A questionnaire was used to study causal attribution to social roles as influenced by perceived deviance of the role, instructions to identify with the role, and participant gender. The perceived deviance or nondeviance of the roles was determined by a pilot study. The roles were varied randomly through 12 hypothetical events, and identification or nonidentification instructions randomly assigned. The participants were 194 male and female university students. Participants gave the cause of each event and rated the cause on five dimensions: internality, externality, stability, globality, and controllability. Causal attribution to deviant social roles was found to result in a significantly higher across-scales score and to be more internal, less external, and more global than attribution to nondeviant roles. Participant gender showed an interaction with deviance overall and on the dimensions of stability and globality due to significantly higher ratings by women participants than those by men. Identification instructions did not produce a significant effect.

Studies addressing racial/ethnic identity development have often overlooked the developmental cultural context. The impact of growing up with contradictory cultures has not been well explored. Immersion in multiple cultures may produce mixed patterns of strengths deficits. This study reviews the literature's currently inconsistent usage of the terms race, ethnicity, and culture; introduces the concept and theoretical framework of Cultural Homelessness; relates CH to multicultural integration; and develops two study-specific measures (included) to examine the construct validity of CH. The sample’s (N = 448, 67% women) racial, ethnic, and cultural mixture was coded back three generations using complex coding criteria. Empirical findings supported the CH-specific pattern of cognitive and social strengths with emotional difficulties: social adaptability and cross-cultural competence but also low self-esteem and shame regarding diff

Current literature regarding caregiver bereavement adjustment has advanced two competing models explaining adjustment in relation to caregiver interrole conflict: the Relief Model and Complicated Grief Model. This research has primarily focused on the experience of those providing care to dementia patients. This study tests these competing models of bereavement adjustment for husband and daughter caregivers of breast cancer hospice patients. For husbands, greater psychological strain and health strain were predictive of greater difficulty with bereavement adjustment, supporting the Complicated Grief Model of bereavement adjustment. For daughters, strain was not a significant predictor of bereavement adjustment, and thus did not support either bereavement adjustment model. While daughter caregivers experienced more role strain than husband caregivers during patient care, the degree of role strain was predictive of bereavement adjustment for husbands but not for daughters, suggesting that relationship type (husbands versus daughters) between caregiver and patient impacts which factors influence bereavement adjustment.

This study found a relationship between the Search and Cancellation of Ascending Numbers (SCAN), Digit Span, and Visual Search and Attention Test (VSAT). Data suggest the measures represent a common construct interpreted to be attention. An auditory distracter condition of the SCAN did not distract participants, while the measure exhibited ample alternate forms reliability. The study also found that the Test of Attentional and Interpersonal Style (TAIS) short form poorly predicted performance on the Digit Span, VSAT, and SCAN. Although the TAIS exhibited good internal consistency, the items likely measure the subjective perception of attention. Furthermore, discriminant and convergent validity of the TAIS were found to be poor.

This study examined whether the Symbol Language and Communication Battery (SLCB), a measure of learning disabilities (Lds), could identify children with Lds. In addition, possible behavioral differences were examined between unidentified and identified children. Eighty-five students (26 with school identified Lds; 59 unidentified) in the 4th and 5th grade participated in the study. Results indicated that the SLCB has good potential as a supplemental/screening measure of Lds. The SLCB was most effective in identifying children when SLCB diagnoses were restricted to the areas of reading, math, and writing. This study also found that teachers reported more behavioral problems in children with an SLCB diagnosis than children without a diagnosis, whereas unidentified children with SCLB diagnoses reported more behavioral problems than identified children.

This study related college students' remembered early relationships with parents to their depression symptoms and to dependent and self-critical subjective feelings. Undergraduates (N = 217, 118 female, 99 male) provided information regarding their current level of depression, overall functioning, subjective feelings of depression (Depressive Experiences Questionnaire), negative thoughts, interpersonal functioning, and recollections of their parents' behavior and attitudes. Depression symptoms were related to dependent and self-critical feelings and to recalled low parental care and high parental control. However, for women, paternal affection and, for men, paternal control, were unrelated to depression symptoms. Other results are inconclusive but, overall, provide evidence for the usefulness of Blatt's theory in assessing depression via dependent and self-critical subjective feelings.

Understanding the relation between personality characteristics, psychopathology, and sexual offenses can contribute to developing more effective treatment interventions. Previous research with sex offenders has focused on general personality traits or inconsistently classified sex offenders based on psychopathology. It was hypothesized that combining personality and psychopathological traits can assist in understanding sex offenders. The current study evaluated 88 male sex offenders in a court-mandated outpatient treatment program utilizing the NEO-PI-R and the MMPI-2. Three clusters of child molesters were examined for differences in personality characteristics and number of offenses. A second-order principle axis factor (PAF) analysis of personality and psychopathology traits revealed three factors: Psychological Distress, Excitement-Seeking, and Social Desirability. The potential clinical utility of these dimensions in predicting treatment compliance is examined.

This study investigates the use of response guidance for errorless learning of a perceptual motor task in normal elderly. It provides normative data for a study with stroke patients using this technique for cognitive rehabilitation. While errorless learning has been shown to be more effective on most tasks than trial and error learning for people with memory impairments, its use with normal individuals has received limited attention. The questions of interest were whether errorless training of the perceptual motor task was more effective for improving and retaining accuracy; and whether both accuracy and response speed were more resistant to the effects of increased cognitive demands. A sample of 43 normal elderly in the United Kingdom, ranging in age from 60 to 77, completed an assessment of intelligence, memory, and attention. They then received training, over two sessions one week apart, to mark the midpoint of Judd Arrows presented on a computer screen using a cross cursor moved by an active force feedback joystick (AFF). During training the errorless group received AFF guidance to the correct midpoint, while the errorful group received none, and both received auditory and visual knowledge of results. There was no AFF during baseline or post test …

College success, as defined by adjustment to college and academic performance, is a multidetermined with a number of contributing influences, including academic factors, personality variables, family characteristics, and environmental factors. This study attempted to provide an organizing model of the college success literature that was based on previous research (e.g., Aspinwall & Taylor, 1994) and current stress-coping theory (Moos & Swindle, 1990). Structural equation modeling analyses indicated that the hypothesized model did not fit the data well. However, subsequent regression analyses did validate the view that college success is multidetermined. Specifically, academic performance was predicted by a combination of academic factors (SAT score and class rank) and academic adjustment. In turn, academic adjustment was predicted by locus of control, perceived social support, and high school class rank. Personal adjustment was predicted by coping strategies employed, parents who fostered autonomy, locus of control, self-esteem, and high school class rank. Finally, social adjustment was predicted by optimism, coping strategies employed, and locus of control. Treatment implications as well as directions for future research were discussed.

This study began testing the Sewell and Williams (in press) model that differing trauma types yield differing presentations in social versus event processing domains. Other hypotheses explored trauma type with levels of guilt, and shame-proneness with anxiety. Volunteers were 44 male combat veterans being treated for PTSD. Data analyses determined whether trauma type related to guilt and perceived social support and whether shame-proneness related to levels of anxiety. High shame persons may process anxiety and social support differently than low shame persons. Results can assist professionals understand how a person's functioning is affected by certain types of trauma. Future research should focus on increasing social support for persons who have experienced trauma.

This project investigated the spiritual well-being (SWB) of psychotherapists in training and their physiological reactions to religious questions posed by a mock client. Electrodermal activity served as an index of physiological arousal interpreted as anxiety. Thirteen psychotherapists in training at the University of North Texas were recruited. They participated in a simulated intake session with a mock client who asked the psychotherapist neutral questions, personal-other questions (POQs), and personal-religious questions (PRQs). It was discovered that the level of SWB did not affect subjects' anxiety responses to PRQs. There also was no difference in subjects' anxiety responses for POQs between high and low SWB therapists. However, psychotherapists did experience some anxiety associated with questions related to their counseling experience and expertise.

Competency to stand trial cases constitute the largest percentage of forensic referrals for clinical psychologists. Furthermore, research suggests that the use of forensic measures facilitates the decisions of competency made by forensic examiners. This study investigated the construct validity of three competency measures: (a) the GCCT-MSH, (b) the MacCAT-CA, and (c) the ECST with 100 adult males incarcerated at the Tarrant County Jail in Fort Worth, TX. Construct validity was investigated via the use of a multitrait-multimethod research design for the three-prong conceptualization of the Dusky standard. Results indicated that current competency measures do an adequate job of assessing for factual understanding, but lack construct validity for two prongs: rational understanding and the ability to consult with counsel. In addition, the atypical presentation scales of the both GCCT and the ECST performed well at screening individuals for feigning. Finally, prediction of competency from clinical variables was also investigated. Psychotic symptoms and overall impairment were the strongest predictors of incompetency.

This research attempts to confirm the reliability and construct validity of a personnel selection instrument called a Situational Judgment Test (SJT) through reliability analysis and factor analysis. The existing literature on SJTs is reviewed, including the advantages of using SJTs in personnel selection as well as the debate on whether SJTs measure a single construct or whether they can be multidimensional depending on the content. The specific SJT in this research was theoretically developed and received expert ratings to assess four general constructs: problem solving, planning, priority setting, and leadership. No support from alpha internal consistency reliability analysis was found for the assembly of these items into the four a priori subscales, thus assembly of these items into the theoretical subscales and scales was not supported.

This study was designed to investigate 1) the cultural factors involved with Mexican citizens' attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help and 2) Mexican citizens' explanatory models of mental distress. Questionnaire data from 110 Mexican college students indicate that those who report a higher tolerance for stigma report lower endorsement of both the construct of personalismo and the machismo. Respondents who reported more interpersonal openness also reported a lower endorsement of the machismo construct. Participants from a large city reported significantly more stigma tolerance than those from a small city. Regression analyses reveal machismo as a significant predictor of stigma tolerance. Qualitative data was collected to provide additional in-depth information. Study results could be used to provide culturally appropriate mental health services.

Performance appraisal ratings provide the basis for numerous employment decisions, including retention, promotion, and salary increases. Thus, understanding the factors affecting the accuracy of these ratings is important to organizations and employees. Leniency, one rater error, is a tendency to assign higher ratings in appraisal than is warranted by actual performance. The proposed study examined how personality factors Agreeableness and Conscientiousness relate to rater leniency. The ability of narrower facets of personality to account for more variance in rater leniency than will the broad factors was also examined. The study used undergraduates' (n = 226) evaluations of instructor performance to test the study's hypotheses. In addition to personality variables, students' social desirability tendency and attitudes toward instructor were predicted to be related to rater leniency. Partial support for the study's hypotheses were found. The Agreeableness factor and three of the corresponding facets (Trust, Altruism and Tender-Mindedness) were positively related to rater leniency as predicted. The hypotheses that the Conscientiousness factor and three of the corresponding facets (Order, Dutifulness, and Deliberation) would be negatively related to rater leniency were not supported. In the current sample the single narrow facet Altruism accounted for more variance in rater leniency than the broad Agreeableness …

Factors related to women's gender role attitudes were assessed using data from a national survey in 1988 in which 3,507 members of the Young Women cohort were interviewed by phone. The demographic characteristics were education, age, marital status, and region of residence. Older women, married women, and those of Southern residence were hypothesized to have traditional gender role attitudes. These hypotheses were supported by the data (p &tn; .05, p &tn; .05, p &tn; .01, respectively). As hypothesized, those with high educational levels (p &tn; .01) had egalitarian attitudes. Four work related variables (labor force participation, hours worked at one's paid position, personal income, and earnings as percent of total family income) were hypothesized to relate to non-traditional gender role attitudes. Job dissatisfaction was hypothesized to relate to traditional gender role attitudes. Personal income (p &tn; .01) was related to non-traditional gender role attitudes. There was no relationship between labor force participation and hours worked at one's position and gender role attitudes. Percent of total family income (p &tn; .01) was related to traditional gender role attitudes, not egalitarian attitudes, and, as hypothesized, job dissatisfaction (p &tn; .05) was related to traditional gender role attitudes. Life dissatisfaction was hypothesized to …

The current study explored the relations among rape myths, attitudes toward rape victims, perceived social support, sex role, and social reactions in a male undergraduate sample (N = 205). Males who have provided support to a sexual assault victim were compared to those who have not provided support to a sexual assault victim on several measures. Social reactions of those who have provided support to a sexual assault victim were compared to hypothetical reactions provided by individuals who have not previously provided support. Results indicated that rape related attitudes and beliefs did not differ between those who have and have not provided support to a sexual assault victim. In addition, individuals who were responding to a hypothetical situation reported that they would provide more positive social support than individuals who were responding to an actual situation. Implications for clinical work and future research in this area are discussed.

The present study was designed to empirically validate six theoretically derived cognitive domains (verbal memory, visual memory, working memory, attention-concentration, executive functions, and visuospatial abilities) assessed by a comprehensive battery of neuropsychological tests used in the Geriatric Memory Clinic at the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth, Texas. The study examined the extent to which various cognitive dimensions are tapped by this battery in a heterogeneous geriatric sample of 114 patients with cognitive impairments. The proposed six-factor model of cognitive functioning has not been supported. Further exploratory factor analysis arrived at a five-factor solution. Factor pattern of the 23 tests supported the following five dimensions: memory, executive control, attention, visuospatial abilities, and cognitive flexibility.

The present study examines the relationship between acculturation, parental control, and psychological adjustment among adult first and second-generation Asian Indian women who have immigrated, or whose parents have immigrated to the United States, from the Indian state of Kerala. Data from 73 participants indicate second-generation immigrants report poorer psychological adjustment than do their counterparts. Additionally, regression analyses reveal discomfort towards Kerala culture significantly predicts depressive symptoms, while high maternal control predicts self-esteem. Qualitative data were collected to provide richer understanding of immigrants' adaptation to the U.S. Implications of this research may impact mental health practitioners' ability to improve quality of life with Asian Indian women from Kerala.

A vigorous debate persists in the literature about the efficacy of clinical judgment and actuarial models of risk assessment. This study was designed to augment those commonly used methods by integrating a variety of factors that produce risk and protective effects among 101 youthful offenders. Adolescents and young adults in a maximum-security facility were interviewed with the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV), and completed self-reports of psychopathy, impulsivity, and perceived parental care and protection. This selection of empirically-supported predictors was enhanced by criminal history and family information obtained through extensive file review. Markedly different prediction models emerged based on age. ADHD and PCL Factor 2 predicted adolescents' institutional maladjustment. In contrast, young adults' institutional behavior was influenced by impulsivity, family substance abuse, and gang membership. Treatment progress also differed depending on age; the absence of certain risk factors predicted success for adolescents, while academic achievement and intelligence facilitated young adults' advancement. Importantly, support was demonstrated for the moderating effects of protective factors on violence. Finally, the predictive validity of newly-developed psychopathy self-reports was examined in relation to the PCL:YV. Both the SALE PS-24 and the APSD were modestly effective at differentiating between high and low levels of psychopathy.

Psychopathy continues to receive increased attention due to the negative outcomes, including recidivism, violence, and poor treatment amenability. Despite the vast amount of attention psychopathy has received, research on its applications to mentally disordered offenders remains sparse. The current study explored the relationship between psychopathy, depression, anxiety, and psychotic disorders. It also investigated the comparative fits of two and three-factor models of the PCL-R with mentally disordered offenders. Participants consisted of 96 inmates placed in the mental health pod at Tarrant County Jail. A Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) with testlets found the three-factor PCL-R model had excellent fit (Robust Comparative Fit Index = 1.00). Psychopathy was found to be a construct independent of mental disorders. Two exceptions were (a) a modest correlation between anxiety and Impulsive and the Irresponsible Lifestyle factor of the PCL-R (r = 0.20) and (b) a modest negative correlation between Deficient Affective Experience of the PCL-R and mania (r = -.37). Based on the current data, treatment programs for mentally disordered offenders are suggested that focus on both behavioral and personality aspects of psychopathy.

The purpose of this study was to examine how male and female leaders view their own effectiveness as compared to their objective performance. This study also examined sex and gender differences in subordinate's views of male and female leaders. Forty-two mixed-sex groups led by appointed male and female leaders were observed to assess objective and perceived leader effectiveness. Gender role of participants was assessed using the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). No sex or gender differences were found in objective leadership effectiveness. An unexpected finding was that male and female leaders perceived themselves accurately as leaders. Significant differences were found in the way male subordinates rated men and women leaders when taking into account gender role. Results indicated that the study of gender bias in leadership is complex and should be examined in conjunction with gender role. Social role theory helps to explain this bias.

The objective of this study was to examine the relations between Posttraumatic Stress Disorder symptomatology and intelligence. Thirty American combat veterans of the Vietnam War, diagnosed with chronic PTSD, were given a psychodiagnostic structured interview. Participants were assessed for Intelligence Quotient as well as the veracity of their self report. The study found that there were significant differences in how participants experienced their PTSD symptoms that were correlated with intelligence. The higher IQ participants reported more frequent and intense guilt related symptoms as well as more intense intrusive recollections. The lower IQ participants experienced more frequent startle responses, more intense problems related to falling or remaining asleep and more frequent affective symptoms related to emotional numbing. Psychologists could use these differences in how PTSD is experienced in treatment planning. It may be useful for therapy to address sleep disturbances and affective numbing in lower IQ individuals. Therapy for higher IQ individuals may be more useful if it addresses feelings of guilt and intrusive recollections.

Individuals diagnosed with schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) exhibit patterns of cognitive deficits in (1) attention (Lees-Roitman, Cornblatt, Bergman, Obuchowski, Mitropoulou, Keefe, Silverman, & Siever, 1997), (2) memory (Bergman, Harvey, Lees-Roitman, Mohs, Margerm, Silverman, & Siever, 1998), (3) executive functioning (Cadenhead, Perry, Shafer, & Braff, 1999), and recently (4) neuromotor functioning (Neumann & Walker, 1999), similar to individuals with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. Furthermore, recent research suggests a link between neuromotor and cognitive functioning in schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) (Neumann & Walker, 2003). The current study is an extension of research on non-drug-induced neuromotor disturbances in individuals with SPD and examines how such disturbances covary with neurocognitive measures. Approximately thirty-three adults (18-65) were rated for SPD symptoms. Motor assessments included a computerized motor task and finger tapping test. Cognitive assessments included measures of attention, verbal and visual memory, and executive functioning. Consistent with previous research, the SPD group displayed significant right hand (left hemisphere) motor disturbances (i.e., increased force and force variability) compared to healthy controls after excluding all cases reporting a history of head injury. In addition, results indicate significant associations between motor, cognitive, and symptom variables. Consistent with previous research, neuromotor functioning and the relationships between motor and cognitive …