Sustained Attention and Executive Functioning Performance in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

The aim of this study was to further refine the cognitive phenotype of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), with respect to the ability to sustain attention and executive functioning. Participants were 34 boys with ADHD (combined type) and 28 normal controls. The groups were closely matched for age and IQ. All participants were 12 years of age. Both groups performed a computerized sustained attention task and a response interference task. Measures related to speed, accuracy, and time on task were collected. We found that children with ADHD performed slower, less accurately, more impulsively, and with less stability than controls. Both groups produced more errors with increasing time on task, reflecting reduced vigilance. Importantly, no interaction with time on task was found. The overall pattern of results suggests that measures related to accuracy are more informative than measures related to speed of responding in refining the cognitive phenotype of ADHD.     

The Relationship of Suicidal Ideation to Objective and Subjective Executive Functioning

Prior research on executive ability and suicidal ideation (SI) has frequently failed to account for either symptom or performance validity. Similarly, studies have not adequately examined both objective performance on executive tests and subjective report of executive deficits in relationship to SI. The purpose of this study was to address these gaps in research by accounting for performance validity, symptom validity, and considering self-reported executive complaints with objective performance. We hypothesized that (a) increases in self-reported SI on the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991 Morey, L. C. (1991). Personality Assessment Inventory: Professional manual. Tampa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources. [Google Scholar]) Suicidal Ideation subscale would be related to poorer performance on objective and subjective tests of executive function and (b) level of self-reported depressive symptoms would moderate the relationship between SI and measures of executive function, such that individuals with higher levels of both depressive symptoms and executive dysfunction would be more likely to experience higher levels of SI. No measure of executive function was related to SI when accounting for demographic variables and depressive symptoms. Wisconsin Card Sort Test categories completed was the only measure of executive function to interact significantly with depressive symptoms to predict SI (β = .43). Of particular note, self-reported executive dysfunction was highly correlated with Beck Depression Inventory?II ( Beck, Steer, &; Brown, 1996 Beck, A. T., Steer, R. A., &; Brown, G. K. (1996). Beck Depression Inventory (2nd ed.). San Antonio, TX: The Psychological Corporation. [Google Scholar]) scores (r = .78). Clinical implications and future directions for research are discussed.     

执行功能与攻击行为关系的研究

攻击行为产生的原因十分复杂,受当今认知神经科学的影响,心理学研究人员从执行功能的角度来探讨攻击行为。现有的研究主要从心理学、流行病学、行为神经学、神经心理学和神经成像角度,考察和分析二者内在的关联,结果表明在暴力犯罪、反社会人格、杀人犯、精神病患者、少年犯、注意缺陷-多动障碍等群体,执行功能与攻击行为间存在很强的负向关联。将来的研究需要拓宽研究被试群体,深入考察内在的脑机制,制定恰当的攻击行为干预方法。     

The Effect of Maltreatment Type on Adolescent Executive Functioning and Inner Speech

There are indications that different types of maltreatment can lead to different cognitive and behavioural outcomes. This study investigated whether maltreatment type was related to executive functioning (EF) abilities and the use of inner speech. Forty maltreated adolescents and a comparison group of 40 non‐maltreated typically developing adolescents completed a battery of tasks designed to assess both their EF abilities and their vulnerability to disruptions to inner speech. They also completed an IQ test. Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) and ANCOVA analyses were carried out to examine potential effects of maltreatment type (abuse alone; neglect alone; abuse/neglect combined and no maltreatment) on EF and use of inner speech. Maltreatment type was related to EF abilities. In particular, abuse only and abuse/neglect combined had a greater negative impact on EF than neglect only. However, the neglect alone group was more vulnerable to disruptions to inner speech than the other two maltreatment groups, suggesting that they may be more reliant on the use of inner speech. These findings provide new insights into the differential impact of maltreatment type on EF and the use of inner speech in adolescence and could be used to improve the educational outcomes of these vulnerable young people. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Young Deceivers: Executive Functioning and Antisocial Lie‐telling in Preschool Aged Children

The present study examined the emergence of antisocial lie‐telling in very young children. Lie‐telling was studied in relation to executive functioning skills and children's abilities to identify both truths and lies. A total of 65 children (M_{age in months} = 31.75, SD = 1.87) participated in a modified temptation resistance paradigm (TRP; designed to elicit spontaneous lies). Executive functioning was measured through an inhibitory control task and a forward search planning task. The Truth/Lie Identification task was administered (Lyon, Carrick, & Quas, 2010 ) to measure children's abilities to accurately distinguish truths and lies. During the TRP, a total of 89.23% children peeked at the toy when a research assistant left the room, and of those children, 29.31% lied to the research assistant. Significant differences on executive functioning measures were found between lie‐tellers and confessors, as well as for the Truth/Lie Identification task. Lie‐tellers had higher scores on measures of inhibitory control and forward search planning. Lie‐tellers also had higher accuracy on the Truth/Lie Identification task than confessors. This study provides a unique contribution to the literature by examining 2.5‐year‐old children's emerging lie‐telling abilities, a relatively understudied age during which fledgling lie‐telling emerges. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

从心理理论的脑机制研究看心理理论与执行功能的关系

心理理论发展与执行功能的关系以及心理理论脑机制的研究是近年来心理理论研究中的一个热点。文章首先对心理理论与执行功能关系的研究现状进行了分析与概括,提出了目前研究中的问题;然后从介绍了心理理论脑机制研究现状,并以此为基础探讨了心理理论与执行功能的关系。     

The Mediating Role of Executive Functioning in the Relation Between Difficult Temperament and Physical Aggression

The present investigation tested the hypothesis that executive functioning (EF) would mediate the relation between difficult temperament (DT) and aggressive behavior. This model was tested in 310 adult men and women. DT was measured using the Dimensions of Temperament Scale—Revised, EF was measured using 7 well-established neuropsychological tests, and aggression was assessed using the Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire. EF successfully mediated the DT–aggression relation for men, however, the model did not hold for women. Results are discussed with regard to how they influence current models of aggressive behavior as well as their implications for future violence prevention efforts.     

儿童社交回避行为：成因、测量方式及适应功能

社会退缩行为是指儿童在社会情境中抑制自己参与同伴互动并表现出独处的行为。根据不同的社交动机,社会退缩行为包含多种亚类型,其中社交回避行为这一亚类型指儿童总是表现出主动避免各种社交场合的行为。总体而言,社交回避是目前研究最少的一种,其形成的主要原因可能是由于儿童本身较高的抑郁感所致,而研究者已开始尝试以间接和直接的方式测量其水平。来自以变量为中心和以个体为中心的研究分别表明,社交回避儿童面临着最高的适应风险。鉴于这一研究领域的广泛前景,未来的研究亟需关注社交回避影响儿童适应的过程机制及其年龄发展特点,测量工具的进一步开发,直接的跨文化比较以及社交回避的干预方案开发。     

儿童社交回避行为：成因、测量方式及适应功能

社会退缩行为是指儿童在社会情境中抑制自己参与同伴互动并表现出独处的行为。根据不同的社交动机,社会退缩行为包含多种亚类型,其中社交回避行为这一亚类型指儿童总是表现出主动避免各种社交场合的行为。总体而言,社交回避是目前研究最少的一种,其形成的主要原因可能是由于儿童本身较高的抑郁感所致,而研究者已开始尝试以间接和直接的方式测量其水平。来自以变量为中心和以个体为中心的研究分别表明,社交回避儿童面临着最高的适应风险。鉴于这一研究领域的广泛前景,未来的研究亟需关注社交回避影响儿童适应的过程机制及其年龄发展特点,测量工具的进一步开发,直接的跨文化比较以及社交回避的干预方案开发。     

幼儿执行功能的发展对心理理论发展的影响*

采用追踪研究设计,探讨儿童3至5岁成长过程中,执行功能与心理理论发展间的预测关系。以155名3岁、4岁儿童为被试,采用经典实验任务对儿童的执行功能和心理理论进行间隔1年的追踪测查,并运用分层回归分析检验了二者间的预测关系。结果发现：儿童执行功能、心理理论在3至5岁期间均有显著的发展,且在此期间执行功能、心理理论的个体差异相对稳定;儿童在3岁、4岁时执行功能与心理理论呈显著正相关,但在5岁时二者间相关不显著;儿童3岁时的执行功能能够显著预测3至4岁期间心理理论的发展,而4岁时的执行功能不能预测4至5岁期间心理理论的发展;3至5岁期间,心理理论对执行功能发展始终不具有预测作用。     

Executive Functioning in Children and Adolescents with Major Depressive Disorder

The present investigation examined neurocognitive functioning, focusing on executive functioning (EF), in 39 children and adolescents with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and 24 healthy control subjects all ages 8 to 17 years. The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition along with several measures of executive functioning including the Wisconsin Card Sorting Task, Trail Making Test, Controlled Oral Word Association Test, and the Stroop Color Word Test were administered. The neurocognitive profiles for the group of depressed children and adolescents were grossly intact as most scores on intellectual and EF measures fell within the average range and did not differ from the comparison group. Mental processing speed was decreased in the MDD versus normal control group and 27% of the depressed group performed below average on the Trail Making Test. This investigation provided a good base from which to compare future literature on EF in outpatients with early-onset MDD.     

老年社会功能与主观幸福感

社会功能是健康老龄化的基本要素。本文综述了老年社会功能的定义和评估、与主观幸福感相关的老年社会功能理论,以及社会功能对主观幸福感影响的研究进展。在消极和积极老化观的指引下,该领域的研究存在两种取向：前者片面强调社会支持,追求享乐主义取向主观幸福感;后者则强调社会参与,追求幸福快乐取向主观幸福感。今后的研究应在积极老化观的指引下,强调老年阶段积极主动的社会参与和幸福快乐的幸福感,并开展相关的干预研究。     

家庭功能：理论、影响因素及其与青少年社会适应的关系

该文综述了中西方近20年有关家庭功能的定义、理论、影响因素及家庭功能与青少年社会适应关系的研究进展。有关家庭功能的理论可以分为两大类：以家庭发展结果为取向和以家庭发展过程为取向的家庭功能理论。现有研究主要探讨了家庭结构、社会经济地位、家庭关系、发展阶段、生活事件等对家庭功能的影响,并发现家庭功能与青少年的社会适应有着非常密切的关系。文章最后分析了已有家庭功能理论及相关研究的不足,并指出了未来家庭功能领域的研究方向。     

情绪唤起对执行功能的作用

执行功能是对基本认知加工进行有意心理控制的所有高级认知过程.最近10年,情绪唤起对执行功能的作用机制吸引愈来愈多的研究兴趣,其中,消极情绪(尤其焦虑、抑郁)已被普遍证实损害执行功能的运行效率;积极情绪如何作用执行功能尚不明确.鉴于后者研究中的理论假设匮乏,近年兴起的积极情绪的扩展建构理论以及动机维度模型,能为理解积极情绪如何作用执行功能提供线索与启发.未来研究应深入探讨不同动机强度的积极及消极情绪对执行功能的作用机制,在这之中也应细致区分情绪唤起与情绪刺激的不同效应.     

Executive Functioning, Temporal Discounting, and Sense of Time in Adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)

Clinic-referred teens (ages 12–19) with ADHD and ODD (N = 101) were compared to community control (CC) teens, equated for age and sex, (N = 39) on a variety of psychological tasks assessing executive functioning (EF), temporal reward discounting, and time estimation and reproduction. A factor analysis reduced the EF measures to three dimensions, representing CPT Inattention, Working Memory, and CPT Inhibition. Results indicated that the ADHD group had significantly more CPT Inattention than the CC group. No differences were found for Working Memory or CPT Inhibition. The ADHD group displayed significantly greater temporal discounting of delayed hypothetical monetary rewards relative to immediate ones and manifested more impaired time reproduction, but not time estimation, than did the CC group. Main effects for level of IQ were found only on the Working Memory factor and largely did not interact with the group factor otherwise. The group differences in CPT Inattention, temporal discounting, and time reproduction were not a function of level of comorbid oppositional defiant disorder, delinquency, or anxiety–depression. Results are reasonably consistent with past research on EF and sense of time in children with ADHD and extend these findings to the adolescent age group. Problems with working memory and CPT inhibition found in prior studies of children with ADHD, however, were not evident here, perhaps owing to age-related improvements or insufficient task difficulty.     

Executive Functioning Demands of the Object Retrieval Task for 8-month-old Infants

At 8 to 11 months of age, infants are more successful in negotiating opaque relative to transparent barriers. However, 7-month-old infants have more difficulty with opaque barriers relative to semitransparent barriers. Here, 8-month-old infants spent more time in ineffective direct reaches with more the transparent barriers (Experiments 1 & 2) and were faster with the fully opaque barrier (Experiment 2). This demonstration of the graded effects of transparency confirms the working memory and/or response inhibition demands of the object retrieval task.     

认知年老化与执行衰退假说

在认知年老化领域,执行衰退假说是近年来新兴的一种理论。执行衰退假说在理论上具有很强的吸引力,但在实证研究中却存在很多困难,如执行功能的可分离性问题,执行功能测量的信度和效度问题,以及执行功能与加工速度的关系问题。目前,该领域研究的焦点是：在行为学水平上,控制一般性因素（加工速度）后,执行功能是否仍对认知年老化起重要的中介作用;在神经水平上,执行（额叶）功能随龄的变化情况,以及在认知年老化过程中,额叶在大脑功能重组中扮演的角色。最终实现对认知年老化的理解,需要将认知功能与大脑结构联系起来;既看到广泛存在的共同的基本机制,又不能忽略不同认知结构的选择性变化。     

Comparison of Cognitive Empathy,Emotional Empathy,and Social Functioning in Different Age Groups

Empathic responses and optimum social functioning are associated with psychological and physical health benefits. The aim of this study was to compare emotional empathy, cognitive empathy, and social functioning among different age groups, including adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood, and late adulthood. One hundred and ninety‐six people (92 males, 104 females) with the age range of 14 to 85 assigned to four age groups (adolescents, young adults, middle adults, and older adults) participated in this study. Participants were asked to complete the Empathy Quotient, the Revised Eyes Test, and Social Functioning Scale. The results showed that there were significant differences between older adults and other groups. Emotional empathy increased in older people, but there were deficits in some aspects of cognitive empathy. Also, the findings showed an age‐related decline in social functioning. Due to deficits in cognitive empathy affected by ageing, older adults showed some impairment in their ability to interpret emotional cues. This age‐related decline in cognitive empathy might be a reason for weak social functioning in older adults. Therefore, considering these elements would be helpful to provide healthcare strategies for elderly people.     

Coping with Severe Mental Illness: Relations of the Brief COPE with Symptoms, Functioning, and Well-Being

The way patients cope with the experience of having an episode and being hospitalized for psychiatric disorder may relate to symptom severity, social functioning, and psychological well-being. Coping was assessed among 70 psychiatric inpatients diagnosed primarily with schizophrenia, major depressive disorder, and schizoaffective disorder. The Brief COPE—a questionnaire developed in health psychology (C. S. Carver, 1997)—was administered in interviewer-assisted format during patients' stay on the ward. Thirty patients were re-interviewed an average of 6 weeks after discharge. Among patients with schizophrenia, schizophrenia symptom severity correlated inversely with adaptive coping (e.g., acceptance, planning, seeking support) but did not correlate with maladaptive coping (e.g., self-blame, denial). Among those with schizophrenia, deficits in adaptive coping also predicted relative increases in schizophrenia symptoms over time, controlling for intake symptom severity. Among patients without schizophrenia, maladaptive coping correlated concurrently with depressive symptoms. Several hypothesized associations between concurrent coping, functioning, and well-being were also documented.     

Executive Functioning and Gambling: Performance on the Trail Making Test is Associated with Gambling Problems in Older Adult Gamblers

ABSTRACT

Rates of gambling problems in older adults have risen with increased accessibility of gambling venues. One possible contributor to problem gambling among older adults is decreased self-control brought about by diminished executive functioning. Consistent with this possibility, Study 1 revealed that older adults recruited from gambling venues reported greater gambling problems if they also experienced deficits in executive functioning, measured via the Trail Making Test. Study 2 replicated this finding and demonstrated that problem gambling is associated with increased depression among older adults, mediated by increased financial distress. These studies provide support for the hypothesis that older adult gamblers who have executive functioning problems are also likely to have gambling problems.