Personality characteristics associated with psychological reactance.

This study compared six different personality disorders on level of psychological reactance. Eighty clients met criteria for inclusion in one of six personality disorder groups, including passive-aggressive, dependent, personality disorder NOS (not otherwise specified), no personality disorder, obsessive-compulsive, and borderline. Instruments included the Therapeutic Reactance Scale (TRS) and the Questionnaire for the Measurement of Psychological Reactance (QMPR). Four one-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were conducted on the scales and subscales of the two reactance measures. All four ANOVAs were significant, although post hoc tests indicated significant differences only among the more extreme groups. The personality disorders were generally ordered on reactance level according to predictions derived from the theory of separation-individuation.

Hardiness and social support as moderators of stress.

This study investigated the moderating effect of social support, hardiness, and the components of the hardiness scale of commitment, challenge, and control on the relationship between stress and depression. Hardiness, its components, and support were significantly correlated with scores on the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Hardiness and two components (commitment and control) were significantly correlated with stress. Stress was found to be a significant predictor of depression. Hardiness was shown to moderate the relationship between stress and depression such that high-stress, low-hardiness individuals had higher scores on the BDI than did low-stress, low-hardiness individuals. High-hardiness individuals had similar scores on the BDI regardless of their scores on stress. Support was shown to moderate the relationship between stress and depression such that high-stress, low-support individuals had higher scores on the BDI than did low-stress, low-support individuals. High-support individuals had similar scores on the BDI regardless of their scores on stress. Commitment was shown to moderate the relationship between stress and depression such that high-stress, low-commitment individuals had higher scores on the BDI than did low-stress, low-commitment individuals. High-commitment individuals had similar scores on the BDI regardless of their scores on stress.

The relationship of NEO-PI performance to coping styles, patterns of use, and triggers for use among substance abusers.

We investigated the construct validity of the NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) with a clinical population of 2,676 substance abusers. Scores on the NEO-PI were correlated with self-reported measures of psychopathology as well as patterns of substance abuse, reported coping styles, relapse triggers, and relapse confidence. Substance abusers were more Neurotic and less Agreeable and Conscientious than were the NEO-PI nonclinical normative sample. Within subgroups of substance users, cocaine-only users were more Extroverted and Open than were alcohol-only users. Polysubstance users were the least Agreeable and Conscientious group. Alcohol-only users and polysubstance users scored higher on Neuroticism than did other groups. Personality dimensions related to reported coping styles in meaningful ways. For example, Neuroticism was highly related to escape avoidant coping (r = .53), Agreeableness was negatively related to confrontive coping (r = -.28), and Conscientiousness was related to problem solving (r = -.27) and negatively related to escape avoidance (r = -.29). Neuroticism, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, and Extroversion were associated with reported triggers of use including negative emotional states, social rejection, and tension. Higher levels of Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, and Extroversion were associated with greater confidence in ability to refrain from use, whereas Neuroticism was associated with a corresponding lack of confidence in self-restraint.

Interpretation style and reactance in counselor's social influence.

This study compared two different interpretation styles (tentative and absolute), two levels of subjects' reactance (high and low), and gender on the counselor's social influence, willingness to see the counselor, willingness to help, ability to help, and subjects' anger. No significant main effects or interaction were found for the counselor's social influence, but men in contrast to women perceived the counselor as more willing to help and indicated that they were more willing to see the portrayed counselor. Highly reactant subjects were more willing to see the counselor when absolute interpretations were used; they also thought the counselor was more willing to help when absolute interpretations were used, whereas low reactant subjects thought the counselor was more willing to help when tentative interpretations were used. Mixed results were found for subjects' anger.

Prediction of long-term outcome of multidisciplinary pain treatment.

Seventy-seven patients treated in a multidisciplinary pain program were assessed for treatment outcome according to Roberts' and Reinhardt's criteria, at a one to five-year follow-up. By these criteria, 47% were successes and 53% were not. Fourteen commonly collected demographic variables were then used in a discriminant analysis procedure to predict membership in the successful and unsuccessful groups. Age, compensation, education level, use of psychotropic medications, and number of pain surgeries formed a parsimonious set of predictor variables that correctly categorized more than 70% of the subjects.

Attributional styles of alcoholics.

This study found that alcoholics in treatment differed significantly from nonalcoholics and recovering alcoholics who had completed at least 1 year of sobriety on 2 subscales of the Attributional Style Questionnaire: on the good outcomes-global and good outcomes-stable. Implications for further research and treatment are discussed.

Paradoxical interventions in behavior therapy.

The use of paradoxical interventions in overcoming resistance to behavior therapy is discussed and a categorization and description of paradoxical interventions provided. Two factors are of primary importance in assessing the desirability of using paradoxical interventions: the individual's reactance potential and the perceived freedom of the problematic behavior. Paradoxical interventions themselves can be divided into two categories: compliance-based strategies and defiance-based strategies. Several types of paradoxical interventions are described and their use within therapy discussed, such as symptom prescription, restraining, reframing and utilization techniques. Preliminary research evidence attesting to the usefulness of some of these techniques is discussed.

Matching therapists' predicates: an in vivo test of effectiveness.

The theory of neurolinguistic programming predicts that a therapist's matching of a client's primary representational system, as expressed in the client's predicates, should result in increased therapist's rapport and social influence. This hypothesis was tested in an actual interview situation. Six relatively inexperienced therapists, two each in predicate matching, predicate mismatching, and predicate no-matching conditions, conducted a 30-min. interview with nine undergraduate student volunteers each, for a total of 54 subjects. After the appropriate interview condition was completed, subjects rated ther therapists on the Counselor Rating Form and the Counseling Evaluation Inventory. No significant differences among the three conditions on any of the measures were found. Results are compared with those of previous research on assessment and primary representational matching in analogue situations.

Clients' characteristics as mediating variables in perception of counselors' social influence.

48 clients in a rehabilitation center viewed two 12-min, videotapes each, one depicting a counselor high in social influence and the other one of low influence. They then rated the counselors on the Counselor Rating Form and the Empathy subscale of the Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory. Black subjects and subjects at lower educational levels rated the counselor of low social influence significantly higher than did whites and better educated subjects on all measures. White subjects and subjects at higher educational levels rated the counselor of high social influence significantly higher on Trustworthiness and Empathy than did blacks and less educated subjects. Results are discussed in light of the research on clients' characteristics as mediating variables in the counseling process and outcome.