Anxiety and expectancy violations: Neural response to false feedback is exaggerated in worriers

This study investigated how individual differences in anxiety modulate the neural response to errors and performance feedback. The design included false feedback on some trials in order to test the hypothesis that anxious people show stronger neural reactions to feedback that is worse than expected. Participants completed a trial-and-error learning task that required learning the correct key to press in response to face images. EEG was recorded during the task, and the response-locked error-related negativity (ERN) and feedback-locked ERN were computed to measure neural responses to error commission and feedback. As expected, errors produced a response-locked ERN and false feedback produced a feedback-locked ERN in the group as a whole. High levels of trait worry predicted a disproportionately larger ERN following false feedback, but did not predict the magnitude of the response-locked ERN following errors. These results imply that worry-prone people react more strongly to violations of expectations, rather than to errors themselves.     

Conditional Associative Learning of Spatial and Object Information in Children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

The present study assessed frontostriatal mediated memory functions in children with ADHD (N = 12) and healthy control participants (N = 12) using two tests of conditional associative learning (i.e., object and spatial) that shared similar stimulus-response association structures but that differed in terms of the demands placed upon strategic processes. Children with ADHD displayed normal performance on the object learning task but were impaired on the spatial learning task that placed greater demands on internally derived strategic processes. Secondary analyses further indicated that this strategic processing impairment cannot be attributed specifically to perseverative or working memory errors but rather appears to be related to a more general inability to maintain a high degree of consistency in responding across trials. Although the results of this study must be interpreted in light of the small sample sizes, they suggest that ADHD does not produce a basic deficit in acquiring stimulus-response associations previously shown to be associated with basal ganglia dysfunction. Rather, these findings suggest that the impaired conditional associative learning performance of children with ADHD is attributable to deficits in strategic processes previously been found to be dependent upon the integrity of the prefrontal cortex.     

Validation of Self-Report Measures of Emotional and Physical Distress Tolerance

The Distress Tolerance Scale (DTS) and Discomfort Intolerance Scale (DIS) are self-report measures developed for the assessment of emotional and physical distress tolerance, respectively. However, little evidence exists for their construct and specifically criterion-related validity. The current study examined the associations of these self-report measures with lab-based assessments of perceived emotional tolerance and physical discomfort tolerance. Undergraduate participants (N?=?166) were administered four film clips intended to induce sadness, disgust, fear, and anger, and a handgrip persistence task intended to elicit physical discomfort. The DTS, but not the DIS, was significantly associated with self-reported emotional tolerance and perceived threat associated with each film after controlling for emotional intensity. Among DTS subscales, the absorption subscale was the only subscale incrementally predictive of negative perceptions of the sad film, the appraisal subscale was incrementally predictive of negative perceptions of the other three films, and little support for the incremental validity of the tolerance and regulation subscales was found. The DTS also incrementally predicted tolerance and perceived threat of film-elicited emotions across films after controlling for anxiety sensitivity. The DIS was only marginally predictive of handgrip task persistence and was unrelated to emotional film perceptions. Overall, these findings uniquely add to the empirical literature on the construct and criterion-related validity of the DTS and DIS.     

The predictive validity of cognitive complexity measures on social perspective-taking and counseling communication

We compared the predictive validity of two cognitive complexity measures on two communication-relevant abilities: social perspective-taking and person-centered counseling. Forty-six undergraduates completed versions of Crockett's Role Category Questionnaire and Bieri et al.'s repertory grid task to measure cognitive complexity. Measures of social perspective-taking ability and person-centered counseling messages were also obtained from the subjects. Whereas Crockett's complexity measure was significantly and consistently related to the communication-related measures, Bieri's complexity measure was only marginally related to these same measures.     

Beyond sexual recidivism: A review of the sexual criminal career parameters of adult sex offenders

The current study claims that measures of sexual recidivism provide a distorted view of the criminal activity of adult sex offenders. To address this important limitation, the criminal career perspective is presented and key concepts are defined and described. The study also provides an up-to-date review of the scientific literature on various criminal career parameters of the sexual criminal activity of adult sex offenders. Hence, current empirical knowledge on the prevalence, age of onset, frequency, continuity, versatility, and desistance from sex offending is presented. The findings highlight the complexities of the sexual criminal career of adult sex offenders, and most importantly, its dynamic aspect, both of which are not captured by traditional measures of sexual recidivism. The review also underscores the importance of recognizing that sexual offending develops according to a series of stages, that, if not recognized, may lead to the underestimation of risk for some and over-estimation of risk for others. The review provides a framework to stimulate new areas of research as well as policy-development that is not limited to the identification of the “high-risk” convicted sex offenders.     

Treatment Foster Care in a System of Care: Sequences and Correlates of Residential Placements

We examined Treatment Foster Care (TFC) in residential trajectories for youth with psychiatric disorders and aggressive behavior. We analyzed residential placements of a statewide sample of youth during the 12 months preceding and following admission to TFC. Prior to TFC, the majority of youth were residing in more restrictive settings (group homes or residential treatment). Two-thirds of youth remained in TFC throughout the follow-up year. Of those who left, nearly half returned home, and slightly fewer were discharged to group homes. By the end of the 12-month follow-up period, rates of group home use were similar to those seen in the pre-TFC period. Movement out of TFC during the year was associated with being older at placement and with increased problem behavior (particularly externalizing behaviors). TFC serves as a step-down placement for a substantial number of youth. However, this is not the only way it is used, and models based on short-term transitioning or reunification with families may not be widely implemented or relevant in practice. Additional research is needed to understand current functions of TFC in residential trajectories and to maximize its utility in systems of care.     

Relational aggression in college students: Examining the roles of social anxiety and empathy

This study examined the unique contributions of social anxiety and empathy to relational aggression in 300 19–to–25–year–old (M=21.25; SD=1.32) male (n=97) and female (n=203) college students using hierarchical linear regression analysis. The interactive relations between gender and social anxiety, and between gender and empathy, were also assessed. In addition to the gender and overt aggression covariates, fear of negative evaluation and perspective taking were unique predictors of relational aggression. Males, students who were more overtly aggressive, and those who reported greater fear of negative evaluation were more relationally aggressive than were peers. Students with higher levels of perspective taking reported using less relational aggression than did peers. A gender x empathetic concern interaction indicated that for males only, lower levels of empathetic concern were associated with higher levels of relational aggression. Results are discussed within a social information‐processing perspective. Aggr. Behav. 29:430–439, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.