Daily emotional dynamics in depressed youth: a cell phone ecological momentary assessment study

This study used a new cell phone ecological momentary assessment approach to investigate daily emotional dynamics in 47 youths with major depressive disorder (MDD) and 32 no-psychopathology controls (CON) (ages 7-17 years). Information about emotional experience in the natural environment was obtained using answer-only cell phones, while MDD youths received an 8-week course of cognitive behavioral therapy and/or psychopharmacological treatment. Compared with CON youths, MDD youths reported more intense and labile global negative affect; greater sadness, anger, and nervousness; and a lower ratio of positive to negative affect. These differences increased with pubertal maturation. MDD youths spent more time alone and less time with their families than CON youths. Although differences in emotional experiences were found across social contexts, MDD youths were more negative than CON youths in all contexts examined. As the MDD participants progressed through treatment, diagnostic group differences in the intensity and lability of negative affect decreased, but there were no changes in the ratio of positive to negative affect or in measures of social context. We discuss methodological innovations and advantages of this approach, including improved ecological validity and access to information about variability in emotions, change in emotions over time, the balance of positive and negative emotions, and the social context of emotional experience.     

Exploring how symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder are related to reading and mathematics performance: general genes, general environments

Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) tend to perform more poorly on tests of reading and mathematical performance than their typical peers. Quantitative genetic analyses allow for a better understanding of the etiology of ADHD and reading and mathematics outcomes, by examining their common and unique genetic and environmental influences. Analyses were conducted on a sample 271 pairs of 10-year-old monozygotic and dizygotic twins drawn from the Western Reserve Reading and Mathematics Project. In general, the results suggested that the associations among ADHD symptoms, reading outcomes, and math outcomes were influenced by both general genetic and general shared-environment factors. The analyses also suggested significant independent genetic effects for ADHD symptoms. The results imply that differing etiological factors underlie the relationships among ADHD and reading and mathematics performance. It appears that both genetic and common family or school environments link ADHD with academic performance.     

Subjective frequency norms for 330 Spanish simple and compound words

Ratings were collected from 102 native speakers of Spanish on the subjective frequency of occurrence of 330 Spanish words, including 120 deverbal compounds and their constituents. These ratings were found to be highly reliable, whether items were analyzed together or separately by type (i.e., compounds, nouns, verbs), as evidenced by indexes of internal consistency and test-retest reliability that were equal to or greater than.98. The validity of the normative ratings was attested to by statistically significant correlations with objective frequency, estimated at.63 for all items together, and.41,.51, and.78 for compounds, nouns, and verbs, respectively. Among the substantive issues addressed was the potential dependency in ratings for compounds and their associated verb-noun constituents. No relationship was discerned, supporting the idea that compound and constituent ratings are statistically independent in this experimental task. The theoretical and methodological implications of the findings are discussed. The ratings can be downloaded from http://brm.psychonomic-journals.org/content/supplemental.     

Appearance-related teasing,body dissatisfaction,and disordered eating: A meta-analysis

A meta-analysis was conducted to determine the relationship between appearance and weight-based teasing and three outcome measures: body dissatisfaction, restrictive eating, and bulimic behaviors. Four meta-analyses were conducted. Fifty effect sizes (N = 10,618) resulted in a moderate effect size of .39 for the relationship between weight teasing and body dissatisfaction; 24 effect sizes (N = 7190) resulted in an effect size of .32 for the relationship between appearance teasing and body dissatisfaction; 20 effect sizes (N = 4792) resulted in an effect size of .35 for the relationship between weight teasing and dietary restraint; and 22 effect sizes (N = 5091) resulted in an effect size of .36 for the relationship between weight teasing and bulimic behaviors. Significant moderators that emerged were teasing measure type, publication type, study type, age group, and gender. The findings offer further support for the inclusion of strategies in body image and eating disorders’ prevention and intervention programs that focus on handling negative, appearance-related commentary.     

Survey return rates for multiple-authored versus single-authored covering letters

Differences in response rates to a three-wave mail survey were assessed when the covering letters were signed by three versus one researcher. 375 surveys including covering letters signed by three researchers and 375 surveys including covering letters signed by one researcher were sent. A follow-up mailing was used to increase the response rate. 199 surveys were returned (53.5%) in which the covering letter had three researchers, and 218 when the covering letter had one researcher (58.7%), not a significantly different distribution.     

Theme Articles: Luther,Feminism, Friendship and the Future

Abstract : This article traces the author's journey of becoming a Lutheran feminist theologian. Drawing on insights from both Lutheran and feminist traditions, the author proposes a shift in Christian vocation imagery from that of servant to friend. She then argues that call to friendship includes subverting global structures of domination. The article ends with an invitation to join the expanding conversation about how Lutheran and feminist frameworks address the needs of our contemporary world.     

Context sensitivity and invariance in perception of octave-ambiguous tones

Three experiments investigated the influence of unambiguous (UA) context tones on the perception of octave-ambiguous (OA) tones. In Experiment 1, pairs of OA tones spanning a tritone interval were preceded by pairs of UA tones instantiating a rising or falling interval between the same pitch classes. Despite the inherent ambiguity of OA tritone pairs, most participants showed little or no priming when judging the OA tritone as rising or falling. In Experiments 2 and 3, participants compared the pitch heights of single OA and UA tones representing either the same pitch class or being a tritone apart. These judgments were strongly influenced by the pitch range of the UA tones, but only slightly by the spectral center of the OA tones. Thus, the perceived pitch height of single OA tones is context sensitive, but the perceived relative pitch height of two OA tones, as described in previous research on the “tritone paradox,” is largely invariant in UA tone contexts.     

Semantic distance norms computed from an electronic dictionary (WordNet).

WordNet, an electronic dictionary (or lexical database), is a valuable resource for computational and cognitive scientists. Recent work on the computing of semantic distances among nodes (synsets) in WordNet has made it possible to build a large database of semantic distances for use in selecting word pairs for psychological research. The database now contains nearly 50,000 pairs of words that have values for semantic distance, associative strength, and similarity based on co-occurrence. Semantic distance was found to correlate weakly with these other measures but to correlate more strongly with another measure of semantic relatedness, featural similarity. Hierarchical clustering analysis suggested that the knowledge structure underlying semantic distance is similar in gross form to that underlying featural similarity. In experiments in which semantic similarity ratings were used, human participants were able to discriminate semantic distance. Thus, semantic distance as derived from WordNet appears distinct from other measures of word pair relatedness and is psychologically functional. This database may be downloaded from www.psychonomic.org/archive/.     

Face threat sensitivity in negotiation: Roadblock to agreement and joint gain

Negotiation scholars and practitioners have long noted the impact of face, or social image, concerns on negotiation outcomes. When face is threatened, negotiators are less likely to reach agreement and to create joint gain. In this paper, we explore individual differences in face threat sensitivity (FTS), and how a negotiator's role moderates the relationship of his or her FTS to negotiation outcomes. Study 1 describes a measure of FTS. Study 2 finds that buyers and sellers are less likely to reach an agreement that is in both parties' interests when the seller has high FTS. Study 3 finds that job candidates and recruiters negotiate an employment contract with less joint gain when the candidate has high FTS, and that this relationship is mediated by increased competitiveness on the part of the high FTS candidates. The results support Deutsch's (1961) application of face theory ( Goffman, 1967) to negotiation.     

Gender Differences in Family Communication About Organ Donation

In this study we investigated gender differences in willingness to donate organs and conversations with family members about organ donation. Results from a snowball sample of 353 men and 488 women (average age = 41–50) indicated that men are less willing to donate and less likely to have conversations about organ donation. When such conversations do occur, men are less likely to include within them topics of conversation that are associated with more positive responses from family members. Women are more likely to include a mention of their desire to donate organs, discussion of the need for organs, and an explanation of why they would/would not like to donate their organs. They are also more likely to mention moral/altruistic/religious reasons for donation or to tell/use a narrative in the discussion. Men, however, more commonly discussed whether signing a donation card would affect medical care. Women report higher agreed compliance from family members. Directions are provided for future research and campaign development by taking these differences into consideration.