Physical activity and responses to projective stimuli in neurotic vs. psychotic depression.

Responses to projective material by neurotically and psychotically depressed patients were scored for fluency, movement, and primary process during light physical activity and inactivity. A depression measure was also obtained. Significant positive correlations were found between fluency, movement, and primary process. Movement scores did not increase significantly during physical activity for either group. No significant correlations were found between level of depression and production of movement and primary process. However, primary process, controlled for fluency, increased significantly during physical activity for neurotic, but not for psychotic depressives.

Tourniquet infusion versus hyperthermic perfusion.

The tourniquet infusion method was compared with hyperthermic perfusion in canine limbs by using Adriamycin, actinomycin-D, and melphalan. Tourniquet infusion provided comparable tissue levels with Adriamycin and significantly higher levels with actinomycin-D and melphalan in the treated extremity than hyperthermic perfusion with the same drugs and dosages. Higher systemic leak was observed, more so with melphalan, with the tourniquet infusion method. Tourniquet infusion has caused complete regression of four malignant tumors involving extremities (one malignant melanoma, two Kaposi's sarcomas, one squamous cell carcinoma) and partial greater than 50% regression of nine tumors (three malignant melanomas, three squamous cell carcinomas, one malignant schwannoma, one malignant fibrohistiocytoma, one liposarcoma) followed by excision of residual tumor. Five patients with extremity sarcomas precluding adequate surgical margins were treated preoperatively with the this method. Longer follow-up is needed, as is a larger number of patients for a valid comparison of tourniquet infusion with hyperthermic perfusion.

Verbal productivity and expression of primary process.

The effects of verbal fluency upon the production of primary-process thinking on the Holtzman Inkblot Test as scored by the Holt system were investigated for a group of 49 male university students. Increasing verbal productivity resulted in a significant increase in primary-process scores in both high and low primary-process groups, selected on the basis of a trial of unlimited verbal productivity. In addition there were consistent significant differences in primary-process scores comparing the high and low primary-process groups at different levels of fluency. The importance of considering the level of verbal fluency when using scores from inkblot records in discussed.

Changes in primary process expression in hospitalized schizophrenics treated with phenothiazines: two projective tasks compared.

It was hypothesized that primary process expression on Gottschalk's Five Minute Verbalization Task (FMV) would be more representative of clinical status in schizophrenia than primary process expression on the Rorschach. Ss were 21 males and 15 females, ages 19-41 years, newly admitted to the hospital and treated with phenothiazines. The FMV was administered at predrug, five weeks, and 13 weeks, and the Rorschach at predrug and five weeks. Primary process scoring was according to the Holt system. Clinical improvement was measured by the Lorr IMPS and the Burdock Ward Behavior Scale. Over time, Ss produced less primary process on the FMV (p less than .001), while on the Rorschach scores did not change significantly. The scores on the FMV but not on the Rorschach paralleled some measures of clinical improvement (p less than .05). In a factor analysis, scores on the FMV and Rorschach were related to specific but different symptoms. It was concluded that the FMV was more effective in determining clinical improvement, while the Rorschach was perhaps more valuable in assessing the nature of the primary process thinking.

Profile of perceptual-cognitive traits and personality style of possible relevance to creative productivity.

The amount of illusory movement perceived on the autokinetic test, manifestations of primary process expression on the Rorschach, and creative productivity as measured by the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, were collected from 47 volunteer college students. Those individuals who expressed primary process thinking as blatant affect and the fusion of images, and elaborated on a stimulus pictorially, had extensive movement on the autokinetic test (P less than .05). We further delineated certain personality characteristics of these individuals employing a 26-item bipolar questionnaire. They are among other things, active, striving, assertive, in touch with and free to express emotion, rebellious, incautious, self-determing, productive, motivated to influence others, and excelling in producing objects or ideas which are unique.