Examining the relationship between trait self-control and stress: Evidence on generalizability and outcome variability

Trait self-control has in several studies been found negatively linked to stress. These studies have, however, mostly relied on student and/or one-country samples. Study 1 investigated the generalizability of the relationship between trait self-control and stress through a four-country survey (N = 4097). The results showed consistently strong and negative relationships between trait self-control and stress across the four countries. Study 2 investigated the relationship between trait self-control and daily stress through a two-week diary study (N = 594; n_obs = 7880), showing that trait self-control was negatively related to daily stress and stress variability. Together, the two studies show that trait self-control’s negative link to stress generalizes beyond students and the United States.     

Examining the relation between adolescent social anxiety,adolescent delinquency (abstention), and emerging adulthood relationship quality

Background and Objectives: Social anxiety symptoms and delinquency are two prevalent manifestations of problem behavior during adolescence and both are related to negative interpersonal relationships in adolescence and emerging adulthood. This study examined the relation between social anxiety and delinquency in adolescence and the interplay between adolescent social anxiety and delinquency on perceived relationship quality in emerging adulthood. Design and Methods: In a 10-year long prospective study (T1, n = 923; T2, n = 727; Mage T1 = 12; 49% female), we examined competing hypotheses using regression analyses: the protective perspective, which suggests social anxiety protects against delinquency; and the co-occurring perspective, which suggests social anxiety and delinquency co-occur leading to increased negative interpersonal outcomes. Results: In adolescence, the relation between social anxiety and delinquency was consistent with the protective perspective. In emerging adulthood, consistent with the co-occurring perspective, ever-delinquents (but not delinquency abstainers) with higher social anxiety reported less perceived best friend, mother, and father support compared to delinquents with lower social anxiety. There was no interaction between anxiety and delinquency in predicting perceived conflict. Conclusion: This study highlights the importance of examining the relation between social anxiety and delinquency with regards to different interpersonal outcomes.     

Systemic crisis intervention as a response to adolescent crises: an outcome study

The present study demonstrates the safety and effectiveness of an outpatient program designed to respond to adolescent-precipitated crises by mobilizing and restructuring the family's kinship system. Families of 75 adolescents at risk for hospitalization were followed up to 24 months after treatment with Systemic Crisis Intervention. Measures of offspring and family functioning, suicidal behavior, institutional use, and treatment costs are presented. Results clearly demonstrate the safety, effectiveness, and economic viability of Systemic Crisis Intervention.     

The lab versus the clinic. Effects of child and adolescent psychotherapy.

Four recent meta-analyses, involving more than 200 controlled outcome studies, have shown consistent evidence of beneficial therapy effects with children and adolescents. However, most of the studies involved experimental procedures, nonreferred subjects, specially trained therapists with small caseloads, and other features that may not represent conventional clinic therapy. Research focused on more representative treatment of referred clients in clinics has shown more modest effects; in fact, most clinic studies have not shown significant effects. Interpretation studies have not shown significant effects. Interpretation of these findings requires caution; such studies are few and most could profit from improved methodology. The clinic studies do raise questions as to whether the positive lab findings can be generalized to the clinics where most therapy occurs; however, the lab interventions that have worked so well may point the way to enhanced therapy effects in clinics.     

Examining a dimensional representation of depression and anxiety disorders' comorbidity in psychiatric outpatients with item response modeling

The current study replicated, in a sample of 2,300 outpatients seeking psychiatric treatment, a previous study (R. F. Krueger & M. S. Finger, 2001) that implemented an item response theory approach for modeling the comorbidity of common mood and anxiety disorders as indicators along the continuum of a shared latent factor (internalizing). The 5 disorders examined were major depressive disorder, social phobia, panic disorder/agoraphobia, specific phobia, and generalized anxiety disorder. The findings were consistent with the prior research. First, a confirmatory factor analysis yielded sufficient evidence for a nonspecific factor underlying the 5 diagnostic indicators. Second, a 2-parameter logistic item response model showed that the diagnoses were represented in the upper half of the internalizing continuum, and each was a strongly discriminating indicator of the factor. Third, the internalizing factor was significantly associated with 3 indexes of social burden: poorer social functioning, time missed from work, and lifetime hospitalizations. Rather than the categorical system of presumably discrete disorders presented in DSM-IV, these 5 mood and anxiety disorders may be alternatively viewed as higher end indicators of a common factor associated with social cost.     

Discrepancies among mother,child, and teacher reports: Examining the contributions of maternal depression and anxiety

The relationship between maternal affective symptomatology and discrepancies in maternal reports of child symptoms, relative to teacher and child reports, was evaluated in a community sample of 188 children ages 9–12 years. Mothers, teachers, and children were administered a structured interview about child psychopathology. In general, mothers reported more child behavior problems than children and teachers, regardless of maternal symptomatology. However, maternal affective symptoms were associated with discrepancies between mothers' and daughters' reports and between mothers' and teachers' reports of girls' externalizing symptoms. Furthermore, mothers who reported high levels of both anxiety and depressive symptomatology tended to report a large number of symptoms that were not confirmed by either their daughters or teachers. Findings are discussed as possible evidence of the role of maternal affective symptomatology in both actual increases in child symptomatology and maternal reporting distortions. Although maternal depressive and anxiety symptoms shared variance in reporting discrepancies, only anxiety explained unique variance. Consistent with previous studies, cross-informant agreement was modest to moderate (r= .16 to .50) and all informants reported more behavior problems in boys than in girls. This work was undertaken with the support of National Institute of Mental Health Grants MH43909 and MH46717.     

The Rorschach Ego Impairment Index: prediction of treatment outcome in a child psychiatric population

In this study, we investigated the treatment utility of the revision of Perry and Viglione's (1991) Rorschach Ego Impairment Index (EII-2) in a sample of 53 child psychiatric inpatients. Parent ratings of symptomatic functioning on the Devereux Scales of Mental Disorders (DSMD; Naglieri, LeBuffe, & Pfeiffer, 1994) were obtained at admission, 30 days postdischarge, and 120 days postdischarge. EII-2 scores correlated with initial symptom elevations on the Critical Pathology at admission. EII-2 scores did not predict short-term response to treatment. However, EII-2 scores demonstrated moderate correlations with long-term outcome and relapse. EII-2 was related to prediction of worsening of symptoms between 30-day and 120-day follow-up as measured by Reliable Change Index scores that were computed for the Externalizing, Internalizing, Critical Pathology, and Total DSMD scales.     

Neurobiological correlates of cognitions in fear and anxiety: a cognitive-neurobiological information-processing model

We review likely neurobiological substrates of cognitions related to fear and anxiety. Cognitive processes are linked to abnormal early activity reflecting hypervigilance in subcortical networks involving the amygdala, hippocampus, and insular cortex, and later recruitment of cortical regulatory resources, including activation of the anterior cingulate cortex and prefrontal cortex to implement avoidant response strategies. Based on this evidence, we present a cognitive-neurobiological information-processing model of fear and anxiety, linking distinct brain structures to specific stages of information processing of perceived threat.     

Assessment of symptoms of DSM-IV anxiety and depression in children: a revised child anxiety and depression scale

The practical significance of assessing disorders of emotion in children is well documented, yet few scales exist that possess conceptual if not empirical relevance to dimensions of DSM anxiety or depressive disorders. The current study evaluated an adaptation of a recently developed anxiety measure (Spence Children's Anxiety Scale; [Spence, S. H. (1997). Structure of anxiety symptoms among children: a confirmatory factor-analytic study. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 106, 280-297; Spence, S. H. (1998). A measure of anxiety symptoms among children. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 36, 545-566]), revised to correspond to dimensions of several DSM-IV anxiety disorders as well as major depression. This investigation involved initial evaluation of the factorial validity of the revised measure in a school sample of 1641 children and adolescents and reliability and validity in an independent sample of 246 children and adolescents. Results yielded an item set and factor definitions that demonstrated structure consistent with DSM-IV anxiety disorders and depression. The revised factor structure and definitions were further supported by the reliability and validity analyses. Some implications for assessment of childhood anxiety and depressive disorders are discussed.     

Psychological correlates of sexual abuse in adolescent girls in chemical dependency treatment

A study involving 597 adolescent girls in treatment for substance abuse between 1984 and 1986 at nine inpatient facilities in five states reveals a strikingly high prevalence of sexual abuse victimization. Over one-third (35.2%) of the girls acknowledged such a history. In an additional 9.7% of the cases, the primary counselor reported such a history for the patient, although she had denied it, at least at intake. Within this multiproblem, highly stressed population, the sexual abuse victim appears to show slightly different and often more serious psychopathology: a greater incidence of suicidal ideation and attempts, symptoms of agitation, and a sense of shame.     

Paternal correlates of adolescents' running away behaviors: Implications for adolescent development and considerations for intervention and treatment of adolescent runaways

In recent years, research concerned with deviance in adolescent behaviors has become increasingly focused on the extent to which fathers influence their children's development. The present study, using an interdependent and mediational model of parent-child correlates, examined the interrelationships between father personality attributes and adolescents' running away behaviors. Two hundred adolescents (96 males; 104 females) from lower middle class homes and their fathers cooperated in the study. Findings showed that there are specific father attributes and socialization characteristics and adolescent personality attributes which interact significantly to influence adolescents' running away behaviors. Specific predictors of male and female adolescents' running away were examined and identified by means of discriminant function analyses. The results were interpreted within the framework of a mediational model. Implications of the findings were discussed for adolescent development and intervention programs for adolescents and their fathers.     

Training in child and adolescent group therapy: Two surveys and a model

Although group therapy is widely used in the treatment of children and adolescents, there has been little attention paid to establishing training standards and developing comprehensive programs for training psychiatry fellows in child and adolescent group psychotherapy. The authors conducted two surveys of child and adolescent training programs. After reviewing the literature, they present the data from their surveys, compare similarities and differences, and discuss trends. Finally, they propose a model for training in child and adolescent group therapy.     

Examining methodological variation in response inhibition: The effects of outcome measures and task characteristics on age-related differences

This study addressed methodological issues common to developmental studies on response inhibition. Age-related differences were investigated using two Stroop-like tasks with different levels of complexity and comparing different outcome measures in a sample of 340 children and adolescents aged 7–15 years. First, speed and accuracy of task performance were examined; the results showing that improvement in speed continued until age 13 in both the basic naming task and the two inhibition tasks. Improvement in accuracy was less consistent and continued until age 9 or 13 years. Second, two different algorithms were employed to control for the effects of basic processes in inhibition tasks. The difference algorithm indicated age-related differences similar to those for speed. The ratio algorithm, however, suggested earlier deceleration of development of response inhibition at 9 or 11 years of age. Factors related to the cognitive requirements and presented stimuli also had an effect on the results. The present findings shed light on the inconsistencies in the developmental studies of response inhibition and demonstrated that the selection of outcome measures and task characteristics are critical because they affect the way development is depicted.     

Parental socialization of child and adolescent physical activity: a meta-analysis.

Meta-analysis was used to integrate research on the relations between parental socialization behavior and child and adolescent physical activity (PA) levels. Four major databases were examined: PubMED, ERIC, Web of Science, and PsychLit (1960 -2005). Thirty studies met the following inclusion criteria: (a) child age (2-18 years) and (b) statistical information permitting calculation of an effect size between parent socialization behavior and child PA. Mean age of participants across studies ranged from 2.54 to 15.5 years. The unweighted mean and median effect sizes (as indexed by r) were .17 and .13, respectively, indicating that a moderate positive relation exists between parental support and modeling behavior and child and adolescent PA levels. The moderating effect of type of parental socialization behavior, population characteristics, and methodological factors were investigated. Theoretical and methodological implications concern the inclusion of mediated models of parental influence and the use of longitudinal investigations in determining causal direction. From an applied viewpoint, these results are useful for the design of future, more effective childhood obesity prevention programs by suggesting child-age-appropriate parental influences.     

Motivation and anxiety for dental treatment: Testing a self-determination theory model of oral self-care behaviour and dental clinic attendance

The present study: (1) developed a Self-Regulation Questionnaire for Dental Treatment (SRQDT) based on Self-Determination Theory (SDT; Deci and Ryan, Psychol Inq 11:227–268, 2000), and (2) used it to test a SDT process model of oral self-care behaviours and dental clinic attendance. Patients’ perceptions of autonomy supportive (relative to controlling) dental professionals were expected to be positively associated with patients’ psychological needs satisfaction in treatment, which was expected to be positively related to relative autonomous motivation for dental treatment and perceived dental competence, and negatively related to anxiety for dental treatment. In turn, relative autonomous motivation for dental treatment and perceived dental competence were expected to be positively associated with oral self-care behaviours and dental clinic attendance. Anxiety for dental treatment was expected to be negatively related to dental clinic attendance and positively linked to putting off making a dental clinic appointment. Confirmatory factor analysis of the 5 factor SRQDT model fit the data very well, and a structural equation model supported the hypothesized process model.