Biomedical subjects

R F Bornstein

Publications and source records attributed to R F Bornstein.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1998

Dependency in the personality disorders: intensity, insight, expression, and defense.

Although dependency-related dynamics play a role in many forms of personality pathology, a review of the literature in this area reveals that individuals with different personality disorders differ with respect to the intensity of underlying dependency needs, their degree of insight regarding these needs, the ways in which dependency needs are expressed in important interpersonal relationships, and characteristic defenses used to modulate underlying dependency needs. Clinical, theoretical, and empirical implications of these findings are discussed, and suggestions for future research on the dependency-personality disorders relationship are offered.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

Depathologizing dependency.

For nearly a century psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals have emphasized the maladaptive, problematic aspects of dependent personality traits. In this article, I review theoretical frameworks that have played a key role in pathologizing dependency, and then describe empirical findings which indicate that dependency is not simply a flaw or deficit in functioning but is also associated with a variety of healthy, adaptive traits, and behaviors. The theoretical, empirical, and clinical implications of depathologizing dependency are discussed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1997

Construct validity of the Rorschach Oral Dependency (ROD) Scale: relationship of ROD scores to WAIS-R scores in a psychiatric inpatient sample.

Three-hundred and two psychiatric inpatients (166 women and 136 men) completed Masling, Rabie, and Blondheim's Rorschach Oral Dependency (ROD) Scale and the Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale Revised (WAIS-R). As predicted, ROD scale scores were unrelated to WAIS-R scores in subjects of either sex. These findings support the discriminant validity of the ROD scale as a measure of interpersonal dependency, and suggest that deficits in intellectual ability do not underlie the dependency-related behaviors (e.g., suggestibility, conformity, interpersonal yielding) that are associated with high scores on the ROD scale. Implications of these findings for research on the dependency-academic performance relationship are discussed, and suggestions for future studies assessing the convergent and discriminant validity of the ROD scale are offered.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Dependency and alexithymia in psychiatric inpatients.

Research has demonstrated that alexithymic persons show a kind of defensive pseudonormality on psychological tests, minimizing problems and refusing to acknowledge psychological symptoms. The present study investigated whether alexithymic individuals are also unwilling to acknowledge the presence of a personality trait that is perceived by most adults as being undesirable (i.e., dependency). A mixed-sex sample of 372 psychiatric inpatients (209 women and 163 men) was screened for level of alexithymia; they completed self-report and projective measures of dependency. As predicted, there were significant negative correlations between alexithymia scores and scores on self-report measures of dependency in subjects of both sexes, but no significant relationships between subjects' alexithymia scores and their scores on the projective dependency measures. Apparently, alexithymic and nonalexithymic persons have comparable underlying dependency needs, but alexithymic persons are unwilling to acknowledge these needs on self-report tests.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Activity, passivity, self-denigration, and self-promotion: toward an interactionist model of interpersonal dependency.

Although dependency in adults is inextricably linked with passivity and submissiveness in the minds of many theoreticians, clinicians, and researchers, evidence has accumulated which suggests that in certain situations, dependency is actually associated with high levels of activity and assertiveness. Three experiments were conducted to test the hypothesis that when a dependent person is concerned primarily with getting along with a peer, he or she will "self-denigrate" (i.e., will utilize strategies that ensure that a peer will be evaluated more positively than he or she is on a laboratory task), but when a dependent person is concerned primarily with pleasing an authority figure, he or she will "self-promote" (i.e., will adopt strategies that increase the likelihood that he or she will be evaluated more positively than a peer on a laboratory task). This hypothesis was supported in all three experiments. Theoretical implications of these findings are discussed, and an interactionist model of interpersonal dependency is briefly described.

Adult↗

PubMed1996

Relationships of objective and projective dependency scores to sex role orientation in college student participants.

Research on the dependency-sex role orientation relationship indicates that when objective dependency measures are used, participants show positive correlations between dependency and femininity scores, and negative correlations between dependency and masculinity scores. In this study, a mixed-sex sample of 87 undergraduates (47 women and 40 men) completed widely used objective and projective measures of dependency, and a self-report measure of sex role orientation. Consistent with previous studies in this area, high objective dependency scores were associated with high femininity scores and low masculinity scores in participants of both sexes. There were no relationships between projective dependency scores and sex role orientation scores in participants of either sex. Findings are discussed in the context of theoretical frameworks that distinguish "implicit" dependency needs from "self-attributed" dependency needs. The role that sex role socialization experiences play in determining participants' willingness to acknowledge dependency-related traits and behaviors on self-report tests is also discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Effects of induced mood states on objective and projective dependency scores.

In two experiments involving a total of 144 participants (72 women and 72 men), we examined the effects of induced mood states on college students' scores on widely used objective and projective measures of dependency. In both experiments, induced mood states significantly influenced participants' scores on the projective dependency test but did not affect their scores on the objective dependency test. Findings are discussed in the context of previous studies comparing objective and projective dependency measures and with respect to theoretical frameworks that distinguish implicit from self-attributed dependency needs.

Adult↗

PubMed1995

Affective discrimination and the implicit learning process.

A modified version of the mere exposure effect paradigm was utilized in an implicit artificial grammar learning task in an attempt to develop a procedure that would be more sensitive in assesing nonconscious learning processes than the methods currently utilized within the field of implicit learning. Subjects were presented with stimuli generated from a finite-state artificial grammar and then had to either (a) decide if novel items conformed to the rule structure of the grammar or (b) rate the degree to which they liked novel items. Because the latter task was the more indirect of the two procedures, subjects' ability to discriminate between well-formed and ill-formed items on this liking task was taken as a more sensitive piece of evidence of implicit learning, compared to performance on the rule conformity task. A subsequent test of subjects' explicit knowledge of the rules of the grammar showed that subjects do have some conscious knowledge of the artificial grammar, but subjects initially making liking decisions exhibited significantly less conscious rule knowledge than subjects initially making rule-conformity judgments. The findings are discussed in relation to the synergistic relationships among implicit perception, implicit memory, and implicit learning processes.

Affect↗

PubMed1995

Active dependency.

Although dependency has long been associated with passivity, weakness, and submissiveness, a review of the empirical literature reveals that, in certain situations and settings, dependent persons actually exhibit a variety of active, assertive behaviors. In this article, I: a) trace the historical roots of the dependency-passivity link; b) review empirical studies from developmental, social, and clinical psychology which indicate that, in certain circumstances, dependency is associated with active, assertive behavior on the part of the dependent person; c) offer an alternative conceptual model of dependency that accounts for the entire range of behaviors-both passive and active-that are exhibited by the dependent person; and d) discuss the diagnostic and therapeutic implications of this alternative conceptual model of dependency.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Adaptive and maladaptive aspects of dependency: an integrative review.

Although dependence in adults has typically been viewed as a flow or deficit in functioning, a review of the literature reveals that high levels of dependency are associated with both positive and negative qualities on the part of the dependent person. Studies confirming this association are discussed, along with the theoretical and practical implications of their findings.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1994

A meta-analysis of fluoxetine outcome in the treatment of depression.

A meta-analysis was conducted on all the double-blind, placebo-controlled efficacy trials of the antidepressant fluoxetine (Prozac). This drug has become the antidepressant most frequently prescribed by psychiatrists and has been hailed by the media as a "wonder drug." Results produced a relatively modest overall effect size that was no greater than effect sizes obtained by previous meta-analyses of tricyclic antidepressants. This study also examined the possibility that bias may have contaminated study outcome ratings. Because past studies suggest that the greater frequency of side effects in active drug groups unblinds study participants, we examined the relationship between study effect sizes and the percentage of patients reporting side effects. As predicted, both clinician and patient outcome ratings correlated significantly with the percentage of patients experiencing side effects. Questions are raised about the role of side effects in mediating drug outcome results.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Retest reliability of scores on objective and projective measures of dependency: relationship to life events and interest interval.

The retest reliabilities of widely used objective and projective measures of dependency were assessed in a mixed-sex sample of undergraduates (54 women and 34 men). Subjects completed Hirschfeld and colleagues' (1977) Interpersonal Dependency Inventory (IDI) and Masling, Rabie, and Blondheim's (1967) Rorschach Oral Dependency (ROD) scale on two occasions separated by 16, 28, or 60 weeks. The IDI and ROD scale showed good retest reliability over 16 weeks in both men and women. However, the ROD scale did not show adequate retest reliability over longer periods in subjects of either sex. IDI scores showed excellent long-term retest reliability in women, but poor long-term retest reliability in men. Subjects' self-reports and impact ratings of life events experienced during the intertest period were unrelated to changes in subjects' IDI and ROD scale scores from Time 1 to Time 2, regardless of the intertest interval used.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1993

Dependency and patienthood.

A review of laboratory and clinical studies of dependency reveals that a dependent personality orientation is associated with several traits that are likely to influence psychotherapy process and outcome (i.e., compliance with rules and authorities, sensitivity to interpersonal cues, and desire for help and support from others). Because empirical studies of dependency have produced highly consistent findings, strong conclusions may be drawn from the converging results of these investigations. After a review of the clinical and experimental literature on dependency, the implications of patient dependency for several areas of patient-related behaviors (i.e., willingness to seek treatment, behavior during psychotherapy, and the dynamics of treatment termination) are discussed.

Dependency, Psychological↗

PubMed1993

Construct validity of a self-report measure of alexithymia in a psychiatric inpatient sample.

This study examined the construct validity of a widely used self-report measure of alexithymia in a mixed-sex sample of 101 psychiatric inpatients (62 women and 39 men). Contrary to expectations, scores on Shipko and Noviello's (1984) alexithymia scale (SNALEX) were: (1) correlated positively with a Rorschach index of verbal productivity; (2) unrelated to a Rorschach index of adaptive use of fantasy; (3) correlated negatively with scores on the MMPI L and K scales and correlated positively with scores on the MMPI F scale; and (4) correlated negatively with subject age. In addition, SNALEX scores were correlated negatively with scores on Klieger and Kinsman's (1980) alexithymia scale (KKALEX) in subjects of both sexes. These results do not support the construct validity of the SNALEX as a measure of alexithymia is psychiatric inpatients.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1993

Implicit perception, implicit memory, and the recovery of unconscious material in psychotherapy.

A review of the empirical literature on implicit perception and implicit memory reveals that Freud's hypotheses regarding free association, transference, and the recovery of unconscious material in therapy were correct in some areas and incorrect in others. Empirical evidence confirms that--as Freud hypothesized--when implicit (i.e., unconscious) perceptions and memories are made explicit (i.e., conscious), individuals are able to make more logical, realistic judgments and inferences regarding those perceptions and memories. However, empirical evidence does not support Freud's contention that free association is a particularly powerful tool for accessing unconscious material. The implications of these findings for psychoanalytic theory and therapy are discussed, and alternative approaches to accessing unconscious material in psychotherapy are described.

Free Association↗

PubMed1993

Sex differences in dependency: a comparison of objective and projective measures.

The relationship between scores on two widely used measures of dependency--one objective and one projective--was examined in a sample of 102 undergraduate subjects (60 women and 42 men). Consistent with previous studies in this area, significant sex differences were found on the objective measure of dependency, with women obtaining higher dependency scores than men. However, as predicted, men and women obtained comparable scores on the projective measure of dependency. Additional analyses confirmed that scores on the objective and projective measures of dependency were significantly intercorrelated in both men and women, although the magnitudes of these correlations were somewhat larger in women than in men. Implications of these results for the assessment of dependent personality traits in research and clinical settings are discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed1992

A meta-analysis of antidepressant outcome under "blinder" conditions.

A meta-analysis of 22 studies of antidepressant outcome assessed the level of medication effects under conditions thought to be less subject to clinician bias than those in the typical double-blind drug trial. Studies were included only if, in addition to a newer antidepressant group, they also contained both standard antidepressant and placebo control groups. Effect sizes were quite modest and approximately one half to one quarter the size of those previously reported under more transparent conditions. Effect sizes that were based on clinician outcome ratings were significantly larger than those that were based on patient ratings. Patient ratings revealed no advantage for antidepressants beyond the placebo effect. Effect sizes were unrelated to sample sex ratios, patient age, inpatient or outpatient status, dosage level, and treatment duration. Findings highlight the fragility of the antidepressant effect.

Antidepressive Agents↗

PubMed1992

Stimulus recognition and the mere exposure effect.

A meta-analysis of research on Zajonc's (1968) mere exposure effect indicated that stimuli perceived without awareness produce substantially larger exposure effects than do stimuli that are consciously perceived (Bornstein, 1989a). However, this finding has not been tested directly in the laboratory. Two experiments were conducted comparing the magnitude of the exposure effect produced by 5-ms (i.e., subliminal) stimuli and stimuli presented for longer durations (i.e., 500 ms). In both experiments, 5-ms stimuli produced significantly larger mere exposure effects than did 500-ms stimuli. These results were obtained for polygon (Experiment 1), Welsh figure (Experiment 2), and photograph stimuli (Experiments 1 and 2). Implications of these findings for theoretical models of the mere exposure effect are discussed.

Adult↗