An experimental test of defensive processes in impression formation.

The authors examined the hypothesis that 3 processes underlie the defensive aspects of impression formation: (a) increased autonomic arousal after the perception of another person as a threatening stimulus, (b) defensive cognitive activity in regard to the threatening stimulus, and (c) reduction in autonomic arousal after the defensive cognitive activity. 251 male undergraduates completed the Defense Mechanism Inventory, the Dominance scale of the California Psychological Inventory, and the Succorance scale of the Edwards Personal Preference Schedule. 54 dominance- and dependency-oriented Ss observed a work dyad in which one person was substantially more dominant than the other. During their observation of this interaction, Ss expected to evaluate and later work with either the dominant or the submissive person. Ss' skin conductance was monitored as they observed and evaluated these target persons. As predicted, Ss responded to the motive-threatening target person with greater autonomic arousal; this association was stronger among Ss who typically used denial as a defense mechanism. Defensive devaluation by dominance-oriented Ss was associated with subsequent lower arousal. (40 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A test of the reactive aggression-suicidal behavior hypothesis: Is there a case for proactive aggression?

A large body of literature suggests that aggressive behavior can be classified into two subtypes--reactive aggression (RA) and proactive aggression (PA)--which differ on dimensions of emotional arousal, control, and impulsivity. A longstanding hypothesis posits that RA underlies the association between aggression and suicidal behavior, with the implicit assumption that PA is unrelated to suicidal behavior. However, no empirical study to date has specifically investigated this question. The authors examined associations of RA and PA with suicide attempts and suicidal ideation among 878 male and female patients in substance-dependence treatment programs. They also examined the moderating effects of sex. Contrary to hypotheses, PA was associated with both suicide attempts and suicidal ideation. RA was also associated with both outcomes in unadjusted analyses but became nonsignificant for suicide attempts in multivariate analyses. Moreover, sex served as a moderator, with PA showing an association with suicide attempt among men but not women. Results indicate the need for additional studies of PA and suicidal behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of foreknowledge of death in the assessment from case history material of intent to die.

Investigated the differential assessment of intent to kill oneself expressed in previous nonfatal suicidal acts by having 23 professional mental health personnel rate on a 7-point scale the intent to kill oneself expressed in case history episodes of persons whom they were informed either later died a natural death or later committed suicide. Even though the Ss were informed that none of the persons died as a result of their actions described in the case history episode, foreknowledge that the person later committed suicide resulted in a greater assessment of intent to kill oneself expressed in his previous nonfatal suicide attempt than foreknowledge that the person later died a natural death. Empirical evidence demonstrated the risk of retrospective distortion in the study of suicides after the fact, and suggested that the percentages of prior suicide attempts reported for nonhospitalized or formerly hospitalized persons known to have committed suicide may be at least partially due to the differential likelihood of retrospective distortion in studies employing these 2 populations. (22 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived arousal, focus of attention, and avoidance behavior.

Attribution theory holds that perceived arousal may cause a person to draw an inference about his emotions and base his subsequent behavior on that inference. Recent research suggests, however, that this account does not entirely explain the influence of false arousal feedback on simultaneously occurring avoidance behavior. The following model, based on self-awareness theory, is proposed. Autonomic arousal feedback may cause heightened self-focus, followed by 1 of 2 possibilities: (a) If the person believes he can cope with his fear, he will redirect his attention to a behavior–goal comparison in order to match the one with the other. (b) If the person doubts his ability to match his behavior with the goal, such a comparison will be aversive and he will avoid focusing on it. These possibilities should lead to 2 different behavioral reactions as well: Doubtful Ss should avoid the aversive stimulus more quickly when presented with arousal feedback, but confident Ss should not. To test the model, a study was conducted in which 57 undergraduates who had self-rated moderate fear of nonpoisonous snakes and who also had indicated either confidence or doubt about their abilities to do the approach task approached a live boa constrictor in the presence of an accelerating or a constant heartbeat. Both behavioral and self-reported focus of attention results were consistent with the proposed attentional model. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"The case against suicide prevention": Comment.

Comments on the article by T. Szasz (see record 1986-27453-001) advocating against coercive suicide prevention. The present author argues that suicidal behavior is often temporary, and as such warrants temporary restraint. He argues that treatment may reduce the danger of suicide, but inaction will not. He further maintains that Szasz overestimates the legal threat facing professionals who assume responsibility for suicidal persons. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

The stress of patient suicidal behavior during clinical training: Incidence, impact, and recovery.

Enhances and replicates an earlier study (P. Kleespies et al, 1990) on the incidence and impact of patient suicidal behavior on psychology interns/trainees, using a much larger sample, a broader spectrum of patient suicidal behaviors, and more adequate comparison groups. The findings indicate that more than one-fourth of the interns/trainees needed to deal with a patient suicide attempt, and that one-ninth had to cope with a patient suicide completion. Stress level followed a graduated increase in impact with increasing severity of patient suicidal behavior (i.e., from suicidal ideation to suicide attempt to suicide completion). Trainees who had a patient suicide were distinguished from those who experienced patient suicide by ideation significantly greater feelings of shock, disbelief, failure, sadness, self-blame, guilt, shame, and depression. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of developing mechanisms to assist trainees in anticipating and working through the strong psychological impact of losing a patient through a self-inflicted death. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychotherapists' attitudes toward suicide.

Assessed psychotherapists' attitudes toward a number of potential suicides and their attitudes toward the concept of rational suicide in general. 186 Ss received a case scenario in which a current client of a member or the general public was considering suicide because of a terminal illness, physical pain, psychological pain, or bankruptcy. Ss also completed the Suicide Semantic Differential Scale. Ss were differentially accepting of suicidal ideation, based on precipitating circumstances, and Ss would take different amounts of action to prevent a suicide depending on why the person had decided to commit suicide. Ss who had been in practice for 30+ yrs were more accepting of suicide and would take less action to prevent a suicide than less experienced Ss. 81% of the Ss believed in the idea of rational suicide. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Suicidal desire and the capability for suicide: Tests of the interpersonal-psychological theory of suicidal behavior among adults.

The interpersonal-psychological theory of suicidal behavior (T. E. Joiner, 2005) proposes that an individual will not die by suicide unless he or she has both the desire to die by suicide and the ability to do so. Three studies test the theory's hypotheses. In Study 1, the interaction of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness predicted current suicidal ideation. In Study 2, greater levels of acquired capability were found among individuals with greater numbers of past attempts. Results also indicated that painful and provocative experiences significantly predicted acquired capability scores. In Study 3, the interaction of acquired capability and perceived burdensomeness predicted clinician-rated risk for suicidal behavior. Implications for the etiology, assessment, and treatment of suicidal behavior are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality characteristics found among youthful female suicide attempters.

Administered the EPPS and a questionnaire assessing personality and status characteristics and frequency of suicidal thought to 20 18-25 yr old female college students with histories of one or more suicide attempts and to 2 groups of 50 similar Ss each selected on the basis of frequency of suicidal thought, but with no history of suicide attempts. High affiliative, succorant, and nurturant needs, an inability to tolerate frustration, and a tendency toward externalized aggression appeared to characterize the Ss who had attempted suicide. Specifically, high succorant needs, interacting with an inability to reach significant others, appeared to distinguish those Ss who frequently thought about suicide from those who actually attempted it. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The school psychologist's role in suicide prevention.

Suggests that the school psychologist's involvement in the issue of youth suicide spans primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention and working with the aftermath of a suicide or suicide attempt. Primary prevention activities involve supporting and delivering curricula educating youth about suicide, promoting social problem solving in the school milieu, screening all students for suicidal ideation, creating networks of peer helpers, working to reduce the availability of suicidal means, training school personnel to identify and refer potentially suicidal youth, and establishing interdisciplinary crisis response teams. Secondary prevention involves working with individuals and groups at risk (i.e., alternative education students, gay and lesbian youth, and minority youth) for engaging in suicidal behavior. Tertiary prevention requires swift treatment and referral, including services delivered following a suicide. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing risk for completed suicide in patients with alcohol dependence: Clinicians' views of critical factors.

The assessment of potential for suicide among patients with a diagnosis of alcohol dependence has consistently been a dilemma for clinicians. Specifically, a problem for both clinicians and researchers has been determining what risk factors distinguish patients with suicidal ideation from those that are in danger of completed suicide. Identifying what clinicians who specialize in substance abuse view as critical in the assessment and treatment of suicidal patients is a first step in gaining a greater understanding of suicide risk within an alcoholic population. The views of these clinicians are presented and compared with empirical findings on the subject. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Youth-Nominated Support Team for suicidal adolescents (Version 1): A randomized controlled trial.

In this study, the authors investigated the efficacy of the Youth-Nominated Support Team-Version 1 (YST-1), a psychoeducational social network intervention, with 289 suicidal, psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents (197 girls, 92 boys). Adolescents were randomly assigned to treatment-as-usual plus YST-1 or treatment-as-usual only. Assessments were completed pre- and postintervention (6 months). There were no main effects for YST-1 on suicide ideation or attempts, internalizing symptoms, or related functional impairment. Relative to other girls, however, those who received YST-1 reported greater decreases in self-reported suicidal ideation (actually treated analytic strategy) and significantly greater decreases in mood-related functional impairment reported by their parents (intent to treat and actually treated analytic strategies). This is the first randomized controlled clinical trial to investigate the efficacy of a social network intervention with suicidal youths. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Emotional arousal and aggressive behavior

Reviews evidence that (a) supported the proposition that general emotional arousal facilitates aggression in the presence of aggressive cues and (b) substantiated the position that an arousal state of anger specifically increases the instigation to aggression. Furthermore, research is reviewed which supports the view that additional general arousal increases or decreases the effect of anger on aggression, depending on whether the arousal state is attributed to the source of the anger or to another source of general arousal. Controversy about the anger/aggression relation is discussed in terms of the failure to specify the function of the aggressive response. Research revealed that if the aggressive response is directed primarily toward injuring the target (but not toward some other goal), an angered person expresses aggression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Helping the suicidal client: Some aspects of assessment and treatment.

All manifestations of suicidal intent need to be taken seriously by the clinician, who must make an assessment of the level of suicidal risk and implement an active suicide prevention plan when risk is judged to be substantial. Suicidal behavior is more difficult to predict in schizophrenic compared with depressed people; factors correlated with increased risk of suicide in both contexts are elaborated. Hospitalization is indicated when acute suicidal risk is assessed to be high; its length is ideally limited to the period of acute risk, which may be as short as several days. During hospitalization, there should be active intervention to change real-life conditions, such as lack of social support, which may be central to the person's motivation to commit suicide. Antipsychotic medication may be introduced and the person helped to continue with it as an outpatient. For those at lesser levels of acute risk, outpatient treatment is seen as appropriate and effective. An important feature of such a plan is the involvement of the person's family and associates. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trait versus state anxiety, authoritarianism and ego threat versus physical threat.

Examined the effects of individual differences (authoritarianism, trait anxiety) and situational factors (ego and physical threat) on state anxiety (A-state). 60 male undergraduates were given Kohn's Authoritarianism-Rebellion Scale, the WAIS Block Design subtest, Endler's S-R Inventory of Anxiousness, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. It was predicted that high and low authoritarian Ss, and high and low trait anxiety (A-trait) Ss would report different amounts of A-state arousal as a function of ego threat. Ss were divided into 2 groups of high and low authoritarians and performed a task under ego-threat (failure) or physical-threat (shock) conditions. A post hoc split of Ss' A-trait scores provided A-state data on high vs low A-trait under threat conditions. Ego threat and physical threat both produced A-state arousal. Physical threat created greater A-state arousal than ego threat for high A-trait Ss. Contrary to W. F. Hodges's 1968 findings, under physical threat high A-trait Ss reported greater A-state arousal than low A-trait Ss. C. D. Spielburger's trait-state anxiety theory is compared with N. S. Endler and J. McV. Hunt's interaction model of anxiety. (French summary) (38 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparison of Compensation and Capitalization Models When Treating Suicidality in Young Adults.

The current study examined compensation and capitalization treatment models with specific reference to problem-solving appraisal and problem-solving treatment of suicidal behavior (M. D. Rudd, T. Joiner, & M. H. Rajab, 2000). A sample of 98 young adults (mean age = 22), who had recently attempted suicide or ideated about suicide to the degree that they came to clinical attention, were randomly assigned to either problem-solving or control treatment. Participants with poorer problem-solving appraisal at baseline responded better than did participants with greater problem-solving appraisal to problem-solving treatment at 6-month follow-up, as would be predicted by the compensation model. Results suggest that treatment of suicidality for individuals with problem-solving skill deficits may be most effective by targeting these deficits rather than capitalizing on strengths. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Youth-Nominated Support Team–Version II for suicidal adolescents: A randomized controlled intervention trial.

The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of the Youth-Nominated Support Team–Version II (YST-II) for suicidal adolescents, an intervention based on social support and health behavior models, which was designed to supplement standard treatments. Psychiatrically hospitalized and suicidal adolescents, 13–17 years of age, were randomly assigned to treatment-as-usual (TAU) + YST-II (n = 223) or TAU only (n = 225). YST-II provided tailored psychoeducation to youth-nominated adults in addition to weekly check-ins for 3 months following hospitalization. In turn, these adults had regular supportive contact with adolescents. Adolescents assigned to TAU + YST-II had an average of 3.43 (SD = 0.83) nominated adults. Measures included the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire–Junior (SIQ-JR; W. M. Reynolds, 1988), Children’s Depression Rating Scale–Revised (E. O. Poznanski & H. B. Mokros, 1996), Beck Hopelessness Scale (A. T. Beck & R. A. Steer, 1993), and Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale (CAFAS; K. Hodges, 1996). YST-II had very limited positive effects, which were moderated by history of multiple suicide attempts, and no negative effects. It resulted in more rapid decreases in suicidal ideation (SIQ-JR) for multiple suicide attempters during the initial 6 weeks after hospitalization (small-to-moderate effect size). For nonmultiple attempters, it was associated with greater declines in functional impairment (CAFAS) at 3 and 12 months (small effect sizes). YST-II had no effects on suicide attempts and no enduring effects on SIQ-JR scores. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Distractibility in dieters and nondieters: An alternative view of "externality."

Performed 2 experiments in an investigation of the effects of distraction and emotional arousal on the proofreading performance of 60 dieting and nondieting female undergraduates. In Exp I, it was found that distraction initially impaired the performance of dieters and facilitated the performance of nondieters, a pattern previously shown by J. Rodin (see record 1973-27101-001) to apply to obese and normal weight Ss, respectively, and interpreted as evidence of greater externality in the obese. Subsequent retesting of the same Ss in succeeding months, however, revealed a complete reversal of the original results. In Exp II, the reaction to distraction found in the first phase of Exp I was obtained when Ss were in a situation of minimal threat. In a situation of high threat, the relative distractibility of dieters was reversed, as in the latter phases of Exp I. An explanation is offered for these data in terms of the greater emotionality of dieters, the susceptibility of cognitive performance to arousal (distraction, anxiety) manipulations, and the potentially competing effects of distraction and anxiety. Implications for the prevailing "trait" view of externality (stimulus binding) are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

School-based suicide prevention with African American youth in an urban setting.

Youth in urban settings are at significant risk for suicide and other mental health issues, but little is known about the utility or outcomes of suicide prevention programs with this population. This article reviews the outcomes of a grant-funded initiative to provide suicide screening to urban, African American youth. Columbia TeenScreen was implemented at 13 middle and high schools in Washington, DC, to 229 Black or African American students. Forty-five percent of students screened positively for previous suicide attempt or ideation, symptoms of depression or anxiety, and/or other emotional problems. Twenty percent of all youth screened endorsed current or previous suicidal ideation or attempts. Over 90% of youth endorsed at least some problem with depression or irritability. Early detection of risk factors through universal screening can lead to earlier treatment, thwarting a suicidal crisis. Implications for conducting screening in an urban setting and how psychologists can engage in screening are explored. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Limitations in generalizability of the physical attractiveness stereotype: The self-esteem exception.

Previous research has reported the existence of a physical attractiveness stereotype which results in several generalized assumptions about physically attractive individuals. Included in these assumptions is that physically attractive individuals are more capable on a number of dimensions and possess more socially desirable personality traits than less attractive individuals. It was predicted that self-esteem would interfere with the attractiveness stereotype in that low self-esteem (LSE) Ss would (a) denigrate an attractive other more than high self-esteem (HSE) Ss, (b) denigrate an attractive person more than an unattractive person, and (c) perceive greater situational similarity with an unattractive than attractive other, with HSE Ss perceiving the reverse. 80 female Ss designated either high or low in self-esteem, based on their scores on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, evaluated either an attractive or unattractive stimulus person who had socially transgressed. Results indicate that, as predicted, LSE Ss tended to denigrate a transgressing attractive other more than HSE Ss. Although insignificant, the 2nd hypothesis was in the predicted direction in that LSE Ss judged a social transgression to be reflective of personality deficits more for the attractive than unattractive stimulus person. Situational similarity results were in accordance with predictions. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)