of intimacy and power: Relationships between social motives and autobiographical memory.

Collected open-ended recollections of autobiographical memories from 142 undergraduates in 2 studies. The memory protocols were coded for themes of interpersonal intimacy (love and friendship, reciprocal communication or sharing, helping others and being helped, and tender interpersonal touching) and personal power (perceived strength, powerful inspiration, having impact, vigorous activity, and increased fame or recognition). Ss' intimacy and power motive scores were obtained by prior administration of the TAT. Ss scoring higher in intimacy motivation recalled specific peak experiences, great learning experiences, and (to a lesser extent) satisfying experiences that contained a preponderance of intimacy themes; Ss scoring lower on the intimacy motive did not. A similar relationship between power motivation and power themes in peak experiences and satisfying experiences was obtained. In addition, a positive correlation was found between the power motive and expressed feelings of anger in reports of unpleasant experiences. (49 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Metrics of Spatial Distance Traversed During Mental Imagery.

The authors conducted 2 experiments to study the metrics of spatial distance in a mental imagery task. In both experiments, participants first memorized the layout of a building containing 10 rooms with 24 objects. Participants then received mental imagery instructions and imagined how they walked through the building from one room to another. The authors manipulated Euclidean distance involved in these imaginary motions: Spatial distance measured in centimeters on the layout was either short or long. Independently, they varied categorical distance: The motions led through one room or two rooms. The time needed to imagine motions and response times to test probes indicated that both Euclidean distance and categorical distance affected mental imagery. The authors discuss the new finding of categorical distance effects in mental imagery and relate the results to earlier failures to find Euclidean distance effects in formally equivalent studies of narrative comprehension. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Natural forms of shed tumor gangliosides

Data on activity states were collected from 29 group-housed capuchin monkey (Cebus apella) infants for 3 h each week from birth to 11 weeks of age. The amounts of time spent in sleeping/drowsy, alert-quiet, and alert-active states were measured in these subjects. Videotaped observations of these infants were recorded 3 times/week in the home cage over the first year of life and were scored for a number of social and exploratory behaviors. The extent to which early infant activity state scores predicted later behavior in the home cage was examined. Infant state measures correlated significantly with home cage behavior during months 2-6 in that infants that had been more active in early infancy spent more time alone, with other animals, and in exploration and play and less time with mothers than did quieter infants. Early state measures were less successful in predicting home cage scores beyond 8 months of age, whereas differences in behavior attributable to housing variables became more salient in the latter part of the first year. There was also a negative correlation between mother and infant activity in months 2 and 3, in that more sedentary mothers tended to have more active infants.     

Assessment and training of role-taking and referential communication skills in institutionalized emotionally disturbed children.

Evaluated 125 institutionalized emotionally disturbed 8-15-yr-old children in terms of their role-taking and referential communication skills. On the basis of this screening process, the 48 Ss who performed most poorly on these measures were assigned randomly to 1 of 2 experimental training programs intended to remediate deficits in either role-taking or referential communication skills. As a group these institutionalized Ss were significantly delayed in the acquisition of both role taking and referential communication when compared with samples of their normal age-mates. Pre- and postintervention comparisons indicated that Ss of both experimental groups improved significantly in their role-taking ability. Ss of the communication training program also demonstrated significant improvement in referential communication skills. A 12-mo follow-up showed a trend for improvements in both test measures to be associated with improvements in social adjustment as rated by institutional staff. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Age differences in the relationship between visual movement imagery and performance on kinesthetic acuity tests.

The Vividness of Movement Imagery Questionnaire was administered to 280 fourteen-year-olds and 186 ten-year-olds, who were then tested on measures of kinesthetic acuity. The relationship between visual movement imagery and kinesthetic acuity scores was significant in the older group: Those with high levels of visual movement imagery performed significantly better on measures of kinesthetic acuity than did those with low imagery. No such effect was found in the younger group. The results indicate that for adolescents, the confounding effect of visual imagery affects the researcher's ability to interpret kinesthetic acuity scores. The relationship between imagery and kinesthesis appears to develop over the period between 10 and 14 years, although such an interpretation may be premature because the measurement of visual movement imagery in the younger age group is problematic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validity, structure, and content of the 1994 Strong Interest Inventory.

The relative contributions of the personal style scales, general occupational themes, and basic interest scales to the concurrent validity, predictive structure, and personality content of the 1994 Strong Interest Inventory were studied. Effect sizes were provided to indicate the overall differentiation between occupational groups for each of the 35 scales. An expected inverse relationship between the predictive power of each of the 3 sets of nonoccupational scales and their occupational specificity was found. Vocational measures of personality represented by the personal style scales and general occupational themes were found to be effective in a familiar hexagonal 2-dimensional space. Although the results supported the incremental validity of the personal style scales, the basic interest scales were found to deal most effectively with the multivariate complexity of vocational interests. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Participational agency.

Participational agency is presented as a conceptual account of human action, volition, and possibility. Rooted in hermeneutic and narrative traditions, this view differs from other theorizing about agency (and most psychological theorizing in general) in that it makes no effort to explain human action by virtue of reified constructs. As an alternative to traditional theorizing in this area, participational agency is defined as meaningful engagement in the world and treats the experienced meaningfulness of practical human activity as its central feature. The concept of meaningful engagement is clarified through the presentation of four related themes—situated participation, existential concern, dispositional action, and narrative orientation. Finally, the author offers several implications of this view of agency for theory and research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Repetition versus imagery instructions in the immediate- and delayed-retention of picture and word paired-associates.

22 undergraduates learned 2 paired-associate lists each consisting of 18 picture pairs and 18 word pairs. 1/2 of the items in each list were studied by repetition, the remainder by imagery. Recall improved from List 1 to List 2 on the immediate test but there was no difference in lists on retest 1 wk. later. On both immediate and delayed tests picture pairs were recalled better than word pairs and imagery study proved superior to repetition study. Informing Ss of their study method for each stimulus at time of recall did not affect performance. Results lend further support to the superiority of pictorial memory over verbal memory and provide evidence supporting an hypothesis that imagery study is a more efficient learning strategy than is repetition study. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)