Psychologist says students can learn to turn off TV
"If he's a real procrastinator, he may just sit there for the first few
sessions and not get much done. I say, 'Fine, sit there and don't worry
about it, it will come. Don't yield to the temptation of getting up.'"
(Continued from page 1)
not get much done. I say. Tine, sit there
and don't worry about it, it will come.
Don't yield to the temptation of getting
up.' "
Forced to choose between the boredom
of just sitting and opening a dry textbook,
eventually it becomes more interesting to
open the book, Ziesat said.
No reward
Another major reason that people
procrastinate studying is that there is no
reward connected with the effort, the
psychologist explained.
In trying to improve study habits, he
said he employs the Premack principle
which states that any high frequency
behavior can be used as a reinforcer in
increasing any low frequency behavior.
"We have the student list all of his
favorite activities that would be practical
to do after an evening's work," Ziesat
said. "We then encourage him to engage
in something he enjoys each evening after
accomplishing whatever task he has set
for himself."
To be most effective, this reinforcing
activity should be done immediately after
completion of the work — not before —
and should last no longer than the
amount of time spent studying.
"A lot of this is basic common sense, but
it has only recently been confirmed
experimentally," he said.
Procrastinators treated successfully
His own research, published in the
February issue of "Psychological
Reports," involved 56 University of
By John Becton
The Duke-UNC Organ Procurement
Program continues to grow in a number
of ways.
Recently, it expanded into South
Carolina, when physician's associates
Michael Phillips and Corbin Peterson
flew to Darlington, S.C., to assist a local
surgeon in the surgical recovery of two
kidneys from an accident victim.
(The flight itself, in one of the airplanes
belonging to the University of North
Carolina, was a first. While airplanes had
been used previously for transporting
organs, this was the first time members
of the team had flown to a recovery site.)
The South Carolina hospital joins an
active network of hospitals, including
Duke, the Durham VA, N.C. Memorial,
Durham County General, Cape Fear
Valley in Fayetteville, New Hanover
Memorial in Wilmington, Danville (Va.)
Memorial, Wesley Long in Greensboro,
Craven County in New Bern and several
community hospitals in North Carolina.
Through this network and the South-
Eastern Organ Procurement Foundation
(SEOPF), the procurement program
matches donated organs with appropriate
recipients.
The two kidneys from Darlington were
matched, using the SEOPF computer,
with one recipient at Duke and a second in
Virginia. Both kidneys began functioning
as soon as they were transplanted,
Phillips said.
Along with its geographical growth,
the program which began retrieving
kidneys in 1974, now is procuring eyes,
bone, muscle and skin, and the increase in
the number of organ donors is significant.
In 1974, the program had eight kidneys
Want to save gas?
The Durham Jaycees and the Research
Triangle Lung Association are offering a
free one-minute gas savers-auto
emissions check Saturday, Oct. 14, 10
a.m.-4 p.m. at South Square Mall. This is
another program supported by
Christmas Seals for the prevention and
cure of lung diseases.
Arizona students who had admitted that
procrastination was a problem for them.
By the end of the semester, those who
were given training in stimulus control
and self-reward significantly increased
the amount of time they spent studying.
"They also reported that their study
problems were less serious, that it was
easier to make themselves study and that
their attitudes toward themselves as
students, toward doing homework and
toward college improved during the
course of treatment," Ziesat wrote.
Ben Franklin agrees
An important adjunct to the self-
control techniques, the psychologist said,
is self-monitoring — actually graphing or
keeping a daily table of the behavior
pattern that one is trying to change.
While social scientists don't agree on
whether record keeping is beneficial in
itself, Ziesat said he favors it.
"Some people think it's mechanical and
distasteful to graph their lives on paper,"
he said. "But if you're hurting enough,
you'll try this sort of thing. It's nobody
else's business, and you can keep the
record to yourself."
donated. By 1977, the number had
increased to 30. Flights to New Bern and
Wilmington this past weekend brought
this year's total to 40. Also, this year there
have been 32 eyes retrieved, including
four procured last weekend, and there
have been five bone donors and seven
muscle donors.
Benjamin Franklin, incidentally, also
advocated the practice and described how
he did it in his autobiography.
Phobia (excessive fear) of examinations
or classes is another cause of
procrastination that is not at all
uncommon among college students, the
therapist said. The most effective current
The Duke-UNC program has received
organs for transplantation in this area
from as far away as Minnesota. It has sent
organs as far away as Copenhagen,
Denmark, to be matched with compatible
donors (see Intenow, 5/20/77). Most
organs procured in North Carolina,
however, are used in-state.
treatment is called "systematic
desensitization."
It involves having the student
construct a hierarchy of situations related
to taking exams or attending classes.
After being taught to relax, Ziesat
explained, the patient works his way up
the ladder, first in his imagination, until
he can remain relaxed during the actual
event.
Only as last resort
Parents often ask whether punishment
alone can make a young person study.
"For most behavioral problems,
including procrastination, punishment
should be used only as a last resort
because so many other approaches can
work better," the psychologist said. "A lot
of research indicates that punishment
frequently does more harm than good.
"At the same time, it's important for
parents to set limits for theirchildren and
enforce those limits," he added.
Don't give up
Ziesat said parents shouldn't be
surprised if procrastination gets worse at
the beginning of treatment. Nor should
they give up on behavior modification
after a few days.
"Either consciously or unconsciously,
the child may be saying 'Oh, are these the
new rules of the game? Let me see how
far 1 can push him or her.'"
The psychologist said most children
will eventually give up in the face of
consistent parental control and be
happier as they realize it comes from
caring.
Professional news
Dr. Lennart Fagraeus, assistant professor of
anesthesiology has been invited to participate
in a meeting in Luxembourg, Oct. 12-13, on
"Medical Aspects of Diving Accidents."
The meeting which is part of an ongoing
dialogue concerning the treatment of divers on
the oil rigs in the North Sea, is jointly
sponsored by the Commission of European
Communities (Common Market) and the
European Undersea Biomedical Society.
Fagraeus will present a new treatment
procedure for severe cases of decompression
sickness after air diving, that has been
developed in the F.G. Hall Laboratory for
Environmental Research (hyperbaricchamber)
at Duke.
The new treatment was recently published
as the lead article in the Lancet and is the result
of international team work in which Dr. John
N. Miller, associate professor of
anesthesiology and medical center for the F.G.
Hail Laboratory and Dr. P. B. Bennett,
professor of anesthesiology and director of the
F.G. Hall Laboratory, have been instrumental,
together with Drs. D. H. Elliot and T. G.
Shields from England and Dr. J. Grimstad from
Norway.
Experience now covers four cases of serious
refractory decompression sickness in which
the divers, initially severely paralyzed
following air dives, were successfully treated
at raised pressures breathing oxygen-nitrogen
mixtures for several days in a hyperbarii.
chamber. Two of the patients were actually
able to walk out of the chamber unassisted,
whereas the other two recovered shortly
afterwards. (See Itilerann,, 0/2/77).
IT'S THE REAL THING—Eight-year-old Marc Hawley gets a close look at a pair of kidneys that
were hooked up to a Waters Transport Module, a portable kidney transport machine which keeps
the kidneys viable when they are being moved to a transplant site. The machine supplies the
kidneys with necessary gases (Oj and CO2) and maintains a constant 7°C temperature to retard
cell breakdown. Marc is the son of Carol Hawley, former secretary to Dr, James F. Glenn,
professor and chief of the Division of Urologic Surgery. (Pholo bv Parker Herring)
"For most behavioral problems, including procrastination,
punishment should be used only as a last resort because so many
other approaches can work better. A lot of research indicates that
punishment frequently does more harm than good. At the same time,
it's important for parents to set limits for their children and enforce
those limits."
Organ procurement program spreads wings