The buffering effect of family functioning on the psychological consequences of headache

The current study aimed to examine whether high family functioning mitigates the association between headache intensity and distress. The sample consisted of 124 patients with chronic or recurrent headache. Patients completed validated questionnaires about headache intensity, family functioning, and distress. Hierarchical regression analyses were performed to examine the interaction between headache intensity and family functioning on distress. Headache intensity was positively associated with distress (r = .28, p = .002). As hypothesized, family functioning moderated this association (B = ?.01, p = .023). More specifically, the positive association between headache intensity and distress was significant only among patients with lower family functioning (B = .01, p < .001) and not among patients with higher levels of family functioning (B = .006, p = .075). Functional families appear to buffer the distress level in patients; they showed relatively low levels of distress regardless of the severity of their headache. In contrast, patients with dysfunctional families who experienced more pain reported more distress, presumably because they did not receive adequate help and support from these families. This study underlines the importance of a broader perspective on family dynamics in coping with pain.     

Psychosocial factors and reading difficulties: students with reading difficulties drawn from a representative population sample

In a representative sample of 2,464 Norwegian adolescents, aged 12-15 years, 7.8% (n= 191) reported reading difficulties (RD). No gender difference was found. Adolescents with RD were compared to classmates on psychosocial variables. In univariate analysis, RD adolescents report higher levels of depressive symptoms, more school stress, worried more about going to school, had lower school grades and lower attachment to parents than those without RD. They also scored lower on Global Self-worth and on Social Acceptance scales. Further, they reported reduced levels of psycho-functioning during the previous year because of mental health problems, they had received more help and had used more medication for such problems. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, receiving help for mental health problems and reduced psycho-functioning showed the strongest associations with student RD status. No gender interactions were found. The study demonstrated important differences between adolescents with and without RD.     

Prevalence, course, incidence, and 1-year prediction of deliberate self-harm and suicide attempts in early Norwegian school adolescents

In this survey of early Norwegian school adolescents, the prevalence, course, and incidence of self-harm behavior with or without suicide intent were examined, in addition to predictors of self-harm for a 1-year follow-up period. Lifetime prevalence rates of self-harm without suicide intent and suicide attempts were 2.9% and 3.0%, respectively, while 1-year incidence rates were 3.6% and 1.7%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, five predictors significantly differentiated self-harmers from non-self-harming adolescents. Early school adolescents having frequent or intense suicidal ideation over an extended time period and attempting self-harm repeatedly with or without suicide intent should be identified and offered treatment.     

Perception of phosphenes and flashed alphabetical characters is enhanced by single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation of anterior frontal lobe: the thalamic gate hypothesis

Single pulses of transcranial magnetic stimulation (sTMS) restricted locally to the primary cortical areas for somatosensory and visual input, unlike the effects of repetitive stimulation, usually fail to elicit projected sensations. We tested the effect of sTMS over anterior frontal cortex in facilitating phosphenes from preceding sTMS over calcarine cortex, which alone was rarely effective in eliciting phosphenes. The combined sTMS elicited complex phosphenes, which changed with the site of frontal sTMS and the interstimulus interval. Our results show that sTMS over anterior frontal cortex also improved reporting of weakly illuminated, flashed four-letter stimuli, which permitted its statistical validation. We propose that the present demonstration of frontal cortical facilitation of visual awareness, when combined with the previous finding of projected paresthesias and sense of movement (Amassian et al, 1991 Brain 114 2505-2520), provide evidence of a general frontal opening effect on a thalamic gate. Opening this gate facilitates entry of information from primary cortical receiving areas to thalamus. Thereby, the reciprocal thalamocortical interrelations that subserve conscious awareness of sensory stimuli could be fostered.     

On the relationship between responsibility and guilt: antecedent appraisal or elaborated appraisal?

Three studies are reported in which we examined the relation between responsibility and guilt. Results from Study 1 suggested that responsibility increased as a function of guilt, but that the reverse relation did not emerge. In the second and third studies we primed either responsibility or guilt and examined how these primes influenced subsequent appraisals for novel events. We also used different manipulations of responsibility and guilt. In Study 2 guilt was operationalized as negative interpersonal consequences as evidenced by the reactions of others. Responsibility was varied by manipulating the controllability of negative outcomes. In Study 3 responsibility was manipulated in terms of the severity of negative consequences for oneself. Results of both studies showed that guilt primes gave rise to perceptions of responsibility but that responsibility primes did not affect perceptions of guilt. We conclude that responsibility is best regarded as an elaborated appraisal generated by guilt, rather than an antecedent of guilt. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Using a modified constant prompt-delay procedure to teach spelling to students with physical disabilities

Current research suggests that constant delay is an effective means of teaching students through near-errorless learning. The current study examined how procedures used in previous research may be modified so that constant delay can be implemented with students who have physical disabilities that prevent them from engaging in fluent academic responding. A multiple baseline design with probes was used to assess the effectiveness of a modified constant-delay procedure in teaching spelling to students with physical disabilities. This procedure was found to be effective for all 3 students.     

Sacrifice as a predictor of marital outcomes

We investigated the prospective associations between attitudes about sacrifice and marital outcomes in 38 married couples. Specifically, a measure of satisfaction with sacrifice was proposed to be a potent longitudinal predictor of marital adjustment and distress based on existing cross-sectional studies and also to mediate the association between commitment and marital adjustment. Results demonstrated that attitudes about sacrifice discriminated between couples who would become distressed versus nondistressed over time. Sacrifice attitudes also predicted the maintenance of relationship adjustment over time even better than earlier relationship adjustment. Finally, sacrifice attitudes mediated the link between commitment and relationship adjustment for husbands, but not wives. Implications for intervention are discussed.     

The time of our lives: life span development of timing and event tracking

Life span developmental profiles were constructed for 305 participants (ages 4-95) for a battery of paced and unpaced perceptual-motor timing tasks that included synchronize-continue tapping at a wide range of target event rates. Two life span hypotheses, derived from an entrainment theory of timing and event tracking, were tested. A preferred period hypothesis predicted a monotonic slowing of a preferred rate (tempo) of event tracking across the life span. An entrainment region hypothesis predicted a quadratic profile in the range of event rates that produced effective timing across the life span; specifically, age-specific entrainment regions should be narrower in childhood and late adulthood than in midlife. Findings across tasks provide converging support for both hypotheses. Implications of these findings are discussed for understanding critical periods in development and age-related slowing of event timing.     

The effect of test schedules on the formation of linked perceptual classes

After training conditional discriminations among selected stimuli from two perceptual classes, the emergence of novel relations involving other members of both classes was assessed using cross-class probes. The cross-class probes were presented using one of four different testing schedules. In the 2/9 test, nine different probes were presented in each of two test blocks. In the 6/3 test, three different probes were presented in each of six test blocks. In the 18/1-RND test, each of the 18 cross-class probes was presented in separate test blocks. In the 2/9 and 6/3 tests, the cross-class probes were presented in a randomized order within test block. In the 18/1-RND test, the cross-class probes were presented in a randomized sequence. In the 18/1-PRGM test, however, the cross-class probes were presented in a programmed order (i.e., the values of the stimuli in each cross-class probe were changed systematically in the succession of probe presentations). About 55% of the linked perceptual classes emerged during the 2/9, 6/3, and 18/1-RND tests. Thus the number of different probes in a test block did not influence the emergence of classes as long as the probes were presented in a random order. Virtually all classes emerged during the 18/1-PRGM test. Thus at least one ordered introduction of different cross probes resulted in the reliable emergence of linked perceptual classes. Mechanisms responsible for linked perceptual class formation are discussed along with the relation of these classes to other complex categories.