Considering the explanations of schizophrenia that presume schizophrenia spectrum disorders (e.g., schizotypal personality disorder, schizoaffective disorder, etc.) to be genetically related to schizophrenia, the purpose of this study was to investigate the attention and information processing abilities of individuals who have been identified as schizotypal or psychosis-prone (i.e., schizophrenia spectrum functioning in individuals who do not have schizophrenia). Research indicates that persons identified as psychosis-prone may show attention and information processing deficits similar to individuals with schizophrenia. The identification and description of individuals who later decompensate into schizophrenia would advance the understanding of schizophrenia and its causes. The Chapman's PER-MAG scale (Perceptual Aberration-Magical Ideation) was used to identify 35 hypothetically psychosis-prone college students (schizotypy group) and 42 normal college students (nonschizotypy group) out of the 806 volunteer subjects. Their attention and information processing abilities were measured by COGLAB (a multiparadigmatic cognitive test battery that represents a continuum of cognitive functions, from preattentional to attentional, to conceptual). Their social adjustment was measured by the Premorbid Adjustment Scale (PAS). The hypotheses of the study were that the hypothetically psychosis-prone subjects would perform poorer than controls on COGLAB measures and that COGLAB measures of a more molar nature would better predict social adjustment …

Previous research indicates that women are judged on the amount of food eaten and that both men and women are judged on the type of food eaten. This study is an attempt to determine whether meal size or type predominantly accounts for these findings on the variables of masculinity, femininity, attractiveness, thinness, fitness, and likability. Physical activity was also included to determine its effect on these variable. Subjects used were 313 undergraduate students. Results indicate that meal type is more influential than meal size and that physical activity significantly influences judgements of others. The results are discussed in terms of future research and relatedness to socio-cultural theories of eating disorders.

The purpose of this study was to examine and compare individuals that had survived a single incidence trauma, the Luby's massacre in Killeen, Texas. Participants answered questions regarding various facets of social support following the trauma, and were also screened for a diagnosis of PTSD. Participants' level of symptoms, specifically depression, anxiety, and phobic anxiety was measured over time with the SCL-90-R. The results of this study indicate that, while women initially experience a higher level of depression and phobic anxiety, there is no gender difference in rate of symptom change over time. This study also found that women were significantly higher than men on desirability, utilization and usefulness of social support. Of the target symptoms, however, only depression correlated with any facet of social support, specifically, desirability. Finally, this study questioned whether individuals would share more similarities with others based on gender or diagnosis. It is suggested by the current data that diagnosis is the better indicator of similarity.

J. Hilgard (1970, 1972, 1974, 1979), utilizing an interview format, asserted that a personality variable, namely, an individual's capacity to become imaginatively involved in experiences outside of hypnosis, was significantly correlated with his or her hypnotic susceptibility. Tellegen and Atkinson (1974) operationalized the imaginative involvement variable in a 37-item questionnaire, the Tellegen Absorption Scale (TAS) that correlated significantly with hypnotic susceptibility (e.g., Crawford, 1982). However, Council, Kirsch, and Hafner (1986) suggested that the relationship between the TAS and hypnotic susceptibility is a context-mediated artifact in that the two correlate only when the TAS is administered within a context clearly identified as involving hypnosis. As the interviews conducted by J. Hilgard (1970, 1972, 1974, 1979) were done within a context clearly identified as involving hypnosis, the possibility exists that the relationship between imaginative involvement and hypnotic susceptibility is also a context-mediated artifact. In a test of this possibility, 86 subjects were interviewed concerning their imaginative involvements. Forty-three subjects were interviewed within a context defined as "research investigating hypnosis" and 43 subjects were interviewed within a context defined as "research investigating imagination." Hypnotic susceptibility was assessed in sessions separate from the interviews. In the present study, an individual's hypnotic susceptibility was not …

The problem of assessment and diagnosis of depression in the elderly begins with the definition of depression being indefinite. In this study, the theory of learned helplessness was chosen because of its value in organizing research within a learning theory framework. The Beck Depression Inventory, measures of fluid and crystallized intellectual ability, locus of control, and attribution of success and failure were chosen as variables for an exploratory factor analysis. The purpose of selecting these variables was to assess the cognitive, motivational, and affective components of learned helplessness as they affected the responses of elderly subjects to depression items. Self report measures of income, education, and health, were included to assess the relationship of these variables to depression. A somatic factor was predicted to correlate with an affective factor of depression.

A serious problem confronts the psychologist whose patient threatens, within the privacy of a therapy session, to inflict violent harm upon some third person. Therapists in Texas face a risk of unjust legal liability because of a lack of widely accepted, clearly and fully articulated standards. A questionnaire was submitted to Texas psychologists and Texas judges of mental illness courts. It involved a hypothetical case of a patient who threatened to kill his girlfriend. The hypothesis that no consensus exists at present among psychologists or judges appears to be supported by the data. Comparisons are made of the attitudes of psychologists and judges. Correlations between psychologist attitudes and certain demographic and practice variables are reported. The need for new legislation in Texas concerning legal liability of therapists for the violent behavior of patients is discussed. Proposed legislation for Texas is set out. Among its important features are (1) recognition that continued therapy is itself a protective strategy and (2) establishment of good faith as the standard by which the behavior of the therapist is to be judged.

The present study evaluated offender characteristics associated with completion of halfway house placement by the inclusion of additional offender characteristics for analysis in addition to those studied in previous research, the analysis of a large number of representative cases, and the use of statistics allowing clear conclusions upon which to base decision making. Data analysis was done in three steps. The first Step was to identify offender characteristics which were associated with completion in halfway house placement. The second step was to see how accurate the offender characteristics identified were in predicting completion of an offender's halfway house stay. The third step was to identify any possible factors which underlie the offender characteristics identified. Discriminant analyses identified ten offender characteristics which were associated with completion of halfway house placement for 521 male offenders and four offender characteristics which were associated with halfway house completion for the group of 33 female offenders studied. These offender characteristics resulted in 75.38 percent correctly classified cases for the male offender group and 96.9 7 percent correctly classified cases for the group of female offenders. Factor analyses resulted in the identification of four factors for the group of male offenders and two factors for the …

In an attempt to find meaningful predictors of the ability to interpret Rorschach protocols by clinicians, a paradigm change (Kuhn, 1962) was instigated by using as predictors the scores of the perceptual organizational abilities of 30 subjects, and their ratings of favorableness toward the Rorschach in terms of its usefulness as a clinical tool. The subjects were first year, graduate psychology students, and the Haptic Visual Discrimination Test (HVDT) was the instrument used to measure perceptual organization. A multiple linear regression analysis was computed, and the data supported the hypothesis that perceptual organization and favorableness are of significant predictive value (R = .54, F(2, 27) = 5.43, p = .01). The standardized beta for usefulness was .47 (p = .008) and the HVDT beta was .33, (p = .05). The results were interpreted as applying to Rorschach validity research methodology and pedagogy.

A Magical Contagion and AIDS Scale was developed to address problems with existing Contagion and AIDS measures. Magical Contagion is an influence that exists after contact is terminated. It is comprised of Permanence, Holographic Effects, Moral Germ Conflation and Backward Action. Data from 280 undergraduates revealed low mean levels of Magical Contagion and AIDS. Contagion effects did not differ on demographic variables. Content validity, criterion-related validity, discriminate validity, and internal consistency were evaluated. Significant correlations were found between the Contagion Scale and Merging/Separation and Homophobia Scales. Negative correlations were found between the Contagion scale and the AIDS knowledge and social desirability scales. Alpha reliabilities were high (a > .93) for the Contagion scale and subscales. Factor analysis suggested the existence of a single factor and mixed support for three factors.

Sexual abuse of children has profound negative effects on psychological development. This study examined the effects of sexual abuse on object relations functioning by using the Mutuality of Autonomy Scale (MAS, Urist, 1977) to score Rorschach protocols of 63 abused children and 60 non-abused clinical controls. The hypothesis that abused children would have less developed object relations than their non-abused counterparts was not supported. Neither was the hypothesis that children who experienced greater severity of sexual abuse would exhibit more malevolent object relations. The hypothesis that mean and modal MAS scores would be highly intercorrelated and interchangeable as research variables was supported. Comparisons of this sample to a normative sample are discussed.

Two continuous performance tests were administered to normal adult subjects. The mode of presentation (visual or auditory) and the type of task (vigilance or distractibility) were varied, and their effects on performance measured. Data were collected on eighty-two subjects, and results indicated that auditory presentation of stimuli increased the difficulty of both tasks. Results also suggest that the distractibility task administered in either mode was more difficult than the vigilance task. Intercorrelations among the four continuous performance tasks are provided. Normative data are presented on all four tasks administered. A measure of symptoms of attention-deficit disorder in adults, the Adult Behavior Checklist, was found to correlate significantly with another measure of pathology, the SCL-90-R.

The present study attempted to identify demographic and psychological variables predictive of adolescent suicidal ideations and attempts. Data from 90 adolescents, who completed an intake form at a university community mental health clinic or were student volunteers, were utilized. Two judges tabulated information regarding age, gender, number of siblings, ethnicity, parental marital status, drug use, depression, suicidal ideation, and previous suicidal attempts. A multiple regression analysis was performed to identify which variables had predictive significance. Depression was the best predictor of both suicidal ideations and attempts. Ethnicity was also predictive; white adolescents were found to be at higher risk for suicide than individuals from other ethnic groups. It is suggested that additional studies be done exploring other predictors of suicide among adolescents.

While many studies have investigated grandparenthood from the point of view of the grandparent, few have considered this issue from the perspective of the grandchild. In this respect, a number of variables (i.e., grandchild age and gender, parents' marital status, and grandparents' age, gender, education, kinship position, residential proximity to and frequency of visiting with grandchildren, perceived influence on the grandchild, style of grandparenting, and relationship with the parents) were investigated as determinants of the quality of the grandparent-grandchild relationship in a sample of 171 adolescents and young adults. It was found that different sets of variables operated for different grandparents to predict the quality of their relationships with grandchildren.

The use of scales on the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) to detect defensiveness in criminal and nonclinical samples was evaluated. Forty-five male inmates of a county jail and 38 male undergraduate psychology students were provided with incentives to complete the PAI under two conditions: standard instructions and experimental instructions to feign a specific, positive role. The sequence of instructions was counterbalanced in both samples for the purpose of examining ordering effects. A repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed, yielding significant main effects of condition, group and order. Additionally, a step-wise discriminant function analysis significantly predicted group membership (i.e., subjects under honest and faking conditions) with a hit rate = 84.4%. Finally, a more effective cutting score for the Positive Impression scale was recommended.

Slides of TAT cards 1 and 2 were shown to 87 college students asked to write stories about them. Subjects also ranked the importance of 5 attributes in understanding their personalities. Attribute scores from projections and centrality scores from rankings, for achievement and autonomy, were regressed onto college GPA, trail-making, and autonomy by life history. Predictions failed to reach suitably low significance levels. Subscaling the life history questionnaire by factor analysis and subsequently regressing toward subscales resulted in multiple correlation significant at p < .01. Important to the model was the significant (p < .02) improvement in using the attribute by centrality interaction over either variable alone. Results were discussed in terms of a cognitive model for projectives.

Cue-controlled relaxation is looked at to determine whether a component is efficacious as the entire procedure. Subjects were 40 male and 40 female undergraduates. Subjects were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: cue-controlled relaxation, progressive muscle relaxation, breathing exercises with a paired. cue word, on a presentation of the cue word without being paired. It was hypothesized that cue-controlled relaxation would be superior to a component of cue-controlled relaxation. It was determined that cue-controlled relaxation is not more efficacious than a particular component. Data suggests the majority of anxiety reduction takes place when the treatment focuses on the same modality from which the subject receives the most information about their anxiety. Implications and suggestions for further research are presented.

Differences in college student's psychological well-being, extrapunitiveness, and intropunitiveness were related to the presence or absence of maltreatment during childhood years, and its acknowledgement by the student. Subjects were 56 male and 85 female undergraduate students at the University of North Texas. Subjects were given structural scale v.3 of the California Psychological Inventory (CPI), the Extrapunitive (E), and Intropunitive (I) indices of the Hostility-Direction of Hostility Questionnaire (HDHQ), and the Physical Punishment scale (PP-scale) of the Assessing Environments Questionnaire (AEIII). Results indicate no significant differences in psychological well-being, extrapunitiveness, or intropunitiveness, which would be explained by the presence of maltreatment or its acknowledgement.

This study investigated the effect of cost-of-escape on helping among children. Forty-four children between the approximate ages of six and twelve served as subjects. The experiment was performed in a natural setting using an ice cream truck. The driver (experimenter) manipulated the cost-of-escape and then had an "accident." The easy-to-escape group received their ice cream before the driver spilled 300 spoons on the ground. The difficult-to-escape group had paid for their ice cream but had not received it before the "accident" occurred. The number of spoons picked up by each condition and the lapse time before a member of each group began to help was recorded. No differences were found between the groups (all ps > .05). Implications for cost-of-escape were discussed.

The incidence of both childhood sexual abuse and eating disorders is rising. A study of 422 undergraduate college females was undertaken using self report format to determine the incidence of childhood sexual abuse and eating disorders in a college population, and to determine the relationship between the two. In all, 57% of the women surveyed reported experiencing some form of sexual contact before the age of 14. Using the EDI-2 to assess risk of eating disorder development, 42% of these formerly abused women were found to be at risk for the development of an eating disorder. This was not found to be statistically different from the risk of eating disorder development experienced by the nonabused females in this population. However, there were differences found on the dimensions of Interpersonal Distrust, Interoceptive Awareness and Ineffectiveness, indicating that two of the major issues in eating disorder development for the abused women are trust both of themselves and of others, and self-esteem.

The role of exposure to a human-made disaster and the subsequent development of post-traumatic stress reactions were examined. Subjects included 49 males and 30 females who were variously exposed to the Luby's shooting incident in Killeen, Texas in October of 1991. Post-traumatic stress symptomatology was measured by the SCL-90R. Exposure was operationalized by using a scenario-rating scheme with independent raters estimating each subject's level of exposure. A regression and commonality analysis revealed that exposure is an important predictor in post-traumatic symptomatology. Premorbid functioning and gender were also found to play important roles, with females expressing higher levels of symptomatology.

The current study examined if students' levels of social physique anxiety vary depending on the type of exercise setting they select. The study determined the degree to which social physique anxiety changed over the course of semester-long involvements in different exercise settings.

This purpose of this study was to investigate and examine the attitudes of therapists who treat HIV-positive (HIV+) clients. Specifically, therapists' perceptions of their own preparedness in dealing with specific issues and emotions of HIV+ clients were examined. Also, therapists' evaluation of their own efficacy of specific therapeutic approaches with HIV+ clients was examined. These therapists' perceptions and evaluations of all their clients in general were compared to their HIV+ clients. Comparisons were also made within the two groups.

Although much research has examined the impact of life stress and the subsequent development of health symptoms, most of this research has been done with White middle class adults. Similar to the adult research, life stress research with children and adolescents has focused on White middle class individuals. The present study expands the knowledge about the stress process in ethnic/racial adolescents while controlling for the effects of SES. A sample population consisting of 103 Black students, 129 Hispanic students, and 105 White students was compared with respect to stressful events experienced, coping strategies, and social support. Students from a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds were included within each ethnic/racial group studied. After experimentally and statistically controlling for the effects of socioeconomic status, significant differences were observed. Black and Hispanic students reported receiving higher levels of Enacted Social Support (actual support) than White students. Contrary to what has been previous suggested, Black and Hispanic students reported having experienced fewer stressful life events than White students. Other ethnic/racial group differences that emerged included differences in ways in which specific patterns of moderator variables served to enhance the relationship between life stress and psychological symptomatology.

The purpose of this study was to explore relationships between and among the degree of mistrust black students hold towards Whites, the students' preferences for race of counselor, and the discussion of problems that are sexual in nature. Participants consisted of 60 black females and 51 black males recruited from a university population. All subjects completed the Terrell and Terrell Cultural Mistrust Inventory, Fischer-Turner Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale, Corrigan and Schmidt Counselor Rating Form - Short Form, Tinsley Expectations About Counseling Inventory, and the Thermometer Method Form developed specifically for this project. A multiple regression model was used to explore the hypotheses of this study. The criterion variables consisted of scores on the Expectations About Counseling Form and Counselor Rating Form. Analyses revealed that the most significant predictors of counseling expectations were race of counselor and participant gender. Black students who were asked to assume \ they would see a black counselor had more favorable expectations about counseling than those black students asked to assume they would see a white counselor. Female participants had more favorable expectations about counseling than male participants. Results also indicated that the most significant predictors of counselor ratings were race of counselor …