A Quarter Century of Delayed Recall

Abstract

Maier, N. R. F. Studies of Abnormal Behavior in the Rat. New York: Harper, 1939. Pp. 81. Reviewed By Peter Hampton     

The Relationship Between Adult Happiness and Self-Appraised Childhood Happiness and Events

The primary purpose of the present research was to relate questionnaire-assessed self-reported childhood happiness and events to adulthood happiness in 387 nonclinical participants. Although childhood happiness and adult happiness were found to be significantly correlated (r = .28, p < .001), there was little relationship between reported adult happiness and reported specific childhood events and circumstances. Childhood events and circumstances, however, were much more highly correlated with childhood happiness (R = .64). Thirty-four percent of the persons who said they were unhappy or very unhappy as a child, but only 9% who said they were happy or very happy as a child, reported that they were unhappy or very unhappy as adults.     

Adaptation in Visuomanual Tracking Depends on Intact Proprioception

The role of arm proprioception in motor learning was investigated in experiments in which, by moving the arm, subjects followed the motion of a target displayed on a monitor screen. Adaptive capabilities were tested in visuomanual tracking tasks following alterations in the relationship between the observer's actual arm movement and visual feedback of the arm movement given by a cursor motion on the screen. Tracking performance and adaptive changes, measured in terms of spatiotemporal error, tracking trajectory curvature, and spatial gain, were compared in 7 control subjects (CSs) and in 1 deafferented subject (DS). CSs adapted appropriately to altered visuomanual relationships; those changes were present in trials immediately after restoration of normal scaling. In contrast, although the DS modified his tracking strategy from trial to trial according to the altered conditions, he did not show plastic changes in internal visuomanual scaling. Like the results of prismatic adaptation experiments, the present results suggest that arm proprioception contributes to the plastic changes that follow alterations in the scaling of visuomanual gain.     

Rethinking the Mechanisms of Gang Desistance in a Developing Country

ABSTRACT

Most academic literature is based on experiences of gang members in developed countries. This article explores the mechanisms of desistance among street gangs in El Salvador. Gangs in this Central American nation, which include MS-13 and the 18^th Street gang, are known for complex structures and their transnational reach. Based on a survey with nearly 1,200 gang members and former gang members in El Salvador and 24 in-depth interviews with former gang members in rehabilitation programs, this study finds that the characteristics of the gang organization play a more significant role in the ways individuals exit the gangs in extremely violent contexts. It also shows that a religious experience is the most frequent mechanism to leave the group because it provides a safer alternative in those contexts.     

Childhood Experiences and Self-Control

Survey data collected simultaneously in Dhaka, Bangladesh; Lviv, Ukraine; and a rural area of the Lviv region in Ukraine are used to examine hypothesized sources of self-control found in Gottfredson and Hirschi's self-control theory (G/H) and in coercion/social support theory (CSS). Analyses provide limited support for the G/H model and almost no support for the challenge posed by arguments concerning social support and self-control. Exploratory analyses indicate that the various parenting dimensions specified in the G/H model and sources of social support implied by CSS theory may have countervailing influences on self-control, thereby producing less than desirable outcomes. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

Recollections of parent–child relationships,attachment insecurity,and obsessive–compulsive beliefs

To adequately understand Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), it is important to understand the developmental origins of obsessive beliefs and corresponding compulsive acts. Prior work has shown that having cold, neglectful parents in childhood and/or insecure attachment styles are both linked to emotional disturbances. In this study, we explored the potential contributions of early parent–child relationships to attachment styles and the severity of obsessive–compulsive beliefs in adulthood. A sample of 397 college students completed online, self-report measures of retrospective parent–child relationships, adult attachment styles, and ongoing obsessive–compulsive symptoms. Analyses revealed that attachment anxiety partially mediated the association between parent–child relationships and obsessive beliefs; attachment avoidance failed to operate as a mediating mechanism. Our findings provide support for interpersonal approaches to obsessive–compulsive symptoms and disorder, with implications for the continuity of relationship dysfunction from childhood into adulthood.     

Healing the Attachment Injury of Marital Infidelity Using Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy: A Case Illustration

This case illustration is a demonstration of a therapist handling the betrayal of infidelity through the application of Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT), specifically utilizing the attachment injury resolution model. An actual dialogue from a key couples session is included as it applies to the model, providing clinicians with an example for how EFT can be applied to the common clinical occurrence of infidelity.     

Investigating the Effects of a Persuasive Digital Game on Immersion,Identification, and Willingness to Help

Abstract

Recent years have seen a tremendous rise in the development and distribution of persuasive games: digital games that are used to influence players’ attitudes and/or behavior. Three studies (N_{Study 1}?=?134; N_{Study 2}?=?94; N_{Study 3}?=?161) tested the effects of a persuasive game on immersion, identification, and willingness to help. The results showed that playing the persuasive game did not result in substantially stronger willingness to help, relative to the control conditions. Video and printed text resulted in more immersion than the digital game, but playing the game resulted in substantially higher perceptions of embodied presence.