Recommendations for Self-Statement Inventories: Use of Valence, End Points, Frequency, and Relative Frequency

Methodological confounds and inconsistencies inevaluations of self-statements hamper exploration ofconceptual issues in cognitive assessment. Although manymeasures incorporate both positives and negatives, there is confusion in reporting; rawfrequencies, difference scores, problematic ratios(positive/negative, negative/positive), andStatesof-Mind (SOM) ratios are all used. Here, weexamine methodological issues in evaluations of valencedself-statements in two studies and formulate empiricallybased guidelines for common usage. Our findings clearlyindicate that (a) valenced thought frequencies and SOM ratios yield different information, (b) in SOMratio calculations, inventory scale end points shouldalways start at 0, (c) if scales do not start at 0,scores can be converted mathematically, and (d) the higher the SOM score, the better theindividual's adaptation on various criterion measures;this includes even extremely positive SOMs (0.91 1).Thus, SOMs are monotonic and can be used in statisticalanalyses without transformation.     

States-of-mind and negative affectivity

Although several studies have assessed the affective characteristics of individuals high in negative affectivity, less research has examined cognitive aspects such as self-statements. The states-of-mind (SOM) model specifies ratios of positive and negative self-statements for varying severity levels of psychological dysfunction. Participants completed measures of negative affectivity, depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms, current mood state, and positive and negative self-statements. Based on Depression scale, Anxiety scale and Negative Affectivity scale scores, participants were divided into five distinct groups: depressed participants, anxious participants, participants high in negative affectivity, depression and anxiety, participants high only on negative affectivity, and normal participants. Results indicated that participants scoring high on measures of negative affectivity, depression, and anxiety had SOM ratios that were significantly lower than all other groups. Depressed, anxious, or participants high only in negative affectivity had significantly lower ratios than normal subjects. The configuration of scores implies an additive model of affective distress and negative cognition. Such a model suggests that depression or anxiety might be related to a decrease in SOM ratios, while the combination of the two affects and negative affectivity appears related to an even further decrease in SOM ratios.     

Effects of cognitive modeling,affect, and contact on attitudes,thoughts, and feelings toward college students with physical disabilities

One goal of the present study was to evaluate cognitive and affective factors which facilitate problem-free interaction between nondisabled and physically disabled college students by (1) exploring variables related to ease with people who have disabilities, and (2) evaluating the consequences of previous contact with disabled persons. A second goal was to explore the effects of four cognitive modeling interventions on thoughts, attitudes, affect, and self-efficacy expectations in relation to interaction with disabled peers. Results for 126 nondisabled college students indicate that lack of ease with persons who have disabilities is an important contributor to interaction difficulties; individuals who felt ill at ease with disabled college students (1) were more likely to anticipate being uncomfortable when interacting with a peer who has a disability, (2) had lower self-efficacy expectations about interacting in various social situations, (3) had more negative attitudes toward disabled persons, (4) expected to have more difficulty working with a disabled peer, and (5) had more negative thoughts about interacting with a disabled classmate. Previous contact with people who have disabilities was related to the frequency of positive thoughts about interaction but had minimal effects on attitudes or affect. Cognitive modeling was found to be ineffective in changing any aspect of these affective, attitudinal, and cognitive factors. The implications of the results for cognitive assessment and for resolving interaction problems between nondisabled and disabled individuals are discussed.

     

Measures of central tendency, variability, and relative standing in nonnormal distributions: alternatives to the mean and standard score

There are two major disadvantages to reporting test results in standardized scores such as z-scores or t-scores when describing individuals with disabilities. (1) Raw scores on many tasks from disabled individuals are notoriously nonnormal. They are asymmetric, in that they are skewed toward poor scores. (2) Low z-scores give a false impression of dysfunction because able-bodied subjects are often grossly overqualified for the application in question; they may have levels of strength or quickness several orders of magnitude greater than what is needed to do the assessment task. A recommended alternative is to describe the performance of disabled individuals using nonparametric statistics, and to report scores in boxplots, showing the extremes, the median, and the quartiles. Such points are easy to calculate and to interpret, and they are robust against outliers.     

Self-Talk in Adolescents: Dimensions, States of Mind, and Psychological Maladjustment

The Spanish version of the Burnett Self-Talk Inventory (BSTI) was used to assess the dimensions of self-statements made in response to imaginary situations in a sample of 856 adolescents (13–17-year-olds). Participants completed both the BSTI and the Youth Self-Report. A series of confirmatory factor analyses showed that a hierarchical structure of self-talk was the most adequate. This model included 2 higher order factors (positive vs. negative self-talk) and 4 first-order factors (self-focused negative cognitions, other-focused negative cognitions, coping self-instructions, and positive cognitions). Likewise, it was evaluated whether positive, negative, or some proportion of positive to negative self-statements (states-of-mind—SOM ratios) would be most predictive of psychological maladjustment. Negative self-talk and SOM ratios showed a greater association with internalizing syndrome than did positive cognitions. Finally, self-talk was minimally related to the externalizing syndrome.     

The International Year of Disabled Persons: a physically handicapped person's retrospective and outlook (author's transl)

Neither in the Federal Republic of Germany has the 1981 International Year of Disabled Persons (IYDP) brought about what quite a few disabled people had expected it to. It could not possibly have done so. The problems of people with disabilities are so complex that one year alone is not enough to make society aware of all of them, not to speak of sensitising the disabled and the able-bodied towards getting on well with one another, to achieve which would improve the life situation of disabled people to an appreciable extent. Yet something good has come about, though perhaps not in terms of "measurable effect", namely an increased consideration for people with disabilities on the part of the able-bodied. And this is essential to the future of the disabled population. Beyond New Year's Eve 1981, it is up to the disabled (and many of them are in a position to do so) to keep alive the many initiatives and issues raised by IYDP, and to see to their continued discussion.     

Self,other, and situation-referent automatic thoughts: Interaction between people who have a physical disability and those who do not

The nature of facilitatory and inhibitory automatic thoughts concerning interaction between able-bodied college students and students who do and who do not have a physical disability was investigated. Both the valence (positive or negative) and the focus of attention of automatic thoughts (on oneself, on the other person, or on the situation) were studied. Thought listings of 115 able-bodied college students concerning interaction with able-bodied students and with those who have a physical disability were coded as positive or negative and as self-, other, or situation-referent. Comfort interacting and self-efficacy beliefs were also assessed. Results indicate that valence and focus of attention are discrete elements that have differential impact on comfort interacting and self-efficacy beliefs. The situational demands of interaction with able-bodied people and with individuals with a physical disability were shown to have a marked impact not only on comfort but also on the patterning of thoughts generated. The findings illustrate the importance of assessing the effects of differing situational demands on automatic thoughts and highlight the need for both a more sophisticated typology for the coding of cognitions as well as for an empirical approach to classifying thoughts as positive or negative. The implications of the findings for the design of cognitive interventions inteneded to make individuals more comfortable interacting with people who have a physical disability are discussed.This study was funded by a grant from Fonds FCAR pour la formation de chercheurs et l'aide à la recherche. Portions of this paper were presented at the 1984 annual convention of the Association for Advancement of Behavior Therapy. Thanks are due to Claudia V. Bourdon, John G. Martos, and Rhonda Amsel for their assistance with various stages of this study.     

Thoughts and feelings: Correlations in two clinical and two nonclinical samples

Research into correlations of thoughts and feelings was extended by asking psychiatric inpatients and outpatients, hospital paraprofessionals, and college students to complete the Situational Self-Statement and Affective State Inventory, which elicits responses to five classes of self-statements and their matching emotional reactions in the context of imagined frustrations. Correlations between “depressed” and “rational” thoughts with their presumed corresponding and noncorresponding feelings were most consistent with prediction, results for “anxious” thoughts least so. Apart from a tendency for paraprofessional subjects to show stronger correlations between “rational” thoughts and noncorresponding feelings than other subjects, there was no systematic group difference in the strength of the ideational/affective correlations, suggesting that research results from students have some generality to clients and patients.     

Ergonomic Building Design for Physically Disabled Young People

This research was undertaken because of difficulties experienced in designing school buildings to be accessible by children and adolescents with physical disabilities. No previous research had produced design data for access to buildings by young people with disabilities. Our hypothesis was that the physical-access needs of disabled young people are not the same as those of disabled adults or able-bodied young people and that their requirements should be defined separately. The young people included in the study were 288 children and adolescents aged 3 to 18 years, including 179 with physical disabilities. Each subject was tested at 30 test stations, where 72 variables were measured relating to mobility, reach, strength, and size. Our findings show that, as expected, the physical capabilities of disabled young people aged 3 to 18 years are significantly lower than the capabilities of disabled adults and able-bodied young people of the same age. Design data are the results achieved by the most able 80% of subjects in each age and disability group. Twenty-one design guidelines are presented that will enable building designers to take into account the needs of young people with physical disabilities. In this study, we have created a body of empirical data for determining the design requirements for access to buildings for young people with physical disabilities. An Australian standard is nearing completion and it is proposed that standards be developed in other countries that will lead to improved access to the built environment for young people with physical disabilities. Further research is recommended into suitable step geometry, speed and distance capabilities on level and inclined surfaces, suitability of adult handrails, wheelchair flexibility, and signage.     

Assessing negative thoughts in response to pain among people with HIV

A growing body of literature suggests that negative thoughts and interpretations in response to pain can significantly increase the suffering associated with the pain experience. As part of an outcome study on a cognitive-behavioral treatment for HIV-related peripheral neuropathic pain, 85 seropositive men and women were administered the inventory of negative thoughts in response to pain (INTRP), a self-report assessment that includes three subscales: negative self-statements, negative social cognitions and self-blame. Pearson product moment correlations coefficients were calculated between INTRP scores and pain and distress ratings. A series of regression analyses were performed to determine predictors of pain and distress. Results demonstrated highly significant associations between the negative self-statements and negative social cognitions and pain intensity. Highly significant associations were also found between negative self-statements, negative social cognitions, self-blame and measures of pain interference, affective symptoms and distress. Additionally, negative cognitions significantly predicted interference in daily functional activities, overall distress and affective symptoms. Future directions for developing and testing cognitive-behavioral treatments for restructuring dysfunctional cognitions are indicated. Finally, internal scale reliability of the INTRP was shown to be moderately high and this study offers construct validity of the INTRP as a useful tool for assessing thoughts in response to pain in people with HIV.     

Perceived social support as a moderator between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities in Israel

Purpose: Perceived social support has gained importance as a significant preventive factor of depressive symptoms and as helpful for rebuilding feelings of self-worth and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities. The current study examined whether perceived social support moderates the association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities in Israel.

Materials and methods: Data were collected by means of structured questionnaires among a convenience sample of 433 people with physical disabilities in Israel and hierarchical multiple regression was performed.

Results and conclusions: The findings reveal that perceived social support has a moderating role in the association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities, such that those with low and moderate levels of perceived social support showed a negative association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being, while those with high levels of perceived social support showed no association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being. Findings are discussed in light of the social model of disability, and practical implications are suggested.

• Implications for Rehabilitation

• A negative association was found between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities with low and moderate levels of perceived social support.

• Professionals working with people with physical disabilities must acknowledge the importance of social support for people with physical disabilities and for their families.

• Professionals working with people with physical disabilities should take a proactive approach to locating disabled people who do not receive or do not have adequate social support and offer them assistance.

• Professionals working with people with physical disabilities should engage in wide social activities aimed at providing resources and opportunities to service beneficiaries.

• Society bears the collective responsibility to act in order to reduce the social problem of discrimination against people with disabilities, as well as to raise public awareness of this issue.

     

Impact of a film portrayal of a police officer with spinal cord injury on attitudes towards disability: a media effects experiment

Abstract

Purpose: The portrayal of disabled people in the media can influence the public’s perception of disability in both positive and negative ways. In this article, an experimental before and after design is used to determine the effects of a short film on the attitudes of non-disabled and disabled persons concerning employment and productivity of persons with disabilities.

Method: Three questions were posed to 480 study participants prior to and following a short film featuring a police officer with paraplegia. Linear mixed models were used to assess the effects of time point and disability status on the responses.

Results: The non-disabled participants’ ratings of eligibility for employment of a paraplegic man and estimates of the employment rate of disabled people were significantly enhanced following the film. Nevertheless, the film had no significant effects on the ratings given by participants with disabilities in terms of eligibility, employment rate or productivity.

Conclusions: This investigation highlights the potentially important influence of media portrayal and coverage of people with disabilities on attitudes of the public concerning disability.

• Implications for Rehabilitation

• Restrictions in participation may result from an interaction of persons with impairments with an environment that is dominated by negative attitudes towards disability

• The portrayal of disabled people in the media can influence the public’s attitudes towards disability in both positive and negative ways

• In this experimental study, attitudes of the general public were significantly improved following viewing a short film featuring a positive media portrayal of a police officer with paraplegia

     

Cognitive mediation of assertive behavior: An analysis of the self-statement patterns of college students, psychiatric patients, and normal adults

College students, psychiatric inpatients, and normal adults served as subjects in a study of cognitive self-statement patterns and their relationship to self-reported assertiveness. Subjects completed a series of behavioral role-plays and responded to a revised version of Schwartz and Gottman's (1976) Assertion Self-Statement Test. Subjects' positive and negative self-statement scores were then examined to test the generality of Schwartz and Gottman's (1976) internal dialogue of conflict explanation of nonassertive behavior. Nonassertive subjects reported a higher frequency of negative self-statements than did assertive subjects, regardless of their psychiatric or student status. Subject sample exerted an additional, but independent, effect on both positive and negative self-statements. Schwartz and Gottman's hypothesis may hold promise for the explication of assertive and nonassertive behavior in clinical populations.Portions of this paper were presented at the Fourteenth Annual Meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, New York, November 1980.     

Determinants of participation in further training among workers with disabilities

Abstract

Purpose: To analyse the determinants of the participation in further training for workers without and with disabilities in Germany. In particular, we are interested in testing the hypothesis that people with disabilities are less likely to receive further training. Method: Using longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel which covers the period 1989 to 2008, we estimate panel data regression models that allow us to identify the factors affecting the likelihood to participate in further training for people without and with disabilities. Results: The results confirm that workers with disabilities are less likely to participate in further training as compared to workers without disabilities (especially among males). In addition, variables such as age, years of education, occupation and firm size have a significant effect on the likelihood to get involved in further training for the disabled sample. We also found that people with disabilities have experienced more intensely the changes and variations in the participation rates over the period analysed compared to people without disabilities. Conclusions: From a public policy perspective, these findings show the importance of designing and implementing specific training programs for people with disabilities, which can contribute to maintaining and increasing their integration in the German labour market.

• Implications for Rehabilitation

• Training and vocational rehabilitation can in many cases be critical to achieve or secure employment.

• A person becoming disabled may, even after completion of the medical rehabilitation process, not be able to continue to work in the previous occupation.

• Rehabilitation specialists must be more involved within the design, provision and implementation of further training. They can also help to identify adaptive equipment and specific training tools that contribute to increasing the participation in further training among the disabled population.

• However, the odds of participating in further training among workers with disabilities is around 17% lower than that registered for their non-disabled counterparts.

     

Cognitive Therapy Abilities in People with Learning Disabilities

Background There is a need to develop and adapt therapies for use with people with learning disabilities who have mental health problems. Aims To examine the performance of people with learning disabilities on two cognitive therapy tasks (emotion recognition and discrimination among thoughts, feelings and behaviours). We hypothesized that cognitive therapy task performance would be significantly correlated with IQ and receptive vocabulary, and that providing a visual cue would improve performance. Method Fifty‐nine people with learning disabilities were assessed on the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI), the British Picture Vocabulary Scale‐II (BPVS‐II), a test of emotion recognition and a task requiring participants to discriminate among thoughts, feelings and behaviours. In the discrimination task, participants were randomly assigned to a visual cue condition or a no‐cue condition. Results There was considerable variability in performance. Emotion recognition was significantly associated with receptive vocabulary, and discriminating among thoughts, feelings and behaviours was significantly associated with vocabulary and IQ. There was no effect of the cue on the discrimination task. Conclusion People with learning disabilities with higher IQs and good receptive vocabulary were more likely to be able to identify different emotions and to discriminate among thoughts, feelings and behaviours. This implies that they may more easily understand the cognitive model. Structured ways of simplifying the concepts used in cognitive therapy and methods of socialization and education in the cognitive model are required to aid participation of people with learning disabilities.     

Evaluating the states of mind model: Comparison to an alternative model and effects of method of cognitive assessment

Two studies were conducted evaluating aspects of the States of Mind (SOM) Model proposed by Schwartz (1986; Schwartz & Garamoni, 1986, 1989) with a sample of social phobic subjects. First, the SOM ratio [positive thoughts/(positive + negative thoughts)] based on a thought listing task was compared to a ratio based on Kendall and Hollon's (1981) “power-of-nonnegative-thinking” model [negative thoughts/(positive +negative +neutral thoughts)], and the relationship of each ratio to criterion measures was assessed. The two ratios were highly correlated and related to several criterion measures, raising questions about the role of neutral thoughts in the internal dialogue. Second, SOM ratios derived from a thought listing task and from the Social Interaction Self-Statement Test (SISST) were compared to assess the reactivity of the SOM ratio and classification scheme to method of cognitive assessment. In that study, large differences were detected. SISST SOMs were less likely to classify subjects in the more pathological SOM categories and more likely to be significantly related to criterion measures. Findings are discussed in the context of the validity of the SOM model and the effects of cognitive assessment methodology on the magnitude of derived self-statement ratios.     

Characterizing disability at the Iganga-Mayuge Demographic Surveillance System (IM-DSS), Uganda

Purpose: There is a need to better measure disability as an outcome to understand the magnitude of the problem and its impact on health and socio-economic status. The aim of this study was to characterize the physical disabilities present at the Iganga-Mayuge Demographic Surveillance Site (IM-DSS) in Uganda. Methods: WHODAS 2.0 was used to examine the consequences of disability on activity limitations and participation in society. One thousand five hundred and fourteen individuals over the age of 18 at the IM-DSS with previously identified physical disabilities were included. Total and domain scores were calculated, and regression analyses examined differences by age, sex, education, occupation and SES. Results: The mean total score was 40.72. Domain 2 – getting around, had the highest mean score (57.21), followed by household activities (55.18). Domains 5.2 (work/school activities) and 6 (participation in society) also had relatively high mean scores – 47.71 and 49.44, respectively. Conclusion: This study serves as an indication of what the major limitations are among individuals in rural Uganda with physical disabilities. In general, individuals with disabilities had the most trouble on getting around, life activities and participation in society. This can guide public health planners and policy-makers on priorities to ameliorate the impact of disabilities in this population.

• Implications for Rehabilitation

• This study found that in general, individuals with disabilities had the most trouble on getting around, life activities and participation in society.

• This can guide public health planners and policy-makers on rehabilitation priorities to ameliorate the impact of disabilities in this population.

• Efforts can be made to develop and implement rehabilitation programs that cater to the needs of vulnerable populations including females and older individuals.

• Programs that focus on education and employment for physically disabled individuals ought to be given priority. These could include legislative changes, and modification of the physical environment, among others.