Quality-of-life measures: Hospital interview versus home questionnaire.

Used measures adapted from social survey research to assess the quality of life of 33 18–55 yr old end-stage renal disease patients in a 2-wk test–retest design that varied both location and format of administration (hospital interview vs home self-administered questionnaire). Results indicate that quality of life is a stable construct and support the usefulness of questionnaire quality-of-life measures for evaluating medical interventions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A closer look at Galbraith's "closer look."

Responds to comments by R. C. Galbraith (see record 1982-11821-001) on the mathematical properties and empirical basis of R. B. Zajonc and G. B. Markus's (see record 1975-09290-001) confluence model of sibling spacing and intellectual development. The present authors contest Galbraith's critique of the model's internal consistency and predictive validity, and state that if Galbraith's data on Mormon college students are analyzed properly, they may shed light on within- and between-families factors affecting intellectual development. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Biofeedback: Research, training, and clinical roles": Commentary on Roberts.

Agrees with A. H. Roberts's (see record 1986-11198-001) recommendation for improved training in empirical methods in clinical biofeedback programs but refutes Roberts's characterization of biofeedback research as dismal and his summary of specific effects. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A further look at the "language-as-fixed-effect fallacy".

The proper analysis of experiments using language materials has been a source of controversy and debate among researchers. We summarize the main issues and discuss the solutions that have been presented. Even though the major issues have been dealt with extensively in the literature, there still exists quite a bit of confusion about how to analyze the data from such experiments. We discuss a number of the most frequently voiced objections. In particular, we discuss the issue of what happens if in a counterbalanced design only some of the items show the treatment effect. Finally, a possible solution is discussed for the case where only partial matching of items between conditions is possible. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Unmasking visual masking: A look at the "why" behind the veil of the "how."

Proposes theoretical integration of a mechanistic, causal analysis and behavioral analysis of visual masking phenomena. It is shown that several known aspects of visual masking are more adequately explained when a behavioral analysis complements a mechanistic analysis. Pertinent findings concerning the mechanisms of visual masking are presented and discussed in an evolutionary and functional context of naturalistic visual behavior characterized by the maintenance and changing of foveations required for visual inspection of static and dynamic visual scenes. (100 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comment on "Another look at teaching experience and closed-mindedness."

Suggests that C. A. Heikkinen's (see record 1975-07471-001) technique of pooling data from a replication and an original study may conceal differing results found by the separate studies. It is argued that the rationale for combining data from replication studies must be clear and sound, especially when the studies reveal differing results. If combining data is deemed necessary, then analysis procedures should be more rigorous than usual to identify statistically evident study differences. When several sources of variation are easily identifiable, an analysis of variance may be an analysis strategy superior to a series of separate t tests, in that it provides coherent, unified information and more powerful tests on those effects of specific interest. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-esteem and vulnerability to depression: The concurrent validity of interview and questionnaire measures.

In a cross-sectional study of 146 women, we examined the association of M. Rosenberg's (1965) self-esteem questionnaire and the Self-Evaluation and Social Support Instrument (SESS), an interview measure of self-esteem, with two major risk factors for depression—early adversity and negativity in current close relationships. Although both measures were related to the risk factors, only the SESS accounted for unique variance when the 2 measures were considered together and current depression was controlled. Results suggest that the reason the SESS has previously been more effective in predicting depression (G. W. Brown et al, 1986) is because it taps specific areas of self-dissatisfaction in real-life situations and is therefore less vulnerable to mood-state effects than the more global questionnaire measure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Creative mythconceptions: A closer look at the evidence for the "mad genius" hypothesis.

Many people believe that the “mad genius” notion, which has been a favorite cultural fixture for centuries, is based on established scientific fact. Much of the evidence for the connection between great creativity and great pathology, particularly affective disorder, comes from the writings of psychiatrists Nancy Andreasen and Arnold K. Ludwig and psychologist Kay Redfield Jamison. For two decades, their studies and books have been widely referenced in both the popular and professional press without critique or comment and often without much detail, suggesting that few people have spent much time with the originals. This article examines their most influential works, encouraging readers to evaluate this evidence for themselves, because the author believes that many of their claims have had unfortunate implications for the perception of creativity and the credibility of psychological research in general. The author considers the inherent difficulties of generating any scientific findings in this area, and concludes by discussing the signs of a hopeful trend to celebrate, rather than pathologize, people with exceptional gifts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Self-management of diabetes mellitus: A critical review": Erratum.

Reports an error in the original article by T. A. Goodall and W. K. Halford (Health Psychology, 1991, Vol 10[1], 1–8). On Page 2, the citation to Johnson et al (1986) should be deleted from the following statement: "However, most studies (e.g., Carney, Schechter, & Davis 1983; Christenson et al., 1983; Johnson, Silverstein, Rosenbloom, Carter, & Cunningham, 1986) have operationalized self-management as a single global index of compliance to treatment.' The Johnson et al study used a series of summary measures. (The following abstract of this article originally appeared in record 1991-25029-001.) Reviews the determinants of effective self-management and the methods of promoting better self-management. Demographic variables have been thought to affect self-management, but evidence suggests they have little impact. The important determinants of self-management are transient situational factors such as psychological stress and social support. Interventions to promote better self-management have reported initial improvements in blood glucose control, but the long-term effects are unclear. Self-management has been inadequately assessed and attempts to improve self-management have relied excessively on providing information… (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Instantiated features and the use of "rules."

Classification "rules" in expert and everyday discourse are usually deficient by formal standards, lacking explicit decision procedures and precise terms. The authors argue that a central function of such weak rules is to focus on perceptual learning rather than to provide definitions. In 5 experiments, transfer following learning of family resemblance categories was influenced more by familiar-appearing features than by novel-appearing features equally acceptable under the rule. This occurred both when rules were induced and when rules were given at the beginning of instruction. To model this and other phenomena in categorization, features must be represented on 2 levels: informational and instantiated. These 2 feature levels are crucial to provide broad generalization while reflecting the known peculiarities of a complex world. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Trance" versus "skill" hypnotic inductions: The effects of credibility, expectancy, and experimenter modeling.

Compared a hypnotic induction procedure based on social learning principles (skill induction) with a traditional eye-fixation/relaxation trance induction, a highly credible placebo induction, and a no-induction base-rate control. Before inductions were administered, 100 undergraduates completed Rotter's Internal–External Locus of Control Scale, the Rotter Trust Scale, and an absorption scale. The trance induction surpassed the skill induction only on the Hypnosis Inventory. Experimenter modeling did not enhance the effectiveness of the skill induction. Skill and trance inductions elicited slightly higher behavioral scores on the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale: Form C than did the placebo induction. However, this difference was not obtained on other measures of hypnotic responsivity and depth. Significant correlations were found between expectancy, absorption, and responsiveness on all dependent measures. Multiple regression analyses indicated that the relationship between absorption and responsivity was mediated by expectancy. Results support the hypotheses that hypnotic responses are elicited by the expectancy for their occurrence and that induction procedures are a means of increasing Ss' expectancies for hypnotic responses. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The "I," the "we," and the "when": A meta-analysis of motivational primacy in self-definition.

What is the primary motivational basis of self-definition? The authors meta-analytically assessed 3 hypotheses: (a) The individual self is motivationally primary, (b) the collective self is motivationally primary, and (c) neither self is inherently primary; instead, motivational primacy depends on which self becomes accessible through contextual features. Results identified the individual self as the primary motivational basis of self definition. People react more strongly to threat and enhancement of the individual than the collective self. Additionally, people more readily deny threatening information and more readily accept enhancing information when it pertains to the individual rather than the collective self, regardless of contextual influences. The individual self is the psychological home base, a stable system that can react flexibly to contextual influences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Substance versus style: A new look at social desirability in motivating contexts.

Although there is an emerging consensus that social desirability does not meaningfully affect criterion-related validity, several researchers have reaffirmed the argument that social desirability degrades the construct validity of personality measures. Yet, most research demonstrating the adverse consequences of faking for construct validity uses a fake-good instruction set. The consequence of such a manipulation is to exacerbate the effects of response distortion beyond what would be expected under realistic circumstances (e.g., an applicant setting). The research reported in this article was designed to assess these issues by using real-world contexts not influenced by artificial instructions. Results suggest that response distortion has little impact on the construct validity of personality measures used in selection contexts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The interpersonal structure of "good" versus "bad" group counseling sessions: A multiple-case study.

Selected "good" and "bad" sessions from 3 short-term personal growth groups with 20 clients on the basis of group members' ratings of session depth and engagement. Multidimensional scaling provided a map of the latent structure of the speaking turns within these sessions. A two-dimensional solution provided the best fit for the data for each of the 6 sessions examined (i.e., a good and a bad session for each of the 3 groups). These 2 dimensions were interpreted as control (dominant vs submissive) and affiliation (friendly vs hostile). As hypothesized, the leader's position in the good sessions was less extreme on the identified dimensions, which suggested greater leader flexibility. Contrary to the hypothesis, the content of the dimensions was similar in the good and bad sessions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Achievement strivings, scholastic aptitude, and academic performance: A follow-up to "Impatience versus achievement strivings in the Type A pattern."

A recent study of college students by J. T. Spence et al (see record 1988-09108-001) demonstrated that the Jenkins Activity Survey measure of the Type A pattern consisted of two relatively independent factors labeled Achievement Strivings (AS) and Impatience–Irritability (II). Scores on the AS scale but not the II scale were significantly correlated with cumulative grade point average (GPA) on the basis of 2 or more semesters of work. Follow-up data on the academic performance of these students are reported here. Correlations between AS scores and updated GPAs that were based on at least 4 semesters of work were comparable in value with those reported by Spence et al. Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores, obtained from students' records, were also significantly related to GPA. However, SAT and AS scores were nonsignificantly correlated and combined additively to account for a substantial portion of the variability in GPAs. The R–2s in four independent samples ranged from .22 to .36. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A critical interpretation of Packer's "Hermeneutic inquiry in the study of human conduct."

Comments on the work of M. J. Packer (see record 1985-10720-001), focusing on 3 perceived flaws (Packer's interpretation of M. Heidegger's [1962] hermeneutic phenomenology; Packer's neglect of the role of language and linguistics in the subsequent development of hermeneutics; and his failure to locate his own version of hermeneutics among the types currently recognized and practiced). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Coaching services: A look at coaches, clients, and practices.

Coaching is growing rapidly as a way to help individuals improve their professional and/or personal success. Although similar services have been offered for some time, coaching is becoming more widely available and is being offered by a more diverse set of professionals. This research was undertaken to learn more about coaches from varying academic backgrounds, and how they may differ in their approach to their craft. In the study, 2,231 coaches participated by completing a web-based survey examining coaching practices. A general discussion and conclusions are included. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting phobics' response to therapy: A consideration of subjective, physiological, and behavioural measures.

Attempts to relate general client characteristics to individual differences in response to behavioral treatment of phobic disorders that have had a long history but have produced mixed results. Most efforts have not included consideration of the 3-systems model of fear and its utility in defining response patterns that may be used to predict individual differences in response to various treatments. Recent studies that have implications for this approach are reviewed. Methodological factors involved in the measurement of each of the systems are discussed, and suggestions for more detailed assessments in the behavioral and cognitive/subjective systems are presented. (French abstract) (50 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)