Psychedelic drug flashbacks: Attentional deficits?

Tested the validity of theories explaining psychedelic flashbacks as manifestations of deficits in attentional processes caused directly or indirectly by a drug. 34 psychedelic drug users experiencing flashbacks were compared with 29 psychedelic drug users not experiencing flashbacks and with 24 non-drug-using controls on a reaction time task with various preparatory intervals. Findings indicate that the flashbackers' attention was comparable to the attention of the nonflashbacking drug users; both drug-using groups did substantially better than the non-drug-using controls. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developing a new narrative: The woman therapist and the male patient.

Discusses the impact of the participants' gender on the therapeutic dialog, in particular the relationship of women therapists to male patients, using data obtained in 13 interviews with female analysts, therapists, or students. Two issues were found to be distinctive to the woman therapist: the contradictory terrain of female authority and the meaning of intimacy with women, given the residues of the separation/individuation process. The preoedipal maternal transference, the possible defensive uses of the erotic transference (e.g., issues concerning power), and the merging of aggressive and sexual impulses are discussed vis-à-vis the dyad of the woman therapist and the male patient. Issues of fantasy and hostile transference are also discussed. (66 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comprehending narratives containing flashbacks: Evidence for temporally organized representations.

This study investigated the representations that readers construct for narratives describing a sequence of events. Participants read narratives describing 4 successive events in chronological order (Event 1, Event 2, Event 3, Event 4 [E1, E2, E3, E4] Experiment 1) or in nonchronological order with E1 being mentioned in a flashback (E2, E3, E1, E4; Experiments 2-4). The information about the duration of E2 was manipulated, and the mental accessibility of E1 was tested at the end of a passage. All 4 experiments showed that E1 was less accessible if the text implied that it occurred a relatively long time ago in the described world compared with when it occurred a shorter time ago. This result suggests that readers construct a temporally organized representation even if the text structure does not suggest such an organization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychedelic drug flashbacks: Psychotic manifestation or imaginative role playing?

Examined possible differences in psychopathological characteristics among 28 flashbackers, 30 nonflashback drug users, and 18 drug user controls. The MMPI was used as an indicator of psychopathology. It is concluded that flashbacks may represent, in part, imaginative role playing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Families, culture, and mental illness: constructing new realities

In Modern Western cultures, conceptual models of mental illness are interwoven with value systems of individualism, agency, internal locus of control, and fear of dependency. These values have translated into psychological theory and practice, affected families' relationships with the professional, legal, and consumer communities and have often exacerbated family burden. Culturally patterned attributions of individual accountability also affect family-patient interactions and may have an effect on relapse and prognosis. The family and consumer movements are discussed in terms of their orientations, services, social impact, and influence on epistemology, particularly with reference to the different effects of protective paternalism and individualistic autonomy. Questions are raised regarding cultural values and differential prognoses in modern and developing countries and whether the process of recovery may be shaped by different cultural introjects. It is suggested that the era of family and consumer empowerment may be heuristic in discovering parameters of mental illness and potential for recovery, and ideas are offered for future cross-cultural research.     

Managed care and social work: constructing a context and a response

Managed care is described as a strategy developed by the health care industry as a means to control profitability in the dispersement of health care resources. Control of utilization, cost and information are the essential elements of this strategy. The potential impact of each strategy on social work practice is explored. A number of suggestions are made to insure that managed care balances the needs of its corporate sponsors with those of the consumer public and providers of health care.     

The Boy With Two Kingdoms: Ontogeny of a narrative.

Explores a 3-yr-old boy's attempt to come to terms with the event of his parents' divorce at the same time that he was trying to consolidate a sense of self that would enable him to negotiate the rocky path of oedipal development. The article traces his infantile construction (within his treatment) of an increasingly complex narrative ("The Boy With Two Kingdoms") to comprehend and cope with troubling internal and external demands. It is also intended to shed light on how such a narrative is modulated and maintained and how it eventually becomes embedded in the ongoing demands of character. Using case material, the author reveals the ways in which the realms of self, fantasy, and destiny intersect in the life of a young child. The shift from preoedipal to oedipal development is traced, and the inherent reparative possibilities in narrative process, as it is embedded in psychoanalytic treatment, are demonstrated. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Creating a participant text: writing, multiple voices, narrative multiplicity

This article uses the ideas of social constructionism to explore how families change by investigating the way our perceptions of ourselves in relation to others are formed through language. The idea that language has the inherent potential to generate a reply has strongly influenced our thinking. We propose that the reply to others is shaped by our initial reply to ourselves in inner conversation. Interaction moves back and forth from inner conversation to conversation with others, from monologue to dialogue, becoming the "stuff" of new narratives. The particular focus on language in this article is on how adding writing to the session conversation produces a "participant text," a therapeutic narrative that is composed of the voices of the family and the therapists. These voices, often newly discovered or invented, allow our narrative discourse to expand and multiply. Using this approach with individuals, couples, and families from different socioeconomic levels, we have worked with mourning, divorcing couples, recovery from abuse, marital conflict, parenting dilemmas, and physical illness.     

Socially constructing sexuality: Toward a postmodernist theory of sexual intimacy.

Takes issue with the biological focus of traditional theories of sexuality, drawing on postmodern trends such as hermeneutics and social constructionism. It is argued that traditional theories are characterized by a reductionism that precludes meaningfulness and an individualism that precludes genuine intimacy. The theories thus offer an essentially barren account of what is otherwise a richly meaningful human activity. A more fruitful account of human sexuality begins with acknowledging that sexuality is a fundamentally social and meaningful phenomenon and that it can only be understood in the social, historical, and moral context in which human beings live and act. If the linguistic aspect of sexuality were at the heart of theories, biological information could be given its proper place as context for understanding. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The self narrative therapy: Thoughts from a humanistic/extential perspective.

This article briefly reviews the narrative and humanistic/existential approaches to conceptualizing self. In it, the author explores the possibility of a theoretical integration of these 2 positions on the basis of E. T. Gendlin's (1962, 1968, 1981, 1996, 1997) work on experiencing and its role in the development of meaning, particularly as it relates to the distinction between the I and the Me used in narrative theory. The implications of this integration for (a) development of the landscape of consciousness and particularly of the idea of I as narrator/agent and (b) the potential value of examining the manner of making choices in narrative treatment are examined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ethnic identity formation: From stage theory to a constructivist narrative model.

A constructivist narrative approach to ethnic identity development is proposed as an alternative to traditional stage models of ethnic identity. Instead of conceptualizing identity as a linear, sequential unfolding, ethnic identity is seen as a narrative, shaped by contemporary and historical exchanges with one's family, friends, institutions, and the broader culture. It is argued that a constructivist narrative approach is more effective than the stage-model approach in capturing the diversity of identity-shaping experiences that define the lives of people of color. Several guidelines are proposed for utilizing a constructivist approach to ethnic identity, also called the ethnic self-narrative, in psychotherapy. The proposed approach to ethnic identity is illustrated through a case study of a Korean American male client suffering from trauma related to interethnic conflict with African Americans. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Telling the story: narrative in newspaper accounts of a men's collegiate basketball tournament

The concept of narrative or story is increasingly being used as s theoretical model for informing research dealing with a wide array of sociocultural phenomena, especially those concerned with communication. Narrative is prevalent in mass media accounts of many different kinds of events. The inherent serialized structure of sport is conducive to media coverage in narrative form. This article uses a narrative perspective to examine journalistic accounts of the 1982 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) men's basketball tournament. We found that the accounts contain three major components of narrative: theme, plot, and characters. Winning is the central theme, and it contributes to shaping the plot and characters. The plot is simple and straightforward and centers on the question, "Who will win?" The characters are relatively flat and lack robustness--players offer exceptional athletic skills to coaches who strategically blend their talents. A breakdown occurs between the goal of winning and the goal of entertaining spectators, and this highlights the short-term importance of winning and the longer term importance of performing to entertain spectators. The narrative supports capitalistic economic relations, stemming from the central theme of winning and its ties to competitive individualism, teamwork, and consumerism.     

Rape in non-human animals: An evolutionary perspective.

Rape-like behaviour has been documented in a number of species of animals. The purpose of this paper is to explain the evolutionary perspective on this behaviour. Several key concepts of modern evolutionary theory are first explained. Then the problem of defining rape in such a way that it is amenable to scientific study is discussed. Agonistic mating, altruistic mating, forced mating, and detrimental mating are defined in terms of costs and benefits to both male and female fitness. The introductory section concludes with a discussion of the role of genes in determining sexual behaviour and the nature of biological adaptations. Forced mating in orangutans, mallard ducks, and scorpionflies is described. The evolution of this behaviour is explained in terms of parental investment and sexual selection theory. Speculations on mechanisms that females might evolve to deal with this coercive male reproductive strategy conclude the paper. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

适应新形势,建立新理念开创鞍钢标准化工作的新局面

0前言企业的标准化管理水平代表了一个现代企业的发展水平。为适应国内外标准发展新的形势要求,全面贯彻公司标准发展目标和战略,鞍钢提出了要做强企业标准、做大国家标准、做好国际标准的新目标,大力倡导标准研究的新思路,以企业标准为基础,以国家标准为重点,努力建立和完善技术标准体系,以卓有成效的工作开创了鞍钢标准工作的新局面,并取得了突破性的进展。1全方位参与国际标准和国家标准的制修订工作,做好国际标准、做大国家标准2005年以来,国家确定了新时期的国家标准发展战略,要在大力推进实施技术标准战略上下真功夫。“国家标准要求…