núm. 4 (2000)

This study shows the design of an epidemiology observatory at a Colombian Community College. This observatory monitors the high risk and protection situations, the associated events, the psychoactive drugs abuse and the Internet use. At the beginning a questionnaire of prevalence of psychoactive drug abuse and their associated factors as well as the use of electronic games and the internet was apliied to a representative sample of students. At the same time, an epidemiological viligance program qas developed, the name of the programs is V.I.P. (Value, Initiative and Projection) and includes the following sections: detection at the first year of college, monitoring the risk factors, temporal risk mapping, reference detec­tion, case registration, support groups, evolution and evaluatin. The information collected by the V.I.P. helps to design and implement prevention and intervention strategies. The results of the questionnaire found nicotine and alcohol abuse as well as use of electronic games and internet at the same level, and a less scale abuse of other substances. Finally, a grade diffi­culty index (associated to psychoactive drugs) abuse, internet and electronic game's use) was applied. The results show differences by semester, department and sex. The abuse levels increased in relationship to the Jaimes & cols. (1995) evaluation.

The purpose of this study was to establish the relationship between violent behavior and the consumption of psychoactive drugs, including alcohol. This phenomena has been called co-ocurrence, and it is consider in this research context as a variable of study to identify and to analyze interactions We carried on a retrospective quantitative and qualitative in­vestigation within sample comparison design. The variables considered are as following: homicide, robbery, assault, addictive and consumption behavior and emotional, cognitive and affective factors. Participants were 320 men for the first analysis and 16 for the second one, between 18 and 35 years in four groups: 1) offenders with consuming or addictive behavior, 2) offender without consuming or addictive behavior, 3) consumers with delin­quency history , 4) consumers without delinquency history. We use the Cognitive bias Questionaire, the Idare and a semistructured interview. Both analysis showed that co- ocurrence is direct and indirect, that can be considered contingent, consecuent and circular and the factors related to are: individual, contextual and cultural components.

The chronic administration effects of cocaine (30 mg/kg) (s.c.) were analysed in gestation period on the maternal behaviour (M) on female mice and the effects of prenatal chronic treatment of cocaine (30 mg/kg) and the CM (biological mother vs. nurse) in the emo­tional behaviour and in the cocaine uptake 30 mg/kg and water in the adult female and male mice. 14 females in gestation period were aleatorily assigned into two groups, a one group to daily cocaine application (30 mg/kg) and the second group to saline solution. From the first day to twelve day of pregnancy. After parturition the cross- nursing was made, each mother kept biological young two males and two females, and four fosters young . The EB of young and mother was treated in the 5 week. The first evaluation and the cocaine uptake were not differential because of the experimental treatment. Effects of the prenatal treatment in the emotional behaviour to long term were found (second evalu­ation) and potencies for the free uptake of cocaine (30 mg/kg) mainly in the females, which were more anxious because of the highest water uptake and the least exploration. The prenatal treatment with cocaine (30 mg/kg) was stronger that the bring up conclusion in the emotionality and the effects to young females more the males.  

The purpose of this research project was to examine some perceptual disabilities associ­ated with Fetal Alcohol Effects. Twenty-six children, 7 to 15 years old, 13 sons and 13 daughters of mothers who drank alcohol during their pregnancy, were evaluated on re­sponses from tactile and visual perception and compared with other twenty-six children of mothers who did not drink during. A 2 * 2 * 2 cases and controls design was used to evaluate the responses of the children in terms of odds ratios or univariate logistic regres­sions. Analyses revealed deleterious effects of prenatal alcohol consumption on tactile discrimination, haptic recognition, drawings characteristics relations? recognition, block design and depth perception. Fetal alcohol exposure is associated with perceptual disabili­ties and, therefore, with developmental and academic difficulties through school years. Psychologists and educators should understand the long-term effects of prenatal alcohol exposure on behavioral and cognitive processes.

II Simposio sobre Adicciones y Violencia  

This research was made based on the application of an instrument to evaluate the present condition and how to change alcoholic comsumption habits (CEMA) with a sample of 488 university students proceeding from Social and Human Sciences, Engineering and Archi­tecture in private universities, most of them located in the Chapinero neighborhood of Bogotá. Among the socio-demographic aspects evaluated by CEMA, there were of special interest the sex and location of the student, within a given initial (1 to ó) or final (7st to 11*) semester of the career, with such variables interacting with other scale points, such as motivation and decisional balances. In general, men reach higher scales than women, in all of the areas, and students in the lower grades tend to show a significant higher number of points than those in the more advanced semesters. Type was the most important of the consumption characteristics, leading us to classify the subjects as weak, medium or strong consumers. CEMA evaluated the presence of the decision for a change and how strong such decisions were. On the other hand, this evaluation allowed us to classify the students under any of the stages of the transtheoretical model (TTM), based on the subject's pro­posed transitoriness to set in motion his/her move towards consumption reduction. Most students fell under the pre-contemplation and contemplation stages, while the minority of them fell under the preparation stage. It was found that decisional balances, as well as the strength of the change decisions, vary significantly with the TTM stage where the subject is classified. Some interactions among the abuse, readiness to change, consumption temp­tation, importance given to consumption and self-efficacy are analyzed and evaluated by CEMA, along with other variables such as the subject's decisional balances, consumption type, sex and semester.

El proceso de drogadicción como proceso de enamoramiento

In this research violent behavior patterns produced in population with no stablished his­tory of criminal or agressive characteristics are studied. Violent behavior temporal secuencies are analyzed and eight diferents sequencies are identified and typified, in the population, like behavior patterns. The relationship between such behaviors and some presumed associated diary situations and their relationship to several personality traits and styles of thinking are also observed. EPQ personality questionnaire, positive and negative thinking questionnaire ATQ, irrational belief scale BF, socioeconomic questionnaire and a 30 days self-record were used. Results confirm that some patterns, exist in the whole population and that a weak relationship between sincerity, irrational beliefs, job, health, marital status and violent behaviors is also present. Patterns of violent behavior revealed as the most efficiency methodology of clasification.

Acta Colombiana de Psicología

El centro de estudios e investigaciones sobre adicciones y violencia

Segundo simposio sobre adicciones y violencia