A preliminary investigation of the relationship between emotion regulation difficulties and posttraumatic stress symptoms

This study examined the relationship between posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms and particular aspects of emotion regulation difficulties among trauma-exposed individuals. Participants were an ethnically diverse sample of 108 undergraduates from an urban university. PTS symptom severity was found to be associated with lack of emotional acceptance, difficulty engaging in goal-directed behavior when upset, impulse-control difficulties, limited access to effective emotion regulation strategies, and lack of emotional clarity. Further, overall difficulties in emotion regulation were associated with PTS symptom severity, controlling for negative affect. Finally, individuals exhibiting PTS symptoms indicative of a PTSD diagnosis reported greater difficulties with emotion regulation than those reporting PTS symptoms at a subthreshold level. The implications of these findings for research and treatment are discussed.     

Cultural differences in young children's vulnerability to injuries: a risk and protection perspective.

Interview data from 100 lower income Hispanic and 50 White mothers from a nutritional service clinic extended prior research on cultural differences in the risk for unintentional pediatric injuries. Group differences were expected in reported injury incidence and in the prevalence and impact of contributing factors. As predicted, White mothers reported more injuries for a young child, and among Hispanic mothers, English language preference and use were associated with more reported injuries. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that risky behaviors, mother's judgment about child compliance, and stressful life events were better predictors of injuries than housing quality, but among Hispanics, the impact of certain factors (e.g. child temperament) was qualified by mother's acculturation level. Stress and child temperament explained injury differences between more- and less-acculturated Hispanic families but only partially accounted for differences between White mothers and less-acculturated Hispanics. Pediatric injury risk and protective factors seemed to operate in concert with cultural processes.     

The Roles of Semantic and Phonological Information in Word Production: Evidence from Spanish–English Bilinguals

The research investigated the roles of semantic and phonological processing in word production. Spanish–English bilingual individuals produced English target words when cued with definitions that were also written in English. When the correct word was not produced, a secondary task was performed in which participants rated the ease of pronunciation of a Spanish prime word. We varied the relatedness between target and prime words. In related conditions, the target and prime words were cognates (i.e., similar in meaning and sound), false cognates (i.e., similar in sound, but different in meaning), or noncognates (i.e., similar in meaning, but different in sound). In unrelated conditions, target and primes were dissimilar in sound and meaning. The results showed that participants’ performance was influenced by semantic as well as phonological information. These results provided evidence that semantic as well as phonological information can influence word production, as is predicted by memory models in which representations for semantic and phonological levels of representation are interconnected.     

Power,empowerment and surrender in the context of paediatric spiritual care

The dynamics of ‘surrender’ is here put in dialectic with the dynamics of ‘power’ observed in situation involving children and their caregivers in a paediatric hospital setting. Following a qualitative research method used in practical theology, three case studies are presented and then interpreted in the light of both social sciences and Christian theology/spirituality. In the power/surrender paradox, there will always be a need for discernment for each situation and each encounter if the caregiver wants to better care for the children and continue to acknowledge their contribution to the life experience and wisdom of adults. Power and surrender both need to be embraced in order to grow in a fruitful spiritual life.     

UTILIZATION OF VIDEO MODELING COMBINED WITH SELF‐MONITORING TO INCREASE RATES OF ON‐TASK BEHAVIOR

The study investigated the effectiveness of an intervention package consisting of self‐monitoring and video modeling to increase on‐task behavior during independent seatwork time in math. Four students in either the second or third grade, identified as displaying high rates of off‐task behavior by their classroom teacher, were included in the study. Results showed immediate, large, and durable changes in on‐task behavior for each of the four participants. At baseline, on‐task behavior of the participants while working on independent math assignments was displayed in 47% of the intervals observed. During the intervention, the participants' average rate of on‐task behavior increased to 85% of the intervals observed. Mean Busk and Serlin (1994) effect size for all four participants was 5.60, with a percentage of non‐overlapping data points effect size of 100%. Observations of the participants 3 weeks following the termination of the study showed that the gains in on‐task behavior were maintained. Both teacher and participant feedbacks concerning the use and effectiveness of the intervention package were positive. Results of the investigation suggest that the intervention package may be an effective and socially valid method for addressing off‐task behaviors of students within the classroom. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Let's kōrero (talk): The practice and functions of reminiscing among mothers and children in Māori families

Māori adults recall earlier memories than New Zealand European or Chinese adults, highlighting the importance of memory in Māori culture. In this study, Māori preschool children and their mothers (N = 41) reminisced about a diverse range of past events, including everyday events, the child's birth, cultural rituals and the child's misbehaviour. Mothers also reported how frequently they discussed past events with their children, as well as their level of affiliation with Māori culture. Mothers who reported higher levels of cultural affiliation also reported reminiscing more frequently about a diverse range of past events. Mothers reminisced in more elaborative ways about everyday events with their children compared to birth stories, cultural rituals and misbehaviours. Maternal reminiscing about cultural rituals and misbehaviours, however, along with maternal reminiscing about everyday events and birth stories, were significantly correlated with children's memory across conversations. These results underscore the continued importance of reminiscing about culturally relevant events in Māori culture, and the newfound importance for Māori families of reminiscing about everyday events.