Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology

Whalen, Carol

doi: 10.1037/h0028282pmid: N/A

Assessed the relative efficacy of modeling and instructional approaches in increasing interpersonal openness in a group setting. Groups of 4 male undergraduates participated in a leaderless discussion session after exposure to 1 of 4 manipulations: (1) a film model of interpersonal openness plus detailed exhortative and descriptive instructions, (2) film model plus minimal instructions, (3) detailed instructions with no film, and (4) minimal instructions only. Ss exposed to Condition 1 tended to engage in interpersonal openness, while Ss in the other 3 conditions failed to do so, devoting most of their time to impersonal discussion. These findings are discussed in terms of the combined role of understanding and disinhibition in modifying verbal response classes. (37 ref.)

Heller, Kenneth

doi: 10.1037/h0028295pmid: 5369172

Discussed the clinical utility of modeling techniques in terms of a growing trend in which psychotherapy is viewed as part of a broader psychology of behavior change. Modeling techniques can be important facilitators of change, but their application to clinically helpful relationships is impeded by a paucity of research investigating the operation of modeling procedures in clinical-like settings. Intermediate steps or "bridging" research is needed before experimentally derived hypotheses can be applied clinically. The C. Whalen (see 44:2) study, which is 1 such "bridge," describes the effort needed for modeling procedures to be effective in adult groups and illustrates the need for constant attention to setting and context factors if a systematic psychology of behavior change is to be developed. (20 ref.)

Hoffnung, Robert J.

doi: 10.1037/h0028296pmid: 5369173

Tested the differential effects of 5 forms of therapy-like intervention in the conditioning and transfer of affective self-references (ASRs) in a 40-min role-played initial counseling interview with 72 female undergraduates. Conditioning of ASRs and transfer to a TAT story-telling task were found, although hypothesized relationships between discriminative cue potency of the interventions and performance were only partially supported. An explanation involving the presumed interaction of S awareness of her own self-disclosures with intervention type, degree of threat, and conditioning performance is proposed.

Giebink, John W.; Stover, Donald O.

doi: 10.1037/h0028293pmid: 4391704

Intercorrelated MMPI validity and K-corrected diagnostic scale scores, responses to a mental health opinion questionnaire, biographical data, and job performance ratings of 52 child care personnel. There were significant (p < .05) relationships between 11 MMPI scales and measures of job proficiency, but only 4 of the 40 mental health opinion items were related to proficiency. A principal components analysis of the entire correlation matrix yielded 2 major factors: items related to adjustment and job proficiency and reflection of the biographical variables. The remaining factors accounted for small portions of the total variance and seemed to be relatively specific in nature. Since mental health opinions in contrast to personal adjustment were seemingly unrelated to job proficiency, it was suggested that their "mental illness" determined content was irrelevant to performance on a job requiring a "learning" orientation.

Hagebak, Robert W.; Parker, George V.

doi: 10.1037/h0028298pmid: 5369174

Studied the interaction of client personality and therapist directive vs. nondirective techniques in producing client resistance. 40 high- and 40 low-dominance male undergraduates, while role-playing client problems, were required to make choices between 32 pairs of high- and low-resistant client responses following therapist statements. Results show that nondirective techniques elicited most client resistance, low dominance Ss tended to give more resistant responses, and both effects were most pronounced when Ss assumed hostile roles. S anxiety was also found indirectly to be related to resistance. (18 ref.)

Cottle, Thomas J.

doi: 10.1037/h0028290pmid: 5369175

Controlling for the effect of intelligence, it was found in a sample of 332 males and 98 females, ages 18-23, that whereas achievement is related to accepting the possibilities of the future and to perceiving an "integration" between the past, present, and future, anxiety is associated with apprehensions about the future, and functions in decreasing the sense of relatedness between time zones. Anxiety is also associated with fantasies of temporal recovery and preknowledge. It is suggested that the achievement value enhances a realistic acceptance of time's unalterable properties, while anxiety encourages fantasy resolutions of realistic temporal problems. (37 ref.)

Parsons, Oscar A.; Vega, Arthur; Burn, Julian

doi: 10.1037/h0028307pmid: 5369176

Conflicting evidence exists concerning the differential psychological effects of lateralized brain damage on the Wechsler scales. Consideration of various reasons for discrepant results led to the selection of the WAIS Vocabulary and Block Design subtests as the best measures of verbal and perceptual organization factors. Comparison of mean scores of these subtests in unilateral lesion (N = 85), bilateral lesion (N = 57), and control Ss (N = 95) of 2 experiments confirm hypothesized differences: right-hemisphere damage results in impaired visuoconstructive performance; left-hemisphere damage affects language abilities. The results could not be accounted for by variables such as age, education, and emotional disturbance, or localization, diagnosis, acuteness, and severity of brain disorder. (18 ref.)

Mondani, Michele S.; Tutko, Thomas A.

doi: 10.1037/h0028321pmid: N/A

Administered a social responsibility test to 48 junior high school students in a typical classroom situation to determine whether or not there was any difference between achievers and underachievers in the learning of irrelevant material. Subsequently, all were given a posttest on material printed on the responsibility test but irrelevant to it. Highly significant results on a t test between mean scores on the posttest of the achievers and underachievers demonstrated that underachievers learned significantly more of the incidental material. The problem for underachievement does not appear to be an incapacity to learn but a difficulty in focusing attention on the central material.

Towbin, Alan P.

doi: 10.1037/h0028300pmid: 5369177

The hypothesis that the chronic psychiatric patient purposefully pursues a goal (continued hospitalization) that has harmful effects on him as a potential participant in the extrahospital community was the initial basis of a rehabilitation program. The staff's use of their power in defining the hospitalization situation was directly related to the outcome of the program. Exercise of power to redefine the hospitalization situation is probably a prerequisite to high discharge rates for chronic patients and is suggested as a basis for precluding the accretion of a chronic population. (18 ref.)

Blackburn, R.

doi: 10.1037/h0028301pmid: 4391705

The Sensation Seeking Scale (SSS) correlated positively and significantly with MMPI measures of impulsivity, extrapunitiveness, and psychopathy, and with scales of overt and covert hostility in 83 male psychiatric offenders. However, diagnosed psychopaths did not score significantly higher on SSS than nonpsychopathic offenders. Evidence suggests that while sensation seeking is related to psychopathic personality characteristics, it may also be common among certain psychotics. With this qualification, the results indicate an association of sensation seeking with impulsivity and psychopathic personality traits. (21 ref.)