Subject characteristics and preferences for different approaches to psychotherapy: A multivariate study.

Examined selected personality variables, sex, age, interpersonal values, and educational level, as antecedents to preferences for a nondirective (Carl Rogers) or directive (Albert Ellis) therapist. Ss were 77 hospitalized psychiatric patients and 77 normal undergraduates. Individual films of the same patient being separately interviewed by the therapists were shown to the Ss on separate days. The Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory and an expression of preference for therapists were dependent measures. Ss who preferred the Ellis presentation proved to be more dogmatic (Rokeach Dogmatism Scale, Form E) and externalized (Rotter's Internal–External Locus of Control Scale) than Ss preferring the Rogers presentation. Trait anxiety (Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale) was only related to therapy preference for the patients. The variables differed in discriminability between preferences, although patients and students were similar in their relative preferences for the 2 therapist orientations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Afro-American preferences for counselor characteristics.

Examined 128 Black college students' (aged 17–52 yrs) preferences for salient counselor characteristics. Ss were asked to express their preference for counselors similar or dissimilar to them across 8 counselor characteristics (ethnicity, sex, religion, educational background, socioeconomic background, attitudes and values, personality, and age) identified from previous research. A total of 120 paired comparisons were generated to compare preferences for the 16 similar and dissimilar counselor characteristics. Results reveal that Ss expressed preferences for counselors who, in comparison to themselves, were more educated, had similar attitudes and values, were older, and had similar personalities; these characteristics were more important to the Ss than the counselor's race and ethnicity. Additional analysis of within-group preference profiles revealed no consistent difference by commitment to Afro-American culture, sex, or previous counseling experience. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sport psychology consultation: The influence of gender on learning style.

Consultants in sports psychology need to be aware of the potential gender differences among athletes. Examined are important gender-related factors related to learning styles in athletes. Identified are the observed differences in male and female response style on learning patterns for the population studied. When compared on 20 different learning style factors as measured by a standardized scale, the learning styles of males and females differed at a statistically significant level on 9 factors. Statistically significant differences were noted on factors measuring ability to trust, frustration tolerance, facilitation to change, and feedback preference. Gender differences are discussed, as are issues for the sports psychologist consultant as to the influence of gender on learning styles in male and female athletes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The influence of Black students' racial identity attitudes on preferences for counselor's race.

Racial identity attitudes derived from W. E. Cross' (1971) racial identity model and respondents' racial self-designations were used to predict 92 Black university students' preferences for Black and White counselors. Ss completed the Assessment in Career Decision Making Scale, a counselor preference scale, and a racial identity scale. Multiple regression and ANOVA were used to analyze the data. Racial attitudes accounted for a significant percentage of the variance involving preferences for counselor's race. Of the 4 types of attitudes measured (preencounter, encounter, immersion–emersion, and internalization), preencounter attitudes were most strongly associated with a preference for White counselors and a nonacceptance of Black counselors. The other 3 types of attitudes were associated with varying degrees of preference for Black counselors and nonacceptance of White counselors. Racial self-designation (e.g., Black, Negro, Afro-American) was not associated with preferences for either Black or White counselors. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ethnic group preferences for counselor characteristics.

A questionnaire using a paired-comparison procedure to measure preferences for 14 counselor characteristics was administered to 500 students in introductory psychology and business classes at two state universities on the West Coast. A total of 339 usable responses were received from 118 Asian-American students, 64 Mexican-American students, and 157 Caucasian-American students. Rank order preferences for counselor characteristics were almost identical across the three ethnic groups. Preferences for a counselor who had similar attitudes, similar personality, and more education, and was older than the respondent ranked among the top four counselor characteristics for all ethnic groups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Afro-American preferences for counselor characteristics: A replication and extension.

This study replicates and extends the Atkinson, Furlong, and Poston (1986) investigation that examined Black subjects' preferences for salient similar and dissimilar counselor characteristics within a disconfirmatory hypothesis-testing strategy framework. Using a markedly different Black college student sample and replicating the paired-comparison technique of Atkinson et al. (1986), the present study found a generally high rank-order correlation (p?=?.91) between the two respective samples on preferences for counselor characteristics. Despite the global rank-order stability across samples, a number of important rank differentials are noted and discussed. We caution against generalizing the results of cross-cultural studies to geographically displaced samples and highlight suggestions for cross-cultural research using the paired-comparison technique. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The need for empirical studies in school consultation.

Conceptual models are not, as is often thought, constructed from logical deductions derived from observed facts, but rather, are postulated. Statements describing models are assumed and predictions are derived from them (Walker, 1963). Conceptual models are not lacking in school consultation literature. Yet aspects of our conceptual models have not received adequate scientific investigation, and there are those researchers and practitioners who have voiced doubts concerning the knowledge base for consultation, as well as fundamental assumptions underlying it. It is our assumption that such doubts can be resolved only by the most rigorous application of scientific method. With this aim in mind, we have devoted this issue to empirical studies in consultation. The goal of this issue is to present scientific endeavors that look at evidence systematically, without concern for where the data lead. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Outcome-based consultation for supervisors.

Presented a case study of a consultant who used outcome-based consultation with a female supervisor (aged 38 yrs) of a medical diagnosis unit for improving her interaction with 15 supervisees (aged 19–43 yrs). Outcome-based consultation was the strategy used during a 40-hr consultation. This method included the stages of establishing a working relationship, assessing attitudes and behaviors, setting goals, implementing supervisory strategies, and evaluating outcomes. During a 2-wk feedback and evaluation period, the supervisor had 22 positive, 12 neutral, and 0 negative interactions with 15 supervisees. Even so, overall negative perceptions of the supervisor's relationship with 5 supervisees persisted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A symposium on evaluation of training for consultation.

Papers from a symposium during the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association in Montreal in 1973 describe programs for training students to consult in a variety of settings with a variety of goals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Utilization of mental health consultation and self-perceptions of intraorganizational importance and influence.

Predicted that self-ratings of importance and influence for each of 17 volunteer workers in a mental health crisis center would be positively correlated to each worker's latency in the use of a mental health consultant. Results support the prediction for self-perceptions of influence and importance, but not for perceptions of the value of consultation in general, actual help derived from a consultant, or the number of hours in voluntary service. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effect of motivation arousal on humor preferences.

"The present experiment was designed to test the hypothesis that the arousal of different types of motivations would produce differences in humor preferences. It was predicted that in a hostility-arousing situation subjects would prefer humorous material of a hostile and aggressive nature, while subjects placed in a sexually arousing situation would prefer humor material with a sexual theme. This prediction was confirmed… [and] an explanation of the results was offered in terms of suppression." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Age and food preferences influence dietary intakes of breast care patients.

Identifying major influences on food choice is an important component of nutrition intervention research. Sensitivity to the bitter taste of 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP) and self-reported preferences for meats, fats, vegetables, and fruit were examined in 329 female breast care patients. Intakes of fat, saturated fat, fiber, folate, and vitamin C, established using 4-day food diaries, were the chief health outcome variables. The strongest predictor of food preferences was age. Preferences were linked to food intakes. Older women consumed less energy and saturated fat and more dietary fiber and vitamin C than did young women. Age-related decline in taste sensitivity to PROP was associated with increased liking for bitter cruciferous vegetables. Age-associated changes in food preference and eating habits have implications for the dietary approach to cancer prevention and control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The structure of preferences for psychological activities among psychologists.

The development and analysis of an Activity Preference Blank for use with psychologists is described. Five clusters of items (tentatively designated as I. Helping individuals, II. Experimenting, III. Working in industry, IV. Scholarship, and, V. Administering) were derived from a 119-item form administered to 400 undergraduate psychology majors, graduate students, and staff members of several large academic institutions. After statistical analysis and the extraction of clusters, an abbreviated set of items was administered to several groups of psychologists, and results are presented in tabular form for possible normative use. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The influence of demand characteristics on the outcome of systematic desensitization analogue studies.

48 female undergraduates with high scores on the Snake-Fear Questionnaire participated in either systematic desensitization, sleep therapy, partial systematic desensitization, or no treatment. Sleep therapy and partial systematic desensitization had all of the components of systematic desensitization except pairing the hierarchy and relaxation. However, sleep therapy Ss took the posttreatment fear assessments thinking that relaxation and the hierarchy had been paired while they slept, whereas Ss in partial systematic desensitization took the posttherapy fear assessments with the expectation of subsequently having relaxation paired with the hierarchy. Results indicate that comparable fear reductions were produced by sleep therapy and systematic desensitization. Sleep therapy, however, resulted in more reduction of the Ss' fear responses than partial systematic desensitization. These findings demonstrate that pairing relaxation with the hierarchy was not necessary to achieve reduction of Ss' fear responses, and that operations other than the components of systematic desensitization could influence the outcome of systematic desensitization analog research. Findings support the contention that in analog research a significant amount of the behavior change achieved by systematic desensitization is attributable to the treatment's demand characteristics. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Positive influence of a liaison program on the rate of psychiatric consultation referrals for cancer patients

CD38, a type II transmembrane glycoprotein, behaves as a catalytically active transporter responsible for ectocellular generation of cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPR) from NAD+ and for subsequent influx of cADPR across membranes [Franco, L., Guida, L., Bruzzone, S., Zocchi, E., Usai, C. and De Flora, A. (1998) FASEB J. in press]. cADPR regulates intracellular calcium homeostasis by releasing calcium from responsive stores. The cADPR-transporting function of CD38 requires channel-generating oligomeric forms of the protein rather than the 46 kDa monomers that have been described so far in CD38+ cells. Here we demonstrate that CD38, both in reconstituted proteoliposomes and in CD38-transfected HeLa cells, is a mixture of catalytically active monomers, homodimers and homotetramers. A soluble recombinant form of CD38 corresponding to its ectocellular region proved to be monomeric. Thus, association of native CD38 with either artificial or natural membranes seems to result in a reversible juxtaposition of monomers suitable to cADPR-transporting activity.     

Evaluating dynamic performance: The influence of salient Gestalt characteristics on performance ratings.

It is well recognized that performance changes over time. However, the effect of these changes on overall assessments of performance is largely unknown. In a laboratory experiment, we examined the influence of salient Gestalt characteristics of a dynamic performance profile on supervisory ratings. We manipulated performance trend (flat, linear-improving, linear-deteriorating, U-shaped, and ∩-shaped), performance variation (small, large), and performance mean (negative, zero, positive) within subjects and display format (graphic, tabular) between subjects. Participants received and evaluated information about the weekly performance of different employees over a simulated 26-week period. Results showed strong main effects on performance ratings of both performance mean and performance trend, as well as interactions with display format. Theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The sexual preferences of incest offenders.

Inclusive fitness theory suggests that discriminative solicitude and inbreeding avoidance are important mechanisms regulating parent–children interactions. From an inclusive fitness perspective, sex with one's biological children is paradoxical. The authors hypothesized that incest can occur when these mechanisms are not activated (e.g., if a father is uninvolved in child rearing) or are overwhelmed by another factor, such as pedophilic interest. They predicted that biological fathers, who presumably have been the most involved in the rearing of their victims, would show greater phallometrically measured pedophilic interest than would other incest offenders against children (e.g., grandfathers, uncles, stepfathers). The prediction was not supported. A testable alternative hypothesis to explain biological father incest is presented and the importance of assessing pedophilic interest among incest offenders is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)