Dimensionality,identity and security: finding a home through psychoanalysis

This paper suggests that Meltzer’s understanding of the development of inner space can be thought about in relation to how a state of ‘being at home’ can be impaired through early trauma and developmental failure. It shows how a very young child developed a greater capacity for recognising inner and outer experience and consequently a greater awareness of inner space through intensive psychotherapy. Clinical material is presented in which this two-year-old boy moves from profound disorientation and disconnection, through physical containment and moments of communication, to some shared expression and symbolisation of his preoccupations. The author uses episodes from the psychotherapy to illustrate links between Meltzer’s thoughts on impaired interior dimensionality and a resulting terror of the ‘breaking of surfaces’ with Winnicott’s understanding of the necessary ‘gravitational pull’ of a good internal object and the negative retreat which may be caused by overwhelming anxiety. The paper suggests that a developmental approach to psychotherapy with young children has some technical ramifications which might include physical containment, emphasised attunement, simple observational commentary and developmental interpretation. The relationship between interior and exterior spatial awareness is discussed and brief reference is made to a study of psychotherapy with homeless adults regarding their capacity to make use of a physical home. Finally, Bion’s encouragement to abandon memory and desire is discussed in relation to the need traumatised children may have for environmental hope and hopefulness in the person of their therapist.     

The Association Between Reflective Functioning and Parent–Child Relationship Quality

Research consistently links adult and infant attachment styles, yet the means by which attachment is transmitted is relatively elusive. Recently, attention has been directed to the psychological underpinnings of caregiver sensitivity—originally thought to be the mechanism of transmission—as indicated by caregivers’ ability to keep in mind children’s mental states when interpreting children’s behavior, or reflective functioning. Unfortunately for researchers, extant measures of reflective functioning are time-consuming and require extensive observation and coding. A self-report measure could help facilitate the study and assessment of reflective functioning in research and clinical settings. This study investigated the relationship between parental reflective functioning and multiple aspects of the parent–child relationship, by using a new, self-report measure of reflective functioning. Participants were 79 caregivers (M _age = 31.8 years) who completed self-report measures assessing reflective functioning, parent–child relationship characteristics, perceived rejection in early relationships, attachment anxiety and avoidance in current close relationships, depression, and substance use. The results indicated that reflective functioning is a strong predictor of parent–child relationship quality (i.e., parental involvement, communication, parent satisfaction, limit setting, and parental support), independent of other potential indicators. Findings support parental reflective functioning as a contributor to the quality of parent–child relationship and suggest that a parent’s capacity to reflect on the mental states of his or her child in parent–child interactions may provide a key target for interventions that aim to improve parent–child relationships.     

Social cognition is not associated with cognitive reserve in older adults

Social and general cognitive abilities decline in late life. Those with high cognitive reserve display better general cognitive performance in old age; however, it is unknown whether this is also the case for social cognition. A total of 115 healthy older adults, aged 60–85 years (m = 44, f = 71) were assessed using The Awareness of Social Inference Test (TASIT-R; social cognition), the Lifetime of Experiences Questionnaire (LEQ; cognitive reserve), and the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI-II; general cognitive ability). The LEQ did not predict performance on any TASIT-R subtest: Emotion Evaluation Test (β = -.097, p = .325), Social Inference – Minimal (β = -.004, p = .972), or Social Inference – Enriched (β = -.016, p = .878). Sensitivity analyses using two alternative cognitive reserve measures, years of education and the National Adult Reading Test, supported these effects. Cognitive reserve was strongly related to WASI-II performance. Unlike general cognitive ability, social cognition appears unaffected by cognitive reserve. Findings contribute to the emerging understanding that cognitive reserve differentially affects individual cognitive domains, which has implications for the theoretical understanding of cognitive reserve and its brain correlates. Cognitive measures unbiased by cognitive reserve may serve as best indicators of brain health, free of compensatory mechanisms.     

Schlafstörung – Symptom der Depression?

Sleep disorders are an interdisciplinary health issue. Among western industrialized countries, many people suffer from poor quality of sleep. Especially, psychiatric patients have a high prevalence of sleep disorders. The treatment of sleep disorders should follow a detailed sleep history and polysomnographic work-up, which is often not possible in daily work. Thus, patients with sleep disorders are often not treated accurately. Mobile inhospital polysomnography is an attractive alternative that allows tests to be performed already during normal hospitalization on any ward. The following case report shows that the diagnostic work-up of sleep disorders can significantly affect further treatment decisions.     

Risk and Resistance Factors Associated with Paternal Adjustment to Obstetrical Brachial Plexus Injuries

This study aimed to identify risk and resistance factors associated with the psychological adjustment of fathers of children with obstetrical brachial plexus injuries (OBPI). Participants were 34 fathers of children with OBPI recruited from an Australian OBPI clinic. Measures completed were OBPI severity, disability related stress, family functioning and social support. Together the risk and resistance factors of severity and family functioning accounted for 28 % of the total variance in paternal psychological adjustment. Family functioning explained 12 % of the variance in psychological adjustment in addition to that explained by severity. These findings highlight the importance of considering paternal perceptions of OBPI severity and family functioning when providing health care to families of children with OBPI.     

Touching words is not enough: How visual experience influences haptic–auditory associations in the “Bouba–Kiki” effect

Since Köhler’s experiments in the 1920s, researchers have demonstrated a correspondence between words and shapes. Dubbed the “Bouba–Kiki” effect, these auditory–visual associations extend across cultures and are thought to be universal. More recently the effect has been shown in other modalities including taste, suggesting the effect is independent of vision. The study presented here tested the “Bouba–Kiki” effect in the auditory–haptic modalities, using 2D cut-outs and 3D models based on Köhler’s original drawings. Presented with shapes they could feel but not see, sighted participants showed a robust “Bouba–Kiki” effect. However, in a sample of people with a range of visual impairments, from congenital total blindness to partial sight, the effect was significantly less pronounced. The findings suggest that, in the absence of a direct visual stimulus, visual imagery plays a role in crossmodal integration.     

When Trust Fails: The Relation Between Children’s Trust Beliefs in Peers and their Peer Interactions in a Natural Setting

One hundred and forty-nine 8–11 year-old children (86 males; M?=?9 years - 4 months and SD?=?7 months) from the UK were administered the Trust Beliefs in Peers scale and were observed in the playground over one school year. Quadratic relations were found between trust beliefs in peers and peer interaction, which varied by gender. Compared to girls with the middle range of trust beliefs, girls with very low beliefs and those with very high beliefs (a) were less accepted/more rejected by the peer group (i.e., lower group interaction, and greater negatively received bids), (b) showed greater indirect aggression (engaged in and received), (c) showed greater non-engagement (i.e., being alone), and (d) showed greater concomitant distress. Compared to children with the middle range of trust beliefs, children with those extreme trust beliefs in peers demonstrated greater direct aggression (engaged in and received) and showed passive behavior (for boys only). The findings supported the conclusion that children, primarily girls, who trust peers too little and those who trust too much are at risk for psychosocial maladjustment.