Personality variables affecting WAIS scores.

Assigned 32 undergraduate Es and 32 undergraduate Ss to 1 of 4 groups based on their scores on a hostility and a dominance scale. Each E interviewed 1 S for 10 min., rated the S on warmth and likability, and scored 4 WAIS verbal subtests completed by the S. Each S also rated the E for warmth and likability. Results indicate that (a) nonhostile Es gave more credit to hostile-dominant Ss and to nonhostile-nondominant Ss than to nonhostile-dominant Ss; (b) E's liking of S and rating of S's warmth were significantly related to total scores; and (c) S's ratings of E's warmth and likability were not positively related to S's test scores. It is concluded that E bias was present. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of social approval on the verbal behavior of emotionally disturbed and normal children.

96 nondefective Ss in Grades 4-9 who were referred to a child psychiatric clinic were compared with a group of 120 public school Ss of similar intellectual and educational level in terms of their response to a Taffel-type verbal conditioning procedure. 1/2 of the Ss in each group were experimental, to whom E said "good" following their use of a 1st-person pronoun, and 1/2 were controls, to whom E made no verbal response. Normal experimental Ss showed a statistically significant increase in their usage of the reinforced words, while clinic experimental Ss, as a group, failed to show a significant increase in such usage. Verbal approval was shown to have a differential effect depending upon the S's emotional status. In neither group did grade level have an effect upon rate of conditioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interaction of set and awareness as determinants of response to verbal conditioning.

The utility of an operant conditioning model to psychotherapy was evaluated by studying the definition of the situation given S and S's focus on E's behavior. Instructions induced either a positive or negative set, identifying a story telling task as a test of empathy or personal problems. Awareness was induced in ? of the Ss by calling attention to E's reinforcement "mm-hmm." 12 undergradate students served as Ss in each of the 4 experimental groups. Positive set-Aware Ss increased use of emotional words, while Negative set-Aware Ss decreased use of emotional words. The results were interpreted as evidence that awareness can either facilitate or inhibit conditioning, depending upon S's set. (26 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of fear arousal upon task performance and verbal behavior.

80 undergraduate females were classified as being either high or low in fear of speaking in front of a group. ? were told that they were to speak following a task; the remaining Ss did the task without expecting to speak. All Ss spoke about the task for 1 min. immediately following the task. Experimental Ss took significantly longer to perform the task, and naive judges were able to detect differences in the verbal productions of the groups. Formal aspects of S's verbal productions also discriminated among high- and low-fear Ss. Implications for theory and importance of assessing different types of behavior are briefly discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Verbal conditioning of value-related material.

Studied verbal conditioning as a function of the interaction between content of stimulus material and S's personal value orientation. 2 groups of 20 undergraduates each were conditioned to select words either consistent or inconsistent with their value orientations as measured by the Allport-Vernon-Lindzey Study of Values. 20 additional Ss were conditioned to select words unrelated to values. As predicted, those Ss conditioned to select words consistent with their value orientations produced a steeper acquisition curve than those Ss conditioned to select inconsistent words. However, there was no difference between the acquisition curves of the former group and the control group. Results are related to verbal conditioning in psychotherapy. It is suggested that the therapist who plans to use such a tool should consider the personal and relational aspects of the therapeutic process as important determinants of conditionability. (15 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Generalization of verbally conditioned self-acceptance to social interaction in small group discussions.

Discusses generalization of change in a socially relevant variable during verbal conditioning trials to social behavior in small groups. On the basis of scores obtained on the E. M. Berger (see 27:7) scale of expressed acceptance-of-self and expressed acceptance-of-others, 2 groups of student nurses were selected for study: (a) a low self-acceptance group (low s-a) (N = 44), and (b) a high self-acceptance group (high s-a) (N =20). The low s-a Ss were randomly assigned to experimental (i.e., reinforced) and control (i.e., nonreinforced) conditions. All low s-a Ss participated in pre- and postconditioning, 4-person discussion groups. Similar preconditioning discussion groups were held for high s-a Ss. Berger scores of self-acceptance were significantly related to judges' ratings of self-acceptance in the group-discussion situation. Verbal conditioning of self-accepting responses on the Berger scale significantly increased judges' ratings of self-acceptance for those Ss who showed a high level of conditioning. (French summary) (17 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of subject self-esteem, test performance feedback, and counselor attractiveness on influence in counseling.

Hypothesized that (a) changes in the achievement orientation of 60 male undergraduates, as measured by the Achievement scale of the Survey of Personal Values, would be greater for Ss interviewed by a counselor performing an attractive rather an unattractive role; (b) change scores would be greater for Ss who were told they had failed an experimental test than those who were told they had succeeded; (c) change scores would be negatively related to S's self-esteem (measured by the Class 1 scale scores on the California Psychological Inventory); and (d) there would be a Counselor Attractiveness * Success or Failure * Self-Esteem interaction effect. No relationships between the independent variables and counselor influence were found, although the experimental induction of attractiveness was successful. Implications for a theory of counseling influence and future research are noted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moral judgments, behaviour and cognitive style in young children.

Assessed level of moral maturity in 2 studies with middle-class 6-7 yr olds (n = 29), middle-class 3-4 yr olds (n = 35), and lower-class 3-4 yr olds (n = 37). For the older Ss, stories were used to elicit judgments about relative goodness or badness. Level of moral maturity was scored on the basis of S's awareness of the intentions of the actor as opposed to his reliance on consequences. For the younger Ss, a group of films depicting similar situations were shown. All Ss were then given a battery of tests (e.g., the Children's Embedded Figures Test) measuring cognitive style and rated by their teachers on behavior and personality items. In 6 yr olds, level of moral maturity was found to relate to the cognitive styles of reflection-impulsivity and field dependence-independence, but not to verbal intelligence. Ss characterized as immature in their moral judgments were more impulsive and field-dependent. Ss with higher-level moral judgments were also rated by their teachers as more attentive and reflective. In preschool samples, Ss highest on moral maturity were rated as less aggressive by their teachers, least impulsive in cognitive style and in the lower-class sample, more field-independent. (French summary) (20 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reinforcement of verbal affect responses of normal subjects during the interview.

"Twenty-six normal individuals, hospitalized for a variety of physical complaints, were interviewed for a period of 30 minutes. Each interview consisted of a 10-minute operant level period, during which E asked questions necessary to maintain S's talk but did not otherwise respond to S's speech; 10 minutes of conditioning, during which E reinforced by agreement all self-referred affect statements; and 10 minutes of extinction, during which E withheld all reinforcement. Conditioning of the verbal response class of self-referred affect statements occurred, and normal Ss showed greater resistance to extinction than did schizophrenics." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Commitment to social deprivation and verbal conditioning.

Control Ss who experienced high prior deprivation of a reinforcing stimulus (approval) responded more with a reinforced response in a verbal conditioning situation than Ss less deprived. Other Ss committed themselves to undergoing postexperimental deprivation of social reinforcement after the same high prior social deprivation. A model suggested by dissonance theory predicted that such Ss who committed themselves for lower rewards would experience greater dissonance; the greater the dissonance, the more could Ss justify their decisions and reduce dissonance by reducing their motive for social reinforcement, consequently behaving in the conditioning situation as Ss who had low motivation for social reinforcement. As expected, experimental Ss in the High Dissonance condition who committed themselves for low reward ($1.00) responded less to social reinforcement, i.e., they showed a smaller increase in response strength of emission of verbal behavior than Control Ss or Low Dissonance Ss who committed themselves for high reward ($5.00). (19 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Signal detection and threshold measures for chronic back pain patients, chronic illness patients, and cohort controls to radiant heat stimuli.

15 chronic low back pain patients, 11 chronic respiratory patients, and 11 nonpatient controls (mean ages 47–56 yrs) were studied using a standard radiant heat signal detection methodology. Following determination by ascending limits of each S's stimulus detection and faint pain thresholds, 26 randomized trials at each of 5 stimulus levels were administered. Ss rated each stimulus on a 6-point subjective rating scale ranging from no pain to severe pain. Results indicate that the back pain Ss and respiratory Ss had higher radiant heat pain thresholds than the controls, and the back pain Ss had a discrimination deficit for mildly painful stimuli. Results fit the predictions of an adaptation model of pain perception in chronic pain patients as opposed to a hypochondriasis model. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conditioning of affective self-references as a function of the discriminative characteristics of experimenter intervention.

This investigation tested the effects of 2 different E interventions on the conditioning of affective verbal behavior. The interview was divided into 3 10-minute periods: operant level, acquisition, and extinction. During acquisition E either echoed S's affective self-reference or paraphrased its content. In a control treatment, E arbitrarily echoed or paraphrased a comparable number of nonaffective comments. Folowing extinction Ss listed all affective words they remembered E saying. Results indicated that the paraphrase was significantly most effective in influencing Ss' verbal behavior. The paraphrase group also recalled a significantly greater number of affective words expressed by E. The results were interpreted as indicating the dominant role of discriminative stimuli in verbal conditioning performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of branching in a computer controlled autoinstructional device.

2 groups of 15 high school Ss received instruction in logic from a computer controlled autoinstructional device. In 1 group all Ss received a fixed sequence of 233 items. In the 2nd group each of the Ss received a different number and sequence of items, depending on the S's performance during the lesson. Branching decisions were based on errors and on the S's evaluation of his own readiness to advance to new topics. Posttest scores were significantly higher (.05 level) for the branching group than for the fixed sequence group; training time differences were not significant. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The interaction of personality and muscle tension in producing agreement on commonality of verbal associations.

This constitutes an extension of a previous study (Kuethe & Eriksen, 1957) which investigated verbal stereotypy under stress to S's score on the Psychasthenia scale of the MMPI (Pt). The present study attempted to assess reactivity of Ss high and low on Pt to 50 words from the Kent-Rosanoff list when exposed to a situation requiring the exertion of muscular tension. Under conditions of muscular tension, stereotypy (similarity between Ss) was found with low Pt Ss; high Pt Ss showed greater group communality in association (steretoypy) under conditions which did not involve the exertion of muscular tension. From Psyc Abstracts 36:04:4HJ96K. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Aggression, need for social approval, and humor preferences.

This study investigated the humor preferences of Ss with extreme scores on need aggression and need for social approval under alcohol and nonalcohol conditions. Since aggression is disapproved by the middle class, conflict in the S was inferred by the relationships between these 2 scores. High-aggression Ss rated aggressive cartoons as funnier than did low-aggression Ss. Nonsense cartoons were rated higher by high need for social approval Ss than by low need for social approval Ss. Alcohol seemed to facilitate the expression of repressed aggressive needs in humor since the ratings of aggressive cartoons by high aggression-high need for social approval Ss were greater under alcohol than nonalcohol conditions. This difference was not found for high aggression-low need for social approval Ss, nor for the Ss with low need aggression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of locus of control, instructions, and verbal conditioning on self-referenced affect in a counseling interview.

Examined the relationships between locus of control, specificity of instruction, and verbal conditionability on self-referenced affect in a counseling analog interview. 118 female undergraduates were administered Rotter's Internal–External Locus of Control Scale. On the basis of scores tabulated for H. L. Mirels's factor of personal internality, 40 Ss were classified as internals or externals and were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 conditions: general instructions or specific instructions. All Ss then participated in an interview with a counselor. The interview was divided into 3 sections: baseline, conditioning, and extinction. During the conditioning period, the counselor verbalized self-referenced affect and reflection of feeling on a 2-min interval schedule. Results indicate that specific instructions combined with verbal conditioning procedures produced the greatest increase in self-referenced affect for both internal and external Ss. Findings are discussed in relation to the directive and instigational functions of instructions on internal/external Ss. Implications for future research are outlined. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Experience in experiments and change in internal-external control scores.

Assigned 150 undergraduates to (a) verbal conditioning experiments in which Ss felt they had control of their performance, (b) verbal conditioning experiments in which Ss felt they had no control, and (c) control experiments in which Ss wrote TAT stories. Pre- and posttest scores on the Internal-External Control Scale (J. Rotter) were compared for each group. As predicted, Ss in the internally oriented experiments increased in internal control, and Ss in the externally oriented experiments increased in external control (p     

The unconscious perception of the meaning of verbal stimuli.

"The hypothesis was investigated that the meaning of a verbal stimulus may be responded to without prior recognition of the stimulus. Four treatment groups were employed of 16 Ss each. The experimental procedure used… consisted essentially of obtaining the S's guesses to a series of verbal stimuli, dichotomized in affective connotation, which were presented at or slightly below the S's previously determined absolute threshold… . there was no evidence that the Ss could make better than chance matches… . It was concluded that no evidence was obtained that Ss respond to the meaning of verbal stimuli prior to recognition of the stimuli." From Psyc Abstracts 36:02:2HL32F. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)