Using a CBT Approach to Teach Social Skills to Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Other Social Challenges: The PEERS® Method

Deficits in social functioning are one of the hallmark features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), yet very few evidence-based social skills programs exist for adolescents with ASD and other social challenges. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of one of the only empirically supported social skills programs for youth with ASD: The Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS ^®). Developed at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, PEERS^® utilizes the principles of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) to improve social functioning for youth with ASD and other social difficulties. One of the only empirically-supported social skills programs to disseminate published treatment manuals for mental health professionals and educators, the PEERS^® approach applies CBT methods of instruction including: didactic lessons (psychoeducation), role-play demonstrations, cognitive strategies, behavioral rehearsal exercises, performance feedback, homework assignments and review, and parent involvement within a small group treatment format. Results from four randomized controlled trials and one quasi-experimental study reveal significant improvements in overt social skills, frequency of peer interactions, and social responsiveness following this treatment protocol.     

Connecting the Dots: A Review of Resting Connectivity MRI Studies in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Psychopathology is increasingly viewed from a circuit perspective in which a disorder stems not from circumscribed anomalies in discrete brain regions, but rather from impairments in distributed neural networks. This focus on neural circuitry has rendered resting state functional connectivity MRI (rs-fcMRI) an increasingly important role in the elucidation of pathophysiology including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Unlike many other MRI techniques that focus on the properties of discrete brain regions, rs-fcMRI measures the coherence of neural activity across anatomically disparate brain regions, examining the connectivity and organization of neural circuits. In this review, we explore the methods available to investigators using rs-fcMRI techniques, including a discussion of their relative merits and limitations. We then review findings from extant rs-fcMRI studies of ADHD focusing on neural circuits implicated in the disorder, especially the default mode network, cognitive control network, and cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical loops. We conclude by suggesting future directions that may help advance subsequent rs-fcMRI research in ADHD.     

A stress and coping perspective on health behaviors: theoretical and methodological considerations

Health behaviors such as eating and exercising have been linked to stress in many studies, and researchers suggest that these links are in large part due to the use of health behaviors to cope with stress. However, health behaviors in the context of coping have received relatively little research attention. In this paper, we briefly survey the literature linking stress, coping, and health behaviors, noting that very little research has explicitly examined health behaviors as coping with stress. We address critical theoretical and methodological issues that arise in applying a stress and coping perspective to health behaviors. We conclude with potential directions for interventions, including the need for conceptually solid and methodologically rigorous research and the development of new measures, and with suggestions for future research. The concepts of self-regulation and stress management and their implications in health behavior research and interventions are also discussed.     

New understanding of the role of coincidence site lattice boundaries in abnormal grain growth of aluminium alloy

The sequential microstructure evolution of abnormal grain growth (AGG) in the aluminium alloy (AA5052) was investigated to analyse the migration behaviour of coincidence site lattice (CSL) boundaries, which are known to play an important role in inducing AGG. The sequential evolution showed that CSL boundaries tend to disappear more slowly than general boundaries at the growth front of abnormally growing grains. Especially, the migration rate of Σ9 boundaries was noticeably low, which is contrary to the previous suggestions.     

Regulatory fit theory at work: prevention focus' primacy in safe food production

The food‐processing industry emphasizes employee compliance to food‐safety standards to prevent distribution of contaminated foods. Regulatory fit theory was tested to examine the applicability of self‐regulation constructs as potential components of person‐job fit. In contexts emphasizing safety, workers higher in prevention should experience greater person‐job fit, thus prevention focus should relate to desirable outcomes. Poultry‐processing workers (n = 180) completed a work‐related regulatory focus scale as part of a survey including a set of outcome measures. Consistent with theory, prevention focus scores related to self‐reported positive work outcomes (job effectiveness, satisfaction, efficacy, enjoyment, involvement), and relationships were statistically mediated by perceived regulatory fit. Results have implications for selection practices and suggest ways work can be structured to enhance job performance.     

Mistakes pertaining to undesired (relative to desired) self-standards elicit immediate enhanced electrocortical signals of error processing

Past research provides initial evidence that errors pertaining to undesired (vs. desired) self-standards are of greater motivational significance, but little is known about how quickly people recognize and respond to such errors. To examine immediate responses to errors pertaining to desired and undesired self-standards, we assessed event-related potentials (ERPs) while participants judged self-attributes as personally desirable or undesirable. No discernible differences emerged in ERPs associated with correct responses to undesired compared to desired self-standards. Error-related negativities, shown in past work to index motivational significance, and error positivities, shown in past work to index post-error adjustment, were more pronounced when participants erroneously endorsed undesirable self-standards than when they erroneously failed to endorse desirable self-standards. These electrophysiological correlates of differences in the motivational significance of undesired versus desired self-standards emerged within 400 ms of making an error, suggesting that the impact of these errors does not require extensive deliberation.     

Examining the Use of Talk and Writing for Students' Development of Scientific Conceptual Knowledge Through Constructing and Critiquing Arguments

This study developed an analytic framework consisting of four patterns of talk and writing that can support students' engagement in construction and critique: Talk only, writing only, use of talk and writing in sequence, and use of talk and writing simultaneously. This study aimed to examine how each pattern supports students' development of scientific knowledge through the construction and critique of arguments and what cognitive functions are associated with each pattern. To trace students' knowledge development over time using the four patterns, three students were selected as target subjects. Data were analyzed using two approaches: (1) in-depth analysis of a Knowledge Development Trajectory and (2) constant comparative method. This study highlights elementary students' capability of engaging in argumentation that promotes their scientific knowledge development when provided with proper opportunities, facilitation, and time to recognize that talk and writing can be used as epistemic tools for both constructing and critiquing arguments.     

Chosŏn-Centrism and Japan-Centrism in the Eighteenth Century: Han Wŏn-chin vs. Motoori Norinaga

The eighteenth century was a peaceful era for East Asia, ruled by the emperors of Ching. However, intellectuals who refused to accept the Great Ching order appeared in Chos?n and Japan. They developed homeland-centric ideologies. This article compares the Han W?n-chin (韓元震, 1682–1751)‘s Chos?n-centrism with the Motoori Norinaga (本居宣長, 1730–1801)’s Japan-centrism. There is a lot of research about the Norinaga’s Japan-centrism in Japanese academia, which contains both aspects of the culture theory and order theory. In Korea, however, discourse about Chos?n-centrism is still ongoing argument under the concept of ‘Chos?n’s Sino-centrism (朝鮮中華主義)’. I would like to pay attention to that, although homeland-centrism is constructed with two aspects, which are theories of international order and culture, the Chos?n’s Sino-Centrism related discourse only discuss about culture theory aspect. Therefore, comparing Japan-centrism, which contains both culture and order parts, I will point out the problem of Chos?n’s Sino-centrism discourse has, and assert that when Han W?n-chin came up with the idea of a Chos?n-led world, Chos?n-centrism had born with both aspects of culture and order. In order to reveal the Chos?n-centrism, I will use a new concept called ‘Zhonghua Community (中華共同體)’.