Regression II. Development through regression

As shown in our previous paper (‘Regression I. Experimental approaches to regression’, JAP, 65, 2, 345-65), the common mechanism of regression can be described as reversible dedifferentiation, which is understood as a relative increase of the proportion of low-differentiated (older) systems in actualized experience. Experimental data show that regression following disease (chronic tension headache) is followed by adaptation and an increase in system differentiation in that experience domain which contains systems responsible for that adaptation. The results of mathematical modelling support the idea that reversible dedifferentiation can be one of the mechanisms for increasing the effectiveness of adaptation through learning. Reversible dedifferentiation, which is phenomenologically described as regression, is a general mechanism for restructuring the organism-environment interactions in situations where behaviours that were effective in the past become ineffective. Reversible dedifferentiation has evolved as a component of adaptation when new behaviours are formed and large-scale modifications in the existing behaviours are required in the face of changes in the external and/or internal environment. Thus, the authors believe that this article provides evidence for Jung’s view that regression is not only a ‘return’ to past forms of thinking, affects and behaviour, but that regressive processes provide a significant impetus for psychological growth and development.     

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: The Need for Subtypes

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is an important condition confronting patients, clinicians, and researchers. This article provides information concerning the need for appropriate diagnosis of CFS subtypes. We first review findings suggesting that CFS is best conceptualized as a separate diagnostic entity rather than as part of a unitary model of functional somatic distress. Next, research involving the case definitions of CFS is reviewed. Findings suggest that whether a broad or more conservative case definition is employed, and whether clinic or community samples are recruited, these decisions will have a major influence in the types of patients selected. Review of further findings suggests that subtyping individuals with CFS on sociodemographic, functional disability, viral, immune, neuroendocrine, neurology, autonomic, and genetic biomarkers can provide clarification for researchers and clinicians who encounter CFS characteristically confusing heterogeneous symptom profiles. Treatment studies that incorporate subtypes might be particularly helpful in better understanding the pathophysiology of CFS. This review suggests that there is a need for greater diagnostic clarity, and this might be accomplished by subgroups that integrate multiple variables including those in cognitive, emotional, and biological domains.     

Latent variables should remain as such: Evidence from a Monte Carlo study

Use of subject scores as manifest variables to assess the relationship between latent variables produces attenuated estimates. This has been demonstrated for raw scores from classical test theory (CTT) and factor scores derived from factor analysis. Conclusions on scores have not been sufficiently extended to item response theory (IRT) theta estimates, which are still recommended for estimation of relationships between latent variables. This is because IRT estimates appear to have preferable properties compared to CTT, while structural equation modeling (SEM) is often advised as an alternative to scores for estimation of the relationship between latent variables. The present research evaluates the consequences of using subject scores as manifest variables in regression models to test the relationship between latent variables. Raw scores and three methods for obtaining theta estimates were used and compared to latent variable SEM modeling. A Monte Carlo study was designed by manipulating sample size, number of items, type of test, and magnitude of the correlation between latent variables. Results show that, despite the advantage of IRT models in other areas, estimates of the relationship between latent variables are always more accurate when SEM models are used. Recommendations are offered for applied researchers.     

Longitudinal trajectories of bicultural identity integration in recently immigrated Hispanic adolescents: Links with mental health and family functioning

This study examined, in a sample of recently immigrated Hispanic adolescents in Miami and Los Angeles, the extent to which bicultural identity integration (BII; involving the ability to synthesise one's heritage and receiving cultural streams and to identify as a member of both cultures) is best understood as a developmental construct that changes over time or as an individual‐difference construct that is largely stable over time. We were also interested in the extent to which these trajectories predicted mental health and family functioning. Recent‐immigrant 9th graders (N = 302) were assessed 6 times from 9th to 12th grade. Latent class growth analyses using the first 5 timepoints identified 2 trajectory classes—one with lower BII scores over time and another with higher BII scores over time. Higher heritage and US identity at baseline predicted membership in the higher BII class. At the 6th study timepoint, lower BII adolescents reported significantly poorer self‐esteem, optimism, prosocial behaviour and family relationships compared with their higher BII counterparts. These findings are discussed in terms of further research on the over‐time trajectory of biculturalism, and on the need to develop interventions to promote BII as a way of facilitating well‐being and positive family functioning.     

Counseling in the Philippines: Past,Present, and Future

The history of colonization and persistent attempts at self‐governance in the Philippines parallel the beginnings of counseling in the country, which were largely influenced by the United States. Because of the Guidance and Counseling Act of 2004 and the Psychology Act of 2009, counseling is on its way to professionalization and regulation. Counseling is growing in depth and credibility, as evidenced by applications in practice that are not only indigenous but powerfully relevant.     

Support Means Direct Help: Filipino Adolescents’ Multidimensional Conceptualization of Social Support

This study investigated Filipino adolescents?? conceptualization of social support. While Western literature suggests that adolescents, in their developmental task of growing towards independence and individuality, prefer emotional support and acceptance in achieving these goals, it is worthwhile to discover what Filipino adolescents define as supportive in their lives, given a collectivist and interdependent cultural background. In-depth interviews were done with 89 male adolescents. Results reveal that social support among Filipino adolescents is conceptualized mainly as hands-on support. Advice, personal assistance, and being challenged are conceptualized as expressions of care and concern, rather than as intrusive acts. Furthermore, Filipino adolescents have a wide source of social support, with different social support providers perceived as having a particular niche in terms of the kind of social support they provide. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

First symbols in a girl with Down syndrome: A longitudinal study from 12 to 18 months

Symbolic uses of objects originate in communicative and triadic contexts (adult–child-object). In this longitudinal study we explore the emergence and development of the first symbolic uses in triadic interaction contexts in a girl with Down syndrome between 12 and 18-months of age. We conducted five sessions of video recording, at 12, 13½, 15, 16½, and 18 months chronological age. At each session we videotaped the girl and her mother interacting with different objects. Data were coded in semiotic categories used in previous studies (Rodríguez & Moro, 1999) and a microgenetic analysis was conducted for each session. The first symbolic uses by the girl appeared at 13½ months. Symbols were of different types and levels of complexity, and the adult had an important role in facilitating the production of these symbols.     

Different contexts change the impression of animacy

The aim of this research was to explore the effect of different spatiotemporal contexts on the perceptual saliency of animacy, and the extent of the relationship between animacy and other related properties such as emotions and intentionality. Paired-comparisons and ratings were used to compare the impressions of animacy elicited by a small square moving on the screen, either alone or in the context of a second square. The context element was either static or moving showing an animate-like or a physical-like trajectory, and the target object moved either toward it or away from it. The movement of the target could also include animacy cues (caterpillar-like expanding/contracting phases). To determine the effect of different contexts on the emergence of emotions and intentions, we also recorded and analysed the phenomenological reports of participants. The results show that the context significantly influences the perception of animacy, which is stronger in dynamic contexts than in static ones, and also when the target is moving away from the context element than when it is approaching it. The free reports reveal different proportions in emotional or intentional attributions in the different conditions: in particular, the "moving away" condition is related to negative emotions, while the "approaching" condition evokes positive emotions. Overall, the results suggest that animacy is a graded concept that can be articulated in more general characteristics, like simple aliveness, and more specific ones, like intentions or emotions, and that the spatiotemporal contingencies of the context play a crucial role in making them evident.