A transgenerational conceptualization of psychosomatic distress during pregnancy: Implications for infant mental health

A conceptualization of psychosomatic distress during pregnancy is suggested, stemming from a developmental psychopathology framework and based on contributions from the psychosomatic and attachment literature. A link is suggested between psychosomatic distress during pregnancy, patterns of representational activity, and transgenerational risks of relationship disturbances. Developmental transformations during pregnancy are reviewed, with an emphasis on the vicissitudes of integrating internalized relationships with a person's family of origin. Psychosomatic theory is used to generate hypotheses about the representational activity of mothers who experience psychosomatic distress during pregnancy. Attachment theory is used to discuss the link between maternal representational activity and the transgenerational transmission of relationship patterns. As an example of psychosomatic distress during pregnancy, relevant literature on severe nausea and vomiting during pregnancy is reviewed, and clinical vignettes are presented to illustrate how this condition may sometimes be a forerunner of mother-infant difficulties.     

Memory Interventions for Persons with Dementia

It is possible to design effective, pragmatically useful memory interventions for persons with Dementia of the Alzheimer's Type (DAT). A review of successful memory interventions for such populations is presented. A particularly effective intervention technique, spaced-retrieval, is described and the theoretical basis for its effectiveness is discussed. A detailed account is presented of a spaced-retrieval intervention in which persons with DAT are trained to learn and utilize a strategy, i.e., remembering to use a calendar listing daily activities. Directions for future research in this area are offered.     

Aggressive Children and Effective Communication

Testing a component of a theoretical model which postulates that low levels of communication effectiveness accompany the social and affective problems presented by aggressive children, the study compared the communication skills of a group of aggressive (n = 49) and nonaggressive (n = 49) elementary school children (selected on the basis of teacher ratings) in a structured and cooperative communication task. Based on direct observational measures of communication effectiveness and aggression, and on teacher, peer, and self-rating measures of peer rejection and depressive symptoms, results showed that (a) aggressive children exhibited less effective communication skills and more disruptive communication skills than nonaggressive peers; (b) aggressive children experienced higher levels of peer rejection and depressive symptoms than nonaggressive peers; and (c) group differences in communication effectiveness could not be accounted for by differences in observed aggression and remained significant, even after controlling for differences in peer status and affective functioning. These findings highlight the role that ineffective communication may play in the development and maintenance of aggression and have important theoretical and applied implications, which are briefly discussed. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Global Scientific Outputs of Brain Death Publications and Evaluation According to the Religions of Countries

In 1950s, the concept of brain death, which began to be discussed primarily in terms of medicine and then in terms of religion, law, and ethics, became a central topic in all world countries as it was an early diagnosis of death. Despite the fact that brain death (BD) diagnosis is of importance for benefitting from organ and tissue transplantation of patients in the world, the literature still involves no bibliometric studies that made a holistic evaluation of the publications about this issue. The present study aims to investigate the top-cited articles about BD published between 1980 and 2018, identify the citation collaboration of the journals, demonstrate the collaboration between the countries, define the relationship between organ transplantation and BD, and reveal the latest developments and trend topics about this issue. In addition, this study aims to investigate the relationship between religions of countries and brain death publication productivity. Documents for bibliometric analysis were downloaded from Web of Science. The literature search was performed using the keywords “brain death/dead” during 1980–2018. The correlations between gross domestic product (GDP), Human Development Index (HDI) and publication productivity of the countries on BD were investigated with Spearman’s correlation coefficient. There was a high-level, statistically significant correlation between the number of publications and GDP, and HDI and the number of publications about BD (r = 0.761, p < 0.001; r = 0.703, p < 0.001). The USA was the top country in terms of publication productivity, which was followed by developed countries such as Germany, Japan, France, and Spain. However, the contribution of the undeveloped or developing countries such as China, Brazil, Turkey, Iran, and South Africa was found to be considerably important. While many people in the world die with undamaged organs, many other people die needing those organs. Therefore, it is considered that the collaborations and thus multidisciplinary studies about BD should be increased in the world countries, and the countries should be involved in bigger collaborations instead of little clusters. Especially, Muslim countries should be encouraged to do research and publish studies about the issues of brain death and organ transplantation.

     

Epistemic injustice in mathematics

We investigate how epistemic injustice can manifest itself in mathematical practices. We do this as both a social epistemological and virtue-theoretic investigation of mathematical practices. We delineate the concept both positively—we show that a certain type of folk theorem can be a source of epistemic injustice in mathematics—and negatively by exploring cases where the obstacles to participation in a mathematical practice do not amount to epistemic injustice. Having explored what epistemic injustice in mathematics can amount to, we use the concept to highlight a potential danger of intellectual enculturation.

     

Towards Including End-Users in the Design of Prosthetic Hands: Ethical Analysis of a Survey of Australians with Upper-Limb Difference

Science and Engineering Ethics - Advances in prosthetic design should benefit people with limb difference. But empirical evidence demonstrates a lack of uptake of prosthetics among those with limb...     

Age,gender, race,socioeconomic status,and birth cohort differences on the children's depression inventory: a meta-analysis

A within-scale meta-analysis was performed on 310 samples of children (ages 8-16; N = 61,424) responding to the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI). Girls' depression scores stayed steady from ages 8 to 11 and then increased between ages 12 and 16. Boys' CDI scores were stable from ages 8 to 16 except for a high CDI score at age 12. Girls' scores were slightly lower than boys' during childhood, but girls scored higher beginning at age 13. There were no socioeconomic status effects and no differences between White and Black samples. However, Hispanic samples scored significantly higher on the CDI. Analyses for birth cohort showed a slight decrease in boys' CDI scores over time and no change for girls. Longitudinal studies demonstrated a marked testing effect.     

Nymphea: from psychic breakdown to the emergence of subjectivity

In the first part of the paper the author presents an account of the analysis of a woman who is psychically extremely disturbed. This clinical presentation focuses on the unfolding of the transference process, and on the countertransference difficulties encountered during the course of the treatment which lasted more than ten years. In the second part of the paper the author proposes a theoretical approach to the breakdown experienced by the patient, and puts forward the hypothesis that there was insufficient differentiation between her internal objects and the archetypes, and that this prevented the development of symbolization. The author proposes the idea of a collapse between internal and external objects, which destroys the space necessary for representation and symbolization that normally arise between the two poles of the object. The account of this transference process between the analyst and the patient is thus seen as the account of the (re)construction of true internal objects, and of the resumption of a symbolic process to make possible the development of subjectivity.     

The Infrequency-Posttraumatic Stress Disorder scale (Fptsd) for the MMPI-2: development and initial validation with veterans presenting with combat-related PTSD

Researchers have identified difficulties associated with the use of traditional Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2; Butcher, Dahlstrom, Graham, Tellegen, & Kaemmer, 1989) validity scales with survivors of traumatic events. A new scale, the Infrequency-Posttraumatic Stress Disorder scale (Fptsd), was created from MMPI-2 items that were infrequently endorsed by 940 male combat veterans presenting for treatment at the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) clinics of 2 Veterans Affairs Medical Centers. A variety of statistical methods were implemented that preliminarily established Fptsd's validity with a validation sample of 323 additional PTSD-diagnosed combat veterans. Results indicate that, relative to previously established validity and overreporting scales (F, Fb, and Fp), Fptsd was significantly less related to psychopathology and distress and better at discriminating simulated from genuinely reported PTSD. Clinical implications are discussed concerning the use of Fptsd to assess disability-seeking veterans suspected of overreporting PTSD symptoms.