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A survey was conducted of Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) in colleges and universities throughout the United States (N-115). Results demonstrated that these EAPs were similar to those in private industry on several dimensions, including referral source, types of problems handled by the EAP, and overall penetration rate. However, the perceived success of EAPs in higher education was associated with the frequency of peer-referrals, rather than self-referrals. Faculty use of the EAP was also associated with program effectiveness, although faculty used the EAP proportionally less than other staff or administrators. Other factors examined in the study include union involvement in the EAP, in-house counseling vs. outside referral, and mandatory EAP usage. The results are discussed in terms of methodological issues associated with survey research as well as directions for future research on EAPs in higher education.

Although ethnicity and gender play a significant role in many types of social interaction, little research exists on their importance in mediation. An analysis of community mediation cases (N = 27,852) from New York state demonstrated that, consistent with predictions from criminal justice research, Whites were underrepresented in mediation relative to Blacks and Hispanics, and that females were more likely to participate in mediation as claimants than men. Both ethnicity and gender were related to the type of dispute, degree of violence, intimacy between disputants, source of referral, and mediation outcome. Additional analysis, taking into account source of referral, education, and income level of the claimant, did not fully account for the observed ethnic or gender differences. Results are discussed in terms of reasons why ethnic and gender differences exist in mediation, limitations of demographic data, and areas for future research.

We introduce the concept of community mediation centers as alternatives to the traditional, adversarial, and less humanistic court system. We make the case that mediation is indeed a humanistic dispute resolution process by first describing the benefits of the process and then by sharing results of a study we conducted using archival cases from an actual mediation center. The study examines the disputing person's Maslowian levels both before and after the mediation hearing. We found that need levels are higher in the Maslowian hierarchy after the hearing than before the hearing. We also address limitations of our study as well as suggest future directions for more research.

The present study used a multitrait-multimethod technique [D.T. Campbell and D. W. Fiske (1959) “Convergent and Discriminant Validation by the Multitrait-Multimethod Matrix,” Psychological Bulletin, 56, 81–105] to examine Bem's [(1974) “The Measurement of Psychological Androgyny,” Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 42, 152–162] use of an instrumental-expressive dichotomy to conceptualize the Masculinity and Femininity scales of the Bem Sex Role Inventory as statistically orthogonal constructs. Results indicate that while perhaps reliable, masculinity and femininity lack clear convergent and discriminant validity. Therefore, Bem's contention that masculinity and femininity are orthogonal constructs is questioned. Results are discussed in light of trait- vs. method-driven research.

Early in the pandemic, psychologists who engaged in HIV/AIDS research and practice or care relied more on their "general" psychological knowledge and training than on HIV/AIDS-specific information or training for combating the disease. In the past two decades much has been gained from the contributions of psychologists working in the areas of HIV/AIDS prevention and intervention. However, little is known regarding how the discipline prepares its students for a career in HIV/AIDS research and practice/care. One important venue for educating future psychologists is college-level textbooks because they are often the students' gateway to the scientific literature in psychology. Therefore, presentation of adequate and accurate information in these texts is critical. The present study involved a review and content analysis of introductory, clinical/counseling, health, human sexuality, and social/community psychology textbooks. It revealed that some level of information regarding HIV/AIDS was found in the majority of most college-level psychology texts that were reviewed. However, many books do not present a comprehensive overview or review of this problem, and do not adequately address the role psychology and behavior change can play in abating it. Implications for education, training, and practices are discussed.

Investigated the effects of E status, E sex, and instructional set on the size of “sexy” and “average” human figure drawings. One hundred and twelve female and 95 male introductory psychology students were administered a modified form of the Draw-A-Person Test in small groups by a “high status” or “low status” male or female E. Ss were given written instructions to draw a “sexy” and “average” man and a “sexy” and “average” woman. E status was established when the E introduced her/himself as a professor (high status) or as a student (low status). Results showed no effects for E status or E sex. Significant main effects were obtained for instructional set on all size measurements for female Ss' drawings and in sex of the eight measurements for male Ss' drawings. “Sexy” drawings were consistently drawn larger than “average” drawings, and male figures were drawn larger than female figures on most measures.

The relationship between proxemic behavior and neuroticism was examined. 50 male and 43 female subjects individually self-selected seats in a classroom where they were administered the Eysenck Personality Inventory by one of four experimenters (two male, two female). A significant relationship was found between proxemic distance and both neuroticism and experimenter's sex.