The Severely Impaired Do Profit Most: Differential Effectiveness of a Parent Management Training for Children with Externalizing Behavior Problems in a Natural Setting

We investigated the differential effectiveness of a parent management training program for children with externalizing problem behavior. The parent management training was tested using a within-subject control group design. 270 families with children aged 3–10 years were included and assessments were made at 3 months before treatment, immediately before treatment, immediately after treatment, and at 12 months follow-up. We analyzed data using growth mixture modeling. For attention problems, we obtained a two-subgroup solution. One subgroup started with high initial values indicating more severe impairment, and the other subgroup had low initial values. The more impaired group showed stronger treatment effects. For disruptive behavior problems, our analyses revealed a three-subgroup solution. Two subgroups exhibited high initial levels of disruptive behavior problems and the third subgroup had low initial levels. One of the more impaired groups exhibited a strong decrease in problem behavior during treatment, while the other two groups only showed moderate decreases. For attention problems and disruptive behavior problems, some of the most impaired children gained the most from parent training.     

Mixtures of conditional mean- and covariance-structure models

Models and parameters of finite mixtures of multivariate normal densities conditional on regressor variables are specified and estimated. We consider mixtures of multivariate normals where the expected value for each component depends on possibly nonnormal regressor variables. The expected values and covariance matrices of the mixture components are parameterized using conditional mean- and covariance-structures. We discuss the construction of the likelihood function, estimation of the mixture model with regressors using three different EM algorithms, estimation of the asymptotic covariance matrix of parameters and testing for the number of mixture components. In addition to simulation studies, data on food preferences are analyzed.The authors are grateful to Donald B. Rubin and Michael E. Sobel for critical reading of a first draft of this paper and to three anonymous reviewers ofPsychometrika for their helpful comments and suggestions. The research of the first and the third author was supported by a grant from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.     

Development of force adaptation during childhood

Humans learn to make reaching movements in novel dynamic environments by acquiring an internal motor model of their limb dynamics. Here, the authors investigated how 4- to 11-year-old children (N = 39) and adults (N = 7) adapted to changes in arm dynamics, and they examined whether those data support the view that the human brain acquires inverse dynamics models (IDM) during development. While external damping forces were applied, the children learned to perform goal-directed forearm flexion movements. After changes in damping, all children showed kinematic aftereffects indicative of a neural controller that still attempted to compensate the no longer existing damping force. With increasing age, the number of trials toward complete adaptation decreased. When damping was present, forearm paths were most perturbed and most variable in the youngest children but were improved in the older children. The findings indicate that the neural representations of limb dynamics are less precise in children and less stable in time than those of adults. Such controller instability might be a primary cause of the high kinematic variability observed in many motor tasks during childhood. Finally, the young children were not able to update those models at the same rate as the older children, who, in turn, adapted more slowly than adults. In conclusion, the ability to adapt to unknown forces is a developmental achievement. The present results are consistent with the view that the acquisition and modification of internal models of the limb dynamics form the basis of that adaptive process.     

An Emotion Regulation Treatment for Young People With Complex Substance Use and Mental Health Issues: A Case-Series Analysis

Individuals accessing treatment within the youth alcohol and other drug (AoD) sector represent a highly vulnerable population who present with complex patterns of substance use and mental health comorbidity. Current treatments often fail to address this complexity. Emotion regulation (ER) has been identified as a promising transdiagnostic treatment target for this population of young people. The current study aimed to investigate the acceptability and feasibility of an adjunct ER intervention, ERIC (Emotion Regulation and Impulse Control) in young people receiving AoD treatment at a residential rehabilitation service. A mixed methods case series design was utilized. Ten participants aged between 16–20 years old completed 4–6 sessions of ERIC as an adjunct to their existing residential treatment. Participants undertook a post intervention feedback session and completed a number of self-report measures of ER, depression and anxiety at baseline and 2 weeks after receiving ERIC. Qualitative feedback from young people following the delivery of ERIC was positive, and suggested that ERIC was a viable and useful intervention. Participants reported that the components of ERIC, which involved metaphors and experiential exercises, were particularly beneficial and memorable. Pre-post measures indicated that 60% of the young people had both reliable and clinically significant reductions in overall emotion dysregulation, while reliable and clinically significant reductions in depression and anxiety were observed in 50% and 60% of participants respectively. Results support the acceptability of ERIC for this cohort of young people with complex substance use and mental health needs. Furthermore, these findings support the viability of delivering flexible and adjunctive ER treatments to young people seeking AoD treatment.     

Baby do–baby see!: How action production influences action perception in infants

With a series of four experiments we show that self-produced actions influence infants’ perception of actions performed by others. After having played with an object, 7–11-month-olds simultaneously watched two videos presenting adults who act on either the same object or a different one. The 9- and 11-month-old preferred to watch the same-object video indicating an influence of action production on action perception at this age. Follow-up studies showed that this influence was restricted to object-related actions. Agentive experience enhanced interest in actions with objects, but not in watching objects or persons per se. These findings indicate that infants are not only interested in acting on objects themselves, but that this experience increases their interest in the actions of other people with the same object.     

Panikattacken,ein Zusammenbruch des „Selbst“?

Anhand der Vorstellung von zwei v?llig unterschiedlich wirkenden Patienten versuche ich, die trotzdem bestehenden Gemeinsamkeiten der Menschen mit Panikattacken darzustellen. Es scheint so, als k?nnten diese Menschen Gefühle zwar allgemein spüren, aber nicht genug differenzieren und zuordnen. Mentzos sieht in der vom Patienten erlebten Angst vor dem Verlust der physischen Existenz als Todesangst eine tiefer liegende Angst vor Selbstverlust. Dieser Hypothese folgend kommt es durch St?rung der frühen Mutter-Kind-Beziehung zur Fehlentwicklung von Repr?sentanzen bei Patienten mit Panikerkrankungen. Diese Menschen reagieren dann in Situationen, denen emotionale Reaktionen entsprechen, mit k?rperlichen Symptomen, weil die Affektrepr?sentanzen nicht ausreichen, um es als psychisches Erlebnis unterzubringen. Für die Therapie von Panikerkrankungen bedeutet diese Arbeitshypothese, dass die Einbringung aller Gefühle trotz hartn?ckiger Abwehr seitens der Patienten sehr wichtig ist, um eine Nachreifung der Repr?sentanzen zu erm?glichen.