Longitudinal associations between relational and sexual well-being in couples transitioning to parenthood

There is limited understanding of the dynamic between relational and sexual well-being as couples adjust to new parenthood, despite this being a vulnerable period for couples' relationships. This study was aimed at examining the bidirectional links between relationship quality and sexual well-being (i.e., sexual satisfaction, sexual distress) across the transition to parenthood. We assessed new parent couples (N = 257) across four time points (two prenatal) from mid-pregnancy through 6 months postpartum. Parallel dyadic latent growth curve modeling was employed to examine the associations between trajectories of perceived relationship quality, sexual satisfaction, and sexual distress. New parents' declines in relationship quality were associated with declines in own and partners' sexual satisfaction and with increases in own sexual distress. Mothers' prenatal relationship quality and sexual distress predicted subsequent changes in own sexual distress and fathers' relationship quality, respectively. Results indicate that changes to new parents' relational and sexual well-being mutually influence each other over time. Current results indicate that the impact of the transition on couples' relationships is partly determined by own and partners' prenatal factors, to which clinicians and researchers can attend to early on. Cross-domain links between relational and sexual well-being should be considered in research and clinical practice.     

Improving Migrant Students' Spelling of English and Spanish Words with Error Correction

We examined the effects of error correction on spelling accuracy of culturally and linguistically diverse students enrolled in summer Migrant Education. In an error correction strategy, students spelled a word, viewed a correct model, and corrected specific errors. In a traditional strategy, students wrote words three times each while viewing a correct model. Words were presented in Spanish or English. Results showed that students with and without learning disabilities, whose primary language was English, correctly spelled more English words in the error correction condition than the traditional. Students whose primary language was Spanish correctly spelled Spanish words equally well in both conditions, possibly because of the phonetic nature of the Spanish language.     

Photoelectric-helicoidal spirometer

This paper describes a photoelectric-helicoidal spirometer that has been designed in our laboratory. It includes a cylindrical helix (or turbine) partitioned in each of its blades by means of opaque plates transversally disposed. These plates obstruct the ray of light emitted by a diode, preventing it from reaching a photoreceptor located at the opposite side of the turbine. These basic elements are located in a module that can be adjusted to a mask that covers nostrils and mouth. Control software for this device is also described. The software facilitates a graphical representation of respiratory activity, as well as its storage in the computer. Software has been designed to be adaptable to any digital-to-analog converter. Both the device and the software have several advantages over traditional spirometers, as well as other nonspirometric techniques for studying respiratory activity.     

Spatial learning and goldfish telencephalon NMDA receptors

Recent results have demonstrated that the mammalian hippocampus and the dorso-lateral telencephalon of ray-finned fishes share functional similarities in relation to spatial memory systems. In the present study, we investigated whether the physiological mechanisms of this hippocampus-dependent spatial memory system were also similar in mammals and ray-finned fishes, and therefore possibly conserved through evolution in vertebrates. In Experiment 1, we studied the effects of the intracranial administration of the noncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801 during the acquisition of a spatial task. The results indicated dose-dependent drug-induced impairment of spatial memory. Experiment 2 evaluated if the MK-801 produced disruption of retrieval of a learned spatial response. Data showed that the administration of MK-801 did not impair the retrieval of the information previously stored. The last experiment analyzed the involvement of the telencephalic NMDA receptors in a spatial and in a cue task. Results showed a clear impairment in spatial learning but not in cue learning when NMDA receptors were blocked. As a whole, these results indicate that physiological mechanisms of this hippocampus-dependent system could be a general feature in vertebrate, and therefore phylogenetically conserved.     

The effect of content and physical properties of affective pictures on emotional responses

The aim of this research was to study the influence of both the emotional content and the physical characteristics of affective stimuli on the psychophysiological, behavioral and cognitive indexes of the emotional response. We selected 54 pictures from the IAPS, depicting unpleasant, neutral, and pleasant contents, and used two picture sizes as experimental conditions (120 x 90 cm and 52 x 42 cm). Sixty-one subjects were randomly assigned to each experimental condition. We recorded the startle blink reflex, skin conductance response, heart rate, free viewing time, and picture valence and arousal ratings. In line with previous research (e.g., Bradley, Codispoti, Cuthbert, and Lang, 2001), our data showed an effect of the affective content on all the measurements recorded. Importantly, effects of the size of the affective pictures on emotional responses were not found, indicating that the emotional content is more important than the formal properties of the stimuli in evoking the emotional response.     

Interpersonal dynamics in sport: The role of artificial neural networks and 3-D analysis

In previous attempts to identify dynamical systems properties in patterns of play in team sports, only 2-D analysis methods have been used, implying that the plane of motion must be preselected and that movements out of the chosen plane are ignored. In the present study, we examined the usefulness of 3-D methods of analysis for establishing the presence of dynamical systems properties, such as phase transitions and symmetry-breaking processes in the team sport of rugby. Artificial neural networks (ANN s) were employed to reconstruct the 3-D performance space in a typical one-versus-one subphase of rugby. Results confirm that ANs are reliable tools for reconstructing a 3-D performance space and may be instrumental in identifying pattern formation in team sports generally.     

Reading for repetition and reading for translation: do they involve the same processes?

Theories of translation differ in the role assigned to the reformulation process. One view, the "horizontal" approach, considers that translation involves on-line searches for matches between linguistic entries in the two languages involved [Gerver, D. (1976). Empirical studies of simultaneous interpretation: A review and a model. In R. W. Brislin (Ed.), Translation: Applications and research (pp. 165-207). New York: Gardiner]. The second view, the "vertical" approach, assumes that on-line reformulation does not take place while reading: translation involves giving lexical expression to the meaning extracted after comprehension [Seleskovitch, D. (1976). Interpretation: A psychological approach to translating. In R.W. Brislin (Ed.), Translation: Applications and research (pp. 92-116). New York: Gardner]. In four experiments, translators or bilinguals read sentences for repetition or for translation. When participants read for translation, on-line and global comprehension was affected by lexical ambiguity and memory load (Experiment 1a and 1b). Furthermore, cognate words located at the final portion of the sentences facilitated performance (Experiment 2a and 2b). However, when participants were asked to understand and repeat the sentences, lexical ambiguity and the cognate status of the words did not have any effect. This pattern of results provides support for horizontal theories of translation.     

Different ways of encoding geometric information by goldfish (Carassius auratus)

On the basis of results of a probe trial in 2 different experiments, K. Cheng (2005) has proposed a common mechanism for orientation in fish trained in both a map-like or relational procedure and a directly cued procedure. However, K. Cheng's model is inconsistent with previous results of goldfish (Carassius auratus) trained in these 2 tasks. Given that K. Cheng's proposal assumes that fish choose the goal by using a matching strategy in which they try to match as many properties as possible, including geometric and featural properties, future research is necessary to clarify what properties of the environmental space are codified and used for navigation.