An empirical assessment of meta-analytic practice.

In the three decades after the publication of the first meta-analyses in the behavioral sciences, hundreds of articles and a number of technical guides have emerged concerning meta-analytic practice and reporting standards. The purpose of the present study is to review the practice and reporting standards of a random sample of published meta-analyses (n = 100) in psychology and related disciplines in the decade from 1994 through 2004. We focus on practice and reporting at each stage of the meta-analytic process and explore differences between psychological subdisciplines. These findings suggest that the practice of meta-analysis in the last decade has not yet converged on a set of common standards, though some expert recommendations are beginning to be heeded. Authors should be attentive to proper procedure and reporting in light of the numerous threats to the validity of a meta-analysis. Ironically, even though meta-analysts often struggle with incomplete or inconsistent reporting in primary research they are themselves not entirely consistent in reporting their methods and results. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Negative factors in brief psychotherapy: An empirical assessment.

18 male undergraduates with symptoms of depression, anxiety, and unsatisfying interpersonal relationships were seen in brief therapy by professional psychodynamic and experiential therapists. Judges rated audiotapes of early therapy sessions using the Vanderbilt Negative Indicators Scale (VNIS), which consists of 5 subscales representing factors believed to deter therapeutic progress. The hypothesis that negative factors in therapy, as assessed by the VNIS, would be inversely related to outcome was confirmed. The Errors in Technique subscale was the most consistent predictor of outcome. Subscales tapping deficiencies in Patient Qualities and the Patient–Therapist Interaction as well as Global Session Ratings were also related to outcome, although ratings of Therapist Personal Qualities were not. VNIS ratings were more strongly related to the outcome of psychodynamic therapy than experiential therapy and were more often associated with the therapist's and independent clinician's assessments of outcome than the patient's assessment of outcome. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An empirical assessment of the form of utility functions.

Utility functions, which relate subjective value to physical attributes of experience, are fundamental to most decision theories. Seven experiments were conducted to test predictions of the most widely assumed mathematical forms of utility (power, log, and negative exponential), and a function proposed by Rachlin (1992). For pairs of gambles for real monetary gains, undergraduate and nonstudent subjects either reported an equalizing amount for 1 outcome that made the gambles subjectively equal or chose between gambles where the amounts were varied across trial, which allowed the equalizing amount to be estimated from their pattern of choices. Using a novel method that eliminates several limitations of previous research, I manipulated the outcomes across trials such that each type of utility function predicted a linear relationship between the equalizing amounts and the amounts of the other outcomes, and made point predictions for either the slope or intercept of that relationship. In a meta-analysis across experiments, systematic departures from the point predictions were observed for each type of utility function. Thus, the data imply that despite their historical importance and incorporation in many psychological and economic decision theories, the most widely assumed models of utility are incorrect. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Clinical assessment of children in child protection cases: An empirical analysis.

Evaluations of children exposed to abuse or neglect are often sought from psychologists and other clinicians. Social service and juvenile court professionals need reliable, objective, and relevant assessments to help in their determination of what will best serve the needs of the minor children in such situations. The adequacy and usefulness of these types of evaluations have not been studied, but such study is needed. To that end, we systematically examined the content of 207 completed evaluations of children involved in one urban juvenile court system. The results show us some areas where changes in practice and training are needed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family images of the adolescent: An empirical method for clinical assessment.

Describes a method for the assessment of family members' individual and collective images of the family's adolescent. The Q-Sort of Adolescent Images is a 36-item Q sort that assesses these images along 6 clinically salient, bipolar dimensions of adaptive and maladaptive functioning. It is administered to the adolescent and to both parents individually and to all 3 together. Results reveal each individual's image of the adolescent (including self-image), the family's collective image of the adolescent, and levels of correspondence among the 4 images. Psychometric analyses from 2 studies involving 116 families show encouraging internal consistencies, intercluster correlational structure, and construct validity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Masochism: An empirical analysis.

Masochistic behavior is defined as a change in response to punishing stimuli which may take the form of simple desensitization at one extreme to continued, self-aversive stimulation at the other. Experimental findings reflecting such changes are cited and some of the conditions necessary for demonstrating these effects are analyzed. The manner in which the scheduling of events may be involved is also suggested. The approach which is advocated seems to offer a fruitful alternative to current popular conceptions of masochism. (35 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bringing science to bear: An empirical assessment of the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program.

This article outlines the U.S. Army's effort to empirically validate and assess the Comprehensive Soldier Fitness (CSF) program. The empirical assessment includes four major components. First, the CSF scientific staff is currently conducting a longitudinal study to determine if the Master Resilience Training program and the Comprehensive Resilience Modules lead to lasting resilience development in soldiers. Second, the CSF program has partnered with other researchers to conduct a series of longitudinal studies examining the link between physiological, neurobiological, and psychological resilience factors. Third, the CSF program is also incorporating institutional-level data to determine if its material influences health, behavioral, and career outcomes. Fourth, group randomized trials are being conducted to ensure that resilience training incorporated under the CSF program is effective with soldiers. A specific rationale and methodologies are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trends in psychology: An empirical issue.

Responds to comments by M. J. Tagler, K. R. Gibson, M. P. Martens, S. Leigland , P. C. Friman et al, and G. N. Martin (see records 2000-13816-016, 2000-13816-017, 2000-13816-018, 2000-13816-019, 2000-13816-020, and 2000-13816-021) on R. W. Robins et al's (see record 1999-00297-003) article which examined trends in the prominence of 4 major schools of psychology. Methodological issues are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Orality and depression: An empirical study.

Despite much theoretical speculation and some indirect evidence, no study has empirically assessed the relationship of orality to depression. In the present investigation, two separate samples of male college students (N? = 276; N? = 141) completed both the Rorschach test and the Depression Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ). More DEQ items correlated significantly with a Rorschach orality measure than would be expected by chance, but the magnitude of these correlations was small. Item analysis suggests that dependency is less a factor in depression than is a personality constellation marked by egocentrism, immaturity, fear of rejection, helplessness, and lack of integration. The results of this study are limited by its use of nonclinically disturbed male subjects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Anticipating informed consent: An empirical approach.

Discusses the American Psychological Association's ethical standards concerning the misleading of Ss with regard to experimental purposes or procedures, and proposes a "role-play sampling" procedure by which S's likelihood of consent to (and thereby the "reasonableness" of) a proposed experimental procedure can be determined in advance of actual experimentation. The procedure was tested with freshmen and sophomores (N = 106) drawn from the same college population used in 6 published social psychological experiments. Ss examined the experimental procedures used originally in each experiment and indicated their "willingness to consent" to participate in each study. 4 of the 6 experiments had been considered stressful by actual participants; 2 were nonstressful. The effect of varying amounts and kinds of information about each experiment upon consent rates was also examined. Results show both the stress and information factors significantly affected consent rates. Evidence is presented which suggests that the role-play sampling procedure possesses predictive validity in terms of the reaction which may be anticipated from those who subsequently participate in the actual experiment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Compatibility between cotherapists: An empirical report.

Investigated factors contributing to perceived compatibility of 42 cotherapists participating in 24 cotherapy pairs. Measures indicated that cotherapists felt compatible with their partners, but their scores did not correlate significantly with those of their supervisors. Cotherapy pairs in which Ss described themselves similarly with respect to self-disclosure and directiveness were more likely to experience themselves as compatible. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Constructs and assessment center dimensions: Some troubling empirical findings.

Maintains that exercise design alone serves as weak evidence for construct validity due to the complexity of the typical assessment center rating and evaluation process. Evidence that assessment ratings accurately reflect the complex traits they purport to measure has not been provided to date. To explore this issue, the interrelationships among dimensional ratings between and within exercises in 3 assessment centers were examined. 559 candidates for upper-level management from a multinational firm, a civil service commission, and a retailer were assessed on managerial skills (including communication and interpersonal skills). Postexercise ratings of assessment dimensions were correlated and factor analyzed. The resulting factor pattern for all 3 organizations represented exercises rather than dimensions. In 2 of the organizations, the mean correlation among across-exercise ratings of individual dimensions was near zero. These findings suggest that assessment ratings do not measure the intended constructs. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Transcendental meditation and creativity: An empirical investigation.

A claimed benefit of transcendental meditation is increased creativity, although the literature neither supports nor negates such a claim. Four groups of 35 Ss each were administered a battery of 5 creativity measures (the Remote Associates Test, Adjective Check List Creativity Scale, Barron-Welsh Revised Art Scale, Franck Drawing Completion Test, and Similies Test), both before and after a 6-mo period. One group was enrolled in a transcendental meditation program; a 2nd group participated in a relaxation–response program; a 3rd group practiced, within a psychology of creativity course, a variety of creativity-enhancing techniques; the 4th group underwent no special treatment. Only the psychology of creativity group showed significant pre–post increases on 4 of the 5 measures, with no changes for the other 3 groups. The claim that meditation leads to increased creativity is not supported. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Compassion: An evolutionary analysis and empirical review.

What is compassion? And how did it evolve? In this review, we integrate 3 evolutionary arguments that converge on the hypothesis that compassion evolved as a distinct affective experience whose primary function is to facilitate cooperation and protection of the weak and those who suffer. Our empirical review reveals compassion to have distinct appraisal processes attuned to undeserved suffering; distinct signaling behavior related to caregiving patterns of touch, posture, and vocalization; and a phenomenological experience and physiological response that orients the individual to social approach. This response profile of compassion differs from those of distress, sadness, and love, suggesting that compassion is indeed a distinct emotion. We conclude by considering how compassion shapes moral judgment and action, how it varies across different cultures, and how it may engage specific patterns of neural activation, as well as emerging directions of research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality-related problems in living: An empirical approach.

A proposal for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM–V) is to separate the diagnosis of mental disorder from the assessment of impairment or disability. A separation of the assessment of traits and impairment is consistent with the five-factor model (FFM) procedure for the diagnosis of a personality disorder, which first assesses for the presence of personality traits, followed by an assessment of impairments associated with a particular trait elevation. The current study tested the hypothesis that the FFM has specific implications with respect to the 3 fundamental components of personality disorder as provided in the American Psychiatric Association's (2000) diagnostic manual, concerning social impairment, occupational impairment, and distress. These hypotheses were confirmed in a sample of 79 persons who were currently or recently in psychological treatment. Implications of the findings for a conceptualization of personality disorder and future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Imaginative suggestibility and hypnotizability: An empirical analysis.

Hypnotic and nonhypnotic suggestibility were investigated in 2 experiments. In Experiment 1, nonhypnotic suggestibility was suppressed when measured after hypnotic suggestibility, whereas hypnotic suggestibility was not affected by the order of assessment. Experiment 2 confirmed a small but significant effect of hypnosis on suggestibility when nonhypnotic suggestibility was measured first. Nonhypnotic suggestibility was correlated with absorption, fantasy proneness, motivation, and response expectancy, but only expectancy predicted suggestibility when the other variables were controlled. Behavioral response to hypnosis was predicted by nonhypnotic suggestibility, motivation, and expectancy in a model accounting for 53% of the variance. Experiential response to hypnotic suggestion was predicted only by nonhypnotic suggestibility. Unexpectedly, hypnosis was found to decrease suggestibility for a substantial minority of participants. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Content representativeness: An empirical method of evaluation.

Proposes an empirical method for evaluating the representativeness of the behavioral content of personnel-related programs. An example of the method is presented, in which a training program was analyzed by 3 administrators, and the corresponding job was analyzed by 10 job incumbents, using the Position Analysis Questionnaire. Analysts showed high levels of interrater agreement. Composite profiles of the training program and the job were compared, using an index of profile similarity. The index was statistically significant and showed substantial overlap. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Child-abusive parents: An empirical review and analysis.

Reviews 20 studies comparing child-abusive and nonabusive parents on psychological and behavioral dimensions to determine relevant distinctions between these populations. Studies were included in which Ss were under the purview of child-protection agencies, well-known self-report measures were used, controls for demographic factors were in place, and a complete presentation of results was given. Results show that, whereas few studies found significant differences between abusers and nonabusers on traditional psychological dimensions, abusers were more likely to report stress-related symptoms, such as depression and health problems, that were linked to the parenting role. Three comparative studies of family interactions indicate that abusers displayed reciprocal patterns of behavior with their children and spouses that were proportionately more aversive and less prosocial than nonabusers. Child abuse is viewed as an interactive process involving both parental competence and situational demands. Attention is given to methodological refinement and prevention efforts derived from these findings. (3 p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Double hypnotic induction: An initial empirical test.

Compared 34 right-handed undergraduates' responses to a double induction and to the traditional hypnotic induction used in the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scales. In separate experimental sessions, Ss experienced audiotapes of a standard hypnotic induction and a double induction similar to that described by R. Bandler and J. Grinder (1975). In the double induction, Ss heard a hand-levitation induction through the ear contralateral to the dominant cerebral hemisphere, and simultaneously, hard grammatically childlike messages through the other ear. Half of the Ss experienced the double induction first. There were no significant within-S differences between the 2 inductions. However, Ss who experienced the double induction prior to the standard induction were significantly less responsive to suggestions following both inductions, which suggests that the double induction as a 1st experience of hypnosis may have a negative impact on subsequent experiences of hypnosis. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)