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Current interest in behavior modification has extended to the treatment of obesity and the results of two recent applications of this technology have been encouraging. The present study compared behavior modification in groups with traditional group psychotherapy in a sample of 32 obese patients. Each of two groups treated with behavior modification lost more weight than a matched control group treated with traditional group therapy. Furthermore, 13% of the patients treated oy behavior modification lost more than 40 pounds and 53% lost more than 20 oounds, results which rank with the best in the medical literature. We conclude that behavior modification may represent a significant advance in the treatment of obesity."Most obese persons will not stay in treatment for obesity. Of those who stay in treatment most will not lose weight and of those who do lose weight, most will regain it" (1). Until recently, this summary of the results of outpatient treatment for obesity has been unchallenged. Reports in the medical literature agree that no more than 25% of obese persons entering treatment will lose as much as 20 pounds and only 5% will lose as much as 40 pounds.The current interest in behavior modification and the evidence of its effectiveness in the control of several conditions rendered inevitable its application to the problems of overeating and obesity. Yet the results of the first such application, by Ferster (2) were disappointing. The modal From the

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To determine whether physiologic responses to a drug could be changed by expectation, and what role placebo effect might play, 14 medical students were given either epinephrine or placebo. Measurements of subjective response and response of plasma free fatty acids, blood glucose, and heart rate were made, Stimulant expectation was engendered by suggestion of epinephrine-like effects, and sedative expectation by suggestion of barbiturate-like effects. Of 8 drug subjects, 8 had a greater FFA response under stimulant expectations, and 7 had greater subjective, blood glucose, and heart rate responses. In 6 placebo subjects, there was no discernible effect of expectation in any measure.

Verbal and nonverbal memorization skills were tested before and after electroconvulsive shocks to the left, right, or both cerebral hemispheres of neurologically normal patients. As predicted, decrements for the left-hemisphere-shocked group were larger on the verbal than nonverbal tasks, while the reverse was true for the right-hemisphere-shocked group. Largest decrements on both tasks were shown by the bilaterally shocked group.