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The present study investigated the reliability and validity of scores from the Child Abuse Potential (CAP) Inventory. Subjects were 113 mothers, including 53 (46.9%) mothers of young children with handicaps and 60 (53.1%) mothers of young children without identified handicaps. Analyses of CAP validity scales suggested that the Random Response subscale could be improved by omitting selected items. Although total CAP scores had an impressive alpha coefficient (.91), consistent with those reported in previous research, some short subscales had unacceptable coefficients. The factor structure underlying responses was interpretable, but different in some respects from results reported in previous studies.

The convergent and discriminant validity of a short (6-item) new leader-member exchange scale (LMX-6) was investigated using hierarchically-nested maximum likelihood confirmatory factor analyses. Using data from a sample of 221 MBA students, the validity of the new scale was confirmed by its high and significant loadings on a leader-member exchange factor and by the superiority of a model with a separate leader-member exchange factor over all other rival models. Directions for future research are briefly discussed.

Discriminant and concurrent validity of two factor-derived subscales, mathematics test anxiety (MTA) and numerical anxiety (NA), of the Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (MARS) were tested. Sixty-eight females and 44 males from the pre-service program of the Faculty of Education, the University of Western Ontario, completed the Mathematics Avoidance Behavior Test (MABT), the Test Anxiety Inventory (TAI), and the two MARS factor-derived subscales. A significant difference was found between the correlations of MTA and NA with the emotionality subscale of the TAI for the female group, but not for the male group. MTA scores correlated significantly with the scores on the MABT but the NA did not. Problems in these instruments and the implications for future research were discussed.

There are several available tools for diagnosing psychiatric disorders in patients, the most commonly used being the DSM-III-R (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 3rd Edition, Revised) and the Research Diagnostic Criteria (RDC). However, these two diagnostic tools do not always agree, or render consistent results. This study was done to find correlations among depression diagnoses made according to the DSM-III-R and the RDC, and two commonly used self- and observer-rated depression scales, the Beck Depression Inventory and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, in cancer patients who had potentially fatal solid tumors. One hundred fifty-two patients were identified who reported symptoms of depression by the Beck and Hamilton depression scales. These patients were given a screening questionnaire for depression according to the DSM-III-R and RDC criteria, which exclude the diagnosis of major depression if symptoms are thought to be related to a physical condition. Since four out of nine criteria for major depression in the DSM-III-R are body-related (somatic), deleting these automatically because there is a medical condition makes the diagnosis of depression in cancer patients much more difficult to achieve. The depression symptoms of these patients were recorded regardless of whether the suspected cause was medical or psychological. Approximately one-third of these patients met the criteria for major depression by at least one set of criteria. The Beck and Hamilton scales could only differentiate patients with major depression and those with depressive symptoms at higher score levels. It is clear that there is inconsistency and overlap in the diagnostic tools available, but further study is needed to assess if one of these classification systems is most appropriate for diagnosing major depression in patients with medical illness. At this point they should be used to screen those at risk for depression, rather than to make definitive diagnoses. It is suggested that future scales use only psychological symptoms as criteria when diagnosing mental illness in this type of physically ill patient. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia have become more reliable and thus more useful over the years. This can be attributed to more stringent requirements for the inclusion of criteria in diagnostic systems. Generally the criteria, to be included, need to occur frequently enough to be of value, their occurrence must be consistently measurable by objective means, each criterion must be distinct, and while they must occur frequently in the target population, they must occur infrequently if at all in other populations. Computers have aided in the selection of criteria in this manner. The International Pilot Study of Schizophrenia (IPSS), undertaken by the World Health Organization, published symptom frequencies from cross-cultural investigations. The present study compares 88 independently arrived-at symptoms of schizophrenia with the IPSS to determine which are present on the IPSS list and would meet the criteria for inclusion as diagnostically relevant. One hundred and twenty patients were assessed for past and present symptoms of schizophrenia by personal interviews, interviews with family and friends, and via medical records. It was found that symptoms present in 25 percent of the subjects were not necessarily unique to schizophrenia but that symptoms present in between 50 percent and 90 percent of the cases generally matched those considered classic for schizophrenia. Auditory hallucinations, disturbance of affect, and passivity feelings emerged as a triad of symptoms which are seen in the IPSS. For diagnostic validity, the triad needs to be compared against reliable standards to determine if the symptoms are found in other samples of schizophrenics and absent in other populations. The triad of symptoms was compared with 13 other diagnostic systems for agreement as well, with a strong correlation seen to emerge. While the use of the triad may not provide an absolute measure of the presence of schizophrenia, it represents a core of symptoms for consideration. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Objective: The authors evaluated the presence or absence of informative morphogenetic variants in patients with schizophrenia compared with alcohol-dependent patients. Method: Taking into consideration the criticisms of the Waldrop Scale, which was widely used until recently to define the presence of informative morphogenetic variants, the authors evaluated the presence or absence of 56 informative morphogenetic variants in 50 consecutively admitted patients with schizophrenia and 50 consecutively admitted alcohol-dependent patients. They made a distinction between minor malformations (those developing during organogenesis) and phenogenetic variants (those developing after organogenesis). A kappa index above 75% was considered reliable. Results: Thirty-four of the 56 informative morphogenetic variants met the authors' reliability criterion. Patients with schizophrenia had significantly higher rates of three minor malformations (furrowed tongue, multiple buccal frenula, and hemangioma) and two phenogenetic variants (protruding auricle and large tongue). Conclusions: The results suggest that using finer distinctions in the evaluation of informative morphogenetic variants in schizophrenia may open new perspectives in the research of the neurodevelopmental background of schizophrenia.

The Child Vulnerability Scale and the Parent Protection Scale both accurately assess parent-child relationships, predict child vulnerability, and indicate parental overprotection. Researchers administered the Child Health and Family Functioning Questionnaire to 103 parents of children aged 2-5. The scales correctly predicted 77% of cases of parentally perceived child vulnerability, and 76% of cases of overprotection.