Educators' perceptions of the D.A.R.E. program

This study examines the perceptions of educators about the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) program, based on the results of a statewide survey among 286 fifth and sixth grade teachers and principals. Educators gave their highest ratings to teacher/officer interaction, the role playing exercises, and the graduation ceremony. Ratings of overall program quality and the impact of the program on students were both high. Block regression analysis was used to examine factors predictive of educators' views of D.A.R.E. D.A.R.E. program elements were the most important factors explaining variance in educators' ratings of over-all program quality and program impact on students. Altogether, 54 percent and 38 percent of the variance in both dependent variables were explained. The results are discussed in terms of the important role teachers and principals play as stakeholders in prevention education.     

Plasma membrane integrity of cryopreserved human sperm: an investigation of the results of the hypoosmotic swelling test, the water test, and eosin-Y staining

OBJECTIVE: [1] To examine the relationship between sperm membrane integrity and motion parameters before and after cryopreservation; [2] to determine the capacity of the membrane integrity tests to predict the outcome of cryopreservation in fertile and infertile men; and [3] to examine the degree of agreement between tail and head membrane integrity of testicular and ejaculated immotile sperm cryopreserved for intracytoplasmic sperm injection. DESIGN: Prospective study. SETTING: Academic tertiary care institution. PATIENT(S): Fertile donors and normozoospermic oligozoospermic, and asthenozoospermic subfertile men. INTERVENTION(S): Semen samples were cryopreserved and thawed for analysis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Sperm membrane integrity and computer-assisted motion parameters. RESULT(S): The hypoosmotic swelling test and water test had a significant and positive correlation in the fresh and cryopreserved ejaculates of all groups. The results of the hypoosmotic swelling test correlated positively with the percent motility in the fresh ejaculates of fertile and subfertile men. None of the membrane integrity tests correlated with the cryosurvival rate in any group. In the ejaculated and testicular samples with no postcryopreservation motility, the simultaneous assessment of hypoosmotic swelling test and eosin showed that of 33% sperm exhibiting coiling with the hypoosmotic swelling test, only 9% were eosin negative, whereas 24% were eosin positive. CONCLUSION(S): [1] The water test may be a simpler replacement for the hypoosmotic swelling test; [2] none of the membrane integrity tests predicted sperm motility after cryopreservation; and [3] there was a high degree of disagreement between the hypoosmotic swelling test and eosin in the samples with no postcryopreservation motility.     

Speech Sounds Perception Test: A rational response strategy can invalidate the test results.

The Speech Sounds Perception Test (a component of both the Adult and Midrange versions of Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Test Battery) is structured such that correct responses can be determined rationally. If a patient identifies and responds according to that structure, the validity of the test is compromised. Posttest interview is suggested as a simple and immediately applicable solution. (1 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reciprocal relations between adolescent substance use and delinquency: A longitudinal latent variable analysis.

Reciprocal relations between self-reported substance use and delinquency were examined through the analysis of 4-wave panel data collected from 1,218 high school students. A longitudinal, latent-variable framework was used to investigate interrelationships between changing patterns of generalized involvement in these 2 problem behaviors, while simultaneously accounting for specificity in drug use (e.g., marijuana use) and delinquency (e.g., theft). Analyses revealed that a model of bidirectional effects between polysubstance use and general delinquency was plausible for boys but not for girls. For boys, the effect of delinquency on substance use was small but consistent over time, whereas the effect of substance use on delinquency was larger but restricted to the earlier waves of the study. Implications for the question of whether or not substance use and delinquency have causal connections are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Berlyne on art: A review of D. E. Berlyne's Aesthetics and psychobiology.

Reviews the book, Aesthetics and Psychobiology by D. E. Berlyne (see record 1973-00821-000). Progress in the aesthetic disciplines has been at a snail's pace. Berlyne charges six factors with having impeded advance: the belief in art as a supernatural phenomenon, the failure to separate factual from normative questions, the conception of art as a unitary phenomenon, the habit of treating art in isolation from nonartistic forms of behavior, the preoccupation with uniqueness in aesthetic taste, and the concentration on verbal judgments in aesthetic work. But the future looks brighter, due primarily to the following developments: (1) the rise of information theory, which provides procedures for rigorously analyzing some of the features of stimulus patterns that most concern aesthetics, (2) recent empirical and theoretical contributions in both psychology and neurophysiology to the understanding of pleasure and arousal, and (3) findings bearing on the nature of exploratory behavior, both in animals and humans, particularly as these teach the motivational importance of such elements as complexity, novelty and uncertainty, so-called "collative" variables, that "seem to be identifiable with the irreducibly essential ingredients of art and of whatever else is aesthetically appealing" (viii). The principal aim of Berlyne's book is to establish the ground gained in these three areas, compare it to the contributions made by earlier workers, and effectuate "a provisional synthesis that will at least bring key problems to the fore" (viii). It is a formidable task. Inevitably, the effort fares better in some assignments than others. Ironically, what discrepancies in quality do exist would probably project less were Berlyne not so knowledgeable about his subject matter. He is, quite obviously, in the tradition of those "cultured gentlemen" with whom he is wont to populate the early history of psychological science. Parenthetically, one suspects that he could supplement the present work with a very creditable companion volume in the philosophy of aesthetics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

重稀土E36高强船板钢耐腐蚀性试验及分析

为探究重稀土元素对E36高强船板钢耐腐蚀性能的影响,通过实验对常规E36钢及添加了重稀土的E36RE钢分别进行了模拟耐海水腐蚀试验,分析重稀土元素的加入对E36钢耐腐蚀性能的影响.试验结果表明:常规E36钢的腐蚀速率和E36RE钢的腐蚀速率的比值达到1.662∶1,E36RE钢腐蚀速率比E36钢降低的比例达到了40％....     

From attribution to helping: An analysis of the mediating effects of affect and expectancy.

Applied the attributional model of motivation of B. Weiner et al (1971) to the study of helping behavior and predicted that willingness to help another person is influenced by the cause of the need and that the relationship between attribution and helping is mediated by affect and expectancy of future need. 80 undergraduates rated the likelihood that they would lend money to an acquaintance in each of 8 conditions in which causality varied along 3 dimensions: stability, locus, and control. Ss also rated their emotional reactions on 25 affect scales, selected from the Multiple Affect Adjective Check List, and estimated the likelihood that the person would require aid again in the future. ANOVA revealed that willingness to help was influenced primarily by the controllability of the cause. Consistent with the mediation hypothesis, a path analysis revealed that the effect of controllability on helping judgments was largely an indirect result of its influence on Ss' affective reactions to the request. The development of an attributional model of helping behavior is discussed. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Latent variable interaction and quadratic effect estimation: A two-step technique using structural equation analysis.

The author proposes an alternative estimation technique for latent variable interactions and quadratics. Available techniques for specifying these variables in structural equation models require adding variables or constraint equations that can produce specification tedium and errors or estimation difficulties. The proposed technique avoids these difficulties and may be useful for EQS, LISREL 7, and LISREL 8 users. First, measurement parameters for indicator loadings and errors of linear latent variables are estimated in a measurement model that excludes the interaction and quadratic variables. Next, these estimates are used to calculate values for the indicator loadings and error variances of the interaction and quadratic latent variables. Then, these calculated values are specified as constants in the structural model containing the interaction and quadratic variables. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The mediating role of coping: A cross-sectional analysis of the relationship between coping self-efficacy and coping effectiveness among athletes.

This study examines the relationship among global coping self-efficacy, coping, and coping effectiveness within athletes. We hypothesized that there would be a positive association between coping self-efficacy and coping effectiveness, which would be mediated by coping. It was also predicted that coping strategies within the task-oriented coping dimension would be positively associated with coping effectiveness, whereas strategies from the disengagement- and distraction-oriented coping dimensions would be negatively associated with coping effectiveness. Participants were 353 athletes between the ages of 18 and 29 years, who completed a measure of coping self-efficacy the night before they competed, in addition to a measure of the athletes' use of coping strategies and their perceived coping effectiveness, which was completed immediately after the competitive event. Results revealed that higher global coping self-efficacy scores were significantly (r = .33, p     

Comparison of the WAIS and WAIS—R: Different results for different IQ groups.

Using a procedure that eliminated repetition of identical items, thus avoiding order effects, we administered the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) and the WAIS—Revised to 108 subjects. All correlations between the two tests were significant and similar to those reported in the WAIS—R manual. For the group as a whole, verbal, performance, and full scale IQ scores on the WAIS—R were significantly lower than their respective WAIS scores; however, this difference was not consistent across IQ levels. Subjects of both average and borderline intelligence had WAIS IQ scores significantly above their WAIS—R scores. For the mildly retarded subjects, the performance IQs were equal for the WAIS and WAIS—R, whereas the WAIS—R verbal and full scale IQ scores were higher than the corresponding WAIS IQ scores. However, these score differences were small (1 point) and of little practical value. The differences of moderately retarded subjects, on the other hand, were large and in the reverse direction: the WAIS—R IQ scores were significantly higher than the WAIS IQ scores. Clinical implications of these findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A model for the analysis of consumer preference and an exploratory test.

A model for the analysis and prediction of consumer behavior is described, based on an extension of marginal utility principles with preference employed in the place of utility and the principle of maximization of preference extended to qualitative degrees as well as quantities of commodities. In an exploratory test using food preference data, the average prices of appetizers, entrees, and desserts ordered, for a fixed-cost meal, by 263 Ss, were predicted with a mean error of six cents. Attention is called to economic implications of preference measurements of a form commonly collected in consumer studies. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Factor analysis of the WAIS—R: Psychiatric and standardization samples.

Performed factor analysis on the responses of 114 psychiatric inpatients (mean age 28.9 yrs) to the WAIS—R. Results show clearly dichotomized Verbal and Performance subtests in a 2-factor solution and evidence of the previously found Freedom From Distractibility dimension in a 3-factor solution. Since both solutions were comparable to those obtained from the standardized sample, it is suggested that results validate clinical interpretations based on the factor structure. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The crucible of experience: R. D. Laing and the crisis of psychotherapy.

Reviews the book, The crucible of experience: R. D. Laing and the crisis of psychotherapy by Daniel Burston (see record 2000-03710-000). Unlike his earlier book, which was more biographical and focused on R. D. Laing’s personal experiences, this book is devoted to examining the man’s contributions to contemporary psychotherapeutic theory and practice. This, of course, is no easy task as Laing is a notoriously unsystematic thinker, whose work often violated entrenched disciplinary expectations and challenged conventional sensibilities and assumptions. Despite such obvious obstacles, however, Burston does an excellent job laying out Laing’s intellectual indebtedness to existentialism and phenomenology, as well as his lasting contributions to existential psychiatry. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

All or none hypothesis: A global-default mode that characterizes the brain and mind.

It is proposed that the mind and brain often work at a gross level and only with fine tuning or inhibition act in a more differentiated manner, even when one might think the domains being issued the global command should be distinct. This applies to disparate findings in cognitive science and neuroscience in both children and adults. Thus, it is easier to switch everything, or nothing, than to switch one thing (the rule one is following or which button to press) but not the other. It is easier to issue the same command to both hands than to move only one hand. If one needs to respond to the opposite (or antonym) of a stimulus, one is faster if the correct response is to the side opposite the stimulus. People tend to think of the nervous system as sending out very precise commands only to the relevant recipient, but it appears that often the command goes out more globally and then parts of the system need to be inhibited from acting on the command. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

All the right stuff: A comparison of female and male managers' career progression.

Examined the career progression of male and female managers employed by 20 Fortune 500 corporations. All study participants had been geographically transferred for career advancement during the 2 yrs preceding the study. Nevertheless, the women lagged behind the men with respect to salary progression and frequency of job transfers. Although the women had done "all the right stuff" (getting a similar education as the men, maintaining similar levels of family power, working in similar industries, not moving in and out of the work force, not removing their names from consideration for a transfer more often) it was still not enough. There were still significant disparities in men's and women's salary progression and geographic mobility. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Population pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of cisplatin in patients with cancer: analysis with the NONMEM program

The purpose of this study was to examine if strong correlations reported for a back lift task between activity (EMG) of two-joint rectus femoris (RF), hamstrings (HA), and gastrocnemius (GA) and the difference in the joint moments could be predicted by minimizing an objective function of minimum fatigue. Four subjects lifted barbell weights (9 and 18 kg) using a back lift technique at three speeds normal, slow, and fast. Recorded ground reaction forces and coordinates of the leg joints were used to calculate the resultant joint moments. Surface EMG of five muscles crossing the knee joint were also recorded. Forces of nine muscles were calculated using static optimization and a minimum fatigue criterion. Relationships (i) (RF EMG-HA EMG) vs (knee moment hip moment) and (ii) GA EMG vs. (ankle moment knee moment) were closely related (coefficients of determination were typically 0.9 and higher). Qualitatively similar relationships were predicted by minimizing fatigue. Gastrocnemius and hamstrings had the agonistic action at both joints they cross during load lifting, and their activation and predicted forces increased with increasing flexion knee moments and extension ankle and hip moments. The rectus femoris typically had the antagonistic action at the knee and hip, and its activation and predicted force were low. Patterns of predicted muscle forces were qualitatively similar to the corresponding EMG envelopes (except in phases of low joint moments where accuracy of determining joint moments was presumably poor). It was suggested that muscle coordination in load lifting is consistent with the strategy of minimum muscle fatigue.     

Disclosure and anxiety: A test of the fever model.

According to the fever model of Disclosure, the relationship of Disclosure (utterances that reveal subjective information) to psychological distress is analogous to the relationship of fever to physical infection: Both are indicators of some underlying disturbance and part of a restorative process. High and moderate trait anxious university students (but not the low trait anxious students) used higher percentage of Disclosure when speaking about an anxiety-arousing topic than when speaking about a happy topic. With topic order counterbalanced, students tended to use more Disclosure during their 1st presentation than during their 2nd. These results support the fever model's suggestion that people tend to Disclose when they are distressed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

WISC-R factor score profiles and academic achievement: A test of Kaufman's profile analysis procedures.

A. S. Kaufman (1979) suggested that factor score patterns may yield information about achievement that is additional to information contained in WISC-R composite scores. The present study examined the relation between factor score patterns and achievement beyond the well-established relationship between WISC-R composite scores and achievement. The WISC-R, including the Digit Span subtest, and the Reading, Spelling, and Arithmetic subtests of the Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT) were administered to 272 6–16 yr old academic underachievers referred for psychoeducational assessment. Results of the examination of factor score patterns and WRAT achievement scores indicate that 2 of the 10 patterns present in the data had a statistically significant relationship to achievement. While both patterns were negatively associated with achievement, the size of their contribution to achievement variance was small and in the order of 2%. These results impose limits on the utility of Kaufman's profile analysis procedures. (French abstract) (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)