The present experiment attempted to reconcile previous results on the relationship of erotic stimuli and aggression. Subjects were either insulted or not insulted prior or subsequent to observing erotic stimuli of varying levels of arousal inducements. It was found, in support of prior research, that mildly erotic stimuli had an inhibiting effect on aggression when viewed subsequent to anger arousal, whereas highly erotic stimuli tended to maintain aggression at a level similar to nonerotic exposure. Prior viewing of erotic stimuli, however, had a facilitative effect on aggressive behavior. It was proposed that erotic stimuli have two components (arousal and attentional shift) that interact with anger arousal to either inhibit or facilitate aggressive behavior. The article considers the implications of this two-component system for future research on erotic and aggressive stimuli.

Examined the convergent and discriminant validity of the SCL-90 in a group of 113 psychiatric inpatients and determined the degree of reactivity to several common response sets. The nine SCL-90 dimensions were found to correlate with analogous measures from other tests, and thus showed convergent validity, but were also found to correlate with nonanalogous measures, an indication of low discriminant validity. In addition, the dimensions correlated with the three MMPI validity scales, suggesting their reactivity to response bias. These findings were interpreted as indicating that the SCL-90 has limited use with psychiatric inpatients at present, although it may be useful as a brief screening device for disposition and referral.

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Research is reviewed which indicates the potential utility of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (MCS) in a variety of clinical assessment contexts. In relation to other assessment devices, the MCS has been used to enhance predictive accuracy of several scales, and has predicted defensive reactions to negative personality test feedback. Research is also reviewed regarding MCS relationships to self-disclosure, therapy process variables, premature termination from psychotherapy, and selection of subjects for psychotherapy research. The role of the MCS as a therapy outcome measure is also discussed. Scoring norms for normal and clinical groups are presented, including discussion of the effects of age, education and race on MCS scores. A number of avenues for future research with the MCS are described.

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