This study investigated the value of headache presence during elecromyographic (EMG) feedback relaxation training and the contribution made by home relaxation practice in the elimination of tension headache. Eighteen participants, mainly coeds in their twenties, recorded headache and medication data for two baseline weeks, and were assigned to one of three training groups. Group A received EMG feedback training with headache presence during the session and home relaxation practice. Group B received EMG feedback without headache Presence and home practice. Group C received only home relaxation practice. Statistically significant treatment differences were not found, but declining trends of headache activity and medication use tend to support the efficacy of EMG training with headache presence.

Ethnic differences in etiological factors linked to body image dissatisfaction and eating disorders were examined. In addition, the interaction of acculturation and body image dissatisfaction in influencing minority women's relationships with their parents was investigated. Participants consisted of 302 undergraduates from three ethnic groups: Caucasian, Hispanic American, and African American women who were administered self-report measures. Differences were not found between the groups in body image dissatisfaction. Low self-esteem, internalization of the thin ideal, and family emphasis on weight and appearance were all related to more body image dissatisfaction for each of these groups; however, differences in degree of endorsement were also noted between the ethnic groups on these factors. Based on the interaction findings (body image x acculturation) separation from one's mother was found in the area of attitudes and emotions for the Hispanic sample but not for the African American sample on any of the parent scales. Areas for future research and implications for diagnosis and treatment of minority populations are also discussed.

Although the Rorschach is one of the most widely used psychological assessment techniques, its empirical support has been equivocal. One possible explanation for this lack of empirical support is the tendency for researchers to study only the assessment tool with little regard for the clinician using it. The current study examined one clinician variable (empathy) and its relationship to accuracy of interpretation of the Rorschach. The literature regarding Rorschach theory and research and empathy theory and research was reviewed in an attempt to clarify the similarities between empathy as an important factor in psychotherapy and its importance in the assessment process. The present study measured empathy by using the Davis Empathy Questionnaire and a Taped Excerpt Response Measure.

It has been well-documented in the literature that there are many physical and psychological benefits to be derived from regular aerobic exercise. It has also been noted that adherence/compliance to aerobic exercise regimens tends to be quite low. Investigators have found that a number of factors tend to correlate with adherence, but it has been difficult thus far to determine a mechanism which underlies a tendency to adhere versus a tendency to drop-out. This study examined the problem of non-adherence from the perspective of Self-Efficacy Theory (Bandura, 1977). Subjects for this investigation included all patients seen during a four week period in the Cooper Clinic at the Aerobics Center in Dallas, Texas. Patients at the clinic receive a complete physical examination and health prescriptions based upon the results of their examination. During this four week period, half were administered a Self-Efficacy Questionnaire. Approximately three months later all patients seen during this four week period received a followup (adherence questionnaire in the mail). It was hypothesized that there would be a positive relationship between responses on the Self-Efficacy Questionnaire and responses on the Adherence Questionnaire. A second hypothesis stated that there would be a positive relationship between items which specifically pertained …

The study examined the relationships between various parental discipline styles and perceived powerlessness in antisocial adolescents. The literature on adolescent antisocial behavior frequently describes states of disaffection, alienation, and powerlessness as characteristic of the delinquent youth. The parent-child relationship is also frequently implicated as the significant precursor of antisocial behavior in adolescents. The purpose of this study was to determine if perception of control orientations function as cognitive mediators between perceived styles of parental discipline and subsequent behavior in adolescents. It was concluded, on the basis of the data obtained from this study, that antisocial adolescents do not perceive themselves to be more powerless than non-antisocial adolescents. It was recommended that caution should be exercised in applying such a label to those exhibiting antisocial patterns of behavior. It was also concluded that punishment applied in an unpredictable fashion may have detrimental effects on the development of female adolescents.

Repetitive self-mutilation (RSM) has become increasingly prevalent among adolescents. Empirical research has pinpointed several correlates of this behavior, but the initiation and maintenance of RSM among adolescents are not well understood. The experiential avoidance model (EAM) proposes that self-mutilation is a behavior that allows for the avoidance or alteration of unwanted internal experiences, and that it is negatively reinforced with repetition. The current study explored the usefulness of the EAM as an explanatory theory for adolescent RSM, with the additional incorporation of issues of social context. Adolescents (N = 211) from three school-based samples completed self-report questionnaires. One-third of students reported at least one incident of purposeful, non-suicidal self-mutilation and 16% had engaged in self-mutilation repeatedly within the past 6 months. Both regression and group analyses indicated that adolescents who engage in RSM report greater psychological distress, a greater incidence of functionally equivalent behaviors, and greater exposure to self-mutilation among peers and/or in the media, when compared to their counterparts who have not engaged in RSM. Suicidal ideation/behaviors were consistently the strongest predictors of current self-mutilation behaviors. Clinical implications, limitations, and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Studies of affective forecasting examine people’s ability to predict (forecast) their emotional (affective) responses to future events. Affective forecasts underlie nearly all decisions people make and the actions they take. However, people engage in systematic cognitive errors when making affective forecasts and most often overestimate the intensity and duration of their emotional responses. Understanding the mechanisms that lead to affective forecasting errors (e.g., immune neglect) and examining the utility of methods for improving affective forecasting errors (e.g., surrogation) can provide highly valuable information for clinicians as they assist clients in determining their goals both for therapy and for life. The first purpose of the current study was to determine if affective forecasting errors due to immune neglect lead to misjudgments about the relative emotional impact of minor versus moderate negative experiences (i.e., trauma severity). The second purpose was to examine the utility of surrogation for improving affective forecasts. Potential interaction effects between these two variables were also examined. The current study utilized a 2 (Trauma Severity: minor, moderate) X 3 (Prediction Information: surrogation information only, simulation information only, both types of information) experimental design. Undergraduates were recruited via the SONA system and randomly assigned to one of the six experimental …

Every day, children throughout the United States are given psychological evaluations for many different clinical and psycho-educational purposes. Very little research has attempted to investigate children's responses to the experience of having intellectual and achievement tests administered. The goal of the current research was to explore the effect a psycho-educational evaluation has on children in areas of self-concept and anxiety. Dependent variables consisted of pre- and post-test measures of anxiety and self-concept. A total of 75 children in the 4th 5th and 6th grades were recruited after referral for evaluation and possible placement in the Talented and Gifted Program or Special Education. This study employed Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), t-tests, multiple regression analysis, and correlational analysis. Findings included initial evidence that children endorsed decreased anxiety after psycho-educational assessments rather than increased anxiety, suggesting that fear of unknown situations may be more anxiety provoking than the actual situation itself, potentially beneficial findings for psychology and psychometric professionals who evaluate children daily. Students endorsement of academic self-concept significantly predicted anxiety after a psycho-educational evaluation, indicating that students who feel capable in academic areas may endorse less anxiety after an evaluation than students who do not feel academically capable. Finally, negative verbal interaction …

The relationship was investigated between named staff members and four measures of reported alocohol consumption by alcoholics followed up one year after hospitalizstion in state hospitals. The 559 representative subjects were located, interviewed, and matched with 65 staff members named as "most helpful" to determine social, economic, and drinking aspects. Named personnel were administered the A-B Scale by Campbell, Stevens, Uhlenhuth, and Johansson (1968). Subjects naming A-staff members reported significantly lower levels of alcohol consumption on two of four measures as compared to subjects naming A/B- or B-staff members. Additional followup variables tended to support this conclusion.

The purpose of this manuscript was to present a brief history, the current status, and a prospectus of allergen and allergic reactions. Research on allergic reactions, particularly as viewed from the psychogenic position, was presented. The review strongly suggests that the psychogenic orientation has been frought with contradictions, unnecessarily complex interpretations, and an over-abundance of subjective, dynamic, and analytic redundancies which have done little more than perpetuate the stagnation of a rather important subdomain of the "mental" health professions.

The impact of environmental influences on depression has been well established by research. In particular, it is known that receiving/perceiving adequate social support has a protective influence on depression. Less is known about the protective benefits of providing support to others, namely in the form of altruistic, empathetic, or prosocial behavior. While research has shown that having altruistic attitudes and engaging in altruistic behaviors has a positive impact on physical health and mental well-being, studies on the association between altruistic attitudes and/or behavior and depression are limited. The present study examined the relationship between altruism and depression, and hypotheses were tested that allow for explanation of why altruism may protect against depression. A sample of 303 participants was recruited from the University of North Texas and the surrounding community. Participants completed an online survey that examined their altruistic activities, details regarding these activities, their prosocial attitudes, and their current level of depression. Results did not support that level of involvement in altruistic activities is directly related to depression severity. However, outcomes from involvement in altruistic activities, including sense of overburden from participating in altruistic activities, level of social interaction with other helpers and those helped during altruistic activities, and sense …

The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of an ancillary procedure, the Mowrer imitation paradigm, in conjunction with an ongoing generalized imitation program. It was hypothesized that the ancillary program would accelerate the acquisition of vocal imitation relative to a situation In which the generalized imitation procedure was employed alone.

"The present investigation was concerned with college students' perceptions of candidates in the 1972 Presidential Election."--[1].

The goals of revision for the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition included enhancement of the factor structure, improvement of subtests, and revision of norms. The researchers reported that the very few items that were found to be biased were replaced. The WISC-III performance of a clinical sample of African American, Caucasian, and Hispanic children was analyzed to determine if the test bias was eliminated as claimed in the goals of the revision.

Recent research into sex roles has been heavily influenced by androgyny theory, and by the development of the Bern Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI; Bern, 1974). Psychological androgyny is the combination, in one individual, of both culturally defined masculine and feminine personality traits. The Sex-Rep, a new instrument for assessing sex role which is aimed at rectifying certain problems associated with the BSRI, was then described. The Sex-Rep, the BSRI (Bern, 19 34), the Texas Social Behavior Inventory (TSBI; Spence & Stapp, 1974), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI, Beck, 1967), and a self-concept thermometer, were given to 100 male and 108 female undergraduates. Results indicated that the BSRI and the Sex-Rep are both valid sex-role instruments, insofar as they both discriminate between males and females. They tend to measure nonredundant components of sex role as indicated by a lack of overlap between their sex-role classifications. The present study did not find any support for the balance model of androgyny which suggests that high masculinity and high femininity interact by balancing each other to produce a healthier, more behaviorally flexible individual. BSRI masculinity (M) was strongly related to adjustment in both sexes, but BSRI femininity (F) had little impact. This relationship between BSRI …

Individuals responding in a socially desirable (SD) fashion, rather than in a manner that reflects their true behavior, has been a problem for self-report questionnaires since their inception. The purpose of this study was to examine the hypothesis that the probability an item is endorsed on a self-report measure of anger is directly proportional to the rated SD of that item. Eighty-two subjects completed the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI), the Profile of Moods State (POMS), and the State- Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI). A probability of endorsement was computed for each of the measures' items. Twenty additional subjects rated the measures' items for SD. Each item's SD rating was paired with the probability the item was endorsed to produce a correlation coefficient for each measure. Results strongly support the stated hypothesis. Directions for future research are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to (1) assess the reliability and validity of anger/hostility measures, (2) examine the relationship between anger/hostility and other negative emotions, and (3) examine the relationship between anger/hostility and health history. Sixty-five subjects were given the Buss Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI), the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI), the Profile of Mood States pomsS), the Clinical Analysis Questionnaire (CAQ), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), the Health and Wellness Attitude Inventory (HWAI), and a health questionnaire designed to provide information about past disease and alcohol/drug use. Overall, the BDHI and POMS displayed good test-retest reliability. All six of the global indices of anger/hostility intercorrelated at a significant level, thus demonstrating good concurrent validity. The six global measures of anger/hostility also correlated at a significant level with other negative emotions.

The problem with which this study is concerned is that of considering the relationship between neurotic anxiety and several personality variables. Even though anxiety has been the subject of many studies, it is still poorly defined. The basic model to be considered is Eysenck's three-dimensional model between neuroticism and introversion-extroversion. This model is expanded to include Rotter's locus of control and reinforcement expectancy (optimism and pessimism).

The present study investigated the effects of anxiety management training on the reduction of Type A coronary-prone behavior in a college student population and utilized behavioral measures as well as self-report indices of change. Evaluations pre- and post-treatment included self-report measures of Type A behavior, empirically validated performance measures of the achievement-striving and time-urgency components of coronary-prone behavior, and a learned helplessness manipulation that has been associated with this behavior pattern. Analysis of covariance indicated that the treatment group changed in the desired direction on all self-report indices, and on most of the performance measures and helplessness scores that were used as dependent variables. Discussion centered on the implications of these data to theoretical and practical conceptualizations of coping behavior and coronary disease and cautions were expressed concerning clinical significance, maintenance, and generalization of results.

The current study investigated the efficacy of Wolpe's original (1954) paradigm of anxiety-relief conditioning. The procedure consisted of administering a mildly aversive electric shock to a subject for several seconds until the subject said the word "Relax," and the shock was terminated. Repeated pairings were claimed by Wolpe to condition physiological relief to the cue word, "Relax," which could then be employed in order to reduce anxiety in various anxiety provoking situations. Since there does not appear to be a generally accepted theoretical rationale to account for the reported efficacy of anxiety-relief conditioning, several theoretical rationales were discussed. In addition, a distinction was made between the anxiety-relief paradigm described by Wolpe (1954) and the aversion-relief paradigm employed by subsequent investigators (Gaupp, Stern, & Galbraith, 1972; Solyom, McClure, Heseltine, Ledwidge, & Solyom, 1972; Thorpe, Schmidt, Brown, & Castell, 1964). It was suggested that this distinction might be used to account for the failure of the current investigation to support the efficacy of anxiety-relief conditioning, as a review of the major study supporting its efficacy (Turnage & Wenrich, 1974) indicated that aversion-relief, rather than anxiety-relief, may have been employed. In the absence of strong supportive evidence for the efficacy of Wolpe's anxiety-relief …

Relaxation procedures and anxiety relief were reviewed. Effects of cognitive and expectancy variables in reduction of avoidance behavior were also extensively reviewed. Various theoretical models for desensitization were presented. Use of symbolic control in classical conditioning and use of self-control methods in anxiety reduction were discussed. Special emphasis was given to self-desensitization and cue controlled relaxation. One goal of the experiment was to determine whether a musical stimulus associated with counter anxiety procedures could reduce or prevent subjects' phobic responses in the presence of the phobic situation. Another goal was to determine the relative efficacy of two counter anxiety procedures (anxiety relief and progressive muscle relaxation) in lowering muscle tension and in reducing or preventing speech anxiety. Several implications were drawn from the study. Relaxation alone may alleviate anxiety and phobic behavior without being paired with phobic stimuli. Cognitive variables such as expectancy and feedback of progress make a substantial contribution to treatment of situational anxiety. Progressive muscle relaxation may not be the technique of choice for producing low levels of muscle tension. Recommendations for future research were specified, including additional measures and control procedures.

Two important developments are addressed by this dissertation. First, the Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Styles-Simplified Version (PICTS-SV) was examined in relation to the original PICTS. Second, the vulnerability of the PICTS-SV to intentional risk minimization (RM) was tested. Two separate studies recruited a total of 150 offenders from a court-mandated residential substance use treatment facility. As expected, Study I established the PICTS-SV's good concurrent validity with the PICTS, especially at the broad composite scale level. For Study II, criminal thinking failed to show the anticipated convergence with HCR-20 risk classifications or forensic correlates. Potential explanations, including a restricted range of risk levels in this sample, are discussed. As a particular strength, the findings highlight that the PICTS-SV, in contrast to many risk measures, displays robust resistance to RM distortion, although revisions to its Df-r validity scale are warranted. These results overall demonstrate strong evidence of the PICTS-SV's utility for assessing a dynamic criminogenic need to inform effective interventions and accurate risk determinations.

A non-speech response mode similar to the one used by Prepack (1971) to teach language to a chimpanzee was utilized to teach two simple language functions to three autistic children. The response mode consisted of picking up a geometric symbol and placing it on a response tray. The geometric symbol was the basic unit in this language system. The symbols were used to represent objects in the environment and relationships between the objects.

An experiment was conducted to examine the functionality of using auditory stimuli in isolation as fading stimuli. A review of the literature revealed very few reports regarding the usage of the auditory modality for fading purposes. The study employed auditory prompts as fading stimuli in the transfer of stimulus control across stimulus modalities, specifically, the transfer of stimulus control from auditory to visual stimulus properties. A single subject was employed for the experiment. The results were that the intensity of the auditory stimulus was an ineffective dimension to use for fading operations in the transfer of stimulus control across stimulus modalities, Further investigation is needed regarding the conditions that limit the transfer of stimulus control when auditory prompts are employed as fading stimuli.