Conceptualizing and Estimating Process Speed in Studies Employing Ecological Momentary Assessment Designs: A Multilevel Variance Decomposition Approach

Researchers have been making use of ecological momentary assessment (EMA) and other study designs that sample feelings and behaviors in real time and in naturalistic settings to study temporal dynamics and contextual factors of a wide variety of psychological, physiological, and behavioral processes. As EMA designs become more widespread, questions are arising about the frequency of data sampling, with direct implications for participants' burden and researchers' ability to capture and study dynamic processes. Traditionally, spectral analytic techniques are used for time series data to identify process speed. However, the nature of EMA data, often collected with fewer than 100 measurements per person, sampled at randomly spaced intervals, and replete with planned and unplanned missingness, precludes application of traditional spectral analytic techniques. Building on principles of variance partitioning used in the generalizability theory of measurement and spectral analysis, we illustrate the utility of multilevel variance decompositions for isolating process speed in EMA-type data. Simulation and empirical data from a smoking-cessation study are used to demonstrate the method and to evaluate the process speed of smoking urges and quitting self-efficacy. Results of the multilevel variance decomposition approach can inform process-oriented theory and future EMA study designs.     

Conceptualizing and Estimating Process Speed in Studies Employing Ecological Momentary Assessment Designs: A Multilevel Variance Decomposition Approach

Researchers have been making use of ecological momentary assessment (EMA) and other study designs that sample feelings and behaviors in real time and in naturalistic settings to study temporal dynamics and contextual factors of a wide variety of psychological, physiological, and behavioral processes. As EMA designs become more widespread, questions are arising about the frequency of data sampling, with direct implications for participants' burden and researchers' ability to capture and study dynamic processes. Traditionally, spectral analytic techniques are used for time series data to identify process speed. However, the nature of EMA data, often collected with fewer than 100 measurements per person, sampled at randomly spaced intervals, and replete with planned and unplanned missingness, precludes application of traditional spectral analytic techniques. Building on principles of variance partitioning used in the generalizability theory of measurement and spectral analysis, we illustrate the utility of multilevel variance decompositions for isolating process speed in EMA-type data. Simulation and empirical data from a smoking-cessation study are used to demonstrate the method and to evaluate the process speed of smoking urges and quitting self-efficacy. Results of the multilevel variance decomposition approach can inform process-oriented theory and future EMA study designs.     

Psychosocial Stress and Cardiovascular Risk: What is the Role of Daily Experience?

We describe an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) protocol designed to measure daily life experiences along several psychosocial dimensions (Social Conflict, Task Demand, Decisional Control, Negative Affect, and Arousal) hypothesized to be relevant for cardiovascular disease risk. In a large community sample, these assessments have been administered in conjunction with ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring and measures of subclinical cardiovascular disease. Several results have emerged that support the promise of this approach. First of all, each of these dimensions of experience appears to be a trigger for cardiovascular activation, with movement on each scale being associated with significant within-person changes in heart rate and blood pressure in the natural environment. Second, there appear to be individual differences in physiological responsiveness to these dimensions of daily experience, with such differences being associated in some cases with laboratory-based assessments of cardiovascular reactivity, as might be expected. Third, EMA ratings are associated in several instances with (between-person) stable individual differences in ABP readings. And finally, we have found that some of the characteristics defined by our EMA ratings are related to measures of subclinical atherosclerosis. Such effects appear to be mediated, in part, by ABP. The advantages of using EMA measures for capturing the effects of psychosocial stressors are highlighted by comparing the predictive validity of these daily life assessments to traditional global self-reports. We conclude by describing future plans for use of this type of assessment protocol for helping us to characterize psychosocial characteristics relevant to cardiovascular disease risk. Personality and social processes during daily living may have an important impact not only on psychological functioning but also on physical health and disease. In this article we review our recent work involving the assessment of daily experience as a means of better understanding the role of psychosocial stress in cardiovascular disease risk. First, we outline the rationale for our interest in daily experience sampling for examining these processes, and we describe the methods we have adopted for this purpose. Next, we review findings from a recent study in which we have used these approaches to examine the role of psychosocial stress on ABP and atherosclerosis in a community-dwelling sample. We compare our approach to more traditional (global self-report and laboratory-observation) methods for examining these relationships in humans, and we discuss potential future directions for use of daily experience sampling in studies of health and behavior.     

EMA-一种生态主义取向的研究模式

生态瞬时评估（EMA）不是一个单一的研究方法,而是一种研究模式,它强调现实世界中实时数据的采集和反复的评估,并能阐释变量间自然存在和变化的相互关系,具有很高的生态学效度。EMA的使用会加强我们对个体与环境之间的动态交互作用的理解。EMA的基本设计思路包括基于事件的设计、基于时间的设计和联合设计。在EMA 的使用中还有一些问题如软硬件的发展、伦理、数据等问题等需要研究者注意。目前EMA应用最广泛的领域是临床心理学和行为研究方面。     

Occupational stress. Spice of life or kiss of death?

Work-related psychosocial stressors originate in social structures and processes, affect the human organism through psychological processes, and influence health through four types of closely interrelated mechanisms--emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and physiological. The health outcome is modified by situational (e.g., social support) and individual factors (e.g., personality, coping repertoire). The work-environment-stress-health system is a dynamic one with many feedback loops. There is little but increasing direct evidence of a causal relationship between work-related psychosocial stressors and the incidence and prevalence of occupational morbidity and mortality. But, a substantial body of indirect evidence strongly suggests that such associations exist and emphasizes the need to better understand their role. Accordingly, research and health action should aim at being systems-oriented, interdisciplinary, intersectorial, health- (and not only disease-) oriented, and participative.     

Victimization in South Korean children's peer groups

This study reports a cross-sectional investigation of the behavioral, academic, and psychosocial correlates of victimization in South Korean children's peer groups. The participants were 122 children (66 boys, 56 girls; from 10–12-years-old) recruited from a primary school in Seoul, South Korea. Multi-informant assessments (peer nominations, teacher ratings, and self-reports) of peer victimization, social behavior, loneliness/social dissatisfaction, and academic functioning were obtained. Multivariate analyses indicated that peer victimization was associated with poor academic adjustment, loneliness, submissive–withdrawn behavior, aggression, and low levels of assertive–prosocial behavior. These findings suggest that there is considerable similarity in the social processes underlying peer group victimization across South Korean and Western cultural settings.     

Parenting and psychosocial development of IVF children: Review of the research literature

When in vitro fertilization is performed, the transition to parenthood takes place in a special way. Many hypotheses have been formulated about the possible (mainly negative) effects that this method of conception may have on the parent–child relationship and the child’s psychosocial development. Since the early 1990s, various studies have been carried out to investigate these assumptions. Overall, few significant differences have been found in the parent–child relationship and psychosocial development of children in IVF families and non-IVF families. Some of the studies have even determined that IVF parents experienced the relationship with the child more positively. A limited number of results indicate a more negative view of parenting in IVF families, especially in terms of allowing for autonomy and feelings of child vulnerability. In one particular study, indications were found for an increased incidence of behavioral and emotional problems in IVF children. Potential explanations for these findings (including methodological issues) and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

A Psychoneuroimmunologic Perspective on AIDS Research: Questions,Preliminary Findings,and Suggestions1

Starting with the premise that research questions emanating from the fields of psychoneuroimmunology and behavioral medicine may provide critical information for understanding and treating acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), we provide brief backgrounds on psychoneuroimmunology and on AIDS. Previously, Solomon had generated 25 hypotheses based on the thesis that the immune and central nervous systems are intimately linked. Eight hypotheses from his list are presented as particularly relevant to AIDS. From these hypotheses, we derived a set of 12 new questions to be addressed in research on AIDS. Evidence and illustrations from studies in the literature, from our own research on psychoimmunologic relationships and psychosocial factors related to outcome, and from clinical examples is discussed for each question. Finally, suggestions are offered to address some of the problems in conducting psychoneurologic research.     

Functional neuroimaging of working memory in survivors of childhood brain tumors and healthy children: Associations with coping and psychosocial outcomes

Purpose: Pediatric brain tumors are the second most common cancer diagnosis in individuals under age 20 and research has documented significant neurocognitive, psychosocial, and emotional late effects. Associations among these deficits have not been adequately considered and the role of survivors’ coping with stress in relation to deficits is unknown. Further, research has yet to examine neurobiological processes related to neurocognitive, psychosocial, and emotional difficulties in survivors through the use of functional neuroimaging. Method: Questionnaire measures and functional neuroimaging were used to examine the neurocognitive, psychosocial, and emotional functioning and coping responses of survivors of pediatric brain tumors (N = 17; age 8–16) and healthy children (N = 15). Results: Survivors experienced elevated levels of psychosocial and behavioral/emotional difficulties relative to healthy controls and normative data. Increases in brain activation in prefrontal and other anterior regions in response to a working memory task were associated with better psychosocial functioning, use of engagement coping strategies, and less use of disengagement coping strategies. Regression analyses suggest coping accounts for a significant portion of the association between brain activation and behavioral/emotional functioning. Conclusions: This study extends late-effects research by examining neurobiological processes associated with psychosocial and emotional difficulties. These findings contribute to our understanding of difficulties in survivors and provide a foundation for research exploring these associations and mediators of deficits in future longitudinal studies.     

A time-varying effect model for intensive longitudinal data

Understanding temporal change in human behavior and psychological processes is a central issue in the behavioral sciences. With technological advances, intensive longitudinal data (ILD) are increasingly generated by studies of human behavior that repeatedly administer assessments over time. ILD offer unique opportunities to describe temporal behavioral changes in detail and identify related environmental and psychosocial antecedents and consequences. Traditional analytical approaches impose strong parametric assumptions about the nature of change in the relationship between time-varying covariates and outcomes of interest. This article introduces time-varying effect models (TVEMs) that explicitly model changes in the association between ILD covariates and ILD outcomes over time in a flexible manner. In this article, we describe unique research questions that the TVEM addresses, outline the model-estimation procedure, share a SAS macro for implementing the model, demonstrate model utility with a simulated example, and illustrate model applications in ILD collected as part of a smoking-cessation study to explore the relationship between smoking urges and self-efficacy during the course of the pre- and postcessation period.     

The Future of Psychology in Family Medicine

Psychology has been integral to the field of family medicine since its inception as a medical specialty in the 1960s. Psychologists and other behavioral scientists contribute to family medicine in teaching clinical skills, in defining research questions, in developing research methodology, and in creating integrated physical/mental health care delivery systems. Future developments in the field of psychology in family medicine are likely to emphasize development and evaluation of screening measures which identify mental health problems in primary care, development of early intervention for those mental health problems, and more precise measurement of process and quality of care and health outcomes. Psychologists have an important role to fulfill in educating physicians on alternatives to pharmacologic and medical interventions for common presenting problems in primary care. However, current economic forces shaping the practice of medicine may work against further enhancing the efficacy of the physician in dealing with psychosocial issues. The future role of psychology in family medicine is not yet delineated, and while the move toward parity of reimbursement for mental and physical health care delivery may enhance this collaboration, there is a need to continue to evaluate how the psychological well-being of patients is influenced in the evolution of new models of care delivery.     

The Montreal Type A Intervention Project: major findings

This article reports a comparison of three short-term treatments (aerobic exercise, cognitive-behavioral stress management, and weight training) in modifying behavioral and cardiovascular reactivity to laboratory psychosocial stressors in healthy Type A men. One hundred seven men completed the treatments and evaluations, 33 in the aerobic exercise group, and 37 each in the cognitive-behavioral stress management and weight-training groups. The stress management group showed significantly greater changes in behavioral reactivity (reductions of 13% to 23% below initial values) than the two physical exercise groups, which did not differ significantly from each other. For physiological reactivity, changes attributable to intervention were trivial for all three treatment groups. The positive finding of reduced behavioral reactivity as a result of the stress management intervention is of potential clinical significance and warrants further exploration. The lack of meaningful reductions in physiological reactivity also requires further exploration in that it raises questions concerning the ability of behavioral treatments in general to modify physiological reactivity, the ability of existing measures to assess accurately changes that are produced and, most fundamental of all, the relevance of physiological reactivity as an outcome measure for treatment efforts with Type As.     

Affective instability: measuring a core feature of borderline personality disorder with ecological momentary assessment

Ecological momentary assessment (EMA; Stone & Shiffman, 1994) was used to characterize and quantify a dynamic process--affective instability in borderline personality disorder (BPD). Sixty outpatients (34 with BPD and affective instability; 26 with current depressive disorder but not with BPD or affective instability) carried electronic diaries for approximately 1 month and were randomly prompted to rate their mood state up to 6 times a day. Results indicated that BPD patients (a) did not report significantly different mean levels of positive or negative affect; (b) displayed significantly more variability over time in their positive and negative affect scores; (c) demonstrated significantly more instability on successive scores (i.e., large changes) for hostility, fear, and sadness than did patients with depressive disorders; and (d) were more likely to report extreme changes across successive occasions (>or=90th percentile of change scores across participants) for hostility scores. Results illustrate different analytic approaches to quantifying variability and instability of affect based on intensive longitudinal data. Further, results suggest the promise of electronic diaries for collecting data from individuals in their natural environment for purposes of clinical research and assessment.     

Accuracy of retrospective memory and covariation estimation in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder

Assessment methods relying on biased or inaccurate retrospective recall may distort knowledge about the nature of disorders and lead to faulty clinical inferences. Despite concerns about the accuracy of retrospective recall in general and in particular with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) patients, the accuracy of retrospective recall for one's own symptoms assessed in vivo is unknown in this population. This study used a prospective ecological momentary assessment (EMA) methodology to create a criterion against which to assess recall accuracy in OCD patients. Although results indicated that patients’ retrospective recall of OCD symptoms was fairly accurate, they consistently overestimated the magnitude of OCD symptom covariation with non-OCD facets (e.g., sleep duration, contemporaneous stress level, etc.). Findings suggest that even when recall of OCD symptoms is accurate, patients may be inaccurate in estimating symptom covariation. The findings have implications for the research, case conceptualization, and assessment of OCD, and may extend to other disorders.     

Ambulatory assessment for physical activity research: State of the science,best practices and future directions

Technological and digital progress benefits physical activity (PA) research. Here we compiled expert knowledge on how Ambulatory Assessment (AA) is utilized to advance PA research, i.e., we present results of the 2nd International CAPA Workshop 2019 “Physical Activity Assessment – State of the Science, Best Practices, Future Directions” where invited researchers with experience in PA assessment, evaluation, technology and application participated. First, we provide readers with the state of the AA science, then we give best practice recommendations on how to measure PA via AA and shed light on methodological frontiers, and we furthermore discuss future directions. AA encompasses a class of methods that allows the study of PA and its behavioral, biological and physiological correlates as they unfold in everyday life. AA includes monitoring of movement (e.g., via accelerometry), physiological function (e.g., via mobile electrocardiogram), contextual information (e.g., via geolocation-tracking), and ecological momentary assessment (EMA; e.g., electronic diaries) to capture self-reported information. The strengths of AA are data assessments near real-time, which minimize retrospective biases in real-world settings, consequentially enabling ecological valid findings. Importantly, AA enables multiple assessments across time within subjects resulting in intensive longitudinal data (ILD), which allows unraveling within-person determinants of PA in everyday life. In this paper, we show how AA methods such as triggered e-diaries and geolocation-tracking can be used to measure PA and its correlates, and furthermore how these findings may translate into real-life interventions. In sum, AA provides numerous possibilities for PA research, especially the opportunity to tackle within-subject antecedents, concomitants, and consequences of PA as they unfold in everyday life. In-depth insights on determinants of PA could help us design and deliver impactful interventions in real-world contexts, thus enabling us to solve critical health issues in the 21st century such as insufficient PA and high levels of sedentary behavior.     

Youth Depression in the Family Context: Familial Risk Factors and Models of Treatment

Research on parent risk factors, family environment, and familial involvement in the treatment of depression in children and adolescents is integrated, providing an update to prior reviews on the topic. First, the psychosocial parent and family factors associated with youth depression are examined. The literature indicates that a broad array of parent and family factors is associated with youth risk for depression, ranging from parental pathology to parental cognitive style to family emotional climate. Next, treatment approaches for youth depression that have been empirically tested are described and then summarized in terms of their level of parent inclusion, including cognitive–behavioral therapy, interpersonal therapy, and family systems approaches. Families have mostly not been incorporated into clinical treatment research with depressed adolescents, with only 32% of treatments including parents in treatment in any capacity. Nonetheless, the overall effectiveness of treatments that involve children and adolescents exclusively is very similar to that of treatments that include parents as agents or facilitators of change. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of these findings and directions for further research.     

Dual language use in sign-speech bimodal bilinguals: fNIRS brain-imaging evidence

The brain basis of bilinguals’ ability to use two languages at the same time has been a hotly debated topic. On the one hand, behavioral research has suggested that bilingual dual language use involves complex and highly principled linguistic processes. On the other hand, brain-imaging research has revealed that bilingual language switching involves neural activations in brain areas dedicated to general executive functions not specific to language processing, such as general task maintenance. Here we address the involvement of language-specific versus cognitive-general brain mechanisms for bilingual language processing. We study a unique population, bimodal bilinguals proficient in signed and spoken languages, and we use an innovative brain-imaging technology, functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS; Hitachi ETG-4000). Like fMRI, the fNIRS technology measures hemodynamic change, but it is also advanced in permitting movement for unconstrained speech and sign production. Participant groups included (i) hearing ASL–English bilinguals, (ii) ASL monolinguals, and (iii) English monolinguals. Imaging tasks included picture naming in “Monolingual mode” (using one language at a time) and in “Bilingual mode” (using both languages either simultaneously or in rapid alternation). Behavioral results revealed that accuracy was similar among groups and conditions. By contrast, neuroimaging results revealed that bilinguals in Bilingual mode showed greater signal intensity within posterior temporal regions (“Wernicke’s area”) than in Monolingual mode. Significance: Bilinguals’ ability to use two languages effortlessly and without confusion involves the use of language-specific posterior temporal brain regions. This research with both fNIRS and bimodal bilinguals sheds new light on the extent and variability of brain tissue that underlies language processing, and addresses the tantalizing questions of how language modality, sign and speech, impact language representation in the 7brain.     

A Genetics Primer for Social Health Research

The recently completed sequencing of the human genome heralds a new era in the study of social influences upon health. Because the interactions between genes and the environment are bidirectional, expertise in the areas of psychosocial processes and health behaviors will be necessary for elucidating how genes, behavior, and the environment interact to affect health outcomes. For investigators whose primary background is in social health research, the terminology used by geneticists may seem like a foreign language. To help navigate this foreign territory, the nature of genetic variation and gene action is presented in non‐technical terms using the serotonin transporter gene as an example because it is thought to influence sensitivity to the social environment. In addition, we describe several methodological pitfalls to be avoided when associating genetic variation with psychosocial and behavioral risk factors for poor health outcomes.     

Family Processes and Treatment Outcome in the MTA: Negative/Ineffective Parenting Practices in Relation to Multimodal Treatment

To elucidate processes underlying therapeutic change in a large-scale randomized clinical trial, we examined whether alterations in self-reported parenting practices were associated with the effects of behavioral, medication, or combination treatments on teacher-reported outcomes (disruptive behavior, social skills, internalizing symptoms) in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Participants were 579 children with Combined-type ADHD, aged 7–9.9 years, in the Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with ADHD (MTA). We uncovered 2 second-order factors of parenting practices, entitled Positive Involvement and Negative/Ineffective Discipline. Although Positive Involvement was not associated with amelioration of the school-based outcome measures, reductions in Negative/Ineffective Discipline mediated improvement in children's social skills at school. For families showing the greatest reductions in Negative/Ineffective Discipline, effects of combined medication plus behavioral treatment were pronounced in relation to regular community care. Furthermore, only in combination treatment (and not in behavioral treatment alone) was decreased Negative/Ineffective Discipline associated with reduction in children's disruptive behavior at school. Here, children in families receiving combination treatment who showed the greatest reductions in Negative/Ineffective Discipline had teacher-reported disruptive behavior that was essentially normalized. Overall, the success of combination treatment for important school-related outcomes appears related to reductions in negative and ineffective parenting practices at home; we discuss problems in interpreting the temporal sequencing of such process-outcome linkages and the means by which multimodal treatment may be mediated by psychosocial processes related to parenting.     

Inferring psychological significance from physiological signals

A century has passed since the publication of William James's Principles of Psychology, yet most of the questions James raised about the relation between physiological events and molar psychological or behavioral processes, such as emotion, remain unanswered. The sluggish progress in capitalizing on physiological signals to address general psychological questions is due in part to shortcomings in the quantification of physiological signals in humans and, perhaps more important, to the way in which investigators have been thinking about the relation between physiological signals and psychological operations. In this article, we illustrate these points, and we provide a conceptual framework to foster research and analysis of psychological phenomena based on physiological signals. Psychological operations and physiological responses are defined in terms of configural and temporal properties, and psychophysiological relations are conceptualized in terms of their specificity (e.g., one-to-one versus many-to-one) and their generality (e.g., situation or person specific versus cross-situational and pancultural). This model yields four classes of psychophysiological relations: (a) outcomes, (b) concomitants, (c) markers, and (d) invariants. Finally, the model specifies how to determine whether a psychophysiological relation is an outcome, concomitant, marker, or invariant, and it describes important limitations in inferences of psychological significance based on physiological signals when dealing with each.