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D G Forgays

Publications and source records attributed to D G Forgays.

13 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Alcohol use and personality relationships in U.S. and Polish adolescents.

To obtain information, which could be useful to the design of intervention and prevention programs for adolescent alcohol users and potential users, personality and alcohol use data were collected from over 300 Polish and U.S. 15-year-olds. Thirty percent of these subjects were already drinking on a more or less consistent basis. Users were angry, nonconforming, and impulsive-antisocial persons in both countries. Future research and potential intervention and prevention strategies are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Type A behavior within families: parents and older adolescent children.

Type A behavior has been associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease and occupational stress. However, researchers know very little about the etiology of the Type A behavior pattern (TABP). Relating measures of TABP in the young to comparable measures from their parents and other family members is one way to address the etiological issue. This study is the first in a series which examines the relationship between parent and child TABP using multiple measures for assessing TABP and the same measures in children and their parents. One hundred thirty-eight undergraduate students at the University of Vermont and their parents completed three Type A and two anger measures. The results suggest a cross-gender pattern in which Type A in fathers is related to Type A in their daughters and Type A in mothers is related to Type A in their sons. Anger measures generally agree with this pattern. Methodological difficulties in the field and future directions for research are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Measurement of the Type A behavior pattern in adolescents and young adults: cross-cultural development of AATAB.

This paper reports psychometric development of a new scale, the AATAB, a 19-item questionnaire which attempts to measure the Type A behavior pattern in the adolescent and in the young adult. Initial studies were accomplished with Polish secondary-school students. Test-retest and internal consistency reliability estimates were very adequate, as was concurrent validity. Construct validity information is scant but in the desired direction. Factor analytical studies reveal only a single-factor structure on these adolescent subjects. The AATAB was given to university students of both sexes in Poland, Italy, and the United States. Students from all three countries scored at about the same level and concurrent validity was acceptable. Factor analysis of these data revealed meaningful factors for both sexes across all three cultures. While similar factors were found, the order of them was different by sex and by culture. These results are discussed and further reliability and validity research with the AATAB is outlined.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Smoking behavior and personality characteristics in Polish adolescents.

We report here clear-cut evidence that personality characteristics, at least those measured by the Maudsley Personality Inventory and a semantic differential rating of smokers and nonsmokers, are related to smoking behaviors in 1,000 Polish adolescents. The pattern of relationships replicates well that reported by others based on data collection from other cultures. The use of such findings in intervention and prevention attempts with cigarette smoking or other self-abusive behaviors remains to be evaluated in the future.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Behavioral and physiological responses of stayers and quitters in underwater isolation.

Although the tolerance of subjects (Ss) to sensory isolation has been studied over the past 35 years or so, most attention has been paid to such variables as personality characteristics and less attention to physiological measures related to endurance. Additionally, the more profound isolation environment of water immersion has been much less studied than the quiet room environment. The present study reports, for the first time, physiological data from Ss who underwent short- and long-term water immersion isolation, investigates the accuracy of time estimation, and includes psychological data on these two groups. In this study, Ss who terminated isolation in less than 3 h overestimated elapsed time, tend to be introverted and anxious, and reported substantial hallucinatory activity. Those Ss who terminated after more than 3 h, and closer to 6 h, underestimated elapsed time, tend to be extroverted, and maintained a better orientation to the isolation environment. Physiological indices of the short-termers showed no differences in EKG rate, a more rapid EEG pattern, and a different breathing pattern than did the long-termers. Most of these group differences are consistent with the notion that the short-term Ss were more aroused and felt more anxiety in the isolation environment than did the long term Ss.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Heart-rate response to water-immersion isolation as a function of spatial orientation.

The present study investigates the effect of spatial orientation of the body on heart rate during conditions of water-immersion sensory isolation. Two groups of three men and three women each were exposed to one of two isolation conditions. In one condition the subject was suspended in a buoyant but vertical attitude; in a second condition the subject was suspended in a buoyant but horizontal attitude. Heart-rate data were obtained continuously during each session. There was no significant difference in mean heart rate between the two conditions. The data were interpreted as providing support for the position that studies comparing recumbent subjects in air isolation with underwater subjects in a vertical suspension attitude are valid, at least for some measures, and are not an artifact of spatial bodily orientation. The possible importance of neutral buoyancy in accounting for the nonsignificant effect of body attitude on heart rate is discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Flotation rest as a smoking intervention.

The present study is an attempt to produce smoking cessation or reduction in persons who smoke cigarettes heavily but are motivated to stop. It makes use of the floating environment as an intervention, coupled with messages designed to shape attitudinal change. Subjects were followed up for twelve months post-intervention. Reduction at 12 month follow-up compares favorably with other interventional techniques, and floats of longer duration appear to be a more effective intervention than shorter floats. Messages did not add to effects found. Control subjects reduced their smoking more than the experimental subjects, suggesting that the procedures used on them were actually more effective interventions.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Human sex differences in extreme isolation.

This report compares the responses of male and female adult subjects in the water-immersion sensory-isolation environment. Endurance, subjective time estimates, and heart rate were dependent variables. Duration under water, with voluntary termination possible, was an average of about 4 hr. for both males and females. Subjective estimate of total time in isolation averaged about 3 1/2 hr. for females and almost 4 hr. for males. Subjective time estimate of consecutive 30-min. time intervals was a bit more than 30 min. for males and about 33 min. for females. Mean heart rate (beats/minute) averaged in the 80s for both groups. None of these differences is statistically significant. This study clarifies the mixed findings reported in the literature as to sex differences in isolated environments.

Adult↗