Callous-Unemotional Traits,Relational and Social Aggression,and Interpersonal Maturity in a Sample of Behaviorally Disordered Adolescents

The authors examined the degree to which callous-unemotional traits and narcissism predict relational aggression, social aggression, and prosocial skills in a sample of 79 adolescent offenders (13–18 years old; 26% girls; 74% boys) attending a school for youth with behavior disorders in the Mid-Atlantic United States. Narcissism made a significant contribution to the prediction of both relational aggression and social aggression, accounting for most of the unique variance in the prediction of these indirect forms of aggression. Conversely, callous-unemotional traits—but not narcissism—made a significant contribution to the prediction of lower prosocial skills. Furthermore, in contrast to the large number of studies indicating gender differences in the expression of aggression, no significant gender differences in the present study were found.     

Design of the Steps to Health Study of Physical Activity in Survivors of Endometrial Cancer: Testing a Social Cognitive Theory Model

Physical activity has been shown to benefit cancer survivors' physical functioning, emotional well-being, and symptoms. Physical activity may be of particular benefit to survivors of endometrial cancer because they are more likely to be obese and sedentary than the general population, as these are risk factors for the disease, and thus experience a number of related co-morbid health problems. However, there is little research systematically studying mechanisms of physical activity adherence in cancer survivor populations. This paper describes the design of the Steps to Health study, which applies a Social Cognitive Theory-based model of endometrial cancer survivors' adoption and maintenance of exercise in the context of an intervention to increase walking or other moderate intensity cardiovascular activity. In Steps to Health we will test the influence of self-efficacy and outcome expectations on adherence to exercise recommendations, as well as studying the determinants of self-efficacy. Endometrial cancer survivors who are at least 6 months post-treatment are provided with an intervention involving print materials and telephone counseling, and complete assessments of fitness, activity, self-efficacy and outcome expectations, and determinants of self-efficacy every two months for a six month period. In addition to testing an innovative model, the Steps to Health study employs multiple assessment methods, including ecological momentary assessment, implicit tests of cognitive variables, and ambulatory monitoring of physical activity. The study results can be used to develop more effective interventions for increasing physical activity in sedentary cancer survivors by taking into account the full complement of sources of self-efficacy information and outcome expectations.     

Changes and challenges in 20 years of research into the development of executive functions

This review of 20 years of developmental research on Executive Functions (EF) offers a broad‐brushstroke picture that touches on multiple issues including: (i) findings from typical and atypical groups, from infancy to adolescence; (ii) advances in assessment tools and in statistical analysis; (iii) the interplay between EF and other cognitive systems (e.g. those involved in children's developing understanding of mind, and in their processing of reward signals); (iv) integration of cognitive and neuroscience perspectives on EF; and (v) environmental factors that have either a positive influence (e.g. training/intervention programmes; parental scaffolding) or a negative influence (e.g. maltreatment, neglect, traumatic brain injury) on EF. Of the several themes to emerge from this review, two are particularly important; these concern the need to adopt developmental perspectives and the potential importance for intervention work of research on social influences on EF. Specifically, the review highlights both developmental continuities (e.g. in the correlates of EF) and contrasts (e.g. in the nature of EF and its neural substrates) and calls for research that compares developmental trajectories for EF in different groups (e.g. children with autism versus ADHD). In addition, findings from both family‐based research and randomized controlled trials of school‐based interventions highlight the importance of environmental influences on EF and so support the development of interventions to promote EF and hence improve children's academic and social outcomes. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Executive function deficits in autism spectrum disorders and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: examining profiles across domains and ages

Deficits in 'executive function' (EF) are characteristic of several clinical disorders, most notably Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). In this study, age- and IQ-matched groups with ASD, ADHD, or typical development (TD) were compared on a battery of EF tasks tapping three core domains: response selection/inhibition, flexibility, and planning/working memory. Relations between EF, age and everyday difficulties (rated by parents and teachers) were also examined. Both clinical groups showed significant EF impairments compared with TD peers. The ADHD group showed greater inhibitory problems on a Go-no-Go task, while the ASD group was significantly worse on response selection/monitoring in a cognitive estimates task. Age-related improvements were clearer in ASD and TD than in ADHD. At older (but not younger) ages, the ASD group outperformed the ADHD group, performing as well as the TD group on many EF measures. EF scores were related to specific aspects of communicative and social adaptation, and negatively correlated with hyperactivity in ASD and TD. Within the present groups, the overall findings suggested less severe and persistent EF deficits in ASD (including Asperger Syndrome) than in ADHD.     

A cross-cultural investigation of cognitions and depressive symptoms in adolescents

Adolescents (N=2,272) from Hong Kong and the United States provided information regarding their depressive symptoms, cognitions (self-efficacy, negative cognitive errors, and hopelessness), and stressful events between 2 surveys 6 months apart. Depressive symptoms and hopelessness were higher, and self-efficacy and negative cognitive errors were lower in Hong Kong than in the United States. Cognitions were associated with concurrent depressive symptoms and predicted depressive symptoms 6 months later in both cultures. The "reverse" model was also supported with more variance predicted by depressive symptoms to later cognitions than from cognitions to depressive symptoms. There was some support for the hypothesis that self-efficacy is less salient in collective compared with individualistic cultures. These findings extend cognitive theories of depression to a non-Western culture.     

Construct validity of the relationship profile test: impact of gender, gender role, and gender role stereotype

Research supports the construct validity of the Relationship Profile Test (RPT; Bornstein & Languirand, 2003), a 30-item, self-report measure of destructive overdependence (DO), dysfunctional detachment (DD), and healthy dependency. In this investigation, we assessed the relationships of gender, gender role, and gender role stereotype ratings to RPT subscale scores. In Study 1, we replicated earlier patterns of gender differences in RPT scores, assessed cross-sample consistency in gender difference effect sizes, and provided preliminary nonclinical norms for the RPT subscales. Study 2 showed that--as expected--DO items are perceived as stereotypically feminine, whereas DD items are perceived as stereotypically masculine. In Study 3, we examined the relationships of RPT subscale scores to masculinity, femininity, and androgyny scores. We discuss the theoretical, empirical, and clinical implications of these findings.     

Hypothalamic expression of NPY mRNA, vasopressin mRNA and CRF mRNA in response to food restriction and central administration of the orexigenic peptide GHRP-6

In this study, we examined the effects of restricted feeding and of central administration of an orexigenic ghrelin agonist GHRP-6 on peptide mRNA expression in the hypothalamus. We compared rats fed ad libitum with rats that were allowed food for only 2?h every day, and treated with a continuous chronic i.c.v. infusion of GHRP-6 or vehicle. Ad libitum fed rats exposed to GHRP-6 increased their food intake and body weight over 6 days, but, at the end of this period, neuropeptide Y mRNA expression in the arcuate nucleus was not different to that in control rats. By contrast, expression of neuropeptide Y mRNA in the arcuate nucleus was elevated in food-restricted rats, consistent with the interpretation that increased expression reflects increased hunger. However, neuropeptide Y mRNA expression was no greater in food-restricted rats infused with GHRP-6 than in food-restricted rats infused with vehicle; thus if the drive to eat was stronger in rats infused with GHRP-6, this was not reflected by higher levels of neuropeptide Y mRNA expression. Expression of vasopressin mRNA and corticotrophin releasing factor (CRF) mRNA in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) was not changed by food restriction. GHRP-6 infusion increased CRF mRNA expression in ad libitum rats only.     

The impact of order incongruence between a task-irrelevant auditory sequence and a task-relevant visual sequence

A novel effect is reported in which serial recall of visual digits was disrupted to a greater degree by the presence of the same set of digits presented as an irrelevant auditory sequence than by the presence of irrelevant auditory consonants, but only when the order of the irrelevant digits was incongruent with that of the to-be-remembered digits (Experiment 1). Experiment 2 replicated this order-incongruence effect and showed also that disruption was dictated by the number of order-incongruent transitions but not by the number of novel tokens contained within the irrelevant sequence. The results favor an interference-by- process approach to the disruption of serial memory by irrelevant sound over approaches based on notions of interference by content and/or interference by depletion of attentional resources.