Involving parents in the treatment of behaviorally disordered children

Effective psychiatric treatment for children requires the active participation of the children's parents. This paper describes a training model that has been applied successfully to diverse groups of parents of hospitalized children. Lecture, role-playing, and other techniques are used to help parents implement social learning concepts with their children. Applications range from the judicious use of praise to elaborate contingency management systems, depending upon the abilities and needs of the parents. The authors argue that this model has wide applicability and is especially amenable to an outpatient setting.     

AN EVOLUTIONARY MODEL OF TASTE FOR RISK

Economists take tastes as given. However, tastes must be derived from biological models of evolutionary survival; we exhibit those tastes which served to make our ancestors survive. In particular, economists have no theory which explains observed behavior towards risk; rather, we take behavior as a datum. In this paper we present a model which explains risk seeking by adolescents and risk aversion by mature males as the result of an evolutionary mechanism.     

Modernization Among Town and Bush Cree in Quebec*

L'article est base sur des donnees recueillies aupres des Indiens Cris des regions de Mistassini et de Waswanipi dans le Quebec. La these principale qui y est elaboree peut s'exprimer ainsi: la structure de role d'individus vivant dans des milieux en voie de developpement evoluera a partir d'un nombre restreint de roles traditionnels vers une structure plus complexe oil on observe une meilleure tenue de role. L'auteur elabore une echelle de modernisation: les individus les plus modernes se reconnaissent a leur scolarite, a leur milieu de residence, a leurs fonctions professionnelles et aux changements dans leurs attitudes et conceptions de l'avenir. En consequence, si on veut moderniser ces reserves, il faut susciter des changements a chacun de ces cinq niveaux de la realite sociale. This article takes data gathered on the Cree Indians in the Mistassini and Waswanipi areas of Quebec and analyses it in terms of their role structure. The principal thesis is that the role structure of people who are developing will change from a traditionally limited number of roles to a more complex structure with a higher degree of role performance. A scale of modernization is developed and is found to be associated with education, location of residence, occupational roles, and with changes in attitudes and orientation. Therefore, to bring about modernization would require changes in at least these five areas.     

Varieties of Sensitivity Training*

Types of sensitivity training groups are distinguished according to their general orientations, practice and aims. Observations are made on the Esalen, Tavistock, and NTL approaches as well as on some sources of the different approaches and suggestions as to their advantages and disadvantages.     

Dream analysis in family therapy

Theoretical and practical aspects of dream analysis in family therapy are explored with case examples. The dream is considered tobe a disguised communication and it is used to aid in diagnosis and treatment. The dream is shown to be of special value with families who block communication or only appear to be cooperative. It is used to explore the unconscious elements of family life. Deciphering the dream helps to open new possibilities of communication within the family.     

Utilization of Family Photos and Movies in Family Therapy

This article discusses a technique the authors have designated Family Photo Reconnaisance. They describe the rationale for and process of utilizatizing family photographs and movies in family therapy sessions to evoke past events and memories and to uncover feelings about these occurrences and the people involved in them. Through their utilization, how one has changed over time is vividly seen. Who is missing from the constellation and when they "dropped out of the family orbit becomes obvious as do distorted memories. Family members reexperiencing the past together around their photographs come to better appreciate one another's current feelings and behavior and often are enabled to gain mastery over unresolved conflicts.     

Driving and Symbolic Interaction1

Although it is a prominent feature of modern experience, driving has received little attention from sociologists. Yet social interaction between motorists is an integral part of the traffic situation. This paper explores its bases and some of its typical dynamics. Other sociologically relevant aspects of driving are delineated and the issue of how driving may influence modern culture is addressed.