Long-term continuous, but not daily, environmental enrichment reduces spatial memory decline in aged male mice

Although environmental enrichment improves spatial memory and alters synaptic plasticity in aged rodents, it is unclear whether all types of enrichment treatments yield similar benefits. The present study examined the effects in aged male mice of three types of enrichment on spatial memory in Morris water maze and radial arm maze tasks, and on levels of the presynaptic protein synaptophysin in several brain regions. Non-enriched young and aged males were compared with males exposed to one of the following treatments for 10 weeks: 5 min of daily handling, 3 h of daily basic enrichment, or 24 h of continuous complex enrichment. Young controls outperformed aged controls in both tasks. Neither daily handling nor daily enrichment affected spatial memory or synaptophysin levels. In contrast, continuous enrichment significantly reduced age-related spatial memory decline in both tasks, such that this group was statistically indistinguishable from young controls in most measures of performance. Continuously enriched mice were also significantly better than other aged mice in several spatial memory measures. Despite these improvements, synaptophysin levels in the continuous enrichment group were significantly lower than those of young and aged controls in the frontoparietal cortex, hippocampus, and striatum, suggesting a negative relationship between synaptophysin levels and spatial memory in aged males. These data demonstrate that different types of enrichment in aged male mice have disparate effects on spatial memory, and that the relationship between enrichment-induced changes in synaptophysin levels and spatial memory in aged males differs from that we have previously reported in aged female mice.     

Peer Status in the Middle School: A Natural Treatment for Unequal Participation

The focus of this study is on the problem of unequal participation of students within small cooperative learning groups in middle-school classrooms. According to previous research using Status Characteristic Theory, this unequal participation stems from differential expectations for competence based on academic and peer status. Previous research had also found that in classrooms where rank on these two status orders was uncorrelated (incongruent classrooms), problems of unequal participation were less severe. This study involved systematic observations of students in working groups in four middle-school science classrooms. The derivation of hypotheses required an extension of Status Characteristic Theory to handle three-to-five-person groups working in a multicharacteristic situation. The results showed good support for hypotheses explaining the effect of incongruence in the social structure on participation of low-status students. Incongruent classrooms had fewer small groups that were highly differentiated on status. Moreover, the degree of status differentiation in the groups was a direct predictor of the participation rates of the low-status students. Thus, the less differentiated groups in incongruent classrooms showed fewer status problems. As a practical matter, the tendency of students to construct peer status orders that are independent of academic status acts as a natural treatment for unequal participation.     

Factors related to dysfluent speech in bilingual Cuban-American adolescents

Four bilingual Cuban-American male adolescents who were dysfluent in their primary language (Spanish) were referred to a bilingual speech pathologist. The boys and their parents were individually interviewed and administered questionnaires. Responses obtained helped explain possible reasons for the youngster's dysfluencies in only one of their acquired languages as well as reasons for the onset of the dysfluent speech. Sociological and cultural factors apparently play a major role. Parental cooperation and involvement would therefore be vital in remediation?     

Black Lives Matter: We are in the Same Storm but we are not in the Same Boat

Black Lives Matter is a clarion call for racial equality and racial justice. With the arrival of Africans as slaves in 1619, a racial hierarchy was formed in the United States. However, slavery is commonly dismissed as that less than noble aspect of the United States’ history without really confronting the legacies of racial inequality and racial injustice left in its wake. White supremacy, based on the myths of white superiority and Black inferiority, have obscured racial inequality and racial injustice, resulting in blaming the victims. Using Black Lives Matter as a platform, we focus on some key considerations for theory, research, education, training, and practice in clinical, community, and larger systems contexts. Broadly, we focus on Black Lives Matter, literally; Black dehumanization; historical oppression; healing; and implications for the field of family therapy. More specifically, we draw attention to health disparities, mass incarceration and aggressive policing, intergenerational racial trauma, restorative justice, and antiracist work.     

Intake Concerns of Racial and Ethnic Minority Students at a University Counseling Center: Implications for Developmental Programming and Outreach

The presenting concerns of racial and ethnic minority students at a university counseling center were examined. Results revealed that family and romantic relationship issues, academic concerns, and depression were among their primary concerns. Implications for developing outreach programs to address the mental health needs of similar college students are discussed.     

The Effect of Scarcity on Anticipated Price Appreciation

Researchers in psychology and marketing have found that consumers' perceptions and evaluations of a product's attractiveness, desirability, expensiveness, quality, and taste are affected by knowledge that the product is scarce. This study examines scarcity's effect on a new variable—anticipated price appreciation. Although scarcity does not affect a product's actual potential for price appreciation, news reports of scarce collectibles that have appreciated in value may lead people to develop naive economic theories associating scarcity with price appreciation. Consistent with this expectation, we found that scarcity increased the anticipated price appreciation of two collectible products. The practical implications of this result are discussed along with issues for future research.     

An investigation of computer-assisted cognitive-behavior therapy in the treatment of depression

Increasing demands are being placed on a limited pool of mental health professionals to deliver a steadily growing array of effective treatments in an efficient and acceptable manner. The integration of behavioral technology and computing technology may provide a possible solution to the problem of resource limitations. An interactive computer-assisted program for the treatment of mild to moderate unipolar and dysthymic depressive disorders is described. The effectiveness of this treatment will be empirically examined.     

Re:Views

DEPRESSION: Concepts, Controversies, and Some New Facts: Springer Publishing Company Break the Smoking Habit: A Behavioral Program for Giving Up Cigarettes: Research Press Company, Champaign, Illinois A Guide to Writing and Publishing in the Social and Behavioral Sciences: New York: John Wiley & Sons Beyond Sex Roles: West Publishing Company