Got Pain? Racial Bias in Perceptions of Pain

In the days of slavery, White people assumed that Black people felt less pain than did White people. This belief was used to justify slavery; it was also used to justify the inhumane treatment of Black men and women in medical research. Today, White Americans continue to believe that Black people feel less pain than do White people although this belief has changed from its historical, explicitly racist form. Racial attitudes do not moderate the bias, suggesting that racial bias in perceptions of others' pain is not rooted (solely) in racial prejudice. Moreover, Black Americans too believe that Black people feel less pain than do White people, suggesting that the bias is no longer grounded in intergroup dynamics. Rather, contemporary forms of this bias stem from assumptions that Black people face more hardship and “thus” can withstand more pain and assumptions that Black people's bodies are not only different but also superhuman. Although this new instantiation of the pain perception bias is decidedly more “benevolent”, it can nonetheless lead to negative outcomes. Here, we consider how racial bias in perceptions of others' pain may affect racial disparities in health care and intergroup relations more generally. We also discuss potential avenues for interventions aimed at preventing this bias among children and reducing this bias among adults.     

The Impact of Religiosity on Suicidal Ideation Among Youth in Central Mexico

Although over 100 years of research has been dedicated to understanding the connection between religiosity and suicide, many questions still remain. This is especially true among adolescent populations in countries outside the US. In 2008, over 700 students attending eight alternative high school centers in central Mexico completed a health survey designed to provide a comprehensive overview of their physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional health. This article reports on the findings of a secondary analysis study of those data and focuses on the protective influence of religiosity on suicidal ideation. The findings of this study are discussed in light of the network theory’s assertion that there is a belonging aspect to religion, and also to the idea that in religiously homogeneous communities of Mexico, religion can have a protective effect on the suicidal ideation of its members.     

A Dose-Ranging Study of Behavioral and Pharmacological Treatment in Social Settings for Children with ADHD

Placebo and three doses of methylphenidate (MPH) were crossed with 3 levels of behavioral modification (no behavioral modification, NBM; low-intensity behavioral modification, LBM; and high-intensity behavior modification, HBM) in the context of a summer treatment program (STP). Participants were 48 children with ADHD, aged 5–12. Behavior was examined in a variety of social settings (sports activities, art class, lunch) that are typical of elementary school, neighborhood, and after-school settings. Children received each behavioral condition for 3 weeks, order counterbalanced across groups. Children concurrently received in random order placebo, 0.15 mg/kg/dose, 0.3 mg/kg/dose, or 0.6 mg/kg/dose MPH, 3 times daily with dose manipulated on a daily basis in random order for each child. Both behavioral and medication treatments produced highly significant and positive effects on children’s behavior. The treatment modalities also interacted significantly. Whereas there was a linear dose–response curve for medication in NBM, the dose–response curves flattened considerably in LBM and HBM. Behavior modification produced effects as large as moderate doses, and on some measures, high doses of medication. These results replicate and extend to social-recreational settings previously reported results in a classroom setting from the same sample (Fabiano et al., School Psychology Review, 36, 195–216, 2007). Results illustrate the importance of taking dosage/intensity into account when evaluating combined treatments; there were no benefits of combined treatments when the dosage of either treatment was high but combination of the low-dose treatments produced substantial incremental improvement over unimodal treatment.     

Outcomes of Peak,Typical, and Variability in Performance of College Football Teams

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to investigate the typical, peak, and variability in performance of both the offensive and defensive units of college football teams over the course of a season in predicting three objective team-level outcomes (win percentage, fan home game attendance, and bowl game payout).

Design/Methodology/Approach

Data were obtained from an archival sports database for 193 Bowl Subdivision college football teams for three separate seasons.

Findings

When all three types of performance were considered simultaneously, only typical performance significantly predicted win percentage and bowl game payout outcomes, and it explained between 19 % (for bowl game payout) and 49 % (for record) of the variance. All interactions between typical performance and performance variability were non-significant.

Implications

These null results point to a boundary condition in the relationship between performance variability and outcomes: whether the outcome is subject to evaluator attributional processes (e.g., raises, performance evaluations) or is more objective in nature. Although null, the present results question a sometimes implicit assumption that performance inconsistency is detrimental to organizational functioning.

Originality/Value

This is one of the first studies to examine outcomes of peak performance, typical performance, and performance variability at the team level. Additionally, most studies examining the outcomes of such performance use subjective outcomes such as performance ratings, whereas this study provides one of the first examinations using objective outcomes such as bowl game payout.     

Pediatric Sub-specialist Controversies in the Treatment of Congenital Heart Disease in Trisomy 13 or 18

Trisomy 13 and 18 are associated with congenital heart disease. Cardiac palliation has been reported in the literature, but is not usually done in this population. Thus, a multi-disciplinary team may experience controversy in formulating a care plan that includes cardiac intervention. Our objective was to determine differences in recommendations for cardiac intervention in this population between physicians specializing in pediatric cardiac critical care, neonatology, and genetics. A web-based survey was performed between April 2007 and August 2008. This survey evaluated surgical and transcatheter cardiac palliations that had been performed for individuals with trisomy 13 or 18 at the respondent’s institution, the respondent’s recommendations for cardiac intervention in hypothetical symptomatic patients with trisomy 13 or trisomy 18 and the influence of parental preference on these recommendations. Eight hundred fifty-nine responses were obtained from a primarily academic practice setting (59%). Cardiologists were most likely to recommend intervention; low risk interventions were recommended by 32% of cardiologists, 7% of neonatologists and 20% of geneticists. Parental request to intervene resulted in a 3 fold increased in the likelihood of all specialist recommending intervention. Counseling of families frequently occurred by multiple sub specialists (50%) and there was frequently (71%) a difference in opinion. Individuals with trisomy 13 or 18 are receiving cardiac intervention at many institutions. Cardiologists were more likely than geneticists or neonatologists to recommend intervention on all heart lesions other than single ventricle palliation which no specialists recommended. Parental wishes that “everything be done” significantly influenced all specialists’ recommendations.     

Parental burden associated with borderline personality disorder in female offspring

To identify aspects of parental burden associated with borderline personality disorder (BPD), an anonymous internet survey linked to BPD support websites was developed for parents to complete on their BPD offspring and unaffected siblings. The questions cover aspects of the child's life from pregnancy through young adulthood, and query about the impact of the child's BPD on six domains of the parent's life, including physical and emotional health, marriage, job, standard of living, social life, and career trajectory. Additionally, financial burden was assessed with questions pertaining to insurance and out-of pocket costs associated with the BPD disorder. BPD offspring were identified by meeting diagnostic criteria embedded within the survey and having been given a diagnosis of BPD by a professional at some point in their life. We report on 233 female offspring meeting strict criteria for BPD. Parents of daughters with BPD endorsed varying levels of impact on the six domains comprising burden with the largest impact on emotional health which was impacted in over 88% of the respondents. Over 50% of parents endorsed four or greater of the six burden items. Particular aspects of the offspring's BPD symptom profile correlated with intensity of parental burden included including problems in adolescence with acting out behavior (p < .000), property destruction (.003), delusional symptoms (.007), and hallucinatory symptoms (.008). A subgroup of respondents provided data on specific financial expenses. The average and median out-of-pocket expense was $60,087, and $10,000. Insurance costs totaled an average of $108,251 with a mean of $20,000. The average cost per year after diagnosis was $14,606 out-of-pocket and $45,573 billed to insurance. The median cost per year after diagnosis was $3,667 out-of-pocket, and $12,500 billed to insurance. After adjusting for household income, a female proband who had been raped incurred roughly $40,000 more in BPD-related costs, while a diagnosis of conduct disorder led to about $50,000 in additional costs. Parents of female offspring with BPD experience burden in multiple domains of their life and many have incurred substantial financial expense. Increasing awareness of co-morbid conditions in the BPD proband that significantly increase parental burden may be indicators for the provision of increased family support.     

Representation of unattended material in memory

The current study addresses how information whose processing was not part of task requirement (unattended) is represented in memory. Using a novel measure, recognition memory for unattended material was assessed twice, once when it appeared with the same (old) attended study target and once with a new target. The data reveal memory for unattended study information only in the old target condition. Results suggest that the entire study event is encoded and represented in a memory trace, which contains both attended target information along with unattended context information. In conclusion, manifestation of unattended memory may be dependent on the presence of old target information at test.