Effects of a Brief Parenting Intervention In Shelters For Mothers And Their Children Experiencing Homelessness

This study was designed to examine the effectiveness of an evidence-based parenting program—Triple P Positive Parenting Program—in shelter settings for families experiencing homelessness. The intervention has not previously been evaluated in a shelter setting, where there is a critical need for evidence-based parenting programs. Using a within-group pre- and post-intervention with 3-month follow-up design, 39 mothers residing in a shelter with a child ages 2–6 years participated. Results of this preliminary study showed positive effects of Triple P Discussion Groups. There were significant improvements in mother-reported parenting practices and child behavior across time, but no change in child maltreatment risk as measured by the Brief Child Abuse Potential Inventory. Mothers rated satisfaction with the program high immediately after the group and again three weeks later. Results showed Triple P Discussion Groups are acceptable and have some positive effects for this vulnerable population in need of parenting support. We discuss implications of findings, limitations of the study (including a 33% attrition rate), and recommendations for further study.

     

The effect of delayed responding on Stroop-like task performance among preschoolers

Forty-four preschoolers completed 2 conditions of a Stroop-like procedure (e.g., saying "boat" for car and "car" for boat) that differed in whether a 3-s delay was imposed before responding. The test card was visible during the delay period for half of the children and occluded for the other children. Preschoolers' interference control was significantly improved in the delay condition. There was no difference between the two delay variants (test card visible or occluded). Children were more prone to interference as testing progressed regardless of whether the delay was present. These results suggest that delays effectively reduce interference by reducing the potency of the competing response during test trials, although memory demands may moderate the effectiveness of delays.     

Reflection-Impulsivity and Locus of Control in Emotionally Disturbed Children

Impulsive and reflective emotionally disturbed children were compared on their perceived locus of control. Contrary to prediction, there were no differences in locus of control for these two groups.     

From Standardization to Adaptation: Clinical Trials and the Moral Economy of Anticipation

Hailed as the gold standard, the randomized controlled trial (RCT) occupies a hegemonic position at the top of evidence-based medicine’s hierarchy of knowledge. It is testament to the methodology’s capacity for standardization that it can so readily be spoken of in the singular: the RCT. Under what conditions, then, is it possible to speak of change in the gold standard? Since the 1950s, alternative versions of the RCT have been advocated for under the banner of ‘adaptive design’. Adaptive designs allow investigators to make pre-planned changes to a trial on the basis of accruing information while the experiment is ongoing. Initially a niche topic of methodological debate among biostatisticians, the approach is becoming widespread in mainstream drug development. A genealogical analysis exposes the discursive moves used to justify and popularize adaptation, from a focus on patient well-being and the greater good in the 1960s and 1970s, to efficiency and virtualism in the 1990s and 2000s. Changing discourses of time and patienthood have facilitated a move away from standardization as the singular logic of trials towards an appreciation of flexibility, undergirded by probabilistic methodologies. Adams et al.’s [(2009). Anticipation: Technoscience, life, affect, temporality, Subjectivity, 28, pp. 246–265] conceptual framework of anticipation illuminates this evolving moral economy of medical research, in which modes of knowledge production which claim to know the future are supplanting the traditional certainties of fixed and standardized experimental designs. Predictable uncertainty is the currency of this emerging economy, which capitalizes on computer simulation and ever more sophisticated tools of prediction to leverage credibility.     

The role of executive functions in human prospective interval timing

Human timing is thought to be based on the output of an internal clock. Whilst the functioning of this clock is well documented, it is unclear which other cognitive resources may moderate timing. Brown (2006) and Rattat (2010) suggest that the central executive of working memory may be recruited during timing. However it seems likely that the fractionated executive component processes identified by Miyake et al. (2000) and Fisk and Sharp (2004) may differentially contribute to timing performance; further exploration of this was the aim of the present study. An interference paradigm was employed in which participants completed an interval production task, and tasks which have been shown to tap the four key executive component processes (shifting, inhibition, updating and access) under single and dual-task conditions. Comparison of single and dual-task performance indicated that timing always became more variable when concurrently performing a second task. Bidirectional interference only occurred between the interval production task and the memory updating task, implying that both tasks are competing for the same executive resource of updating. There was no evidence in the current study to suggest that switching, inhibition or access was involved in timing, however they may be recruited under more difficult task conditions.     

The role of cognitive, emotional and personality factors in the experience of fatigue in a university and community sample

The aim of this study was to investigate the contribution of cognitive, emotional and personality factors to the experience of fatigue severity in healthy adult individuals. Specifically, the study examined whether fatigue catastrophising and emotional distress mediated the relationships between neuroticism, general irrational and rational thoughts to fatigue severity. One hundred and eighty nine university students and community volunteers completed self-report questionnaires assessing fatigue catastrophising and symptom severity, neuroticism, general rational and irrational thoughts and emotional distress. A series of correlational and path analyses were conducted to test the study hypotheses. Neuroticism and more general negative, irrational cognitions were associated with elevated fatigue catastrophising and fatigue severity, whereas more adaptive, rational cognitions were related to lower fatigue catastrophising and fatigue severity. Both elevated fatigue catastrophising and emotional distress uniquely and simultaneously mediated the relationships between irrational and rational cognitions and neuroticism to fatigue severity. These findings demonstrate that cognitions play a role in fatigue severity. The results have implications in the assessment and treatment of fatigue disturbances in the general community.     

Promoting traffic safety among young male drivers by means of elaboration-based interventions

Previous research in social psychology has brought about significant changes in attitudes and behaviour by merely asking respondents to imagine, or reflect, on a phenomenon and arrive at their own conclusions. To test the potential of such interventions in the traffic safety area, an experiment comprising 353 young men 18–23 years old with a driver’s licence was conducted. Two experimental groups were induced to imagine a severe accident scenario and to visualize their feelings and the consequences on their future lives. A control group was interviewed about neutral issues. Attitudes towards risk-taking were measured post-intervention and at follow-up. The experimental groups showed more “ideal” attitudes than the control group post-intervention. At follow-up the attitudes of the experimental group remained unchanged, whereas the control group had changed towards more “ideal” attitudes. Self-reported risk-taking behaviour was measured pre-intervention and at follow-up. At follow-up all groups reported significantly less risk-taking behaviour than at pre-intervention. It is suggested that answering the questionnaires increased mental elaboration concerning risky driving, and it is concluded that interventions that unobtrusively make drivers reflect on their driving should be explored further as a means to promote traffic safety.     

Semantic memory and the granularity of semantic relations: Evidence from speed-accuracy decomposition

In the present study we examined whether semantic relations are atomistic unitary associations, or are complex concepts consisting of a number of relational elements. The complexity of the ownership relation was assessed by combining a relation verification task (“Many people own [cars/ comets]”) with the speed-accuracy decomposition procedure (Meyer, Irwin, Osman, & Kounios, 1988). The latter permits one to determine whether subjects achieve their final state of response accuracy in a single, discrete all-or-none transition, or whether the relevant processes yield partial information representing intermediate states of knowledge. The rationale was that the retrieval of a unitary relational link from a classical associative network should be an all-or-none affair. In contrast, a set of relational elements need not be processed as a unitary bundle, thereby allowing partial response-information states. In two experiments, we found evidence of such partial information (i.e., sensitivity in units ofd′), lending support to the notion that relations are complex. Furthermore, the results suggest that the accumulation of guessing sensitivity was linear over time, weighing against alternate theoretical interpretations.     

Homeless Youths and Young Adults in Los Angeles: Prevalence of Mental Health Problems and the Relationship Between Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disorders

Although understanding of the subsistence patterns, service utilization, and HIV-risk behaviors of homeless youths and young adults is increasing, relatively little is known about the epidemiology of mental health problems in this group or the relationships between mental health problems and substance use. This study measured symptoms of depression, low self-esteem, ADHD, suicidality, self-injurious behavior (SIB), and drug and alcohol use disorder in a sample of homeless youth and young adults living in Hollywood, CA. Results indicated extremely high prevalences of mental health problems, as compared with corresponding rates of mental health problems found among housed youths in previous studies. Prevalence of mental health problems differed by age and ethnicity. African Americans were at lower risk of suicidal thoughts and SIB than were those of other ethnicities. Older respondents and females were at increased risk of depressive symptoms, and younger respondents were at increased risk of SIB. Previous history of sexual abuse and/or assault was associated with increased risk of suicidality and SIB. Risk factors for drug abuse disorder included ethnicity other than African American, homelessness for 1 year or more, suicidality, SIB, depressive symptoms, and low self-esteem. Risk factors for alcohol abuse disorder included male gender, white ethnicity, homelessness for 1 year or more, suicidality, and SIB. Extremely high rates of mental health problems and substance abuse disorders in this sample suggest the need for street-based and nontraditional mental health services targeted toward these youths and young adults.