Twenty-two men, who had been forcibly sexually assaulted, participated in a study to determine the circumstances of the attacks and the effects on the victims. The immediate and long-term responses were very similar to those described in female victims of rape.

Caffeine toxicity remains a rarely reported condition, which may mimic anxiety disorders. Anxiety disorder patients do not consume toxic amounts of caffeine. However, increased sensitivity to caffeine in these patients has been suggested as contributing to their symptoms. Six cases of anxiety disorder are presented who improved with only caffeine abstention, and remained well for at least a six-month follow-up period.

A structured enquiry for assessing autobiographical memory is proposed. It is made up of three standardized time-cued sets of questions focusing on three life periods: adolescence, early and late adulthood, with five questions for each life period. Standardized testing procedure, checking for veracity and scoring methods are described. Normative data from 157 healthy individuals aged over 55 are converted into ‘equivalent scores’ for use with the enquiry and for diagnostic purposes. Education and ageing, but not sex, appear to be significant factors in the efficiency of retrieval from the autobiographic repertoire.

This is a study of the criterion validity of a newly developed computerized assessment (PROQSY) of minor psychological morbidity based on the Clinical Interview Schedule, employing a single GP's assessments as criterion measures of such morbidity and Relative Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis. Two-stage screening was carried out with a consecutive sample of 256 patients aged 15 69 consulting an experienced GP in a semi-rural setting over a six-week period. The GP made a standardized assessment of the reason for consultation and the degree of psychological disorder present. A 40% random sub-sample was then assessed using PROQSY. The area under the ROC curve using a GP criterion of minor psychological disorder (‘degree of psychological problem - mild or greater’) was 081 (s.D. = 006). However, the kappa coefficient obtained between this criterion assessment and the PROQSY assessment of minor psychological problem at the observed optimal cut-off score was only 0·28 (S.E. = 0–1; z = 2.83). It is concluded that PROQSY may be recommended for further development as a research tool providing a valid measure of minor psychological morbidity as assessed by GPs in primary care settings.

The mental health programme of WHO has been formulated through a process of consultation within WHO, with other United Nations bodies, with Governments, with the scientific community and with various non-governmental organizations (Sartorius, 1978; WHO, 1983 a; Lambo & Sartorius, in the press).