Studied whether behaviorally elicited cardiovascular and electrodermal reactivity could be modified through autogenic training (AGT) in 4 experimental and 4 control Ss (aged 20-25 yrs). Systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP), heart rate, and skin conductance level and fluctuations were assessed in experimental Ss in the resting state and during mental arithmetic before, during, and after 12 wks of AGT. Controls were seen for 12 sessions but asked to rest only. Noncardiovascular resting sympathetic nervous system activity indexed by skin conductance level was lowered in experimental Ss, but not in controls. Diastolic BP reactivity to mental arithmetic, and to a lesser extent systolic BP reactivity, were attenuated as a function of AGT. BP reactivity rather than resting BP may be amenable to modification through AGT. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)

Frey ha compiuto un tentativo di lavorare con bambini dislessici: l’Autore ha condotto l’allenamento autogeno parallelamente agli esercizi ortografici e di lettura del programma specifico di recupero, con un gruppo di 60 bambini. Un secondo gruppo di controllo, invece, ha seguito solo il normale programma di recupero. Il gruppo che aveva seguito anche il T.A. ha riportato risultati finali più soddisfacenti rispetto al gruppo di controllo, sia perché alla fine del trattamento i bambini che ne facevano parte commettevano un numero significativamente inferiore di errori di lettura, sia perché in questi stessi bambini si erano abbassati fino alla normalità i valori delle scale di nevrosi e di ansietà.

A study was conducted in 1986 on the effects of psychotherapy on multiple sclerosis (MS) with 78 psychotherapeutically treated MS patients and 56 untreated controls. Ss received autogenic training and various forms of group therapy under psychoanalytic supervision. Findings suggest psychotherapy's efficacy in reducing dependency, passivity, and depression; inducing physical changes; enhancing autonomy, joy of living, and socialization; and freeing Ss from morbid concentration on the disease. A case history is related. (English abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)