The InterPsych Newsletter 1(1)
Volume 1, Issue 1 (ISSN Reg. Pending) May,1994
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Contents
--------
1. The Purpose of This Newsletter (line 35:1)
2. Personal Contacts - How You Can Help (line 67:1)
3. Extensions to Facilities - Graphics, FTP, Preprints (line 265:1)
4. Citation and Respect for Copyright (line 392:1)
5. Articles: (line 522:1)
5.1 David DiLalla on 'assessment'
5.2 Thomas Joiner on 'depression'
5.3 Juan Carlos Garelli on 'attachment'
5.4 Greg Berns on Neural Networks and Psychiatry
5.5 Amber Robey on the BPD and psycho-
pharmacology 'mini-discussions'
5.6 John Rathbun on False Memories Syndrome
6. Submissions from InterPsych subscribers (line 1059:1)
6.1 Ivan Goldberg on PsyComNet
7. Readers' Letters (line 1151:1)
8. Standards Required for Submissions to Discussions (line 1162:1)
9. Calls for Research Collaborators (line 1261:1)
10. Job Advertisements (line 1269:1)
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SECTION 1: THE PURPOSE OF THIS NEWSLETTER
-----------------------------------------
1. The InterPsych Newsletter is posted to the psychiatry-superlist in
order that all of those who are members of attachment, traumatic-
stress, helplessness, psychiatry-assessment, depression, psychiatry-
resources, and psychiatry will receive just one copy, no matter how
many of the sub-groups they belong to; this will lend some cohesion to
the "family" as a whole. We want everyone to be aware that they do
belong to a wider forum.
2. It will enable discussion of topics not strictly falling within
the remit of any of the SIGs (special interest groups). We don't
really want discussion about software, copyright etc on the
individual groups.
3. It is a way of ensuring that subscribers realize that their views
are being taken account of.
4. It will be an excellent medium to enable subscribers to express
their vision of the future development of InterPsych, and
suggestions as to how such development can be achieved.
5. It can act as a bridge between the SIGs and the various
disciplines they cover and thereby help to promote inter-disciplinary
collaboration on research. This was the original thinking behind the
setting up of 'psychiatry'.
6. it will be a superb medium by which to express our excitement and
enthusiasm for the potential of the Internet.
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SECTION 2: HOW YOU CAN HELP INTERPSYCH
--------------------------------------
**********
INTERPSYCH
**********
The Board of Directors has decided to rename this group of lists
'InterPsych'. Would you like to become the representative of
InterPsych at your university/college/hospital? We have a promotional
leaflet for you to download in Microsoft Word 5 format for the PC. It
will then be your responsibility to approach academics, clinicians,
and students at your site to encourage new members to join, and to
enthuse about the potential of the Internet in general, and of
InterPsych in particular, and to liaise with the Board about local
developments, conferences, research projects, job vacancies, and
anything else of general interest to the membership.
Register your interest now!
**********************************************************************
I would like to be InterPsych representative for this site:
Name:
Institution:
Position:
e-mail:
Address:
**********************************************************************
Return to Ian Pitchford (I.Pitchford@Sheffield.ac.uk)
**********************************************************************
M A I L B A S E A N D I N T E R P S Y C H
Mailbase is an electronic information service which allows
groups to manage their own discussion topics (Mailbase lists)
and associated files.
The Mailbase service is run as part of the JANET (Joint
Academic NETwork) Networked Information Services Project
(NISP) based at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the
United Kingdom.
InterPsych is a non-profit making, voluntary organization,
established on Mailbase with the aim of promoting international
scholarly collaboration on inter-disciplinary research efforts in the
field of psychopathology.
The network has over 1000 members throughout the world,
including many leading academics, research scientists, and clinical
practitioners.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
sub-lists in this group:
attachment
This list welcomes discussion on Bowlby-Ainsworth's theory of
attachment. From theoretical and philosophical issues, to clinical
or applied issues. Particular emphasis is given to socio-affective
and defensive processes, and unconscious representations.
To join send the message: join attachment firstname lastname
To: mailbase@mailbase.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
transcultural-psychology
Discussion of the delivery of mental health services to diverse
cultures. Topics may include, cultural differences in views on
mental disorders, culture-specific syndromes, collaboration
between Western and traditional healers, and cultural variance
in symptoms.
To join send the message: join transcultural-psychology firstname
lastname
To: mailbase@mailbase.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
psychiatry-resources
This list is intended for those who wish to co-operate in the
compilation of a resource guide to enable clinicians and academics
in the areas of psychiatry and abnormal psychology to gain
maximum benefit from the facilities available over the Internet.
To join send the message: join psychiatry-resources firstname
lastname
To: mailbase@mailbase.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
psychiatry
Many research findings and viewpoints in psychiatry are
controversial, leaving a gulf between those pursuing radically
different approaches to mental illness. This forum will act as a
bridge between those taking a biomedical approach and those
taking a psychodynamic, existential or beahaviourist approach.
To join send the message: join psychiatry firstname lastname
To: mailbase@mailbase.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
depression
This forum exists for scholarly discussion of issues related
to mood disorders in clinical and research settings. Integrative
biological-psychological contributions are particularly welcome.
Topics include causation, correlates, consequences, co-morbidity,
treatment/prevention, etc.
To join send the message: join depression firstname lastname
To: mailbase@mailbase.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
helplessness
Learned Helplessness and Explanatory Style was created to discuss
the latest research on animals and humans, biological substratum,
depression, anxiety, prevention, CAVE, politics, children, personal
control, health, battering, bereavement, PTSD, sex differences,
pessimism, work, heritability.
To join send the message: join helplessness firstname lastname
To: mailbase@mailbase.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
traumatic-stress
This list promotes the investigation, assessment, and treatment
of the immediate and long-term psychosocial, biophysiological,
and existential consequences of highly stressful (traumatic)
events. Of special interest are efforts to identify a cure of
PTSD (Post-traumatic Stress Disorder)
To join send the message: join traumatic-stress firstname lastname
To: mailbase@mailbase.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
psychiatry-assessment
This sublist focusses on research and clinical issues related
to use of psychological tests (including traditional clinical
instruments & normal personality measures) in psychiatry and
clinical psychology.
To join send the message: join psychiatry-assessment firstname
lastname
To: mailbase@mailbase.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
*********************************
THE INTERPSYCH BOARD OF DIRECTORS
*********************************
The promotion and preservation of academic standards on
InterPsych is the responsibility of the Board.The current
members are:
Charles Figley, PhD Chair, Professor of
Psychosocial Stress,
Florida State University.
Martin E.P.Seligman, PhD Professor of Psychology,
University of Pennsylvania
Edward Wakeman D.Phil Student, University of
Oxford.
Thomas Joiner, PhD Assistant Professor of
Psychiatry, University of Texas.
David DiLalla, PhD Assistant Professor of
Psychology, Southern Illinois
University at Carbondale.
Edward Workman, EdD, MD Assistant Professor of
Psychiatry, University of Virginia.
Greg Berns, MD, PhD Psychiatry Resident, University of
Pittsburgh.
Kirk Zimbelman, PhD Clinical Psychologist, South
Dakota Human Services Center.
Ian Pitchford Neuroscience Student, Department of
Biomedical Science, University of
Sheffield, Founder and co-ordinator
of InterPsych.
InterPsych exists to provide a forum for scholarly and clinical
discussion of all aspects of psychopathy. Individuals doing
research, scholarship, or clinical work within this domain,
broadly construed, are welcome. Faculty, graduate students,
and undergraduate researchers are especially invited.
The motto of InterPsych is 'There is someone wiser than
any of us, and that is all of us.' Our hope is that, at the least,
this forum will be entertaining and informative; at most,
it may be a breeding ground for conceptual and theoretical
innovation, and for establishment of cross-site, inter-
disciplinary, empirical collaboration.
All comments and suggestions to:
Ian Pitchford (I.Pitchford@Sheffield.ac.uk)
UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD
The Mailbase International forum for the discussion and promotion of
inter-disciplinary research in psychopathology.
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SECTION 3: EXTENSIONS TO FACILITIES
-----------------------------------
---------------------------------------------
UNDER CONSTRUCTION: GRAPHICS CAPABILITIES
---------------------------------------------
We are currently developing a protocol by which individuals who
wish to include graphics along with their posts to the PSYCHIATRY
lists may do so with as much ease as possible.
Our goal is to make the procedure as fast and simple as possible
for both uploading users and downloading users. To this end,
rather than post ascii-encoded versions of graphics directly to
the lists (a procedure that will increase disk space requirements
substantially), we are planning a system by which individuals will
send and receive binary graphic files via anonymous FTP to the
MAILBASE computer.
Under the proposed system, individuals wishing to include a
graphic will upload it to a specified directory via FTP and
include a "pointer" to the file within their post to the list.
Users desiring to have a copy of the graphic will download it to
their own mainframe accounts via FTP. Depending on your mainframe
system, the file may then need to be transferred to a personal
computer for viewing.
The only difficult part in all of this is arriving at a "standard"
graphic format for use by the PSYCHIATRY Lists. The consensus of
the Academic Advisory Board is to avoid proprietary graphic
formats (e.g., Harvard Graphics, Corel) in favor of a general
format that can be read by most commercial and shareware graphics
viewers. For those without current access to the relevant graphics
programs, we will also include for download one or more shareware
graphics programs that will do the job.
At the present time, we are leaning toward the GIF format. Such
files will tend to be larger than some other available formats
(e.g., JPG), but it appears that GIFs can currently be read by a
wider variety of graphic programs.
Final decisions regarding formats have not yet been made, and
feedback from subscribers is welcome. In particular, users of MAC
platforms (or other major platforms) are urged to provide some
feedback regarding the best way to make files available to other-
than-IBM users (hopefully, without double posting of file
formats).
When everything is ready to go, a message will be posted to the
PSYCHIATRY-SUPERLIST and a USERS.DOC will be made available from
Mailbase.
Comments or questions can be directed to David DiLalla at:
GA3977@SIUCVMB.SIU.EDU
----------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------
Archives, FTP and Gopher
------------------------
By: Gordon Reid, Sobell Department of Neurophysiology,
Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
- - -
skgbgr1@ucl.ac.uk | tel +44 71 837 3611 ext 4186
greid@ion.bpmf.ac.uk | fax +44 71 813 3107
Group Archives
--------------
All the items posted to traumatic-stress (and the other lists) are
archived by Mailbase, and are accessible to members and non-members
of all PsychNet lists. This means that when you join, you can catch up
on past discussions easily. It also means that it is a very public
forum.
Anything sent to the group can be read by anyone.
Apart from using the Mailbase e-mail commands (see your Mailbase
User Card for details) there are several other facilities - FTP
(file retrieval), the Mailbase On-Line Service, the Mailbase Gopher
Service and the Mailbase World Wide Web Server - which allow you to
get access to the traumatic-stress archives.
How to use the Mailbase Gopher
------------------------------
The Mailbase Gopher is very convenient since it is menu-driven. You
probably have the Gopher software on your home system - ask your
system admin people - or if not, you can use a public Gopher by
telnet. The closest public Gopher to Mailbase is at Bradford. To
use it type:
telnet info.brad.ac.uk
and when you are prompted "Login: " type:
info
No password is necessary.
Look for a menu item called "Other information services" (or similar;
they vary slightly between different Gophers), then find the list of
"UK Gopher Servers" (this may not be on the next menu on your system,
but it should be easy to find). Choose the Mailbase Gopher. It will
offer you its lists in alphabetical order; look for "traumatic-stress"
(you can of course look at the archives of any Mailbase group this
way).
You are next offered the publicly available information. "Other files"
contains the introduction and register of interests. "Mail archives"
contains the postings to the group, one file for each month. After you
look at a document, you will be asked if you want it to be sent by
e-mail to you.
More About Gophers
------------------
If you haven't encountered Gophers yet, you might like to explore the
other menu items, and also try searching for information with VERONICA
(Very Easy Rodent-Oriented Net-wide Index to Computer Archives; look
on your menu, or if your Gopher doesn't have VERONICA, try the
Bradford one). There's a goldmine of information there waiting to be
found. Just burrow around. For more on Gophers and other Internet
tools,look in books like "The Whole Internet User Guide and Catalog"
by Ed Krol, and "The Internet For Dummies" (widely available).
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
SECTION 4: CITATION AND RESPECT FOR COPYRIGHT
---------------------------------------------
Over the past few weeks, a number of individuals have
expressed opinions regarding the legal / copyright
status of material posted to the network. I have
attempted to summarize some of the major themes and,
along the way, suggest a few ideas / guidelines that
could be incorporated into the text file that
accompanies one's subscription to the -assessment list.
Feedback about these suggestions will be welcome.
COPYRIGHT: It appears from a legal perspective that
copyright resides with the copyright owner regardless
of whether the information is posted to the 'net, but
that the onus of responsibility for enforcing copyright
also falls on the owner.
PUBLIC VS. PUBLIC DOMAIN: A distinction was drawn
between information that is posted to the 'net (and
hence, Public) with the understanding that the posting
individual retains rights to the material AND
information that is posted to the net with the
understanding anyone may use it in any way (Public
Domain). Again, the onus of protecting one's rights
falls on the posting individual -- perhaps a difficult
task...
A number of individuals stressed the importance of
including explicit statements regarding the author's
intention of how the material can be used. For example,
if an author does not wish for posted information to be
re-posted elswhere without permission, this should be
explicitly stated. Likewise, if the posting individual
wishes for information to be referenced in a particular
way (e.g., submitted manuscript, unpublished raw data)
this could be noted explicitly.
CITATION OF POSTED INFORMATION: Related to the above
issues is that of how one should acknowledge (for
example, in a journal article) a finding or idea
communicated by another individual via the 'net. There
seems to be some agreement that such citation is
appropriate, but the technology seems to be ahead of
the "rules" as embodied, e.g. in the publication manual
of the APA.
For ideas communicated via a message posted to a mail-
list, it appears that a citation of "Personal
Communication" is currently most appropriate, although
Dr. Milton Strauss, incoming editor of _Journal of
Abnormal Psychology_ has noted that these are more
"impersonal" communications given that they may lack
the collaborative quality of a personal interaction /
communication with a colleague.
Posted summaries of one's previously published (or in-
press) work seemingly cause no problem and should be
cited as such.
Posted summaries of one's work in progress could be
cited in one of at least three ways: 1) Unpublished
manuscript; 2) Manuscript submitted for publication; 3)
Unpublished raw data from study.
Again, any feedback about this summary of forgoing
discussion would be welcome.
Prof. David DiLalla
GA3977@SIUCVMB.SIU.EDU
---------------------------------------------------------------------
The following was sent to Ian Pitchford in response to an query
regarding legal copyright status of electronic communication.
(it is included here with Dr. Birds' permission!)
)From Professor John Birds, Head of Department of Law,
University of Sheffield:
Basically copyright resides automatically in the author, and
strictly it does not matter whether it is expressly claimed or not.
So certainly within the UK there is no problem at all (apart from
the usual potential one of detecting and proving an infringement -
but that can exist if something is on paper as well as in electronic
form). So while the information sent via any e-mail system becomes
public, the author has the right to stop anyone else copying it. I
will confess that the problem may be more acute if e-mail is sent
outside this jurisdiction, although I believe that international
conventions should protect the author's copyright - it is just that
the problems of detection and enforcement are multiplied.
Professor John Birds.
The following, is also relevant to concerns re copyright.
==========================================================
Subject: Copyright
------------------
)From JRA:
---------
I am an editor, NOT a lawyer, but this question seems to raise three
issues: copyright, public, and public domain. Assuming your SIG is
available to anyone interested in joining, anything you post will
definitely become public. It would be foolish to share important
secrets on the Internet. Copyrighted materials are made PUBLIC when
they are published with a copyright notice, but that doesn't make
them public domain. Many copyrighted documents are available from
Compuserve, and are identified with a copyright notice at the
beginning. A document clearly identified as copyrighted with a strong
notice at the beginning shouldn't be considered PUBLIC DOMAIN just
because it is PUBLIC. Don't post copyrighted material unless you
own the right or have written permission from the copyright owner.
Be sure to begin with a copyright notice and a strong warning
to readers. Unfortunately, some of us here in the United States have
noticed that there is a large group of citizens who don't think laws
apply to them. In order for a copyright to work, the owner must be
prepared to enforce his or her rights. My point here is that even if
your research is protected by law, you must be prepared for the fact
that some people break laws. As to how such work should be cited, be
sure to include the author, date of posting or publishing (which
should be in the copyright notice), and exactly where you found the
document. Again, I am not an attorney, so you should check with an
attorney before accepting my opinions as fact.
John Ashcraft
Editor, NERDC, University of Florida
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SECTION 5: ARTICLES
-------------------
5.1 Dr David DiLalla on 'Psychiatry-Assessment'
---------------------------------------------------
PSYCHIATRY-ASSESSMENT
---------------------
As of this writing, -Assessment has 131 members and has been
steadily growing since its debut in mid-April. Traffic to date
has been relatively light, focussing on clinical applications of
the Five Factor Model (FFM) of Personality and more generally on
issues of intellectual property / copyright / scholarly citation
of network material. As with any discussion list, as the core
number of "active posters" grows, traffic on the list will
increase.
It is hoped that -Assessment will provide a forum for scholarly
discussion of a broad range of topics related to research and
clinical applications of psychological testing. Discussion of
current research findings would be particularly desirable. List
members are encouraged to initiate discussion threads by posting
messages to the list that will stimulate further discourse on
particular topics. Alternatively, suggestions for potential
discussion could be forwarded to the list operators by sending
mail to PSYCHIATRY-ASSESSMENT-REQUEST@MAILBASE.AC.UK.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
5.2 Dr Thomas Joiner on 'Depression'
----------------------------------------
The Depression SIG is now up and running, with a substantial
number of members and and a reasonable amount of participation.
Topics have included: 1) measurement/screening of depression with
brief rating scales; 2) depressive personality disorder; 3) the
relation between depression and learning disabilities in children and
adolescents; 4) interpersonal aspects of depression. Requests have
been made for discussion of bipolar disorder. Also,to date, the list
has been psychologically-oriented; those with expertise in the biology
of depression are encouraged to participate. Treatment/prevention
issues have also been under-represented. Everyone, whatever their
orientation,is encouraged to share recent research or thoughts with
the group, as a way to stimulate discussion and introduce themselves.
*************************************************
Thomas Joiner, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
tjoiner@beach.utmb.edu
phone: 409-772-2419
fax: 409-772-2885
*************************************************
----------------------------------------------------------------------
5.3 Dr Juan Carlos Garelli on 'Attachment'
----------------------------------------------
The Theory of Attachment has increasingly been unfolding in a
conspicuously psychoanalysis-related way. However, it should be
remembered that it emerged as an alternative to pscyhoanalysis as
regards the understanding of the development and vicissitudes of
man's socio-emotional life, either in health or ill-health.
Bowlby decided to concentrate his efforts on an undebatable issue:
mother-child separation. Systematic observation of distress brought
about in children by separation from mother paved the way for the
initial steps towards the discovery of attachment, a genetically
preprogrammed behaviour selected "for" by Darwin's process of natural
selection with a heavy support of analogous studies in ethology, the
biological study of animal behaviour. Attachment turned out to be seen
as a set of proximity-seeking behaviours which made offspring acquire
differential survival fitness, as against solitary offspring, on
account of their reducing mortality risk before reproductive age. Put
in ethological terms, a juvenile phenotype vehicle prone to engage in
social interactions with a closely related adult - i.e., mother- has a
higher chance to reach reproductive age and hence perpetuate the
replication of its genes, thus giving these proximity- seeking
behaviours a reproductive edge.
Seen in this light, attachment claims to be only an aspect of human
personality development, it is only one of a number of social
behaviours that are described in the contemporary available literature
-sexual behaviour, another kind of social behaviour, is an example of
the large repertoire of behaviours that still remain to be thoroughly
studied. In other words, we are still a long way away from learning
the very basics of human personality development. Moreover, it is
particularly in this sense that the theory of attachment should prove
a reliable model for future developments linking human personality
research to modern science and the unended quest for a scientific
psychology, that is, a theory whose conclusions are apt to be
either proved or disproved.
It would be a major achievement if psychologists devoted their
efforts to field observations and multidisciplinary work, which proved
so fertile in Bowlby's and Ainsworth's contributions.
Attachment Research Center E-mail:
attach@psy1.satlink.net
Dr. Juan Carlos Garelli Tel.: +54-1 812 5521
Juncal 1966, 6B, Fax: +54-1 812 5432
1116 Buenos Aires, Argentina
----------------------------------------------------------------------
5.4 Dr Greg Berns on Neural Networks and Psychiatry
-------------------------------------------------------
NEURAL NETWORKS AND PSYCHIATRY
Gregory S. Berns, MD/PhD
greg@salk.edu
Summary: This article briefly describes neural networks and some
recent applications to understand psychiatric disease.
What is a neural network?
-------------------------
The term neural network has come to describe a large class of
computational techniques loosely based on the idea of parallel
processing. The brain processes information massively in parallel,
that is, billions of operations occur simultaneously throughout the
brain, which collectively form our conscious and unconscious thought
processes as well as implement motor actions, regulate the autonomic
system, etc. This is in stark contrast to computer programs, which
typically implement operations one after another, that is serially.
The idea of neural networks is to approach problems more like the
brain does, and in so doing, gain some understanding of how
the brain actually works.
In a generic neural network, one constructs a set of simulated
neurons, typically in computer memory. Each neuron can contact, or
form synapses, with any other neuron. Each neuron receives many
inputs, and depending on the properties assigned to it, does some type
of simple transformation of the inputs, and sends this result to all
the other neurons with which it has synapses. The difficult part is
deciding upon the physical architecture of how to set up the
interconnections so that the network can do something interesting.
Fortunately, there are ways to loosely set up a design and allow
the network to learn. By learning, I mean modifying connections
based on experience. This is presumably what the brain does at some
level.
A typical application, although in actuality quite complicated, would
be to learn faces. The real brain has no difficulty recognizing
faces, even though one never sees a face in exactly the same
orientation or configuration. One way to simulate this is to take a
bunch of images of faces from different angles and with different
expressions and let a network learn. So with digital images, each
image is actually composed of several thousand picture elements
(pixels), each of which could represent a single neuron, say
either in the retina or visual cortex. One could have another layer
of neurons with which the first layer makes synapses. This second
layer could then project to yet a third layer, probably much smaller,
in which the neurons would encode high order features, perhaps
noseness, eyeness, etc. Some combination of features should uniquely
identify each face. The network would learn by presenting it with
many images and telling it who each face belonged to, and
allowing the network to modify synapses so that ultimately, when
presented with an image, it would identify the person. This is an
example of supervised learning -- it is taught the identification of
each face by a supervisor (eg the programmer). This is probably not
how the brain actually works because one part of the brain can't teach
another part if no part has learned it in the first place. So there
are other types of network algorithms that use unsupervised
learning. These often depend on detailed anatomical and
physiological information about the real brain.
Psychiatric Applications
------------------------
There have been few attempts in applying neural network techniques to
psychiatric illness. Not surprisingly, most of the models that have
been proposed have been aimed at the Holy Grail of psychiatry:
schizophrenia. Ralph Hoffman used an early type of neural net, called
a Hopfield net, that can store something like memories. Although it
is a decidedly nonphysiological model of memory, it does have the
ability to reconstruct previously seen patterns from only fragments of
them. Hoffman used this model to store several image patterns, and
then pruned away synapses. He based this idea on the finding of
hypofrontality in schizophrenia, reasoning that that there is a loss
of neurons in the frontal lobes. In the model he found that
overpruning of synapses led to fragmentation of the memory patterns,
so rather than reconstructing an original pattern when given a piece
of it, the network gave fragments of several patterns. He also found
that parasitic foci developed if the model was severely pruned.
These parasitic foci were seen as patches in the network that
repeatedly showed the same pattern of activity, yet this activity was
not part of any pattern that was originally presented. He interpreted
these foci as areas of cortex, that in essence, have a mind of their
own (not his words). Although this is a very seductive idea,
the Hopfield net is a very poor model of how the brain works and at
the neuron level, runs counter to most physiological data.
Cohen and Servan-Schreiber proposed a slightly more realistic model,
one which modeled the effect of a real neurotransmitter -- dopamine.
Their basic hypothesis is that one function of dopamine in the brain
is to increase the gain of neurons. Increasing the gain simply
means enhancing the ability of a neuron to separate a real signal from
noise. They modeled schizophrenia as a dopamine deficit and trained a
network on a version of the Continuous Performance Test (CPT). The
CPT requires a person to identify a specific symbol within a
continuous stream of other symbols. After training a network
on this task, and then decreasing the gain of the individual neurons,
they found that the network made errors similar to those seen in
schizophrenia. Although this is a somewhat more physiological model of
the brain than Hoffman's, it still relied on a supervised method of
learning, which one is hard-pressed to find in the brain.
Nevertheless, the Cohen/Servan-Schreiber model is consistent with a
large body of data regarding the function of dopamine and its role in
schizophrenia.
Future Directions
-----------------
There is presently an explosion of information about the brain at all
levels from genes to behavior. We are learning a great deal about
both the very small parts of the brain, neurons, and the very large
parts, behavior. How is one to bridge the gulf between what an
individual neuron does and what the brain does? Computer modeling may
provide a means to this understanding. There are now detailed models
of how collections of hundreds of neurons behave, how parts of the
thalamus work, how visual images are processed, all of which would be
impossible without computer simulation. There are even silicon
neurons and silicon retinas. I predict that as we learn more of the
detailed workings of the brain, the computer will become the only way
in which to join all the pieces together. Does this mean the end of
psychotherapy as biological psychiatry asserts its dominance?
Definitely not. As has become abundantly clear, the physical structure
of the brain is modifiable by experience. As this process of synaptic
change becomes better understood, it should be possible to design
sensory stimuli that specifically target certain areas of the brain.
It may be that psychotherapy, in the form of words, images, sounds,
etc will become a far more specific way of altering neurotransmitters
than our present pharmacopoeia.
References
----------
Cohen JD and Servan-Schreiber D: Context, cortex, and dopamine: a
connectionist approach to behavior and biology in schizophrenia.
Psychol Rev 99:45-77, 1992.
Cohen JD and Servan-Schreiber D: A theory of dopamine function and
its role in cognitive deficits in schizophrenia. Schiz Bull 19:85-
104, 1993.
Churchland PS and Sejnowski TJ: The Computational Brain. MIT Press,
Cambridge, 1992.
Crick F: The Astonishing Hypothesis. The Scientific Search for the
Soul. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1994.
Crick F and Mitchison G: REM sleep and neural nets. J Mind & Behav
7:229[99]-250[120], 1986.
Dehaene S and Changeux JP: The Wisconsin card sorting test:
theoretical analysis and modeling in a neuronal network. Cerebral
Cortex 1:62- 79, 1991.
Hoffman RE and Dobscha SK: Cortical pruning and the development of
schizophrenia: a computer model. Schiz Bull 15:477-490, 1989.
Hoffman RE and McGlashan TH: Parallel distributed processing and the
emergence of schizophrenic symptoms. Schiz Bull 19:119-140, 1993.
Weinberger DR: A connectionist approach to the prefrontal cortex. J
Neuropsych 5:241-253, 1993.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
5.5 Amber Robey on 'BPD' and 'Psychopharmacology'
-----------------------------------------------------
I would like to make list members aware that there are currently
two very interesting discussion groups existing in the Psychiatry
forum. The first is the Borderline Personality Disorder
Discussion groups where all facets of this diagnosis are examined
and discussed, including inpatient care, Emergency Room
treatment, suicidal and self-harming behaviours etcetera.
This group is open to any interested persons...questions are welcome.
The facilitator of this group is Amber Robey, a research
associate at the University of Calgary.
The Psychopharmacology Discussion involves the discussion of
different drugs, and their administration. Different disorders are
discussed in the context of types of drugs used for specific
behavioural concerns. This group is facilitated by Ivan Goldberg M.D.
and co-facilitated by Amber Robey.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
5.6 Dr John Rathbun on False Memories Syndrome
--------------------------------------------------
With regard to "False Memories Syndrome", we've had a vigorous
discussion of that issue here on CompuServe Medsig 16. I'll append a
file I uploaded on the subject:
I want to share with you some excerpts from a recent lecture on
recovered memories by Richard J. Lawlor, J.D. Ph.D., a forensic
psychologist at the Riley Child Psychiatry Center of the Indiana
University Medical Center. Dr.Lawlor claims considerable experience
giving expert testimony in this area. His remarks seemed informed,
temperate, and well-balanced. A considerable bibliography was made
available, which I plan to upload as soon as it has been digitized.
The following are my summarizations of Dr. Lawlor's key points. I
believe I have fairly represented his position, but he has not
reviewed or approved my summary.
1. Little accurate memory can be recovered from children before age 3.
Children aged 3 - 4 years can remember about two-thirds as well as
adults, but suggestions from adults degrade their memories remarkably.
By age 5 - 6, children's memories are more resistant to confusion.
More intelligent children tend to have more reliable memory function.
2. In general, the earliest and most spontaneous reports of a given
incident are the most credible. Later reports and those elicited by
repeated questioning are likely to be progressively unreliable.
3. Simply questioning children repeatedly about an incident that
didn't happen leads to elaborate false memories in a large percentage
of children.
4. Young children do tell incredibly detailed false stories.
5. "Repression" is a useful concept in clinical settings but has no
acceptable basis in scientific research that would justify its use in
forensic settings.
6. There are no reliable criteria for discriminating accuracy of
memories, other than corroboration by other witnesses or by physical
evidence. The criteria commonly used by therapists to discriminate
false memories from true ones have been demonstrated to be ineffective
in controlled experiments.
7. Hypnosis increases the inaccuracy of memories. Any use of hypnosis
in a forensic matter makes subsequent testimony valueless.
8. It doesn't pay to investigate ambiguous statements by children.
Unambiguous and spontaneous accusations by children should always be
promptly reported to the authorities. Treat any such child as you
would a crime scene: don't mess about with the evidence.
9. The next hot topic in this area will be Parental Alienation
Syndrome. This situation is alleged to arise when a child and the
custodial parent conspire to defame a non-custodial parent. Negative
attitudes toward the non-custodial parent by the custodial parent and
isolation of the child from the non-custodial parent are prerequisites
of this phenomenon.
10. Therapists who encourage their patients to take action against
alleged perpetrators based on memories recovered during therapy put
themselves in serious jeopardy in the current legal climate.
I'm not in a position to comment on the validity of Dr. Lawlor's
opinions, but would be interested to hear what others think of them.
His use of the word "repression" in this context was the one area in
which I disagreed with him. I believe the term was introduced in the
context of an ego defense against id impulses unacceptable to the
superego, often leading to the formation of a "screen memory" that
simultaneously gratifies the forbidden wish while projecting the
responsibility. For example, it may be more comfortable to recall "my
father raped me" than "I wanted to take my mother's place in father's
affections". "Dissociation", by contrast, is proposed as a mechanism
for the active forgetting of actual trauma: "My father raped me but
that's too painful to remember now." Thus, repression leads to
remembering what didn't happen and dissociation leads to forgetting
what did happen. The problem with this distinction in practical terms
is that we first have to know what really happened before we can
decide whether a given case of memory distortion represents repression
or dissociation. According to Dr. Lawlor (and my own experience has
largely confirmed this) it may be downright impossible in any
individual case to determine what really happened. And if it's
impossible in many individual cases, then anybody who claims that a
whole class of memories afflicting hundreds of patients is always
either true or false would seem to be in a precarious position.
In my view, an important dilemma remains for the therapist interested
in treating cases where dissociation is an issue. The bottom line
appears to be that we often CAN'T KNOW what happened, so we have to
support the patient's attempt at self-exploration and discourage
premature attempts at closure, however badly we and the patient might
yearn for this.
REPRESSED MEMORIES
Bottoms, B.L., Shaver, P.R., & Goodman, G.S. (1991, August).
Profile of Ritualistic and Relation-Related Abuse Allegation
Reported to Clinical Psychologists in the United States. Paper
presented at the 99th Annual Convention of the American
Psychological Association, San Francisco.
Briere, J. (1992). Studying Delayed Memories of Childhood
Sexual Abuse. The Advisor (Publication of the American
Professional Society on the Abuse of Children), 5, 17-18.
Howe, M.L., & Courage, M.L. (1993). On Resolving the enigma
of Infantile Amnesia. Psychological Bulletin, 113, 305-327.
Loftus, E.F. & Coan, D. (in press). The construction of
Childhood Memories. In D. Peters (Ed.) The Child Witness in
Context: Cognitive, Social and Legal Perspectives. New York:
Kluwer.
Loftus, E. F., Polonsky, S., & Fullilove, M.T. (1993).
Memories of Childhood Abuse: Remembering and Repressing.
Unpublished manuscript, University of Washington and Columbia
University School of Public Health.
FALSE ALLEGATIONS AND SUGGESTED MEMORIES
Gardner, R.A. (1991). Sex Abuse Hysteria: Salem Witch Trials
Revisited. Cresskill, N.J.: Creative Therapeutics.
Gardner, R.A. (1992). The Parental Alienation Syndrome: A
Guide for Mental Health and Legal Professionals. Cresskill, N.J.:
Creative Therapeutics.
Gardner, R.A. (1992). True and False Accusations of Child Sex
Abuse. Cresskill, N.J.: Creative Therapeutics.
REFERENCES
Binet, A. (1900). La Suggestibilite. Paris: Schleicher Frers.
Dale, P.S., Loftus, E.F., & Rathbun, L. (1978). The Influence of
the Form of the Question on the Eye Witness Testimony of Preschool
Children. Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, 7, 269-277.
Davidson, D. (1991, April) Children's Recognitions and Recall
Memory for Typical and Atypical Actions in Script-Based Stories.
Paper resented at the Biannual Meeting of the Society for Research
in Child Development, Seattle, WA.
Doris, J. (1991) The Suggestibility of Children's Recollections.
Washington, D.C.; American Psychological Association.
Ervin-Tripp, S. (1978). "Wait for Me, Rollerskate!" in S. Ervin-
Tripp & C. Mitchell-Kernan (Eds.), Child Discourse (pp. 165-188).
San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Flavell, J.H., Flavell, E., & Green, F.L. (1987). Young Children's
Knowledge About the Apparent-Real and Pretend-Real Distinctions.
Developmental Psychology, 23, 816-822.
Freud, S. (1966). New Introductory Lectures on Psychoanalysis. In
J. Strachey (Ed. and Trans.), The Standard Edition of the Complete
Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud (Vol. 15-16). London: Hogarth
Press. (Original work published 1933).
Garbarino, J., & Stott, F.M. (1989) What Children Can Tell Us. San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Gardner, R. (1985), Recent Trends in Divorce and Custody
Litigation. Academy Forum (a publication of the American Academy
of Psychoanalysis), 29 (2): 3-7.
Gardner, R. (1987). The Parental Alienation Syndrome and the
Differentiation Between Fabricated and Genuine Child Sex Abuse.
Cresskill, N.J.: Creative Therapeutics.
Gardner, R. (1992). The Parental Alienation Syndrome: A Guide for
Mental Health and Legal Professionals. Cresskill, N.J.: Creative
Therapeutics.
Garvey, C. (1984). Children's Talk. Cambridge, N.A.: Harvard
University Press.
Goodman, G.S., Harschman, J.E., Hepps, D., & Rudy, L. (1991).
Children's Memory for Stressful Events. Merrell Palmer Quarterly,
37, 109-158.
Harris, P., Brown, E., Marriott, C., Whittall, S., & Harmer, S.
(1991). Monsters, Ghosts and Witches: Testing the Limits of
Fantasy-Reality Distinction in Young Children. British Journal of
Developmental Psychology, 9, 105-123.
Haugard, J., & Repucci, N.D., (1992). Children and the Truth. In
S. J. Ceci, M. Leichtman, & M. Putnick (Eds.), Social and Cognitive
Factors in Early Deception. (pp.29-46). Hillsdale, N.J.:
Earlbaum.
Hudson, J., & Nelson, K. (1986). Repeated Encounters of a Similar
Kind: Effects of Familiarity on Children's Autobiography Memory.
Cognitive Development, 1, 253-271.
Hughes, M. & Grieve, R. (1980). On Asking Children Bizarre
Questions. First Language, 1, 149-160.
Hurlock, E. (1930). Suggestibility in Children. Journal of
Genetic Psychology, 37, 59-74.
Kramer, T., Buckhout, R., Fox, P., Widman, E., & Tusche, B. (1991).
Effects of Stress Cognitive Psychology, 5, 483-488.
Lawlor, R.J. (1993). Child Custody and Visitation: a psychological
perspective and review of the research literature. In: Family Law:
An In-Depth Analysis of Selected Issues. Proceedings of the
Conference, Indianapolis, Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum.
Leekam, S. (1992). Believing and Deceiving: Steps to Becoming a
Good Liar. In S.J. Ceci, M. Leichtman, & Putnik (Eds.), Social and
Cognitive Factors in Early Deception. (pp. 47-62). Hillsdale,
N.J.: Earlbum.
Linton, M. (1982). Transformation of Memory in Everyday Life. In
U. Neisser (Ed.), Memory Observed: Remembering in Natural Contexts
(pp. 77-91). New York: W.H. Freeman.
Lipmann, O. (1911). Pedagogical Psychology of Report. Journal of
Educational Psychology, 2, 253-261.
McCloskey, M.M. & Zaragoza, M. (1985). Misleading Post Event
Information and Memory for Events: Arguments and Evidence Against
the Memory Impairment Hypothesis. Journal of Experimental
Psychology: General, 114, 1-16.
Nelson, K., & Gruendel, J. (1979). At Morning It's Lunch Time: A
scriptal view of children's dialogues. Discourse Processes,2, 73-
94.
Peters, D.P. (1991a). The Influence of Stress and Arousal on the
Child Witness. In J.L. Doris (Ed.) The Suggestibility of
Children's Recollections (pp. 60-76). Washington, D.C.: American
Psychological Association.
Peters, D.P. (1991b). Commentary: Response to
Goodman. In J.L. Doris (Ed.), The suggestibility of Children's
Recollections (pp.86-91). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological
Association.
Rudy, L.L. & Goodman, G.S. (1991). Effects of Participation on
Children's Reports: Implications for Children's Testimony.
Developmental Psychology, 27, 527-538.
Siegel, M., Waters, L., & Dinwiddy, L. (1988). Misleading
Children: Causal Attributions for Inconsistency Under Repeated
Questioning. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 45, 438-
456.
Dr. John Rathbun (73162.3513@CompuServe.Com)
--------------------------------------------
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
SECTION 6: SUBMISSIONS FROM INTERPSYCH SUBSCRIBERS
--------------------------------------------------
This section will be reserved for anyone wishing to submit an article
either on the Internet and its potential, or on any matter relevant to
the sub-groups of InterPsych which requires a more considered, in
depth treatment.
Submissions should be sent to Ian Pitchford
(I.Pitchford@Sheffield.ac.uk)
6.1 Dr Ivan Goldberg on PsyComNet
-------------------------------------
Eight years ago I founded an organization known as PsyComNet. Since
then, PsyComNet has been holding been holding three real-time
interactive on-line conferences each week. On Tuesdays and Thursdays
we have clinically oriented conferences on psychotherapy,
psychopharmacology, child and adolescent psychopathology, and
neuropsychology. Sunday nights we meetfor Staff Lounge an informal
gathering of members with no agenda. At the present time PsyComNet
uses the facilities of GEnie, a telecommunications servicer that in
many ways parallels Compuserve. Attached is our May schedule so you
can get some idea of our activities.
If you ever think that InterPsych will be getting into real-time
conferencing using the IRC facilities of Internet, I would be
interested in helping to establish this activity.
Ivan Goldberg, MD (ikg@phantom.com)
N.Y. Psychopharmacologic Inst.
1346 Lexington Ave. NYC 10128
Voice: +1 212 876-7800 Fax: +1 212 737-0473
P s y C o m N e t
-----------------
M a y 9 4
------------
Sunday May 1 Staff Lounge: Stop in for some good
conversation.
Tuesday May 3 Evidence Based Medicine:
Willie Yee
Validity of the diagnosis of adult A.D.D.
Thursday May 5 Psychopharmacology / Biological Psychiatry:
Ivan Goldberg
Pharmacotherapy of personality disorders
Sunday May 8 Staff Lounge: Stop in for some good
conversation.
Tuesday May 10 Psychotherapy:
Vance Fitzgerald
Do men and women respond similarly to cognitive-
behavior therapy
Thursday May 12 Neuropsychology:
Larry Jasper
Neuropsychiatry of frontal lobe syndromes
Sunday May 15 Staff Lounge: Stop in for some good
conversation.
Tuesday May 17 Child / Adolescent Psychopathology:
Joe Nieder
Methamphetamine in child psychiatry.
Thursday May 19 Psychopharmacology / Biological Psychiatry:
Ivan Goldberg
Pharmacotherapy of personality disorders.
Sunday May 22 Staff Lounge: Stop in for some good
conversation.
Tuesday May 24 Psychotherapy:
Vance Fitzgerald
Do men and women respond similarly to cognitive-
behavior therapy.
Thursday May 26 Neuropsychology:
Larry Jasper
Frontal lobe syndromes.
Sunday May 29 Staff Lounge: Stop in for some good
conversation.
Tuesday May 31 TO BE ANNOUNCED.
Conferences start at 9:00 PM Eastern Time in Room 2 of GEnie's Medical
RoundTable.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
SECTION 7: READERS' LETTERS
---------------------------
InterPsych subscribers are cordially invited to send their comments
and suggestions for inclusion in this section. Letters should be
addressed to Ian Pitchford (I.Pitchford@Sheffield.ac.uk)
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
SECTION 8: STANDARDS REQUIRED FOR SUBMISSIONS TO DISCUSSIONS
------------------------------------------------------------
Wherever possible submissions to the InterPsych should address
specific hypotheses and the supporting research evidence. Normal
standards of academic citation are expected. This section is the
InterPsych guide to citing references which, although it contains only
routine information already familiar to all of you, should constantly
be born in mind when composing your contribution(s):
A Guide to Citing References:
-----------------------------
The process of citing references consists of two interrelated parts:
a). CITING - the way a writer refers from the text to the
sources used (i.e. the reference)
b). REFERENCING - a bibliographic description of each source.
Put simply, this means a consistent description of the
elements needed to identify a source, such as author,
title, publisher, date etc.
There are two internationally recognized citation/reference systems -
name and date system (also known as the Harvard System) and the
Numeric system.
We recommend the Harvard system because it is easy to use.
Why Bother to Cite References?
------------------------------
1. To acknowledge debts to other writers.
2. To demonstrate the body of knowledge upon which your research is
based.
3. To enable all those who read your work to locate your sources
easily.
The Harvard System
------------------
This is the most straightforward way of citing references, because
all you need to do is mention the author and date of publication:
e.g. Jones (1961), Andrews (1982)
The person reading your submission can then easily locate the full
description of the item you have cited by going to the alphabetical
list of references (or bibliography) you have provided at the end.
Points to Note
--------------
You may need to cite more than one work by the same author published
in the same year. These can be identified by addding letters after
dates e.g. Jones (1961a) Jones (1961b).
If you are giving exact quotations for other works you should
identify the page numbers e.g. Jones (1961, p.28).
COPYRIGHT David Fisher, The Nottingham Trent University, 1993
REFERENCES (Kindly supplied by Syvia Caras (syviac@netcom.com)
--------------------------------------------------------------
TITLE: Electronic style : a guide to citing electronic
information
AUTHOR: Li, Xia, 1964-
Crane, Nancy.
PUBL.: Westport : Meckler,
DATE: 1993
SUBJECT: Bibliographical citations
Data bases--Bibliography--Methodology.
Writing
Databases, Bibliographic
Databases, Factual
Online Systems
Bibliography--standards
ISBN: 088736909X (acid free paper) :
RID #: ocm28547031 (This is not a call number)
CONTENTS: Includes bibliographical references (p. 56) and index.
Organization and use of this guide -- Full-text
databases:
individual works, books, monographs or full-length
works --
Full-text databases: periodicals -- Full-text
databases:
other sources -- Bibliographic databases --
Electronic
conferences (Interest Groups) or bulletin board
services
(BBS) -- Electronic mail (personal) -- Computer
programs --
Reference citations in text -- Basic availability
statements
for commonly used electronic information sources.
FORMAT: xi, 65 p. ; 23 cm.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
SECTION 9: CALLS FOR RESEARCH COLLABORATORS
-------------------------------------------
This section is reserved for requests from those seeking
collaborators on research projects. All submissions should be sent to
Ian Pitchford (I.Pitchford@Sheffield.ac.uk)
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
SECTION 10: VACANCIES AND ADVERTISEMENTS FROM THOSE SEEKING PLACEMENTS
----------------------------------------------------------------------
This section of the InterPsych Newsletter is specifically for job
advertisements and advertisements from those seeking placements.