Cardiac morbidity risk and depression and anxiety: a disorder, symptom and trait analysis among cardiac surgery patients

The aim of this study was to examine depression and anxiety disorders and their characteristic symptoms (anhedonia/low positive affect and anxious arousal, respectively), along with measures of state negative affect (NA) and Type D personality, in relation to cardiac surgery related morbidity. Patients awaiting elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery (n=158; 20.9% female; 11.4% concomitant valve surgery; age M=64.7, SD=10.6) underwent the structured MINI International Neuropsychiatric Interview to determine current affective disorders. Patients also completed the Mood and Anxiety Symptom Questionnaire and a measure of Type D personality traits. Postoperative cardiac morbidity was confirmed after surgery during the index hospitalization and included stroke,renal failure, ventilation>24 h, deep sternal wound infection, reoperation, arrhythmia and 30-day mortality at any location (n=59, 37.3% of total). After adjustment for age, recent myocardial infarction, heart failure, hypertension, urgency of surgery and time spent on cardiopulmonary bypass generalized anxiety disorder was associated with cardiac morbidity (odds ratio [OR]=3.26, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.10-9.67, p=0.03). Adjusted analysis of personality traits revealed the NA component of Type D personality was associated with cardiac morbidity (OR=1.07, 95% CI 1.01-1.14, p=0.03). The Mood and Anxiety Symptom Questionnaire subscales were not associated with increased morbidity risk. Affective disorders, affective phenotypes, and personality traits were differentially associated with post-cardiac surgery morbidity outcomes independent of cardiac surgery morbidity risk factors. Concurrent investigation of depression and anxiety with respect to cardiac outcomes warrants further research.     

Exogenous attention influences visual short-term memory in infants

Two experiments examined the hypothesis that developing visual attentional mechanisms influence infants' Visual Short-Term Memory (VSTM) in the context of multiple items. Five- and 10-month-old infants (N = 76) received a change detection task in which arrays of three differently colored squares appeared and disappeared. On each trial one square changed color and one square was cued; sometimes the cued item was the changing item, and sometimes the changing item was not the cued item. Ten-month-old infants exhibited enhanced memory for the cued item when the cue was a spatial pre-cue (Experiment 1) and 5-month-old infants exhibited enhanced memory for the cued item when the cue was relative motion (Experiment 2). These results demonstrate for the first time that infants younger than 6 months can encode information in VSTM about individual items in multiple-object arrays, and that attention-directing cues influence both perceptual and VSTM encoding of stimuli in infants as in adults.     

Mediating effects of negative emotions in parent–child conflict on adolescent problem behavior

Hierarchical regression analyses were used to study four types of negative emotions (rage, resentment, perceived threat, and self‐blame) as possible mediators of the effect of parent–child conflict on internalizing (psychosomatic symptoms and social withdrawal) and externalizing (violent aggression and deviance) behavior in 724 adolescents. After controlling for demographic variables, the results showed that for both parents conflict had a positive main effect on internalizing and externalizing behavior. Of the four types of negative emotions, rage was the strongest mediator to mediate the effect of conflict on violent aggression, and resentment was the strongest mediator to mediate the effect of conflict on psychosomatic symptoms, social withdrawal, and deviant behavior. Implications and limitations of the study are discussed, and suggestions for future research are offered.     

Gain face,but lose happiness? It depends on how much money you have

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effects of face consciousness on happiness and the moderating role of financial situation on this relationship. We first examined our hypotheses in study 1 in a particular setting of consumption, and replicated our findings in study 2 in a more generalized setting of interpersonal situations. The two studies produced essentially consistent results. We found individuals high on face consciousness tend to be less happy, and the negative association between face consciousness and happiness is ameliorated by their financial situation. These results revealed the importance of face consciousness as an individual difference in predicting happiness. The implications of these findings for future research are discussed.     

Contemplative Pedagogy: Frequently Asked Questions

Contemplative Pedagogy is a new and sometimes controversial pedagogical practice. Faculty often have basic questions about how to implement the pedagogy in their classrooms, in addition to questions that challenge the educational value and appropriateness of the practice. Assembled here are the most frequently asked questions about Contemplative Pedagogy, with responses from six contemplative professors, each from a different institutional and philosophical location. The respondents are founding members of the Contemplative Studies Consultation of the American Academy of Religion. The diversity of views expressed by the respondents invites the reader to see that there is no single theory or praxis of contemplative pedagogy.     

Moderating effects in consumers' perceptions of price unfairness

This study explores the moderating effects of various consumer features – such as price insensitivity and recency of last purchase – on the relationships among perceived value, inferred vendor profit, and perceived price fairness. A proposed model is developed and an empirical study is then conducted among consumers in four contexts: (i) two tangible goods; and (ii) two intangible services. The proposed model and hypotheses are tested using Partial Least Squares (PLS) software SmartPLS 2.0.M3, which provides a component‐based approach for estimation purposes. The influence of these moderating variables (price insensitivity and recency of the last purchase) depends on the context and the nature of the offering. This is a pioneering study of perceived price fairness in a framework of distributive justice utilizing a variety of contexts, products, and services. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sibling relationship quality in early adolescence: child and maternal perceptions and daily interactions

Correspondence between child and maternal perceptions of sibling relationship quality (standards, actual ratings, problems) and children's reports of daily interactions were assessed in 40 early adolescent children (M age=11.5 yrs) and their mothers (n=32). Children completed the Sibling Relationship Questionnaire (Furman & Buhrmester, 1985. Child Development, 56, 448–461) and Daily Checklist ratings of sibling interactions for 14 days. Mothers completed the Parental Expectations and Perceptions of Children's Sibling Relationship Questionnaire (Kramer & Baron, 1995. Family Relations, 44, 95–103). Overall, findings revealed correspondence between child perceptions of sibling warmth and maternal ratings of standards, actual ratings, and problems in sibling warmth but not conflict and rivalry. Maternal and child perceptions of sibling relationship qualities were positively associated with children's reports of ongoing interactions. Finally, regression analyses identified unique maternal and child correlates for both happy and prosocial daily interactions. Findings are discussed in light of recent research and theory on family dynamics. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Impact of Remembering Childhood Sexual Abuse on Addiction Recovery for Young Adult Lesbians

This article examines the impact of childhood sexual abuse on young adult lesbians' sexual identity and their recovery from chemical dependency. The authors recommend that counselors assess for sexual orientation (past and present), sexual abuse, and possible dual diagnosis. Implications for counselors are discussed.     

Thought dismissability in obsessive-compulsive disorder versus panic disorder

This study sought to better understand the persistence of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) by studying the dismissability of obsessional thoughts in individuals with OCD relative to the dismissability of panic-relevant thoughts in individuals with panic disorder with or without agoraphobia (PD/A). Individuals with a principal diagnosis of OCD (n = 25) or PD/A (n = 25) completed a thought replacement task in which they replaced a primary obsession (target thought for the OCD group) or a primary panic-relevant thought (target thought for the PD/A group), with a neutral thought, signaling when the target thought occurred and when the neutral thought was in mind. The OCD group had more target thoughts and appraised the recurrence of the target thought more negatively. Whereas mood state did not change in the PD/A group, it declined in the OCD group, and this change was predicted by negative appraisal of target thought recurrences, but not amount of time thinking the target thought. These findings suggest that in vivo appraisal of the recurrence of obsessions may be a unique, key mechanism in the persistence of OCD and that the identification and exploration of appraisal of thought recurrences may be an especially important target in its treatment.