Late adolescents' perceptions of their relationships with their parents: Relationships among deidealization,autonomy, relatedness,and insecurity and implications for adolescent adjustment and ego identity status

Questionnaire data from 376 undergraduates (mean age=19.3 years) were used to test a model describing interrelationships among deidealization, relatedness, autonomy, and insecurity in late adolescents' relationships with their parents. As expected, deidealization predicted greater autonomy and less relatedness (i.e., more disengagement), greater disengagement predicted greater insecurity, and greater insecurity predicted less autonomy. However, disengagement from parents proved to be a double-edged sword in that it was linked not only to insecurity, but also to feelings of greater separateness and self-directedness in relation, to parents. Additional analyses identified significant associations between the adolescent/parent relationship variables and the adolescents' psychological health and ego identity status.Received her Ph.D. from Yale University. Major interests are in parent/child relationships during late adolescence and young adulthood.Received her B.A. from University of Virginia and M.A. from Michigan State University. Major interests are in adolescent development and pediatric psychology.Received her B.A. from Duke University and M.A. from Michigan State University. Major interests are in adult children of alcoholics and adolescent separation/individuation.     

Extra information about treatment is too much for the patient with psychosis

BackgroundCase law across jurisdictions requires ever more complete disclosure of material facts when obtaining consent to treatment.AimsTo determine whether giving extra information impairs the mental capacity to make decisions about treatment.MethodThe MacCAT-T, MacCAT-FP, PANSS and GAF were administered to 88 detained forensic patients with psychosis. Two positive and two negative facts were given about each of two anti-psychotic drugs, and no treatment (twelve items). A choice was elicited. The criterion for incompetence was inability to express a choice. Two extra positive and two extra negative facts about each of the three options were given (twelve extra items) and a choice was again elicited, while repeating the MacCAT-T.ResultsGiving extra information led to a decline in the total score on the MacCAT-T. Twenty one were initially unable to make a choice (24%). After additional information, 33 were incapable (37.5%, Chi-squared p < 0.001). Those initially incapable had the lowest scores on all measures of functional capacity and GAF, with highest scores for symptoms. Those able to choose a treatment option had the highest levels of function and least symptoms. Those who became incapable had intermediate scores.ConclusionsGiving extra information made an extra 15% unable to choose. Clinical judgement must be exercised concerning the amount of information disclosed. Deciding what is material to the individual is arbitrary when so few items of information can be processed. Greater use of guardianship and independent second opinions is recommended.     

Fiction in Review: The Fictional World of Nina Berberova

Books reviwed in this article:
Nina Berberova, The Ladies from St. Petersburg
Nina Berberova, The Books of Happiness
Nina Berberova, Cape of Storms     

State Government Targeting in Economic Development: The New York Experience

New York State has made extensive use of social, geographic,and sectoral targeting in economic development. It has targetedboth distressed industries, particularly manufacturing, andgrowth industries. When the initial assistance provided to manufacturingin the 1960s did not stem the decline of this sector, the stateresponded by providing larger subsidies. Even though manufacturingcontinued to decline, both absolutely and relatively, supportfor its preferred status has, nevertheless, remained strong,and few of the programs initially aimed at this sector haveseen any sign cant changes in their manufacturing focus. Effortsto target distressed areas and individuals, however, were notsustained over time. The state's two most significant effortsat geographic targeting were expanded statewide over relativelyshort periods of time.     

Religion,liberty and economic development: An empirical investigation

The empirical investigations conducted for this paper show that one can not accept the null hypothesis that religion and liberty are not related to development. Judeo-Christianity in particular appears to an important determinant of economic development. This is explained in part by its fostering of the private ownership of property. Nations with the Judeo-Christian values are more likely to have political democracies that are conductive to economic development. Capitalist economies with Judeo-Christian democracy are more likely to have higher levels of economic development.