No abstract

Previous experiments (KELLY et al. 1958a, b; M~QvIS etal.; SMITiK et al.) have studied effects of meprobamate and other psychoactive drugs on the objectively measured behavior of normal subjects after acute and after chronic administration of the drug treatments. The present experiment investigates chronic drug effects on a sample of patients psychiatrically diagnosed as anxiety neurotics. This, then, allows for extension of our previous findings to a new group of potential drug users-the more disturbed outpatient, of psychiatrist or general practitioner, who is likely to be treated for protracted periods under close medical supervision. The driving, vision, and attention tests developed and used previously were again employed in this experiment, along with new tests that appeared promising as anxiety-sensitive indicators. In addition to data from the objective behavioral tests, two other types of data were collected-psychiatric assessments on a number of variables, and checklist ratings both by the patients and by a close friend. Method Subjects. Thirty-eight paid volunteers, ranging in age from 21 to 41 years, were chosen as subjects for the present study of whom thirtytwo, including 15 men and 17 women, completed the experiment. This total included 23 patients who were diagnosed as anxiety neurotics on the basis of a psychiatric interview and work-up, plus nine normal controls. Patients were recruited from three sources : a) A general practi-* The authors wish to thank Mr. GERS~OM MORNINGSTAR for conducting the behavioral tests, Drs. RALP~ W. GERARD and E. LOWELL KELLY for consultation in planning and designing the experiment, Mrs. MONA MO~I~GSTA~ and Messrs.

In a private pediatric practice, 94 infants who were breast-feeding were followed for the first 2 months of life in order to define the frequency of cessation of breast-feeding and to identify factors that would predict mothers and infants at risk for early cessation. At 8 weeks, 30% of the mothers had stopped nursing. Factors associated with cessation were: maternal lack of confidence in breast-feeding (P < .001); anticipated duration of nursing less than 6 months (P = .002); ratings by the nursery staff of infant's excessive crying (P = .007), infant's demanding personality (P = .007), trouble with féeding (P = .001), and future trouble with feeding (P = .004). Together, these factors predicted 77% of the mothers who terminated breast-feeding. Supplementing with formula before the 2-week office visit also led to termination of breast-feeding by 8 weeks (P = .006). This decision was frequently made without medical advice. Nearly 64% (14/22) of the mothers who added formula within the first 2 weeks did so without contacting the pediatric practice.

Hamlet: Do you see yonder cloud that's almost in shape of a camel? Polonius: By the mass, and 'tis like a camel indeed. Hamlet: Methinks it is like a weasel. Polonius: It is backed like a weasel. Hamlet: Or like a whale? Polonius: Very like a whale. Most investigators have wondered what to do about the obliging subject who “helps science” by telling the experimenter what he thinks the experimenter would like to hear; the anxious subject who gives what he thinks is an appropriate response rather than an actual one; and the creative subject who cannot bear to report the same dull, mundane reaction as everybody else. The authors here suggest that these factors may influence the results of sensory deprivation experiments to a much greater extent than has heretofore been recognized, and recommend a new look at some old interpretations.