Robert Roessler

Voice predicts affect during psychotherapy.

This study examined the relationship between emotions and the frequency and power characteristics of the voice in psychotherapy. The intensity of fear, anger, depression, and total affect in each of four interviews with one patient was rated every 20 seconds on a nine-point scale. Significant agreement among judges was achieved. Voice samples from each epoch in which there was sufficient speech were subjected to spectral analysis of the frequencies between 0 and 1000 Hz. These spectra were scored for nine frequency and power parameters. Multiple linear regression equations were then developed from two interviews, using the nine voice spectral variables as predictors and the mean ratings for each affect as the criterion variables. Significant multiple correlations were achieved between every rated affect and various combinations of voice variables. The β weights and constants from these equations were then employed in the successful prediction of levels of anger, fear, depression, and total affect in one interview, and the levels of depression and total affect in another interview. In addition, epochs of conflict differed from “pure‘’ affect epochs, and pure epochs of anger, fear, and depression differed from each other in various frequency and power characteristics of the voice. Voice spectral measures may be an objective means of identifying and quantifying affect in psychotherapy

Ego strength and intravenous glucose tolerance

Abstract The intravenous glucose tolerance test, the usual clinical scales of the MMPI plus two anxiety scales, and an ego strength scale were administered to a diagonstically heterogenous group of 24 psychiatric patients. The 24 Ss were divided into two groups of 12 Ss based upon their scores on the ego strength scale. It was hypothesized that the lower ego strength group would have a lower glucose tolerance curve than would the higher ego strength group. Analysis of variance revealed significantly greater blood glucose values in the high Es group. The high Es group also reached maximum values significantly sooner. It was also found that, in addition to a significant correlation between maximum blood glucose difference scores and Es, there were significant correlations between the Sc and Ma scales and Es. To answer the question of whether the ES score was an inverse measure of psychopathology, a step-wise multiple regression equation and multiple correlation coefficients were computed. It was found that only 47 per cent of the variance of Es was related to the best combination of psychological variables from the MMPI. Although the hypothesis tested in this experiment was confirmed, it was concluded that research with additional stimuli, additional physiological variables and additional ego strength measures is indicated.