Attention demands during reading and the occurrence of brief (express) fixations

Eye movements were recorded while subjects read passages of text repeatedly (Experiment 1) and while normal text and strings ofhomogeneous letters were fixated (Experiment 2). Text repetition decreased fixation durations and increased saccade size, presumably because it decreased attention demands. Irrespective ofrepetition, however, no distinct distribution of brief (express) fixations emerged. In Experiment 2, fixation durations were shorter and saccades were larger when strings of homogeneous letters were “read,” indicating that this condition decreased attention demands. Again, however, no distinct distribution of express fixations emerged. These findings pose problems for the view that attentional processes determine the occurrence of brief (express) fixation durations in reading. Supplementary analyses of Experiments 1 and 2 suggested that visuospatial processing affected fixation durations, irrespective of linguistic processing demands.     

Predicting Evacuation in Two Major Disasters: Risk Perception,Social Influence,and Access to Resources1

The complex and somewhat bewildering phenomenon of why people sometimes decide not to evacuate from a dangerous situation is influenced by a combination of individual characteristics and 3 basic social psychological processes: (a) risk perception, (b) social influence, and (c) access to resources. This study used a combined sample of 777 adults interviewed after Hurricanes Hugo and Andrew. Although numerous variables significantly predicted evacuation, much variance in this behavior still remained unexplained. Different population subgroups gave different reasons for not evacuating (e.g., severeness of storm, territoriality). A multifaceted and tailored approach to both individuals and communities is needed; a simple warning is often not enough.     

A study of timing in a manual and a spoken language: American sign language and English

A comparative analysis of the time variables in the production of speech and sign reveals that signers modify their global physical rate primarily by altering the time they spend articulating, whereas speakers do so by changing the time they spend pausing. When signers increase or decrease their pause time, however little they do so, they alter the number and the length of the pauses equally, whereas speakers primarily alter the number of pauses and leave their pause durations relatively constant. An analysis of the durations of signs reveals that signs are longer at the end of sentences than within sentences and that the first occurrence of a sign is longer than the second when syntactic location is controlled (both these findings have already been reported for spoken language). The inherent duration of a sign can be accounted for almost totally by the movement characteristic; handshape, location, and number of hands in a sign are of little importance. Finally, signers retain their regular quiet-breathing respiratory pattern across signing rates and inhale at locations independent of syntactic importance. In this they are quite unlike speakers, who breathe at syntactic breaks.This research was supported in part by Grant R03 MH 28133, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare.     

Body Dissatisfaction in Adolescent Boys and Girls: Objectified Body Consciousness, Internalization of the Media Body Ideal and Perceived Pressure from Media

The aim of the present study was to examine a theoretical model describing the relationships between body shame and body surveillance (components of objectified body consciousness), internalization of the media body ideal, perceived pressure from media, body mass index and body dissatisfaction in Swiss adolescent boys and girls. A sample of 819 boys and 791 girls aged 14–16 years completed self-report measures of the mentioned concepts. As expected, girls had higher body shame and body surveillance than boys. Structural equation modelling supported the proposed model in both boys and girls. The findings suggest processes that may contribute to body dissatisfaction.     

The intensity of recent and distant life regrets: an integrated model and a large scale survey

The research considers three predictors of the intensity of life regrets: (a) whether the regretted behaviour is an action or a failure to act, (b) the severity of its consequences and (c) the extent to which the behaviour was justified. It is hypothesised that the intensity of recent and distant regrets will be predicted by different combinations of these predictors. Regression analyses on regrets reported by 957 French adults support this hypothesis. The intensity of recent regrets is predicted by the consequences of the behaviour, and especially so for actions. The intensity of distant regrets is predicted by the consequences of the behaviour and by its justification, the effect of justification being stronger for actions than for inactions. These results are discussed in relation to both laboratory and field studies of regret. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Neonatal ventral hippocampus lesions disrupt extra-dimensional shift and alter dendritic spine density in the medial prefrontal cortex of juvenile rats

Recent data showed that neonatal ventral hippocampus (VH) lesions, an approach used to model schizophrenia symptoms in rodents, produce premature deficits of working memory believed to be associated with early medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) maldevelopment. This experiment expands the investigation of mPFC integrity in juvenile rats with neonatal VH lesions by assessing behavioral flexibility and dendritic spine density. Sixteen Sprague-Dawley male pups received bilateral microinjections of ibotenic acid in the VH or SHAM surgery on postnatal day (PND) 6. On PND 29 and 30, rats were subjected to a spatial shift task in a cross-maze; an attentional set-shifting task was then administered on two consecutive days, between PND 33 and PND 35. Rats were sacrificed at PND 36 and dendritic spine density in the mPFC was assessed using Golgi-Cox staining procedure. Results revealed impaired extra-dimensional shift in VH-lesioned rats and inconsistent reversal discrimination outcomes. Although lesioned animals displayed intact performance in the spatial shift, rates of perseverative responses were higher than normal in this task. Neonatal VH damage resulted in lower dendritic spine density in the mPFC than measured in control brains; however, no significant correlation was found between this outcome and behavioral data. Juvenile morphological and cognitive perturbations are consistent with the early emergence of mPFC anomalies following neonatal VH lesions. Results are discussed in relation with potential common mechanisms linking pre- and post-pubertal onsets of behavioral dysfunction.     

A longitudinal examination of risky sexual behaviors among Canadian and Italian adolescents: Considering individual, parental, and friend characteristics

In this study, two longitudinal models of early adolescent risky sexual behaviors (RSB) were compared using a pooled sample of 267 Canadian and Italian adolescents (55% females; 53% Canadians) assessed yearly from grade 8 to 10. We focused on parenting practices (monitoring, control, limit setting), adolescent problem behaviors (antisocial behaviors, substance use) and their friends' deviance (antisocial behaviors, substance use) as predictors of condom use frequency and lifetime number of sexual partners. The socialization model postulates that youths' problem behaviors and RSB are behaviors learned within the friendship network where deviancy training can occur. The selection model posits that delinquent youth tend to affiliate with each other, and that RSB is one of many behaviors that can form the basis of selection. Using structural equation modeling, this study showed that the socialization model was the most accurate to explain the emergence of RSB. A full mediation of parenting practices, passing through deviant friends and youths' problem behavior, was observed for condom use. The same process applied to number of sexual partners, but a direct effect for parenting practices was also found.     

Validation of the German version of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire (SATAQ-G)

The Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire (SATAQ) is widely used in the English-speaking countries as a measure of sociocultural influences on body image. Aim of this study was to provide validation data for three subscales of a boys’ and girls’ German version of the SATAQ (SATAQ-G). A sample of 819 male and 791 female Swiss adolescents completed the SATAQ-G internalization of body ideals, perceived pressure and awareness subscales. They also completed assessments of body dissatisfaction, weight and shape concerns, drive for thinness, weight and height. Factor analyses replicated the three subscales of the SATAQ for the boys’ as well as for the girls’ version. All three subscales showed good internal consistency. The internalization and pressure subscales indicated acceptable convergent validity. Awareness did not significantly predict body dissatisfaction. The SATAQ-G, particularly the subscales internalization and perceived pressure, seems to be a satisfactory measure of sociocultural influences on body image.     

Negative consequences of community group participation for women's mental health and well‐being: Implications for gender aware social capital building

Participation in community groups is argued to be an important way to create health‐promoting social capital. However, relatively little attention has been paid to the ways in which gender affects the health promotion potential of participation. This paper reports on a qualitative study of women's experiences of participation in a diverse range of community groups, and considers how such involvement can potentially have a negative impact upon mental well‐being. In‐depth interviews were conducted with 30 women in Adelaide, South Australia. Women's accounts of their group involvement reflected that their identities as mothers were particularly important in shaping their participation. Some women reported difficulties in combining group involvement with their family responsibilities. Stress attached to negotiating social interaction within groups was also raised as an issue. It was found that participation can reinforce gender inequality and potentially have severe negative consequences for mental health, issues that need to be considered alongside the potential health benefits. The findings are considered in light of Bourdieu's critical conceptualization of social capital. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparing models of helper behavior to actual practice in telephone crisis intervention: a Silent Monitoring Study of Calls to the U.S. 1-800-SUICIDE Network

Models of telephone crisis intervention in suicide prevention and best practices were developed from a literature review and surveys of crisis centers. We monitored 2,611 calls to 14 centers using reliable behavioral ratings to compare actual interventions with the models. Active listening and collaborative problem-solving models describe help provided. Centers vary greatly in the nature of interventions and their quality according to predetermined criteria. Helpers do not systematically assess suicide risk. Some lives may have been saved but occasionally unacceptable responses occur. Recommendations include the need for quality assurance, development of standardized practices and research relating intervention processes to outcomes.