Does incongruence of lexicosemantic and prosodic information cause discernible cognitive conflict?

We are often required to interpret discordant emotional signals. Whereas equivalent cognitive paradigms cause noticeable conflict via their behavioral and psychophysiological effects, the same may not necessarily be true for discordant emotions. Skin conductance responses (SCRs) and heart rates (HRs) were measured during a classic Stroop task and one in which the emotions conveyed by lexicosemantic content and prosody were congruent or incongruent. The participants’ task was to identify the emotion conveyed by lexicosemantic content or prosody. No relationship was observed between HR and congruence. SCR was higher during incongruent than during congruent conditions of the experimental task (as well as in the classic Stroop task), but no difference in SCR was observed in a comparison between congruence effects during lexicosemantic emotion identification and those during prosodic emotion identification. It is concluded that incongruence between lexicosemantic and prosodic emotion does cause notable cognitive conflict. Functional neuroanatomic implications are discussed.     

The effects of exposure to feminist ideology on women's body image

Body image disturbance has become a common problem among women and there is a need to focus on creating empirically supported treatments. Psychoeducational interventions have reduced body image dissatisfaction, but their impact is limited because they do not offer women adaptive methods of interpreting the many appearance-related messages they receive. This study examined if exposure to a feminist perspective may provide alternative interpretations of cultural messages, thereby increasing body image satisfaction. Participants were randomly assigned to a feminist or psychoeducational intervention, or a control group. Exposure to the feminist condition resulted in increased self-identification as a feminist and greater appearance satisfaction, and changes in feminist identity were related to positive changes in body image. The findings indicate that exposure to feminist theories may serve as an effective intervention strategy.     

The virtual cutting edge: the internet and adolescent self-injury

The 2 studies reported here use observational data from message boards to investigate how adolescents solicit and share information related to self-injurious behavior. Study 1 examines the prevalence and nature of these message boards, their users, and most commonly discussed topics. Study 2 was intended to explore the correlations between content areas raised for discussion. Both studies were intended to shed light on the role of message boards in spreading information about self-injurious practices and influencing help-seeking behavior. More than 400 self-injury message boards were identified. Most are populated by females who describe themselves as between 12 and 20 years of age. Findings show that online interactions clearly provide essential social support for otherwise isolated adolescents, but they may also normalize and encourage self-injurious behavior and add potentially lethal behaviors to the repertoire of established adolescent self-injurers and those exploring identity options.     

Rhythm deficits in 'tone deafness'

It is commonly observed that 'tone deaf' individuals are unable to hear the beat of a tune, yet deficits on simple timing tests have not been found. In this study, we investigated rhythm processing in nine individuals with congenital amusia ('tone deafness') and nine controls. Participants were presented with pairs of 5-note sequences, and were required to detect the presence of a lengthened interval. In different conditions the sound sequences were presented isochronously or in an integer-ratio rhythm, and these were either monotonic or varied randomly in pitch. It was found that the 'tone deaf' participants exhibited inferior rhythm analysis for the sequences that varied in pitch compared to those that did not, whereas the controls obtained equivalent thresholds for these two conditions. These results suggest that the rhythm deficits in congenital amusia result from the pitch-variations in music.     

The effects of undergarment type on the urinary continence of toddlers

There is a growing trend toward later toilet training of typically developing children. This trend is a problem for caregivers and professionals who work with young children, because it is associated with a number of costs and health risks in child-care settings. Results of a recent study (Tarbox, Williams, & Friman, 2004) suggest that wearing underwear may facilitate the development of toileting skills. Based on these findings, we examined the effects of wearing disposable diapers, disposable pull-on training pants, and underwear on urinary continence of 5 typically developing toddlers in a child-care setting. Underwear decreased incontinence and increased continent urinations for 2 of the 5 participants, produced no improvement in 2 participants, and when combined with increased fluid intake and longer sitting periods, produced some favorable trends for the 5th participant.     

Which cues are available to 24-month-olds? Evidence from point-of-gaze measures during search

In previous research 2-year-olds have failed to show knowledge of solidity in a search task in which a ball rolled behind a screen and was stopped by a barrier. The screen had four doors and the barrier was visible above the door hiding the ball. To establish what cues 2-year-olds might be using, precise point-of-gaze measures were taken during the hiding event. A transparent screen with opaque doors provided two cues: (1) the ball could be tracked until it failed to emerge, and (2) the barrier's position could indicate the correct door. Point-of-gaze measures revealed that children failed to use the more indirect cue of the barrier, which requires reasoning and spatial integration. Their search success was predicted only by the more immediate cue of actively tracking the ball. These findings support the claim that children use best those cues directly related to the object's disappearance, while failing to use cues that entail higher cognitive demands.     

Percent body fat is related to body-shape perception and dissatisfaction in students attending an all women's college

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of aerobic fitness, physical activity, percent body fat, and socioeconomic status on body-shape perceptions among 153 Euro-American students attending an all women's college. Using a set of nine female figure silhouette drawings arranged on an ordinal scale from very thin to very heavy, subjects chose the figure that approximated their Current, Ideal, Most Attractive shapes, and the shape they believed men found the most attractive (Male Attractive). Body Shape Dissatisfaction was assessed by the difference between Current and Ideal shapes. Several significant relationships were noted for body-shape perceptions with percent body fat, aerobic fitness, and physical activity. Overall, data indicate these relationships except for Male Attractive were confounded by percent body fat, as participants with a higher percentage of body fat preferred larger shapes and were more dissatisfied with their shape.     

Do provocateurs' emotion displays influence children's social goals and problem solving?

The social goals and social problem-solving of children who varied in social adjustment were examined in the context of hypothetical ambiguous provocation situations in which provocateurs' emotion displays were systematically manipulated. Children rated the importance of six different social goals and explained how they would solve the problems. Social adjustment was measured with rating and nomination sociometric procedures. Rejected-aggressive, rejected-nonaggressive, average-nonaggressive, and popular-nonaggressive children showed both commonalities and differences in rating the six social goals, the relative importance of the six social goals, and social problem-solving depending on the provocateur's emotion display. When provocateurs were happy, there were few group differences, but when provocateurs were angry or sad, rejected-aggressive children: a) rated hostile/instrumental goals more positively; b) rated prosocial goals less positively; and c) made problem-solving responses that were less friendly than those of other children. Results are discussed in relation to Lemerise and Arsenio's (2000) model of emotion and social information processing.     

Preventing Depression Among Early Adolescents in the Primary Care Setting: A Randomized Controlled Study of the Penn Resiliency Program

This study evaluated the Penn Resiliency Program's effectiveness in preventing depression when delivered by therapists in a primary care setting. Two-hundred and seventy-one 11- and 12-year-olds, with elevated depressive symptoms, were randomized to PRP or usual care. Over the 2-year follow-up, PRP improved explanatory style for positive events. PRP's effects on depressive symptoms and explanatory style for negative events were moderated by sex, with girls benefiting more than boys. Stronger effects were seen in high-fidelity groups than low-fidelity groups. PRP did not significantly prevent depressive disorders but significantly prevented depression, anxiety, and adjustment disorders (when combined) among high-symptom participants. Findings are discussed in relation to previous PRP studies and research on the dissemination of psychological interventions. An erratum to this article is available at .