The negative consequences of threat: a functional magnetic resonance imaging investigation of the neural mechanisms underlying women's underperformance in math

This study used functional magnetic resonance imaging to identify the neural structures associated with women's underperformance on math tasks. Although women in a control condition recruited neural networks that are associated with mathematical learning (i.e., angular gyrus, left parietal and prefrontal cortex), women who were reminded of gender stereotypes about math ability did not recruit these regions, and instead revealed heightened activation in a neural region associated with social and emotional processing (ventral anterior cingulate cortex).     

A comparison of interview and self-report methods for the assessment of borderline personality disorder criteria

Interview methods are widely regarded as the standard for the diagnosis of borderline personality disorder (BPD), whereas self-report methods are considered a time-efficient alternative. However, the relative validity of these methods has not been sufficiently tested. The current study used data from the Collaborative Longitudinal Personality disorder Study to compare diagnostic base rates and the relative validity of interview and self-report methods for assessing functional outcome in BPD. Although self-report yielded higher base rates of criteria endorsement, results did not support the common assumption that diagnostic interviews are more valid than self-reports, but instead indicated the combined use of these methods optimally identifies BPD criteria.     

The role of autonomic arousal in feelings of familiarity

Subjective feelings of familiarity associated with a stimulus tend to be strongest when specific information about the previous encounter with the stimulus is difficult to retrieve (e.g., the butcher-on-the-bus phenomenon; [Mandler, G. (1980). Recognizing: The judgment of previous occurrence. Psychological Review, 87, 252-271.]). When a stimulus has been encountered previously and the circumstances of the encounter cannot be recollected, additional cognitive resources may be directed toward recollection processes; this resource allocation is accompanied by autonomic arousal [Dawson, M. E., Filion, D. L., & Schell, A. M. (1989). Is elicitation of the autonomic orienting response associated with allocation of processing resources?. Psychophysiology, 26, 560-572]. One easily measurable index of autonomic arousal is the skin conductance response (SCR). In the present study, participants studied lists of words and then gave recognition ratings to briefly displayed and masked studied and nonstudied test words while their SCRs were monitored. Results revealed a relationship between recognition ratings and the temporal characteristics of the SCR, supporting the idea that feelings of familiarity are indeed "feelings" in that they stem from autonomic arousal associated with cognitive resource allocation.     

Mentoring Nurses in Familial Cancer Risk Assessment and Counseling: Lessons Learned From a Formative Evaluation

Background. As familial cancer genetic services moves into community practice increased numbers of trained health professionals are needed to counsel individuals seeking cancer risk information. Nurses have been targeted to provide cancer risk assessment and counseling. To help prepare nurses for this role, a 5-day training in familial cancer risk assessment and counseling followed by a long-distance mentorship to support continued skill development in the work environment was conducted by Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA. Methods. Four cohorts (N = 41) have completed the training and were randomized to either an immediate or delayed mentorship. A formative evaluation assessed the nurse’s ability to consult with other genetic health professionals and build self-efficacy in counseling skills via responses to questionnaire. A post-mentorship interview evaluated the usefulness, timing and length of the mentorship. Results. For both groups, there was a statistically significant improvement in self-efficacy for all skills from baseline to 6 months and an increased number of nurses consulting with genetic health professionals. All the nurses reported the value of the mentorship and those with less cancer risk counseling experience prior to the training needed support and resources for further skill and program development. Lessons learned from this formative evaluation are provided.     

Lessons Learned from the Intensive Mental Health Program: A School-based,Community Oriented Program for Children with Serious Emotional Disturbances

The Intensive Mental Health Program meets the needs for services in school systems for children with serious emotional disturbances and for training graduate students in clinical applications with a difficult-to-serve population. We address the range of challenges and rewards experienced in the development of the comprehensive intervention program, the continued maintenance of program elements, and the program evaluation.     

Obesity in America: Implications for Clinical and Health Psychologists

The number of individuals classified as overweight and obese is increasing at alarming rates and these conditions are associated with numerous psychological and physiological health problems. Within this epidemic, there is an increasing need and demand for psychologists and other mental health professionals to participate in the care of patients with obesity, both in assessment and treatment domains. The current paper provides a review of the status of the obesity epidemic, including psychological comorbidities and treatment approaches. Throughout this review, we highlight and discuss the important roles and impact psychologists can have. These roles include serving as members of multidisciplinary obesity treatment programs, conducting assessments for bariatric surgery, and treating related psychiatric disorders, such as depression and disordered eating. Other considerations, such as weight gain associated with psychiatric medications, and directions for future involvement of psychologists in addressing the obesity epidemic are also discussed.     

Environmental cue saliency influences the vividness of a remote spatial memory in rats

The Morris water maze is frequently used to evaluate the acquisition and retrieval of spatial memories. Few experiments, however, have investigated the effects of environmental cue saliency on the strength or persistence of such memories after a short vs. long post-acquisition interval. Using a Morris water maze, we therefore tested in rats the effect of the saliency of distal cues on the vividness of a recent (5 days) vs. remote (25 days) memory. Rats trained in a cue-enriched vs. a cue-impoverished context showed a better overall level of performance during acquisition. Furthermore, the probe trials revealed that the rats trained and tested in the cue-impoverished context (1) spent less time in the target quadrant at the 25-day delay, and (2) swam shorter distances in the target area, with fewer crossings at both 5- and 25-day delays, as compared to their counterparts trained and tested in the cue-enriched context. Thus, the memory trace formed in the cue-enriched context shows better resistance to time, suggesting an implication of cue saliency in the vividness of a spatial memory.     

Dividing attention across feature dimensions in statistical processing of perceptual groups

Statistical processing has been shown in the perception of several visual dimensions, including size, speed, direction of motion, and orientation. Chong and Treisman (2005) found no decrement when people simultaneously averaged two sets on a single dimension, size. What happens when attention is divided between different dimensions? In two experiments, we investigated judgments of mean size and speed, either within the same objects or in two separate sets. In a third, we examined judgments of mean size and orientation in two different sets. All three experiments suggest a decrement in performance when attention is shared between two dimensions, especially when they are carried by two different sets of objects.     

Social perceptions of individuals missing upper front teeth

Although it is assumed that there are negative social consequences for individuals missing visible front teeth, no study of the way in which edentulous individuals were perceived in a social context and the potential social repercussions could be located. This initial study concerned college students' perceptions of individuals missing visible upper front teeth. 200 volunteers, 19 to 50 years of age (M = 20.6, SD = 4.4), rated five photographs depicting tooth presence or absence, from a full dentition to missing as many as four upper front teeth, on social traits including attractiveness, health status, educational attainment, satisfaction with life, active social life, aggressiveness, intelligence, trustworthiness, amount of caring, friendship, dating, and likelihood to live as a neighbor. Analysis suggested a person missing visible teeth was more negatively perceived on all social traits than a person with full dentition. Results were strongest when students were proposed to be linked to the edentulous individual in a personal way, i.e., dating or living as neighbor. Men and women agreed on perceptions of social traits and dentition condition. These results suggest the presence of strong Western cultural values, whereby those who are missing teeth may experience significant barriers to personal and social success.