Life events and internalizing problems among Chinese school children: An examination of the cognitive diathesis model

This study examined the cognitive diathesis model for child internalizing problems among 459 Chinese elementary school children in grades four to six. Life events were associated with beliefs about external control and threat perception bias, both of which were related to child internalizing problems. The relation of life events to internalizing problems was partially mediated by threat perception bias measured by ambiguous situation task. The main findings indicate that the cognitive diathesis theory for child internalizing problems might be applicable to Chinese children. This study contributes to the theoretical understanding of the internalizing problems of Chinese children, which can lead to use of more effective treatments.     

Target-related autobiographical memories affect dietary intake intentions*

ABSTRACT

Although there is evidence that autobiographical memory (AM) recall impacts behaviour in multiple domains, the mechanisms for this effect are unclear. Two experiments examined how AM Frame and Relatedness to target behaviour affect intention to control future dietary intake. Participants completed an AM task where they recalled success or fail-framed memories of behaviour in the target domain (dietary intake), a related domain (exercise), and an unrelated domain (work). Next they completed questionnaires about attitudes, self-efficacy, and behavioural intention for controlling dietary intake. In Experiment 1, Frame and Relatedness of AMs recalled did not affect attitudes or self-efficacy ratings of controlling dietary intake. However, Related AMs resulted in higher intention ratings to control future dietary intake compared to Unrelated AMs. Experiment 2 replicated these results for attitude and self-efficacy, but showed no effect on behavioural intention. A mini-meta analysis was conducted to clarify the effect of AM recall on intention. This analysis confirmed a significant effect of AM Relatedness on intention ratings (meta-analysis Cohen’s d?=?.25, Z?=?2.54, p?=?.011). These results provide evidence that recalling related AM can affect dietary behaviour intentions directly, without changes attitudes or ratings of personal control regarding dietary intake.     

Characteristics of autobiographical memories and prospective imagery across a spectrum of hypomanic personality traits

Evidence of a strong causal relationship between mental imagery and emotion has informed psychological conceptualisations of disordered positive mood states (i.e., mania). Holmes et al.'s cognitive model of bipolar disorder asserts a prominent role for intrusive and affect-laden positive imagery of the past and the future in the amplification and maintenance of positive mood and associated manic behaviours. The aims of the current study were two-fold: (1) to test aspects of this model in a non-clinical population sampled for hypomanic personality traits and (2) to examine the phenomenological characteristics of positive autobiographical memories and imagery of the future. Undergraduate students (N = 80) completed a battery of self-report questionnaires and rated their positive and negative memories and images of the future on a number of dimensions. We found significant positive correlations between hypomanic tendencies and the (1) everyday experience and use of mental imagery, (2) experience of intrusive mental imagery of future events, (3) emotional intensity and sensory detail of positive but not negative autobiographical memories. Results are discussed in the context of their theoretical and clinical implications, and directions for future research are considered.     

Searching for a Vulnerable Dark Triad: Comparing Factor 2 Psychopathy,Vulnerable Narcissism,and Borderline Personality Disorder

ABSTRACT Paulhus and Williams (2002) identified a “Dark Triad” comprising the following related personality styles: narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism. The heterogeneity found in narcissism and psychopathy raises the possibility of a second triad made up of emotional vulnerability and dark traits (i.e., the vulnerable dark triad; VDT). Along with vulnerable narcissism and Factor 2 psychopathy, the third member of the hypothesized VDT is borderline personality disorder (BPD). Using a sample of 361 undergraduates, we examine the relations between these constructs and their relations with criterion variables, including personality, environmental etiological factors (e.g., abuse), and current functioning (e.g., psychopathology, affect). The results suggest that the VDT constructs are significantly related to one another and manifest similar nomological networks, particularly vulnerable narcissism and BPD. Although the VDT members are related to negative emotionality and antagonistic interpersonal styles, they are also related to introversion and disinhibition. Ultimately, it seems there is a “dark continuum” of pathological personality traits that differ primarily in relation to negative and positive emotionality and disinhibition.     

Postdiscrimination Gradients With Familiar and Unfamiliar Faces

Discrimination training is often used to improve accuracy in stimulus recognition. However, intradimensional discrimination training with a single positive exemplar and a single negative exemplar may reduce accuracy during a generalization test. More specifically, discrimination training can cause a shift in responding from the positive exemplar to stimuli unlike the negative exemplar. Previous studies have shown that the length of discrimination training affects the degree to which a shift occurs. We sought to determine whether pre-experimental exposure (“familiarity”) to the stimuli would have a similar effect. Twenty participants were trained and tested with two different sets of facial images. Each set of images consisted of stimuli that ranged from the naturally asymmetrical version of the face to a symmetrical version of the face. In one condition, the images were based on the participant’s own face; in the second condition, the images were based on the face of a stranger. In both cases, the median face served as the positive exemplar. In half of the conditions the naturally asymmetrical face served as the negative exemplar, and in the other half, the symmetrical face served as the negative exemplar. Images based on a stranger’s face produced greater generalization than images based on the participant’s own face. A significant gradient shift occurred only with familiar faces.

     

Individual differences in everyday retrospective memory failures

The present study examined individual differences in everyday retrospective memory failures. Undergraduate students completed various cognitive ability measures in the laboratory and recorded everyday retrospective memory failures in a diary over the course of a week. The majority of memory failures were forgetting information pertaining to exams and homework, forgetting names, and forgetting login and ID information. Using latent variable techniques the results also suggested that individual differences in working memory capacity and retrospective memory were related to some but not all everyday memory failures. Furthermore, everyday memory failures predicted SAT scores and partially accounted for the relation between cognitive abilities and SAT scores. These results provide important evidence for individual differences in everyday retrospective memory failures as well as important evidence for the ecological validity of laboratory measures of working memory capacity and retrospective memory.