The internal restlessness scale: performance of college students with and without ADHD

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was previously believed to be a disorder of childhood, with symptoms attenuating at the onset of puberty. Follow-up studies, however, suggest that the majority of children with ADHD continue to manifest symptoms into adulthood. Although the inattention components associated with ADHD persist into adulthood, the nature of the hyperactivity component is less well understood. For example, according to criteria established by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition, hyperactivity in adolescents and adults may be limited to subjective feelings of restlessness. Recent studies with adults with ADHD have also reported that mental restlessness is commonly reported by individuals with the disorder. To better understand this characteristic of ADHD, the Internal Restlessness Scale (IRS) was developed. The results of the IRS suggest that (a) college students with ADHD report significantly higher ratings of internal restlessness than college students without ADHD, and (b) the IRS appears to have adequate test-retest reliability and a four-factor structure. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

From crayons to perfume: Getting beyond contrived collegiality

Based on reflections from over a decade of research, scholarship, and programmatic applications, this article provides evidence of impact from the work of Professor Andy Hargreaves with a specific focus on his concept of contrived collegiality. Explorations into matters of emotion provided an entry point through which the author has addressed the potential for overcoming patterns of contrived collegiality. Early research resulted in a theoretical framework of emotional epistemologies which has been foundational to the design and delivery of professional development and master’s degree programs as well as further research into the evidence of impact from this approach to leadership development. The engagement with emotional meaning making, when treated as a way of building trust and developing collaborative learning communities, has proven a good match for the otherwise relatively contrived collegiality that Professor Hargreaves identified. Professor Hargreaves’ contributions to the author’s journey are a feature of the piece.     

Rat spatial memory: Resistance to retroactive interference at long retention intervals

An attempt was made to disrupt memory for spatial information by interpolating a task of high similarity to the to-be-remembered task during a long retention interval. Rats were trained in an 8-arm maze in which choosing each arm without repetition was the optional strategy. A 4-h delay was imposed between the 4th and 5th choices. At various times during the retention interval, the rats ran a second identical maze located in another room. No evidence of retroactive interference was observed. In the second experiment, the rat was required to remember the interpolated spatial task during the retention test. This was accomplished by allowing the rat to make four choices in the first maze and then, after a variable period of time, four choices in the second maze. Four hours after exposure to each maze, retention was tested. Choice accuracy on the retention tests was high and equivalent on both mazes. Requiring the rat to remember which arms it had visited in a second maze did not impair memory for the first maze. These results demonstrate that rats can segregate spatial memories established in different contexts with considerable proficiency.     

Predicting verbal plan complexity from decision rule orientation among business students and corporate executives

Integrating the verbal planning and decision science literatures, it was reasoned that individuals whose decision rule orientations are complex exhibit greater complexity in their verbal plans than do individuals who are simple in rule orientation. Verbal complexity was based on business student participants' plans for conducting a negative performance appraisal interview; decision rule orientations were assessed by participants' responses to choice‐making scenarios. Linear discriminant analysis substantiated a relationship between college business students' decision rule orientations and their verbal planning complexity. Seventy‐one percent of the business students were classified correctly into decision rule orientation groups based on their complexity scores. This finding was cross‐validated on a sample of executive level managers. Results are considered in terms of several tentative implications for administering of negative performance appraisal interviews and for management training and development generally.     

Toward a dynamic generic framework of apologia: A case study of Dow chemical,Vietnam, and the napalm controversy

This study argues that the genre of apologia has distinct situational, substantive, and stylistic factors that are dynamically related. A dynamic theoretical framework using these three factors is proposed and used to analyze the protracted apologia of the Dow Chemical Company from 1966‐1969 in response to charges by antiwar protesters of immorality for producing napalm. Dow's rhetorical choices become much clearer when seen through the clear, serious, unprecedented, and diffuse accusatory climate that precipitated the adoption of a self actualized motive and an argumentative battle on the grounds of jurisdiction. Special constraints that corporate apologists may face as nonpersons are advanced to complete the configuration of this dynamic generic framework.