Body Dissatisfaction, Dating, and Importance of Thinness to Attractiveness in Adolescent Girls

The primary aim of this study was to test a multivariate model of predictors of body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls in which psychological variables, beliefs about the importance of popularity with boys, and beliefs about the importance of thinness to attractiveness and dating were included. We also aimed to explore boys' perceptions of the importance of thinness for attractiveness. Grade 10 girls (n = 573) and boys (n = 145) completed questionnaires. Path analysis provided partial support for the model proposed. Dating did not predict body dissatisfaction, but a relationship between importance of popularity with boys and body dissatisfaction was fully mediated by the belief that boys see thinness as important in rating girls' attractiveness. Although girls underestimated the body size that is attractive to boys, over 85% of boys reported a girl's slimness influenced her attractiveness. Dating was not correlated with body mass index.     

Perceptual commensuration in decision tables

This paper calls attention to design features that could enhance the helpfulness of the decision table to decision makers trying to get a better intuitive grasp of the choices facing them. The experiments reported here show that the grey scale is more facilitative than the number scale for problem comprehension as measured by the identification of dominance and the identification of non-additivity, each of which requires a view of the decision problem that is sensitive to patterns across attributes. Additional design features that could enhance the decision makers’ grasp of the choices facing them are suggested for further research.     

On the value-dependence of value-driven attentional capture

Findings from an increasingly large number of studies have been used to argue that attentional capture can be dependent on the learned value of a stimulus, or value-driven. However, under certain circumstances attention can be biased to select stimuli that previously served as targets, independent of reward history. Value-driven attentional capture, as studied using the training phase-test phase design introduced by Anderson and colleagues, is widely presumed to reflect the combined influence of learned value and selection history. However, the degree to which attentional capture is at all dependent on value learning in this paradigm has recently been questioned. Support for value-dependence can be provided through one of two means: (1) greater attentional capture by prior targets following rewarded training than following unrewarded training, and (2) greater attentional capture by prior targets previously associated with high compared to low value. Using a variant of the original value-driven attentional capture paradigm, Sha and Jiang (Attention, Perception, and Psychophysics, 78, 403–414, 2016) failed to find evidence of either, and raised criticisms regarding the adequacy of evidence provided by prior studies using this particular paradigm. To address this disparity, here we provided a stringent test of the value-dependence hypothesis using the traditional value-driven attentional capture paradigm. With a sufficiently large sample size, value-dependence was observed based on both criteria, with no evidence of attentional capture without rewards during training. Our findings support the validity of the traditional value-driven attentional capture paradigm in measuring what its name purports to measure.     

Connecting the Dots: Stages of Implementation,Wraparound Fidelity and Youth Outcomes

Several necessary system and organizational support conditions for wraparound have been identified (Walker et al. 2003). Yet, the relationship between these necessary system level conditions and wraparound fidelity has only recently begun to be examined. Similarly, few studies have included a measure of wraparound fidelity when examining the relationship between wraparound implementation and youth outcomes. The statewide implementation of a wraparound demonstration grant offers the opportunity to explore these relationships and to identify factors that predict improvement in functioning for youth receiving wraparound. Findings suggest that significant relationships exist between (1) the stage of development of necessary support conditions for wraparound and wraparound fidelity and (2) wraparound fidelity and improvement in youth outcomes. Specific elements of wraparound (i.e., outcomes based and community based) and baseline needs and strengths (e.g., high levels of anxiety and conduct issues, poor functioning at home and in school, judgment, and risks) were found to predict a reduction in youth needs. Other unexpected relationships between youth outcomes and the cultural competence element of wraparound and being multi-racial were also discovered. These findings reinforce the importance of supporting high fidelity wraparound for youth and their families in a recovery focused behavioral health system.     

A Pilot Study of Acute Stress Symptoms in Parents and Youth Following Diagnosis of Type I Diabetes

The primary aims of this exploratory study were to determine the rate of occurrence of acute stress disorder (ASD) in children newly diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and their parents, to examine relationships with demographic and psychosocial factors, and to examine the relationships between ASD symptom clusters and early adherence behavior (clinic attendance). The sample consisted of 102 parents of children ages 0–17 years and 40 youth ages 11–17 who were evaluated within three days of diabetes diagnosis. Eighteen percent of parents and 17% of youth reported subthreshold symptoms of ASD. Acute stress symptoms and demographic variables predicted clinic attendance, with a differential pattern evident in the responses of youth and their parents. These findings reinforce the importance of screening symptoms of ASD in youth with newly diagnosed diabetes and their parents to assist in identifying families who may be in need of additional support.     

More is not always better: paradoxical effects of repetition on semantic accessibility

Repetition normally enhances memory. While in some cases the benefit of added repetition may be incremental, few would expect that massed repetition could actually reverse the benefits of brief repetition. Here we report two experiments that document a clear example of a paradoxical effect of massed repetition. Subjects first repeated words (e.g., "sheep") aloud one at a time for 0, 5, 10, 20, or 40 s. A free association phase followed in which cues could be completed with repeated words (e.g., "herd s___" for "sheep") or with semantically associated words (e.g., "fabric w___" for "wool"). Brief periods of repetition (5-10 s) resulted in priming, as would be expected based on research on repetition priming and spreading activation. Longer periods of repetition (20-40 s), however, abolished priming. Interestingly, this massed-repetition decrement was particularly robust for semantic associates of repeated words, and was evident after a 15-min delay. These findings document a paradoxical feature of the effects of rehearsal on memory: When ideas are repeated often enough, the benefits of rehearsal can actually be reversed.     

Patients' and staff's experiences of multidisciplinary follow-up for high-grade glioma after radical radiotherapy

Meeting the complex needs of patients with high-grade glioma requires multidisciplinary input. How best to provide care after initial treatment ends is contentious. This study explored the experiences of patients and staff at one UK centre where regular multidisciplinary clinics and brain scanning is provided. In-depth interviews conducted with 10 patients and six staff were transcribed and analysed qualitatively. Patients reported: supportive, individualised care with familiar staff; good communication; that regular scanning was reassuring. Staff believed that team follow-up facilitated immediate decision-making and referral, and reduced visits. They felt that patients value seeing their scans. Patients and staff described positive and negative experiences of multidisciplinary follow-up. There is need to investigate the impact of different approaches to ongoing care.     

Recognition of novel faces after single exposure is enhanced during pregnancy

Protective mechanisms in pregnancy include Nausea and Vomiting in Pregnancy (NVP) (Fessler, 2002; Flaxman and Sherman, 2000), increased sensitivity to health cues (Jones et al., 2005), and increased vigilance to out-group members (Navarette, Fessler, and Eng, 2007). While common perception suggests that pregnancy results in decreased cognitive function, an adaptationist perspective might predict that some aspects of cognition would be enhanced during pregnancy if they help to protect the reproductive investment. We propose that a reallocation of cognitive resources from nonessential to critical areas engenders the cognitive decline observed in some studies. Here, we used a recognition task disguised as a health rating to determine whether pregnancy facilitates face recognition. We found that pregnant women were significantly better at recognizing faces and that this effect was particularly pronounced for own-race male faces. In human evolutionary history, and today, males present a significant threat to females. Thus, enhanced recognition of faces, and especially male faces, during pregnancy may serve a protective function.     

Exploiting human sensitivity to gaze for tracking the eyes

Given the prevalence, quality, and low cost of web cameras, along with the remarkable human sensitivity to gaze, we examined the accuracy of eye tracking using only a web camera. Participants were shown webcamera recordings of a person’s eyes moving 1°, 2°, or 3° of visual angle in one of eight radial directions (north, northeast, east, southeast, etc.), or no eye movement occurred at all. Observers judged whether an eye movement was made and, if so, its direction. Our findings demonstrate that for all saccades of any size or direction, observers can detect and discriminate eye movements significantly better than chance. Critically, the larger the saccade, the better the judgments, so that for eye movements of 3°, people can tell whether an eye movement occurred, and where it was going, at about 90% or better. This simple methodology of using a web camera and looking for eye movements offers researchers a simple, reliable, and cost-effective research tool that can be applied effectively both in studies where it is important that participants maintain central fixation (e.g., covert attention investigations) and in those where they are free or required to move their eyes (e.g., visual search).     

Predicting consideration of cosmetic surgery in a college population: a continuum of body image disturbance and the importance of coping strategies

Elective cosmetic surgeries are increasing in the American population with reasons linked to body image disturbance and body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). Little research exists documenting the continuum of body image disturbance and its relationship to seeking surgery. The present research examined data from 544 participants, 55 of whom were diagnosable with BDD. Using assessments for body image disturbance, problematic coping strategies, and BDD symptomatology, results provided evidence for a continuum of body image distress. Logistic regression analysis supported the hypothesis that increased levels of body image disturbance and one type of problematic coping strategy (Appearance Fixing) predicted consideration of cosmetic surgery. Of participants diagnosable with BDD, those who considered cosmetic surgery showed more severe body image disturbance and problematic coping than those who did not consider surgery. These results have implications for pre-surgical assessment as well as psychological interventions rather than invasive medical interventions.