Association between Terror Attacks and Suicide Attempts

Based on Durkheim's ‘Control theory,’ we explored the association between frequency of terror attacks in Israel and the frequency of suicide attempts admitted to the Emergency Room of a major general hospital in Tel‐Aviv (1999–2004). Analysis of the six‐year study period as a whole revealed no significant correlation between the variables, with the exception of one 11‐month segment within it (December 2000–October 2001) that did show a statistically significant positive correlation, and in opposition to Durkeim's hypothesis. It is suggested that suicide attempts as a phenomena should be seen as a product of a multivariate model, in which the social context plays a role as well.     

Social comparison,similarity and ingroup favouritism-A replication

Studied the effects of different kinds of similarity between social groups on ingroup favouritism using a modified replication of an experiment by Turner (1978). Instead of replicating the results of Turner, the data showed just the opposite. They are discussed within the framework of social identity theory.     

Pedagogies of Hope

Hoping is an integral part of what it is to be human, and its significance for education has been widely noted. Hope is, however, a contested category of human experience and getting to grips with its characteristics and dynamics is a difficult task. The paper argues that hope is not a singular undifferentiated experience and is best understood as a socially mediated human capacity with varying affective, cognitive and behavioural dimensions. Drawing on the philosophy, theology and psychology of hope, five modes of hoping are outlined: patient, critical, sound, resolute and transformative. The key aim of the paper is to illustrate how different modes of hoping are associated with different pedagogical strategies. Phrased differently, the paper seeks to delineate a range of pedagogies of hope. The phrase ‘pedagogy of hope’ is very much associated with critical theory—one thinks instantly of, for example, Paulo Freire, Henry Giroux or bell hooks. There are many pedagogies of hope, however, and an explicitly conservative text such as William Bennett’s Book of Virtues has as strong a claim to the title as Freire’s radical and utopian ideas. A broader argument, therefore, is that there is nothing inherently radical or subversive about a pedagogy of hope. Pedagogies of hope can serve to reproduce social relations as well as to transform them.     

The relation of parenting,child temperament,and attachment security in early childhood to social competence at school entry

A wealth of research demonstrates the importance of early parent–child interactions on children's social functioning. However, less is known about the interrelations between child and parent characteristics and parent–child interactions in early childhood. Moreover, few studies have broadly examined the longitudinal relations between these constructs and social competence. This study is an examination of the relations between parent responsiveness, negativity, and emotional supportiveness, attachment security, and child temperament, and their impact on children's social competence from infancy to kindergarten entry. The sample was derived from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study – Birth Cohort and included 6850 parent–child dyads. Observational and rating scale data were used. The proposed model was nearly fully supported by path analysis, and it provides insight into the complex relations between early parenting behaviors, child characteristics, and parent–child interactions in the development of social competence.     

The Development of Specialized Brain Systems in Reading and Oral-Language

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to examine differences between children (9–12 years) and adults (21–31 years) in the distribution of brain activation during word processing. Orthographic, phonologic, semantic and syntactic tasks were used in both the auditory and visual modalities. Our two principal results were consistent with the hypothesis that development is characterized by increasing specialization. Our first analysis compared activation in children versus adults separately for each modality. Adults showed more activation than children in the unimodal visual areas of middle temporal gyrus and fusiform gyrus for processing written word forms and in the unimodal auditory areas of superior temporal gyrus for processing spoken word forms. Children showed more activation than adults for written word forms in posterior heteromodal regions (Wernicke's area), presumably for the integration of orthographic and phonologic word forms. Our second analysis compared activation in the visual versus auditory modality separately for children and adults. Children showed primarily overlap of activation in brain regions for the visual and auditory tasks. Adults showed selective activation in the unimodal auditory areas of superior temporal gyrus when processing spoken word forms and selective activation in the unimodal visual areas of middle temporal gyrus and fusiform gyrus when processing written word forms.     

Does working memory training lead to generalized improvements in children with low working memory? A randomized controlled trial

Children with low working memory typically make poor educational progress, and it has been speculated that difficulties in meeting the heavy working memory demands of the classroom may be a contributory factor. Intensive working memory training has been shown to boost performance on untrained memory tasks in a variety of populations. This first randomized controlled trial with low working memory children investigated whether the benefits of training extend beyond standard working memory tasks to other more complex activities typical of the classroom in which working memory plays a role, as well as to other cognitive skills and developing academic abilities. Children aged 7–9 years received either adaptive working memory training, non‐adaptive working memory training with low memory loads, or no training. Adaptive training was associated with selective improvements in multiple untrained tests of working memory, with no evidence of changes in classroom analogues of activities that tax working memory, or any other cognitive assessments. Gains in verbal working memory were sustained one year after training. Thus the benefits of working memory training delivered in this way may not extend beyond structured working memory tasks.     

Word List Generation Performancein Alzheimer's Disease and Vascular Dementia

Word list generation (WLG) was examined among clinical samples of individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) (n = 73) or ischemic vascular dementia (IVD) (n = 85), equivalent in age, education, current and estimated premorbid intellectual functioning, and proportion of men and women. The AD group performed significantly better than did the IVD group on lexical WLG, and a trend was observed indicating superior performance among the IVD group on categorical WLG. Within-groups, comparisons of group means, and profile analyses of individual performance patterns all indicated that persons with AD demonstrated a lexical > categorical pattern significantly more often than did IVD participants. The absolute difference in average performance between the AD and IVD groups on lexical and categorical WLG was small; the findings, however, generally support the clinical utility of the lexical > categorical WLG pattern in the differential diagnosis of AD and IVD. The patterns of performance support the presence of relative impairment in semantic processing among the individuals with AD and global deficits in retrieval and processing speed in individuals with IVD.