Although, recently, the biopsychosocial approach has been emphasized in the practice of family medicine, how psychologists and physicians interact in collaborative family health care practice is still emerging in Portugal. This article describes a qualitative study that focused on the understanding of psychologists and family physicians' perceptions of their role and the collaborative approach in health care.

A questionnaire gathered information regarding collaboration, referral, training and the practice of biopsychosocial medicine. A content analysis on respondents' discourse was performed. Results show that both physicians and psychologists agree on the importance of the biopsychosocial model and interdisciplinary collaboration. However, they also mentioned several difficulties that have to do with the lack of psychologists working full time in health care centers, lack of communication and different expectancies regarding each other roles in health care delivery.

Both physicians and psychologists acknowledge the lack of academic training and consider the need for multidisciplinary teams in their training and practice to improve collaboration and integrative care. Implications for future research and for the practice of biopsychosocial medicine are addressed.

The aim of this study is to assess social support dimensions (providers, satisfaction and different support actions) in patients with eating disorders (ED), looking at diagnosis, socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, and self-concept. Method: A total of 98 female ED patients were recruited. The ages of participants ranged from 12 to 34 (Mean=20.8 years old, SD=5.61). Patients have a primary DSM-IV-R diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (61.2%), bulimia nervosa (27.6%) or an unspecified eating disorder (11.2%). Social support was assessed using the Escala de Apoyo Social Percibido (EASP). This scale measures social support providers, satisfaction and specific social support actions, which can be grouped into informational, emotional and practical support. Self-concept was assessed using the Cuestionario de Autoconcepto (AF-5). Results: The two most frequent providers for these patients were mothers (86.7%) and partners (73.1%). Patients' satisfaction with social support was high and they reported that they received informational support more frequently than emotional and practical support. Family self-concept showed positive relationships with social support dimensions. Conclusion: These results show the importance of the family network in connection with these disorders and its relation to self-concept.

This study is aimed at exploring daily and desired activity patterns in a sample of older people living in a rural context, as well as at examining the effect of some influential factors and their relationships with life satisfaction. Our sample was made of 216 retired people and was recruited from 12 villages from Catalonia and Valencia with populations of less than 1000 inhabitants. Data were gathered by means of an interview that included daily and ideal activities and life satisfaction (by applying the Life Satisfaction Index). Our results show that yesterday's pattern of activities is similar to an ideal pattern, although in the ideal day, our sample allocated more time to social activities and less time to passive activities such as watching TV or resting. In both cases, leisure activities and time spent working seem to play an important role in older people's life. Gender has a remarkable influence on patterns of activity, as women devoted more time to instrumental activities and less time to leisure. In general, differences between yesterday's and ideal activities were not related to life satisfaction.

Heroes play collectivist or individualist roles in imagination and self-development. Representations of heroic figures in questionnaires given to French (n = 241) and Spanish (n = 227) samples of 10 and 15-year-olds were examined to assess the extent that heroes originated in digital media, and whether they were proximal or distal personalities. There is strong evidence that heroes in this sample were largely learned about in digital media (France 45%, Spain 50%): family and community heroes were a minority (France 11%, Spain 9%). Male heroes were more important to Spanish participants compared to their French peers. The acquisition sequence for hero type reported in the pre-television era, proximal (family and community) to distal (beyond the neighbourhood), is reversed in this study. Generally, 10-year-olds preferred heroes with collectivist qualities and 15 year olds with individualised qualities. Findings are discussed in terms of the emergence of social capital.

Stereotypicality and attitudinal similarity are variables broadly studied in the research about leader's acceptance and evaluation. However, the interaction between these variables has not been deeply studied. An experimental research in which we analyze the influence of both variables and their interaction on leaders' evaluation is presented. A3 × 3 (attitudinal similarity [none, moderate, high] × leaders' stereotypicality [none, moderately and very stereotypical]) design was used. Participants were 215 Psychology students. Results show that both variables influenced leaders' evaluation, although the influence of stereotypicality was stronger than that of attitude similarity. The significant interaction between both variables indicates that, when a very stereotypical leader is not at all similar or moderately similar to the perceiver, his or her evaluation diminishes.

Organizational leadership is fundamental for the working and development of current organizations. It helps members of an organization to face transcendental challenges. One of the fundamental aspects of leaders is their personal characteristics and behaviour as perceived by their co-workers. Although research has established a relationship between these components, findings have failed to come up with any congruent evidence and further to this the organizations and contexts used are from several decades ago.

This article, which forms part of the international GLOBE project, analyses the relationship between motives and behaviour as perceived by co-workers in organizations, using quantitative and qualitative methods and including technological innovations. Using samples from 40 corporate directors and 84 of their co-workers, from different companies, it confirms how the main motives of leaders (power, affiliation and achievement) are related to different behavioral patterns (power to authoritarian, non-dependent and non-social-skill behaviours; affiliation to relationship and dependent behaviors, and achievement to proactive behaviors). It discusses the results with relation to traditional research and suggests practical measures and proposals for future investigations in this area.

University and academia are, due to its nature, its structure and its inside relationships, a perfect breeding ground for the conflicts, disputes, problems, and grievances. In these settings, mediation is one of the dispute resolution mechanisms most used by University Ombudsperson. However, the special characteristics of university contexts make it necessary to consider and evaluate elements that may have a bearing on the effectiveness of the process and outcomes of the mediation. In this paper a model of contingent intervention in mediation processes articulated in three dimensions is put forward: a) level of balance or symmetry of power between the parties involved; b) the foreseeable temporal perspective of the relationship between them; and c) level of formalization of the mediation process. Based on the interaction between the three dimensions, a series of proposals will be formulated in order to design different strategies of intervention for mediation processes in university settings. Practical implications of this contingent model and future research on this topic are discussed.

Statistical inference about two binomial parameters implies that they are both estimated by binomial sampling. There are occasions in which one aims at testing the equality of two binomial parameters before and after the occurrence of the first success along a sequence of Bernoulli trials. In these cases, the binomial parameter before the first success is estimated by negative binomial sampling whereas that after the first success is estimated by binomial sampling, and both estimates are related. This paper derives statistical tools to test two hypotheses, namely, that both binomial parameters equal some specified value and that both parameters are equal though unknown. Simulation studies are used to show that in small samples both tests are accurate in keeping the nominal Type-I error rates, and also to determine sample size requirements to detect large, medium, and small effects with adequate power. Additional simulations also show that the tests are sufficiently robust to certain violations of their assumptions.

In this paper we describe a new version of a former paper-and-pencil standardized comprehension test called Test of Comprehension Processes (Vidal-Abarca, Gilabert, Martínez, & Sellés, 2007). The new version has been adapted to a computer-based environment based on the moving window technique. It can be used to assess comprehension strategies of students from fifth to tenth grades (11 to 16 years old). Comprehension strategies are registered on-line using reading times and visits to relevant sections of the text during the question-answering process. Data show that the computer-based version draws similar results to those provided by the paper-and-pencil version. In addition, we identify the particular strategies deployed during the question-answering process by high, medium and low comprehenders.

We have already published the psychometric properties of our Spanish version of the Buss and Perry's Aggression Questionnaire adapted to young subjects (Personality and Individual Differences, 42, 1453-1465). The four-dimensional structure of the questionnaire was confirmed in each pre-adolescent and adolescent sample, although differences in the inter-correlations among factors between both groups of age were then observed. We publish now new evidences about its factorial validity in the whole group of pre-adolescent and adolescent children. We also report the positive correlations found between measurements obtained with this questionnaire (AQ-PA) and other aggression and anger scales (DIAS, STAXI and EXPAGG) and the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11), which provide more evidences about its convergent validity. The text of the Spanish version of this questionnaire adapted to pre-adolescent and adolescent subjects is also reported.

The purpose of this paper was to validate the Spanish version of the Perceived Locus of Causality Scale (PLOC; Goudas, Biddle, & Fox, 1994). To achieve this, two studies with samples of 1535 and 400 physical education students, of ages 12 to 17 years, were carried out. The psychometric properties of the PLOC were examined through the following analyses: confirmatory factor analysis, factor invariance, correlation among factors, reliability (Cronbach's alpha), temporal stability (test-retest), and criterion validity. The results partially supported the five-factor structure. This structure was invariant across the two study samples. Correlations among the subscales indicated a simplex pattern, supporting construct validity of the scale. Alpha values over .70 (except for introjected regulation) and high temporal stability (intra-class correlation coefficient = .83 to .90) over a four-week period were obtained. The mastery-approach goal positively predicted self-determined motivation, whereas the performance-avoidance goal predicted it negatively. Future studies should continue to analyze the psychometric properties of the PLOC, as the validation of an instrument should be an ongoing process.

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Portuguese versions of the Sport Anxiety Scale and of the Brief COPE, as well as of the Cognitive Appraisal Scale in Sport Competition– Threat Perception, namely regarding their factor structure validity and internal consistency. Participants were 550 male and female athletes of several sports, aged 15 to 35 years old (M=19.8; SD=4.5). Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis indicated that the instruments demonstrated good psychometric properties. In general, the measurement models provided a good fit to the empirical data and with the exception of some scales of the Brief COPE, the calculated Cronbach's a coefficient of reliability indicated adequate internal consistency for the three instruments. Overall, the results of the present study provided evidence for these instruments' validity and reliability, ultimately supporting their importance for research and psychological intervention in sport contexts.

Behavioral problems in preschool children are one of the most frequent motives for seeking psychological care by parents and caregivers. Instruments are considered necessary, created from a Social Skills Training theoretical-practical perspective, which may systematically assist the identification of social skills and behavioral deficits, helping professionals in the prevention and/or reduction of behavioral problems. The purpose of this study was to test the psychometric validity and reliability of an instrument for evaluation of Socially Skilled Responses, from a teacher's perspective (QRSH-PR). For this purpose, 260 preschool children were evaluated, differentiated in subgroups without and without behavioral difficulties, based on the Child Behavior Scale (Escala de Comportamento Infantil/ECI-Professor). Studies were conducted for construct, discrimination, concurrent and predictive validity. The Cronbach Alpha was calculated to evaluate internal consistency. The obtained results pointed to positive indicators in reference to construct, discrimination, and predictive validity, and even for good internal consistency, indicating that the items consistently measure the construct of social skills, and differentiated children with and without behavioral problems. The questionnaire is considered to be gauged for evaluation of socially skilled responses from preschool children, and applicable in educational and clinical environments.

The main objective of this study was to develop a brief versión of the Escala de Satisfação com o Suporte Social for children and adolescents (Ribeiro, 1999). A representative sample of 3195 children and adolescents was obtained from 5th and 7th graders throughout all five Portuguese regions. The results showed a good internal consistency for the social support satisfaction factor, α = 0.84; acceptable for the necessity for activities connected to social support factor, α = 0.69. By using ANOVA, gender, age and socioeconomic status related differences were identified. A confirmatory factorial analysis was done and an adjusted model was found by taking off item 5. The concurrent validity was inspected with measures related to social support, such as optimism, self-worth and perceptions of health related quality of life. With this analysis, we verified that women and younger participants (< 12 years) showed a higher social support satisfaction. Medium-high socioeconomic status participants showed a higher negative social support satisfaction. These results suggest the validity of the scale in assesing perceptions of social support.

The aim of this work was to develop an instrument (Coping Strategies for Skin Problems Questionnaire) suitable for identifying the coping strategies people use for general skin problems. We analyzed its psychometric properties when applied to a sample of 299 individuals. Factor analysis shows a 6-factor structure referring to the wish to change, problem-solving strategies, the search for information and asking for social support, the ability to distance oneself from the problem and to see the positive aspects of the situation. These factors explain 60.77% of the variance and show an internal consistency higher than 0.67. We analyse the validity of the questionnaire and identify different coping profiles depending on the degree of skin damage as assessed by the participants and their search for health services. According to the psychometric properties obtained, we conclude that our instrument is valid and reliable for use with people presenting skin problems.

In this work, we present a new way of understanding psychology, which emerges as a result of relating it to the three principles of the theory of fashion of Gilles Lipovetsky: “the principle of the ephemeral,” “the principle of the marginal differentiation of individuals,” and “the principle of seduction.” We relate the first principle to the plurality of the diverse and changing “schools and systems” that have existed throughout the history of psychology. We apply the second to the figure of the psychologist, considered individually, revealing his or her leading role in the generation of the changing plurality of the systems. By means of the third principle, we point up that the diverse psychologies are forms of seduction. We conclude by stating that psychology has the form of fashion and we analyze how this form can help us to better understand it.