Frequently cited journals in forensic psychology

Works cited in six forensic psychology journals published 2008-2010 were counted to identify the most frequently cited journals. The sample of works cited (N = 21,776) was not a definitive ranked list of important journals in forensic psychology, but was large enough to indicate high-impact journals. The list of frequently cited publications included more general psychiatry and psychology journals than titles specific to forensic psychology. The implications of the proportion of general versus specific titles for collections supporting research in forensic psychology were discussed.     

Do Trust-Based Beliefs Mediate the Associations of Frequency of Private Prayer with Mental Health? A Cross-Sectional Study

Significant associations of private prayer with mental health have been found, while mechanisms underlying these associations are largely unknown. This cross-sectional online study (N = 325, age 35.74, SD 18.50, 77.5 % females) used path modeling to test if trust-based beliefs (whether, when, and how prayers are answered) mediated the associations of prayer frequency with the Anxiety, Confusion, and Depression Profile of Mood States-Short Form scales. The association of prayer and depression was fully mediated by trust-based beliefs; associations with anxiety and confusion were partially mediated. Further, the interaction of prayer frequency by stress was associated with anxiety.     

The Effect of Effort and Weight Controllability on Perceptions of Obese Individuals

We examined the impact of offset controllability (capability of losing weight) and offset effort (efforts to lose weight) on judgments of an obese target. Participants (n = 216) read about an obese person whose body weight was controllable/uncontrollable, and who did/did not put in effort to eat healthily and exercise. Effort played a more important role than controllability in evaluations of the target. Targets who put in effort to be healthy were ascribed fewer obesity stereotypes, evoked less disgust, and were considered to have a more acceptable lifestyle. These findings extend attribution theory and have implications for strategies to reduce weight bias.     

A model‐based approach to limb apraxia in Alzheimer's disease

Limb apraxia is a neurological deficit characterized by an inability to pantomime and/or imitate gestures, which can result from neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). The major goal of the study was to describe comprehensively the apraxia deficits observed in AD patients and to relate those deficits to general cognitive status, measures of daily activity, and other neuropsychological measures. Limb apraxia was assessed on a variety of conceptual and gesture production tasks in 30 AD patients. As a group, AD patients were impaired across gesture production tasks: of note was the greater impairment in imitation, as opposed to pantomime, which was especially pronounced when patients were imitating with a delay. Imitation performance was best predicted by measures of visuospatial processing, while imitation with delay was best predicted by measures of working memory. In addition, pantomime in response to pictures of tools was less accurate than Pantomime to Verbal Command and holding the tool during performance did not decrease the participants' impairment, while introducing a verbal cue during imitation increased the severity of deficits. Furthermore, investigation into patterns of deficits clearly demonstrated that the nature of limb apraxia deficits observed in AD can be quite heterogeneous and that dissociations between the conceptual and the production system exist. Finally, we also report on significant correlations between general cognitive status and limb apraxia.     

Does Rumination Mediate the Association of Private Prayer,Stress, and Their Interaction with Depression among Christians? A Cross-Sectional Study

Mechanisms underlying significant associations between different types of prayer and depression are unknown. Based on the conceptualization of prayer as stress buffering coping style and the Response Style Theory, we proposed that rumination mediates the association of prayer types and stress with depression. This cross-sectional study (N?=?227 Christians, M_age 41.74, SD 14.82, age range 18–82 years, 76% female) used path modeling to test whether rumination mediated the associations between prayer types and prayer types by stress interactions with depression. Rumination fully mediated the associations of the colloquial and ritual prayer by stress interactions with depressive symptoms, while meditative and petitionary prayer was directly associated with depressive symptoms. Further, petitionary prayer and the ritual prayer by stress interaction were associated with more and not with less rumination and depressive symptoms, respectively. Summarized, first empirical evidence supports an integration of prayer, stress, and rumination into one model of depression. However, the exact nature of their interplay depends on the prayer type. If replicated, our findings allow the integration of prayer into cognitive-behavioral treatment of depression in religious and spiritual clients.     

Development and use of behavior and social interaction software installed on Palm handheld for observation of a child’s social interactions with the environment

In settings in developing countries, children often socialize with multiple socializing agents (peers, siblings, neighbors) apart from their parents, and thus, a measurement of a child’s social interactions should be expanded beyond parental interactions. Since the environment plays a role in shaping a child’s development, the measurement of child-socializing agents’ interactions is important. We developed and used a computerized observational softwareBehavior and Social Interaction Software (BASIS) with a preloaded coding scheme installed on a handheld Palm device to record complex observations of interactions between children and socializing agents. Using BASIS, social interaction assessments were conducted on 573 preschool children for 1 h in their natural settings. Multiple screens with a set of choices in each screen were designed that included the child’s location, broad activity, state, and interactions with child-socializing agents. Data were downloaded onto a computer and systematically analyzed. BASIS, installed on Palm OS (M-125), enabled the recording of the complex interactions of child-socializing agents that could not be recorded with manual forms. Thus, this tool provides an innovative and relatively accurate method for the systematic recording of social interactions in an unrestricted environment.     

Systems Training for Emotional Predictability and Problem Solving (STEPPS) in the United Kingdom: A Preliminary Report

The authors report the results of a pilot project to introduce the STEPPS (systems training for emotional predictability and problem solving) treatment program for persons with borderline personality disorder (BPD) to the United Kingdom. STEPPS combines cognitive-behavioral principles and skills training with a systems component that includes family members and significant others. STEPPS was developed to supplement the patient’s ongoing treatment program (e.g. medication, individual therapy, case management) and boost its effectiveness, but not replace it. Thirty-eight subjects agreed to participate at six sites in West Sussex, England. A pre- and post-intervention comparison design was used, and over the 20 week program were found to have significant improvement in their mood, BPD-related symptoms (including affective, cognitive, and impulsive domains), and both negative and positive affectivity. Subjects reported high levels of satisfaction with the program. This study provides further evidence that STEPPS, a relatively brief fully manualized group treatment program, may be used in other countries and achieves high levels of acceptance from patients and therapists.     

Count out your intrusions: Effects of verbal encoding on intrusive memories

Peri-traumatic information processing is thought to affect the development of intrusive trauma memories. This study aimed to replicate and improve the study by Holmes, Brewin, and Hennessy (2004, Exp. 3) on the role of peri-traumatic verbal processing in analogue traumatic intrusion development. Participants viewed an aversive film under one of three conditions: counting backwards in 3s (“verbal interference”), verbalising emotions and thoughts (“verbal enhancement”), or without an extra task. A dual-process account of PTSD would predict that verbal interference would increase intrusion frequency compared to no task, whereas verbal enhancement would lead to a decrease. In contrast, mainstream memory theory predicts a decrease in intrusion frequency from any concurrent task that diverts attention away from the trauma film. The main finding was that the verbal interference task led to a decrease in intrusive memories of the film compared to the other two conditions. This finding does not support a dual-process account of PTSD, but is in line with general theories of memory and attention.