Predicting Youth Access to Tobacco: The Role of Youth Versus Store-Clerk Behavior and Issues of Ecological Validity.

Twenty-one 15- to 17-year-olds attempted to purchase cigarettes in 232 stores in the manner that confederates typically do in access studies, as well as in the manipulative ways (e.g., lying about their ages) that youth smokers do, thereby modeling youth access to tobacco within versus outside of studies, respectively. Youth typical-research versus manipulative behavior was contrasted with clerk behavior (requests for youth ID cards) to examine the relative contributions of both to youth access to tobacco for the 1st time. Results revealed that clerk behavior was the strongest predictor of cigarette sales to youth and hence underscore the need for interventions with merchants. Sales nonetheless were higher under youth-manipulative conditions and thereby highlight the low ecological validity of access research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A scientist-practitioner perspective of the internship match imbalance: The stairway to competence.

This paper focuses on the supply and demand imbalance from a scientist-practitioner perspective, emphasizing competency development. A conceptual framework, the Stairway Model, illustrates the basic steps leading to emerging professional competence and stimulates research leading to thoughtful solutions to the internship match imbalance. Three immediate recommendations are offered. Doctoral programs should be (a) held accountable for their match rates, and (b) required to publicly disclose program and national match rates. Third, research must be conducted to determine factors that influence match rate and competency development. Concerns with other commonly proposed solutions are also discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Preventing cigarette sales to minors: the need for contextual, sociocultural analysis

There is little information on the long-term consequences for employees when no-smoking policies are established in the workplace. Our study was designed to assess changes in employee health and smoking behavior. Of the original 60 subjects, 40 employees (18 smokers, 22 nonsmokers) completed this study, which was conducted in a major medical institution. Nonsmokers were recruited as part of the study to determine whether they showed evidence of workplace carbon monoxide associated with passive smoke, potentially inhaled at the work site. Baseline measurements of smoking frequency, carbon monoxide, and weight were obtained during the month preceding the smoking restrictions and at 6 and 18 months afterward. Smokers made significant reductions in daily smoking during the first 6 months but gradually returned to prepolicy levels over the following year. Smokers, in particular, showed increases in weight. Smokers gained 4.93 lb after 18 months, whereas nonsmokers gained 2.25 lb in the same period. Nonsmoker employees showed no evidence of workplace carbon monoxide exposure associated with passive smoke. We discuss the implications of the findings for no-smoking policies in the workplace.     

Patterns of cognitive impairment in relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis and their relationship to neuropathology on magnetic resonance images.

Several reviews (J. M. Peyser & C. M. Poser, 1986; S. M. Rao, 1986) have suggested that multiple sclerosis (MS) results in cognitive impairment in learning and memory, abstract reasoning, information-processing efficiency, and often visual–spatial ability. MS patients may undergo idiosyncratic cognitive changes dependent on the site of white matter lesions. In the present study, researchers used cluster analysis on the neuropsychological data from a group of mildly disabled relapsing–remitting MS patients (n&≠&?77) and a well-matched control group (n&≠&?9). In those MS patients identified with unequivocal cognitive impairment, the majority clustered into groups with a specific deficit in 1 or 2 areas of cognitive functioning, with normal performance in others. On magnetic resonance imaging, an association was obtained between 2 lesion sites and 2 cognitive tests. Impairment in visual–spatial ability, as assessed by the Benton Visual Retention Test, was associated with lesions in the genu of the corpus callosum (CC) and with more lesions throughout the CC. Impaired performance on Paired Associates, a test of learning and memory, was associated with a lesion in the deep white matter of the left parietal lobe… (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Climbing the stairway to competency: Trainee perspectives on competency development.

Training programs have increasingly focused on development of competencies as a benchmark for trainee progress. While much writing on the subject of trainee competency has focused on programmatic implementation of competency-based training, considerably less attention has been paid to the experience of trainees in these programs. The current study sampled a cross-section of 641 graduate students enrolled in member doctoral programs of the Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology. These students were divided into four groups based on stage of training and reported on their development of core competencies. Overall, students entered doctoral programs reporting high levels of adaptive trainee characteristics and felt competent in a range of areas by the time they applied for internship. Competencies in research, assessment, and intervention developed over the course of graduate training. Reported competency in research was higher for trainees endorsing a goal of a research career, while reported competency in empathy and therapeutic relationships was higher for trainees endorsing a goal of clinical practice. Findings are discussed in the context of implementing competency assessment that encompasses the ratings of trainees as well as supervisors and programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A star is born: Psychologists and the media.

Discusses psychology's changing relationship with the media. The potential impact of psychologists as consumer educators and social commentators is explored. Possible reasons for increased participation in the media are given. Changes in the American Psychological Association's Ethical Principles of Psychologists are reviewed, and an empirical approach to changing ethics is suggested. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The graduate student viewpoint on internship preparedness: A 2008 council of university directors of clinical psychology student survey.

To better understand the graduate student viewpoint on quality of preparation provided by graduate programs in terms of the internship application process, the current study surveyed students enrolled in member programs of the Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology (CUDCP). Six hundred seventy-four students completed a questionnaire designed to assess perceptions regarding preparation for the internship application process, relative prioritization of individual application components, and faculty behaviors that contribute to student anxiety related to the application process. Results demonstrated that student subgroups based on internship status (i.e., those who have not yet applied, current applicants, and current interns) significantly differed on many issues related to internship preparation. The findings suggest that graduate programs are not placing enough emphasis on the conveying of internship-related information early in a student's training. Furthermore, the findings highlight training techniques and faculty behaviors that can be adopted by programs to increase preparedness and reduce anxiety among applicants. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A prospective study of cigarette smoking initiation during college: Chinese and Korean American students.

Objective: The present study was a prospective investigation of baseline influences on initial smoking and transition to established smoking among college students who had not smoked prior to college. Design: Included were 267 participants in a longitudinal study of tobacco use. Students of Chinese (52%) or Korean (48%) descent were enrolled during their freshman year in college. Data for the present study were collected during four annual in-person interviews. Main outcome measures: (1) Initial use of a cigarette reflected having first smoked a cigarette (more than a puff) during college. (2) Established smoking was defined as having smoked at least 100 cigarettes. Results: Over the course of the study, 25% of baseline never-smokers tried their first cigarette, and 9% became established smokers. Overall, men were significantly more likely to experiment and progress to established smoking. Baseline alcohol and drug use, behavioral undercontrol, and parental smoking predicted smoking experimentation but not established smoking. Students of Korean ethnicity were more likely to become established smokers. However, acculturation was not a significant predictor of experimentation or established smoking after accounting for the effects of other predictors. Conclusion: These findings suggest a need for efforts to prevent smoking uptake among Asian American college students. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conclusions: the future of research on black women's health

The preponderance of studies on Black women's health cited in the eight articles of this special issue were published in medical and public health journals, rather than in health psychology journals. Health psychology stands conspicuously apart from other health disciplines in this neglect and exclusion of Blacks and Black women. On the other hand, although there are many studies of Black women's health published in medical and public health journals, these studies have neglected a variety of important cultural and social-contextual variables, and often are methodologically inadequate. Hence, we conclude that studies on Black women's health that examine neglected variables and employ rigorous methods are needed in health psychology, behavioral medicine, and the other health disciplines as well. Specific variables and hypotheses that might be addressed in such future research are highlighted.