The Factor Structure of the Forms of Self-Criticising/Attacking & Self-Reassuring Scale in Thirteen Distinct Populations

There is considerable evidence that self-criticism plays a major role in the vulnerability to and recovery from psychopathology. Methods to measure this process, and its change over time, are therefore important for research in psychopathology and well-being. This study examined the factor structure of a widely used measure, the Forms of Self-Criticising/Attacking & Self-Reassuring Scale in thirteen nonclinical samples (N?=?7510) from twelve different countries: Australia (N?= 319), Canada (N?= 383), Switzerland (N?= 230), Israel (N?=?476), Italy (N?=?389), Japan (N?=?264), the Netherlands (N?=?360), Portugal (N?=?764), Slovakia (N?=?1326), Taiwan (N?=?417), the United Kingdom 1 (N?=?1570), the United Kingdom 2 (N?=?883), and USA (N?=?331). This study used more advanced analyses than prior reports: a bifactor item-response theory model, a two-tier item-response theory model, and a non-parametric item-response theory (Mokken) scale analysis. Although the original three-factor solution for the FSCRS (distinguishing between Inadequate-Self, Hated-Self, and Reassured-Self) had an acceptable fit, two-tier models, with two general factors (Self-criticism and Self-reassurance) demonstrated the best fit across all samples. This study provides preliminary evidence suggesting that this two-factor structure can be used in a range of nonclinical contexts across countries and cultures. Inadequate-Self and Hated-Self might not by distinct factors in nonclinical samples. Future work may benefit from distinguishing between self-correction versus shame-based self-criticism.     

Episodic storage and retrieval in visuo-spatial tasks: evidence of indirect retrieval

Episodic storage contends that the relevant target and irrelevant distractor features of a display are processed and then stored together within the boundaries of an episode, and are linked in this way. Accordingly, the selective and “direct” retrieval of either a stored target or distractor should result in the “indirect” and unintended retrieval of the other stimulus. In the present investigation, interest focused upon spatial tasks and the “indirect” retrieval of prime distractor processing. The novel findings obtained supported the existence of the “indirect” retrieval of prime distractor processing in visuo-spatial tasks and, to a lesser extent, of the stored prime target event, consistent with identity tasks (i.e. bi-directional episodically-based retrieval). Clearly, more is retrieved than is presented (Hintzman, D. L. (1984). MINERVA 2: A simulation model of human memory. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers, 16, 96–101. doi:10.3758/BF03202365), as an episodic storage structure would predict.     

Increasing Vegetable Consumption in Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder Using Pre-meal Presentation: A Preliminary Analysis

This study examined the effect of pre-meal presentation on the consumption of vegetables in a sample of 16 students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). These 16 students (75% male; mean age?=?13 years; age range 8–18 years) were enrolled in a private school serving children with autism. School staff offered participants 10 small pieces of two vegetables during lunch (baseline) or prior to lunch (pre-meal presentation). Observers recorded the number of bites students consumed. We used an A–B–A–B design to examine the effects of pre-meal presentation. Results were evaluated using a mixed-method, individual- and group-level, analysis. Pre-meal presentation resulted in increased vegetable consumption for 9 of the 16 participants. A reversal to baseline demonstrated expected decreases in bites consumed, and the subsequent return to intervention demonstrated expected increases in bites consumed. One-way repeated measures ANOVA compared bites consumed per session across 10 four-session study blocks and found significant differences between these two conditions. Paired comparisons revealed no change in bites consumed per session from baseline to intervention block #1, but significant increases from baseline to intervention #2 and all subsequent intervention blocks. Our results suggested pre-meal presentation can serve as a low-cost, low-effort intervention for increasing vegetable consumption for some children with ASD.

     

Predictors of Acculturation for Chinese Adolescents in Canada: Age of Arrival,Length of Stay,Social Class,and English Reading Ability

In a sample of 506 Chinese adolescents living in Canada from 3 cohort groups, age at the time of arrival in Canada, length of stay in Canada, socioeconomic status, and English reading ability predicted acculturation. English reading ability and socioeconomic status predicted acculturative stress. There were within‐group cohort differences in acculturation characteristics. Implications for counseling are addressed. En una muestra de 506 adolescentes Chinos que viven en el Canadá de 3 cohortes, la edad de llegada a Canadá, el tiempo que vivieron en Canada, la posición socioeconómica, y la habilidad de leer Inglés predice la asimilación. La habilidad de leer Inglés y la posición socioeconómica que pronostico el estrés de asimilación. Estaban entre grupos de cohorte diferentes en características de asimilación. Las implicaciones para terapia se dirigen.     

The Trajectory of Counseling in China: Past,Present, and Future Trends

This article surveys the past, present, and future trends of counseling in China. Historically, mental health problems were addressed within the family. Currently, psychotherapy from trained practitioners is available on a limited basis, at least in urban settings. The challenge of mental health in China is tremendous, and the efforts to meet that challenge are encouraging. The authors recommend that in the future, prevention and intervention services be offered that are ecosystemic, strengths‐based, and culturally appropriate.     

Creating Internships in Marriage and Family Therapy: A Collaboration Between a Training Program and an Offender Reentry Facility

The literature on clinical internships in marriage and family therapy is limited in the discussion of the development of clinical sites as well as the benefits and challenges experienced by students and programs. This article focuses on the development of a marriage and family therapy internship in an offender reentry facility. The process of how students are referred and trained, the rewards and challenges of their work, and the supervision experience are described. The purpose is to inform marriage and family therapy programs about a potential resource for training students.     

Speeded induction under uncertainty: The influence of multiple categories and feature conjunctions

When people are uncertain about the category membership of an item (e.g., Is it a dog or a dingo?), research shows that they tend to rely only on the dominant or most likely category when making inductions (e.g., How likely is it to befriend me?). An exception has been reported using speeded induction judgments where participants appeared to use information from multiple categories to make inductions (Verde, Murphy, &; Ross, 2005). In two speeded induction studies, we found that participants tended to rely on the frequency with which features co-occurred when making feature predictions, independently of category membership. This pattern held whether categories were considered implicitly (Experiment 1) or explicitly (Experiment 2) prior to feature induction. The results converge with other recent work suggesting that people often rely on feature conjunction information, rather than category boundaries, when making inductions under uncertainty.     

Longitudinal Studies of Anger and Attention Span: Context and Informant Effects

ABSTRACT This study examined stabilities of informant and context (home vs. classroom) latent factors regarding anger and attention. Participants included children from the National Institute of Child Health and Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development who were measured at 54 months, first grade, and third grade. Latent factors of anger and attention span were structured using different indicators based on mothers', fathers', caregivers', teachers', and observers' reports. We used structural equation modeling to examine the autoregressive effects within a context (stability), the concurrent associations between home and classroom contexts, and informant effects. The results indicated that for both anger and attention (1) there were significant informant effects that influenced stability in a context, (2) there was higher stability in home context than nonhome context, and (3) stability within a context increased over time. The findings suggested that anger was more prone to context effects and informant effects than attention.     

Driver hand position on the steering wheel while merging into motorway traffic

It has been suggested that a driver’s hand position on the steering wheel can reflect the perceived risk of the road context (Walton, D., & Thomas, J. A. (2005). Naturalistic observations of driver hand positions. Transportation Research Part F, 8, 229–238, Thomas, J. A., & Walton, D. (2007). Measuring perceived risk: Self-reported and actual hand positions of SUV and car drivers. Transportation Research Part F, 10, 201–207). These original studies were based on field observations where only a part of the steering wheel could be viewed. In the present study hand positions were observed in a driving simulator during the performance of a demanding task; merging into motorway traffic. In the current study the whole steering wheel could be observed and hand positions were classified in three categories: high control, medium control, and low control. Differences in hand position between different traffic conditions were limited, and hand position did not correlate with self-reported risk or self-reported mental effort, but changes in hand positions do seem to be associated with changes in workload demand. It is therefore concluded that hand position can give some information about mental workload.