Restraint and Cancellation: Multiple Inhibition Deficits in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

We used variations of the stop signal task to study two components of motor response inhibition—the ability to withhold a strong response tendency (restraint) and the ability to cancel an ongoing action (cancellation)—in children with a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and in non-ADHD controls of similar age (ages 7–14 years). The goal was to determine if restraint and cancellation were related and if both were deficient in ADHD. The stop signal task involved a choice reaction time task (go task) which required a rapid response. The demand for inhibitory control was invoked through the presentation of a stop signal on a subset of go trials which required that the ongoing response be suspended. The stop signal was presented either concurrently with the go signal (restraint version) or after a variable delay (cancellation version). In Study 1, we compared ADHD and control children on the cancellation version of the stop task; in Study 2, we compared ADHD and controls on the restraint version. In Study 3, a subset of ADHD and control participants completed both tasks so that we could examine convergence of these dimensions of inhibition. Compared to control participants, ADHD participants showed a deficit both in the ability to cancel and to restrain a speeded motor response. Performance on the restraint version was significantly correlated with performance on the cancellation version in controls, but not in ADHD participants. We conclude that ADHD is associated with deficits in both restraint and cancellation subcomponents of inhibition.     

Two steps forward and one back: Learning to walk affects infants' sitting posture

The transition from sitting to walking is a major motor milestone for the developing postural system. This study examined whether this transition to walking impacts the previously established posture (i.e., sitting). Nine infants were examined monthly from sitting onset until 9 months post-walking. Infants sat on a saddle-shape chair either independently or with their right hand touching a stationary contact surface. Postural sway was measured by sway amplitude, variability, area, and velocity of the center of pressure trajectory. The results showed that for all the postural measures in the no-touch condition, a peak before or at walk onset was observed in all the infants. At the transition age, when peak sway occurred, infants' postural sway measures were significantly greater than at any other age. Further, infants' postural sway was attenuated by touch only at this transition. We suggest that this transient disruption in sitting posture results from a process involving re-calibration of an internal model for the sensorimotor control of posture so as to accommodate the newly emerging bipedal behavior of independent walking.     

Evaluating the Individualism and Collectivism Scale for use in mainland China

A Chinese translation of the 27-item Individualism and Collectivism Scale was administered in southern mainland China to 626 Chinese university students (210 men and 416 women) with a mean age of 19.9 yr. (SD = 1.5). From analysis of the responses to these items, the prior four factors, Horizontal Individualism, Vertical Individualism, Horizontal Collectivism, and Vertical Collectivism, did not clearly emerge in the Chinese sample. Further research on the viability of the scale and conceptualization of the horizontal and vertical distinction in the Chinese context is recommended.     

Where (who) are collectives in collectivism? Toward conceptual clarification of individualism and collectivism

In psychological research on cultural differences, the distinction between individualism and collectivism has received the lion's share of attention as a fundamental dimension of cultural variation. In recent years, however, these constructs have been criticized as being ill-defined and "a catchall" to represent all forms of cultural differences. The authors argue that there is a conceptual confusion about the meaning of ingroups that constitute the target of collectivism. Collectives are rarely referred to in existing measures to assess collectivism. Instead, networks of interpersonal relationships dominate the operational definition of "ingroups" in these measures. Results from a content analysis of existing scales support this observation. To clarify and expand the individualism-collectivism distinction, a theoretical framework is proposed that draws on M. B. Brewer and G. Gardner's (1996) conceptualization of individual, relational, and collective selves and their manifestation in self-representations, beliefs, and values. Analyses of data from past studies provide preliminary support for this conceptual model. The authors propose that this new theoretical framework will contribute conceptual clarity to interpretation of past research on individualism and collectivism and guide future research on these important constructs.     

Within-person changes in the structure of emotion: the role of cultural identification and language

This study explored the within-person dynamic organization of emotion in East-Asian Canadian bicultural individuals as they function in two cultural worlds. Using a diary design, we examined under what conditions their emotional structure resembles that of Westerners or that of East Asians. As predicted, when these bicultural individuals identified with a Western culture or had recently spoken a non-Asian language, their positive and negative affect were inversely associated. When they identified with an Asian culture or interacted in an Asian language, this inverse association disappeared. This study shows that as bicultural individuals identify and communicate with members of one or the other cultural group, they may adopt a culturally congruent phenomenology, including a distinct affective pattern.     

青少年饮酒期望与饮酒行为的关系:追踪研究的证据

通过对1000余名青少年为期一年的追踪调查,探讨了青少年饮酒期望与饮酒行为之间的关系,同时考察了饮酒期望的发展和性别差异。研究结果表明:(1)一年来青少年的饮酒行为、饮酒消极期望和饮酒积极期望都显著增加;女生的饮酒行为和饮酒积极期望的增加都显著高于男生。(2)第二次测查时,青少年的饮酒行为、饮酒积极期望和饮酒消极期望高于一年前原同年级的学生。(3)饮酒积极期望、消极期望和饮酒行为之间的基本关系一年来没有发生变化:消极期望可能降低饮酒行为,积极期望可能增加饮酒行为,消极期望对积极期望与饮酒行为的关系具有显著的调节作用。但是消极期望对饮酒行为的作用降低,积极期望的作用升高。     

随机对照试验与伦理学的冲突——椎管内阻滞分娩镇痛效果分析

以随机对照试验（RCT）的方法验证椎管内阻滞分娩镇痛的效果有违试验设计的伦理学要求,现有关于椎管内阻滞分娩镇痛的文献都存在着试验设计的死角,导致了医学科学试验与伦理学的水火不容。循证医学（EBM）方法为科学地解决这一问题带来了曙光。     

浅谈脂肪肝的降脂治疗

脂肪肝是一种常见病,多伴有高脂血症,大部分需要降血脂治疗。由于降血脂药物的不恰当使用,有时反而造成脂肪肝的加重以及肝功能的损害。因此,应在治疗原发病、控制饮食、增加运动3个月后,未达到满意效果的患者中,选择适当的降血脂药物进行治疗,并在治疗过程中监测肝功能变化。     

说明文阅读中的视角效应

说明文的阅读视角不仅影响阅读中信息的获得,而且会影响实时阅读加工过程。目前对视角效应最新的眼动研究,围绕阅读中编码相关信息到工作记忆中是否需要额外的时间这一争论,揭示了过去知识和工作记忆容量对阅读视角效应的影响,对视角效应产生的内在机制也有了更深层的认识。