Fibromyalgia: the role of sleep in affect and in negative event reactivity and recovery

OBJECTIVE: Fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome is a chronic pain condition characterized by diffuse muscle pain, increased negative mood, and sleep disturbance. Until recently, sleep disturbance in persons with FM has been modeled as the result of the disease process or its associated pain. The current study examined sleep disturbance (i.e., sleep duration and sleep quality) as a predictor of daily affect, stress reactivity, and stress recovery. DESIGN AND MEASURES: A hybrid of daily diary and ecological momentary assessment methodology was used to evaluate the psychosocial functioning of 89 women with FM. Participants recorded numeric ratings of pain, fatigue, and positive and negative affect 3 times throughout the day for 30 consecutive days. At the end of each day, participants completed daily diary records of positive and negative life events. In addition, participants reported on their sleep duration and sleep quality each morning. RESULTS: After accounting for the effects of positive events, negative events, and pain on daily affect scores, it was found that sleep duration and quality were prospectively related to affect and fatigue. Furthermore, the effects of inadequate sleep on negative affect were cumulative. In addition, an inadequate amount of sleep prevented affective recovery from days with a high number of negative events. CONCLUSIONS: These results lend support to the hypothesis that sleep is a component of allostatic load and has an upstream role in daily functioning.     

Primary School Correlates of Secondary School Achievement

This study is an investigation of the relationship between third grade final marks, achievement test scores, and subsequent achievement in elementary and secondary school. It was focused on the early identification of students for whom changes in the curriculum might be indicated.     

Nonsuicidal Self-injury,Suicide Planning,and Suicide Attempts Among High-risk Adolescents Prior to Psychiatric Hospitalization

Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology - The purpose of this study was to understand the trajectories of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicide plans (SP) in the 90 days...     

Pregrouping aggression and defense scores influences alcohol consumption for dominant and subordinate rats in visible burrow systems

Five male/two female rat colonies were established in visible burrow systems, with males selected for pregrouping attack scores and also evaluated in open field and cat odor tests. Dominant-subordinate pregrouping attack differences suggested that the males becoming dominant are those showing more persistent and higher level attack. For six colonies showing dominant-subordinate behavioral differences, pregrouping defense tests failed to predict subordinate status. However, pregrouping defense scores were reliably correlated with subordinate pre-postgrouping change scores for voluntary ethanol consumption. Subordinates showed higher ranked ethanol consumption than dominants, but these groups were not different on pregrouping ethanol consumption. Subordinate postgrouping ethanol consumption was positively correlated with pregrouping attack toward an adult intruder, consonant with previous findings that highly aggressive subordinates are the targets of more intense attack by dominants. These results provide further support for a view that subordination stress increases voluntary ethanol consumption in male rats and suggest some additional individual differences factors that may be involved in increased ethanol consumption for male subordinates. © 1992 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

The breathing bear with preterm infants: Effects on sleep,respiration, and affect

This study investigated the sleep/wake states, respiration, and affective behaviors of premature infants who were provided à “breathing” bear in the isolette from 33 to 35 weeks conceptional age (CA). The Breathing Bear is à source of rhythmic stimulation that is optional for the infants. Its “breathing” reflects the breathing rate of the individual infant. At 33 weeks CA, 27 premature infants were provided à Breathing Bear (BrBr) and 26 were given à Non-Breathing Bear (N-BrBr). At 35 weeks, interfeed observations for an average of 1.7 hours were made of the babies' states and state-specific behaviors, along with respiration recordings. By 35 weeks, the BrBr babies showed less wakefulness, more quiet sleep, fewer startles in quiet sleep, and less crying than the N-BrBr babies. In addition, they were more likely to smile and N-BrBr babies were more likely to grimace in active sleep. These findings replicate and extend previous reports of effects of the Breathing Bear on neurobehavioral organization. They also suggest that less negative affect is expressed by the BrBr babies; and they point to the importance of future study of preterm infants' affective expressions, both in sleep and in waking.     

Integrated learning communities as a peer support initiative for first year university students

Peer Mentoring schemes tend to be developed as retention strategies, however, they can also serve other purposes (psychosocial or career-related). However, evidence of the effectiveness of these presents mixed results and less is known about the horizontal peer support schemes which may help students capitalize on existing peer relationships. We developed an integrated learning communities (ILC) peer support scheme, building on the theoretical principles of social identity theory, which we embedded within our existing teaching framework and designed functional activities. Collective activities were undertaken to promote the processes of social identity with the intention that these may foster social and academic integration experiences. This intervention was undertaken with an entire cohort of first year undergraduate psychology students. We conducted semi-structured interviews with a self-selected sample of these students (N = 17). Thematic analysis revealed two main themes, each with two sub-themes. These were: “Divergent Experiences” with the sub-themes of “dependent on people” and “types of support”, and “Good idea in principle” with the sub-themes of “Theory ≠ Practice” and “Dependent on student engagement”. Although identifying with a peer group was not transparent in the interviews, the existence of a peer support scheme was perceived positively by students which might explain the success of the newly developed student-led Psychology Society. Indeed, this Psychology Society can provide a lasting framework for further amplification of the student voice. We conclude that our embedded ILC was both feasible and potentially valuable, but it is crucial for the peer support approach to have transactional significance.