Meaning and measurement of family: Comment on Gorman-Smith et al. (1996).

D. Gorman-Smith, P. H. Tolan, A. Zelli, & L. R. Huesmann (see record 83:27124) highlight important issues for the treatment of conduct problems. Their results suggest that the concept of family and the family treatment of serious delinquency should target two dimensions: parenting practices and family characteristics. Additionally, they raise important questions about the meaning, and hence the measurement, of family. The debate articulated in this comment focuses on whether the family is considered to be a collection of individuals with unique perspectives, a unique whole with its own beliefs and emotions, or both a collection of individuals and a whole. In this article, the author argues that family research can be improved if researchers specify three components of the measurement of family: (a) target of the assessment, (b) method of the assessment, and (c) method of aggregation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Treatment of violent juvenile offenders—we have the knowledge: Comment on Gorman-Smith et al. (1996).

On the basis of research by D. Gorman-Smith, P. H. Tolan, A. Zelli, and L. R. Huesmann (see record 83:27124) and many others, a reasonable consensus has been achieved regarding the concurrent correlates of criminal behavior in adolescents. Moreover, it is known that when these correlates are addressed through a well-specified, ecological treatment model that emphasizes the delivery of flexible, individualized, and comprehensive empirically based services to youths and their families, rates of serious juvenile offending are decreased. Yet, prevailing mental health and juvenile justice services rarely attend to the known determinants of serious antisocial behavior and, in fact, provide interventions that are expensive and likely exacerbate the problem. The challenge is both to develop and validate ecologically based treatment models and to advocate for the myriad needs of serious juvenile offenders and their families. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Contributions of new research on juvenile delinquency to the prevention and treatment of antisocial behavior: Comment on Gorman-Smith et al. (1996).

The authors comment on D. Gorman-Smith, P. H. Tolan, A. Zelli, and L. R. Huesmann's (see record 83:27124) article and argue that the article builds on recent advances in juvenile delinquency research. This research provides a sound foundation for making progress toward the goals of (a) understanding diverse patterns of nonviolent and violent antisocial behavior over time, (b) integrating developmental theories with knowledge about risk variables associated with antisocial behavior, and (c) bridging the gap between research and policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reaction to the Special Section on supervision research: Comment on Ellis et al. (1996), Ladany et al. (1996), Neufeldt et al. (1996), and Worthen and McNeill (1996).

Both the post-positivistic (M. V. Ellis, N. Ladany, M. Krengel, and D. Schult; N. Ladany, C. E. Hill, M. M. Corbett, and E. A. Nutt; see PA, Vol 83:21766 and 24267, respectively) and interpretive (S. A. Neufeldt, M. P. Karno, and M. L. Nelson; V. Worthen and B. W. McNeill; see PA, Vol 83:24269 and 24281, respectively) studies in this special section on supervision research are reviewed from the perspective of rigor and relevancy to the critical questions facing educators and practitioners of supervision. The value of different empirical methods to uncover the meaning and structure of supervision is discussed in light of these researchers' contribution to building a theory of practice. Empirical findings of both methods are needed to guide the systematic teaching of psychotherapy in supervision and the teaching of supervision itself. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Understanding anger: Comment on Deffenbacher, Oetting, et al. (1996), Deffenbacher, Lynch, et al. (1996), and Kopper and Epperson (1996).

The articles in the Special Section (J. L. Deffenbacher, E. R. Oetting, et al., 1996; J. L. Deffenbacher, R. S. Lynch, et al., 1996; B. A. Kopper & D. L. Epperson, 1996) further our empirical knowledge of different aspects of anger. This comment discusses each study's contributions and offers suggestions for future research. In particular, it is argued that we have neglected to address the sociocultural context of anger and therefore need to conduct cross-cultural analyses of anger. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Meta-thoughts on the role of meta-emotion in children's development: Comment on Gottman et al. (1996).

J.M. Gottman et al (see record 83:37013) make an exciting and original contribution to the understanding of how parent–child relationships may affect children's development and adaptation. This comment attempts to place their contribution in the current context of family research; to raise some questions about the measurement, meaning, and function of meta-emotion; and to expand on some of the suggestions by Gottman et al about directions for further research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Confidence in protection: Comment on Goldberg et al. (1999).

S. Goldberg, J. E. Grusec, and J. M. Jenkins (see record 1999-15264-001) presented a provocative and compelling argument for a narrow definition of infant–mother attachment that is true to J. Bowlby's (1969) original theory. In particular, S. Goldberg et al. emphasized protection as the central feature of attachment and considered the importance of such a narrow definition for empirical precision in studies of the interactional antecedents of attachment. This comment considers a number of questions raised by S. Goldberg et al.'s article, including practical, theoretical, and developmental issues stemming from an attachment-as-protection perspective. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dopamine and reward: Comment on Hernandez et al. (2006).

Many lines of evidence suggest that the dopaminergic projection from the midbrain tegmentum to the forebrain must play a critical role in mediating the behavioral effects of natural and artificial rewards, with brain stimulation reward and addictive drugs included in the latter category. However, a closer look reveals many incongruities. The work of G. Hernandez et al. (2006; see record 2006-09890-013) resolves several puzzles. It implies that the dopaminergic projection does not carry the signal that encodes the magnitude of a brain stimulation reward. It suggests that the elevation in the tonic levels of dopamine consequent on brain stimulation reward modulates the registration of the magnitude of the reward. This reconciles the psychophysical evidence with the pharmacological, electrophysiological, and anatomical evidence. However, some serious puzzles do remain. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive processes in dissociation: Comment on Giesbrecht et al. (2008).

In their recent review “Cognitive Processes in Dissociation: An Analysis of Core Theoretical Assumptions,” published in Psychological Bulletin, Giesbrecht, Lynn, Lilienfeld, and Merckelbach (see record 2008-11487-001) have challenged the widely accepted trauma theory of dissociation, which holds that dissociative symptoms are caused by traumatic stress. In doing so, the authors have outlined a series of links between various constructs—such as fantasy proneness, cognitive failures, absorption, suggestibility, altered information-processing, dissociation, and amnesia—claiming that these linkages lead to the false conclusion that trauma causes dissociation. A review of the literature, however, shows that these are not necessarily related constructs. Careful examination of their arguments reveals no basis for the conclusion that there is no association between trauma and dissociation. The current comment offers a critical review and rebuttal of Giesbrecht et al.’s argument that there is no relationship between trauma and dissociation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessment of ADHD symptoms: Comment on Gomez et al. (2003).

R. Gomez, G. L. Burns, J. A. Walsh, and M. A. de Moura (see record 2003-02033-001) examined the degree to which parent and teacher ratings of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms are accounted for by trait, source, and error variance. The importance and limitations of Gomez et al.'s findings are discussed in the context of clinical and research assessments of children suspected of having ADHD. Gomez et al.'s findings make clear that multimethod and multisource assessment protocols should be used in diagnosing children with this disorder. Further, clinicians and researchers must avoid relying too heavily on 1 source of data when evaluating the severity and frequency of ADHD symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A promising intervention for a daunting problem: Comment on Silverman et al. (2001).

Six features of the report are commented on (K. Silverman et al., see record 2001-14365-002). First, the Therapeutic Workplace intervention described in the report represents a creative and promising new approach to drug abuse treatment. Second, to the author's knowledge, it represents the first intervention that has been shown in a randomized clinical trial to significantly reduce cocaine abuse among pregnant women. Third, the report and study are commendable for their scientific rigor. Fourth, the treatment approach is science-based, integrating concepts and principles from several behavioral science literatures. Fifth, the intervention offers a potentially practical way of extending incentive-based drug abuse treatments to community clinics. Sixth and last, the report has the potential to provoke serious thought and consideration of what more might be done to combat the daunting and related problems of chronic unemployment and drug abuse in our poorer communities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comment on Kramis et al. (Pain 64 (1996) 1-19)

We treated nine patients (10 episodes) with meningitis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates with decreased susceptibilities to broad-spectrum cephalosporins with high doses of cefotaxime (300 mg/kg of body weight per day; maximum dose, 24 g/day). Early adjunctive therapy with dexamethasone was also administered. Cefotaxime MICs were 0.5 (three episodes), 1 (five episodes), and 2 (two episodes) micrograms/ml, and MBCs ranged from 1 to 4 micrograms/ml. Therapy was well tolerated, and all patients experienced prompt clinical improvement. One patient died 8 days after the end of therapy, the central nervous system infection had already been cured, and the remaining patients recovered without relapses.     

How multiculturalism obscures racial factors in the therapy process: Comment on Ridley et al. (1994), Sodowsky et al. (1994), Ottavi et al. (1994), and Thompson et al. (1994).

Argues that counseling psychologists have prematurely abandoned the study of racial factors in the psychotherapy process in favor of an all-inclusive version of multiculturalism. Using 4 multicultural articles (T. M. Ottavi et al [see PA, Vol 81:31317]; C. R. Ridley et al [see PA, Vol 81:30590]; G. R. Sodowsky et al [see PA, Vol 81:27909] and C. E. Thompson et al [see PA, Vol 81:30597] for illustrative purposes, this article suggests that the definitional imprecision of racial and cultural constructs has contributed to equivocal theoretical conceptualizations, methodological ambiguities, and practitioner confusion. Also, in reaction to the articles, future directions for research on racial factors in the psychotherapy process are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Do People Need Self-Esteem? Comment on Pyszczynski et al. (2004).

In spite of impressive empirical evidence consistent with aspects of terror management theory (TMT) reviewed by T. Pyszczynski, J. Greenberg, S. Solomon, J. Arndt, and J. Schimel (2004), several fundamental assumptions of the theory remain untested or lack support. Specifically, Pyszczynski et al. (2004) have not demonstrated that (a) people need self-esteem, (b) pursuing self-esteem is an effective means for reducing anxiety, (c) pursuing self-esteem helps people achieve their important goals, (d) having or pursuing self-esteem is the only way to deal with anxiety to achieve important goals, or (e) death is the real issue driving the pursuit of self-esteem. The authors suggest there is a different paradigm for thinking about death, one in which awareness of one's mortality serves as a precious reminder of the limited time one has to accomplish one's most important goals. All of these questions can be addressed with empirical research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The validity of Dietary Restraint Scales: Comment on Stice et al. (2004).

In 4 empirical studies, E. Stice, M. Fisher, and M. R. Lowe (see record 2004-11653-006) calculated the correlations between some widely used dietary restraint scales and food intake. Failing to find substantial negative correlations, they concluded that these scales were invalid. The current article challenges this conclusion. For one thing, there is some evidence that restrained eaters do eat less than do unrestrained eaters under controlled experimental conditions favoring self-control. Dietary restraint is also associated with tendencies toward disinhibition under conditions favoring loss of self-control; such disinhibition often masks (but does not invalidate) the construct of dietary restraint. For these and other reasons, the assessment of food intake at a single eating episode may not capture overall dietary restriction. Finally, how much one eats does not necessarily indicate whether one has eaten less than one desired to eat. The authors suggest that the existing restraint scales do in fact validly assess restriction of food intake, albeit in a more complex fashion than is evident from simple correlations in single episodes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Considering phasic alerting in Alzheimer's disease: Comment on Tales et al. (2006).

A. Tales, R. J. Snowden, M. Brown, and G. Wilcock (2006; see record 2006-20657-014) have questioned the authors' view (see record 2004-12990-007) of a possible interdependence between attentional systems mediating exogenous spatial orienting and phasic alerting as well as the authors' suggestion that phasic alerting deficits in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) may be influencing their performance on tests of spatial orienting. Consistent with this possibility, both laboratories have previously demonstrated increased spatial orienting and decreased phasic alerting in patients with AD. In Tales et al.'s current study, however, they have instead suggested that their results provide evidence for functional independence between these attentional systems in AD. In this commentary, the authors address the misinterpretations of their study and evaluate the degree to which Tales et al.'s study addresses the issues that they raise. Given Tales et al.'s difficulty performing analyses on response time data because of variance issues, the presence of a reduced (although not significant) alerting effect in Tales et al.'s AD group (consistent with the authors' previous findings), and a potential floor effect in their measure of alerting, the authors question the validity of Tales et al.'s conclusions and reaffirm their position that not considering interactions among attentional systems can lead to inaccurate characterizations of the mechanisms by which they operate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Models of intelligence in late life: Comment on Hultsch et al. (1999).

The authors comment on D. F. Hultsch, C. Hertzog, B. J. Small, and R. A. Dixon's (1999) report of the latest results of the Victoria Longitudinal Study, which are presented as a test of the engagement hypothesis, and on their reanalysis of the data from the Veterans Study (Pushkar Gold et al., 1995), which proposes an alternative model of intellectual function. Differences between the methodologies, variables, and concepts of engaged lifestyle in the 2 studies lead to different tests of the engagement hypothesis and different conclusions. Failure to report specified paths and unjustified assumptions lessen the credibility of the Hultsch et al. model for the Veterans Study data. The authors conclude that their original model, which indicates a small but significant effect of engaged adult lifestyle on the maintenance of intellectual verbal abilities in later life, provides a better explanation of the Veterans Study data. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Toward an LGBT-informed paradigm for children who break gender norms: Comment on Drummond et al. (2008) and Rieger et al. (2008).

In this commentary, the author reviews methodological and conceptual shortcomings of recent articles by K. D. Drummond, S. J. Bradley, M. Peterson-Badali, and K. J. Zucker (see record 2007-19851-005) as well as G. Rieger, J. A. W. Linsenmeier, L. Gygax, and J. M. Bailey (see record 2007-19851-006), which sought to predict adult sexual identity from childhood gender identity. The author argues that such research needs to incorporate a greater awareness of how stigmatization affects identity processes. Multidimensional models of gender identity that describe variation in children’s responses to pressure to conform to gender norms are particularly useful in this regard (S. K. Egan & D. G. Perry, 2001). Experiments on the interpretation of developmental data are reviewed to evidence how cultural assumptions about sexuality can impact theories of sexual identity development in unintended ways. The author concludes that understanding the development of children presumed most likely to grow up with sexual minority identities requires a consideration of the cultural contexts in which identities develop and in which psychologists theorize. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluating the MSCEIT V2.0 via CFA: Comment on Mayer et al. (2003).

This investigation uncovered several substantial errors in the confirmatory factor analysis results reported by J. D. Mayer, P. Salovey, D. R. Caruso, and G. Sitarenios (see record 2003-02341-015). Specifically, the values associated with the close-fit indices (normed fit index, Tucker-Lewis Index, and root-mean-square error of approximation) are inaccurate. A reanalysis of the Mayer et al. subscale intercorrelation matrix provided accurate values of the close-fit indices, which resulted in different evaluations of the models tested by J. D. Mayer et al. Contrary to J. D. Mayer et al., the 1-factor model and the 2-factor model did not provide good fit. Although the 4-factor model was still considered good fitting, the nonconstrained 4-factor model yielded a nonpositive definite matrix, which was interpreted to be due to the fact that two of the branch-level factors (Perceiving and Facilitating) were collinear, suggesting that a model with 4 factors was implausible. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The investigation of exposure and cognitive therapy: Comment on Tarrier et al. (1999).

This article outlines concerns relating to the N. Tarrier et al. (1999) investigation (see record 1999-00242-002) comparing imaginal exposure and cognitive therapy. Specifically, the authors offer N. Tarrier et al. the opportunity to operationally define and clarify the claim that more patients treated by imaginal exposure "worsened" during treatment. Equally, in light of N. Tarrier et al.'s low effect sizes in relation to past research the authors also highlight the need to utilize accountable treatment integrity checks. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)