"The Memory Functioning Questionnaire for assessment of memory complaints in adulthood and old age": Correction to Gilewski et al.

Reports an error in "The Memory Functioning Questionnaire for assessment of memory complaints in adulthood and old age" by Michael J. Gilewski, Elizabeth M. Zelinski and K. Warner Schaie (Psychology and Aging, 1990[Dec], Vol 5[4], 482-490). In the aforementioned article, the author note at the beginning of the article should have contained the following statement: "The Memory Functioning Questionnaire (MFQ) items that appear in the appendix at the end of this article were published previously in 'Memory Functioning Questionnaire (MFQ)' by Michael J. Gilewski and Elizabeth M. Zelinski (Psychopharmacology Bulletin, 1988, Vol. 24, No. 4, pp. 665-670). The current article reflects the construction validation, scoring, and interpretation of the MFQ more accurately than does the article that appeared in Psychopharmacology Bulletin." (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1991-08788-001.) The results of psychometric analyses of the Metamemory Questionnaire (MQ) of E. M. Zelinski et al (1980), developed to evaluate perception of everyday memory functioning, are presented for a sample of 343 men and 435 women (aged 16-89 yrs). Exploratory factor analysis yielded 4 correlated factors (General Frequency of Forgetting, Retrospective Functioning, and Mnemonics Usage) that accounted for 36.7% of the variance in responses to the MQ. Factor structure was invariant across age groups (16-54 vs 55-89 yrs), 2 independent samples, and over 3 yrs. Because some of the original MQ scales did not load on the factors, only 64 of the original 92 items were retained for inclusion in the Memory Functioning Questionnaire (MFQ). Internal consistency of MFQ scores is high. The MFQ is therefore reliable for evaluating memory self-appraisals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Retrospective assessment of marital adjustment and depression during the first 2 years of spousal bereavement.

Two hundred twelve bereaved elders rated marital adjustment using items drawn from the H. J. Locke and K. M. Wallace (1959) Marital Adjustment Test and completed the Beck Depression Inventory 2 months, 12 months, and 30 months after the loss of their spouses. Their responses were compared with those of 162 nonbereaved individuals of comparable age who were tested at the same times. More positive ratings of marital adjustment were made by bereaved subjects than by nonbereaved subjects. Among nonbereaved elders, more severe ratings of depression were associated with lower ratings of marital adjustment. In the bereaved sample, however, the opposite was found: More severe ratings of depression were associated with higher ratings of marital adjustment. This pattern of results changed only slightly over the 2.5-year course of bereavement and was not influenced by gender. These results are discussed in terms of cognitive processes (e.g., idealization) that influence retrospective assessments of marital adjustment during bereavement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in cross-sectional and 3-year longitudinal memory performance across the adult life span.

Reports individual differences analyses of performance on list and prose memory tasks for 250 men and 258 women (aged 55–84 yrs). Being retested, higher reasoning and vocabulary scores, and female gender predicted better prose recall and list recognition performance. For list recall, retest status, age, years of schooling, and gender, as well as reasoning and vocabulary, were reliable independent predictors. After 3 yrs, 106 men and 121 women returned for a retest. Analysis of individual differences in 3-yr performance indicated that, once Time 1 performance had been partialed, individual change could be predicted by age or reasoning, but neither variable uniquely accounted for change. Analysis of data of individuals who experienced considerable decline or improvement in 3-yr scores indicated that decline was consistently associated with advanced age. Ramifications for theoretical models in memory research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conditioned emotional distress in women receiving chemotherapy for breast cancer.

This study investigated whether women undergoing outpatient chemotherapy for breast cancer can develop classically conditioned emotional distress. Women scheduled to begin chemotherapy were randomly assigned either to an experimental group (exposed to a distinctive stimulus before each chemotherapy infusion) or a control group. After repeated infusions of chemotherapy, patients' responses to the distinctive stimulus were assessed in a location not associated with chemotherapy administration. At the test trial, experimental group patients showed evidence of increased emotional distress (self-reported on a visual analog scale) after the presentation of the distinctive stimulus, whereas control group patients did not. Post hoc analyses indicated that these increases in distress were not secondary to other conditioned responses (e.g., nausea, taste aversion). Thus, results supported the hypothesis that the pairing of a distinctive stimulus with chemotherapy would result in the development of a conditioned emotional response. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Adult age differences in memory for prose: The question of sensitivity to passage structure.

The hypothesis that older adults remember prose less well than young adults because they are less sensitive to the structure of prose passages was investigated in three experiments. In Experiments 1 and 2, older adults (aged 54–85) recalled less information than younger ones (aged 20–36) from stories having various structures, but there was no evidence that older people were insensitive to story structure. The pattern of recall of information high and low in the story structure was similar for young and old for each story examined. Experiment 3 extended the findings to recall of full-length essays and their summaries. These results suggest that the old are as sensitive to passage structure as the young. In addition, comparisons across the three experiments suggest that other frequently invoked explanations of age deficits in prose recall, such as individual differences in verbal ability and the nature of the materials used, cannot explain our results. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Taxol plus recombinant human granulocyte-colony stimulating factor as initial and as salvage chemotherapy for metastatic breast cancer: a preliminary report

Twenty-eight patients received Taxol as their first chemotherapy for stage IV breast cancer. An additional 51 patients with extensive prior exposure to other chemotherapeutic agents received Taxol as salvage therapy. We found significant activity for the drug in both situations, as well as a strong clinical suggestion of non-cross-resistance with doxorubicin. An excellent response in previously irradiated skin was noted in one case. The routine use of recombinant human granulocyte-colony stimulating factor seemed to ameliorate some of the dose-limiting toxicity of neutropenia. Other toxicity was mild to moderate in most cases. With further development, Taxol should play a significant role in the systemic management of breast cancer.     

Review of Rehearsals for growth: Theater improvisation for psychotherapists.

Reviews the book, Rehearsals for growth: Theater improvisation for psychotherapists by Daniel J. Wiener (see record 1994-98676-000). This book is clearly written for psychotherapists who might be interested in improv and improv's applications to the psychotherapeutic stage, and not for actors and actresses studying psychotherapy. The style of the book is unique. It is a weave of personal narrative, literature review, interviews with improv teachers, practical ideas, and case material. It is also written so that after a brief introduction one may play with the book as one likes—it can be read cover to cover; one can go directly to practical ideas; another can study the content chapters in any order; and so on. I read the book cover to cover, and the shifts is presentation style felt disruptive, but this might be the very improv principles at work in the author's writing style. Probably the most useful part of the book is the bounty of ideas, games, and exercises. These techniques are described in text and tabulated in an appendix for easy reference and comparison. The games and exercises are playful, thought-provoking, maybe even iconoclastic, and potentially therapeutic with a skilled therapist. The book is worthwhile for almost any psychotherapist from any therapeutic modality. The challenge, though, for those that accept it, doing what it takes to develop genuine and reliable spontaneity. Rehearsals for Growth is one method to achieve that aim. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Magnetic, Electrical and Thermodynamic Properties of UCuT x Al11−x Alloys Where T = Mn, Fe and x=4 and 5

The structure, magnetic, electrical, and thermodynamic properties of UCuT _x Al_11?x alloys, where T = Mn or Fe and x=4 or 5 are presented. The behavior of the Fe alloys is ferromagnetic-like with the Curie points amounting to 180 and 230 K, and the saturation magnetic moments under magnetic field of 5 T equal to 4.75 and 6.02 μ_B/f.u., respectively, whereas under a magnetic field of about 34 T the magnetic moments amount to 6.9 and 9.0 μ_B/f.u. for the alloys with x=4 and 5, respectively. The Curie points are reflected in the temperature dependence of the specific heat in which the anomalies are found at 180–200 and 230 K for alloys with x=4 and 5, respectively, however, it shows no reflection in the temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity. The field dependence of the magnetization at T=1.9 K for both compounds exhibits considerable hysteresis. There is a pronounced difference between ZFC and FC magnetization in its temperature dependence below the Curie point for materials with x=4 and 5. The Mn alloys exhibit ferrimagnetic-like character for which, supposedly, the interplay of the uranium and manganize sublattices is responsible. Magnetic transitions are determined at T _N =300 (x=4) and 380 K (x=5). However, those anomalies do not find confirmation in the temperature dependence of the specific heat and the electrical resistivity. Magnetic moments determined at T=1.9 K and in a magnetic field of 5 T are very low and in both cases amount to about 0.35 μ_B/f.u. and these values are slightly higher in a magnetic field of 34 T reaching a value of about 1.5 μ_B/f.u. Also for the Mn alloys the clear difference between ZFC and FC magnetization in its temperature dependence below the Curie point is observed.     

High-field magnetization and specific heat of UCu2T3Al7 alloys where T = Cr,Mn and Fe(II)

The UCu₂T₃Al₇ alloys, where T = Cr, Mn and Fe, crystallize in the ThMn₁₂-type tetragonal structure. Earlier investigation of magnetic and electrical properties revealed their complex magnetic behavior except of the Cr compound, which is paramagnetic, whereas their electrical resistivity is weakly temperature dependent. At present we report on the magnetization measurements at 4.2 and 77 K in the steady magnetic field up to 14 T and in the pulsed field up to 34 T with a pulse duration of 10 ms at T = 4.2 K. These experiments confirmed paramagnetism of the Cr alloy and showed lack of saturation for the compounds of the Mn and Fe with the “saturation” magnetic moment amounting to 3.1 and 5.0 μ_B/f.u., respectively. In turn, the specific heat was measured in the temperature range 1.2–70 K in magnetic field μ₀H = 0 and 7 K using a home-made and fully automatic calorimeter. The investigation of the specific heat at temperature 2–300 K has been done using Quantum Design PPMS machine. The magnetic field does not in principle influence the obtained results, whereas the coefficient of the electronic specific heat, γ is strongly enhanced and amounts to 410, 330 and 150 mJ mol^?1 K^?2 for the Cr, Mn and Fe compounds, respectively.     

Memory Functioning Questionnaire: Concurrent validity with memory performance and self-reported memory failures.

Concurrent validity of factor scores from the Memory Functioning Questionnaire (MFQ [M. J. Gilewski et al; in press]) with memory performance was investigated in 2 studies. Study 1 involved 198 adults aged 55–85; Study 2, 89 adults aged 50–87. After effects of depression, education, and health were partialed out, MFQ scores predicted performance on laboratory memory tests in Study 1 and performance on clinical memory tests and diaries of memory failures over 2 weeks in Study 2. Additional variance in predicting performance and failures recorded in diaries is accounted for by MFQ scores after partialing out subjects' responses to a yes–no question about whether they have memory problems. Results suggest that the MFQ has moderate concurrent validity with memory measures and is preferable to responses to a single question about memory self-perception in assessing memory complaints in normal adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)