Are all cognitive therapies alike? A comparison of cognitive and noncognitive therapy process and implications for the application of empirically supported treatments.

The definition of an empirically supported treatment (EST) arguably embodies 2 untested assumptions: (a) that different manualized renditions of the same therapy are functionally equivalent and (b) that therapies can be reliably applied independently of therapist, setting, and format. These assumptions were tested as applied to cognitive therapy (CT), using process data from a large multisite study (N=235) that included 3 cognitive and 6 alternative therapies. Although the non-CTs were more variable than the CTs on 2 of 4 dimensions studied (directiveness and emotional arousal), there was considerable variation among the 3 CTs, even when implemented in the current context of rigorous training, manualization, and adherence checks. Results are discussed as related to the assumptions underlying EST criteria. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bridging scientist and practitioner perspectives in clinical psychology.

Literature suggests that a complex and often hostile relationship exists between the science and practice of clinical psychology. Contributors to this conflict of viewpoints are reconsidered within the proposition that there are different roads to discovery and that there may be good reasons to keep the science and practice of clinical psychology somewhat separate. Results of a national survey of 325 psychologists are reviewed that support the view that psychological practitioners value research and consider their practices to be augmented by scientific findings. However, they are in need of vehicles of communication that will help them translate scientific findings into practice. Results suggest that practitioners do more to understand scientific findings than scientists do to understand the problems that face clinical practitioners. Ways to facilitate communication between and among these groups are considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Identification of patients at risk for nonresponse and negative outcome in psychotherapy.

This study evaluated the use of pretherapy patient variables as correlates of 3 categorical types of outcome: negative response (negative change of more than 1 normative SEest on depression measure): nonresponse (change within?±?1 SEest on depression measure); and positive response (positive change of more than 1 SEest on depression measure) to psychotherapy among 62 patients with major depressive disorder. By using 4 scales from the Brief Symptom Inventory, the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems, age, and sex, 75.8% of the Ss were correctly classified into the 3 groups. Negative responders were characterized by high levels of interpersonal difficulty and low levels of subjective distress. Nonresponders displayed moderate levels of both interpersonal difficulties and subjective distress. Positive responders displayed high levels of both interpersonal difficulties and subjective distress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Group cognitive therapy and alprazolam in the treatment of depression in older adults.

This study was designed to explore the relative and combined effectiveness of alprazolam (Xanax) and group cognitive therapy among elderly adults experiencing major affective disorder. Fifty-six subjects with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III) diagnoses of major, unipolar depression were treated over a 20-week period in one of four groups: alprazolam support, placebo support, cognitive therapy plus placebo support, and cognitive therapy plus alprazolam support. The results revealed that individuals assigned to group cognitive therapy showed consistent improvement in subjective state and sleep efficiency relative to non-group-therapy subjects. No differences between alprazolam and placebo were noted, regardless of whether individuals received group cognitive therapy. Subjects assigned to group cognitive therapy were less likely than their counterparts to prematurely terminate treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Erroneous assignment of Gaucher disease genotype as a consequence of a complete gene deletion

Microcytosis is common in dogs with congenital portosystemic shunts (PSS) and acquired liver disease. The objective of this study was to determine if microcytosis could be induced in normal dogs by surgical creation of PSS, and to characterize the changes in hematology and iron status. Hematocrit, mean cell volume, mean cell hemoglobin, and mean cell hemoglobin concentration decreased linearly from 45.5%, 69.1 fL, 22.8 g/dL and 33.1% to 39.5%, 55.9 fL, 17.8 g/dL and 31.9%, respectively, 18 weeks after creation of PSS. The erythrocyte count did not change, but red cell distribution widths indicated a shift to a heterogenous population with decreased volume. Mean cell volume and mean cell hemoglobin decreased rapidly after induction of PSS and were significantly (P < .05) different from presurgery values within 2 weeks. Serum iron and copper concentrations and total iron binding capacity were decreased in dogs with PSS. Liver iron concentration doubled after creation of PSS, with the majority of stainable iron located in Kupffer cells. The changes in erythrocyte indices and measures of iron status in dogs with surgically induced PSS were similar to those in dogs with congenital PSS. Microcystosis developed rapidly in dogs after induction of PSS. These results indicate that iron deficiency was not the cause of microcytosis in these dogs.     

The germ theory myth and the myth of outcome homogeneity.

In response to D. J. Kiesler's (1966) concerns with myths of therapist, patient, and therapy uniformity, reviews the germ theory myth (GTM) in psychotherapy training and the myth of outcome homogeneity (MOH) in psychotherapy research. The GTM assumes that exposure to psychotherapy principles over a specified and finite period of time results in expertise. The MOH is the belief that all psychotherapies evoke similar outcomes. This article is part of a 4-article special section (see records 27656; 27630; and 27664). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Changing personality patterns of police officers.

Twenty-five police officers were evaluated at or shortly after their recruitment and again 2 years later. Eleven of the officers were available for follow-up 4 years after recruitment. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) scores showed significant changes over time, suggesting increasing somatic symptoms, anxiety, and alcohol vulnerability. The increased vulnerability to alcohol abuse was the strongest finding, and by the 4th year of service, mean MacAndrews Alcoholism Scale scores were within the critical range. Results are discussed in terms of the peculiar stresses of police work and the need for periodic reevaluation to prevent stress-associated problems and also initiate early intervention programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparison of measured responses in two spectrally-sensitive X-raydetectors to predictions obtained using the ITS radiation transport code

Responses of a Ge detector and a filtered thermoluminescent dosimeter (TLD) array detector were measured at a steady-state bremsstrahlung source (the Pelletron), at endpoint energies from 150 to 900 keV. Predictions of detector response using the Integrated Tiger Series (ITS) Monte Carlo codes are found to be in excellent agreement with measured responses for both detectors. The results extend the range of validity of the ITS codes. With calibration provided by these experiments and by ITS predictions, dose-depth data from the TLD arrays can be used to estimate flash X-ray source endpoint energies