Children’s Elementary School Social Experience and Executive Functions Development: Introduction to a Special Section

Children’s executive functions, encompassing inhibitory control, working memory and attention are vital for their self-regulation. With the transition to formal schooling, children need to learn to manage their emotions and behavior in a new and complex social environment that with age increases in the intensity of social interactions with peers and teachers. Stronger executive functions skills facilitate children’s social development. In addition, new experiences in the social environments of school also may influence executive function development. The focus of this special section is on this potential impact of elementary school social experiences with peers and teacher on the development of children’s executive functions. The collection of papers encompass various aspects of peer and teacher social environments, and cover broad as well as specific facets and measures of executive functions including neural responses. The collection of papers sample developmental periods that span preschool through mid-adolescence. In this introduction, we summarize and highlight the main findings of each of the papers, organized around social interactions with peers and interactions with teachers. We conclude our synopsis with implications for future research, and a specific focus on prevention and intervention.     

Feminism and Evolutionary Psychology: Allies, Adversaries, or Both? An Introduction to a Special Issue

This special issue on feminism and evolutionary psychology addresses current theory and research from feminist and evolutionary psychologists, focusing on gender differences in mate selection as conceptualized by Sexual Strategies Theory. This introduction begins with feminist critiques of evolutionary psychology as well as attempts by Darwinian feminists to integrate the two. It then reviews the papers, which generally fit into one of three lines of research. One group of papers critiques evolutionary psychology claims and presents research to support alternative theoretical explanations. A second group uses evolutionary psychology to support research on gender differences in alignment with Sexual Strategies Theory. A third group utilizes theory and empirical research to integrate evolutionary psychology and feminist theories. The introduction concludes with a call for furthering our understanding of the relationship between these theories.     

Introduction to the Special Section: Linking the MMPI–2–RF to Contemporary Models of Psychopathology

This special section considers 9 independent articles that seek to link the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–2–Restructured Form (MMPI–2–RF; Ben-Porath &; Tellegen, 2008/2011 Ben-Porath, Y. S., &; Tellegen, A. (2011). MMPI–2–RF (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–2 Restructured Form) manual. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. (Original work published 2008) [Google Scholar]) to contemporary models of psychopathology. Sellbom (this issue Sellbom, M. (this issue). Mapping the MMPI–2–RF Specific Problems scales onto extant psychopathology structures. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1206909[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) maps the Specific Problems scales onto hierarchical psychopathology structures, whereas Romero, Toorabally, Burchett, Tarescavage, and Glassmire (this issue Romero, I. E., Toorabally, N., Burchett, D., Tarescavage, A. M., &; Glassmire, D. M. (this issue). Mapping the MMPI–2–RF Substantive scales onto internalizing, externalizing, and thought dysfunction dimensions in a forensic inpatient setting. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1223681[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) and Shkalim, Almagor, and Ben-Porath (this issue Shkalim, E., Almagor, M., &; Ben-Porath, Y. S. (this issue). Examining current conceptualizations of psychopathology with the MMPI–2/MMPI–2–RF Restructured Clinical scales: Preliminary findings from a cross-cultural study. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1189429[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) show evidence of linking the instruments' scales to diagnostic representations of common higher order psychopathology constructs. McCord, Achee, Cannon, Harrop, and Poynter (this issue McCord, D. M., Achee, M. C., Cannon, E. M., Harrop, T. M., &; Poynter, W. D. (this issue). Using the research domain criteria framework to explore associations between MMPI–2–RF constructs and physiological variables assessed by eye-tracker technology. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1228067[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) link the MMPI–2–RF scales to psychophysiological constructs inspired by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Research Domain Criteria. Sellbom and Smith (this issue Sellbom, M. (this issue). Mapping the MMPI–2–RF Specific Problems scales onto extant psychopathology structures. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1206909[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) find support for MMPI–2–RF scale hypotheses in covering personality psychopathology in general, whereas Klein Haneveld, Kamphuis, Smid, and Forbey (this issue Klein Haneveld, E., Kamphuis, J.H., Smid, W., &; Forbey, J. D. (this issue). Using MMPI–2–RF correlates to elucidate the PCL–R and its four facets in a sample of male forensic psychiatric patients. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1228655[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) and Kutchen et al. (this issue Kutchen, T. J., Wygant, D. B., Tylicki, J. L., Dieter, A. M., Veltri, C. O., &; Sellbom, M. (this issue). Construct validity of the MMPI–2–RF Triarchic Psychopathy scales in correctional and collegiate samples. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1238829[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) demonstrate the utility of the MMPI–2–RF in capturing contemporary conceptualizations of the psychopathic personality. Finally, Franz, Harrop, and McCord (this issue Franz, A. O., Harrop, T. M., &; McCord, D. M. (this issue). Examining the construct validity of the MMPI–2–RF Interpersonal Functioning scales using the Computerized Adaptive Test of Personality Disorder as a comparative framework. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1222394[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) and Rogers et al. (this issue Rogers, M. L., Anestis, J. C., Harrop, T. M., Schneider, M., Bender, T. W., Ringer, F. B., &; Joiner, T. E. (this issue). Examination of MMPI–2–RF Substantive scales as indicators of acute suicidal affective disturbance components. Journal of Personality Assessment. doi:10.1080/00223891.2016.1222393[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) mapped the MMPI–2–RF scales onto more specific transdiagnostic constructs reflecting interpersonal functioning and suicide behavior proneness, respectively.     

Novel Insights into Longstanding Theories of Bidirectional Parent–Child Influences: Introduction to the Special Section

Although bidirectional parent and child influences have been incorporated in theoretical models pertaining to the development of internalizing and externalizing behaviors in youth, studies have historically focused on the socializing influence that parents have on their children. This has left several important research questions unanswered about the nature of bidirectional parent-child relations across development, including how these bidirectional effects are related to different types of child and adolescent psychopathology. The goal of this special section is to examine some longstanding issues regarding the nature of bidirectional parent-child effects across time using a diverse array of longitudinal datasets. The results from these studies emphasize the importance of considering bidirectional effects in developmental psychopathology research, particularly the often overlooked influence that children and adolescents have on their parents' behavior and emotional well-being. Following these empirical articles, an expert in the field provides a scholarly commentary designed to outline the progress that has been made in understanding bidirectional parent-child effects across development as well as to propose fruitful areas for future research.     

Learning lyrics: To sing or not to sing?

According to common practice and oral tradition, learning verbal materials through song should facilitate word recall. In the present study, we provide evidence against this belief. In Experiment 1, 36 university students, half of them musicians, learned an unfamiliar song in three conditions. In the sung-sung condition, the song to be learned was sung, and the response was sung too. In the sung-spoken condition, the response was spoken. In the divided-spoken condition, the presented lyrics (accompanied by music) and the response were both spoken. Superior word recall in the sung-sung condition was predicted. However, fewer words were recalled when singing than when speaking. Furthermore, the mode of presentation, whether sung or spoken, had no influence on lyric recall, in either short- or long-term recall. In Experiment 2, singing was assessed with and without words. Altogether, the results indicate that the text and the melody of a song have separate representations in memory, making singing a dual task to perform, at least in the first steps of learning. Interestingly, musical training had little impact on performance, suggesting that vocal learning is a basic and widespread skill.     

Enkrasia or evidentialism? Learning to love mismatch

Philosophical Studies - I formulate a resilient paradox about epistemic rationality, discuss and reject various solutions, and sketch a way out. The paradox exemplifies a tension between a wide...     

Introduction to the Special Section on the Social Cognition and Object Relations Scale–Global Rating Method: From Research to Practice

There continues to be a need in the field of psychology for measures that quantify qualitative data in dynamically rich and clinically meaningful ways. The Social Cognition and Object Relations Scale–Global Rating Method (SCORS–G; Westen, 1995) is a clinician-rated measure with a strong theoretical foundation that assesses sophisticated underlying constructs, specifically 8 dimensions of object relations (Stein &; Slavin-Mulford, 2018 Stein, M. B., &; Slavin-Mulford, J. (2018). The Social Cognition and Object Relations Scale–Global Rating Method (SCORS–G): A comprehensive guide for clinicians and researchers. New York, NY: Routledge. [Google Scholar]). The SCORS–G has steadily increased in popularity and this special section of the Journal of Personality Assessment reflects this growing interest. In this introduction, we provide readers with a brief overview of the 5 articles in this special section and note ways in which they reflect and build on the existing SCORS–G empirical literature. Contextualizing these articles within the broader literature allows us to highlight how the measure is employed in clinical and research settings. Each of these 5 articles also highlights areas and opportunities for future research that would address gaps in the SCORS–G literature and strengthen the utility of the measure. We close by noting how each of studies can be seen as a model for future lines of research.     

Rapid Automatized Naming and Learning Disabilities: Does RAN Have a Specific Connection to Reading or Not?

This work is an extension of a study by Waber, Wolff, Forbes, and Weiler (2000 Waber, D. P., Wolff, P. H., Forbes, P. W. and Weiler, M. D. 2000. Rapid automatized naming in children referred for evaluation of heterogeneous learning problems: How specific are naming speed deficits to reading disability?. Child Neuropsychology, 6: 251–261. [Taylor &; Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) in which the specificity of naming speed deficits to reading disability (RD) was examined. One hundred ninety-three children (ages 8 to 11) evaluated for learning disabilities were studied. It was determined how well rapid automatized naming (RAN) discriminated between different diagnostic groups (learning impaired [LI] with and without RD) from controls and from each other. Whereas Waber et al. concluded that RAN was an excellent tool for detecting risk for learning disabilities in general, the results of the present study point to a more specific connection between RAN and RD.     

Politics for Learning or Learning for Politics?

It is argued that political democracyand citizenship should not be taken as primarygoals within university education. Instead theauthor argues for a notion of ``academicdemocracy' with the overall goal or ethos oflearning together. Moreover it is argued that``learning' then should be understood accordingto ``practical traditions of knowledge', whichmeans that truth is not the ultimate goal. Theultimate goal is practices that lead to thegood of men and women.     

The Assessment of Emotion Regulation: Improving Construct Validity in Research on Psychopathology in Youth—An Introduction to the Special Section

This paper discusses issues in the assessment of emotion regulation in psychopathology research in youth and introduces a special section of the Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment on the topic. The historical and practical importance of the concept of emotion regulation is noted and conceptual challenges in assessing emotion regulation are discussed. Empirical goals for improving construct validity in research on psychopathology and emotion regulation are discussed. We comment on how the papers in the special section advance understanding in these areas and suggest a multiple perspective and a multiple level of analysis approach for clarifying future research.     

Introduction to the Special Issue on Mediation Analyses: What If Planetary Scientists Used Mediation Analysis to Infer Causation?

Mediation analyses have become extremely popular in the social sciences generally, and in social psychology specifically, because they seem to grant the researcher the ability to draw causal conclusions from correlational data. But this is illusory. Correlation provides poor quality evidence of causation not only in the case of zero-order correlations but also in the case of more complex mediation analyses. The articles in this special issue provide compelling arguments as to why mediation analyses make a weak case for actual mediation. My goal is to cognitively prime the reader for these articles by presenting analyses pertaining to the mean orbital momentum, kinetic energy, and conversion energy of the eight planets of our solar system. Our solar system provides a dramatic case in point where mediation analyses provide blatantly wrong conclusions.