Factorial similarity of letter and number series comprising identical rules

Letter series and number series tests, comprising items based on identical rules, were administered in a counterbalanced design to 320 undergraduates in order to determine the similarity of factorial structure by means of Tucker’s coefficients of congruence. Results indicated that the letter and number series tests, in which each item in one had a same-rule counter-part in the other, possessed limited factorial similarity because only 4 of the 8 identically constituted factors yielded coefficients of congruence between .80 and .91 (median = .85). Examination of item-wise patterns of responses of the persons, whose total scores on the letter series tests were five or more points lower than their total scores on the corresponding number series tests, revealed certain tactics of this group (n = 92) that might account for the lack of adequate factorial similarity.     

Factorial similarity of letter and number series comprising identical rules

Letter series and number series tests, comprising items based on identical rules, were administered in a counterbalanced design to 320 undergraduates in order to determine the similarity of factorial structure by means of Tucker’s coefficients of congruence. Results indicated that the letter and number series tests, in which each item in one had a same-rule counter-part in the other, possessed limited factorial similarity because only 4 of the 8 identically constituted factors yielded coefficients of congruence between .80 and .91 (median = .85). Examination of item-wise patterns of responses of the persons, whose total scores on the letter series tests were five or more points lower than their total scores on the corresponding number series tests, revealed certain tactics of this group (n = 92) that might account for the lack of adequate factorial similarity.     

Reasoning ability in older adults measured through letter and number series

Letter series and number series tests, consisting of items based on identical rules, were administered in a counterbalanced design to 58 persons (46 women and 12 men) between the ages of 61 and 88 years to determine their relative efficacy (relative difficulty and acceptability) as measures of inductive/deductive reasoning ability. Results indicated that letter and number series tests, in which each item in one has a same-rule counterpart in the other, were not equivalent in regard to their relative difficulty or popularity among the elderly. The number series test was significantly (p 0001) easier and more popular than its letter series counterpart. Some of the implications of these findings for assessing reasoning ability in the elderly were specified.     

Reasoning ability in older adults measured through letter and number series

Letter series and number series tests, consisting of items based on identical rules, were administered in a counterbalanced design to 58 persons (46 women and 12 men) between the ages of 61 and 88 years to determine their relative efficacy (relative difficulty and acceptability) as measures of inductive/deductive reasoning ability. Results indicated that letter and number series tests, in which each item in one has a same-rule counterpart in the other, were not equivalent in regard to their relative difficulty or popularity among the elderly. The number series test was significantly (p 0001) easier and more popular than its letter series counterpart. Some of the implications of these findings for assessing reasoning ability in the elderly were specified.     

Assessing Phonemic Fluency in Multilingual Contexts: Letter Selection Methodology and Demographically Stratified Norms for Three South African Language Groups

Because of their global clinical utility, phonemic fluency tests are frequently incorporated into neuropsychological assessment batteries. However, in heterogeneous societies their use is complicated by the lack of careful attention to using letters of equivalent difficulty across languages, and the paucity of norms stratified by relevant sociodemographic variables. In accordance with the International Test Commission's guidelines for adaptation of test material in multilingual contexts, this study provides (1) an internationally replicable methodological template for selecting appropriate letter sets; (2) empirical evidence to substantiate the equivalence of a letter set across three languages; (3) a template for evaluating the relative impact of sociodemographic variables on phonemic fluency; and (4) appropriately stratified norms for the letter set SBL (English and Afrikaans) / IBL (Xhosa) in a sample (N = 512) of urban participants (7–25 years with 1–17 years of education) from the Cape Town region of the Western Cape province of South Africa.     

Effects of Stimulus Number and Target-to-Distractor Ratio on the Performance of Random Array Letter Cancellation Tasks

Cancellation tests are commonly used in the clinical assessment of visuospatial function, but there has been little study of task characteristics influencing performance. This study was designed to assess factors which affect cancellation performance. Sixteen healthy subjects sequentially performed four random-array letter cancellation tasks. The forms contained 50 and 100 stimuli and target:distractor (T/D) ratios of 1:4 and 1:9 with target letter “A” and randomly selected letter distractors. The primary performance measure was calculated as the number of correctly cancelled targets divided by the time to complete the task, corrected for accuracy. This measure revealed a strong effect of T/D ratio (p< .0001), with performance adversely affected by higher proportion of distractors. There was no effect of stimulus number. This suggests that T/D ratio should be considered in cancellation test design and interpretation.     

Therapeutic response to Cognitive Processing Therapy in White and Black female veterans with military sexual trauma-related PTSD

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is an evidence-based treatment (EBT) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) which has been validated for female veterans with military-related PTSD. Existing trials have enrolled predominantly White veterans with some studies documenting higher rates of early termination from EBTs among Black females when compared to White females. Data from a previously published randomized clinical trial were used to evaluate the effectiveness of CPT for Black female veterans with military sexual trauma (MST)-related PTSD. Reductions in PTSD symptom severity, number of sessions attended, and early termination rates were compared between Black (n = 20) and White (n = 16) female veterans. A hierarchical linear modeling approach was used, with PTSD symptom severity over the course of treatment and follow-up entered as a level-1 variable and race (Black or White) entered as a level-2 predictor. Piecewise growth curves analyses revealed that both Black and White female veterans experienced significant reductions in PTSD symptom severity over the course of treatment and gains were maintained up to 6 months post-treatment. Race was not found to be a significant predictor of change in the slope of PTSD symptom severity over the course of CPT treatment. Additionally, number of sessions attended and rates of early termination did not significantly differ based on race. Results suggest that CPT was a well-tolerated and effective psychotherapeutic treatment for this sample regardless of racial self-identification.     

Physical self-perceptions and self-esteem in adolescents participating in organized sports and religious groups

Drawing on the exercise and self-esteem model (EXSEM), the current study examined associations between sport activities and aspects of the self-system among adolescent members of sport groups. Youths attending religious groups were included in the study to allow for a test of generalization. Participants were 595 adolescents (sport groups: n = 355, M_age = 15.09 years, SD = 1.49, 54.6% female; religious groups: n = 240, M_age = 15.67 years, SD = 1.44, 53.8% female) who completed a series of paper and pencil measures detailing their involvement in sport activities (sport group only), their self-efficacy beliefs in the physical domain, perceived sport competence and attractiveness, as well as global self-esteem. A structural model was tested for sport youth, specifying an effect of sport activities on self-efficacy that, in turn, was expected to predict subjective sport competence and attractiveness. Finally, the model postulated effects of competence and attractiveness on self-esteem. The model test revealed a good fit. Multi-group models considering type of leisure group and sex pointed to parallel patterns in the associations of self-efficacy, competence, attractiveness, and self-esteem in the subgroups.     

The Effect of Musical Mode on Verbal and Spatial Task Performance

Music in the major mode is often associated with happy feelings, which could enhance task performance, compared with that in the minor mode, which is associated more with sadness. Male and female participants (N = 48) completed written verbal and spatial reasoning tests while a piece of music in F major by Handel was being played, and again when the same piece was digitally manipulated to create a version in the minor mode. The confounding variable of using two different compositions was thus avoided. Results showed that the music in the major mode was rated more emotionally positive by both sexes than was the minor mode version (p ≤ .001). Performance by females on verbal tasks was significantly enhanced with major mode music, compared with the minor (p = .018), but there were no such findings for other combinations of sex and task. Also with major mode music only, there were trends for females to score higher than males on verbal tasks, and for males to score the highest on spatial tasks. Reasons for the research findings are suggested.     

An Outcome- and Process-Oriented Examination of a Golf-Specific Secondary Task Strategy to Prevent Choking Under Pressure

The present study examined a new golf-specific secondary task to prevent choking under pressure during golf putting. The study examined skilled (n = 20) and novice (n = 24) golfers on a putting task under high- and low-pressure, while carrying out either a golf-specific or an irrelevant letter generation secondary task to prevent skill-focused attention. Results revealed that both secondary tasks prevented choking under pressure in skilled golfers, but not in novices. Additionally, skilled participants displayed increased movement variability associated with improved performance during secondary task performance. These findings provide support for the viability of the new secondary task technique.     

Triarchic Model of Psychopathy: A Brief Measure Among Detained Female Youths

The present study examined the psychometric properties of a brief measure of the Triarchic model of psychopathy based on the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI-Tri-S) among a forensic sample of detained female youth offenders (M = 16.41 years; SD = 1.19 years) from Portugal. Results supported the expected three-factor structure and cross-gender measurement invariance. The YPI-Tri-S showed good psychometric properties in terms of factor structure, internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and criterion-related validity. Findings suggest that the YPI-Tri-S is a valid and reliable measure of the Triarchic model of psychopathy, which can be used to assess female juvenile offenders.     

Three last letters identify most female first names

The last spelled letter often indicates the sex of first names. Most female names end with the last letter a, e, or i. Female names are distinctive and therefore easy to identify because of the small number of predominantly female endings. Most male names end with one of 19 last letters. Two last letters, h and y, occur with similar frequency for both sexes. The cultural tradition of higher status for men contributes to the avoidance of predominantly female last letters for male names. A female name with a predominantly male last letter therefore occurs more often than a male name with a predominantly female last letter. The findings were obtained from the 500 most frequent first names given to males and females in Pennsylvania in 1990.     

Emotional distress and tobacco demand during the menstrual cycle in female smokers

Fluctuations in ovarian hormones over the menstrual cycle contribute to cigarette reward, however less is known about menstrual cycle influences on emotional distress in female smokers. We examined between-group differences in emotional distress (negative affectivity, emotion dysregulation, distress intolerance) and hypothetical cigarette purchasing (i.e. tobacco demand) among female smokers at three different menstrual stages. Women (n = 32) were non-treatment seeking daily smokers not on hormonal contraceptive, and were currently in their follicular (estradiol-dominant; n = 10), early-mid luteal (progesterone-dominant; n = 15), and late-luteal phase (decreasing progesterone/estradiol; n = 7). Effect sizes are reported given the small sample. Women in the late-luteal phase, relative to the follicular and early-mid luteal phases, reported higher levels of negative affectivity (d = 0.69), emotion dysregulation (d = 1.03), and distress intolerance (d = ?0.86). Compared to the early-mid luteal and late-luteal phases, women in the follicular phase reported the highest hypothetical cigarette consumption when cigarettes were free (d = 0.71) and made the largest maximum expenditures on cigarettes (d = 0.74). Findings offer preliminary evidence that the late-luteal phase is characterized by emotional distress, and the follicular phase is associated with elevated tobacco demand, which if replicated could implicate ovarian hormones in emotion-focused smoking.     

Caregiver ratings and performance-based indices of executive function among preschoolers with and without maltreatment experience

Despite the well-documented impact of early maltreatment on children’s executive function (EF), there has been limited consensus about how to best assess this neurocognitive domain in high-risk, vulnerable preschool-aged children. Relevant studies have generally utilized either performance-based tests or caregiver ratings of EF, yet multi-method research has been rare. This study examined the EF profiles of preschoolers exposed to maltreatment, as indexed by the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive function – Preschool Version (BRIEF-P), and investigated associations between caregiver ratings and performance-based measures (Happy–Sad Stroop, Tapping Test, and Dimensional Change Card Sort – DCCS) of EF in this population. Maltreatment status was further tested as a moderator of associations between these measures. Participants were (n = 107) children aged 4–5 years (M = 4.75; SD = 0.57; 39% female), with various levels of exposure to maltreatment. Children exposed to maltreatment were found to exhibit significantly more caregiver-rated deficits in EF than non-maltreated children, with greater fluctuations apparent across all scales of the BRIEF-P. Consistent with previous research in neurologically impaired children, there were only limited and weak to moderate correlations between BRIEF-P scales and performance-based measures of EF. Furthermore, maltreatment status was found to moderate the association between scores on the BRIEF-P Inhibit Scale and the DCCS, such that the association between these indices was weaker among children exposed to higher levels of maltreatment.     

MODIFYING LETTER AND NUMBER REVERSALS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CHILDREN1

Children from regular and special-education classes were exposed to tutoring procedures designed to modify letter and number reversals. In Experiment I, two students showed reversals during letter-naming (e.g., saying p for q) and two-digit number (e.g., writing 31 for 13) exercises. In Experiment II, one subject made two-digit reversals, while the other child reversed single-digit numbers (e.g., 9 written with circle on right side of stem). The subject in Experiment III emitted letter reversals under naming, dictation, and copying exercises. The child in Experiment IV showed written letter reversals on both sides of the “body midline” under dictation procedures. Basic treatment procedures during all experiments involved modelling of correct and incorrect symbol formation, and differential experimenter feedback following student responses. During Experiments I and II, subjects were praised for each correct response, and informed when a reversal occurred. Experiment III included a Modelling Only Phase before these feedback procedures. Besides praise, treatment conditions in Experiment IV consisted of additional feedback following correct responses (e.g., charting correct responses), and temporal delays imposed between dictated letters and student responses. Except for occasional letter-naming reversals of one subject (Experiment I), and letter dictation errors of another (Experiment IV), reversals were eliminated when all experiments terminated. The Modelling Only Phase in Experiment III also reduced reversals to a low level. These findings suggest that a variety of reversal problems may be effectively assessed and remediated via simple modelling and reinforcement procedures. In addition, postcheck observations indicated that the effects were enduring. The present procedures should be easily implemented by school personnel.     

Deterministic and Stochastic Postural Processes: Effects of Task,Environment, and Age

Upright standing is always environmentally embedded and typically co-occurs with another (suprapostural) activity. In the present study, the authors investigate how these facts affect postural dynamics in an experiment in which younger (M age = 20.23 years, SD = 2.02 years) and older (M age = 75.26 years, SD = 4.87 years) participants performed a task of detecting letters in text or maintaining gaze within a target while standing upright in a structured or nonstructured stationary environment. They extracted the coefficients of drift (indexing attractor strength) and diffusion (indexing noise strength) from the center of pressure (COP) time series in anteroposterior (AP) and mediolateral (ML) axes. COP standard deviation decreased with drift and increased with diffusion. The authors found that structure reduced AP diffusion for both groups and that letter detection reduced younger SD _AP (primarily by diffusion decrease) and increased older SD _ML (primarily by drift decrease). For older and younger participants, ML drift was lower during letter detection. Further, in older letter detection, larger visual contrast sensitivity was associated with larger ML drift and smaller SD _ML, raising the hypotheses that ML sway helps information detection and reflects neurophysiological age.     

Auditory attention switching and judgment switching: Exploring multicomponent task representations

An auditory attention-switching paradigm was combined with a judgment-switching paradigm to examine the interaction of a varying auditory attention component and a varying judgment component. Participants heard two dichotically presented stimuli—one spoken by a female speaker and one spoken by a male speaker. In each trial, the stimuli were a spoken letter and a spoken number. A visual explicit cue at the beginning of each trial indicated the auditory attention criterion (speaker sex/ear) to identify the target stimulus (Experiment 1) or the judgment that had to be executed (Experiment 2). Hence, the attentional selection criterion switched independently between speaker sexes (or between ears), while the judgment alternated between letter categorization and number categorization. The data indicate that auditory attention criterion and judgment were not processed independently, regardless of whether the attention criterion or the judgment was cued. The partial repetition benefits of the explicitly cued component suggested a hierarchical organization of the auditory attention component and the judgment component within the task set. We suggest that the hierarchy arises due to the explicit cuing of one component rather than due to a “natural” hierarchy of auditory attention component and judgment component.     

Construct validity for the verbal associated pairs screen

The present study introduces the Verbal Associated Pairs Screen (VAPS) as a new measure for assessing performance validity in pediatric populations. This study presents initial data on psychometric properties and establishes construct validity for the VAPS in a sample of 30 adolescent healthy controls and 206 youths with traumatic brain injury (TBI: moderate/severe, N = 30; mild, N = 176). The control group’s age (M = 14.93, SD = 1.8) was significantly higher than the moderate/severe TBI (M = 13.9, SD = 2.8), t(68.508) = ?3.038, p = .003, and mild TBI (mTBI) groups (M = 14, SD = 2.8), t(54.147) = 2.038, p = .046. The TBI groups were administered the VAPS in accord with other established performance validity tests (PVTs) and well-established memory tests as part of routine clinical evaluations. The healthy control group was administered the VAPS only. VAPS score distributions for the control group were negatively skewed and highly kurtotic. VAPS scores from the moderate/severe TBI and control groups were indistinguishable for Trial 2 (U = 274, p < .01) and the Delay (U = 396, p = .218). In the mTBI group, convergent and divergent validity was established with other well-validated PVTs and memory tests, respectively. ROC curve analyses identified optimal cutoff scores for the VAPS Total Score, with acceptable sensitivity (55%) and excellent specificity (100%), as well as strong detectability (AUC = .829, 95% CI: 0.731 – 0.928, p < .001). Clinical applications, limitations, and directions for future research with the VAPS are discussed.     

An investigation into the impact of acute stress on encoding in older adults

Acute psychological stress commonly occurs in young and older adults’ lives. Though several studies have examined the influence of stress on how young adults learn new information, the present study is the first to directly examine these effects in older adults. Fifty older adults (M age = 71.9) were subjected to either stress induction or a control task before learning two types of information: a short video and a series of pictures. Twenty-four hours later, they were exposed to misleading information about the video and then completed memory tests for the video and pictures. Heart rate and cortisol measures suggest that a physiological stress response was successfully induced. Though pre-encoding stress had little impact on memory accuracy, stress did influence errors of omission on the cued recall test for the video. Findings are discussed in the context of previous research examining the effects of stress on memory in older adults.