Richard F. Booth

An Examination of College GPA, Composite Act Scores, IQs, and Gender in Relation to Loneliness of College Students

This study examined the relationship for 57 college students of levels of loneliness with several cognitive-academic measures. Gender differences were found in loneliness, composite ACT scores, and a measure of intelligence. Hypotheses relative to cognitive-academic measures were not supported statistically. Some trends in the data are discussed.

Correlates and Implications of Continued Participation in a Longitudinal Survey

Summary A three-level gradient of participation in a repeated-measures survey was established. Comparisons were made to determine whether degree of participation was related to aptitude, prior schooling experiences, arrest history, personality characteristics, and survey responses of 784 enlisted men and women students at the Naval School of Health Sciences, San Diego. Ss who responded to all three administrations of the survey instrument had higher General Classification Test (verbal aptitude) and Arithmetic Reasoning Test (arithmetic aptitude) scores, had completed more years of schooling with fewer suspensions or expulsions from school, and had higher social conformity scores on the Comrey Personality Scales than Ss who did not continue participating. Responses to successive administrations of the Work Environment Scale (WES) were related to the degree of participation on two of the 10 subscales, but the differences, while statistically significant, were of little practical importance. Overall, the ind...

Predictors of psychiatric illness among navy hospital corpsmen

Evaluated Recruit Temperament Survey (RTS) responses and aptitude test scores as potential predictors of psychiatric illness among 1,082 Navy hospital corpsmen. Twenty-six RTS items discriminated significantly between those corpsmen who became psychiatric casualties during a 4-year criterion period and those who did not; these items appeared to assess a construct of preservice personal and vocational adjustment. Scores on the aptitude measure were unrelated to illness incidence. The validity of the discriminating RTS items taken in combination for predicting psychiatric hospitalization among corpsmen was .28 with a cross-validity of .22. Implications of these findings for the use of measures such as the RTS in psychiatric screening were discussed.

Non-Cognitive Variables Related to Performance in Navy “A” Schools

15 items from a background information questionnaire, administered to 7,929 students at the beginning of an occupational training program, were used as predictors of performance in 9 Navy “A” schools. The sample of students within each specialty was divided into validation and cross-validation subsamples; basis for this division was the criterion of 8 successive levels of final grade average or disenrollment from school. Although the multiple regression composite consisted of different variables for each specialty, the most significant predictors included: level of schooling prior to enlistment, choosing the specialty by oneself, being knowledgeable about work done in that rating group, and responding that the assignment was congruent with ones abilities and interests. In addition to increasing the multiple correlations in these subgrouping analyses, these non-cognitive variables would probably be quite useful for classification and recruiting personnel.

A Short-Term Peer Model for Treating Shyness in College Students: A Note on an Exploratory Study

Two groups of 3 shy college students and 4 in a control group, were not different at pretest but one group given treatment involving several activities with feedback showed a decrement in shyness. Larger groups and further use of peer counselors should be included in further work.

Reliability and Stability of the Comrey Personality Scales

Split-half and retest reliabilities were computed on Comrey Personality Scales administered to 153 Navy Hospital Corpsmen on two occasions separated by about 5 mo. Corrected split-half reliabilities for the 8 personality trait scales were between .66 and .94, with an average of .87, on the first administration and between .68 and .94, with an average of .85, on the second administration. Retest reliabilities for these eight scales were between .59 and .74, with an average of .66. t tests comparing scale means for each administration yielded significant differences on seven of the eight personality trait scales, the Validity Check scale, and the Response Bias scale. On all of these scales, except the Validity Check, the first administration means were higher than the second administration means.

Changes in Attitudes and Characteristics of Marine Recruits during the 1960S

Comparative analyses were computed upon 14 attitude items and 8 biographical characteristics of 3 samples of recruits who had entered Marine Corps basic training in 1961, 1967, and 1969. Results indicated that of the 3 samples, the 1961 sample had the most favorable attitudes toward aspects of the Marine Corps, whereas the recruits from the 1967 sample had the least favorable attitudes. The average recruit from the 1961 sample was characterized as being younger, less well educated, and more likely to be unmarried than the average recruit from either the 1967 or 1969 sample. In comparing the samples from 1967 and 1969, the average recruit from 1967 was more intelligent, had attained a higher level of education, and was more likely to be unmarried than the average recruit from 1969. For each of the three samples, scores on the General Classification Test were significantly related to 4 of the 14 attitude items and level of education attained was related to one item. Seven of the attitude items became significantly more favorable during training for the 1969 sample, whereas three of the items became significantly more favorable for the 1967 sample. The results suggested that the training program should provide an opportunity for recruits, and especially the better educated, more intelligent recruit, to experience a greater sense of well-being and personal commitment toward the military.