Restoration of eidetic imagery via hypnotic age regression: A preliminary report.

Eidetic imagery involves the ability to examine a visual stimulus briefly, such as a picture or a design, and later project onto a neutral surface an image that represents an exact duplication of the original. This phenomenon is reliably found in a minority of children (8-20%), but is essentially nonexistent in adults. The present study used the differential frequency of eidetic imagery ability between children and adults as a basis for testing the validity or efficacy of hypnotic age regression. It was hypothesized that hypnotized adult Ss, given suggestions to regress to an earlier age, would revert to earlier modes of information processing, which for a small minority would include the ability to form eidetic images. Results indicate that 2 of the 20 undergraduate Ss achieved the criterion by identifying the correct figure in 3 10,000-dot stereograms while age regressed. None of the Ss correctly identified any stereogram figures while awake or merely hypnotized. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Restoration of eidetic imagery via hypnotic age regression: More evidence.

Investigated the restoration of eidetic imagery in a population of adult Ss with the aid of hypnotic age regression. Since such imagery reliably occurs in a minority of children, the employment of hypnosis to regress adults to a time when they were children indicated that this procedure can restore, temporarily, eidetic imagery in a minority of adults. From a larger pool of 482, 24 highly hypnotizable undergraduates, determined by their scores on the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility, reported having had eidetic images as children. From this volunteer sample, only 2 (or 8.33% of the 24 or .42% of the 482) were able to succeed with an eidetic combination of 10,000 dot stereograms when hypnotically regressed. No other S, regardless of condition, succeeded. It is concluded that to demonstrate eidetic imagery an S must have an ability to be hypnotically age-regressed and a history of childhood eidetic imagery. It is suggested that the proportion of Ss meeting this criterion is much smaller than previously thought. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypnotic age regression.

This review covers the types of measures which have been used to compare the test performance and behavior of the S in the waking state with that in the hypnotic state, the various conditions under which the performance is recorded, the principal established results, the main theories which account for the phenomenon, and the methodological problems involved. Suggestions for future research are made. From Psyc Abstracts 36:01:3II29Y. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypnotic age regression: A test of the functional ablation hypothesis.

The hypothesis that responses acquired after the time to which S is hypnotically age regressed are functionally ablated was tested by utilizing a modification of the retroactive interference paradigm with a paired associates task. 5 preselected female Ss learned List A (S1-R1). 2 wk. later they learned List B (S1-R2) whereupon they were hypnotically age regressed to the date of original learning, when R1 strength was high, and given further S1-R1 trials. Appropriate A-A and A-B-A comparison groups (N = 10 each) were employed. The findings that the hypnotic age regression procedures failed to preclude the occurrence of interlist intrusions in the relearning of S1-R1 does not support the hypothesis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypnotic age regression and the occurrence of transitional object relationships.

Object relations theory and subsequent empirical investigations have established the characteristic ways in which children aged 2–6 yrs utilize transitional objects (e.g., teddy bears or blankets). Three of these characteristics—spontaneity, specificity, and intensity—were used as the primary criteria to investigate the genuineness of hypnotic age regression when Ss were regressed to age 3 and placed in emotional situations typical of those reported clinically. Two groups of college students (16 highly susceptible, as "reals," and 15 low susceptible, as simulators; Ss were administered the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility and a version of the Stanford Profile Scales of Hypnotic Susceptibility) behaved differentially on all 3 measures, with reals behaving in a generally more childlike manner, thus suggesting an effect attributable to the hypnotic condition. Further, the behavior of these Ss was compared to that of 77 children aged 1–6 yrs; reals and children were statistically indistinguishable on the 2 criteria on which they were compared, but simulators differed significantly from both groups. This pattern of results, along with real–simulator differences, suggests a more complete reproduction of an earlier affective process as a function of meaningful hypnotic age regression. (35 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Anxiety and intellectual performance: A partial failure to replicate.

The study tried to replicate Sarason's (1957) findings of the interfering effect of test anxiety and the facilitating effect of general anxiety on academic work. The study also tested the generality of the Taylor-Spence (1952) hypothesis of the negative effect of anxiety on behavior. A study of the effects of different types of anxiety on academic performance, Taylor, Test, and General anxiety scores, course grades and grade-point averages were obtained on private college Ss (N = 55) and state college Ss (N = 70). Results failed to demonstrate a significant correlation between Test anxiety and academic work, but confirmed the facilitating influence of general anxiety on course grade. The differential effects of anxiety were discussed in terms of the interaction between anxiety and grade level, overlearning, nature of the tasks, and intellectual ability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Silverman's subliminal psychodynamic activation: A failure to replicate.

L. H. Silverman's (see record 1977-05955-001) report that subliminally presented stimuli designed to increase or decrease oedipal conflict can affect competitive performance was tested in 3 experiments on a total of 91 male undergraduates. In none of the experiments was there a difference between performance following exposure to subliminal oedipal conditions and performance following neutral baseline conditions. Results should be considered in light of changes made over the course of these experiments that produced a bias in favor of replication. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ego disjunction: A failure to replicate Trehub's results.

Previous research had demonstrated a linear relationship between ego disjunction (the result of incompatible, conflicting needs, as measured by the EPPS) and severity of psychopathology. These results were not cross-validated. The MMPI turned out to be more effective than the EPPS in discriminating psychotics from nonpsychotics. Explorations for these findings are offered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Subliminal psychodynamic activation in depression: A failure to replicate.

Attempted to replicate S. Nissenfeld's (1979) application of L. H. Silverman's (see record 1977-05955-001) technique of subliminal psychodynamic activation in which a significant effect on statelike psychopathology symptomatic of depression was found for the "symbiotic" stimulus. 30 depressed female inpatients (aged 17–62 yrs) were administered 3 subliminal stimuli: a control stimulus ({people talking}), the symbiotic stimulus ({mommy and i are one}), and a rapproachement stimulus ({mommy loves me as i am}). Dependent variables were anxious and depressed affect as measured by the Multiple Affect Adjective Check List, depressed and hypomanic themes rated from the TAT, the Digit Symbol subscale from the WAIS, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and Silverman's measure of pathological nonverbal behavior. MANOVA found no significant effects for any of the independent variables. Neither the inadequate power of statistical tests nor deficient methodology accounted for this failure to replicate Nissenfeld's findings. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Repression and hypnotic amnesia: A failure to replicate and an alternative formulation.

In an attempt to replicate and extend a study by S. R. Clemes (see record 1965-02178-001), 2 groups of 10 undergraduate hypnotic Ss learned a list of 18 words and were given an amnesia suggestion telling them they would be able to remember only 10 of these words. Half of the list words were critical (i.e., considered to be related to repressed conflictual material) and half were neutral (unrelated to conflictual material) as determined by Ss' responses to a word association test. Experimental Ss received their own critical and neutral words and yoked control Ss received the critical and neutral words of experimental Ss. Neither the experimental nor the yoked control group exhibited selective amnesia in favor of critical words, thus constituting a failure to replicate Clemes's result. However, variables affecting the degree to which words were initially learned (e.g., imagery value, serial position) predicted their resistance to amnesia. These findings are inconsistent with a repression hypothesis but congruent with an inattention hypothesis of suggested amnesia. (41 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The 4-3 MMPI profile type: A failure to replicate.

Using a sample of male prison inmates as Ss, the incidence of violent crimes for 65 persons with the 4-3 MMPI profile type and 64 with other 2-point code types was compared. Results fail to replicate the findings of some earlier investigators, who reported that violent behaviors are more common for persons with the 4-3 profile type. The failure to identify a significant relationship between the 4-3 profile type and violent behavior suggests that caution should be exercised in generalizing to populations that differ from those in which the relationship between violence and the 4-3 profile type is established. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Conceptual area" among pathological groups: A failure to replicate.

The ability of the "conceptual-area" scoring system to differentiate between tuberculous, process schizophrenic, reactive schizophrenic, and brain-damaged patients was tested by administering the Object Sorting Test to 125 hospitalized veterans. The diagnostic groups were equivalent in mean education, intelligence, and length of hospitalization, but the tuberculous and brain-damaged patients averaged 8 yr. older than the schizophrenics. None of the scores differentiated the groups at the .05 level. In discussing these results, it was maintained that, contrary to comment in the literature, "conceptual area" has never conclusively differentiated, in a simultaneous comparison, between nonpsychiatric, brain-damaged, and schizophrenic patients, and may not be appropriate for this purpose. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Span of apprehension deficits in children vulnerable to psychopathology: A failure to replicate.

Tested the findings of R. J. Asarnow et al (see record 1978-05788-001) and D. J. MacCrimmon et al (see record 1981-21451-001) that children vulnerable to psychopathology show performance deficits on the span of apprehension task by examining data from a study by the 2nd and 3rd present authors (1975) that provided a larger sample of high-risk children. Results show that the 34 children (mean age 15.4 yrs) of schizophrenics did not differ from the 54 children (mean age 15.3 yrs) of unipolars, the 52 children (mean age 15.6 yrs) of bipolars, or the 75 children (mean age 15.3 yrs) of normal controls in their span performance. Possible sources of the discrepant results are discussed, and it is suggested that the present findings do not call into question the possibility that some high-risk children show attentional deficits. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Is utility really futile? A failure to replicate and an extension.

G. P. Latham and G. Whyte (1994) found that managers gave less positive evaluations to a proposal to implement a valid selection procedure when information about the utility of that procedure was also given. The authors hypothesized that the manner in which the utility information was presented might explain this result. Two empirical studies (Ns?=?145 and 186) were conducted. Results of mean contrast analyses show that the effect found by Latham and Whyte was not replicated, that revised scenarios including utility information are more understandable to managers, and that utility information presented in a revised manner has a low-to-moderate positive effect on the acceptability ratings that managers give to these selection proposals. However, acceptability ratings remain disappointingly low no matter which scenario is presented. Future study is encouraged to examine managerial reactions to innovations suggested by psychological research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

WAIS characteristics and violent behavior: Failure to generalize versus failure to replicate.

Attempted to cross-validate the J. T. Kunce et al (see record 1976-10022-001) WAIS similarities ratio with a new sample of 11 nonpsychotic violent White males. A test of the applicability of the ratio to 21 nonpsychotic violent and 16 nonviolent Black males was also undertaken. Both efforts yielded negative results. (2 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Failure effects on outerdirectedness: a failure to replicate

A replication was conducted of part of Turnure and Zigler's (1964) experiment in which they assessed whether outerdirectedness was a function of failure experiences. Thirty nonretarded and 30 retarded children, matched on MA, experienced either failure games administered with positive or negative comments followed by an imitative assessment task or received only the imitation task. The results did not support Zigler's hypothesis concerning the antecedents of outerdirectedness, as no short-term effects of failure were found. The findings refuted Turnure and Zigler's hypothesis that outerdirectedness is a function of situational social reinforcement. Differences in tasks presented, methods of analysis, and/or school populations may have contributed to the lack of correspondence with the Turnure and Zigler findings.     

The statistics of failure to replicate: A comment on Buriel's (1978) conclusions.

Examines the statistics critical to a conclusion that there has been failure to replicate previous research. Many research workers, including R. Buriel (see record 1979-09549-001), incorrectly compared the results in each study, independently of the other, with null hypotheses of zero differences between means or the equivalent zero population correlations. Instead, a test of the difference between the mean differences in the 2 samples or the direct comparison of the 2 sample correlations is required. Appropriate standard errors are readily available. The appropriate test for the difference between sample correlations requires only the 2 correlations and the 2 Ns; however, access to both means and variances is required for the difference between mean differences. A convenient procedure for approximating the t for the latter test is presented that requires knowledge only of the separate t ratios in the 2 samples and of the sample Ns. If this minimal information is available, an investigator publishing a supposed replication can compare his or her results directly with the original findings. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of tachistoscopic stimulation of subconscious oedipal wishes on competitive performance: A failure to replicate.

Studied the effects of subconscious oedipal wishes on the dart-throwing performance of 72 18–29 yr old undergraduate males. The research was designed (a) to replicate the study by L. H. Silverman et al (1978), who found that Ss' dart-throwing performance improved after they viewed the subliminal stimulus "beating dad is ok" and worsened after they viewed "beating dad is wrong"; (b) to see if dart-throwing behavior is also affected by supraliminal oedipal stimulation; and (c) to investigate the influence of priming (i.e., preexperimental arousal of oedipal wishes) on the effect of tachistoscopic stimulation. Previous results were not replicated despite close adherence to the Silverman et al methodology, nor were other significant effects found. Questions are raised about the ability to have an impact on subconscious oedipal wishes in a behaviorally observable way using this paradigm. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)