A factor analysis of the Beck Inventory of Depression.

Afactor analysis of the Beck Inventory of Depression, based on the responses of 254 significantly depressed hospital patients, has yielded 3 interpretable factors. The largest factor was that of affective depression referred to here as a factor of "guilty depression." The 2 remaining factors were interpreted as "retarded depression" and "somatic disturbance." These 3 factors showed some correspondence to the factors found by other investigators. The suggestion is made that the etiology of various depressed states may be associated with different levels of mental functioning. The need for additional factor analytic studies, which include behavioral and physiological measures, is noted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Speed in test performance in depressed patients.

Compared the performance of 2 groups of nonschizophrenic, nonorganic, psychiatric patients—25 depressed (mean age 41.4 yrs) and 25 nondepressed (mean age 37.8 yrs) Ss—on several tests, including the Quick Test, the WAIS, and 10 speed tests and measures of ambiguous figure reversal rates. The 2 groups of Ss were matched for general psychopathology, sex, age, and education. No difference in the performance on power-cognitive (i.e., intelligence) tests was found. Depressed patients performed more slowly on psychomotor speed tests, confirming an earlier study comparing depressed patients and normal controls. Findings generally confirm those of the 1st author et al (1972) and those of several earlier studies summarized by W. R. Miller (see record 1975-20082-001). (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Shape constancy in schizophrenic patients.

Shape constancy in visual perception of schizophrenic patients was studied. 40 chronic schizophrenic, 40 acute schizophrenic, 40 nonschizophrenic mental patients, and 40 normal controls were used as Ss. Ss matched the shape of a standard object (circle) inclined at an angle. 2 angles of inclination, 30° and 60°, were used. It was found that shape constancy was lower in schizophrenic patients than in controls when the stimulus object was inclined 60° from the horizontal plane. When the angle of inclination was 30° there was no difference between the groups. The chronic schizophrenic patients displayed greater response variability than the other groups. The relation of these findings to the theory of assimilation of percepts to the perceptual schemata in schizophrenic patients was discussed. (23 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Images, Perception and Knowledge.

Reviews the book, Images, Perception and Knowledge edited by J. M. Nicholas. There are parts of this book that are worth reading, but the total is fragmentary. The reviewers get some artificial intelligence and computer simulation (Baylor & Racine), some brain function (Hebb, Pribram), some experimental psychology (Bugelski, Rosenberg, Paivio), some conceptual (Natsoulas, Henle, Pylyshyn) and philosophical (Hamlyn, Alston, Sloman) analysis, and out comes a bound entity entitled 'Images, Perception, and Knowledge.' It is true that all three of these topics are discussed at length, but they do not seem to constitute a well defined theme. The only justification for calling this a book is that all the parts are concerned with cognition. The reviewers see this 'conference book' as neither a conference (half of the book is reprinted) nor a book (it is more like a journal). The reviewers recommendation therefore, is that you not buy it, but that you borrow it so that you can take advantage of the individual chapters which are, in general, quite good. The epitaph for this effort could well be that 'the sum of the parts is greater than the whole.' (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cognitive functions, personality traits, and social values in heavy marijuana smokers and nonsmoker controls.

Administered to 2 groups of 11 male 17-24 yr old heavy marihuana smokers and nonsmokers a battery of tests measuring field dependence (e.g., the Rod and Frame Test), cognitive functioning, personality traits, and esthetic judgment. Results do not support the hypothesis that chronic marihuana smokers are field dependent. Moreover, there was no evidence of organic brain damage or impairment of cognitive functioning. Several significant differences on the personality and value scales can be tentatively characterized as indicating, if anything, an alienation from the value of the dominant culture and a deviation from its norms. (17 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of marijuana on divergent and convergent production cognitive tests.

In a study of the effects of cannabis on cognitive functioning, several cognitive and psychomotor tests were administered to 4 groups of male college Ss (84 Ss): (a) a high-dose group [equivalent to 6 mg of Δ–9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)], (b) a low-dose group (equivalent to 3 mg of THC), (c) a placebo group, and (d) a control group. Cannabis was smoked in the form of marihuana. Even Ss who received the low dose showed impairment on the WAIS Block Design test and the Memory-for-Designs Test. High-dose Ss gave an impaired performance on several other cognitive tests; however, on some cognitive tests, mainly those measuring divergent production and oral fluency, low-dose Ss performed the best and high-dose Ss performed the worst. Consequently, there is a possibility, requiring further exploration, that cannabis at low dose levels can act as a stimulant and can improve performance on certain tests. (69 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Response to cutaneous pain in mental hospital patients.

Conducted an experiment to determine how warmth detection thresholds (WDTs), pain thresholds (PTs), and pain tolerance thresholds (PTOs) to radiant heat differed between groups of process schizophrenics (G2), reactive schizophrenics (G3), nonschizophrenic (G4), and normal (G1) S groups. 15 males from each of these categories served as Ss. The manipulated independent variable was skin temperature. The dependent variables were verbal reports of WDT, PT, PTO, and pupillary response. G1 and G3 Ss had significantly lower mean PTs and PTOs than G2 Ss. Significantly fewer G2 and G3 Ss than G1 and G4 Ss reported PT and PTO. The mean pupillary responses of G2 Ss were significantly smaller than those of G1 and G3 Ss at WDT, PT, and PTO. It is concluded that (a) chronic institutionalized psychiatric patients display weaker reactions to potentially harmful stimuli, and (b) a dissociation between autonomic and verbal responses may occur in process schizophrenics at higher than moderate levels of noxious stimulation. (43 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)