Adolescents’ reactions to the world trade center destruction: A study of political trauma in metropolitan New York

This study examined the emotional response of 110 adolescents living in the New York metropolitan area one month and five months after the destruction of the World Trade Center (WTC) by terrorists. The purpose of the study was to assess emerging hypotheses in political psychology that suggest that there are differential emotional responses to a national trauma that recede in predictable directions. The results followed predictions and indicate that adolescents experienced a higher level of emotions related to the Crisis and Bereavement dimension than affect associated with Vulnerability and that the emotional response decreased during the four-month follow-up period. There was no effect on emotional response from the biological sex or political orientation of the respondents, which is inconsistent with other studies in the literature. The absence of a political orientation effect is explained in terms of the lack of a domestic ideological difference in response to the terrorist attack.     

Adolescents’ neural response to social reward and real-world emotional closeness and positive affect

Feeling emotionally close to others during social interactions is a ubiquitous and meaningful experience that can elicit positive affect. The present study integrates functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to investigate whether neural response to social reward (1) is related to the experience of emotional closeness and (2) moderates the association between emotional closeness and positive affect during and following social interactions. In this study, 34 typically developing adolescents (ages 14–18 years) completed a social-reward fMRI task, a monetary-reward fMRI task, and a 2-week EMA protocol regarding their social and affective experiences. Adolescents with greater right posterior superior temporal sulcus/temporoparietal junction (pSTS/TPJ) response to social reward reported greater mean momentary emotional closeness. Neural response to social reward in the right pSTS/TPJ moderated how strongly momentary emotional closeness was associated with both concurrent positive affect and future peak happiness, but in different ways. Although emotional closeness had a significant positive association with concurrent positive affect among adolescents at both high and low right pSTS/TPJ response based on a follow-up simple slopes test, this association was stronger for adolescents with low right pSTS/TPJ response. In contrast, emotional closeness had a significant positive association with future peak happiness among adolescents with high right pSTS/TPJ response, but not among those with low right pSTS/TPJ response. These findings demonstrate the importance of neural response to social reward in key social processing regions for everyday experiences of emotional closeness and positive affect in the context of social interactions.     

Young Israelis' Reactions to National Trauma: The Rabin Assassination andTerror Attacks

This study examined the cognitive and emotional reactions of 477 Israeli high school students to the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (immediately after the event as well as 5 months later) and to a series of terror attacks. The respondents' reactions to the two events were compared as a function of gender and political orientation. About 50% of the respondents who changed their political views immediately after the assassination reverted to pre-event attitudes 5 months later. Emotional reactions to the assassination showed substantial fading after 5 months, with extent of fading unaffected by gender or political orientation. The intensity of emotional reactions was affected by political orientation: Although Rabin's supporters and his opponents reacted with equal intensity to the terror attacks, supporters reacted with the same intensity to Rabin's assassination, whereas opponents' reactions to the assassination were less intense.     

不对称情绪分享过程中情绪反应自我指向增强效应的初探

主客体之间产生不一致的情绪反应称之为不对称共情(Counterempathy)。在Decety提出的情绪分享过程两阶段及Goubert提出的“指向自己”和“指向他人”两种情绪反应指向的研究基础上, 构建不对称情绪分享过程的两阶段模型, 通过创建竞争环境, 检验在不对称情绪分享过程中是否存在情绪反应自我指向增强效应的这一假设。被试根据竞争对手的情绪表情(皱眉和笑脸)来完成情绪反应自我指向(判断被试者自己的输赢)和情绪反应他人指向(判断竞争对手的输赢)的实验任务。结果表明: 在不对称情绪分享过程中, 存在情绪反应自我指向的增强效应。被试不仅在自我指向任务中产生了不对称共情, 而且在他人指向任务中也产生了不对称共情, 这说明在有意识的不对称情绪分享过程中, 个体会分化出比他人指向更强烈的自我指向的情绪反应。并且, 相较他人指向任务, 个体在自我指向任务中产生了更强烈的不对称共情。尤其当竞争对手获利时, 个体会产生更强烈的指向自我的负性情绪。     

PTSD青少年执行功能缺陷的情绪特异性

已有研究表明PTSD青少年存在执行功能缺陷,但尚不清楚这种缺陷是否具有情绪特异性。以2008年汶川地震重灾区汉旺中学PTSD、非PTSD以及非灾区青少年各28名为被试,探讨震后PTSD青少年执行功能缺陷是否具有情绪特异性。实验1采用经典Stroop范式,结果发现3组被试的Stroop效应量无显著差异;实验2采用情绪Stroop范式,结果发现PTSD组对地震信息的Stroop效应量显著大于非PTSD组和控制组。整个研究表明,震后PTSD青少年的执行功能缺陷具有情绪特异性。     

Framing Persuasive Appeals: Episodic and Thematic Framing, Emotional Response, and Policy Opinion

Those seeking to frame political issues to their advantage recognize the power of emotional appeals. Yet the study of framing has focused mainly on the cognitive effects of framing rather than on its emotional effects. This study presents the results of two experiments designed to explore the effect of episodic and thematic framing on emotional response and policy opinion. Participants were randomly assigned to read a column arguing against mandatory minimum sentencing that employed either a thematic or one of two episodic frames featuring a woman who received a harsh sentence under the policy. Episodic framing was more emotionally engaging. Furthermore, the specific emotions elicited by the episodic frame—sympathy and pity for the woman featured in the column—were associated with increased opposition to mandatory minimum sentencing. Yet the thematic frame was actually more persuasive once this indirect effect of frame on emotional response was taken into account. The results are consistent with the conclusion that framing effects on policy opinion operate through both affective and cognitive channels. The theoretical and practical implications of the study are discussed.     

科技干扰与青少年智能手机成瘾的关系：情绪症状和环境敏感性的作用

本研究以问卷法对湖北省两所中学共3219名初一至初三的中学生进行调查,建立结构方程模型来考察在家庭环境中由于父母使用科技设备而产生的科技干扰对青少年智能手机成瘾的影响机制。结果发现：（1）科技干扰不仅能直接正向预测青少年智能手机成瘾,还能通过情绪症状的中介作用间接预测青少年智能手机成瘾;（2）环境敏感性在情绪症状对青少年智能手机成瘾的影响中起显著的调节作用,具体而言,较高的环境敏感性能够缓冲情绪症状对青少年智能手机成瘾的影响。     

The Impact of Childhood Emotional Abuse on Adolescents’ Subjective Happiness: the Mediating Role of Emotional Intelligence

Subjective happiness has been considered a key indicator of adolescents’ healthy development. The present study aimed at identifying the impact of childhood emotional abuse on adolescents’ subjective happiness and the possible role of emotional intelligence as a mediating variable. Using convenience sampling, a cross-sectional survey was conducted with 9 secondary schools in Hong Kong, China. Participants included a total of 1710 grade 8 to grade 9 secondary school students. The mean age was 13.6, and 61.2% were boys. Measures included child abuse and trauma, emotional intelligence, and subjective happiness. The results showed that childhood emotional abuse in adolescents’ childhood is a significant risk factor for subjective happiness. Emotional intelligence has a partial mediation effect on the relationship between childhood emotional abuse and subjective happiness. It is noteworthy that parenting practices in childhood have a significant impact on children’s happiness even after a period of time. It is suggested that students’ emotional intelligence be enhanced to increase their subjective happiness. Although the conventional parenting style may be rooted in Chinese culture, a paradigm shift in parenting seems to be needed for Chinese parents. Efforts should be made to promote appropriate parenting methods and emotional intelligence in Chinese societies. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are also discussed.

     

Cognitive reappraisal attenuates the association between depressive symptoms and emotional response to stress during adolescence

Depression is associated with increased emotional response to stress. This is especially the case during the developmental period of adolescence. Cognitive reappraisal is an effective emotion regulation strategy that has been shown to reduce the impact of emotional response on psychopathology. However, less is known about whether cognitive reappraisal impacts the relationship between depressive symptoms and emotional responses, and whether its effects are specific to emotional reactivity or emotional recovery. The current study examined whether cognitive reappraisal moderated the relationship between depressive symptoms and trait or state measures of emotional reactivity and recovery. A community sample of 127 adolescents (M-age?=?15.28; 49% female, 47% Caucasian), at an age of risk for depression, completed self-report measures of trait emotional responding and depressive symptoms. In addition, they completed an in vivo social stress task and were assessed on state emotional reactivity and recovery from the stressor. Findings suggested that cognitive reappraisal was associated with an attenuated impact of depressive symptoms on trait and state emotional recovery. These results provide evidence that cognitive reappraisal may be an effective strategy for improving some aspects of emotional responding in relation to depressive symptoms among adolescents.     

情绪智力的代际传递：有调节的中介模型

为考察父母情绪智力对青少年情绪智力的代际传递效应,同时探讨情感温暖的中介作用以及同伴关系的调节作用,对644名初中生及其父母进行调查,由父母报告自身情绪智力水平,青少年报告父母情感温暖、同伴关系以及自身情绪智力水平。结果发现：（1）父母情绪智力显著正向影响子女情绪智力。（2）父母情感温暖在父母情绪智力与子女情绪智力之间中介效应显著。（3）同伴关系在父母情感温暖影响子女情绪智力的路径中起显著调节作用。