Gregory L. Wilson

Humility as a psychotherapeutic formulation

Abstract Humility training is conceptualized as an appropriate treatment for persons who occasionally describe themselves, but are most frequently described by others as overbearing, insensitive and deceitful. Procedures are outlined to identify unrecognized fears and improve interpersonal skills. Humility is presented as a counterpoint to assertiveness and aggression/anger control interventions.

Staff stress in contemporary jails: Assessing problem severity and the payoff of progressive personnel practices

Abstract The presence of a high level of workplace stress among carefully recruited and monitored personnel could signify that the long-term return on selection and training resources invested in employees of podular, direct supervision jails could be jeopardized as staff either leave employment or withdraw psychologically from their work environment. Despite the suspected scale of this problem, however, there is little direct empirical evidence available as to the extent of staff stress problems in such jails. Using survey and organizational profile data from five podular direct supervision jails, the extent of stress occuring is estimated and some likely causes are isolated. Evidence indicating that the adoption of progressive personnel practices produces positive outcomes with respect to the incidence of turnover and workplace stress is presented.

Treatment Acceptability of Alternative Sex Therapies: A Comparative Analysis

Eighty female subjects rated therapy descriptions of a case involving the treatment of inhibited female orgasm in group and individual formats. Half of the treatment descriptions described the patients husband participating in some of the homework exercises. After each treatment description, subjects completed a series of treatment acceptability ratings (Treatment Evaluation Inventory, Semantic Differential, Credibility Rating Scale) designed to evaluate the alternative treatment dimensions. A case history of primary anorgasmia, representative of actual clients and problems typically seen in sex therapy clinics, was presented to subjects via written material and audiotape players. A clear preference for individual format over group format was consistently found in credibility and acceptability ratings. Inclusion of the identified patients partner in therapy was not a salient factor in acceptability ratings for the female subjects. Implications of this research paradigm are discussed in light of the current state of the art in sex therapy, and future research needs are identified.

Treatment acceptability of alternative formats of behavioral marital therapy.

Abstract The purpose of the present investigation was to examine the acceptability of four alternative treatment-formats commonly used in the resolution of marital dysfunction. Conjoint, concurrent, group, and individual formats were selected because of their frequent usage and unique styles in the treatment of marital distress. One hundred adults were randomly assigned to experimental conditions. These included two forms of information (i.e., descriptive versus research-oriented) presented across four differing sequences of treatment-formats. The Treatment Evaluation Inventory, the Credibility Rating Scale, and the Semantic Differential were employed as dependent measures in order to assess levels of treatment acceptability. The results of this study revealed that conjoint treatment-format was consistently rated as most acceptable, followed by concurrent, group, and invididual interventions, respectively. Moreover, male and female subjects differed in their ratings of individual and group treatment-forma...

A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale

The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale (TSCS) has been widely used to examine systematic differences in self-concept between incarcerated and nonincarcerated populations and to assess the effects of treatment programs for incarcerated groups. Fitts (1965) originally constructed the TSCS to measure five external aspects of self-concept, three internal aspects, and 15 “facets” created by crossing the internal and external dimensions. Over a period of some years, methodological questions have been raised about the validity of the TSCS. Most of these studies have used factor analytic approaches designed to provide optimal condensations of response data, and their results have not supported Fittss structure. The present study used confirmatory factor analysis, a technique specifically designed to test hypothesized dimensionality, to examine the TSCS and provides some support for its hypothesized structure.

An Empirical Evaluation of Behavioral and Cognitive-Behavioral Group Marital Treatments with Discordant Couples

Previous research has revealed that group behavioral therapy for distressed couples provides an effective and efficient form of marital treatment. However, research comparing alternative group approaches is lacking. The current investigation evaluated group behavioral and cognitive-behavioral marital treatments across a variety of relationship dimensions and measures of individual functioning. Dysfunctional couples were randomly assigned to experimental conditions and demonstrated statistically and clinically significant improvement as contrasted with the waiting list control group. These results are discussed in terms of the differences between treatment conditions, potential advances in the field of marital therapy, and recommendations for further inquiry.

Therapeutic formats in the resolution of relationship dysfunction : an acceptability investigation

The current study examined the acceptability of four treatment-formats commonly used in marital therapy: conjoint, concurrent, group, and individual. A total of 356 subjects were randomly assigned to experimental conditions. These included three types of information (descriptive, research-oriented, and group-oriented) and two differing case histories presented across the treatment formats. Results revealed a clear and consistent pattern of preference for conjoint therapy, followed by concurrent, group, and individual formats, respectively. It was also found that providing efficacy information about alternative formats and varying case histories did not alter acceptability ratings.