Social Anxiety in Children with Anxiety Disorders: Relation with Social and Emotional Functioning

Investigated the psychometric properties of the Social Anxiety Scale for children-Revised (SASC-R) as well as relations between social anxiety and children's social and emotional functioning. Participants were a clinic sample of children, ages 6–11 with anxiety disorders (N = 154) who completed the SASC-R. For a subset of these children, parent ratings of social skills, and self-ratings of perceived competence and peer interactions were also obtained. Factor analysis of the SASC-R supported the original three-factor solution and internal consistencies were in the acceptable range. Among children with simple phobia, scores on the SASC-R differentiated those with and without a comorbid social-based anxiety disorder. Social anxiety was also associated with impairments in social and emotional functioning. Specifically, highly socially anxious children reported low levels of social acceptance and global self-esteem and more negative peer interactions. Girls with high levels of social anxiety were also rated by parents as having poor social skills, particularly in the areas of assertive and responsible social behavior.     

Perceived numerosity, item arrangement, and expectancy

Ten sets of dots ranging in number from 7 to 91 per set were presented to 54 subjects. Half were arranged regularly and half randomly. The regular sets were overestimated by an average of 22%, while the random were underestimated by 16% compared with the physical number. Evidence was presented showing that subjects expect results in the opposite direction. The findings are discussed in relation to the expectancy-contrast model of Birnbaum and Veit.     

Sociality effects on the production of laughter

Certain facial displays (typically the human smile) have been found to vary with a situation's sociality. Because the facial display that accompanies laughter is under less voluntary control, it is a stronger test of sociality effects. Participants (N = 162) were videotaped watching a humorous videoclip in 1 of 3 conditions: alone, in a same-sex dyad with a stranger, or in a same-sex dyad with a friend. The frequency and time spent laughing were significantly greater in one or both dyadic conditions than in the alone condition, although no differences existed for self-reported evaluations of the videoclip's funniness or amusement felt. When the self-report measures were controlled for, the dyads of strangers (compared with the alone condition) were associated with the frequency of laughter. Although the results provide further support for sociality effects, the situational demands faced by participants may be a better predictor of facial displays than level of sociality.     

Thirty years on – a large anti‐Flynn effect/ (II): 13‐ and 14‐year‐olds. Piagetian tests of formal operations norms 1976–2006/7

Background Shayer, Ginsburg, and Coe (2007) showed that children leaving primary school in Y6 entered secondary school with much lower levels of understanding of the physical conservations than in 1976. It seemed desirable to investigate cognitive development in the first three years of secondary education. Aims By using two Piagetian tests of formal operations, one of which had been used in the 1976 CSMS survey, the performance of Y8 and Y9 pupils would be compared with the survey results published in 1978. Sample Eight schools were selected as willing to test their Y9 or Y8 classes on either the Pendulum (in 2007) or the Equilibrium in the Balance tests (in 2006), giving 39 classes on which to make the comparison with 1976 performance. Method Regression of the pupils' class mean on each formal test on either the class's 2004 MidYIS or nferCAT standardized scores, and computing the regression at IQ = 100 allows comparison with that found in 1976. Results On Equilibrium in the Balance the Y8 pupils were down on the proportion at the early formal level or above by ?0.61 standard deviations (SD) for boys and ?0.63 SD for girls on the 1976 results. On the Pendulum the Y9 boys were down by ?0.49 SD and the girls by ?0.48 SD on the proportion at the early formal level or above. Conclusion The negative Flynn‐effect found on Volume & Heaviness for Y7 pupils is paralleled by a similar negative effect on attainment of formal operations by Y8 and Y9, compared with 1976. Yet at the same time the proportion of pupils using the top level of concrete operational thinking has increased on both tests. It seems that there has been a change either in general societal pressures on the individual or in the style of teaching in schools – or both – favouring a lower level of processing of reality.     

Differential effectiveness of two classification procedures on the Bem Sex Role Inventory

Two procedures-a simple median split and a difference/median split method-were used to classify 102 male and 129 female college students into masculine, feminine, androgynous, and undifferentiated sex role orientations on the basis of their Bern Sex Role Inventory scores. Differences in classification occurred among nearly one-third of the subjects, and as expected, the difference/median split procedure was more successful in predicting sex-role ideology. Using this procedure, masculine-typed females were found to be most profeminist in their attitudes, while low masculinity females were most conservative. No significant differences were obtained for the male groups using either procedure. Future research with the BSRI and related sex-role measures should employ similar comparisons to determine the relative validity of the two procedures.     

Measurement of visual cluster

The cluster continuum is described, along with how to measure degree of cluster and how to generate stimuli that vary along the continuum. Five experiments were performed on cluster discrimination and rating, numerosity estimation, pattern discriminability, and random generation. Difference thresholds were obtained for discrimination between random and clustered patterns, and ratings exhibited a power function with respect to cluster values of the stimuli. Numerosity estimates decreased with increasing degree of cluster, and random patterns were easier to discriminate than clustered ones. When subjects were asked to arrange items so that they appeared random, they erred on the side of regularity. The cluster continuum was discussed in relation to the distribution of living organisms and to the ecological approach of Gibson. The cluster metric was compared with the measures used in the study of response organization in free recall.     

Perceived numerosity as a function of item size

In a sample of 48 subjects, there was a significant inverse relation between item size and estimation of numerosity. This result was shown to be consistent with Gestalt theory. According to this approach, the components of good figures appear more numerous, and smaller items produce better figures.