Robert Roessler

Bio: Robert Roessler is an academic researcher from University of Wisconsin-Madison. The author has contributed to research in topics: Responsivity & Psychophysiology. The author has an hindex of 8, co-authored 16 publications receiving 247 citations.

Voice predicts affect during psychotherapy.

Abstract: This study examined the relationship between emotions and the frequency and power characteristics of the voice in psychotherapy. The intensity of fear, anger, depression, and total affect in each of four interviews with one patient was rated every 20 seconds on a nine-point scale. Significant agreement among judges was achieved. Voice samples from each epoch in which there was sufficient speech were subjected to spectral analysis of the frequencies between 0 and 1000 HZ. These spectra were scored for nine frequency and power parameters. Multiple linear regression equations were then developed from two interviews, using the nine voice spectral variables as predictors and the mean ratings for each affect as the criterion variables. Significant multiple correlations were achieved between every rated affect and various combinations of voice variables. The beta weights and constants from these equations were then employed in the successful prediction of levels of anger, fear, depression, and total affect in one interview, and the levels of depression and total affect in another interview. In addition, epochs of conflict differed from "pure" affect epochs, and pure epochs of anger, fear, and depression differed from each other in various frequency and power characteristics of the voice. Voice spectral measures may be an objective means of identifying and quantifying affect in psychotherapy.

Incidence of somatic disease in psychiatric patients.

Abstract: &NA; This study tested the hypothesis that persons with impaired psychological adaptive capacity, operationally defined by status as psychiatric patients, would demonstrate a greater incidence of somatic disease than would a control group. Four hundred and seventy one university students seen in a psychiatric out‐patient clinic were compared with 480 control subjects for the incidence of thirteen categories of disease based on their medical records. Results confirm the hypothesis at appropriate statistical levels of confidence. The data support the thesis that there is a higher incidence of somatic disease in those with impaired psychological adaptive capacity rather than simply a differential body consciousness.

Ego Strength and Physiological Responsivity: 1. The Relationship of the Barron ES Scale to Skin Resistance, Finger Blood Volume, Heart Rate, and Muscle Potential Responses to Sound

Abstract: I. Introduction One of the problems which has confronted investigators of psychophysiology has been the selection of psychological parameters which can be quantified reliably and which can in turn be related reliably to physiological measures.33Many of the early attempts to relate psychological to physiological functioning compared psychiatric diagnostic groups on various physiological measures; these efforts met with little success, the physiological findings for a given diagnosis often ranging from evidence of marked hypofunction through marked hyperfunction.2,13 More recently attention has focused upon the use of measures of affectivity−particularly anxiety, depression, and anger.*This approach has generally been a more fruitful and reliable one. Nonetheless, methodological and conceptual problems remain. One such difficulty is that affectivity is influenced by the experimental setting itself.29,35,42Another problem is the tendency of individuals to respond stereotypically, regardless of the stimulus employed.6,8,21,22,31Yet another problem

Emotional processing of fear : exposure to corrective information

Abstract: In this article we propose mechanisms that govern the processing of emotional information, particularly those involved in fear reduction. Emotions are viewed as represented by information structures in memory, and anxiety is thought to occur when an information structure that serves as program to escape or avoid danger is activated. Emotional processing is denned as the modification of memory structures that underlie emotions. It is argued that some form of exposure to feared situations is common to many psychotherapies for anxiety, and that confrontation with feared objects or situations is an effective treatment. Physiological activation and habituation within and across exposure sessions are cited as indicators of emotional processing, and variables that influence activation and habituation of fear responses are examined. These variables and the indicators are analyzed to yield an account of what information must be integrated for emotional processing of a fear structure. The elements of such a structure are viewed as cognitive representations of the stimulus characteristic of the fear situation, the individual's responses in it, and aspects of its meaning for the individual. Treatment failures are interpreted with respect to the interference of cognitive defenses, autonomic arousal, mood state, and erroneous ideation with reformation of targeted fear structures. Applications of the concepts advanced here to therapeutic practice and to the broader study of psychopathology are discussed.

Vocal affect expression: a review and a model for future research

Abstract: In reviewing the literature on the vocal expression of emotion, a discrepancy between reported high accuracy in vocal-auditory recognition and the lack of clear evidence for the acoustic differentiation of vocal expression is noted. The latter is explained by (a) a paucity of research on voice quality, (b) neglect of the social signaling functions of affect vocalization, and (c) insufficiently precise conceptualization of the underlying emotional states. A "component patterning" model of vocal affect expression is proposed that attempts to rink the outcomes of antecedent event evaluation to biologically based response patterns. On the basis of a literature survey of acoustic-phonetic evidence, the likely phonatory and articulatory correlates of the physiological responses characterizing different emotional states are described in the form of three major voice types (narrow-wide, lax-tense, full-thin). Specific predictions are made as to the changes in acoustic parameters resulting from changing voice types. These predictions are compared with the pattern of empirical findings yielded by a comprehensive survey of the literature on vocal cues in emotional expression. Although the comparison is largely limited to the tense-lax voice type (because acoustic parameters relevant to the other voice types have not yet been systematically studied), a high degree of convergence is revealed. It is suggested that the model may help to stimulate hypothesis-guided research as well as provide a framework for the development of appropriate research paradigms.

Communication of emotions in vocal expression and music performance: different channels, same code?

Abstract: Many authors have speculated about a close relationship between vocal expression of emotions and musical expression of emotions. but evidence bearing on this relationship has unfortunately been lacking. This review of 104 studies of vocal expression and 41 studies of music performance reveals similarities between the 2 channels concerning (a) the accuracy with which discrete emotions were communicated to listeners and (b) the emotion-specific patterns of acoustic cues used to communicate each emotion. The patterns are generally consistent with K. R. Scherer's (1986) theoretical predictions. The results can explain why music is perceived as expressive of emotion, and they are consistent with an evolutionary perspective on vocal expression of emotions. Discussion focuses on theoretical accounts and directions for future research.

Health Behavior, Illness Behavior and Sick Role behavior: I. Health and Illness Behavior

Abstract: Health Behavior, Illness Behavior and Sick Role behavior Stanislav V. Kasl PhD & Sidney Cobb MD To cite this article: Stanislav V. Kasl PhD & Sidney Cobb MD (1966) Health Behavior, Illness Behavior and Sick Role behavior, Archives of Environmental Health: An International Journal, 12:2, 246-266, DOI: 10.1080/00039896.1966.10664365 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00039896.1966.10664365