Evaluation of social competence training in the schools

A social competence program for high risk children is described and evaluated in this paper. Advanced undergraduates majoring in psychology used interpersonal problem-solving techniques to work with 32 maladapting first through third graders who were seen on a small group basis. The intervention program was conducted for 14 weeks. Compared to a control group of 32 children, results indicated that children in the program made siginficantly greater gains in classroom adjustment as rated by teachers. Additionally, socimetric status served as a criterion for evaluating program effectiveness. Results demonstrated that children who participated in the social competence training made significantly greater gains in peer acceptance as measured by a brief sociometric questionnaire than the controls. The implications of these findings and the methodological limitations of the study are discussed.     

High School Sport Participation and Subsequent Psychological Well-Being and Physical Activity: The Mediating Influences of Body Image, Physical Competence, and Instrumentality

This study examined the relationship of high school sport participation to psychological well-being and physical activity involvement in college. First semester female undergraduates (n?=?260) at a large public university in the southern United States reported their high school sport participation and completed a series of questionnaires assessing their current body image, physical competence, instrumentality, psychological well-being, and physical activity levels. Body image, physical competence, and instrumentality mediated the relationships between high school sport involvement and college well-being and level of activity. This model accounted for 46% of the variance in college physical activity and 60% in psychological well-being, suggesting that these benefits accrue as a result of changes in how women view themselves and their bodies.     

Relation Between Aggression Exposure During Youth and Later Resting Skin Conductance Levels

Recent research efforts have focused on examining the relationship between environmental and physiological factors to better understand the effect that childhood chronic stress might have on adult health outcomes. This study examines the relation between childhood parental aggression exposure and the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), as measured by resting skin conductance levels (SCLs). Participants (N = 155) completed retrospective self-report measures of childhood exposure to interparental aggression and physically aggressive parenting. The 2-way interaction between exposure to physically aggressive parenting and interparental aggression accounted for unique variance in adulthood SCL. Sex differences emerged in this relationship. Results suggest that the type of aggression exposure might play an important role in the relationship between stressors in youth and resting SNS activity in adulthood. Future research areas are identified, including the need to examine plasticity in the SNS depending on the age of experienced aggression and the age of intervention.     

Sources of variability in working memory in early childhood: A consideration of age, temperament, language, and brain electrical activity

This study investigated age-related differences in working memory and inhibitory control (WMIC) in -, 4-, and -year-olds and how these differences were associated with differences in regulatory aspects of temperament, language comprehension, and brain electrical activity. A series of cognitive control tasks was administered to measure WMIC ability, including the Stroop-like day–night and the yes–no tasks. Baseline and task electroencephalographic data were collected. The Children's Behavior Questionnaire was used to assess caregiver perceptions of temperament with a particular interest in the effortful control and surgency factors, and language comprehension was measured with the Peabody-Picture Vocabulary Test-III. The results of this study demonstrated differential temperament-cognition relations for the three age groups, as positive associations were found between WMIC and effortful control for the - and 4-year-olds and negative associations were found between WMIC and surgency for the -year-olds. An increasingly robust relation between WMIC and language comprehension was demonstrated across the three age groups, as well as differential patterns of task-related brain electrical activity.     

Spirituality Among College Freshmen: Relationships to Self‐Esteem,Body Image,and Stress

The authors investigated the relationships between spirituality, body image, self‐esteem, and stress in 204 college freshmen who identified themselves as being highly spiritual. A positive relationship was found between spirituality and self‐esteem. Although self‐esteem was found to be negatively related to stress, spirituality served as a buffer in this relationship. When gender of participants was examined, men and women did not differ in spirituality. Greater spirituality was related to lower body surveillance, an aspect of body image, for men, but it was not related to body image for women. Overall, however, women experienced greater body image dissatisfaction than did men.     

Short-term involuntary examination of older adults in Florida

The elder population continues to grow rapidly in many countries. Florida's elder population is growing faster than most states', with over one-quarter of the Florida population projected to be aged 65 and over by 2025. Involuntary examination (i.e. emergency commitment) under a state's civil commitment law is one means by which older adults experience assessment for acute mental health care. In Florida, the civil commitment law permits the involuntary examination of an individual for up to 72 hours to determine whether the person meets standards for involuntary treatment. From calendar year 2001 through 2005, there were 531,091 involuntary examinations in Florida for 301,886 people of all ages. Thirteen percent were 60 years and older at the time of their examination. The purpose of this paper is to describe the characteristics of older adults subject to involuntary examination and the nature of their examinations. While these data permit a number of inferences, there is an expansive area of research and policy analysis that remains untapped and would permit better understanding of how older adults experience such examinations. These research and policy issues will also be discussed.