Sensory Integration as a Treatment for Automatically Maintained Stereotypy

According to sensory integration (SI) theory, many symptoms of autism are caused by an inability to integrate and adaptively respond to sensory input. Despite little evidence supporting SI, this form of therapy is a popular treatment for children with autism. Should these treatments work, they should be most effective for behavior maintained by sensory consequences (automatically maintained). SI activities may make these sensory consequences less reinforcing. The purpose of this study was to determine whether SI treatments could reduce automatically‐maintained stereotypy. Five individuals with autism participated. An occupational therapist prescribed sensory activities that competed with stereotypy for SI treatments. Two types of SI treatments were tested: sensory diets and brushing with deep‐pressure therapy. The effect of these treatments on stereotypy was evaluated in an ABAB design. Neither the sensory diet alone, brushing and deep pressure alone, nor both treatments combined were effective interventions for stereotypy. These results do not support the use of SI as a treatment for stereotypy. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stimulus Sequence Features Influence Physicians' Response Tendencies in Radiological Image Interpretation

Decades of research on perception and prediction of randomness led us to speculate that the various response tendencies observed in these studies might manifest in multi‐trial discrimination tasks used in medical education. By re‐analyzing data from a previously published study in which 46 physicians and medical trainees judged 234 pediatric ankle radiographs, we show that (i) response tendencies can be differentially induced when individuals receive uniquely ordered sequences and (ii) response patterns consistent with win‐stay/lose‐shift and win‐shift/lose‐stay heuristics can be predicted from stimulus alternation rates and marginal distributions. Our results illustrate the importance of carefully arranging trials when studying discrimination and when using discrimination tasks to teach or to assess learners' skill levels. We call into question the wisdom of designing studies that present uniquely ordered stimulus sequences and discuss alternatives. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reading Attitudes of Texas High School Students

Through random sampling, we surveyed 2,568 high school students throughout Texas to determine their reading attitudes vis-à-vis individual and school background variables. Sources were the Rhody reading attitude scale and public domain campus summary data; the lenses of attitude theory and social justice informed this study. Significant differences appeared in overall reading attitude and gender, as well as these school characteristics: public and private, rural and urban, low and high poverty, low and high diversity, and small versus large student-teacher ratios. From the results, an avid reader from a public school would be in small classes in an urban school serving mostly students of color and poverty. These findings challenge educators, researchers, and policy-makers to rethink common misperceptions of the reading attitudes of youths in diverse, high-poverty urban schools.     

Multiculturally Sensitive Mental Health Scale (MSMHS): development, factor analysis, reliability, and validity

Effectively and efficiently diagnosing African Americans' mental health has been a chronically unresolved challenge. To meet this challenge we developed a tool to better understand African Americans' mental health: the Multiculturally Sensitive Mental Health Scale (MSMHS). Three studies reporting the development and initial validation of the MSMHS were conducted with African American student samples. First, an exploratory factor analysis of an initial item pool yielded 5 factors assessing subscales of perceived racism, depression, well-being, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. Second, a confirmatory factor analysis supported the MSMHS's 5-dimensional factor structure. Third, test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and validity coefficients supported the viability, use, and potential for continued development of this new instrument. Implications for theory and research on multicultural mental health scales are discussed.     

Transfer of skill engendered by complex task training under conditions of variable priority

We explored the theoretical underpinnings of a commonly used training strategy by examining issues of training and transfer of skill in the context of a complex video game (Space Fortress, Donchin, 1989). Participants trained using one of two training regimens: Full Emphasis Training (FET) or Variable Priority Training (VPT). Transfer of training was assessed with a large battery of cognitive and psychomotor tasks ranging from basic laboratory paradigms measuring reasoning, memory, and attention to complex real-world simulations. Consistent with previous studies, VPT accelerated learning and maximized task mastery. However, the hypothesis that VPT would result in broader transfer of training received limited support. Rather, transfer was most evident in tasks that were most similar to the Space Fortress game itself. Results are discussed in terms of potential limitations of the VPT approach.     

Increasing seat belt use in service vehicle drivers with a gearshift delay

This study evaluated a device that prevents drivers from shifting vehicles into gear for up to 8 s unless seat belts are buckled. Participants were 101 commercial drivers who operated vans, pickups, or other light trucks from the U.S. and Canada. The driver could escape or avoid the delay by fastening his or her seat belt before shifting out of park. Unbelted participants experienced either a constant delay (8 s) or a variable delay (M = 8 s). A 16‐s delay was introduced for those U.S. drivers who did not show significant improvement. Seat belt use increased from 48% to 67% (a 40% increase) for U.S. drivers and from 54% to 74% (a 37% increase) for Canadian drivers. The fixed delay was more effective for U.S. drivers than the variable delay, but there was no difference between these two delay schedules for Canadian drivers. After the driver fastened his or her seat belt, it tended to remain fastened for the duration of the trip.     

The Unmet Information and Support Needs of Women with a Family History of Breast Cancer: A Descriptive Survey

This study aims to survey the unmet support needs of women at increased risk of developing breast cancer. In total, 173 unaffected women with a family history of breast cancer completed a 28-item purposely-designed mailed survey. The majority of participants did not report a high level of unmet need for support. Receiving further information about cancer genetics was the most commonly reported area of unmet need. Only about 20% of participants reported a moderate to high degree of interest in attending a hypothetical support group. However, a higher degree of interest was expressed in internet-based information and supportive interventions. Amongst those interested in attending a support group, discussion, and receiving further information were the most preferred activities. Higher levels of unmet support needs were significantly associated with interest in attending groups. No demographic variables were found to predict interest in attending a support group. Implications for those considering establishing support groups are discussed.     

The Role of Fidelity and Feedback in the Wraparound Approach

Wraparound approaches are being implemented with children in many mental health systems around the country. Evidence for the effectiveness of the wraparound approach, however, is limited. In addition, the degree to which wraparound interventions adhere to the principles of wraparound has rarely been assessed. We examined the influence of adherence to wraparound principles and outcome feedback within the wraparound approach. Children participating in family team meetings were enrolled in a feedback or no feedback condition. Teams receiving feedback were given a brief report regarding outcome progress four times over a three-month period. In addition, adherence to wraparound principles was assessed in the initial team meeting and examined in relationship to outcome at three months and nine months. Although youth in both feedback and non-feedback groups improved with intervention, there were few differences between the groups based on outcome feedback. Similarly, adherence was uniformly high and did not influence the outcome for individual cases. Although the wraparound approach was helpful for youth in our sample, outcome feedback and adherence to wraparound principles had limited influence on these effects.