Antilipid a monoclonal antibody HA-1A: immune complex clearance of endotoxin reduces TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta and IL-6 production

When the projecting point of saphenous nerve in second somatosensory cortex (S II) of cat was stimulated, the evoked potentials elicited by C-fiber inputs of saphenous nerve recorded in the primary somatosensory cortex (C-CEP) might be either inhibited or facilited according to whether the superficial and/or the deeper layer of the cortex was stimulated. The inhibition was expressed as a decrease of amplitude and prolongation of latency of C-CEP; while the facilitation, as an increase of amplitude and duration of C-CEP. When the superfaicial layer of S II was stimulated by weaker current, both inhibitory and facilitatory effects could be observed, but only inhibitory effect was observed, when the deep layer was stimulated. With the same intensity of stimulation, inhibitory effect was more pronounced when the deep layer rather than the superficial layer was stimulated. It is suggested that S II may play a role in the modulation of C-CEP of S I.     

Psychological health-sickness (PHS) as a predictor of outcomes in dynamic and other psychotherapies.

This is the first dedicated review of quantitative studies on Freud's proposition that the poorer the psychological health, the more limited are the benefits from treatment. Since observer-rated scales for PHS were developed in 1949, many studies have applied them, and the majority show significant prediction of outcomes of psychotherapy, with correlations between .2 and .35. This article reviews (1) the main methods of measurement, (2) the record of predictive success, (3) validity studies, (4) the relation to psychiatric diagnosis, (5) prediction in forms of treatment other than psychotherapy, and (6) theories of why psychological health predicts outcomes of psychotherapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Use of cult in the teaching of psychology of religion and spirituality.

The word cult has many conflicting definitions across scholarly fields, yet instructors commonly use it in the teaching of psychology. Distinctions between cults and other groups are differences of degree and often rest on a group’s size, the unusualness of its beliefs, the outcomes of its actions, and the perceived role of its leader. Use of cult by teachers of psychology suggests that cults are categorically distinct from other groups and brings negative connotations to cults, their members, and former members. Teachers of psychology should explicitly address these issues and avoid the term cult. Additionally, teachers, researchers, and practitioners of psychology should evaluate the behavior of groups, the degree of social influence, the presence of deception, and potential abuse. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

When do procedural fairness and outcome fairness interact to influence employees’ work attitudes and behaviors? The moderating effect of uncertainty.

Prior research has shown that procedural fairness interacts with outcome fairness to influence employees’ work attitudes (e.g., organizational commitment) and behaviors (e.g., job performance, organizational citizenship behavior), such that employees’ tendencies to respond more positively to higher procedural fairness are stronger when outcome fairness is relatively low. In the present studies, we posited that people’s uncertainty about their standing as organizational members would have a moderating influence on this interactive relationship between procedural fairness and outcome fairness, in that the interactive relationship was expected to be more pronounced when uncertainty was high. Using different operationalizations of uncertainty of standing (i.e., length of tenure as a proxy, along with self-reports and coworkers’ reports), we found support for this hypothesis in 4 field studies spanning 3 different countries. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Does marital agony precede marital ecstasy? A comment on Gottman and Krokoff's "Marital interaction and satisfaction: A longitudinal view."

In a recent article, J. M. Gottman and L. J. Krokoff (see record 1989-25730-001) presented a fascinating and counterintuitive portrayal of a temporally related dynamic relationship of marital conflict and marital satisfaction. Unfortunately the results from which their conclusions spring are quite problematic. In a 2-wave, extreme-groups design, Gottman and Krokoff used raw change in satisfaction as a correlate of Time 1 conflict variables for purposes of analysis. Serious psychometric questions arise with this approach to the causal assessment of change. Given the considerations raised, there is a high likelihood that Gottman and Krokoff's data result from statistical artifact. Alternative approaches to the measurement of change are discussed in the context of illustrating the problematic components of Gottman and Krokoff's analysis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Automatic processing in spider phobia: Implicit fear associations over the course of treatment.

This study evaluates the cognitive model of anxiety by investigating treatment-related changes in automatic associations to evaluate schematic processing. Spider-phobic participants (n=31) and healthy controls (n=30) completed fear-based Implicit Association Tests (IATs), which are reaction-time measures that tap implicit associations without requiring conscious introspection. The specific tasks involved classifying pictures of snakes and spiders along with semantic categorizations (good vs. bad, afraid vs. unafraid, danger vs. safety, and disgusting vs. appealing). Phobic individuals were assessed before and after group-based exposure treatment and 2 months later; controls were assessed at matched time points. Results supported clinical applications for implicit fear associations, including prediction of phobic avoidance, and treatment sensitivity of the fear- and disgust-specific automatic associations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)