Accelerating self-motion displays produce more compelling vection in depth

We examined the vection in depth induced when simulated random self-accelerations (jitter) and periodic self-accelerations (oscillation) were added to radial expanding optic flow (simulating constant-velocity forward self-motion). Contrary to the predictions of sensory-conflict theory frontal-plane jitter and oscillation were both found to significantly decrease the onsets and increase the speeds of vection in depth. Depth jitter and oscillation had lesser, but still significant, effects on the speed of vection in depth. A control experiment demonstrated that adding global perspective motion which simulated a constant-velocity frontal-plane self-motion had no significant effect on vection in depth induced by the radial component of the optic flow. These results are incompatible with the notion that constant-velocity displays produce optimal vection. Rather, they indicate that displays simulating self-acceleration can often produce more compelling experiences of self-motion in depth.     

Threat interpretation bias as a vulnerability factor in childhood anxiety disorders

The present study examined threat interpretation biases in children 7-12 years of age with separation, social and generalised anxiety disorders (N=15), non-anxious offspring at risk due to parental anxiety (N=16) and non-anxious controls of non-anxious parents (N=14). Children provided interpretations of ambiguous situations to assess cognitive, emotional and behavioural responses. In comparison with non-anxious control children and at-risk children who did not differ from each other, anxious children reported stronger negative emotion and less ability to influence ambiguous situations. These results suggest that threat interpretation bias may be a cognitive factor associated with ongoing childhood anxiety but not a vulnerability factor associated with parental anxiety.     

Transdiagnostic emotion regulation processes in bipolar disorder and insomnia

Research and treatment have traditionally adopted a 'disorder-focused' approach by targeting one specific disorder, aiming to understanding its cause, maintenance and treatment. The aim of the present study was to contribute to the burgeoning interest in examining common, or 'transdiagnostic,' processes across disorders. Three candidate transdiagnostic processes involved in emotion regulation - rumination, worry, and automatic negative thoughts - were examined in euthymic bipolar I disorder (n=21) and insomnia (n=19), and a non-clinical control group (n=20). Rumination and worry were endorsed to a larger degree by the bipolar and insomnia groups compared to the control group. However, while the bipolar group had more negative automatic thoughts than the control group, there were no significant differences in negative automatic thoughts between the bipolar and insomnia groups or the insomnia and control groups. These results suggested that rumination and worry, but not negative automatic thoughts, might be common across bipolar disorder and insomnia. However, these findings no longer remained significant when current symptoms of anxiety and depression were controlled for. Prospective and experimental studies are needed to test the extent to which these processes contribute to the etiology or maintenance of insomnia and bipolar disorder.     

Further evaluation of a brief, intensive teacher-training model

The purpose of this study was to further evaluate the outcomes of a model program that was designed to train current teachers of children with autism. Nine certified special education teachers participating in an intensive 5-day summer training program were taught a relatively large number of specific skills in two areas (preference assessment and direct teaching). The teachers met the mastery criteria for all of the skills during the summer training. Follow-up observations up to 6 months after training suggested that the skills generalized to their classrooms and were maintained for most teachers with brief feedback only.     

Behavioral correlates of selected MMPI-2 clinical, content, and restructured clinical scales

In this study, we evaluated the validity of the Restructured Clinical (RC; Tellegen et al., 2003) scales by identifying and comparing behavioral correlates of selected RC scales (RCd, RC2, RC4), their original Clinical scale counterparts (Scale 2, Scale 4), and conceptually related Content scales (DEP, ASP, CYN) in an outpatient clinical sample (N = 150). The results of this study indicate that RC4 is a stronger predictor of several antisocial behaviors than Clinical Scale 4 or the Content Scales ASP and CYN. In contrast, RC2 demonstrated significantly lower correlations with several behaviors conceptually related to depression than its Clinical scale counterpart or DEP. DEP was highly correlated with RCd (r = .91, p < .0001), suggesting that the 2 scales may be measuring similar constructs. Overall, the results of this study demonstrate relatively few differences among the scales selected in their ability to predict extratest behaviors.     

Preliminary examination of timesharing in United States Air Force ROTC cadets

Previous research has shown that timesharing ability--the ability to perform multiple tasks simultaneously--is related to various indices of aircraft pilots' proficiency. Superior timesharing has also been demonstrated by experienced pilots. The present study examined timesharing of United States Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) cadets, who are relatively inexperienced (some with no flying experience). 10 AFROTC cadets (M age = 21.4 yr., SD = 1.0) and 18 noncadets (M age = 19.8 yr., SD = 0.9) were evaluated. Participants performed a tracking task on the Multi-Attribute Task battery in a single-task condition, a dual-task condition, and a tri-task condition. Cadets' tracking performance was superior to that by noncadets in the dual-task and tri-task conditions.     

Co-occurrence of Rape Myth Acceptance, Sexism, Racism, Homophobia, Ageism, Classism, and Religious Intolerance

Rape myth acceptance has been extensively studied. Little research is available, however, on the relationship of this variable to other oppressive belief systems. A sample of 492 male and 506 female college students completed the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale, the Attitudes Toward Women Scale (short form), the Neosexism Scale, the Modern and Old Fashioned Racism Scale, the Modern Homophobia Scale, a modified version of the Economic Belief Scale, the Fraboni Scale of Ageism, and the Marlowe–Crowne Social Desirability Scale (short form). Because there were no existing measures of intolerance toward multiple religions, the Religious Intolerance Scale was developed for this study (using relevant items from the Godfrey Richman Isms Scale). Findings here suggested that greater racism (both modern and old fashioned), sexism (both modern and old fashioned), homophobia (toward both gay men and lesbians), ageism, classism, and religious intolerance were each associated with greater rape myth acceptance. Moreover, each belief system collectively added to the prediction of rape myth acceptance, although sexism has the highest overlap with rape myth acceptance. Although gender did not moderate the relationship between oppressive belief systems and rape myth acceptance, results, across analyses, did indicate that men reported greater rape myth acceptance than women did. Results point to the interrelatedness of rape myth acceptance, racism, sexism, homophobia, classism, ageism, and religious intolerance.     

Sensitivity to triadic attention between 6 weeks and 3 months of age

In Study 1, 6-week- and 3-month-old infants gazed more to an adult when she alternated attention between an object and the infant versus when attention was directed only to the object. In Study 2, 6-week-olds did not discriminate between triadic situations with face-to-face interaction controlled.     

Dysfunctional attitudes and episodes of major depression: Predictive validity and temporal stability in never-depressed, depressed, and recovered women

In a large, community-based sample of women (N = 750), the authors examined the nature of associations between dysfunctional attitudes and depression. Dysfunctional attitudes were evaluated both as a vulnerability factor for depression and as a consequence of depression. A link was found between past depression and baseline elevations in dysfunctional attitudes that was independent of current subsyndromal symptoms, but intensification of dysfunctional attitudes following prospectively evaluated episodes of depression (depressive "scarring") was not observed. Although baseline dysfunctional attitudes predicted an episode of major depression over 3 years of prospective study, this prediction, considered alone or in interaction with negative life events, was redundant with that offered by history of past depression. Further, no significant prediction was evident for the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (A. N. Weissman & A. T. Beck, 1978) when the formerly depressed and never-depressed cohorts were considered separately. Implications for cognitive theories are discussed.     

Coparenting and early conscience development in the family

In the current research, the authors examined children's observed compliance in a family clean-up paradigm and parents' reports of coparenting to predict young children's conscience (e.g., affective discomfort and moral regulation) in a sample of 58 families with two parents and at least two children. The authors found relations between parents' reports of children's conscience development and observer-rated compliance in a family clean-up session, and significant correlations between coparenting and conscience development. There were a greater number of significant results for younger, 2-year-old siblings than for older siblings, which may reflect the importance of the period between 2 and 3 years for the emergence of conscience. Multiple regressions revealed that younger siblings' age, observed compliance/noncompliance, and parents' reports of coparenting were all significant in predicting parents' reports of affective discomfort and moral regulation. Findings underscore the importance of continuing research on whole-family dynamics when studying young children's early conscience and moral regulation.