Applying artificial neural network models to clinical decision making

Because psychological assessment typically lacks biological gold standards, it traditionally has relied on clinicians' expert knowledge. A more empirically based approach frequently has applied linear models to data to derive meaningful constructs and appropriate measures. Statistical inferences are then used to assess the generality of the findings. This article introduces artificial neural networks (ANNs), flexible nonlinear modeling techniques that test a model's generality by applying its estimates against "future" data. ANNs have potential for overcoming some shortcomings of linear models. The basics of ANNs and their applications to psychological assessment are reviewed. Two examples of clinical decision making are described in which an ANN is compared with linear models, and the complexity of the network performance is examined. Issues salient to psychological assessment are addressed.     

The relationship of sex-role orientation to self-perceived health status in middle-aged males

The purpose of this study was to determine how sex-role orientation was related to self-perceived health status among a group of middle-aged males. A nonprobability sample of 237 male volunteers between the ages of 40 and 59, of whom 88.7% were engaged in professional occupations, completed the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) and two separate measures employed to assess self-perceived health status. As predicted, the results indicated that on both measures of self-perceived health status, the middle-aged men with a traditional male sex-role orientation or those in the masculine classification reported lower self-perceived levels of health than did males considered to be androgynous. In this sample of professional middle-aged males, an androgynous sex-role orientation was, therefore, associated with higher levels of self-perceived health than was a traditional male sex-role orientation. Finally, an unhypothesized finding was that the men in the undifferentiated category also evidenced lower levels of self-perceived health than males who were androgynous.This research was part of a doctoral dissertation submitted to the University of Maryland, College Park.     

中国人的时间知觉广度

时间知觉是社会结构和文化传统的映射,具有深刻的社会文化意涵。本文聚焦时间知觉广度这一概念,探讨中国人的时间知觉广度及其对自我连续性和社会变化观等心理过程的影响。通过综合讨论诸多实验发现提出,中国人具有较大的时间知觉广度,包括具有显著的过去取向和未来取向。较大的时间知觉广度提升了中国人跨时间的自我连续性,并且影响着中国人看待世事变化的变化观,这些特点又进一步影响到其它心理过程,例如对苦难和幸福的解读,在股票市场中的决策等。在一定程度上,这些特点可能是中国人在应对不确定性和重大危机时表现出更强的心理韧性和复原力的心理基础。本研究还指出中国人时间知觉广度具有独特的文化意义,包括整体性思维、过去现在未来互嵌互动和双向延展、与自我连续性和社会结构相关联以及具有道德属性等。基于此,本研究提出了时间知觉广度的文化心理比较模型,并分析了时间知觉广度对自我同一性和文化同一性的影响结果。希望本文能为进一步研究“中国人应对历史危机的心理特征与行为表现”提供科学依据。     

公正世界信念对大学生助人意愿的影响：责任归因和帮助代价的作用

采用个人公正世界信念量表、自编的助人假设情境,先后以198名、415名大学生为被试,通过两项研究考察了责任归因和帮助代价在个人公正世界信念影响个体助人意愿中的作用。结果表明：（1）个人公正世界信念及个体对受困者遭遇的外归因,均可以显著正向预测个体的助人意愿,但个人公正世界信念与责任归因之间无显著相关。控制性别、年级和社会称许性的影响后,个体对受困者遭遇的外归因及个人公正世界信念分别可以解释5.7%和6%的变异;（2）个人公正世界信念对助人意愿的作用受到帮助代价与责任归因的调节,只有在低代价、外归因的条件下,个人公正世界信念越强,助人意愿才越高。这些结果对亲社会行为的促进具有重要启示。     

Social and emotional loneliness and self‐reported difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep (DIMS) in a sample of Norwegian university students

Social and emotional loneliness negatively impact several areas of health, including sleep. However, few comprehensive population‐based studies have evaluated this relationship. Over 12,000 students aged 21–35 years who participated in the student survey for higher education in Norway (the SHoT study) were assessed. Loneliness was assessed using the Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale. Difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep (DIMS) was assessed by a single‐item subjective response on the depression scale of the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist (HSCL‐25). Social loneliness was associated with more serious DIMS (unadjusted proportional odds‐ratio [OR] = 2.69, 95% CI = 2.46–2.95). This association was attenuated following adjustment for anxiety (adjusted OR = 1.92, 95% CI = 1.75–2.10) and depression (adjusted OR = 1.48, 95% CI = 1.34–1.63), however was not substantially altered when all demographics and psychological distress were accounted for (fully adjusted OR = 1.46, 95% CI = 1.30–1.63). Emotional loneliness was also associated with more serious DIMS (unadjusted proportional OR = 2.33, 95% CI = 2.12–2.57). Adjustment for anxiety (adjusted OR = 1.96, 95% CI = 1.78–2.15) and depression (adjusted OR = 1.64, 95% CI = 1.48–1.80) attenuated, but did not extinguish this relationship in the fully adjusted model (adjusted OR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.09–1.31). Mediation analyses revealed that the social loneliness‐DIMS association was fully attributed to psychological distress, while the emotional loneliness‐DIMS association was only partially mediated, and a direct association was still observed. Associations between social and emotional loneliness and subjective DIMS were embedded in a larger pattern of psychological distress. Mitigating underlying feelings of loneliness may reduce potentially deleterious effects on sleep health and psychological wellbeing in young adults.     

MAOA基因T941G多态性与同伴侵害对男青少年早期抑郁的交互作用:COMT基因Val158Met多态性的调节效应

抑郁具有复杂的多基因遗传基础,然而既有研究大多采用单基因以及单基因-环境交互设计(G×E)考察抑郁的遗传机制。以757名男青少年为被试(初次测评时Mage=11.32岁,SD=0.49岁),采用多基因-环境交互(G×G×E)设计,本研究考察了MAOA(monoamine oxidase A,单胺氧化酶A)基因T941G多态性、COMT(catechol-O-methyltransferase,儿茶酚胺氧位甲基转移酶)基因Val158Met多态性与同伴侵害对青少年早期抑郁的影响。结果显示,MAOA基因T941G多态性与同伴侵害交互作用于青少年抑郁,同伴侵害仅显著正向预测G等位基因(而非T等位基因)青少年抑郁。而且,MAOA基因T941G多态性与同伴侵害的交互作用受到COMT基因Val158Met多态性的调节,上述交互作用仅存在于COMT Met等位基因而非Val/Val基因型携带者中。研究结果显示,抑郁的产生与个体差异存在多基因与环境间的复杂交互机制。     

发展级联:解释个体纵向发展的新视角

发展级联(developmental cascades)近年来已成为发展心理学追踪研究中一种重要的理论视角。其基本观点是:人的发展过程是一个诸多发展特征不断产生级联效应的过程,某个时间点上个体特征的发展状况会对该特征的后续发展产生影响,并影响其他领域的发展,进而影响到个体的整个发展进程。在发展级联的理论观点基础上形成的相关方法学模型,为探究发展系统中多个因素之间的纵向关联提供了方法学依据与指导。本文介绍了发展级联的相关概念、理论基础、主要观点以及相关的方法学问题,并对其在实证研究中的应用进行了展望。     

3~5岁儿童对同伴侵害归因的特征研究

以济南市一所普通公立幼儿园的284名3~5岁儿童为被试,采用访谈法考察了儿童对同伴侵害的归因。研究结果表明:(1)3~5岁儿童对同伴侵害的归因包括敌意归因、自责归因、中立归因和无归因四种情况。(2)总体而言,自责归因随年龄增长逐渐增多,无归因逐渐减少,4~5岁是转折期。(3)儿童自责归因和无归因人数比例在财物侵害中最低,中立归因人数比例在财物侵害中最高;无归因人数比例在言语侵害中最高,中立归因人数比例在言语侵害中最低。     

童年中晚期攻击的发展轨迹和性别差异：基于母亲报告的分析

采用母亲报告的方法, 对1618名儿童的攻击进行了4年(9岁~12岁)的追踪研究, 分析了童年中晚期攻击的一般发展轨迹、亚组发展轨迹以及性别差异。结果发现：(1)总体上, 童年中晚期儿童的攻击水平随年龄而下降。(2)基于亚组的准参数模型分析表明, 童年中晚期母亲报告的儿童攻击呈现三条不同的发展轨迹, 即无攻击轨迹、低攻击—下降轨迹以及持续高攻击轨迹, 各轨迹组人数比例分别约为68.7%、26.8%、4.5%。持续高攻击轨迹组以及低攻击—下降轨迹组的儿童在童年晚期均面临一定程度的人际适应困难。(3)多项Logit模型以及卡方检验表明, 男生更倾向于归属于攻击轨迹组(高或者低攻击轨迹组), 而女生更倾向于归属于无攻击轨迹组; 但这并不说明高攻击轨迹组中没有女生, 约2%的女生属于高攻击轨迹组。     

发展心理学研究中个体定向的理论与方法

长期以来, 发展心理学研究主要采取变量定向的方法。近年来, 随着发展心理学理论的发展和人类发展个体差异的科学事实的积累, 个体定向的方法得以发展并且成为发展心理学研究的主要方法思路之一。个体定向的方法关注作为整体的个体, 旨在确定有意义的同质性个体类别或亚组。个体定向的方法包括一系列的基本理论原则, 具体数据分析方法包括传统聚类分析、基于模型的聚类方法以及配置频次分析等。发展心理学研究需综合运用个体定向的方法与变量定向的方法。