Ninety undergraduate students who scored as high or low on the Snyder Self-monitoring Scale participated in an experiment designed to determine the joint effects of self-monitoring and controllable or uncontrollable outcomes upon subsequent performance on three short-term memory tests. High and low self-monitoring subjects were assigned to one of three conditions: (1) controllable feedback, in which subjects received response contingent positive, "correct," and negative, "incorrect," feedback on a word association task; (2) uncontrollable feedback, in which subjects were given noncontingent feedback (70% negative and 30% positive); and (3) no-treatment. Measures of attentional focus were included in order to examine the role of attentional processes in the obtained results. In addition, the joint effects of treatment and self-monitoring on subjects' attributions were investigated. As predicted, the performance of high selfmonitors was significantly impaired by uncontrollability (learned helplessness), while that of low self-monitors was facilitated by controllability (learned competence). Results were discussed as supporting the contention that high self-monitors rely heavily on knowledge of environmental contingencies in order to control their environment. When their typically effective strategy is unsuccessful, "helplessness" is induced. Low self-monitors, who are less concerned with exercising control over environmental events, evidence diminished attention to and utilization of external stimuli. However, when these stimuli are made salient and the low self-monitor is positively reinforced for processing these stimuli, "competence" is induced. Results also suggest that high self-monitors, as compared with low self-monitors, are more likely to employ self-enhancing, defensive strategies. Such strategies may protect self-esteem and decrease the likelihood of long term negative effects.

The relationship between learned helplessness (Seligman, 1975) and dependence on the judgment of others, as measured by an Asch-type conformity task, was investigated. Relevant constructs were reviewed: helplessness, locus of control, depression, self-esteem, dependency, and Campbell's (1961) epistemological weighting hypothesis. It was reasoned that experience with uncontrollable outcomes would not only result in learned helplessness, but also subjects' confidence in their own ability to control outcomes would be undermined so that they would rely heavily on the judgments of others as opposed to their own. Anxiety, psychological reactance, frustration, anger, or some combination of these resulting in a facilitation of performance was offered as a possible explanation for the unexpected results. Most plausible was that subjects' resulting performance deficits may have represented loss of initiative to control social reinforcers. It this is so, the deficits seen in helplessness experiments should be greater when test tasks involving social reinforcers are utilized. Further research is needed to clarify the interrelationship of helplessness, depression, and conformity/anti-conformity.

O contexto atual apresenta mudanças nos modos de organização subjetiva. Em meio a isso, as redefinições dos papéis do homem e da mulher, as novas formas de filiação, assim como as novas configurações familiares têm levado a uma crise de referências que atinge diferentes setores da vida humana. Dentre outros aspectos, isso tem implicado o redimensionamento do lugar do pai, tradicionalmente concebido como representante da lei simbólica. O papel social do pai passou a ser questionado e, muitas vezes, confundido com o declínio da função paterna, porém, se há um declínio, é do poder do patriarcado, e não de sua função, que permanece como estrutural. Fundamental à estruturação do humano e à convivência social, a lei se apresenta como um modo de amparo simbólico. Diante de tal quadro, questionamos como fica a referência à lei simbólica, que, no panorama atual, parece deixar lacunas importantes em seu exercício. Ineficiente na função de interdição e limite, a lei falha, como falham também as vantagens que ela deveria assegurar. Não mais interditado, o sujeito se vê convocado ao excesso e, paradoxalmente, sem referências, desamparado. A condição humana de desamparo constituinte do sujeito , em razão das circunstâncias de vida das pessoas, vem sendo exacerbada, o que revela a constante situação de desamparo na qual vivem os sujeitos atuais. Isso os leva a novas formas de desorganização psíquica e faz emergir novas configurações sintomatológicas, cujas formas de expressão estão vinculadas a contextos específicos. Dentre elas, o transtorno de pânico se destaca como uma ilustração do desamparo mais freqüentemente evocado na contemporaneidade, promovido pela fragilidade com que a lei se apresenta / The current context presents changes in the subjectives organization ways. Inside this, the redefinitions from the man and woman roles, the new filiation forms, as the new familiar configurations, have brought to a references crisis that reaches different sections from the human life. Among others aspects, this has been implied on redimensionment of the fathers place, traditionally conceived as representing from the symbolic law. The father social role is so questioned and, many times, confused with the decline from the paternal function, but, is there is a decline, it is from the patriarchal power, and not of its function, that stays as structural. Fundamental to the structuring of human being and to the social coexistence, the law presents itself like a way of symbolic support. In front of this, we question how stays the reference from the symbolic law, that in the current panorama, it seems leave important blanks in its duties. Inefficient in the limit and interdiction function, the law fails, as well the advantages that should assure of her. No more interdicted, the subject sees himself summoned to the excess and, paradoxally, without references, unsupported. The human condition of unssuporting constituent of the subject due to the life circumstances of people have been exacerbated, what reveals a constant unssuporting situation in which live the nowadays subjects. This leave them to new psychic disorganization forms and makes emerge new symptomatologic configurations, in which expression forms are linked to specific contexts. Among them, the panic disorder highlights as a illustration of the unssuporting more often evocated in the contemporary times, due to the fragility which the law presents itself

M.A. (Clinical Psychology) / The increasing interest in cognitive factors both in the literature on pain and in developments in research on depression has led to the present study, where cognitive factors associated with depression were investigated in clinical groups of chroni c pa in patients. The cognitive factors studied were learned helplessness (Seligman, 1975), cognitive errors and distortions (Beck, 1976), perfectionism (Bums, 19800 1980b), as well as hopelessness (Beck, 1974). It was hypothesised that these factors would occur in definite patterns in relation to each other, in groups of pain patients categorised into four groups on the basis of raised or lowered levels of both depression and a subjective pain rating. It was hypothesised that learned helplessness would vary in direct relationship to depression but that simultaneously increased levels of pain would elevate helplessness further. It was also hypothesised that perfectionism and cognitive errors and distortions would vary inversely with helplessness and that amongst pain patients with high levels of pain and low levels of depression, raised scores on measures of perfectionism and cognitive errors may indicate the presence of a 'masked' depression. Some evidence was found to suggest that cognitive factors do play an important role in pain, although no significant results were found to support the specific hypotheses of this study. The need for finer discrimination in the type' of pain patient selected, particularly in regard to ·the diagnosis of the pain syndrome, as well as the inclusion of cognitive factors other than those presently considered, is indicated for future research.

This study evaluated the efficacy of hypnoticallyinduced mood elevation techniques for individuals exposed previously to an experimental learned helplessness condition. The treatment conditions in this investigation included the mood elevation with hypnotic induction group as well as a mood elevation group without the benefit of hypnotic induction. As experimental controls, a group was exposed to hypnotic relaxation and an attention-only treatment group was used. Measures of treatment success included the administration of•the Depression Adjective Checklist, backward digit span, and five—letter anagrams. In a series of factorial analysis of variance procedures no significant interaction was noted although the main effect for the presence of hypnotic induction was significant with the Depression Adjective Checklist. Post hoc analysis to examine gender differences demonstrated no significant performance discrepancy between the sexes. Limitations of the study were explored and avenues of further research discussed.

Social connectedness, learned helplessness, and alienation characteristics as related to graduate/dropout behavior for residents in alcohol abuse programs. Purpose The purpose of the study was to determine the extent to which a set of predictor variables would discriminate between a group who successfully completed an alcohol substance abusers program from the group who failed i.e. (relapsed) to complete the program. The predictor variables were cognitive and affective measures for social connectedness, learned helplessness, and alienation characteristics. A preliminary step compared the total sample to the norm groups from the FIRO-B and the MMPI. Sample and Measurements Sixty-three subjects from two intermediate treatment groups from San Joaquin County (CA.) programs were selected as the sample group. Three months sobriety post treatment was selected as the successful completion criterion. The FIROB measured social connectedness, the MMPI measured alcohol addiction, alienation characteristics, and defensive response set. The ASQ was employed to measure "learned helplessness". Findings One sample t-test disclosed deviance between the sample group and the norm group for five of six scales of social connectedness. The respondents reported less need for inclusion and affection and more "control wanted" than the norm group on indicators from the FIRO-B. The sample also indicated greater addiction (MAC scale), "defensiveness" (validity scales), and alienation characteristics (Pd. clinical scale and Pd. research scales) from the MMPI. The sample group endorsed more familial discord, authority problems, social imperturbability, social alienation, and self-alienation. Three MMPI measures, the MacAndrew Alcoholism scale, the K scale (defensiveness), and the self-alienation research scale reliably differentiated graduates from dropouts using the t-test for independent means. The highest correlations between variables were indicated for alienation characteristics and defensiveness as indicated by the validity scales. A multiple regression analysis disclosed that addiction (MacAndrew Alcoholism Scale) correlated r = .34 with graduate status. Conclusions Within this sample those variables most predictive of at risk behavior (relapse potential) were addiction, defensiveness, and self-alienation characteristics. The graduate means were more aberrant than the dropouts in each of these categories.

The current study investigated the impact of Learned Helplessness (LH) training on normal (N), depressed (D), and bulimic (B) female college students (N=135). Participants were selected through a screening procedure using an eating behavior questionnaire and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI; Beck, 1971) as the primary instruments. Bulimic subjects met the DSM-III criteria for that disorder, and depressed subjects met a criterion of 20 or above on the BDI. Normal subjects had BDI scores below 10 and endorsed 1 or less of the critical items regarding eating behavior which had been used to select bulimic subjects. A11 three groups were matched for weight, height, and age. Each category of subjects was divided into three groups which were exposed to Learned Helplessness (LH), Contingent Feedback (CF), or No Training Control (NTC) conditions. Dependent measures included performance on an anagram test (latency and errors), performance prediction and performance satisfaction questionnaires, and a Self-Statement Test. Results indicated no difference in anagram performance following LH training relative to CF and NTC conditions for normal and bulimic subjects, although depressed subjects demonstrated longer response latency and more errors as a function of training (LH>CF). NTC subjects did not differ significantly from the other conditions, however. Ratings of performance satisfaction differed as a function of training condition in the expected directions. Bulimic subjects demonstrated an interesting pattern of declining ratings of performance satisfaction across training trials within the CF condition. Also, bulimic subjects were found to make more errors on anagrams of nonfood words relative to food words, although this pattern was not reliably related to training condition. Self-Statement Test items did not produce the expected group x training condition effects. The present findings provide limited support for the experimental hypothesis that ineffective coping in stressful situations, mediated by cognitive self-statements, is a useful model for understanding bulimia. Methodological issues are discussed, particularly issues related to subject classification. The present study was likely confounded by the presence of depression (i.e., high BDI scores) among the bulimic subjects. Future research should systematically‘ address the relationship between bulimia and depression. / Ph. D.

Thesis (MPhil (Old and New Testament))--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / This paper attempts an exploration and description of a hermeneutic of learned helplessness. Drawing on insights from both psychology and theology, it problematises the interaction that an individual believer can develop with the Bible and living a life of faith. Attempts to account for this situation involve biblical interpretation, the church and the pastoral care context. The body of the paper consists of four chapters, describing the four pillars supporting a hermeneutic of learned helplessness. The first chapter highlights certain of the difficulties that develop when the authority of the Bible is abused. The second chapter looks at the vocation of the pastor, and notes how lack of accountability and limited self-awareness can result in inadequate and harmful biblical interpretation. The third chapter highlights the negative effects of the neglect of emotion on individual faith and interaction with the biblical text, referring specifically to women. Finally, the fourth chapter identifies the tendency to regard morality as expressed primarily through behaviour, and to use the Bible as a book of rules. The combination of these four factors generates an environment in which a hermeneutic of learned helplessness can quickly develop in a Christian believer. This paper is an attempt to more clearly define my observations following work in the context of pastoral care and counselling. It is hoped that by clarifying the nature of the problem, this will prove to be the first step toward finding possible solutions.

This study investigated the possible differential effects of a series of soluble discrimination problems on internal versus external locus of control subjects. It was hypothesized that externals exposed to a series of discrimination problems would perform better on a test task than external controls, while internals exposed to the same problems would not perform better on the test task relative to their controls. As anticipated, the internals were not affected by the discrimination problems. However, contrary to expectations, the externals were not facilitated by exposure to the soluble problems. Since many external subjects failed to solve all of the soluble problems, a facilitative effect may depend upon the problems being solved.

The response deficit following exposure to inescapable shock has been termed "learned helplessness." This experiment was designed (a) to determine whether learned helplessness following an inescapable footshock induction procedure extends to 48 hours, and (b) to test the hypothesis that electroconvulsive shock (ECS) reverses learned helplessness in rats. Subjects were tested for helplessness in a bar-press shock-escape task. Results indicated that helplessness was not present 48 hours after exposure to inescapable shock. A slight indication of helplessness was observed in the first 10 trials of the 60-trial task. In addition, ECS was shown to enhance performance in the test task; however, this facilitation effect was seen only in control animals that were not previously exposed to inescapable footshock.