Examination of the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory Discrepancy Hypothesis

ABSTRACT

This study examined the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory (ECBI) discrepancy hypothesis, which asserts that a discrepancy in score elevations on the ECBI Intensity and Problem Scales is related to problematic parenting styles. The Intensity Scale measures the frequency of child disruptive behavior, and the Problem Scale measures parent perception of their child's behavior as problematic. In a sample of 216 female caregivers of 3-to7-year-old children, the magnitude of discrepancy between T scores on the two ECBI scales was found to predict parental tolerance for child misbehavior. A one-standard-deviation difference in ECBI T scores identified (a) parents intolerant of their child's misbehavior when the Problem score was highest and (b) overly permissive parents when the Intensity score was highest.     

Treatment Outcome for Low Socioeconomic Status African American Families in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy: A Pilot Study

The course and efficacy of parent-child interaction therapy (PCIT) were examined in 18 socioeconomically disadvantaged African American families of preschoolers with disruptive behavior disorders. Mothers reported significant improvements in child disruptive behavior but not in maternal depressive symptoms or parenting stress. Attrition was 56%, most often occurring after pre-treatment assessment but before treatment began. Results suggest that PCIT may lead to positive behavior changes for disadvantaged young African American children when families complete treatment. Recruitment, engagement, and retention remain significant problems requiring further study. Reduction of parenting stress also requires study in this population.     

A pound is a pound is a pound

According to the relevant alternatives theory of knowledge (RA), I know that p only if my evidence eliminates all relevant alternatives to p. Jonathan Schaffer has recently argued that David Lewis's version of RA, which is perhaps the most detailed version yet provided, cannot account for our failure to know in cases involving missed clues, that is, cases in which we see but fail to appreciate decisive evidence. I argue, however, that Lewis's version of RA survives exposure to missed clue cases. Moreover, even though Schaffer maintains that Lewis's Rule of Belief provides no protection against missed clue cases, I argue that we should credit the Rule of Belief with ensuring the survival of Lewis's version of RA.     

Authoritarianism and fear responses to pictures: The role of social differences

Authoritarianism can be defined as the covariation of authoritarian submission, authoritarian aggression, and conventionalism (Altemeyer, 1981). All three of these tendencies involve adherence to specific standards of behavior: standards that could be exposed to threat and disruption. This study is an investigation of the self‐reported fear of authoritarians in response to threats. A sample of 126 university students was exposed to a series of pictures of potentially threatening people and situations. In general, participants with high scores on authoritarianism were more fearful than participants with low scores. This result was found for both social threats (i.e., social differences, social disorder) and personal threats (i.e., animals, dangerous situations). The strongest association between authoritarianism and fear involved cases of social differences, defined as elements of a person's appearance or behavior that involve diversity or deviance from common social norms. Regression analyses also indicated that variation in authoritarianism could be best predicted by fear of social differences. Thus, these data suggest that authoritarians are relatively sensitive to threat, and particularly to threats involving the “outsider” who does not fit authoritarian standards of uniformity and order. The data are also consistent with recent research and theory that right‐wing ideology is at least partly motivated by threat and fear.     

Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Religious Motivation and the Marital Relationship

Research suggests a strong positive relationship between religiosity and marital satisfaction. Neglected, however, are differences in satisfaction based on nominal religious motivation. The influence of religiosity on marital satisfaction was examined for 74 couples. Results indicate the higher the husband's intrinsic religiosity, the higher the satisfaction for both partners. Wives' satisfaction increased as they became more extrinsically motivated. Differences in religiosity significantly decreased satisfaction for husbands. Findings are discussed from the perspective of gender-based interaction patterns, gender demographics of religious devotion and activity, and power dynamics. We recommend therapists understand these findings and integrate them into the clinical dialogue.     

Self-report schedules for use in assessing the marital adjustment of abusive and nonabusive parents

Abstract

Abusive parents and nonabusive parents were compared on three self-report behavioral marital questionnaires. The questionnaires—the Marital Status Inventory, the Locke-Wallace Marital Adjustment Test, and the Areas of Change Questionnaire—have been used in pre-post evaluations of treatment and in the discrimination of distressed from nondistressed marriages. The results indicated that both groups reported having only mildly distressed marital relationships. The report presents initial normative data on the questionnaires for abusive parents and nonabusive parents who were seeking help with child management problems.     

Emotion regulation and the temporal dynamics of emotions: Effects of cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression on emotional inertia

The tendency for emotions to be predictable over time, labelled emotional inertia, has been linked to low well-being and is thought to reflect impaired emotion regulation. However, almost no studies have examined how emotion regulation relates to emotional inertia. We examined the effects of cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression on the inertia of behavioural, subjective and physiological measures of emotion. In Study 1 (N = 111), trait suppression was associated with higher inertia of negative behaviours. We replicated this finding experimentally in Study 2 (N = 186). Furthermore, in Study 2, instructed suppressors and reappraisers both showed higher inertia of positive behaviours, and reappraisers displayed higher inertia of heart rate. Neither suppression nor reappraisal were associated with the inertia of subjective feelings in either study. Thus, the effects of suppression and reappraisal on the temporal dynamics of emotions depend on the valence and emotional response component in question.     

Effects of Solution Elicitation Aids and Need for Cognition on the Generation of Solutions to Ill-Structured Problems

Numerous techniques have been proposed to assist problem solvers in the solution generation process. We empirically examined the effectiveness of a solution elicitation technique based on the presentation of problem objectives and also examined whether the technique was effective across individual differences in need for cognition (NC). We found that when two conflicting objectives were presented successively, more solutions, more categories of solutions, and more effective solutions were generated than when the same two objectives were presented simultaneously or not at all. However, the results indicated that effective solutions may be more efficiently generated by considering objectives simultaneously. Need for cognition was positively related to measures of divergent thinking, and the presentation of objectives was particularly effective as a solution elicitation aid for individuals with low NC. Implications for creative problem-solving research and practice are discussed.