Circadian rhythms in executive function during the transition to adolescence: the effect of synchrony between chronotype and time of day

To explore the influence of circadian rhythms on executive function during early adolescence, we administered a battery of executive function measures (including a Go-Nogo task, the Iowa Gambling Task, a Self-ordered Pointing task, and an Intra/Extradimensional Shift task) to Morning-preference and Evening-preference participants (N = 80) between the ages of 11 and 14 years who were tested in the morning or afternoon. Significant Chronotype × Time of Day interactions (controlling for amount of sleep the previous night) revealed that adolescents tested at their optimal times of day performed better than those tested at their nonoptimal times. Implications for our understanding of physiological arousal, sleep, and executive function during adolescence are discussed.     

Leisure-Time Physical Activity and Perceived Health in People Living with Osteoporosis

Leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) represents an important factor contributing to the development and management of osteoporosis yet research linking LTPA with perceived health markers has been limited in this cohort. The purpose of this study was to test the relationship between LTPA and perceived health controlling for select demographic factors and chronic conditions in people living with osteoporosis. Population-health survey data from cycle 2.2 of the Canadian Community Health Survey were used in conjunction with linear multiple regression models. Participants were 1538 (n _female = 1371) adults who reported living with osteoporosis. Demographic factors, chronic conditions, and more frequent participation in LTPA accounted for variance in diverse indices representing perceived health. LTPA was the only predictor to account for unique variance in each marker of perceived health. Overall, it would appear that increased use of LTPA as an adjunct to therapeutic interventions may be a viable aid to enhancing self-perceived health amongst Canadians living with osteoporosis.     

Suicidal ideation in anxiety-disordered youth

Evidence is mixed regarding an independent association between anxiety and suicidality in youth. Study 1 examined suicidal ideation in treatment-referred, anxiety-disordered youth (N = 312, aged 7-17). Forty-one percent of anxiety-disordered youth endorsed suicidal ideation. Anxiety disorder severity, global impairment, and current depressive symptoms predicted suicidal ideation in a multivariate model. Study 2 compared youth (N = 216, aged 7-14) with and without anxiety disorders. Higher rates of suicidal ideation were associated with anxiety diagnosis, and levels of anxiety predicted suicidal ideation after controlling for comorbid depressive disorders, current depressive symptoms, and global impairment. Results support an association between anxiety disorders and suicidal ideation in treatment-referred youth and recommend routine screening for suicidal ideation in this population.     

The Relationship Between Supervisee Stress,Coping Resources,the Working Alliance,and the Supervisory Working Alliance

The authors examined the relationship of perceived stress, specific types of coping resources, the working alliance, and the supervisory working alliance among 232 counselor supervisees. The working alliance and the supervisory working alliance were negatively related to perceived stress and positively related to multiple coping resources. Two regression models for predicting the working alliance and supervisory working alliance from perceived stress and specific coping resources were significant. Implications for practice and research are discussed.     

Time Flies When You're Having Approach-Motivated Fun: Effects of Motivational Intensity on Time Perception

Time flies when you're having fun, but what is it about pleasant experiences that makes time seem to go by faster? In the experiments reported here, we tested the proposal that approach motivation causes perceptual shortening of time during pleasant experiences. Relative to a neutral state or a positive state with low approach motivation (Experiment 1), a positive state with high approach motivation shortened perceptions of time. Also, individual differences in approach motivation predicted shorter perceptions of time. In Experiment 2, we manipulated approach motivation independently of the affective state and showed that increasing approach motivation caused time to be perceived as passing more quickly. In Experiment 3, we showed that positive approach motivation, as opposed to arousal, shortens perception of time by comparing a highly arousing positive state with a highly arousing negative state. Shortening of time perception in appetitive states may prolong approach-motivated behavior and increase the likelihood of acquiring appetitive objects or goals.     

Cognitive and Emotional Abnormalities in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Evidence for Amygdala Dysfunction

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multi-system autoimmune disorder characterized by the production of autoantibodies. Approximately 30-50?% of patients produce autoantibodies directed against N-Methyl-D-aspartic acid receptors (NMDARs). Once they have gained access to brain tissue, these autoantibodies bind to the NR2A subunit of the NMDARs and synergize with glutamate to cause excitatory, non-inflammatory cell death or alter neuron function. Both humans with SLE and animal models of SLE have shown structural and functional damage to the amygdala. The amygdala is a brain region important for processing the emotional relevance of stimuli in the environment. It also serves to modulate perception, attention, and memory to facilitate the processing and learning of relevant stimuli. Research has linked amygdala damage to deficits in emotional memory and emotional behavior. Individuals with SLE often exhibit emotional dysregulation, such as lability and depression; however, the behavioral impact of possible amygdala dysfunction has yet to be studied in this population. The purpose of this review is to 1) examine possible associations between SLE, anti-NMDAR antibodies, amygdala damage, and emotional processing deficits and 2) to identify the clinical, social, and treatment implications for individuals with SLE who suffer from deficits in emotional processing.     

Implicit learning of conjunctive rule sets: An alternative to artificial grammars

A single experiment is reported that investigated implicit learning using a conjunctive rule set applied to natural words. Participants memorized a training list consisting of words that were either rare-concrete and common-abstract or common-concrete and rare-abstract. At test, they were told of the rule set, but not told what it was. Instead, they were shown all four word types and asked to classify words as rule-consistent words or not. Participants classified the items above chance, but were unable to verbalize the rules, even when shown a list that included the categories that made up the conjunctive rule and asked to select them. Most participants identified familiarity as the reason for classifying the items as they did. An analysis of the materials demonstrated that conscious micro-rules (i.e., chunk knowledge) could not have driven performance. We propose that such materials offer an alternative to artificial grammar for studies of implicit learning.     

A step too far? Leader racism inhibits transgression credit

Prior research established that when in‐group leaders commit serious transgressions, such as breaking enforceable rules or engaging in bribery, people treat them leniently compared with similarly transgressive regular group members or out‐group leaders (‘transgression credit’). The present studies test a boundary condition of this phenomenon, specifically the hypothesis that transgression credit will be lost if a leader's action implies racist motivation. In study 1, in a corporate scenario, a transgressive in‐group leader did or did not express racism. In study 2, in a sports scenario, an in‐group or out‐group leader or member transgressed rules with or without a racist connotation. Both studies showed that in‐group transgressive leaders lost their transgression credit if their transgression included a racial connotation. Wider implications for constraining leaders' transgressions are discussed. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Successive teacher expectation effects across the early school years

The capacity for teacher expectation effects to interact and compound across a child's schooling offers a largely untested mechanism for magnifying or minimizing effects. This study examined four types of long-term teacher expectation effects: within-year effects of single teachers, cross-year effects of single teachers, mediated effects of single and multiple teachers, and compounded effects of multiple teachers. Participants were 110 students tracked from preschool through Grade 4 on measures of achievement and teacher expectations. Evidence was found for within-year but not direct cross-year effects. However, path models demonstrated enduring indirect effects of teacher expectations on cross-year achievement. Multiple years of teacher expectation effects were additive in predicting student achievement at fourth grade, with similar effects for teachers' over- and underestimates of student ability. The study extends understanding of longer-term teacher expectation effects.     

THE FRUITS OF PLURALISM: A VISION FOR THE NEXT SEVEN YEARS IN RELIGION/SCIENCE

This article offers a vision for work at the intersection of science and religion over the coming seven years. Because predictions are inherently risky and are more often than not false, the text first offers an assessment of the current state of the science‐religion discussion and a quick survey of the last 50 years of work in this field. The implications of the six features of this vision for the future of the field are then presented in some detail. Rather than bemoaning the current diversity of approaches and conclusions as a negative result, I endorse it as a healthy sign—if acknowledged honestly and managed well.