Perfectionism and athlete burnout in junior elite athletes: the mediating role of coping tendencies

Abstract

Recent research indicates that some dimensions of perfectionism are positively related to athlete burnout, whereas others are negatively related to athlete burnout. The divergent relationship between these dimensions of perfectionism and athlete burnout may be explained by different coping tendencies. The present investigation examined whether different coping tendencies mediate the relationship between self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism and burnout. Two-hundred and six junior elite athletes (M age=15.15 years, SD=1.88 years, range=11–22 years) completed measures of self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism, coping tendencies, and athlete burnout. Structural equation modeling indicated that the relationship between dimensions of perfectionism and athlete burnout was mediated by different coping tendencies. Higher levels of socially prescribed perfectionism was related to higher levels of avoidant coping which, in turn, was related to higher levels of athlete burnout. In contrast, higher levels of self-oriented perfectionism was related to higher levels of problem-focused coping and lower levels of avoidant coping which, in turn, was related to lower levels of athlete burnout. The findings suggest that different coping tendencies may underpin the divergent relationship between self-oriented and socially prescribed dimensions of perfectionism and athlete burnout.     

Let it be: expatriate couples' adjustment and the upside of avoiding conflicts

This research examines the moderating effect of conflict avoidance on the relationship between conflict and psychological adjustment among 45 expatriate couples at two points in time. We propose a model based on the actor–partner interdependence model, which assumes both intrapersonal and interpersonal effects, to address simultaneously the effects of one's own and the other's avoidance behavior. We found substantial support for our model, especially for expatriate spouses. As expected, and only for expatriate spouses, avoidance moderated the conflict–adjustment relationship such that both one's own and one's counterpart's avoidance behavior diminished the negative effect of conflicts. Because these effects were observed only at T2 and psychological adjustment decreased from T1 to T2, our research suggests that the impact of expatriation-associated interaction particularly manifests itself in the long run.     

Psychiatric Comorbidity in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Comparison with Children with ADHD

The present study was conducted with the aim to identify comorbid psychiatric disorders in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) (n = 40) and to compare those comorbidity rates to those in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (n = 40). Participants were clinically referred children aged 7–18 years. DSM-IV classifications were used for the primary diagnosis (ASD/ADHD), while comorbid psychiatric disorders were assessed using a structured diagnostic interview, the structured clinical interview for DSM-IV, childhood diagnoses (KID-SCID). Twenty-three children with ASD (57.5 %) had at least one comorbid disorder, whereas 16 children with ADHD (40.0 %) were classified as having at least one comorbid disorder. No group differences were found with respect to this comorbidity rate or for the rate of comorbid externalizing disorders (ODD and/or CD). However, children with ASD had more comorbid internalizing disorders compared to children with ADHD. More specifically, children with ASD had higher rates of anxiety disorders, but not mood disorders. No associations between comorbidity and age or between comorbidity and the intelligence quotient was found. It is important for clinicians to always be aware of, and screen for, comorbidity, and to consider treatment for these comorbid disorders. In addition, research should focus on establishing valid and reliable screening tools as well as effective treatment options for these comorbid disorders.     

Reliability and Validity of a Treatment Fidelity Assessment for Motivational Interviewing Targeting Sexual Risk Behaviors in People Living with HIV/AIDS

This study psychometrically evaluates the Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity Code (MITI) to assess fidelity to motivational interviewing to reduce sexual risk behaviors in people living with HIV/AIDS. 74 sessions from a pilot randomized controlled trial of motivational interviewing to reduce sexual risk behaviors in people living with HIV were coded with the MITI. Participants reported sexual behavior at baseline, 3-month, and 6-months. Regarding reliability, excellent inter-rater reliability was achieved for measures of behavior frequency across the 12 sessions coded by both coders; global scales demonstrated poor intraclass correlations, but adequate percent agreement. Regarding validity, principle components analyses indicated that a two-factor model accounted for an adequate amount of variance in the data. These factors were associated with decreases in sexual risk behaviors after treatment. The MITI is a reliable and valid measurement of treatment fidelity for motivational interviewing targeting sexual risk behaviors in people living with HIV/AIDS.     

Kelly's Thought At Age 33: Suggestions For Conceptual And Methodological Refinements

Abstract

This paper argues that Neimeyer's (1985) crisis in methodology might not actually imply an overuse of grid techniques. Instead, the problem might consist of a serious underutilization of slightly different (but nonetheless constructivist) conceptual schemes and alternative methodologies derived from these conceptual schemes. In taking needed research risks we might hasten the next steps in the evolution of personal construct theory.     

The role of attention in subitizing: Is the magical number 1?

Subitizing, the fast and accurate enumeration of up to about 3 or 4 objects, has often been thought to be dependent on limited-capacity preattentive mechanisms. We used an attentional blink paradigm to investigate the extent to which subitizing requires attentional resources. On each trial, subjects identified a target letter in an RSVP stream and then enumerated dots presented in the stream that were either simultaneous with the target letter or followed it by up to 400 ms. For numerosities from 2 to 9, evidence of an attentional blink was observed; only enumeration of 0 or 1 elements was independent of lag. Thus, even enumeration of 2–3 objects, which is within the traditional subitizing range, appears to require attentional resources. The relation of this work to studies on the attentional requirements of detecting a unique item among distractors, a supposedly preattentive discrimination, is briefly discussed.     

Action-centred negative priming: Evidence for reactive inhibition

Experiments are described in which the spatial relationship between a stimulus and respondent is held constant in terms of visual and body-centred coordinates, while the complexity of the response is manipulated. It is demonstrated that the degree of complexity of an action directed to the same spatial location determines the level of negative priming observed. This result supports the notions that (1) inhibitory selection mechanisms act on action-centred representations, and (2) the level of inhibition is reactive to the relative potency of the evoked action. The results are also discussed in terms of alternative explanations of negative priming. It is concluded that the results are inconsistent with theories that do not involve inhibitory selection mechanisms.     

Les interventions préventives en santé mentale du jeune enfant vues par leurs bénéficiaires : l’exemple du projet CAPEDP

ObjectiveHome-visiting programs have become one of the most popular early childhood interventions, though their impact on parents and children remain uncertain. Outcomes measures often rely on experimental quantitative design and little space is offered for the voices of those served by these interventions. This paper presents the results of a qualitative protocol performed by the research team with participants in the CAPEDP project which took place in France from 2005 to 2011.MethodAll 184 women who had accepted at least one home visit in the CAPEDP programme were contacted and invited to participate. Individual and group interviews were conducted with the first 16 who accepted to participate. The semi-structured interview schedule addressed their overall appreciation of the project, their initial concerns, the quality of their relationship with their home visiting psychologist, positive and negative aspects of the intervention and any recommendations they might have for future interventions. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and anonymised. An inductive categorical thematic analysis was performed by the research team.ResultsParticipants expressed overall satisfaction with the CAPEDP intervention, underlining the quality of the relationships with the home visitors, usefulness of parental guidance, the fact that the intervention could be adapted to suit their own personal agenda, routine and needs, the importance of learning how to accept help and give help to others. Less positive aspects included the fact that the home visitors were not mothers themselves and that they lacked technical experience, the difficulty ending the relationship at the end of the 27-month project, insufficient integration of fathers, the difficult and time-consuming evaluation protocol and the lack of interaction with other parents during the intervention.ConclusionAlthough mothers who accepted to participate in the qualitative interview schedule may have had a more positive overall experience of the CAPEDP project than those who declined to participate, participants’ points of view provide potentially useful indications for adapting future home-visiting programs to the French context.     

Top-down control settings and the attentional blink: Evidence for nonspatial contingent capture

Previous studies have shown that spatial attention can be “captured” by irrelevant events, but only if the eliciting stimulus matches top-down attentional control settings. Here we explore whether similar principles hold for nonspatial attentional selection. Subjects searched for a coloured target letter embedded in an RSVP stream of letters inside a box centred on fixation. On critical trials, a distractor, consisting of a brief change in the colour of the box, occurred at various temporal lags prior to the target. In Experiment 1, the distractor produced a decrement in target detection, but only when it matched the target colour. Experiments 2 and 3 provide evidence that this effect does not reflect masking or the dispersion of spatial attention. The results establish that (1) nonspatial selection is subject to “capture”, (2) such capture is contingent on top-down attentional control settings, and (3) control settings for nonspatial capture can vary in specificity.     

A reversal of the search asymmetry favouring negative schematic faces

Quite a number of studies have tested whether the affective valence of stimuli can guide attention in visual search. Studies using schematic affective faces frequently found a relative search asymmetry (RSA), with more efficient search for a negative face in a friendly crowd than vice versa. Whether, however, this effect relates to differences in affect or to the confounded differences in perceptual features is unknown. The present study proposes and tests a similarity-based account for the RSA. Experiments 1a and 1b first replicate the typical RSA. Experiment 2 shows that the stimulus could be simplified to some degree without losing the RSA. Experiments 3 and 4, finally, demonstrate that the RSA could be reversed by a rather simple stimulus change, that leaves the facial expression intact. It is concluded that the strong dependence of the RSA on stimulus factors seriously questions the claim that emotional factors drive the RSA.