Building Bridges: Cognitive Development in Typical and Atypical Populations

Most research reported in the Journal of Cognition and Development focuses on typically developing children—those who are following what is assumed to be the most common path. This special issue was designed to foster a dialogue between cognitive developmentalists who work on typical development and those who work on atypical development, with the goal of illustrating how recent findings can advance thinking in both fields. The 6 target articles and 2 commentaries in this special issue provide a compelling demonstration of the symbiotic nature of the study of typical and atypical cognitive development.     

Introduction to the special issue on the intersection of professional selling and service

As organizational operations continue to evolve in response to increasing customer demands, frontline research has begun to consider how traditionally separate organizational functions may be complementary to firm performance. Specifically, as sales and service activities become increasingly intertwined within the frontline role, this special issue explores how the sales and service functions interact within an organization. The articles contained in this special issue consider the interaction of sales and service with respect to customer, employee, and firm outcomes. After introducing evolving thought in the area, we provide an overview of five articles that make up this special issue. We conclude by offering additional areas of research.     

Therapeutic Assessment "on the Front Lines": comment on articles from WestCoast Children's Clinic

I comment on the articles by Mercer (2011/this issue); Guerrero, Lipkind, and Rosenberg (2011/this issue); and Haydel, Mercer, and Rosenblatt (2011/this issue), which describe their practice of collaborative and therapeutic psychological assessment in a community mental health setting. These articles demonstrate that collaborative and Therapeutic Assessment can be used successfully with clients from underprivileged, high-risk backgrounds. Such assessments are rigorous for both clients and assessors, and their success depends on the ability of clinicians to form trusting relationships with clients. In fact, empathic disruptions by assessors are almost inevitable during the collaborative assessment process, especially if assessors' backgrounds and contexts are quite different from those of their clients. However, if assessors receive enough support to "take off their white coats" and reach into their clients' worlds, such disruptions can be repaired, leading to positive changes in both clients and assessors. This kind of assessment work is not for the faint of heart, but it is immensely rewarding.     

Introduction to the special issue

This article provides an overview of the special issue of Motivation and Emotion, which will appear in two parts. This special issue examines the enduring contributions of the research of John T. Lanzetta and his colleagues on facial expression and emotion. In its entirety, the special issue consists of five articles and an epilogue. Part 1 (this issue of Motivation and Emotion) consists of the first three articles, and Part 2 (to appear as part of the next issue of Motivation and Emotion) consists of the final two articles and the epilogue. The first article provides an in-depth review of the Lanzetta research program, and describes this program as developing along four distinct lines that, respectively, cover work on (a) the facial feedback hypothesis, (b) the power of facial expression as an emotionally evocative stimulus, (c) the role of facial expression in empathy and counter-empathy, and (d) the relations between facial displays of powerful political leaders and observers' attitudes toward those leaders. Each of the subsequent four articles considers, in turn, the current status and future promise of one of these research lines as it has continued to grow and develop outside of the Lanzetta research program. Part 2 of the special issue concludes with an epilogue that highlights the major themes and conclusions that course through the entire body of research considered in this special issue.We would like to express our appreciation to Basil Englis, Arvid Kappas, Bob Kleck, and Scott Orr, each of whom contributed to the development of this special issue in a variety of ways.     

Gay adolescents and suicide: understanding the association

Suicide among gay adolescents is a major public health concern, but it is still under-emphasized within mainstream healthcare. This article brings together information garnered from past studies, articles, and experiences to create a more in-depth understanding of why gay adolescents are at a higher risk for suicide. By creating a better understanding, this article attempts to push forward the significance of this issue and encourages physicians to take a more active role in suicide prevention. The article initially explores why issues involving homosexuality are seldom discussed and provides evidence for an increased risk in suicide among gay adolescents. By addressing major psychosocial issues faced by gay adolescents, it spends the majority of time facilitating an understanding of the increased risk. In this article "gay" refers to homosexual males and females, and bisexuals unless otherwise indicated.     

On the connection between sickness and sin: a commentary.

In response to the articles by Eibach and Groenhut in this issue, I argue that there is a general connection between sickness and the entrance of sin into the world. There are times when there is a causal link between more specific sin and sickness, though often the patient is the one who has been sinned against. Illness can also expose sin in a patient's life. Integrating the reality of illness into the life history of a patient is a significant pastoral care issue and can be done with humility and sensitivity if done in accordance with the teaching of Job and Ecclesiastes. These books argue that "under the sun" or this side of eternity, human beings can't grasp the coherence of life, including the "why" of illness. Rather, God provides His loving presence, through His people as a comfort to those suffering from illness.     

孔子与《易传》相关问题覆议

孔子赞<易>,作<十翼>,自<史><汉>以来,学者习承其说.下逮北宋,始有疑其说之不足恃者;嗣后绍述,代不乏人.民初疑古学风盛兴,疑者益众;然笃信旧说者亦未灭迹.近年大陆地下考古发掘出土文物,其盛迈逾前代,尤如马王堆帛本<易>经、传之面世,于传世文献外增加不少可供参考之资料,引起海内外<易>学研究者的热烈讨论.然而对于孔门传<易>此一近千年以来争讼不休的论题,事实上并未因出土文献而得以论定.近年海峡两岸学者论及此题,即有据新出土文物以坚旧说者;亦有因之而作其他推论以修正新说者.本文即就此一问题,综合传世文献与新出资料重作检讨,提出个人浅见,虽不足以尽释群疑,然于若干相关问题,庶或可得相当的厘清.     

The Status of Media Effects on Body Image Research: Commentary on Articles in the Themed Issue on Body Image and Media

There is increasingly convincing evidence that media-promoted unrealistic thin ideals are associated with detrimental effects on women and girls' moods, body image, and eating patterns. Accordingly, media effects on body image have become an important area of research—one with theoretical and practical implications. The purpose of this article is to provide a brief introduction to the articles included in this themed issue of Media Psychology to clarify how they inform us and what remains to be investigated. As a set, the articles well exemplify current trends in this research area and contribute to an increasingly complex and sophisticated understanding of the role of the media in body image.     

Introduction to the Technical Series: What is Science,and How Does It Help Us?*

Editor's Note: Readers trained in research have no need of a series of articles that introduce the value of the scientific method and the basic factors that comprise good research methodology. But readers who are primarily trained to do clinical work with families will find that today's healthcare environment increasingly requires that they be good consumers of research, as well as an increasing need for them to participate in studies of the models we wish to preserve. At a recent NIMH‐sponsored conference, a speaker lamented the probable demise of some of our more interesting family approaches because third‐party payers tend to support only evidence‐based interventions. Clearly, we need to be able to defend our practices, and understanding the value and essential components of scientific methodology and research studies is likely to become even more important in the future. This new series will attempt to provide an orientation for those of our readers who are interested. We welcome your response to these articles and your suggestions for future segments.     

Underemployment in America: Measurement and Evidence

An important way in which employment hardship has come to be conceptualized and measured is as underemployment. Underemployment goes beyond mere unemployment (being out of a job and looking for work), to include those who have given up looking for work, part-time workers whose employer(s) cannot give them full-time work, and the working poor. To provide needed background for the other articles in this special issue, we trace the history of the concept of underemployment, review existing empirical literature, offer a critique of the measurement of underemployment as conventionally operationalized, and provide up-to-date evidence on the trends and correlates of underemployment in the United States.     

Introduction to the Special Theme Issue on Health Disparities,Trauma, Disruptive and Criminal Behaviors and the Adolescent Brain: Conference Collaborators,Major Developments in Conference Planning,and Overview of the Articles

ABSTRACT

The November 21, 2015, conference Health Disparities, Trauma, Disruptive and Criminal Behaviors and the Adolescent Brain, examined the national problem of youth incarceration by exploring research on the adolescent brain, trauma, poverty, racism, health disparities and mental health treatment. This special theme issue of the Journal of Infant, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy provides an opportunity for selected authors to contribute original articles that capture their contributions to the conference event. The purpose of this article is to provide an introduction to this special theme issue. This article provides an overview of the following: the roots of the conference, including the role of numerous collaborators; specific major developments that contributed to the evolution of the conference focus; and a brief overview of the actual articles that have been selected for inclusion in the theme issue.     

Bridging the Gaps in the Study of Typical and Atypical Cognitive Development: A Commentary

The articles in this special issue of the Journal of Cognition and Development examine the cognitive development of children who are following typical and atypical developmental pathways. The articles offer a mixture of theory-based considerations, reviews of the literature, and new empirical data addressing fundamental aspects of cognitive development. Our commentary considers these articles in light of comparative and dimensional approaches to the study of typicality/atypicality and offers some considerations for researchers building bridges between typical and atypical development.     

Applied and Translational Research on Trauma‐Responsive Programs and Policy: Introduction to a Special Issue of the American Journal of Community Psychology

The special issue highlights work across systems that include child welfare, education, juvenile justice and health, as well as agencies serving adults who are at‐risk for high levels of childhood and adult trauma exposure. While articles appearing in the special issue are not divided equally across these systems, they cover important and overlapping concepts within each. Some articles span more than a single system or domain of research, whereas others fit primarily within single area or domain. Articles provide new insights from research on practices, programs, and policies that help to transform systems so they are increasingly more responsive to the needs of vulnerable populations.     

Flexible representations in visual working memory and interactions with long‐term learning: Commentary on the special issue

This special issue of the British Journal of Psychology brings together cutting edge research on a range of topics in visual working memory (VWM). In this commentary, we attempt to summarize common themes in current VWM research exemplified in this issue. The articles include several reviews of important topics as well as empirical papers covering three main themes. The first concerns the nature of mental representations of memoranda in the commonly used delayed estimation task, where both fine‐grained and broad categorical details appear to be represented, and their susceptibility to interference. The second concerns interactions between VWM representations, both those that produce individuation of representations and those that create an overarching ensemble structure. Finally, the third main topic concerns the use of VWM during visual search and in the learning of repeated configurations in search displays. The work presented here, and other work in the field, points to a rich interplay between representations in VWM but also between VWM and information in long‐term memory. Opportunities for further investigation are highlighted throughout.     

(White) Voices: Discussion of Articles by Gillian Straker and Tessa Philips

In this discussion, I consider two substantially different articles about growing up in South Africa and the authors’ reflections on how this has influenced them. I focus on two issues raised by both Straker and Philips: that of becoming conscious of what Straker, drawing on the work of Ngai (2003), describes as ugly emotions, and the issue of voice—who can speak, who cannot, and some of the complexities that surround this issue. I refer to the problematic fact that the three voices heard in this section on South Africa are White and that each one of us has benefitted markedly from apartheid. I make reference to the power of knowledge and the potentially transformative nature of the voices that speak it as is evidenced in both articles. However, I draw attention to the fact that the knowledge and the voices that speak it have not actually done much to change the status quo in current day South Africa—inequality, poverty, marginalization, and oppression continue to be reproduced and maintained. Referring to the emotional struggles that come with this consciousness on a daily basis, I conclude with a hope, nevertheless, that a tiny bit of growth and transformation might usefully come from what each of us has attempted to say in these articles.     

What Is an Affordance?

What should and should not be considered an affordance is still an open issue. At the 2002 North American meeting of the International Society for Ecological Psychology, a symposium was held concerning this topic. The articles in this special issue are expanded versions of the papers presented at that symposium. To set the stage for those discussions, this article presents an analysis of the evolution of J. J. Gibson's thinking on this issue, from some of his earliest writings (i.e., J. J. Gibson & Crooks, 1938) through his most recent writings (i.e., J. J. Gibson, 1979/1986). It is hoped that this forum will stimulate thinking concerning this important ecological concept.     

Reinventing the University to Teach Both Mind and Heart (Part I)

The objectives of this special two-part issue are summarized, and the articles within the issue are shown to contribute to the theme. The university must serve adults of all ages who are developing within a global society. Interpersonal interactions are important processes for development. The university might respond to current criticisms of it as an institution, in part, by teaching and studying interpersonal and emotional skills in combination with intellectual skills that are already emphasized. A better balance such as this would make the university, its research, and its students more viable in the next century.     

ISLAM AND BIOETHICS

Muslim theologians, jurists, and healthcare workers have been addressing the challenges of modern biotechnology for years. Major textbooks on religion and bioethics cover Islam in one or two articles, offering only a general introduction to these important discussions. The five articles in this issue of the Journal of Religious Ethics, originating from a conference at Pennsylvania State University, are unusual in the specificity of their topics—brain death, feeding tubes, sex selection, spiritual counseling, and organ transplantation—and in their engagement with complex discussions in the Muslim and non‐Muslim worlds. In this essay, I introduce the five articles and consider two larger implications: the changing definition of the human person in light of biotechnological advances and the continuing importance of religious traditions, especially Islam, in legitimizing ethical responses to these advances.     

Gender and the Transition to Parenthood: Introduction to the Special Issue

The transition to parenthood is a rite of passage for most adults; however, given the dynamic state of gender roles in society, the parameters surrounding the ease or difficulty with this transition are evolving. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the work included in the special issue, Gender and the Transition to Parenthood. Academic literature has been filled with articles on how women cope with the transition to parenthood from a variety of perspectives, including a feminist perspective. However, much of this literature is dated and cannot account for how today’s gender roles in society (particularly those of fathers) may influence the transition to parenthood. We argue that, with the rapidly changing gender roles in society, it is crucial to consider three perspectives in parenting: hers, his, and theirs. The ten works included in this special issue represent these three perspectives and seek to understand the transition to parenthood and its intersection with today’s gender roles. Based on these works, the authors encourage researchers interested in the transition to parenthood to incorporate both male and female perspectives, as well as the interplay between the genders in making the transition smooth or difficult. Following a brief overview of the existing literature, we introduce the articles in the special issue. All papers in this special issue are based on U.S. samples.     

Emotions, personality, and health: introduction to the special issue

Our intent in this introduction to the special issue on Emotions, Personality, and Health is to alert readers to the logic underlying the editors' choices of topics for the issue and to provide a brief summary of its contents. We discuss how the 10 articles fit together to provide a mosaic of diverse approaches to the study of emotion. Collectively, these articles show ways that emotion research may be integrated with personality theory to inform us about the psychological dimensions of health and illness.