Attributional style predicts causes of negative life events on the Attributional Style Questionnaire

The causes cited by 218 participants for the hypothetical positive and negative life events on the Attributional Style Questionnaire (ASQ) and the dimensional ratings of the causes were examined to determine the match between the dimensional and categorical definitions of attributional style. Optimists (n = 105) and pessimists (n = 113) used different types of causes to explain the negative ASQ events, but not the positive events. However, optimists' and pessimists' causal explanations shared a number of features. The findings suggest that attributional styles depend, in part, on the event being explained and demonstrate that the ASQ events elicit specific types of causes.     

Do children utilize motion when recognizing faces?

Previous research indicates that unfamiliar faces may be recognized better if they are viewed in motion. This study utilized a three trial learning paradigm to investigate whether unfamiliar faces are learnt more quickly from moving clips than from static images. Children aged 6–7 years and 10–11 years were shown a series of faces as either static images or dynamic clips, followed by either by a static or a dynamic recognition test. Faces were recognized more accurately when presented in motion, but there was no advantage for testing in motion. Although older children were more accurate overall, younger females performed as well as older children for faces presented in motion, suggesting that females’ face processing skills develop more quickly than those of males. Results are discussed in terms of the motion advantage arising due to additional structural information enhancing the internal representation of the face.     

Role of physical activity and perceived adequacy on peak aerobic power in children with developmental coordination disorder

The purpose of this study was to determine the mediating role of physical activity and perceived adequacy towards physical activity on peak aerobic power (VO₂peak) in children with developmental coordination disorder. This case-control study involved 61 male and female subjects age 12-13 years with motor impairments and 61 healthy controls matched for age, gender and school location. Subjects were assessed for motor proficiency and classified as probable developmental coordination disorder (p-DCD) or healthy control using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children, 2nd Edition. VO₂peak was assessed by a progressive exercise test on a cycle ergometer. Perceived adequacy towards physical activity was estimated using the Children’s Self-perception of Adequacy and Predilection for Physical Activity scale. Physical activity was monitored for seven days using accelerometry. Children with p-DCD had significantly lower VO₂peak adjusted for lean mass (48.8 ± 7.2 ml/kg LM/min; p ? 0.05) compared to controls (53.1 ± 8.2 ml/kg LM/min). Regression analysis demonstrated that perceived adequacy and physical activity were significant mediators in the relationship between p-DCD and VO₂peak (R-squared = 24.3%). In conclusion, using a stringent laboratory assessment, the current study verifies earlier non laboratory findings, adding low aerobic power, the most important component of cardiorespiratory fitness, to the list of health consequences associated with developmental coordination disorder.     

Learning to form relationships in infancy: Parallel attainments with parents and peers

Freud's assertion notwithstanding, the attachment relationship is not “without parallel” in social life. Children's attainments in forming attachments to parents parallel the steps they take in relating to their peers. During the first 3 years of life, in both domains, infants come to recognize prospective social partners, communicate with them, engage them in patterned interaction, including both cooperation and conflict, learn from their presence and actions, and interact in idiosyncratic ways with particular companions. Toward the end of this period, children show signs of acquiring generalized concepts of the social relationships in which they engage. It is proposed that biological constraints on learning promote human infants' interest in and rudimentary abilities to interact with other members of their species. Subsequent incidental and intentional learning processes shape both the child's attachments and less intense relationships with other persons.