Kenneth M. Shemberg

Operant clinical intervention: Behavior management or beyond? Where are the data?

Operant studies published in Behavior Therapy, Behaviour Research and Therapy , and the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis from 1972–1973 were reviewed to determine whether clinically applied operant research extends beyond short-term behavioral management toward lasting, generalizable behavior changes. Each investigation was classified as to presence or absence of long-term follow-up data, and of stimulus and response generalization data (whether short- or long-term). Studies were further identified as to target behaviors studied, nature of data collected, settings studied, and outcome. Findings suggest that researchers are not extensively studying the operant approach beyond the demonstration that shortterm changes are possible given adequate environmental engineering. Evidence relating to long-term and/or generalizable changes is conspicuous by its absence; and the meager evidence available raises serious doubts about our ability to go “beyond management.”

Training parents in behavior modification: Outcome of and problems encountered in a program after Patterson's work

Seven families of children exhibiting behavior management problems were trained in behavior modification techniques, using procedures modeled after the work of Patterson and his associates. Outcome was evaluated by coded home observations, by parental reports, and by consultant and home observer reports. Three of these families showed positive short-term changes in the multiple measures; only one family showed substantial long-term changes. Data collection and interpretation problems are discussed, as are possible reasons for the failure to obtain long-term changes for more families.

Coping with Student Resistance to Critical Thinking: What the Psychotherapy Literature Can Tell Us.

Almost all college and university teachers advocate critical think ing as a fundamental goal of education. Books on critical thinking abound; more people attend international workshops (e.g., International Confer ence on Critical Thinking and Education al Reform at Sonoma State University), and entire journal issues are devoted to the topic (e.g., Focus 15, 1984, Focus 24, 1990, and National Forum, Winter, 1985). However, evidence is sparse that many teachers are successfully imple menting critical thinking in their class rooms or that large numbers of students are developing critical thinking skills. In fact, the literature suggests that most classrooms are greatly lacking in critical thinking activity (Ellner and Barnes 1983; Perkins 1985). Why the discrepancy between what is praised and what is practiced? One possi ble cause is in the interaction or relation

The alleviation of test anxiety by systematic desensitization.

Abstract Twenty-eight test anxious S s were randomly assigned to a relaxation group, a visual imagery group, and a systematic desensitization group in order to determine the relative effectiveness of each treatment in alleviating test anxiety. Following treatment, significant reductions in self-reported anxiety as determined by pre- and post-Test Anxiety Questionnaire (TAQ) scores occurred only for the systematic desensitization group. An analysis of the number of subjects per group showing reductions in TAQ score further supported the hypothesis that self-reported test-anxiety reduction occurs more reliably when both components of systematic desensitization are present. However, when the three groups were compared directly, only the visual imagery group was found to differ significantly from the systematic desensitization group, suggesting that relaxation alone may not be a totally ineffective treatment procedure. Results obtained with a second index of anxiety-reduction, performance on an anagram solution task, were not consistent with the self-report data.

“Attitudes” toward the elderly: A comparison of measures

College students were presented five questionnaires traditionally used to assess attitudes toward old people. The intercorrelations among the measures were low, accounting for no more than 24% of the variance between any two measures. The results suggest that the measures are not equivalent; it was argued that the practice of utilizing a single instrument to measure attitudes toward the elderly may contribute to inconsistencies reported in the literature.

Cognitive self-instruction in process and reactive schizophrenics: A failure to replicate

Cognitive self-instructional training was studied in process and reactive schizophrenics. The data revealed no significant difference between the self-instructional group and the practice controls, and no significant difference between the process and reactive schizophrenics. Thus, an attempt to replicate the Meichenbaum and Cameron study (1973—Study 1) failed. Possible reasons for this failure are discussed.

The effects of aversive levels of white noise on consummatory behavior

The present study was designed to investigate the effects of aversive levels of white noise on consummatory behavior. Three levels of sound were chosen for study (90, 100, and 110 dB). The results showed that Ss in the sound treatment conditions consumed significantly greater quantities of food on the second sound treatment day than did Ss in the no-sound control condition. In addition, there were no systematic differences in consummatory behavior among the three treatment conditions.

Attitudes toward traditional and nontraditional dissertation research: Survey of directors of clinical training.

Les auteurs enquetent aupres de 62 directeurs de formation de psychologues cliniciens dans le but de determiner leurs attitudes envers la recherche traditionnelle (methode experimentale ou correlationnelle) ou non traditionnelle (etudes phenomenologiques, enquetes, recherches bibliographiques, histoires de cas) dans une these. Les resultats sont discutes dans le contexte de la formation doctorale

Fifth and sixth graders' attitudes toward mental health issues

As background for the potential development of preventive mental health education programs, the beliefs, feelings, and behavioral intentions of fifth-and sixth-grade children toward mental health issues were surveyed. Results indicated that the children held generally positive attitudes toward these issues. However, these attitudes were not reflected in reported intended behaviors. Some suggestions relevant to mental health education are made.

Therapeutic rationale, monetary incentive and fear behavior: a methodological note on analogue research

Abstract Analogue research has been questioned as a means of evaluating clinical procedures (e.g. Cooper, Furst and Bridger, 1969). A major criticism has been the failure to include adequate controls. Placebo conditions have varied markedly in their similarity to active treatment procedures (Caputo, Nau and Borkovec, 1973), have not provided equally credible therapeutic rationales (Borkovec and Nau, 1972), and have thus generated differing expectancies and demands for improvement. To evaluate a therapy procedure, a comparison condition is needed in which no treatment intervenes between pre- and post-test measures, yet which provides adequate incentive for improvement. Rimm and Mahoney (1969) used a ‘contingent reinforcement’ placebo condition in which tokens, exchangeable for money, were dispensed for improvement in a graded approach to a feared stimulus. Little improvement occurred, suggesting a lack of effectiveness of money alone in improving approach behavior. However, as no therapeutic rationale was presented, it is likely that little expectancy for improvement occurred. The present study provided a ‘no treatment’ condition in which S s participated in three test sessions with no intervening treatment procedure. Unlike Rimm and Mahoney (1969), two conditions provided a rationale explaining why S s had maintained their fear and why no real therapy was needed to eliminate it. Also, monetary reward (a