Sex differences in the occupational choices of second graders

A questionnaire was administered to 61 second graders. Sexual differences in occupational choices were apparent. Boys chose twice as many occupations as girls. Of 29 occupations selected as “most desirable,” only one was mentioned by both boys and girls. Of 37 occupations selected as “least desirable,” only two were mentioned by both sexes. More boys than girls knew their father's occupation. Although 76% of the girls knew their father's occupation, they did not select that occupation for themselves. A series of hypotheses based on the above data was generated.     

Multisensory Stimulation to Improve Low- and Higher-Level Sensory Deficits after Stroke: A Systematic Review

The aim of this systematic review was to integrate and assess evidence for the effectiveness of multisensory stimulation (i.e., stimulating at least two of the following sensory systems: visual, auditory, and somatosensory) as a possible rehabilitation method after stroke. Evidence was considered with a focus on low-level, perceptual (visual, auditory and somatosensory deficits), as well as higher-level, cognitive, sensory deficits. We referred to the electronic databases Scopus and PubMed to search for articles that were published before May 2015. Studies were included which evaluated the effects of multisensory stimulation on patients with low- or higher-level sensory deficits caused by stroke. Twenty-one studies were included in this review and the quality of these studies was assessed (based on eight elements: randomization, inclusion of control patient group, blinding of participants, blinding of researchers, follow-up, group size, reporting effect sizes, and reporting time post-stroke). Twenty of the twenty-one included studies demonstrate beneficial effects on low- and/or higher-level sensory deficits after stroke. Notwithstanding these beneficial effects, the quality of the studies is insufficient for valid conclusion that multisensory stimulation can be successfully applied as an effective intervention. A valuable and necessary next step would be to set up well-designed randomized controlled trials to examine the effectiveness of multisensory stimulation as an intervention for low- and/or higher-level sensory deficits after stroke. Finally, we consider the potential mechanisms of multisensory stimulation for rehabilitation to guide this future research.     

Dyadic Examination of the Influence of Family Relationships on Life Satisfaction at the Empty-Nest Stage

The aim of this study on determinants of life satisfaction in adulthood was to test actor–partner interdependence models among couples in the phase of the family life cycle following the departure of their children from the parental home. Using structural equation modeling, measures of family relationships, such as a person’s own and his/her partner’s marital adjustment, the amount of contact with children (and grandchildren, if applicable), and being a grandparent or not, served as independent variables to predict each partner’s satisfaction with life. A sample comprising 102 couples (of which 58 couples had grandchildren), all at the empty-nest stage, participated in the study. Results revealed that, for both husbands and wives, the effects of their own marital adjustment and the amount of contact with their adult children on their satisfaction with life were significant. A partner effect was also confirmed between wives’ marital adjustment and their husbands’ satisfaction with life. Furthermore, although being a grandparent did not predict higher life satisfaction for the whole sample of couples, the path between the amount of contact with grandchildren and life satisfaction was significant for the subsample of women who were grandmothers. Results are discussed in terms of the needs filled by these family relationships.     

Preparing Interventionists via Telepractice in Incidental Teaching for Children with Autism

Telepractice has emerged as a potentially effective means of preparing parents and educators as interventionists for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of telepractice to train interventionists to implement incidental teaching with preschool children with ASD. Three interventionists were taught to implement incidental teaching using a telepractice training package consisting of an online module, self-evaluation, and delayed performance feedback delivered via videoconferencing. A single-case multiple-baseline across-participant design was employed to evaluate the effects of the telepractice training package on interventionist acquisition and maintenance of incidental teaching. The distal effects of interventionist implementation of incidental teaching on child mands were also evaluated. Results showed that following the telepractice training program, interventionist implementation fidelity improved and child mands increased. Within six telepractice sessions, all interventionists reached the preset performance criteria of four consecutive sessions above 90 % fidelity. Changes in interventionist and child behaviors maintained at 2- and 4-week follow-up sessions. Taken together, these results suggest that telepractice is a promising method of providing instruction in incidental teaching to interventionists of young children with ASD.     

Rare targets are less susceptible to attention capture once detection has begun

Rare or low probability targets are detected more slowly and/ or less accurately than higher probability counterparts. Various proposals have implicated perceptual and response-based processes in this deficit. Recent evidence, however, suggests that it is attentional in nature, with low probability targets requiring more attentional resources than high probability ones to detect. This difference in attentional requirements, in turn, suggests the possibility that low and high probability targets may have different susceptibilities to attention capture, which is also known to be resource-dependent. Supporting this hypothesis, we found that, once attentional resources have begun to be engaged by detection processes, low, but not high, probability targets have a reduced susceptibility to capture. Our findings speak to several issues. First, they indicate that the likelihood of attention capture occurring when a given task-relevant stimulus is being processed is dependent, to some extent, on how said stimulus is represented within mental task sets. Second, they provide added support for the idea that the behavioural deficit associated with low probability targets is attention-based. Finally, the current data point to reduced top-down biasing of target templates as a likely mechanism underlying the attentional locus of the deficit in question.     

Everyday Life Cognitive Instability Predicts Simple Reaction Time Variability: Analysis of Reaction Time Distributions and Delta Plots

The goal of this study is to understand the interface between subjectively assessed and objectively measured attention functioning. To this end, we assessed both self‐report data using the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) and sustained‐attention performance using a low‐demand psychomotor vigilance task that required participants to respond to visual targets. Unlike previous studies, reliability of task performance was ensured, testing individuals twice within a retest interval of 1 week. Given that everyday life attentional lapse tendencies vary even in normal‐population samples, we asked whether there is a relationship with laboratory performance, in general and as a consequence of time on task (TOT). As a result, low (versus high) CFQ scorers were somewhat different in their average response speed but became particularly prone to lapsing during the task period, as reflected in standard measures of response‐speed variability as well as ex‐Gaussian parameters of distributional skewness. In conclusion, we argue that persistence to sustained demand might be an important aspect of construct validity that must be evoked by a manipulation of TOT, which may be useful for the evaluation of questionnaires in ecologically valid situations. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Use of positive interventions: Does neuroticism moderate the sustainability of their effects on happiness?

Previous research indicates that performing positive activities boosts happiness. The present studies examined whether neuroticism would moderate the sustainability of the effects of positive activities on happiness. Study 1 showed that the effects of counting blessings/kindness daily for seven days lasted a week after participants stopped performing the activity, but only for low-neuroticism individuals (who reported increased happiness) and not high-neuroticism individuals. However, a week post-intervention, gratitude-/kindness-listing participants were more likely to choose an amusing rather than a sad film, regardless of neuroticism differences. This suggests that behavioral choice is more sensitive to positive intervention effects than self-reported happiness. In Study 2, high-neuroticism individuals who occasionally visualized and wrote about their best possible selves over three weeks were happier than their counterparts in the control condition. The present research illustrates that although neuroticism moderates the sustainability of positive intervention effects, encouraging continuance of positive activities may produce more lasting effects.     

Effects of Gender,Socioeconomic Status,and Early Academic Performance on Postsecondary Educational Choice

National data were used to study the effects of gender, socioeconomic status (SES), and 4 types of eighth‐grade academic performance on postsecondary educational choices at late adolescence. Educational choices were classified by predominant Holland type (R, I, A, S, E, C). Gender had strongest independent influences on educational choice. Gender also interacted with SES and academic performance. Relationships between SES and educational choice were stronger for women than for men. For women, eighth‐grade reading scores were the strongest predictor of educational choice, whereas for men, mathematics scores were the strongest predictor. Implications for theory and counseling practice are discussed.