Quality of life of men and women with borderline intelligence and attention deficit disorders living in community residences: a comparative study

The research studies the quality of life (QOL) of 127 men and women diagnosed as having a borderline IQ and ADHD living in two major residential programs of the Sharon region in central Israel in respect to their personal, disability, and social ecological variables. Core findings indicate that men and women differ significantly according to their educational background. Among those who studied in a regular educational environment, the main predictor of men's QOL is their monthly income, whereas the main predictor for women is their level of attention deficit symptoms. The only predictor of QOL among men who studied in a special education program is the quality of contact with their mothers, whereas no significant predictor is observed among women.     

Is seasonal affective disorder a disorder of circadian rhythms?

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a form of depression that starts in the fall and ends in the spring. This article reviews existing theories about the relationship between circadian rhythms and the disorder. Recent research indicates that as with pharmacologic antidepressants, at least 2-4 weeks are needed to demonstrate the effectiveness of bright-light therapy compared to placebo. The response to such treatment is strongest with precisely timed light exposure: treatment is optimal during the morning hours when the circadian system is susceptible to phase advance. Such clinical improvement is correlated with the magnitude of the phase shift induced. These observations suggest a model of circadian function in SAD and provide important guidelines for its treatment.     

Reviews of current books

Pastoral Psychology -     

Evolution by Natural Selection: Darwin's Gift to Science and Religion

The argument-from-design, based on biological evidence, was elaborated by William Paley in his Natural Theology (1802). It was revived in the 1990s by several authors, with a new moniker, the theory of intelligent design. In The Origin of Species (1859), Darwin advanced a scientific explanation of the design of organisms: evolution by natural selection. Organisms are pervaded by imperfections, dysfunctions, cruelties, and even sadism. The theory of evolution accounts for these mishaps, by natural selection, so that they need not be attributed to God's explicit design. The theory of evolution by natural selection is Darwin's gift to religion, in addition to its centrality in biology.     

Knowledge of and Interest in Genetic Results Among Parkinson Disease Patients and Caregivers

The purpose of the study is to investigate Parkinson disease (PD) patients’ and caregivers’ knowledge of and interest in genetic testing. Gaucher disease (GD) results from recessive mutations in glucocerebrosidase (GBA). Both heterozygote GBA carriers and GD patients are at greater risk for PD. Studies regarding knowledge of and interest in genetic testing have been limited and have not offered genetic results to participants. In this study, 353 PD patients and 180 caregivers were recruited to a PD genetic study. The association between GD, GBA mutations and PD was described to participants who reported their familiarity with genetic terms, answered questions on genetic concepts, and indicated their interest in knowing if they may have GD (two GBA mutations) and other genetic information that could impact their health. Ninety-three-percent of participants were interested in receiving GBA results; however, only 51.6 % of PD participants and 55.6 % of caregivers knew that “scientists have identified genes associated with a higher risk of developing PD.” PD patients may benefit from education and genetic counseling on the implications of genetic testing.     

Reciprocal teaching and self-monitoring of strategy use: effects on reading comprehension

Reciprocal teaching (RT) is an instructional procedure to teach students cognitive strategies that might lead to improved reading comprehension. However, self-monitoring (SM) strategy use can optimize instruction of comprehension. Thus, the present study analyzed: (a) the efficacy of RT in regular classes and (b) the efficacy of RT + SM of strategy use. A sample of 59 students in the fourth year of primary education was selected: 19 children were selected as an RT condition, 18 as an RT + SM condition, while the remaining 22 made up the comparison group. Two types of comprehension measures were used: tasks of specific effects (getting the main idea, writing a summary, comprehension-monitoring test) and transfer effect measures (standardised tests, word meaning inference, and free recall). Thus, the results show that both the RT condition and the RT + SM condition benefited from the instruction, performing better than the comparison group in measures of specific effects and in some of the transfer effect measures. This result shows that SM is not a necessary component in the instruction of reading comprehension with RT.