Parenting practices and child disruptive behavior problems in early elementary school. Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group

Examined the hypothesis that distinct parenting practices may be associated with type and profile of a child's disruptive behavior problems (e.g., oppositional, aggressive, hyperactive). Parents of 631 behaviorally disruptive children described the extent to which they experienced warm and involved interactions with their children and the extent to which their discipline strategies were inconsistent and punitive and involved spanking and physical aggression. As expected from a developmental perspective, parenting practices that included punitive interactions were associated with elevated rates of all child disruptive behavior problems. Low levels of warm involvement were particularly characteristic of parents of children who showed elevated levels of oppositional behaviors. Physically aggressive parenting was linked more specifically with child aggression. In general, parenting practices contributed more to the prediction of oppositional and aggressive behavior problems than to hyperactive behavior problems, and parenting influences were fairly consistent across ethnic groups and sex.     

Disentangling the impact of low cognitive ability and inattention on social behavior and peer relationships. Conduct Problems Prevention Re search Group

Examined the shared and unique contributions of low cognitive ability and inattention to the development of social behavior problems and peer relationships of children at the time of school entry. Kindergarten and first-grade assessments of cognitive ability, inattention and prosocial and aggressive behavior were collected for a multisite, normative sample. Sociometric assessments of peer relationships were collected at the end of first grade. Cognitive ability and inattention both contributed to the prediction of social behavior and peer relationships. Low cognitive ability was particularly predictive of prosocial skill deficits, and social behavior mediated the relation between cognitive ability and social preference. Inattention predicted both prosocial skill deficits and elevated aggressive-disruptive behavior problems. Behavior problems partially mediated the relation between inattention and social preference. Identified subgroups of children with elevated levels of inattention or low cognitive ability showed different patterns of peer problems, with low acceptance characteristic of the low cognitive ability (only) group and high dislike ratings characteristic of the inattentive and inattentive/low-ability group. Implications are discussed for the design of early intervention and prevention programs.     

Predicting developmental outcomes at school entry using a multiple-risk model: four American communities. The Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group

The contributions of different risk factors in predicting children's psychological and academic outcomes at the end of 1st grade were examined. Using a regression model, levels of ecobehavioral risk were assessed in the following order: specific demographics, broad demographics, family psychosocial status, mother's depressive symptoms, and neighborhood quality. Participants were 337 families from 4 American communities. Predictor variables were assessed in kindergarten, and teacher, parent, and child outcomes (behavioral and academic) were assessed at the end of 1st grade. Results indicated that (a) each level of analysis contributed to prediction of most outcomes, (b) 18%-29% of the variance was predicted in outcomes, (c) a common set of predictors predicted numerous outcomes, (d) ethnicity showed little unique prediction, and (e) the quality of the neighborhood showed small but unique prediction to externalizing problems.     

MAOA基因T941G多态性与同伴侵害对男青少年早期抑郁的交互作用:COMT基因Val158Met多态性的调节效应

抑郁具有复杂的多基因遗传基础,然而既有研究大多采用单基因以及单基因-环境交互设计(G×E)考察抑郁的遗传机制。以757名男青少年为被试(初次测评时Mage=11.32岁,SD=0.49岁),采用多基因-环境交互(G×G×E)设计,本研究考察了MAOA(monoamine oxidase A,单胺氧化酶A)基因T941G多态性、COMT(catechol-O-methyltransferase,儿茶酚胺氧位甲基转移酶)基因Val158Met多态性与同伴侵害对青少年早期抑郁的影响。结果显示,MAOA基因T941G多态性与同伴侵害交互作用于青少年抑郁,同伴侵害仅显著正向预测G等位基因(而非T等位基因)青少年抑郁。而且,MAOA基因T941G多态性与同伴侵害的交互作用受到COMT基因Val158Met多态性的调节,上述交互作用仅存在于COMT Met等位基因而非Val/Val基因型携带者中。研究结果显示,抑郁的产生与个体差异存在多基因与环境间的复杂交互机制。     

The distinction between beliefs legitimizing aggression and deviant processing of social cues: testing measurement validity and the hypothesis that biased processing mediates the effects of beliefs on aggression.Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group.

In 2 studies the authors examined knowledge and social information-processing mechanisms as 2 distinct sources of influence on child aggression. Data were collected from 387 boys and girls of diverse ethnicity in 3 successive years. In Study 1, confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated the discriminant validity of the knowledge construct of aggression beliefs and the processing constructs of hostile intent attributions, accessing of aggressive responses, and positive evaluation of aggressive outcomes. In Study 2, structural equation modeling analyses were used to test the mediation hypothesis that aggression beliefs would influence child aggression through the effects of deviant processing. A stronger belief that aggressive retaliation is acceptable predicted more deviant processing 1 year later and more aggression 2 years later. However, this latter effect was substantially accounted for by the intervening effects of deviant processing on aggression.     

The moderating roles of self-esteem and neuroticism in the relationship between group and individual undermining behavior

The authors developed and tested a multilevel interactive model of the relationship between group undermining and individual undermining behavior in 2 multiwave studies of group members. Integrating the literature on group influences on individual behavior with the individual difference literature, the authors predicted a 3-way Group Undermining x Self-Esteem x Neuroticism interaction, such that the relationship between group and individual undermining would be strongest among those simultaneously high in self-esteem and neuroticism. The 3-way interaction was supported in Study 1 (457 participants in 103 groups) and replicated in Study 2 (415 participants in 93 groups) with additional controls and alternative measures of key constructs. The authors discuss the implications of the research and identify future research directions.     

Implementing a Comprehensive Program for the Prevention of Conduct Problems in Rural Communities: The Fast Track Experience

Childhood conduct problems are predictive of a number of serious long-term difficulties (e.g., school failure, delinquent behavior, and mental health problems), making the design of effective prevention programs a priority. The Fast Track Program is a demonstration project currently underway in four demographically diverse areas of the United States, testing the feasibility and effectiveness of a comprehensive, multicomponent prevention program targeting children at risk for conduct disorders. This paper describes some lessons learned about the implementation of this program in a rural area. Although there are many areas of commonality in terms of program needs, program design, and implementation issues in rural and urban sites, rural areas differ from urban areas along the dimensions of geographical dispersion and regionalism, and community stability and insularity. Rural programs must cover a broad geographical area and must be sensitive to the multiple, small and regional communities that constitute their service area. Small schools, homogeneous populations, traditional values, limited recreational, educational and mental health services, and politically conservative climates are all more likely to emerge as characteristics of rural rather than urban sites (Sherman, 1992). These characteristics may both pose particular challenges to the implementation of prevention programs in rural areas, as well as offer particular benefits. Three aspects of program implementation are described in detail: (a) community entry and program initiation in rural areas, (b) the adaptation of program components and service delivery to meet the needs of rural families and schools, and (c) issues in administrative organization of a broadly dispersed tricounty rural prevention program.     

The Differential Test of Conduct and Emotional Problems as an evaluative tool for the Willie M. program.

The Differential Test of Conduct and Emotional Problems (DT/CEP) was utilized as a treatment outcome evaluation tool for the severely emotionally and behaviorally handicapped clients served by Specialized Youth Services of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. A significant change was found in both conduct problem and emotional disturbance scales, indicating improvement for both modalities over a nine-month period. No significant difference in improvement was indicated between males and females. The DT/CEP was established as a justified treatment evaluation tool, with attention given to cautions of scale interaction provided by the test authors (Kelly and Vitali, 1990).     

Attention Problems as a Mediator of the Relation between Executive Function and Social Problems in a Child and Adolescent Outpatient Sample

Social functioning is critical for the successful navigation of everyday life for children, adolescents, and adults. Recent theories have postulated a neuropsychological basis for social functioning with particularly strong links with the executive functioning (EF) system. The current study examined attention problems as a mediator between EF (e.g., working memory, planning, and response inhibition) and social functioning in a child and adolescent outpatient sample. Participants were 218 children ages 6–16 (M = 10.23; SD = 2.52; 68.8 % males) who were referred to an outpatient clinic for psychoeducational assessment. Bias-corrected bootstrapping mediation analyses were used to examine the hypothesized models. The effects of working memory and planning (but not response inhibition) on social problems were mediated by attention problems in both teacher- and mother-reported models. These findings also held up in cross-source models (e.g., mother-reported attention problems as a mediator in a model predicting teacher-reported social problems). These findings have implications for dimensional models of social functioning and conceptual models for specific clinical populations (e.g., attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder).     

The search for the mother: narcissistic regression as a pathway of mourning in childhood.

Previous observers, following Freud's formulations in Mourning and Melancholia, have disagreed over the question of whether the child can mourn. To support the thesis that the child does mourn but in a different way from the adult, the author focuses on the importance of the child's identification with the lost love object, the narcissistic regression, and the associated autoerotic activities. Clinical material is presented from the analysis of a latency child and of an adult, both of whom lost their mothers during childhood.     

Caution in interpreting confirmatory factor analysis of the group environment questionnaire: a response to Sullivan, Short, and Cramer (2002)

Reasons for cautious interpretation of the confirmatory factor analysis of the Group Environment Questionnaire by Sullivan, Short, and Cramer (2002) are specified.     

Early Behavior Problems as a Predictor of Later Peer Group Victimization: Moderators and Mediators in the Pathways of Social Risk

This study is a prospective investigation of the predictive association between early behavior problems (internalizing, externalizing, hyperactivity–impulsiveness, immaturity–dependency) and later victimization in the peer group. Teacher ratings of the behavioral adjustment of 389 kindergarten and 1st-grade children (approximate age range of 5 to 6 years-old) were obtained, using standardized behavior problem checklists. These ratings predicted peer nomination scores for victimization, obtained 3 years later, even after the prediction associated with concurrent behavior problems was statistically controlled. Further analyses suggested that the relation between early behavior problems and later victimization is mediated by peer rejection and moderated by children's dyadic friendships. Behavior problems appear to play an important role in determining victimization within the peer group, although the relevant pathways are complex and influenced by other aspects of children's social adjustment.     

幽门螺杆菌与胃癌关系的研究进展

幽门螺杆菌(H.pylori,Hp)是胃癌的发病因素之一,二者之间的关系非常密切.Hp感染蒙古沙土鼠成功诱发胃癌,在动物实验中直接证实Hp与胃癌发生有关.众多大规模的人群干预研究显示Hp感染可增加胃癌发病率,根除Hp后胃癌的发生有减少趋势;Hp毒力基因尤其是cag致病岛与胃癌发生关系密切.宿主反应基因尤其是前炎症细胞因子与胃癌的危险性增高有关.动物模型显示Hp诱导癌前病变的发生与上皮细胞周期的调控失常、细胞增殖与调亡的失衡相关.     

幽门螺杆菌与胃癌关系的研究进展

幽门螺杆菌(H.pylori,Hp)是胃癌的发病因素之一,二者之间的关系非常密切。Hp感染蒙古沙土鼠成功诱发胃癌,在动物实验中直接证实Hp与胃癌发生有关。众多大规模的人群干预研究显示Hp感染可增加胃癌发病率,根除Hp后胃癌的发生有减少趋势;Hp毒力基因尤其是cag致病岛与胃癌发生关系密切。宿主反应基因尤其是前炎症细胞因子与胃癌的危险性增高有关。动物模型显示Hp诱导癌前病变的发生与上皮细胞周期的调控失常、细胞增殖与调亡的失衡相关。