Let me begin by congratulating the Director (José Muñiz Fernández) and Associate Directors (Jorge L. Arias, Marino Pérez, Guillermo Vallejo, and Serafín Lemos) for launching the publication of Psicothema with its goal of publishing research and theoretical contributions dependent upon on rationality and verifiability regardless of theoretical orientation, using Spanish and English as the official languages. Theoretical partisanship is too often the criterion for judgment. Moreover, a journal that will promote communication between Spanish psychology and United States psychology is very much needed....

Las previsiones futuras apuntan a que el número de ancianos con demencia y los recursos dedicados a su atención pueden no seguir caminos paralelos o velocidades idénticas.

Para estos ancianos demenciados, que en su mayor parte viven actualmente en un medio familiar, la familia es el principal soporte social y, con toda probabilidad, el más adecuado, sobre todo si no se modifican sus coordenadas espaciales y sociales en un momento en que estos ejes de referencia son difíciles de sustituir.

Este estudio evalúa los determinantes de la intolerancia familiar frente al enfermo anciano demenciado en una muestra de 86 pacientes que acudieron a un Centro de Atención Primaria en el plazo de un año y que presentaban resultados inequívocos de demencia según el Mini-Examen Cognoscitivo.

Los resultados muestran que el desvalimiento económico y social del anciano, desencajado de su habitual jerarquía familiar, y la presencia de trastorno psíquico (con probables trastornos de conducta), tanto en él como en sus familiares, son factores relevantes en la predicción de la Tolerancia familiar. El grado de demencia según el Mini-Examen Cognoscitivo no tuvo ningún efecto sobre la Tolerancia.

Palabras clave: Demencia. Soporte Social. Epidemiología.

Factors affecting family tolerante toward elder demented patients. In the foreseeble future it is expected that the total elderly population with dementia and the resources destinated to their tare will not probably mercase at the same rate and celerity.

Family is now the most important and suitable provider of social support for that elderly demented people, usually living in a family setting, especially when spacial and social frames are not modified during a period where these frames of referente cannot be easily changed.

In the present study, causes of family intolerante toward the elder demented patient are assessed in a sample of 86 patients attended at a First Medical Aid Center during one year, showing innequivocal signs of dementia according to a Mini Mental Test of cognitive skills.

Results show that financial and social shortage in the aged person, thrown off his or her usual hierarchical family role, and the presence of a psychological disorder (probably a personality disorder, either in the elder person or in the family members, are the most relevant factors in the prediction of family tolerante. According to the Mini Mental Test, the level of dementia does not affect family tolerante.

Keywords: Dementia. Social Support. Epidemiology.

El descontento apreciado entre el profesorado ante el diagnóstico normativo al que se somete al alumnado con Dificultades de Aprendizaje, de cara a planificaciones correctivas o fórmulas alternativas de escolarización, se justifica por razones de carencia de validez curricular, falta de reconocimiento de valoraciones cualitativas, ausencia de planteamientos operativos que sean aplicables directamente en el aula, discontinuidad en el proceso diagnóstico y alejamiento del contexto real de la dinámica de enseñanza-aprendizaje. Sin ánimo de minusvalorar el diagnóstico tradicional, creemos que resulta necesario establecer modelos previos de exploración y diagnóstico que posean un carácter más dinámico y directo, que estén más integrados en el aula y. que sean, en definitiva, más escolares.

En este sentido, se describen, brevemente, los pasos que caracterizan una formulación diagnóstica sistemática, de base curricular, que permita la valoración directa del proceso de aprendizaje mediante competencias definidas por conductas, habilidades y conocimientos claramente observables en el currículum, evitando así arriesgadas inferencias efectuadas a partir de pruebas genéricas y descontextualizadas.

Palabras clave: Diagnóstico Basado en el Currículum. Pedagogía Correctiva. Dificultades de Aprendizaje.

Curriculum Assessment and Learning Disabilities.- The dissatisfaction shown by teachers towards the normative diagnosis with which children with Learning disabilities are assessed, when corrective planifications or alternative schooling forms are thought of, is justified by reasons of deficiencies into the curricular validity, lack of use of qualitative assessment, lack of an operative establishment able to be applied directly in the classroom, a discontinuity in the diagnostic process and removal of the teaching-learning dynamic from the real context.

Whitout an intention to rest any value to the traditional assessment, we think that previous explorations and diagnostic models which have a more dynamic and direct character need to be established and which are more integrated in the classroom and are, in short, closer to school.

In this sense, we describe briefly the typical steps of a sistematic curricular assessment, which allows a direct valoration of the learning process through competences defined by behaviors, abilities and knowledge perfectly defined into the curriculum, so that we can avoid the risky inferences made by general and descontextualized tests.

Keywords: Curriculum Based Assessment. Remedial Education. Learning Disabilities.

El uso de los diseños longitudinales en panel para el estudio del efecto temporal en las relaciones entre las variables parece ser una alternativa válida para la obtención de evidencia empírica a propósito de la posible causalidad entre las variables definidas. Sin embargo, el análisis tradicional de las distintas correlaciones adolece de algunas deficiencias centradas fundamentalmente en la dificultad de recoger los auténticos efectos entre variables. En este trabajo se pretende presentar la traducción de los diferentes modelos estadísticos planteables mediante diseños de panel de dos tandas (2w2v) a sistemas de ecuaciones estructurales, así como las mejoras que este tipo de análisis supone con respecto al estudio de los distintos efectos propios de esta estrategia de investigación.

Palabras clave: Diseños longitudinales. Ecuaciones estructurales. Diseños en panel.

Longitudinal panel designs: alternative data analysis with structural equations.- The use of the longitudinal panel design for the study of the temporal effect on the variables relationships, seems a valid alternative for of obtain empirical evidence about the hipothetical causal relation between variables. However, the traditional analysis of the differents correlations present some deficiencias, essentially centrated in the difficulty for to show the true effects between variables. The aim of this paper is to present the translation of the differents statisticals models referred with the panel design with two waves (2w2v); lo the structurals equations system and, also, the improvements of this kind of analysis, with respect of the study of the differents effects of this procedure research.

Keywords: Longitudinal designs. Structural equations. Panel designs.

Se analizan aquellos artículos que estudian registros de potenciales evocados auditivos de latencia corta (PEALC) en sujetos con síndrome de Down (S.D.). A diferencia de lo que ocurre con otras poblaciones clínicas, encontramos una gran concordancia entre los resultados obtenidos por los distintos autores, lo cual nos permite señalar la existencia de unas características concretas en los parámetros de los PEALC de los sujetos con S.D.: presentan latencias más cortas, especialmente en la onda V, y amplitudes menores que los sujetos normales. Estas anomalías en las latencias aparecen ya entre los 6 y los 12 meses y se mantienen en muestras de mayor edad.

Palabras clave: Potenciales Evocados Auditivos de Latencia Corta (PEALC, PEALC). Síndrome de Down.

Reports that study brainstem auditory evoked potential (BAEP or SAEP) in subjects with Down's syndrome, are analyzed here. In contrast with others clinical groups, we find a great similarity among the different author's results. According to these similar results, it appears clear that subjects with Down's syndrome present a typical pattern in their BAEP: They show shorter latencies, especially in the peak V, and smaller amplitudes than normal subjects. These anomalies in the latencies appear between six and twelve months and also in older subjects.

Keywords: Brainstem Auditory Evoked Potentials (BAEP, SAEP). Down's Syndrome.

En este trabajo se realiza una tarea de memoria espacial, laberinto de agua en T y registro de una serie de pautas comportamentales (conducta exploratoria, acicalamiento, pasividad, actividad oral, enriquecimiento) en rata blanca. A continuación se lesiona electrolíticamente el núcleo mamilar lateral, mediante la administración de una corriente continua de 1 mA y 1.3 mA, siendo posteriormente cuantificado el volumen del tejido lesionado.

Los resultados conductuales y fisiológicos registrados son discutidos en relación con el síndrome de Korsakoff.

Palabras clave: Cuerpos mamilares. Memoria espacial. Laberinto de agua.

In this work an spatial memory task was made, as well as a water maze T and a registry of some behaviour models (exploratory conduct, grooming, passivity, oral activity, enrichment) in white rat. We after lesioned by electrolytic method the lateral mammillary nucleus (1 mA and 1.3 mA) and we quantificated the volume of the lesion.

We studied the relationship between the conductual-physiological results and the Korsakoff's syndrome.

Keywords: Mammillary bodies. Spatial memory. Water-maze.

Single-channel Ba⁺⁺ current recordings have been made from the insulin-secreting cell line RINm5F with the patch-clamp technique. We have found two different single-channel currents. Both were distinguished kinetically by applying depolarizing test pulses at various levels from different holding potentials (Hp). Jumps from -70 to -30 mV were insufficient to trigger channel openings, but larger depolarizations evoked L-type unitary inward current. Depolarizing voltage pulses from -90 to -30 or -20 mV activate a different Ca⁺⁺ -channel current characterized by a smaller conductance. This T-type channel activity is not seen with large depolarizing voltage pulses. Glvceraldehyde, a substance evoking insulin secretion from the RINm5F cells, enhance the voltage-activated L-type Ca⁺⁺ channel opening by increasing the mean open-time and also decreases the voltage threshold for channel opening. Stimulation of the cells with the membrane permeable diacilglycerol analogue didecanoylglvcerol (DC-10, 5 Ug/ml) markedly enhance the open-time of channels during depolarizing voltage pulses. It seems possible that carbohydrate-evoked cellular Ca⁺⁺ uptake is mediated via protein-kinase C activation.

Keywords: Insulin-secreting cell. Channel Ba⁺⁺. Patch-clamp.

In a few words, item response theory (IRT) postulates that (a) examinee test performance can be predicted (or explained) by a set of factors called traits, latent traits, or abilities, and (b) the relationship between examinee item performance and these traits can be described by a monotonically increasing function called and item characteristic function. This function specifies that examinees with higher scores on the traits have higher expected probabilities for answering an item correctly than examinees with lower scores on the traits. In applying item response theory to measurement problems, a common assumption is made that there is one dominant factor or ability which can account for item performance. This so-called «ability» which the test measures could be a broadly or narrowly defined aptitude, achievement, or personality variable.

Hace cien años, el paciente editor Henry Holt pudo tener, al fin, encima de su mesa un manuscrito largamente esperado: The Principles of Psychology de William James. Como es sabido, James había firmado su contrato para escribir una Psychology para la «American Science Series» de Holt doce años antes, en 1878. Holt tuvo que esperar durante todo ese tiempo, y mantuvo una nutrida y divertida correspondencia con James (reseñada en parte en el libro clásico de Perry, 1935) animándole a cumplir su viejo compromiso: James perdía contratos, se saltaba constantemente los plazos autoimpuestos y empleaba todas esas sutiles formas de tortura que solemos usar los autores más desastrados con los editores más comprensivos.

REVISION DE LIBROS / BOOK REVIEW

There is no shortage of books or research articles pointing to the effectiveness of psychological methods as applied to medical problems. And indeed the authors contributing to this edition present closely argued and well supported cases for such interventions and approaches. For anyone working within the specific diagnostic groups of hypertension, cardiac rehabilitation, injury to the CNS, pain, obesity, AIDS, diabetes, premenstrual syndrome & menopause, irritable bowel syndrome, smoking and respiratory disorders, this book is essential reading.