Development of a borderline personality disorder-relevant picture stimulus set

Individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) report erratic and poorly regulated emotional behavior. However, these abnormalities have not been confirmed in laboratory studies. This may be because the emotional stimuli employed have not been sufficiently relevant or evocative of psychological themes germane to BPD (e.g., threats to attachment). The aim of this study was to develop a picture stimulus set relevant to BPD that could be employed in research to examine emotion dysregulation thought to be central to BPD. Ninety pictures were initially selected from the International Affective Picture System that had putative interpersonal and social content across a range of pleasantness and intensity. The set was then rated by 19 clinical BPD research experts on two dimensions: How self-referential the picture would be to someone with BPD and the extent to which the picture represented an ideal-other to a prototypic BPD case. Two sets of pictures were generated for future research with BPD participants.     

Fostering relationship resilience: An intervention for low self-esteem individuals

Low self-esteem individuals (LSEs) tend to react to relationship threats with self-protective and relationship-destructive behaviors that decrease their partners’ satisfaction with the relationship over time (Murray, Bellavia, Rose, & Griffin, 2003). In the current studies, we examined the effects of a theoretically driven intervention on LSEs’ relationship-destructive responses to threats. Participants were induced to reframe their partners’ compliments in a more abstract, meaningful way (the “abstract reframing intervention” or ARI), an intervention that has been shown to increase LSEs’ security in their relationships (Marigold, Holmes, & Ross, 2007). In Study 1, the ARI prevented LSEs from exaggerating the significance of relationship threats and self-protectively derogating their relationship (reported by LSEs in a one-time experimental situation). In Study 2, the ARI reduced LSEs negative, critical behaviors towards their partners (reported by LSEs’ partners for a 2-3 week period). The findings have important implications for breaking the self-fulfilling cycle of insecurity.     

Sleep deprivation in Air National Guard medical personnel responding to simulated disaster-training exercises

National Guard personnel remain largely unstudied within the sleep research community, despite their unique and important role. In response, the purpose of this study was to investigate the extent of sleep deprivation in National Guard medical personnel from two separate Air Force Bases (AFBs) responding to simulated disaster-training exercises. National Guard medical personnel (N = 77) were fitted with wrist activity monitors (actigraphy) to objectively measure their sleep for 4 days of their civilian time (baseline), followed by a 4-day transition period from civilian to military duty, and a 3–5-day disaster-training exercise. Differences in sleep quantity, quality, and “cognitive effectiveness” were analyzed using generalized linear mixed models. Participants’ sleep quantity was significantly reduced from civilian to disaster-training periods, and their cognitive effectiveness also dropped significantly. National Guard medical personnel were sleep-deprived during a simulated disaster-training exercise, which, although a valid proxy for real-world disasters, is likely to be a conservative approximation of the stress and fatigue National Guard personnel experience during crisis response. As such, the need for targeted fatigue-related interventions to safeguard our service members during these critical times is clear.     

Stereotypic explanatory bias: Implicit stereotyping as a predictor of discrimination

Two experiments examined whether a measure of implicit stereotyping based on the tendency to explain Black stereotype-incongruent events more often than Black stereotype-congruent events (Stereotypic Explanatory Bias or SEB) is predictive of behavior toward a partner in an interracial interaction. In Experiment 1 SEB predicted White males’ choice to ask stereotypic questions of a Black female (but not a White male or White female) in an interview. In Experiment 2 the type of explanation (internal or external attribution) made for stereotype-inconsistency was examined. Results showed that White participants who made internal attributions for Black stereotype-incongruent behavior were rated more positively and those who made external attributions were rated more negatively by a Black male confederate. These results point to the potential of implicit stereotyping as an important predictor of behavior in an interracial interaction.     

Adult Antisocial Behavior And Affect Regulation Among Primary Crack/Cocaine-Using Women

The relationship between deficits in affect regulation and Adult Antisocial Behavior (ASB) in primary crack/cocaine-using women was explored in a sample of 80 inner-city women. Narrative early memories were coded for two components of affect regulation, Affect Tolerance and Affect Expression, using the Epigenetic Assessment Rating Scale (EARS; Wilson, Passik, & Kuras, 1989 ). ASB was measured by the adult criteria of Antisocial Personality Disorder on the SCID-SAC ( Spitzer, Williams, Gibbon, & First, 1993 ). Analyses compared primary crack/cocaine-using women with and without ASB on the affect regulation measures. Findings using memories of primary caretakers revealed that women with ASB had significantly poorer capacity for Affect Tolerance and Affect Expression than women without ASB, suggesting that ASB is significantly associated with differences in the capacity to regulate emotional experience among primary crack/cocaine-using women.     

Developing an Online Early Detection System for School Attendance Problems: Results From a Research-Community Partnership

School refusal and other school attendance problems are vexing problems for school-aged youth, families, school personnel, and clinicians. However, few resources exist to detect problematic attendance. The current report describes three steps of a research-community partnership to develop an early identification program to detect youth at risk for problematic attendance. First, a survey was conducted to estimate the scope and cost of school refusal across grades K–12. School administrators estimated relatively few youth exhibiting significant school refusal (missing 5 or more days per year) but estimated the costs associated with services for these youth to be very high (mean cost of in-district programs: $94,052; mean cost of out-of-district placements: $496,657). Second, elementary school counselors were tasked with tracking absenteeism among at-risk youth using an online attendance tracking prototype. Counselors identified a high number of youth who showed elevated absences, lates, or early departures (17.2% of enrolled students), and counselor ratings were significantly related to whether the student (a) had received an individualized education plan or 504 plan, (b) had a sibling with similar attendance problems, (c) was older, or (d) had divorced or separated parents. In a final step, counselor feedback was sought and revisions were incorporated in the attendance tracker. Findings reinforce the prevalence and cost of school attendance problems, provide guidance for using technology to monitor attendance and related indices (tardies, early departures), and direct attention to youth factors that may be useful in identifying youth at risk for poor attendance.     

Neural adaptation across viewpoint and exemplar in fusiform cortex

The visual system has the remarkable ability to generalize across different viewpoints and exemplars to recognize abstract categories of objects, and to discriminate between different viewpoints and exemplars to recognize specific instances of particular objects. Behavioral experiments indicate the critical role of the right hemisphere in specific-viewpoint and -exemplar visual form processing and the left hemisphere in abstract-viewpoint and -exemplar visual form processing. Neuroimaging studies indicate the role of fusiform cortex in these processes, however results conflict in their support of the behavioral findings. We investigated this inconsistency in the present study by examining adaptation across viewpoint and exemplar changes in the functionally defined fusiform face area (FFA) and in fusiform regions exhibiting adaptation. Subjects were adapted to particular views of common objects and then tested with objects appearing in four critical conditions: same-exemplar, same-viewpoint adapted, same-exemplar, different-viewpoint adapted, different-exemplar adapted, and not adapted. In line with previous results, the FFA demonstrated a release from neural adaptation for repeated different viewpoints and exemplars of an object. In contrast to previous work, a (non-FFA) right medial fusiform area also demonstrated a release from neural adaptation for repeated different viewpoints and exemplars of an object. Finally, a left lateral fusiform area demonstrated neural adaptation for repeated different viewpoints, but not exemplars, of an object. Test-phase task demands did not affect adaptation in these regions. Together, results suggest that dissociable neural subsystems in fusiform cortex support the specific identification of a particular object and the abstract recognition of that object observed from a different viewpoint. In addition, results suggest that areas within fusiform cortex do not support abstract recognition of different exemplars of objects within a category.     

The Relationship between Workplace Status and Workplace Religious Expression

A growing body of literature explores religious expression in workplaces, but comparatively little research examines how religious expression might be shaped by inequality in workplace status. We hypothesize that perceived work autonomy and socioeconomic status (SES) both function as mediating links between organizational status and religious expression. Drawing on a sample of employed adults from a nationally-representative survey in the United States (n = 8611), we examine three modes of religious expression at work: displaying faith, feeling comfortable talking about faith, and expressing views when observing unfair work practices that conflict with faith. Results revealed that workers at the bottom of their organizations express their religiosity less than those at the top. Religious expression in the workplace is thus not simply a reflection of individual religiosity or religious identity, but also workplace power. Although perceived work autonomy mediated the relationship, SES buffered the relationship. Findings have important implications for workplace policy.     

Play Therapy in a Natural Setting: A Case Example

Play therapy is commonly used when working with children in counseling. Play therapists work at a developmentally appropriate level to assist children with a variety of mental health and behavioral concerns. Traditionally, play therapy and many counseling methods occur in office settings. We propose that play therapists and other mental health professionals working with children integrate nature and natural settings into their work. The use of nature has been shown to be effective in helping people cope with mental health and physical ailments. In this article, we explore the benefits of the use of nature in mental health and provide a case example of the use of nature and natural settings in counseling.