Can We Identify Emotion Over‐regulation in Infancy? Associations with Avoidant Attachment,Dyadic Emotional Interaction and Temperament

Emotion over‐regulation in infancy has seldom been the focus of empirical research. This study analysed the specificities of over‐regulation when compared with under‐regulation (maladaptive) and adaptive regulation by testing its association with attachment, dyadic emotional interaction, and temperament. The sample consisted of 52 low‐risk mother–infant dyads. During a home visit, dyadic emotional interaction was assessed in the daily routines and free play of 10‐month‐old infants. The infant's emotion regulation was assessed using the Shape Sorter Task, and a temperament questionnaire was completed by the mother. Attachment was assessed at 12 or 16 months using the Strange Situation. As hypothesized, (i) emotion over‐regulation (versus adaptive regulation) was predicted by a lower quality of dyadic emotional interaction and marginally by avoidant attachment; (ii) over‐regulation (versus under‐regulation) was predicted by avoidant attachment; and (iii) the predictive role of avoidant attachment was substantiated after controlling for another measure of mother–infant interaction. Contrary to expectations, temperament did not distinguish between emotion regulation styles. The link between over‐regulation and lower quality of mother–infant emotional interaction and avoidant attachment was demonstrated. There is empirical support to the claim that it is possible to identify emotion over‐regulation in infancy and that it is a maladaptive style of emotion regulation. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Space contraction experiences during acoustic metronomic stimulation: a synthetic discussion

On the basis of the results of a previous research, we will present a new interpretation of some psychophysiological component of spatial experience. The research examined the role of the acoustic activity of a metronome (with different frequencies of 66, 144, 192/min) on a space estimation between two points. The stimulus distances between the points were 30, 60, 90 cm. Increasing the metronomic frequency determines an evident contraction of the estimation of the perceived distances for each of the three different stimulus distances. The results have been interpreted in light of a psychophysiological integrated model.     

The relation between anxiety disorder and experiential avoidance in inpatient adolescents

The current study aimed to examine the relation between experiential avoidance and anxiety disorders, as well as the usefulness of the Avoidance and Fusion Questionnaire for Youth (AFQ-Y; Greco, Lambert, & Baer, 2008) in detecting anxiety disorder in a sample of adolescent inpatients. First, the relation between experiential avoidance and anxiety among inpatient adolescents was investigated from categorical and dimensional points of view, making use of self-report and parent report, as well as clinical interview, while controlling for depression and externalizing problems. Second, we sought to establish the clinical utility value of the AFQ-Y by determining the sensitivity, specificity, and clinical cutoff score of this measure in predicting anxiety disorder. To this end, a sample of inpatient adolescents (N = 111) with a mean age of 16.14 (SD = 1.39) years completed the AFQ-Y, alongside interview- and questionnaire-based measures of psychopathology. Results showed a significant relation between anxiety disorder and experiential avoidance, independent of depression. Receiver operating characteristics analysis revealed that the AFQ-Y has moderate accuracy (area under the curve = .815, SE = .047, p < .001) in discriminating adolescents with a diagnosis of any anxiety disorder (cutoff score 26.5; sensitivity = .74, specificity = .76). Given the comorbidity of anxiety and depression in this sample, this cutoff is not indicative of pure anxiety disorder but may be helpful in predicting those with emotional disorders in general.     

Neural basis of affective touch and pain: A novel model suggests possible targets for pain amelioration

Pain is one of the most common health problems and has a severe impact on quality of life. Yet, a suitable and efficient treatment is still not available for all patient populations suffering from pain. Interestingly, recent research shows that low threshold mechanosensory C-tactile (CT) fibres have a modulatory influence on pain. CT-fibres are activated by slow gentle stroking of the hairy skin, providing a pleasant sensation. Consequently, slow gentle stroking is known as affective touch. Currently, a clear overview of the way affective touch modulates pain, at a neural level, is missing. This review aims to present such an overview. To explain the interaction between affective touch and pain, first the neural basis of the affective touch system and the neural processing of pain will be described. To clarify these systems, a schematic illustration will be provided in every section. Hereafter, a novel model of interactions between affective touch and pain systems will be introduced. Finally, since affective touch might be suitable as a new treatment for chronic pain, possible clinical implications will be discussed.     

Transactional Paths Between Children and Parents in Pediatric Asthma: Associations Between Family Relationships and Adaptation

The particular challenges posed by pediatric asthma may have a negative impact on the adaptation of children and their parents. From a transactional approach it is important to examine how reciprocal links between children and parents contribute to explain their adaptation and under which conditions these associations occur. This cross-sectional study aimed at examining the direct and indirect links between children’s and parents’ perceptions of family relationships and adaptation, separately (within-subjects) and across participants (cross-lagged effects), and the role of asthma severity in moderating these associations. The sample comprised 257 children with asthma, aged between 8 and 18 years-old, and one of their parents. Both family members completed self-reported questionnaires on family relationships (cohesion and expressiveness) and adaptation indicators (quality of life and psychological functioning). Physicians assessed asthma severity. Structural Equation Modeling was used to test within-subjects and cross-lagged paths between children’s and parents’ family relationships and adaptation. The model explained 47 % of children’s and 30 % of parents’ adaptation: family relationships were positively associated with adaptation, directly for children and parents, and indirectly across family members. Asthma severity moderated the association between family relationships and health-related quality of life for children: stronger associations were observed in the presence of persistent asthma. These results highlight the need of including psychological interventions in pediatric healthcare focused on family relationships as potential targets for improving children’s and parents’ quality of life and psychological functioning, and identified the children with persistent asthma as a group that would most benefit from family-based interventions.     

Shifts in attention biases in response to acute pain induction: examination of a model of "conversion" among repressors

Unlike most people, those who are characterized by a repressive coping style report high levels of physical (sensory) pain but low levels of emotional distress (affective pain), which is a discrepancy that may suggest a "conversion" process. In two studies, we tested an attention allocation model, proposing that repressors direct attention away from threatening negative affective information and toward nonthreatening physical pain information during emotionally arousing (painful) situations. In Study 1, 84 participants underwent a cold pressor and then recovered. Repressors reported greater pain during recovery than low- and high-anxious participants, but they reported lower distress than high-anxious participants. Repressors reported significant and large discrepancies between high pain and low distress, whereas these differences were less pronounced for other groups. In Study 2, 77 participants underwent an ischemic pain task while performing a modified dot-probe task with sensory and negative affective pain words as stimuli. Repressors showed increasing biases away from affective pain words and toward sensory pain words as the pain task continued, whereas low- and high-anxious participants did not show these shifts in attention. The results support the notion that conversion among repressors may involve a process by which attention is directed away from emotional distress during noxious stimulation and is focused instead on sensory information from pain.     

Dingoes (Canis dingo) can use human social cues to locate hidden food

There is contention concerning the role that domestication plays in the responsiveness of canids to human social cues, with most studies investigating abilities of recognized domestic dog breeds or wolves. Valuable insight regarding the evolution of social communication with humans might be gained by investigating Australian dingoes, which have an early history of domestication, but have been free-ranging in Australia for approximately 3500–5000 years. Seven ‘pure’ dingoes were tested outdoors by a familiar experimenter using the object-choice paradigm to determine whether they could follow nine human communicative gestures previously tested with domestic dogs and captive wolves. Dingoes passed all cues significantly above control, including the “benchmark” momentary distal pointing, with the exception of gaze only, gaze and point, and pointing from the incorrect location. Dingo performance appears to lie somewhere between wolves and dogs, which suggests that domestication may have played a role in their ability to comprehend human gestures.     

Green construction and energy training program for at‐risk individuals: a case study

Training individuals who are at risk of unemployment/underemployment to increase their employability is a mission of many nonprofit agencies. These training programs, often supported by government funding, attempt to reduce these individuals’ reliance on government assistance. The purpose of this study is to obtain hard data and an in‐depth understanding about the factors that contribute to the success of the Green Construction training program. The methodology used is a multimethod, multimeasure approach, which provides a reasonably robust triangulation of results. The findings indicate that the program is successful because it has good participant retention, knowledge gain, and placement rates.     

Exploring patient perspectives of prediabetes and diabetes severity: a qualitative study

Abstract

Objective: This qualitative study sought to identify and describe patients’ variant perceptions of disease severity after receiving a type 2 diabetes (T2DM) or prediabetes (preDM) diagnosis.

Design: Researchers interviewed 29 patients from two US medical centers to ascertain perceptions of severity. We used the constant comparative method from a grounded theory approach to identify themes from patients’ perspectives that inform their disease severity. This approach was used to help translate research to practice and ultimately identify intervention strategies informed by authentic experiences of preDM and T2DM patients.

Results: Perceptions of disease severity fell into two groups: high and low severity. Patients diagnosed with T2DM and preDM emerged in both groups and were comparative in terms of sample size, gender, and ethnic diversity. Several factors contributed to patients’ beliefs, including what they were told about the disease, observations from experiences within their own social network, and information from formal diabetes classes and their own research. The two perspectives diverged when patients described how their belief was informed by three thematic properties or personal factors: (i) fears; (ii) clinician communication; and (iii) social comparisons.

Conclusions: Beliefs about severity are influenced by patients’ fears, interactions with clinicians, and experiences within their social networks. These findings show that when interacting with patients with T2DM or preDM, clinicians should elicit patient perceptions of disease severity so they may then tailor the discussion to address these perceptions and help patients grasp the severity of these conditions.