Relationship between locus of control, self-report and nonobtrusive measures of anxiety

Spatial, object, and affective working memory in social anhedonia: an exploratory study

The domain-specificity of working memory was examined in psychosis-prone individuals with elevated social anhedonia scores. A group of individuals with deviant scores on the revised Social Anhedonia Scale (n=43) were compared with a normal control group (n=39) on delayed match-to-sample tasks involving spatial, identity, and affective information. The social anhedonia group performed less well on the spatial and emotion delayed match-to-sample tasks relative to the normally hedonic group. The two groups did not differ in terms of their performance on the identity delayed match-to-sample task. Although the social anhedonia group reported less positive affect, greater negative affect, and more alexithymic tendencies relative to the control group, there were no significant associations between these personality traits and working memory performance. In summary, the findings suggest that poorer working memory performance is not domain-specific in socially anhedonic individuals. The authors conclude that the socially anhedonic group's relatively poor performance on the emotion delayed match-to-sample task reflects difficulty and/or inefficiency in handling cognitively taxing tasks.

Normative emotion-modulated startle response in individuals at risk for schizophrenia-spectrum disorders

The nature of the affective deficit that characterizes social anhedonia is not well understood. Emotionally evocative visual stimuli were presented to undergraduates identified as anhedonic or normal, based on their scores on the revised Social Anhedonia Scale. The affective stimuli were chosen to elicit positive and negative emotion; a subset of slides were specifically chosen to include social-interpersonal content. In the acoustic startle paradigm, participants were administered startle probes (50-ms 95 dB white noise bursts) while viewing images from the International Affective Picture System. Socially anhedonic individuals did not differ from normally hedonic individuals in terms of their physiological response to the stimuli, regardless of the nature of the content of the stimuli. However, on the self-report measures of trait affectivity, the socially anhedonic individuals reported significantly lower levels of positive affect and higher levels of negative affect. These findings suggest that the affective deficits reported by socially anhedonic individuals are not global in nature.

Control orientation among alcoholics: a cognitive social learning perspective

A cognitive social learning model of the maintenance of problem drinking is presented. Basic constructs involving social skills acquisition, experienced cognitive control and self-efficacy expectations as they relate to alcoholism are discussed. It is concluded that the model provides a useful theoretical framework in which to conceptualize the development, maintenance and treatment of drinking problems. A number of specific suggestions are made for further research which test various hypotheses generated by this model.

Correlates of locus of control among male alcoholics

This study examined the relationship between internal-external control and several psychometric adjustment indices among 162 male alcoholics (mean age = 40.7) in an inpatient state vocational rehabilitation facility. Rotter's I-E scale was used to compare three subgroups of alcoholics (39 Internals, 82 Moderate scorers, and 41 Externals) on the Success-Failure Inventory, the Dogmatism Scale, the Future Outlook Inventory, the Alcadd Test, and the Multiple Affect Adjective Check List. Internal alcoholics were found to be significantly more success-oriented, less dogmatic and more optimistic in future adjustment outlook. I-E subgroup differences on these measures were not dependent on age and IQ variability present between I-E levels. Results suggest that locus of control-adjustment correlates exist within alcoholic as well as within previously studied "normal" samples.

Relationship between psychopathology, experienced control and perceived locus of control: in search of alcoholic subtypes

Alcoholic Ss were categorized into four subtypes based upon differential levels of perceived locus of control and experienced control. The relationship between generalized psychopathology, as measured by the MMPI, and subtype classification was investigated. Alcoholics with an internal locus of control and high levels of experienced control exhibited the least psychopathology. The greatest degree of psychopathology was found among Ss with an external locus of control and minimal levels of experienced control. The implications of these results with respect to psychosocial functioning and drinking behavior among alcoholic subgroups were discussed.

Changes in perceived and experienced control among inpatient alcoholics

The Locus of Control and Experienced Control Scales were administered to 40 alcoholics shortly after admission to a rehabilitation program and again after approximately 6 weeks of treatment. During the course of treatment, the Ss evidenced an overall shift toward a more internal locus of control, an increase in the magnitude and relative degree of control experienced over interpersonal and intrapersonal pressures, and a decrease in the magnitude of control exerted on them by such pressures. The overall increase in the proportionate control experienced appeared to be accounted for by shifts made by those Ss who entered treatment with an initially internal locus of control.

Relationship between generalized expectancies for control and experienced control among alcoholics

The Locus of Control and Experienced Control scales were administered to 89 male alcoholics. Both correlational and difference data suggested an inverse relationship between alcoholics' perceived locus of control and the magnitude of control experienced in social situations. Alcoholics with an internal locus of control experienced a significantly greater magnitude of control over both interpersonal and intrapersonal sources of pressure or stress than did external alcoholics. The implications of these results with respect to psychosocial functioning and drinking behavior among alcoholic subgroups was discussed.

Relationships among locus of control, self-concept, and anxiety

Sixty male alcoholic inpatients were administered the Locus of Control scale (IE), the Activity Preference Questionnaire (APQ), the Manifest Anxiety scale (MAS), and the Tennessee Self Concept scale (TSCS). Ss defined as having an external locus of control appeared significantly more anxious than internal Ss on the MAS; however, no differences were found between groups on the APQ or TSCS scales. The self-report (MAS) and nonobtrusive (APQ) measures of anxiety were not correlated significantly. A differential pattern of correlations was found between the MAS and APQ and TCSC subscale scores. The obtained correlations support the contention that the MAS may measure more accurately a dimension of neuroticism and/or negative self-concept rather than anxiety. Further research appears necessary to investigate the internal consistency and dimensionality of the MAS.