Biomedical subjects

E E Wagner

Publications and source records attributed to E E Wagner.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1992

Stability of unusual verbalizations on the Rorschach for outpatients with schizophrenia.

Rorschach protocols of 50 outpatients with schizophrenia who had been tested twice with an average interval of 6.4 years between administrations were scored blind by graduate students trained to detect Unusual Verbalizations (UVs). Scoring reliabilities were excellent and ranged from .93 to .99 for the WSUM6. There were no significant differences between mean group UV scores obtained at the first testing (T1) and the second testing (T2), which attests to the persistence of thought disorder in schizophrenia. The correlations between T1 and T2 testings were, however, modest at best. Deviant Verbalizations, the least pathological of the UV categories, showed the highest test-retest relationship at .50. Tentative explanations for these findings were advanced.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1992

Rorschach blends, IQ, and the effect of R.

A correlation of .351 was found between the Rorschach blend score and the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale Full Scale IQ (WAIS FSIQ) score for 70 outpatients. When the total number of responses (R) was partialed out, however, the correlation dropped to .255. We concluded that it is advisable to take into account the effects of R in validity studies showing significant but low correlations. The importance of further exploring the psychological implications of R was stressed.

Adult↗

PubMed1992

Diagnosing MPD with two new Rorschach signs: are the signs valid or are the MPDS atypical?

The validity of newly developed "Splitting" and "Dissociative" signs on the Rorschach for diagnosing multiple personality disorder (MPD) was questioned. It was pointed out that the mean number of Rorschach responses for what were ostensibly patients with MPD was so high as to render the sample atypical. It was suggested that perhaps the Splitting and Dissociative signs were diagnostic of either dissociation in general or MPDs who have experienced decompensation, leading to hospitalization.

Diagnosis, Differential↗

PubMed1992

Maximized split-half reliabilities and distributional characteristics for Harris-Lingoes subscales with few items: a reevaluation for the MMPI-2.

100 MMPI-2 protocols were obtained from the files of an outpatient clinic. Distributions of all possible split-half combinations were computed for selected Harris-Lingoes subscales with few items. As expected, max r reliability estimates were significantly greater than alpha estimates and distributions of correlations were negatively skewed. Inspection of the distributions suggested that the Amorality scale contains an ambiguous item which does not appear to belong in this grouping. Serious problems were noted with the Hy5 subscale. Alpha reliabilities were comparable to previously reported estimates, and max r reliability estimates closely resembled reported test-retest estimates.

Female↗

PubMed1991

Redundancy in the Pascal-Suttell Bender-Gestalt scoring system: discriminating organicity with only one design.

The eight Bender-Gestalt (B-G) designs scored by the Pascal-Suttell (P-S) system proved to be highly intercorrelated, while the ninth component, the Configuration score, was modestly related to only design one. A factor analysis of the eight designs revealed one significant factor, which was interpreted as reflecting general reproductive accuracy rather than special gestalt properties of the drawings. While the P-S Total score could discriminate between organic (n = 52) and nonorganic (n = 52) clinical outpatient groups with a 74% hit rate, only one design (seven) yielded a 73% discrimination. It was suggested that a quick and reliable method for screening for organicity with the B-G would be to calculate the P-S score for design seven only.

Ambulatory Care↗

PubMed1991

Personality stability of institutionalized mentally retarded adults as measured by the Hand Test.

Eighty-two institutionalized mentally retarded individuals were administered the Hand Test and a measure of intellectual/cognitive functioning (Stanford-Binet or WAIS-R) in a 3-year test-retest paradigm (longitudinal research design) to investigate the stability of personality during adulthood. Stability of both personality and intellectual functioning during adulthood was observed. Implications are discussed.

Achievement↗

PubMed1991

Redundancy in perceptual-motor testing: confirmation and generalization.

The Developmental Test of Visual-motor Integration was administered to 63 children in regular classrooms and 51 children in Special Education. Prediction based on total score (r = .68) was similar to a multiple R utilizing only five scores (.67). The over-all raw test score, based on all 24 designs, correctly classified 85% of the children while a combined abbreviated score utilizing only 5 designs achieved an 80% differentiation. Results were interpreted as confirming the hypothesis of redundancy in this perceptual-motor test.

Attention↗

PubMed1990

White matter hyperintensities in dementia of Alzheimer's type and in healthy subjects without cerebrovascular risk factors. A magnetic resonance imaging study.

T2-weighted (0.5 T) magnetic resonance images were used to study the prevalence of subcortical white matter hyperintensities (WMHIs) in 22 patients with dementia of Alzheimer's type (DAT), 20 age-matched older healthy control subjects, and 10 younger healthy control subjects. Exclusionary criteria for all groups included cerebrovascular risk factors. All subjects had Hachinski Ischemic Index scores of less than 2 and computed tomographic scans showing no infarct. The WMHIs were classified as periventricular WMHIs or deep WMHIs and graded 0 through 3 (0 indicated absent, and 3, severe). For the group with DAT and older control subjects, periventricular WMHIs and deep WMHIs were graded 2 or 3 in fewer than 17% and 27% of subjects, respectively, whereas in the younger control subjects, all ratings were grade 1 or less. Serum cholesterol and systolic blood pressure values, although within the normal range, were elevated significantly in older control subjects when compared with those in younger control subjects. No significant differences in WMHI ratings, blood pressure, cholesterol, or triglyceride levels were found between patients with DAT and age-matched control subjects. Systolic blood pressure levels correlated with the severity of periventricular WMHIs only in older control subjects. Age correlated with periventricular WMHIs and deep WMHIs within both the older control subjects and the patients with DAT. There was no significant correlation between WMHIs and the severity of dementia in the group with DAT. These results suggest that, in subjects screened for cerebrovascular risk factors, WMHIs are rare and occur with identical frequency in patients with DAT as in age-matched healthy control subjects.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aged↗

PubMed1990

A comparison of the Lacks and Pascal-Suttell Bender-Gestalt scoring methods for diagnosing brain damage in an outpatient sample.

The Pascal-Suttell method of scoring the Bender-Gestalt Test, which is molecular and seemingly homogeneous, and the Lacks method, which is molar and apparently heterogeneous, were compared for efficacy in diagnosing brain-damaged (n = 52) vs. non-brain-damaged (n = 52) outpatients. Both methods were superior to the FS WAIS IQ in making this distinction, and adding the WAIS in a discriminant analysis did not contribute much in terms of overall differentiation. The two scoring systems were correlated highly, and, although the predictive power of the Pascal-Suttell procedure was a little better than that of the Lacks, the latter has some practical advantages in terms of applicability and ease of scoring.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Hand Test characteristics of severely behavior handicapped children.

The Hand Test was administered to 98 severely behavior handicapped (SBH) children and a matched control group of public school children. The withdrawal score and associated variables, indicative of severe psychopathology, differentiated the two groups. In addition, a qualitative analysis of the SBH protocols tentatively suggested a preponderance of four behavioral types that could be described as the underproductive, perseverative, psychotic and impulsive child. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Child↗

PubMed1990

Raw scores vs percentage conversions in factorial solutions for projective test variables.

Factor analytic solutions for raw scores and corresponding percentage conversion scores derived from Rorschach and Hand Test variables were directly compared. Number of factors, total and individual communalities, and test overlap were sufficiently different to question either approach as preferable for summarizing interrelationships among projective tests and test variables. Most of the substantial loadings tended to be either artifactual, relatively uninformative, or appeared on one factor analysis but not the other.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Diagnostic and intellectual implications of the fragmented Rorschach W:D ratio.

A "fragmented" Rorschach W:D ratio, where D exceeds W by 3:1 or more, occurred in about one-tenth of an outpatient clinical population (n = 938). Subjects showing this imbalance tended to be diagnosed as organic or schizophrenic and to have a differentially higher WAIS Similarities score. Implications of these findings were discussed.

Defense Mechanisms↗

PubMed1990

Predicting normal age-related changes with intelligence, projective, and perceptual-motor test variables.

From four tests, the WAIS, Rorschach, Hand Test, and Bender-Gestalt, 67 variables were derived and used to predict age for 240 individuals. Ages ranged from 15 to 65 yr., divided into five age intervals, with 48 subjects per group. 36 variables correlating with age were further reduced to 12 by means of a stepwise multiple R. A final R of .73 was obtained, accounting for 53% of the variance. While variables from all four of these tests correlated with the criterion, most of the significant variance could be attributed to intellectual factors.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1989

Validation of two Hand Test indices of aggressive behavior in an institutional setting.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effectiveness of the Hand Test (Wagner, 1962/1983) in differentiating among mentally retarded adults placed in community housing versus those discharged from an institution due to violent and destructive behavior. Hand Test protocols of 24 mentally retarded adults who were discharged from an institution for violent and destructive behavior were compared with those of 12 mentally retarded adults who were placed in community housing, with regard to the presence of two indices of aggressive behavior (the acting-out score, AOS, and the movement response, ACT-MOV). Results indicated that 20 of the 24 residents discharged for aggressive behavior manifested one or more of the signs, whereas only 3 of the 12 residents discharged to a less restrictive environment exhibited one or more of the signs. The findings further demonstrate the usefulness of the Hand Test in predicting violent and destructive behavior in an institutional setting.

Adult↗

PubMed1989

Initial psychological effects of sexual abuse on female children as reflected in the Hand Test.

Previous research regarding the initial effects of sexual abuse on children has varied in terms of methodologies, measurement instruments, and reported findings. Recent studies, however, suggest that projective techniques may be useful in resolving some of these inconsistencies. This study utilized the Hand Test to investigate the initial effects of sexual abuse on female children. Authenticated cases of sexually abused children were compared to a matched sample of presumably nonabused children. Significant differences on six variables were obtained between the groups but, more important, Hand Test patterns emerged which appeared to distinguish among those victims who: (a) were severely traumatized by the abuse, (b) displayed neurotic tendencies, and (c) did not seem to have suffered measurable detrimental effects. It was suggested that these findings may help reconcile conflicting views that have appeared in the literature.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1988

Optimized split-half reliability for the Bender visual motor Gestalt test: further evidence for the use of the maximization procedure.

Bender-Gestalt protocols from a clinical sample (N = 100) were scored according to the Pascal-Suttell method and r11 derived for all possible split-half combinations (n = 35). The distribution of these 35 reliability coefficients proved to be negatively skewed, justifying the use of the maximum split-half reliability rather than the usual odd-even or alpha coefficients. The maximized r11, using only eight designs, was .72, which was higher than has heretofore been reported. Implications of low ns and negative skews for correlational distributions are discussed, and the maximization procedure is recommended even for psychometric tests when the number of items is low.

Adult↗

PubMed1987

Relations between Hand Test variables and the psychological characteristics and behaviors of battered women.

Battered and nonbattered women were administered the Hand Test to determine which psychological test variables could distinguish between these groups. Compared to the nonbattered group, the battered group produced substantially more fear responses. We also found significant positive relationships between the amount of fear responses produced and frequency of abuse, number of previous visits to a battered women's shelter, and medical treatment sought following an abusive incident. We discuss these results in the context of previous findings and their implications for the personality of battered women. We speculate that lowered environmental interest might be a personality factor that prolonged the abuse and that fear is a basic reaction to anticipated bodily harm.

Adult↗

PubMed1986

Optimum split-half reliabilities for the Rorschach: projective techniques are more reliable than we think.

A new technique for optimizing split-half reliability estimates yielded substantial and comparable increases in indexes of internal reliability for some major Rorschach variables across two diverse samples. Practical suggestions for applying this method to other projective tests were advanced. The inadvisability of computing odd-even reliability coefficients without regard to split-half distributional anomalies is addressed.

Adult↗