An attributional analysis of commitment.

C. A. Kiesler (1971) suggested that commitment to an act can be equated with feelings of self-responsibility for that act. This analysis implies that factors affecting attribution of self-responsibility for an act should also affect commitment. Two studies with a total of 93 male undergraduates supported the notion that attribution of self-responsibility for an act increases commitment to that act. Increasing self-focus (Exp I) increased commitment, and increasing the number of plausible causes present (Exp II) decreased commitment to a chosen act. Furthermore, in an effort to determine the role that perceived choice plays in the attributional process leading to commitment, perceived choice was also manipulated. Results indicate that choice clearly affected attribution to self and thus commitment, but choice did not appear to be absolutely essential to that process. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Fictions and Facts About Evolutionary Approaches to Human Behavior: Comment on Lickliter and Honeycutt (2003).

Six misconceptions about evolutionary approaches to human behavior are exposed. Evidence is adduced to support the assertions that evolutionary approaches do not (a) adopt a reductionistic "gene-centered" level of analysis, (b) assume that natural selection is the only process that creates and designs ontogenetic processes and phenotypic outcomes, (c) assume that genes are the only agents responsible for the transgenerational inheritance of phenotypic traits and characteristics, (d) assume that genes are self-contained and impervious to extragenetic influences, (e) posit a strong form of genetic determinism, or (f) pay lip service to the role of the environment. Building straw men and knocking them down is an inherently destructive enterprise; integrating different approaches is a more constructive way of contributing to the growth of knowledge. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Role of the C-terminal domain of Bax and Bcl-XL in their localization and function in yeast cells

It has been suggested that the C-terminal domain of Bcl-2 family members may contain a signal anchor sequence that targets these proteins to the mitochondrial outer membrane. We have investigated the consequence of deleting this domain upon cytochrome c release in yeast strains that coexpress truncated forms of Bax (i.e. BaxA) and Bcl-X(L) (i.e. Bcl-X(L)delta). We find that (i) Bax(delta) is as efficient as full-length Bax in promoting cytochrome c release, but Bcl-x(L)delta has remarkably reduced rescuing ability compared to full-length Bcl-x(L); (ii) full-length Bcl-X(L) protein acts by relocalizing Bax from the mitochondrial fraction to the soluble cytosolic fraction; (iii) Bax undergoes N-terminal cleavage when expressed in yeast, which is prevented by coexpression of Bcl-X(L), suggesting that Bcl-x(L) may mask the cleavage site of Bax through a direct physical interaction of the two proteins.     

Ethical problems of psychological jargon.

An overuse of psychological jargon is potentially harmful in 4 ways; it can (a) distort truth and understanding, (b) provide a means for avoiding responsibility, (c) foster the development of an elitist class, and (d) lead to the denigration of psychology as a profession. Examples of jargon are given that are redundant, obscure, or distortive or that permit a semblence of conversation to occur with no real exchange of information. It is suggested that psychologists (a) use the clearest language available, (b) be aware of others' use of jargon, and (c) help clients to communicate better by pointing out jargon and helping them select words that express what they really feel. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cost-effectiveness analysis in mental health policy research.

Comments on C. A. Kiesler's (see record 1981-30977-001) argument for cost benefit (CB) and cost-effectiveness (CE) studies in mental health program evaluations. The present author maintains that Kiesler failed to mention the work of several psychologists who investigated the application of CB and CE analyses to mental health. Several misconceptions of CB and CE analyses that were not mentioned by Kiesler are reviewed. These include: (1) the confusion that CB and CE are somewhat interchangeable, (2) the misconception that direct or budgetary costs are the only relevant costs in these analyses, (3) the oversimplification that CB and CE involve only quantitative ratios, and (4) the tendency for these techniques to be seen as objective and nonjudgmental. (2 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Restrictions on components of variance for epistatic models

The putative role(s) of a mechanically gated (MG) cation channel in Xenopus oocyte growth, maturation, fertilization and embryogenesis has been examined. Using a pharmacological approach, we have tested the effects of the MG channel blockers, gadolinium, gentamicin and amiloride on the above developmental events. Our results indicate that oocyte maturation, fertilization and early embryogenesis (up to the free-swimming stage 45) can proceed normally in the presence of concentrations of agents that either completely abolish (i.e., > or = 10 microM Gd3+) or partially block (i.e., 1 mM gentamicin) single MG channel activity as measured by patch-clamp recording. However, we also find that higher concentrations of Gd3+ (> or = 50 microM) can lead to an increased percentage (> 20%) of axis-perturbed embryos compared with control (< 1%) and that amiloride (0.5 mM) reduces the success of fertilization (from 100% to < 50%) and increases mortality (by approximately 75%) in developing embryos. Furthermore, we find that all three agents inhibit oocyte growth in vitro. However, their order of effectiveness (amiloride > gentamicin > Gd3+) is opposite to their order for blocking MG channels (Gd3+ > gentamicin > amiloride). These discrepancies indicated that the drugs effects occur by mechanisms other than, or in addition to, MG channel block. Our results provide no compelling evidence for the idea that MG channel activity is critical for development in Xenopus. This could mean that there are other mechanisms in the oocyte that can compensate when MG channel activity is blocked or that the protein that forms the channel can undergo additional interactions that result in a function insensitive to MG channel blockers.     

Projection as a defense mechanism.

Reviews the research related to the hypothesized defensive functions of projection (e.g., attributing one's own undesirable traits to others). Contrary to the predictions, it was found that (a) there is no evidence that projection protects persons from the awareness that they possess undesirable traits, (b) the use of projection follows only some of the predicted patterns, (c) there is no evidence that projection results in undesirable traits being reevaluated as more positive, and (d) there is no reliable or strong evidence that projection results in stress reduction. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of facial response in self-reports of emotion: A critique of Laird.

Discusses a study by J. D. Laird (see record 1985-11387-001) that contrasted 16 successful demonstrations of the facial feedback hypothesis with R. Tourangeau and P. C. Ellsworth's (see record 1981-00499-001) failure to demonstrate any effects of facial expressions on mood. It is argued that Laird's conclusion that facial feedback effects have been demonstrated consistently and that the null results of the Tourangeau-Ellsworth study are atypical is more strongly worded than current evidence warrants. It is shown that most of the 16 successful studies are relevant only to the weak (dimensional) version of the hypothesis and not to the strong (categorical) version that Tourangeau and Ellsworth sought to test. (36 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The analysis of change: Issues, fallacies, and new ideas.

In this special section of The Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, new ideas about how to analyze change are presented in a format that is accessible to clinicians and clinical researchers. D. Rogosa's (1988) myths of longitudinal research are reviewed in an attempt to familiarize psychologists with the dangers of assuming (1) that regression toward the mean is unavoidable, (2) that difference scores are unreliable, (3) that analysis of covariance is the way to analyze change, (4) that 2 points are adequate to measure change, and (5) that the correlation between change and initial level is always negative. An overview of the articles emphasizes what is new and improved in the design and analysis of change. The articles are preceded with a conceptual discussion of how to measure change over time when the stability of the criterion construct is high and there is little variance to predict. Other articles discuss the form of change over time and how this can be an important tool in testing specific hypotheses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rethinking shared environment as a source of variance underlying attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms: Comment on Burt (2009).

Burt (2009) recently published a meta-analysis of twin studies on behaviors associated with childhood psychopathologies, concluding that the finding that traits associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were the only behaviors that did not show a significant influence of shared environment (C) was surprising. We agree, highlighting four methodological issues that may account for this finding: (a) the use of nonlinear transformations to normalize skewed data; (b) low power to detect C and the subsequent presentation of reduced models; (c) the negative confounding of dominant genetic (D) and C influences in twin models with data exclusively from monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs reared together; and (d) the correction used for contrast effects (a form of rater bias), which may lead to an overestimate of additive genetic (A) or D parameters at the expense of C. We offer suggestions for future research to address these issues, and we emphasize the need for additional research to examine possible shared environmental factors related to ADHD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Faith is not enough: A response to the Baltes-Schaie claim that intelligence does not wane.

Faith has been defined as unfounded belief in the occurrence of the improbable. This seems to describe well the adherence of P. B. Baltes and K. W. Schaie (see PA, Vol 52:5053; also Schaie—Vol 53:7133) to a claim that little or no important age-related intellectual decline occurs. In replying to criticisms of their arguments that such decline is myth, the present paper argues that Baltes and Schaie (1976) have (a) obscured the basic points at issue by raising diversionary questions about plasticity and "dialectical posture"; (b) advanced the untenable argument that the search for lawful explanation of complex phenomena is futile; (c) fallaciously argued that criticisms are suspect unless they are based on a "theory-free" inductive interpretation of findings; (d) ignored results indicating decline and positive bias in the very data cited to support their argument for the myth of intellectual decline; (e) failed to explain what is systematic about the significance of the omnibus F test for cohort "effects," beyond what can parsimoniously be accounted for in terms of the confounded age variable; (f) not responded to reasoning suggesting that between-cohort differences in education, if these account for important intellectual variation, should be reflected in a manner contrary to what is actually observed; and (g) asserted that no statistically reliable age decrement occurs in a set of data for which analyses demonstrate statistically significant linear decline. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Worker control: A reply to Ronan.

Argues that W. W. Ronan (1980) presents a one-sided picture of "work force control" by the "entrepreneur–capitalist–management group" and discredits the contributions of many psychologists to workers' well-being. Ronan's contentions that (1) psychological concepts are applied to programs that are motivated by management's desire to avoid unionization, (2) psychological experiments and interventions are unilaterally imposed on workers by management, and (3) economic benefits of psychological interventions should be shared equally with workers are discussed. It is concluded that psychologists have every reason to be proud of their colleagues' contributions to making companies more profitable while improving the work environment for employees. (1 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The education of therapists.

At a conference for female therapists in Canada, participants answered a questionnaire on issues and skills of therapists. Results indicate that the Ss were interested in (1) understanding themselves, their careers, and women's roles in society, and (2) a feminist approach to therapy. The responses suggest that the Ss' training as therapists was inadequate to the extent that it failed to address their own reality and that of women clients. (0 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reconsidering the support for Holland's congruence–achievement hypothesis.

Provides evidence that is used to reconsider studies that have been reported to support J. L. Holland's (1985) hypothesis that person–environment congruence relates positively to achievement. It is argued that W. E. Werner's (see record 1974-28747-001) article, which Holland (1985) cited as supporting his congruence–achievement hypothesis, says nothing about that hypothesis and that Holland's (1985) book and Holland's (see record 1968-06191-001) data support the notion that achievement orientation (not congruence) may be responsible for the positive associations that researchers have found between academic achievement and congruence. Other evidence for reconsideration of Holland's hypothesis includes the present finding of a negative relationship between the annual incomes and the conventional scores on the Occupations scale of the Self-Directed Search: A Guide to Educational and Vocational Planning of 555 female and 498 male accountants (mean age 36 yrs). It is concluded that the congruence–achievement hypothesis may not have been supported by the studies that have been reported to support it. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Knowledge, views, and experience of 25 women with myotonic dystrophy

Twenty-five affected women of reproductive age known to the North West Regional Genetics Family Register (NWRGFR) were interviewed. A semistructured questionnaire, completed by the interviewer, was used to assess understanding and experience of the clinical and genetic aspects of myotonic dystrophy (MD) and attitudes to prenatal diagnosis (PND). Characteristic features of MD (muscle weakness and wasting and myotonia) were well known. Knowledge of other features and complications reflected experience. All subjects were aware that MD is inherited, but only 56% (14/25) knew the risk to their own children and subjects tended to overestimate this risk. Anticipation and maternal transmission of congenital myotonic dystrophy (CMD) were often misunderstood. Almost half of the subjects (12/25) perceived themselves to be moderately or severely affected and 40% (10/25) felt that their symptoms restricted daily life. Feelings of devastation, depression, worry about the future, and guilt at the risk of transmission to their children were described. Many subjects (10/25) said that the worst aspect of MD is the risk of transmission to their children. Over half (14/25) said that the risk of transmitting MD had influenced or would influence their own reproduction. Three-quarters of subjects who felt that MD had influenced their reproductive decisions (9/12) chose to limit their family or have no children; only 25% (3/12) requested PND. Subjects felt that the lack of information concerning clinical severity made PND for MD difficult to consider.     

Experimental psychology and social responsibility.

Argues that (1) the roles of scientist and human being are to some extent inseparable, (2) the scientist cannot escape responsibility for the uses made of his knowledge, and (3) basic research must be defended in terms of its potential social value, however remote. It is argued that experimental psychologists have a series of obligations which can be met through formal organizations. They include: (1) the responsibility to interpret its basic research to society as a whole; (2) the responsibility to encourage its own social support through social action; (3) the need to step up its attack on pressing social problems; and (4) the responsibility to oppose political climates that would inhibit the progress of free psychological inquiry and to encourage political climates that permit and encourage such progress. A few illustrative examples are cited of the involvement of psychological associations in social action and of instances in which they might have been involved and were not. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpretational confounding is due to misspecification, not to type of indicator: Comment on Howell, Breivik, and Wilcox (2007).

R. D. Howell, E. Breivik, and J. B. Wilcox (2007; see record 2007-07830-006) have argued that causal (formative) indicators are inherently subject to interpretational confounding. That is, they have argued that using causal (formative) indicators leads the empirical meaning of a latent variable to be other than that assigned to it by a researcher. Their critique of causal (formative) indicators rests on several claims: (a) A latent variable exists apart from the model when there are effect (reflective) indicators but not when there are causal (formative) indicators, (b) causal (formative) indicators need not have the same consequences, (c) causal (formative) indicators are inherently subject to interpretational confounding, and (d) a researcher cannot detect interpretational confounding when using causal (formative) indicators. This article shows that each claim is false. Rather, interpretational confounding is more a problem of structural misspecification of a model combined with an underidentified model that leaves these misspecifications undetected. Interpretational confounding does not occur if the model is correctly specified whether a researcher has causal (formative) or effect (reflective) indicators. It is the validity of a model not the type of indicator that determines the potential for interpretational confounding. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the hazards of assuming that the techniques of psychotherapy are ineffective: A reply to Hynan.

Responds to M. Hynan's (1981) article in which he argued that students should be taught to assume that no therapy is superior to others and that the only important factor is the relationship between therapist and patient. It is argued that (1) research does not dictate that students be taught that therapy techniques are equally effective; (2) Hynan's conclusions are not based on research but on a forced and arbitrary distinction; and (3) the advantages Hynan suggests are doubtful, and there are advantages to teaching students to conduct therapy in the more traditional way. (4 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)