Habituation of conditioned suppression

Habituation of a conditioned emotional response was investigated using a procedure which eliminated contaminating temporal discriminations. Three rats were trained to bar press on a random interval 60 sec schedule of milk reinforcement and variable duration tone-shock pairings were superimposed upon this baseline. Very little recovery from conditioned suppression was found over 60 sessions of testing and no systematic differences were found after a month's “vacation” from the procedure. Analysis of responding within the CS period showed uniform suppression. The data are discussed in terms of stimulus predictability.     

Best Practices Start With Screening: A Closer Look at Screening,Brief Intervention,and Referral to Treatment in Adolescent,Military, and LGBTQ Populations

Screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) is a flexible, evidence‐based approach to assessing risk and providing brief interventions for individuals with alcohol use disorders. This article identifies 3 diverse populations that could benefit from universal screening—a foundation of SBIRT—and provides resources and support for implementation across a broad range of settings.     

Presymptomatic Genetic Testing with an APP Mutation in Early-Onset Alzheimer Disease: A Descriptive Study of Sibship Dynamics

Early-onset Alzheimer disease (AD) accounts for only 5% of all cases of Alzheimer disease. To date, mutations in three different genes, the Amyloid precursor protein (APP), Presenilin 1 (PS1), and Presenilin 2 (PS2), have been identified as causative in early-onset AD, making predictive testing possible. Predictive testing for early-onset Alzheimer disease is a relatively new phenomenon. This paper describes the process of identifying a new mutation in the APP gene associated with early-onset AD, notifying family members, and offering participation in research as well as predictive testing. The goal is to share the complexities of predictive testing in a sibship newly identified as being at risk for an adult-onset, incurable neurodegenerative disease.     

Cardiovascular Disease in Elders: Is It Inevitable?

Cardiovascular disease is the major cause of death and disability in America. The burden of cardiovascular disease is higher in elders than in younger populations, presumably because of life-long exposure to risk factors such as hypertension, smoking, abnormal blood lipids, lack of exercise, and/or obesity. Many assume that it is too late to attempt to modify risk factors in elders because behavior is so difficult to change. The purpose of this article is to argue that cardiovascular risk factor modification is effective in elders and should be vigorously pursued for the good of individuals, families, communities, and societies.     

Ethnicity-Related Sources of Stress and Their Effects on Well-Being

Early research on ethnicity focused on the stereotyped thinking, prejudiced attitudes, and discriminatory actions of Euro-Americans. Minority-group members were viewed largely as passive targets of these negative reactions, with low self-esteem studied as the main psychological outcome. By contrast, recent research has increasingly made explicit use of stress theory in emphasizing the perspectives and experiences of minority-group members. Several ethnicity-related stressors have been identified, and it has been found that individuals cope with these threats in an active, purposeful manner. In this article, we focus on ethnicity-related stress stemming from discrimination, from stereotypes, and from conformity pressure arising from one's own ethnic group. We discuss theory and review research in which examination of ethnicity-related outcomes has extended beyond self-esteem to include psychological and physical well-being.     

A diathesis-stress conceptualization of expressed emotion and clinical outcome

A sizeable body of research has demonstrated that expressed emotion (EE) predicts clinical relapse in a number of distinct psychiatric disorders. These findings have provided the impetus for the development of interventions that attempt to reduce patients' relapse rates by modifying aspects of the family environment believed to be associated with high levels of EE. Despite the efficacy of these treatments, however, we know little about how EE develops in relatives of psychiatric patients or about the mechanisms through which high EE leads to relapse. Moreover, there is not a coherent theory that attempts to integrate findings concerning the impact of high EE on relapse in different disorders. The purpose of this article is to elucidate a diathesis-stress conceptualization of EE to explain both the development and manifestation of high EE in relatives of disordered patients and the impact of high EE on the course of patients' disorders. In this context, we use a diathesis-stress perspective to examine why EE predicts symptom relapse and poor clinical outcome in schizophrenia, depressive disorders, and borderline personality disorder. We conclude by discussing treatment implications of the diathesis-stress perspective and by outlining what we believe are fruitful directions for future research.