Can after-the-fact designs test functional hypotheses, and are they needed in psychology?

While various methodological psychologists have traditionally claimed that ex-post facto or after-the-fact investigational designs cannot test functional hypotheses of "causal" type, it is maintained in the present paper that they can under certain circumstances. To the usual objection that the "treated" groups in after-the-fact studies have not been equated by randomization or matching to the "control" groups, it is argued that where suitable data are available, judicious matching can be done and conceivable regression effects avoided or discounted. While admittedly probable functional determinants ("causes") are preferably investigated by classical experimental designs, there are important fields, such as the study of the effects of physical disorders and investigations of the actual determinants in real-life situations, in which an appropriate series of after-the-fact analyses is essential for the testing of the alleged causal connections. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Causes and reasons in attribution theory: A conceptual critique.

Argues that although the terms cause and reason have both appeared in the attribution theory literature, they have not been adequately distinguished from each other. With the aid of some recent ideas from the philosophy of mind on the cause–reason distinction, a conceptual critique is undertaken of the way these terms have been used by attribution theorists. Two topics are considered: (a) E. E. Jones and R. E. Nisbett's (1972) ideas on actor–observer differences in causal attributions and (b) A. W. Kruglanski's (1975) criticisms of the internal–external distinction and his own endogenous–exogenous reformulation. The conceptual critique ends in a taxonomy of attributions and a plea for greater precision in the use of the terms cause and reason in this area. (37 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychobabble: Why do we do it?

Many expressions originating in contemporary, "instant" therapies have become incorporated into everyday speech. These expressions, otherwise know as "psychobabble," convey connotative meanings rather than precise, denotative ones. It is concluded here that they also function as indexes, thereby serving as markers for identifying group members, and as security operations, thereby enhancing self-esteem. Consequently, psychobabble has personal significance for the speaker/therapist but not for the listener/client. (6 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reasons for clinical research: Characteristics of contributors and their contributions to the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

A representative sample of contributors (333) to the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology was asked to report on their motivations for conducting studies that had been published in that journal. Results indicate that the primary motivation of these clinical researchers was to build on prior theory and research through the gathering and analysis of new data to answer socially significant applied-clinical questions. More immediate pragmatic considerations (e.g., tenure, funding, degree or job requirements, and availability of Ss) were reported to be of secondary, but nevertheless significant, importance. Most respondents described the training model in which they had received their doctoral education or oriented toward an integrated scientist-practitioner approach rather than one that focused primarily on research, therapy, or assessment training. It was also found that these clinical researchers rarely conducted investigations in the context of community service or consultation interventions or in order to replicate past research. Results are discussed in light of current controversies in clinical psychology concerning the optimal model for training and the relevance of clinical research. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The distinction between sympathy and empathy: To call forth a concept, a word is needed.

Discusses the ways in which the terms sympathy and empathy have been used in psychology and suggests that these terms (a) have different historical roots, (b) have been utilized in different research paradigms, and (c) have been involved in different kinds of theorizing. It is suggested that sympathy refers to the heightened awareness of another's plight as something to be alleviated, whereas empathy refers to the attempt of one self-aware self to understand the subjective experiences of another. It is argued that these are different psychological processes and that the differences between them should not be obfuscated. (98 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ominous problem.

Discusses a problem in the educational system in terms of W. R. Looft's (see record 1972-02727-001) concept of the "psychology of more." "More" has been accepted as the criterion of quality in education (i.e., more students and more information). It has been forgotten that information without understanding is as useless as analysis and evaluation without information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

What is the source of the Fullerton-Cattell "principle"?

Points out that there is no basis for the common tendency of writers on psychophysics to attribute the statement "Equally often noticed differences are equal unless always or never noticed" to G. S. Fullerton and J. M. Cattell (1892). No such statement appears in their monograph and its spirit seems contrary to their work's goals. The 1st attribution of the statement to Fullerton and Cattell appears to have been made by L. L. Thurstone (1932). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The impact of Daubert and its progeny on the admissibility of behavioral and social science evidence.

Although Daubert (1993) describes a test for admissibility that applies to all proffers of scientific evidence in the federal courts and many state courts, its application has not been uniform across the sciences. To assess Daubert's impact for behavioral and social science evidence, the authors describe and analyze the application of a set of criteria that include whether Daubert has mattered, whether the context in which Daubert is applied should matter, whether one can operationalize the application of the Daubert criteria to predict its outcome in specific cases, whether Daubert can assist in getting admissibility decisions right, and whether there are broader lessons beyond admissibility to be learned from Daubert . (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Science, common sense, and the determination of mental capacity.

In 1993, when the Supreme Court decided Daubert and created the modern standard for the admissibility of scientific evidence, it almost certainly did not consider its possible effect on evidentiary hearings in probate courts even though such courts routinely admit expert testimony in will contests and guardianship hearings. Probate courts also admit testimony of lay witnesses who express their opinion as to the mental capacity of the individual in question. Yet both expert and lay witnesses are only "fact bringers" and not "fact interpreters" because the ultimate question of capacity is legal, not factual. Because the determination of legal capacity is made by the judge or jury, the role of experts in capacity trials is not fundamentally different than that of lay persons. The limited role of the expert suggests that probate courts should allow great latitude in the admission of expert testimony because the fact finders must ultimately rely on their own amorphous sense of "legal capacity." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The use and acceptance of social science evidence in business litigation after Daubert.

The landmark U.S. Supreme Court case of Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals , which overturned the venerable Frye test for the admissibility of scientific evidence, has sparked considerable interest among scholars and practitioners, within both the law and the various sciences. The discussion of the impact of Daubert on social science evidence, however, has been largely confined to a narrow range of issues, primarily concerning criminal law and mental health. Indeed, the Daubert case thus far has received relatively scant attention in the published cases involving business litigation, and in most of these instances, the focus has been on evidence from the hard sciences rather than from the social sciences. The author explores the use and acceptance of social science evidence in business litigation within the post- Daubert era. First, the specific Daubert factors are analyzed from the perspective of social science evidence in business litigation. Second, the scope of business litigation which has been impacted-or which is potentially impacted-by Daubert is outlined and discussed. Third, various procedural issues in the post- Daubert era are explored, including motions for summary judgment to dispose of social science issues… (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A word for psychologists.

Suggests that "psycho-logistics," a term coined by the author for group work with disabled, institutionalized veterans, is an appropriate term for most activities of professional psychologists. (0 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Androgyny and the art of loving.

Argues that truly fulfilling sexual, loving relationships require the development of an intrapsychic self, best described as "androgynous." The maturest form of intimacy then would involve an ability to identify with and positively value those aspects of the self that have been culturally labeled "feminine" or "masculine" to allow for a more complete empathic connection with those "feminine" or "masculine" aspects of a love partner. Clinical examples are cited to demonstrate the inherent limitations of sex-appropriate gender/role identifications that are often pointed to as criteria for successful therapeutic outcomes in traditional schools of psychotherapy. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individuals and dimensions in children's judgment of same and different.

Used the 2-choice transposition problem to examine children's judgments of "same" and "different." When instructed to choose "the same" object in the test phase, kindergartners (n = 24) chose the same dimensional value whereas 3rd graders (n = 24) chose the specific stimulus which had been positive during training. When instructed to choose "the different" or "a different" object, both groups chose on the basis of individual identity. Ontogenetic changes in children's use of individual identities and dimensional values, and the relation between linguistic and cognitive factors, are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Applications of psychology to television programming: Formulation of program objectives.

Asserts that in preparing objectives of television programming for children the instructor must (a) recognize the needs and interests of his/her audience and (b) match them to his/her educational purposes. The techniques used to identify and implement methods of attaining the goals of the television programs "Sesame Street" and "The Electric Company" are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The future of monographs.

Argues that the trends of the explosion of knowledge go against the discontinuation of general and applied monographs. Focus is on the demise of Psychological Monographs and the need to reinstitute the publication with new editorial policy. Advantages of Psychological Monographs, compared with the International Journal of Psychiatry, include its ability to make a basic contribution in issues important to psychology (e.g., psychotherapy). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Supreme Court and the APA, AERA, NCME test standards: Past references and future possibilities.

A survey of US Supreme Court references to the Standards for Educational and Psychological Tests and to federal agency guidelines on testing over the past 7 yrs suggests that the Court is beginning to rely on the Standards as an authoritative source for objective answers to technical, psychometric questions. Implications of this trend for the Joint Review Committee on Test Standards, its parent organizations, and the relationship between science and government are discussed. It is suggested that agency guidelines are based on a combination of research evidence and policy preferences. It is further suggested the Standards should not be based on such evidence and preferences and will be most useful to the Court if they maintain scientific fidelity. (4 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Same"–"different" judgments: A review of current controversies in perceptual comparisons.

Reviews the literature on 2 anomalous effects, the "fast-same" effect (FSE) and the criterion effect, found in the interpretation of same–different reaction-time data. No 2 models localize the FSE in the same information-processing stage or attribute the phenomenon to a common stimulus property or task demand. It is suggested that each of the models, or some combination of them, may account for particular instances of the FSE. Findings show that disjunctive same–different judgments differ from conjunctive judgments in both quantitative and qualitative respects. The criterion effect rules out models in which a dimensional comparison process underlies conjunctive different judgments, for such models have no provision for making disjunctive judgments contingent on a different process. It has been suggested that feature matching might be amenable to criterion-contingent processing modes, forming the basis of a unified model of same–different judgments. Another approach takes the view that the conjunctive same response is an absolute, rather than relative, judgment, giving rise to an attentional model. (4? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Implicit learning and generalization of the "mere exposure" effect.

Reports 2 experiments that examined the generalization of the "mere exposure" effect. Both experiments demonstrated that positive affect, produced by repeated viewing of a set of stimuli, generalizes to previously unseen stimuli that are similar to the exposed stimuli along certain abstract dimensions. Exp I, with 82 Ss, used letter strings constructed according to a complex rule system. Positive affect attributable to exposure generalized to novel letter strings that obeyed the rule system. Affective generalization was related to Ss' judgments of whether the novel strings obeyed the rule system. Exp II (40 Ss), in which the stimuli were complex visual patterns created by distorting standard forms, yielded an orderly gradient of affective generalization to novel patterns at varying levels of distortion. Results indicate that the exposure effect behaves in a manner similar to "implicit" concept learning and rule induction. The generalization techniques developed here provide a novel method for studying the affective processing of stimuli. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)