The impact of attitudinal ambivalence on weight loss decisions: Consequences and mitigating factors

This research takes a new look at individuals' attitudes and intentions towards losing weight. Study 1 examines the relationship among those interested in losing weight and individual self‐evaluative ambivalence on attitude towards trying to achieve a weight loss goal and the intentions to achieve the weight loss goal. For Study 2, a between‐subjects experimental design, where attitudinal ambivalence and prior outcome feedback were manipulated and self‐efficacy was measured, is conducted to examine attitude towards eating healthier and intention to change eating behaviours. Findings across the two studies show that attitudinal ambivalence about the self and the individual's abilities and motivation to change the health behaviour produces a negative relationship between health‐related attitudes and intentions. We provide implications of how self‐efficacy and the provision of outcome feedback can alleviate the negative effect and improve the individuals' intentions to try to achieve a weight loss goal. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Comparison of Rubrics for Identifying Empirically Supported Practices with Single-Case Research

The use of single-case research methods for validating academic and behavioral interventions has gained considerable attention in recent years. As such, there has been a proliferation of methods for evaluating whether, and to what extent, primary research reports provide evidence of intervention effectiveness. Despite the recent interest in harnessing single-case research to identify empirically supported strategies, examination of these tools has revealed that there is a lack of consistency in the methodological criteria sampled and scoring procedures used to evaluate primary research reports. The present study examined the extent to which various evidence rubrics addressed specific methodological features of single-case research and classified studies into similar evidence categories. Results indicated that the methodological criteria included within rubrics tended to vary, particularly for criteria related to determining the generality of the intervention under study. Moreover, there was substantial discordance observed in the evidence classifications assigned to reviewed studies. These findings are discussed in the context of the still-developing nature of single-case evidence reviews. Recommendations for both research and practice are provided.     

Internet Search Behaviors and Mood Alterations: A Selective Exposure Approach

The present study has been designed in an attempt to replicate and expand the parameters of D. Zillmann and J. Bryant's selective exposure approach to use of the Internet. In applying this theoretical framework to the Internet, it was expected that persons experiencing unpleasant levels of excitation would arrange their Internet environment in order to terminate their aversive states. Through experimentally manipulating levels of boredom and stress and subsequently recording Internet surfing patterns, it was found that although mood significantly predicted Internet hits, it was not associated with the hedonic valence of the site.     

A systematic review of the evidence-based psychosocial risk factors for understanding of borderline personality disorder

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a serious personality disorder characterized by affective instability, impulsivity and interpersonal disturbance. Currently, intensive research is being conducted concerning the aetiology of BPD, including research on neurobiological, temperamental, psychosocial and cultural risk factors. This study focuses on psychosocial risk factors while other risk factors are taken into account in the discussion of the development of BPD. To our knowledge, no systematic review of the evidence-based medicine literature concerning this theme has been made thus far. However, understanding psychosocial risk factors of BPD is important in order to develop psychotherapeutic treatment models and methods. We provide a systematic review of the literature focusing on psychosocial risk factors for BPD. Utilizing this knowledge, we discuss how these data may be used when studying the development of borderline personality disorder and the treatment of borderline personality disorder.     

Sales Training and Education: Tracking Academic Research in Selling and Sales Management: Authors,Authorships, Academic Institutions,and Journals

This study examines and tracks the extent of selling and sales management research from 1993–1997. Two hundred and sixty- six published journal articles representing sixteen journals are examined to identify where and when selling and sales management researchers received their doctoral training, their employment location at time of publication, regional trends in the location of these researchers, and a count by-journal of selling and sales management articles that have appeared during the time period. A total of 280 individual authors from 175 different colleges and universities are included in the study. Overall, the general trends for scholarly activity in selling and sales management appear to be robust when compared to prior studies of sales research productivity.     

Age Related Effects in Children Taking the Computerized Assessment of Response Bias and Word Memory Test

The assessment of effort is a fundamental component of test performance analysis, since effort determines whether a psychological evaluation is valid. The assessment of effort in children has proven problematic. This may be related to the variable and inconsistent nature of children’s developing self-regulatory systems, and the fact that measures commonly used to assess effort were standardized on adults. If one uses effort measures designed for adults to assess children, then one must presume that the maintenance of effort in children is comparable to the same behavior in adults. However, because children’s executive functioning, including their abilities to self-regulate, attend, concentrate, and to engage in various cognitive activities improve with time (Barkley, 1997, pp. 209-234), our hypothesis is that young children’s effort regulation is dissimilar to that of adults, and the presumption of similarity is implausible. The purpose of this study was to determine whether age is a significant influence upon young children’s performances on the Computerized Assessment of Response Bias (CARB) and Word Memory Test (WMT). Statistical analysis suggests that younger children (those under 10 years of age) tended to produce poorer performance on these instruments. Younger children’s scores differed significantly from children ages 10 and older. Children 11 years and older produced CARB and WMT results similar to adult participants, suggesting a viability for adult normative comparisons with children in this age range. The current investigation concluded that children’s maintenance of effort appears to be significantly related to age and reading ability level. Consequently, the use of current adult-based norms with the CARB and WMT, without regard for a child’s developmental status and other contextual factors such as the child’s ability to read, appears ill-advised especially with children under 11 years of age.     

Neurocognitive Sequelae of Pediatric Sickle Cell Disease: A Review of the Literature

This literature review summarizes all studies relating neuropsychological performance to neuroimaging findings in pediatric sickle cell disease (N=28; published 1991–2005). Although inconsistencies exist within and across domains, deficits in intelligence (IQ), attention and executive functions, memory, language, visuomotor abilities, and academic achievement have been identified. Overall neurocognitive compromise was revealed to be related to the level of neurological injury and the location of silent infarct. Attentional and executive dysfunction is prevalent and related to frontal lobe abnormalities.     

Economic Disadvantage and Young Children’s Emotional and Behavioral Problems: Mechanisms of Risk

This study aimed to establish potential mechanisms through which economic disadvantage contributes to the development of young children’s internalizing and externalizing problems. Prospective data from fetal life to age 3 years were collected in a total of 2,169 families participating in the Generation R Study. The observed physical home environment, the provision of learning materials in the home, maternal depressive symptoms, parenting stress, and harsh disciplining practices were all analyzed as potential mediators of the association between economic disadvantage and children’s internalizing and externalizing problem scores. Findings from structural equation modeling showed that for both internalizing and externalizing problems, the mechanisms underlying the effect of economic disadvantage included maternal depressive symptoms, along with parenting stress and harsh disciplining. For internalizing but not for externalizing problem scores, the lack of provision of learning materials in the home was an additional mechanism explaining the effect of economic disadvantage. The current results suggest that interventions that focus solely on raising income levels may not adequately address problems in the family processes that emerge as a result of economic disadvantage. Policies to improve the mental health of mothers with young children but also their home environments are needed to change the economic gradient in child behavior.     

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Suicide Anger Expression Inventory—28

We conducted 4 studies to develop and cross-validate scores on a multidimensional self-report measure of suicide and anger expression, the Suicide Anger Expression Inventory-28 (SAEI-28). The SAEI-28 evaluates Suicide Rumination, Maladaptive Expression, Reactive Distress, and Adaptive Expression with 7 content specific items each. Participants were between ages 14 and 47 years old. Study 1 developed a pool of content relevant and representative items for the new inventory. Study 2 explored potential domains of the SAEI-28 items, evaluating preliminary estimates of internal consistency reliability. Study 3 examined specific structures of the SAEI-28 items and scale reliability. Study 4 evaluated the fit of the oblique 4-factor model to 2 alternative solutions. Support was found for estimates of internal consistency reliability for the scales. Criterion-related validity and potential correlates for the SAEI-28 scales were also assessed.