Children's size judgments when size and distance vary: Is there a developmental trend to overconstancy?

A review of the experimental literature on size constancy in children shows that studies permitting unrestricted viewing in natural settings provide only limited support for the hypothesis, proposed by Wohlwill, of a developmental trend from under- to overconstancy. A study is reported in which subjects aged 8 to 18 years made magnitude estimations of height for targets whose height and distance from them varied. For distances up to 15 m, and heights from 5 to 50 cm, size constancy prevailed at all ages: The same number was assigned to a given height at every distance. If a developmental trend exists, it requires either younger subjects or greater distances to be revealed.     

“Is it me or should my friends take the credit?” The role of social networks and social identity in recovery from addiction

This study explored the role of social network and social identity factors in recovery from addiction. The sample consisted of 537 individuals who completed a survey about their experiences of recovery. Results indicated that the transition from addiction to recovery was characterized by an increase in social connectedness and changes in social network composition coupled with the emergence of a “recovery” identity. These factors accounted for 14% of the variance in quality of life when controlling for known predictors, accounting for a greater proportion of variance than substance use variables. Results suggest that recovery from addiction can be understood as a socially mediated transition characterized by social network and social identity change, which drive broader improvements in quality of life.     

Early intervention in the family system: A framework and review

A framework for understanding the effect of early intervention on family structure and functioning is presented. The framework uses five sets of variables to characterize families: Their ecology; and the values, roles, personalities, and interactions of family members. Twenty research studies that met criteria of having comparison/control groups, beginning intervention either prenatally or during the first 3 months of infancy, and directing intervention to family functioning are abstracted and examined in detail. Successful and unsuccessful studies are compared as to population and nature of intervention. Two criteria of success are used: (1) The commonly used criterion of any positive change; (2) a more rigorous criterion of change in at least three areas of family functioning, based on the assumption that more pervasive change will have more lasting influence on child development. Application of the first criterion found that 75% of early family focused intervention studies showed a successful outcome. Application of the latter criterion found that 50% showed a successful outcome. Further, there were no significant differences between successful and unsuccessful studies as to target group or type of intervention. The review suggests that early intervention targeted at family functioning is effective and that a more pervasive and sustained effect is likely if the intervention includes at least 11 or more contacts over at least a 3-month period.     

Dyadic processes between mothers and preterm infants: Development at ages 2 to 5 years

In order to identify antecedents to cognitive, language, and social competence from 2 to 5 years of age in preterm children at biological and social risk, this study used multiple procedures, administered in the laboratory, at 13 and 20 months, to measure components of the social interactions between 51 mothers and their preterm infants. Two variables, maternal responsiveness to infant vocalization and infant irritability, were found to be significant predictors of later competence. Whereas greater maternal responsiveness, as expected, led to increased language and social skills, greater infant irritability during stressful situations also foretold later increased competence in expressive and receptive language and social cognition. Children born at higher birthweights and with longer gestations were more likely to be more irritable than those born at very low birthweights. The findings suggest different implications for negative affect in preterms who have experienced respiratory distress as contrasted to full-term children, but indicate similar positive consequences for maternal verbal responsiveness.     

Individual,family, and societal dimensions of genetic discrimination: A case study analysis

Background. As the development and use of genetic tests have increased, so have concerns regarding the uses of genetic information. Genetic discrimination, the differential treatment of individuals based on real or perceived differences in their genomes, is a recently described form of discrimination. The range and significance of experiences associated with this form of discrimination are not yet well known and are investigated in this study. Methods. Individuals at-risk to develop a genetic condition and parents of children with specific genetic conditions were surveyed by questionnaire for reports of genetic discrimination. A total of 27,790 questionnaires were sent out by mail. Of 917 responses received, 206 were followed up with telephone interviews. The responses were analyzed regarding circumstances of the alleged discrimination, the institutions involved, issues relating to the redress of grievances, and strategies to avoid discrimination. Results. A number of institutions were reported to have engaged in genetic discrimination including health and life insurance companies, health care providers, blood banks, adoption agencies, the military, and schools. The alleged instances of discrimination were against individuals who were asymptomatic and sometimes impacted on other asymptomatic relatives. Few surveyed respondents knew of the existence of institutions such as state insurance commissions or the Medical Information Bureau, Inc., which may play roles in redress of grievances or correction of misinformation. Conclusions. Genetic discrimination is variable in form and cause and can have marked consequences for individuals experiencing discrimination and their relatives. The presence of abnormal genes in all individuals makes each person a potential victim of this type of discrimination. The increasing development and utilization of genetic tests will likely result in increased genetic discrimination in the absence of contravening measures. All authors contributed equally to this work. This work was supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and funding from the Department of Mental Retardation of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.     

Why teach ethics in science and engineering?

The following views were presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Seminar “Teaching Ethics in Science and Engineering”, 10–11 February 1993 organized by Stephanie J. Bird (M.I.T.), Penny J. Gilmer (Florida State University) and Terrell W. Bynum (Southern Connecticut State University). Opragen Publications thanks the AAAS, seminar organizers and authors for permission to publish extracts from the conference. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not reflect the opinions of AAAS or its Board of Directors.