Hypnotic vs hyperempiric induction procedures: an experimental comparison.

Students bring many misconceptions about psychology to the introductory psychology course. We investigated whether scores on a 10-item Knowledge of Psychology Test (adapted from Vaughan, 1977) taken on the first class day were related to final class grades in 11 introductory psychology classes taught by the same instructor at three colleges. A total of 178 undergraduate students decided whether each of 10 statements referring to common psychology misconceptions was true or false. Overall, 83% of students held 5 or more misconceptions out of 10. We found a significant negative correlation between the number of misconceptions held and class grade. Misconceptions remain prevalent among undergraduates and continue to be predictive of student performance. Learning about the content, causes, and consequences of holding psychology misconceptions may be helpful to students and educators as they embark on an introductory psychology course. ********** Variation in prior knowledge is one factor that influences students' performance in college courses. Although prerequisites increase the degree to which students in upper-level courses share a common knowledge foundation, introductory classes (which rarely have prerequisites) often contain students who vary widely in their prior knowledge of course content. Identifying and addressing variability in prior knowledge may promote more effective study skills among students and better teaching practices among instructors. In this study, we report findings on the relation between undergraduates' pre-course knowledge and subsequent course performance in one of the most popular college courses, introductory psychology. Undergraduates enter the introductory psychology course with many misconceptions about the discipline. Beginning at least as early as the mid-1920s (Nixon, 1925), instructors have noted the prevalence of psychology misconceptions brought to the introductory course (e.g., Brown, 1983; Furnham & Rawles, 1993; Vaughan, 1977). Others have examined the resistance of misconceptions to change (e.g., Best, 1982; Landau & Bavaria, 2003; Standing & Huber, 2003) and the validity of misconceptions (Brown, 1984; Griggs & Ransdell, 1987; Ruble, 1986). A relatively underexplored realm is the association between the extent of misconceived beliefs and course performance. The few studies that have investigated the relation between number of misconceptions held and introductory psychology course performance have yielded mixed results. Valentine (1936) and Gutman (1979) both found that number of misconceptions correlated negatively with introductory psychology course grade (-.37 and -.35, respectively). By contrast, Vaughan (1977) failed to find an overall significant negative correlation between number of misconceptions and course grade in the four classes she studied. Given the age and conflicting results of these studies, we believed it worthwhile to re-examine this issue. Learning about the content, causes, and consequences of holding psychology misconceptions can be helpful to students and educators as they embark on an introductory psychology course (e.g., Smith, 2000, pp. 8-9; Swinkels, Guiliano, & Cardone, 2000, pp. 1.14-1.15). Using a much broader sample of students than any previous study we explored two questions: a) Do today's introductory psychology undergraduates still hold misconceptions about psychology? and b) Are undergraduates' misconceptions related to their subsequent performance in introductory psychology? We predicted that misconceptions would still be prevalent among today's introductory psychology students and that students who began the course with fewer misconceptions would earn higher course grades relative to students who held more misconceptions. Method Participants One hundred and seventy-eight undergraduates from 11 semester-long introductory psychology classes taught at three schools between 2001-2005 participated in this study. …

Background: Instructors and students are on a continuing quest to identify predictors of learning. Objective: This study examines the associations between self-reported exam score and study techniques among students in two courses, Introductory Psychology and Computer Science. Method: We used an online survey to measure the extent students ( N = 249) used 10 techniques studied in cognitive science. We also measured students’ perseverance, metacognitive skill, distractions, and procrastination. Results: Student use of specific study techniques varied between the two courses and a high utility technique, practice testing, was well used. Students reported low levels of spaced practice. Perseverance and metacognitive skills both correlated significantly with many of the study techniques. While no study techniques predicted exam scores in Introductory Psychology beyond variance predicted by GPA, the use of spaced practice predicted a significant portion of variance in students in Computer Science. Conclusions: Students’ use of study techniques varies between their courses and while related to GPA and exam scores, are not unique predictors of variance in learning. Additional moderators and mediators of learning need to be identified. Teaching Implications: We discuss ways instructors can help prepare students in Introductory Psychology and key needs for future research on studying.

Attention is one of the key factors in both hypnotic processes and patients with ADHD. In addition, the brain areas associated with hypnosis and ADHD overlap in many respects. However, the use of hypnosis in ADHD patients has still received only minor attention in research. The main purpose of the present work was to investigate whether hypnosis and hypnotic suggestions influence the performance of adult ADHD (n = 27) and control participants (n = 31) in the continuous performance test (CPT). The hypnotic susceptibility of the participants was measured by the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility (HGSHS:A) and the attentional task was a three minute long auditory version of the CPT. The CPT task was administered four times: before hypnosis (CPT1), after a hypnotic induction (CPT2), after suggestions about speed and accuracy (CPT3), and after the termination of hypnosis (CPT4). The susceptibility of the groups measured by HGSHS:A did not differ. There was a statistically significant decrease in reaction times in both ADHD and control groups between CPT2 and CPT3. The differences between CPT1 and CPT2, even though non-significant, were different in the two groups: in the ADHD group reaction times decreased whereas in the control group they increased. Both groups made very few errors in the short CPT. This study indicates that hypnotic suggestions have an effect on reaction times in the sustained attention task both in adult ADHD patients and control subjects. The theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.

Participants were 131 (69 women, 62 men)students in Introductory Psychology, Social Psychology,and Computer Science courses. Eighty-six percent of thesample was Caucasian. The goals of this study were to assess (a) how accurate students'preexamination expectancies and postexamination gradeevaluations are and whether gender differences in theaccuracy of expectancies and grade evaluations onexaminations exist, (b) whether expected grades predictpostexamination grade evaluations even with actualgrades controlled (self-consistency effect), and (c)whether students' grade expectations and evaluationsbecome more accurate with experience. Throughout thecourse of a semester, students estimated their gradesfor each of their examinations. Students overestimatedtheir grades at all points in the semester, although women in Introductory Psychology overestimatedtheir grades less than men did. Students' expectedgrades were a better predictor of their postexaminationgrade evaluations than were their actual grades. For Introductory Psychology students,expectancies and grade evaluations became more accurateas the semester progressed. The importance of accurateself-perceptions regarding academic performance isdiscussed.

Past studies have investigated the usefulness of hypnosis in pain reduction. Although hypnotic analgesia has been found to be effective, it is generally only those subjects who are highly susceptible to hypnosis who benefit. Some experimenters have found that even low-susceptible subjects can use hypnotic analgesia, if the hypnotic induction uses indirect rather than direct hypnotic suggestions. In the present study, high- and low-susceptible subjects were tested for analgesia using either direct or indirect hypnotic suggestion on pain in a cold pressor task. Findings suggest that high susceptibles experience greater pain reduction than do low susceptibles. However, no significant differences were found between the pain reduction in the direct versus the indirect hypnotic suggestion groups. Possible explanations for this lack of differences are discussed.

The present study examines the usefulness of hypnosis in the control of acute pain in thermal and electrically burned patients as an adjunctive analgesic during the routine care of burn wounds. It was hypothesized that the use of hypnosis would lead to significant reductions in the amount of drugs needed as compared to patients using medication only. Anxiety and discomfort associated with daily tanking, debridement, and dressing changes were expected to be reduced because of the introduction of hypnotic procedures. The experimental study also examined the variables of age and percent of burns. Two studies were conducted including patients with 0–30% total body burns and 31–60% burns. A variety of hypnotic techniques were used. Both studies revealed significantly lower percentages of medication used (p < .01) by the hypnotic groups than control groups. The 7–18-year-old patients used significantly less medication (p < .05) than the adult groups. The implications of the findings, and usefulness of hypnosis and ego strengthening techniques for improvement of self-confidence and improved body image were considered.

The effects of authoritarian, anti-authoritarian, and egalitarian legal attitudes on verdicts by simulated jurors and juries were investigated. 360 undergraduate students in introductory psychology were classified as authoritarian, anti-authoritarian, or egalitarian in their legal attitudes on the basis of responses to the Legal Attitudes Questionnaire. An equal number (120) of each juror type was selected. They were grouped into six-person homogeneous mock juries and asked to render an individual decision prior to deliberation, an individual post-deliberation verdict, and a group decision. Prior to deliberation the authoritarian student jurors responded more punitively toward a defendant to whom they were similar. The deliberation process exerted a moderating influence, and the egalitarian student jurors were especially susceptible to this influence. Finally similarity to the defendant was the most salient factor in determining the decision, and student juries were significantly more punitive toward a defendant who was similar to them in race and socio-economic status.

The Allport-Vernon-Lindzey Study of Values and the Brown Modification of the Thouless Test of Religious Orthodoxy were administered to 120 male and female students in introductory psychology. Measures of anxiety, self-esteem, authoritarianism, and humanitarianism were also administered to the Ss in an effort to determine whether the two measures of religiosity would yield different personality and attitude profiles of the "religious" individual. A significant positive correlation was found between authoritarianism and the Thouless Test and between humanitarianism and the Study of Values religious measure. All other correlations involving the two measures of religiosity were found to be nonsignificant. These findings lend support to the notion that using two divergent measures of religiosity does result in the formation of different profiles of the "religious" individual.

This article describes a writing component for an introductory psychology course and reports its effects on students' writing skills. During the semester, each student wrote about 3,000 words in response to questions on weekly essay tests. Test questions were drawn from a larger set handed out in advance, permitting students to organize, write, and revise trial answers before the test. Essays were graded for content and writing skill. Two variations of this format are reported and evaluated for their impact on students' writing skills over the semester. The more successful program restricted essay questions to four rhetorical forms students encounter in freshman composition classes and graded the essays for orderly presentation of ideas.

The present investigation was conducted to assess the public personalities of two presidential candidates—George Bush and Michael Dukakis. Subjects were 693 students in introductory psychology and marketing courses at Southeastern Massachusetts University, the Community College of Rhode Island, and Bryant College in Rhode Island. Perceptions were obtained through administration of the Activity Vector Analysis (AVA), a checklist of 87 behaviorally descriptive adjectives used primarily in self-concept analysis in business and industry. Two identical clusters were observed in subjects' perceptions of Bush and Dukakis (AVA Pattern Shape 6419). Candidates were viewed unfavorably with respect to a factor that measures foresight and planning ability. Neither Bush nor Dukakis was viewed to possess the latent ability to manifest a very high level of moral responsibility towards others. Leadership qualities were likewise not suggested.

Summa7y.-The effects of stem orientation (positively stated stem or negatively stated) and completeness (closed or complete stem and incomplete stem) of multiple-choice items on difficulty and discrimination, were studied experimentally employing 142 senior students in education (82 women and GO men). Incomplete versus complete stems increased item difficulty but had no effect on discrimination. Stem orientation had no effect on either difficulty or discrimination. The implications of the results are discussed. Several general characteristics of multiple-choice items are generally regarded (4, 5) to influence the difficulty and discrimination of the item. These include the number of alternatives, the number of correct responses, the use of inclusive alternatives (e.g., all of the above), the completeness of the stem (e.g., a complete question or an incomplete phrase), and the orientation of the stem (i.e., positive or negative). There is little empirical evidence ro support such assumptions. Some studies have indicated that item difficulty and discrimination are affected by the number of alternatives for an item (a), the number of correct responses (2, lo), and the use of inclusive alternatives (6). Similarly, other researchers have studied the effects of stem completeness and orientation but with equivocal results. Dudycha and Carpenter (I), employing 1,124 students in introductory psychology, manipulated a number of characteristics of multiple-choice items and found that open-stem items are more difficult than closed-stem items but that item discriminations were unaffected by stem format. Earlier however, Durn and Goldstein (3) did not observe any systematic effects of stem completeness. Meanwhile, Gronlund (4) advocated a closed-stern format based on the assumption that confusion and ambiguity will be minimized when the problem is presented complete in the stem. An open stem apparently makes the problem more difficult to comprehend than a dosed one. Since evidence is contradictory, stem completeness was included as an independent variable in the present study. The second independent variable in the present study was item orientation, i.e., positive or negative. Generally negative items are more difficult

The present investigation was conducted to assess the public personalities of two presidential candidates—George Bush and Michael Dukakis. Subjects were 693 students in introductory psychology and marketing courses at Southeastern Massachusetts University, the Community College of Rhode Island, and Bryant College in Rhode Island. Perceptions were obtained through administration of the Activity Vector Analysis (AVA), a checklist of 87 behaviorally descriptive adjectives used primarily in self-concept analysis in business and industry. Two identical clusters were observed in subjects' perceptions of Bush and Dukakis (AVA Pattern Shape 6419). Candidates were viewed unfavorably with respect to a factor that measures foresight and planning ability. Neither Bush nor Dukakis was viewed to possess the latent ability to manifest a very high level of moral responsibility towards others. Leadership qualities were likewise not suggested.

It was hypothesized that contingently reinforcing subjects' self-disclosure with an experimenter's self-disclosure would be more effective for promoting self-disclosure than having the experimenter model self-disclosure. No evidence from the 64 male students in introductory psychology was obtained to support the hypothesis that contingent reinforcement would promote self-disclosure more than modeling. Modeling and noncontingent self-disclosure were equally effective for promoting self-disclosure. This provides further evidence for the robustness of the reciprocity effect regarding self-disclosure. An important factor in regard to promoting self-disclosure from another person might be the spontaneity with which one self-discloses to that person. The assumption that a self-disclosure from another person is a reinforcement is questioned.

Background Research suggests growth mindset interventions can support student achievement, particularly among students at risk of academic struggle, but it remains underspecified which at-risk populations will benefit from such interventions. Objectives This study aimed to experimentally evaluate whether highly (vs. moderately or minimally) nontraditional community college students would benefit from a growth mindset intervention and whether their performance differed at baseline and after the intervention. Method A sample of 155 students in introductory psychology at a 2-year community college was randomly assigned to complete a growth mindset or control intervention, and all participants completed an extensive background survey. Results Results showed improved exam performance among highly nontraditional students in the mindset (vs. control) condition but no benefit among other students. Highly nontraditional students showed similar pre-intervention performance to peers, but their exam scores declined more over the semester than did control peers. Conclusion Growth mindset interventions may offer a low-cost strategy for supporting nontraditional community college students at risk of a downward performance trajectory. Teaching Implications Instructors can use easily administered mindset interventions to support at-risk students’ academic performance. They may also wish to evaluate the performance-related messages they convey to students and work to create a growth-oriented classroom environment.

165 students in introductory psychology were administered a modified TAT task scored for Fear of Failure using procedures developed by Birney, et al., in 1969. Significant differences in scores on Fear of Failure were reported between students in two-parent homes and those from father-absent homes. Differences in Fear of Failure scores were largest between intact families and those families where the father had died and next largest between intact families and father-absence due to divorce or separation, with greater effect of father's absence on the lives of boys than of girls.