Age differences in resistance to peer influence

Prior research describes the development of susceptibility to peer pressure in adolescence as following an inverted U-shaped curve, increasing during early adolescence, peaking around age 14, and declining thereafter. This pattern, however, is derived mainly from studies that specifically examined peer pressure to engage in antisocial behavior. In the present study, age differences and developmental change in resistance to peer influence were assessed using a new self-report instrument that separates susceptibility to peer pressure from willingness to engage in antisocial activity. Data from four ethnically and socioeconomically diverse samples comprising more than 3,600 males and females between the ages of 10 and 30 were pooled from one longitudinal and two cross-sectional studies. Results show that across all demographic groups, resistance to peer influences increases linearly between ages 14 and 18. In contrast, there is little evidence for growth in this capacity between ages 10 and 14 or between 18 and 30. Middle adolescence is an especially significant period for the development of the capacity to stand up for what one believes and resist the pressures of one's peers to do otherwise.     

Do 9-month-old infants expect distinct words to refer to kinds?

In 3 experiments, 9-month-old infants' expectations for what distinct count noun labels refer to were investigated. In Experiment 1, a box was opened to reveal 2 objects inside during familiarization: either 2 identical objects or 2 different objects. Test trials followed the same procedure, except before the box was opened, the contents were described using 2 distinct labels ("I see a wug! I see a dak!") or the same label twice ("I see a zav! I see a zav!"). Infants who heard a label repeated twice looked longer at 2 different objects versus 2 identical objects, whereas infants who heard 2 distinct labels showed a different pattern of looking. Experiments 2 and 3 presented infants with object pairs that only differed in shape or color, and it was found that infants expected the different-shaped (but not the different-colored) objects to be labeled by distinct count nouns. Because the property of shape is a cue to kind membership and the property of color is not, these results suggest that even at the beginning of word learning, infants may expect distinct labels to refer to distinct kinds of objects.     

Evaluating and Comparing Interventions Designed to Enhance Math Fact Accuracy and Fluency: Cover,Copy, and Compare Versus Taped Problems

An adapted alternating treatments design was used to evaluate and compare the effects of two procedures designed to enhance math fact accuracy and fluency in an elementary student with low cognitive functioning. Results showed that although the cover, copy, compare (CCC) and the taped problems (TP) procedures both increased the student's math fact accuracy and fluency, TP was more effective as it took less time to implement. Discussion focuses on the need to develop strategies and procedures that allow students to acquire basic computation skills in a manner that will facilitate, as opposed to hinder, subsequent levels of skill and concept development.     

Word-attack skills in individuals with mental retardation

This article assesses the state of the literature on word-attack skills and phonological awareness (PA) in individuals with mental retardation, in light of progress towards the development of effective teaching procedures. The literature contains promising findings. Studies have shown PA to be correlated with word-attack skills in individuals with mental retardation, as has been shown conclusively in typically developing children. This suggests that instruction in PA would facilitate the acquisition of word-attack skills in individuals with mental retardation, as it does with typically developing children. As of yet, however, very few experimental studies designed to demonstrate effective teaching procedures for PA and word-attack skills have been published. This research field might evolve most effectively and efficiently by following a two-step research program. First, test new teaching procedures in a series of small-N studies, each study incorporating modifications of teaching procedures based on the results of the previous study. Once procedures prove effective at this level, the resources necessary to pursue large-scale studies can be used to their best advantage.     

Clinical perspectives on the combination of D-cycloserine and cognitive-behavioral therapy for the treatment of anxiety disorders

In a particular success for translational research agendas, characterization of the neuronal circuits underlying fear extinction, and basic research in animal extinction paradigms, has led to intervention studies examining the use of D-cycloserine (DCS) to enhance therapeutic learning from exposure-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). In this article, we review these intervention studies, and discuss DCS augmentation of CBT relative to more traditional combination-treatment strategies in the treatment of anxiety disorders. We offer an accounting, based on evidence for internal context effects, of current limitations in the combination of antidepressant or benzodiazepine medications with CBT and discuss the advantages of isolated-dosing strategies with DCS relative to these limitations. This strategy is contrasted with the chronic-dosing applications of DCS for schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease, and future directions for isolated-dosing strategies are discussed.     

Classification of adults with problematic internet experiences: linking internet and conventional problems from a clinical perspective.

This article utilizes data from clinical reports of 929 adults to examine whether various problematic Internet experiences are distinctly different from or extensions of conventional problems. A TwoStep Cluster Analysis identified three mutually exclusive groups of adults, those with (1) online relationship problems and victimization; (2) online and offline problems; and (3) marital discord. Results suggest some initial support for the idea that problematic Internet experiences are often extensions of experiences and behaviors that pre-date the Internet. However, the Internet may be introducing some qualitatively new dimensions-such as an increased severity, an increased frequency, or unique dynamics-that require new responses or interventions.     

Primary or "specific" language impairment and children learning a second language

We review empirical findings from children with primary or "specific" language impairment (PLI) and children who learn a single language from birth (L1) and a second language (L2) beginning in childhood. The PLI profile is presented in terms of both language and nonlinguistic features. The discussion of L2 learners emphasizes variable patterns of growth and skill distribution in L1 and L2 which complicate the identification of PLI in linguistically diverse learners. We then introduce our research program, designed to map out common ground and potential fault lines between typically developing children learning one or two languages, as compared to children with PLI.