Cumulative risk and early cognitive development: A comparison of statistical risk models.

Although it is generally accepted that social risk factors predict delays in early cognitive and language development, there is less agreement about how to represent such associations statistically. Using data collected prospectively on 87 African American children during their first 4 years, this study examined 3 analytic methods for describing a child's level of social risk: (a) individual risk variables, (b) factor scores derived from those risk variables, and (c) a risk index computed by tallying the number of risk conditions present. Comparisons indicated that the individual-risk-variables approach provides better overall prediction of developmental outcomes at a particular age but is less useful in predicting developmental patterns. The risk-factor approach provides good prediction of developmental trajectories when sample sizes are moderate to large. Finally, the risk-index approach is useful for relating social risk to developmental patterns when a large number of risk variables are assessed with a small sample or when other constructs are of primary interest. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Measurement of psychological disorders using cognitive diagnosis models.

Cognitive diagnosis models are constrained (multiple classification) latent class models that characterize the relationship of questionnaire responses to a set of dichotomous latent variables. Having emanated from educational measurement, several aspects of such models seem well suited to use in psychological assessment and diagnosis. This article presents the development of a new cognitive diagnosis model for use in psychological assessment--the DINO (deterministic input; noisy "or" gate) model--which, as an illustrative example, is applied to evaluate and diagnose pathological gamblers. As part of this example, a demonstration of the estimates obtained by cognitive diagnosis models is provided. Such estimates include the probability an individual meets each of a set of dichotomous Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (text revision [DSM-IV-TR]; American Psychiatric Association, 2000) criteria, resulting in an estimate of the probability an individual meets the DSM-IV-TR definition for being a pathological gambler. Furthermore, a demonstration of how the hypothesized underlying factors contributing to pathological gambling can be measured with the DINO model is presented, through use of a covariance structure model for the tetrachoric correlation matrix of the dichotomous latent variables representing DSM-IV-TR criteria. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An evaluation of cognitive processing therapy for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder related to childhood sexual abuse.

This study compared the effectiveness of cognitive processing therapy for sexual abuse survivors (CPT-SA) with that of the minimal attention (MA) given to a wait-listed control group. Seventy-one women were randomly assigned to 1 of the 2 groups. Participants were assessed at pretreatment and 3 times during posttreatment: immediately after treatment and at 3-month and 1-year follow-up, using the Clinician-Administered Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Scale (D. Blake et al., 1995), the Beck Depression Inventory (A. T. Beck, R. A. Steer, & G. K. Brown, 1996), the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-IV (R. L. Spitzer, J. B. W. Williams, & M. Gibbon, 1995; M. B. First et al., 1995), the Dissociative Experiences Scale-II (E. M. Bernstein & F. W. Putnam, 1986), and the Modified PTSD Symptom Scale (S. A. Falsetti, H. S. Resnick, P. A. Resick, & D. G. Kilpatrick, 1993). Analyses suggested that CPT-SA is more effective for reducing trauma-related symptoms than is MA, and the results were maintained for at least 1 year. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of uncertainty in cognitive change.

Cognitive change was hypothesized to be related to level of S's feeling of uncertainty. Judgments of a photographic stimulus under varying conditions of feedback and quality of stimulus were elicited. The results indicated that change in judgment (cognitive change) is associated with change in level of uncertainty, and the conditions of cognitive change were similar to the Lewinian conceptualization of social change. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An afterword: The utility of cognitive models for the field of psychopathology.

Cognitive models of psychopathology provide opportunities and challenges for both the research psychopathologist and the clinician concerned with practical applications to individuals. Heterogeneity of individual pathology within diagnostic categories, heterogeneity of content within symptom categories, undue reliance on judgment-based ratings, and frequent emphasis on deficit rather than the overt behavior of the patients are some of the major issues. Others include the complex interaction between cognitive and affective processes and the fact that input-output functions are often nonlinear and marked by critical threshold values for the appearance of overt pathology. An important feature of models is the discipline that they introduce into theorizing about psychopathology plus the focus on precise quantification. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexual abuse and sexual function: An examination of sexually relevant cognitive processes.

Participants were 61 sexually abused and 57 nonsexually abused women. The authors examined whether recent methodologies adopted from social–cognitive psychology might prove helpful in understanding the previously reported negative relation between childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and adult sexual function. In Part 1, a card-sort task was used to explore potential differences between sexually abused and nonsexually abused women in the categorization of positive/negative self-information. In Part 2, sexually relevant information networks, believed to represent the way in which information is organized, accessed, and retrieved from memory, were compared. Sexually abused women differed from nonsexually abused women in the meanings they attributed to many sexuality-relevant concepts but not in how they compartmentalized positive/negative self-information. The findings provide insight into the cognitive processes by which CSA experiences might influence adult sexual function and provide a starting point for future research using this type of methodology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Causes of sexual dysfunction: The role of anxiety and cognitive interference.

Research findings have implicated 5 factors that seem to differentiate sexually functional Ss from sexually dysfunctional Ss suffering from inhibited sexual excitement. These factors include differences in affect during sexual stimulation, differences in self-reports of sexual arousal and perception of control over arousal, distractibility during sexual stimulation, and differential sexual responding while anxious. These findings suggest a working model of sexual dysfunction that is based on cognitive interference and anxiety. According to this model, dysfunctional Ss show an inappropriate attentional focus that involves attending to the consequences of not performing or some other issue not directly related to erotic cues. Neutral distracting stimuli inhibit the arousal of sexually functional but not sexually dysfunctional Ss. Implications of this model for the treatment of sexual dysfunction are suggested. (68 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The social–cognitive construction of psychotherapeutic change: Bridging social constructionism and cognitive constructivism.

Self-with-other processing and construction play an important role in human adjustment, development, and change. This idea is critical for an adequate understanding of psychotherapy and psychotherapeutic change. A theory of psychotherapeutic change that combines elements of both social constructionist and cognitive constructivist thought is presented briefly. After reviewing salient examples of both forms of thought as these have manifested in theorizing about psychotherapeutic change, a sampling of original empirical demonstrations is offered in support of the theory. Psychotherapeutic change is described as a process of appropriation and practical application through which clients internalize therapeutic conversations and activities, which they then use as psychological tools to restructure personal theories, experiences, and actions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of instruction on the cognitive structure of statistical and psychometric concepts.

Administered a questionnaire made up of pairs of concepts to be judged for similarity to 39 graduate students before and after they had taken a course on educational testing and measurement. The judgment of all possible pairs of 13 concepts was analyzed using an individual differences model for multidimensional scaling. Instruction produced a more highly organized and smaller cognitive structure than had existed previously. This result appeared to be due, at least in part, to the fact that many concept pairs were judged to be more dissimilar after the course than before. (French summary) (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changing adolescent deviant behaviour through reprogramming the behaviour of parents and teachers: An experimental evaluation.

Randomly assigned 60 school-referred predelinquent youths to either experimental treatment or a group treatment placebo control. The experimental treatment consisted of behavioral contracts designed to modify both parent-child and teacher-student interactions. The control treatment simply provided an opportunity to observe the social interaction of the referred youths. Results indicate statistically significant differences in 4 areas (teacher and counselor evaluations, and mothers' evaluation of their marital adjustment and relationship with their children), with small but positive changes recorded on the remaining 9 measures. Several factors are suggested to explain the lack of more convincing results: (a) The research methods used were highly conservative. (b) The treatment consisted of a single technique which may profitably be combined with other techniques to enhance outcome. (c) Unsolved intervention problems doubtless contributed to a weakening of the results. Nevertheless, data support the merit of further experimentation with the effects of behavioral contracting in services for delinquents and predelinquents. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changes in attitude, sexual behaviour and the risk of HIV/AIDS transmission in southwest Nigeria

This pilot study was carried out in southwest Nigeria to determine the current trends in sexual behaviours known to be associated with HIV transmission in Nigeria. Knowledge of AIDS in general and as an incurable disease was high (91.4% and 79.4% respectively). Knowledge of the means of AIDS transmission was also very high among both men and women. Overall, condom use was consistent at 25%, inconsistent at 55% and non-existent at 20% for all sexually active respondents. Over 60 per cent of sexually active respondents had two or more sexual partners, with significantly more males than females having this number of sexual partners (p < 0.01). Eighteen per cent of sexually active respondents had a history of sex with commercial sex workers while 25% had a history of at least one sexually transmitted disease. Using multiple logistic regression, the significant determinants of condom use among the sexually active group were: being in a stable sexual relationship, history of sex with commercial sex workers, self-perception of testing positive for HIV and self-perception of HIV/AIDS risk in Nigeria. Prevalence of condom use in this study was much higher than those reported in previous studies, suggesting a probable decline in high risk sexual behaviours among inhabitants of urban Southwest Nigeria since the advent of AIDS. Most sexually active respondents aged 19 years or below (adolescents) who perceived themselves at a high risk of testing positive for HIV had never used condoms. The non usage of condoms among this group of adolescents is disturbing, since they are at greatest risk of spreading the disease. Health education and promotion of safe sex practices need to be extensively targeted at adolescents.     

Control and information in the intrapersonal sphere: An extension of cognitive evaluation theory.

Extended findings that support cognitive evaluation theory to intrapersonal processes by exploring the effects of informational vs controlling feedback, when self-selected and administered vs other-administered, and in conditions of task-involvement (intended to create an informational orientation in relation to the activity) vs ego-involvement (intended to create a controlling orientation in relation to the activity). 128 undergraduates working on a hidden figures task received either an ego- or task-involving induction and then a series of 3 puzzle problems for which half of the Ss received informational feedback and the other half controlling feedback. Half the Ss had the feedback self-administered, and half had it administered by the experimenter. After puzzle-solving, Ss were left alone with additional puzzles and magazines and were observed to see if they worked on the puzzles. Finally, Ss completed a questionnaire assessing their interest and attitudes toward the target activity. Results confirm that controlling feedback, whether self- or other administered, undermined intrinsic motivation relative to task-involvement. Results are discussed in terms of the application of cognitive evaluation theory to intrapersonal processes and self-control theories. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive change through hypnosis: The interface between cognitive therapy and hypnotherapy.

Cognitive changes are characteristic for the hypnotic state. Two models of experimental hypnosis are discussed from the point of view of their cognitive aspects: E. R. Hilgard's (1977) neo-dissociation model and the cognitive-behavioral model. Some neuropsychological data are described which support the notion that high and low hypnotizable Ss differ in cognitive style. Three hypnotherapeutic strategies (symptom reduction, ego strengthening, and exploration) are discussed, and hypnosis is concluded to be a suitable method for achieving coping and integration in a step-by-step manner. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparison of cognitive models of depression: Relationships between cognitive constructs and cognitive diathesis–stress match.

The authors examined the relationship between the cognitive components of the Beckian and Hopelessness models of depression by administering measures of dysfunctional attitudes, attributional style, and life stress to a sample of 59 depressed adults. Confirmatory factor analyses indicated that dysfunctional attitudes and attributional style load on separate factors as opposed to a single factor. Additional analyses revealed that depressed persons conforming to diathesis-stress criteria according to each model were largely independent of one another. Results supported the conclusion that the Beckian and Hopelessness models of depression describe distinct cognitive constructs and refer to distinct subsets of depressed persons. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

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)     

An evaluation of the sensitivity of premorbid IQ estimators for detecting cognitive decline.

Twenty-two studies were reviewed that estimated Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS/WAIS—R; D. Wechsler, 1981) IQs for normal individuals using demographic regression equation estimators and/or ability estimators such as the National Adult Reading Test. None of these studies originally reported the sensitivity of their method for detecting cognitive decline. The potential utility of each method was quantified by using psychometric theory to calculate the magnitude of cognitive decline that could be reliably detected. Results showed that for a cognitive decline in WAIS-R Verbal Scale IQ (VIQ) to be detected 80% of the time, the decline would have to be at least 25 VIQ points for demographic predictor methods, and at least 20 VIQ points for reading test predictor methods. Implications of the limited sensitivity of these methods for clinical applications are discussed and interpretation recommendations are provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The psychological evaluation of child sexual abuse using the Louisville Behavior Checklist and Human Figure Drawing

Accurately detecting victims of child sexual abuse when physical evidence is lacking is a problem frequently faced by clinicians. This study investigated whether Human Figure Drawings and the Louisville Behavior Checklist could be used to accurately identify sexually abused children, mental health clinic-referred children, and community children. Discriminant function analysis indicated that the groups differed significantly on the measures. There was some misclassification of individual children on the basis of their checklist and drawing scores. Results suggested limited support for the Louisville Behavior Checklist but caution in using Human Figure Drawings in the assessment of sexual abuse.     

Congruity theory and linear models of attitude change.

Evaluated C. E. Osgood and P. H. Tannenbaum's (see record 1955-08361-001) congruity model of attitude change, a regression model derived from the Osgood and Tannenbaum model, and D. R. Heise's (see record 1969-08323-001) 3 general linear models of attitude change, using data obtained from 208 undergraduates. 104 Ss rated 8 3-word (subject, verb, object) sentences 1st, and then rated the individual words. The other Ss rated the individual words 1st. The mean ratings for the 2 groups were compared to obtain the attitude change for each element, and the models were used to predict the change which resulted from the combination of the words into a sentence. Sex differences were found in mean attitudinal evaluations, and the inclusion of higher-order interaction terms increased the predictability of attitude ratings for females more than for males. Heise's Model III was the best predictor of attitude change, followed by his Model II and the regression model derived from the Osgood and Tannenbaum model. The Osgood and Tannenbaum model gave poor prediction of the mean attitudinal changes obtained. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A two-sex model for treatment of HIV/AIDS and behaviour change in a population of varying size

In this work, we propose a model for heterosexual transmission of HIV/AIDS incorporating a community-wide screening and treatment programme. We will investigate various consistency assumptions about the conservation of heterosexual contacts, which will enable us to reduce this two-sex model to a simpler one-sex formulation. In all cases analytical results will be given with threshold parameters obtained for the persistence of disease, the persistence of total populations, and the persistence of infective populations. By comparing the theoretical results for the different variations of our model, we hope to shed some light on the effectiveness of the prevention and control measures that are needed to deal with the emerging AIDS epidemic in Third World communities with growing populations.     

Mediators and moderators of change in cognitive therapy of depression.

Reviews the theoretical and empirical literature associated with the mediators and moderators of change in cognitive therapy (CT) of depression. Covariation between change in cognition and change in depression, specific effects for cognitive vs behavioral components of CT, specific effects for CT vs other treatments, moderating influence of nonspecific and technical aspects of the therapeutic environment, and moderating influence of client characteristics are reviewed. The clinical implications of prior research and suggestions for future research on identifying the critical ingredients of change in CT of depression are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)