Are temporal features crucial acoustic cues in dog vocal recognition?

To investigate the perceptual mechanisms underlying conspecific vocal recognition in canine species, eighteen dogs were presented with playbacks of normal and reversed versions of typical dog vocalizations. Auditory perception was analysed using the head-turn paradigm, a non-invasive technique extensively employed to study hemispheric specializations for processing conspecific vocalizations in primates. The results revealed that dogs usually turn their heads with the right ear leading (left hemisphere activation) in response to the forward version of their typical calls, and with either no bias and the left ear leading (right hemisphere activation) in response to the reversed call versions. Overall, our findings suggest that temporal features are determinant auditory cues for call sound recognition in dogs, and support earlier findings of the role of the left hemisphere in the analyses of intraspecific communication.     

Domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) and the radial arm maze: Spatial memory and serial position effects

The present study investigated spatial memory in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) through the use of a radial arm maze. The study consisted of a total of three separate experiments. In the first two experiments, the ability of the dogs to successfully remember previously unentered arms was evaluated. The third experiment was similar to the first two, but also examined the nature of the serial position effect. Performance in all three experiments was better than expected solely by random choices. Dogs showed a much better memory for spatial locations presented earlier in a spatial list compared with those presented in the middle. Based on the present results, we suggest that the radial arm maze assesses canine spatial memory and that dogs show a primacy effect. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).     

Cross-contextual stability of bullying victimization: a person-oriented analysis of cyber and traditional bullying experiences among adolescents

Using a person-oriented approach the study examined whether bullying victimization at school continued into cyberspace victimization in a large sample of high school students in Lithuania (N = 1667, 58% girls), age 15-19 (M = 17.29, SD = 0.95). Three forms of traditional bullying (verbal, physical and relational) and seven forms of cyberbullying victimization through cell phones and computers were included in the analysis. The findings revealed that 35% of traditional bullying victims were also bullied in cyberspace. In particular, adolescents who experienced predominantly verbal and relational bullying at school, showed a higher risk of victimization in cyberspace a year later, while this was not observed for predominantly physical forms of traditional bullying. The findings point to the importance of a cross-contextual perspective in studies on stability of bullying victimization.     

Developmentally Adapted Cognitive Processing Therapy for Adolescents Suffering from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder after Childhood Sexual or Physical Abuse: A Pilot Study

Although childhood sexual abuse and childhood physical abuse (CSA and CPA) have severe psychopathological consequences, there is little evidence supporting psychotherapeutic interventions for adolescents who have experienced CSA or CPA. To provide a treatment tailored to the specific needs of adolescents suffering from abuse-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), we modified Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) by adding new treatment modules and changing the therapy setting. To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of Developmentally Adapted CPT (D-CPT), we treated 12 adolescents suffering from PTSD secondary to CSA or CPA. Patients were assessed prior to treatment (t0), post-treatment (t1), and 6 weeks after treatment (t2). Assessments included the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), the UCLA PTSD Index (UCLA), the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI), the Adolescent Dissociative Experiences Scale (A-DES), and the Borderline Symptom List (BSL-23). MANOVAs revealed that posttraumatic stress measurements and associated symptom measurements significantly differed across time points. When comparing t0 with t2, Cohen’s d was large with respect to the CAPS scores (d = 1.45, p < .001) and the UCLA scores (d = 1.91, p < .001). Cohen’s d had a medium magnitude with respect to the CDI scores (d = .78, p < .001), the A-DES scores (d = 0.64, p < .05), and the BSL-23 scores (d = 0.74, p < .01). D-CPT has the potential to reduce PTSD symptoms and comorbid psychopathology in adolescents with histories of CSA or CPA.     

Snitching versus reporting: A qualitative analysis of barriers and facilitators to addressing safety concerns among high school students

Social Psychology of Education - Creating effective school-wide safety mechanisms depends on understanding students' previous experiences of reporting, however, students may also be...     

The phenomenological-existential comprehension of chronic pain: going beyond the standing healthcare models

A distinguishing characteristic of the biomedical model is its compartmentalized view of man. This way of seeing human beings has its origin in Greek thought; it was stated by Descartes and to this day it still considers humans as beings composed of distinct entities combined into a certain form. Because of this observation, one began to believe that the focus of a health treatment could be exclusively on the affected area of the body, without the need to pay attention to patient’s subjectivity. By seeing pain as a merely sensory response, this model was not capable of encompassing chronic pain, since the latter is a complex process that can occur independently of tissue damage. As of the second half of the twentieth century, when it became impossible to deny the relationship between psyche and soma, the current understanding of chronic pain emerges: that of chronic pain as an individual experience, the result of a sum of physical, psychological, and social factors that, for this reason, cannot be approached separately from the individual who expresses pain. This understanding has allowed a significant improvement in perspective, emphasizing the characteristic of pain as an individual experience. However, the understanding of chronic pain as a sum of factors corresponds to the current way of seeing the process of falling ill, for its conception holds a Cartesian duality and the positivist premise of a single reality. For phenomenology, on the other hand, the individual in his/her unity is more than a simple sum of parts. Phenomenology sees a human being as an intending entity, in which body, mind, and the world are intertwined and constitute each other mutually, thus establishing the human being’s integral functioning. Therefore, a real understanding of the chronic pain process would only be possible from a phenomenological point of view at the experience lived by the individual who expresses and communicates pain.     

Academic Misconduct in Nigerian Medical Schools-A Report from Focus Group Discussions among House Officers

Concern is growing as research continues to find evidence of academic misconduct among medical students. There is, however, paucity of information on this issue among medical students and medical graduates in Africa. We determined the perceptions and attitude of house officers on academic misconduct within Nigerian medical schools. We conducted 7 focus group discussions (FGDs) among pre-registration house-officers (PRHOs) working in a Nigerian Teaching hospital between October and November 2013. A FGD guide containing 7 broad questions related to their perception and attitude on academic misconduct was employed. Ethnographic content analysis and manual coding were adopted in identifying themes, issues and representative quotations. A total of 58 participants out of an eligible pool of 76 PRHOs were recruited. All the groups associated academic misconduct chiefly with cheating in examinations, and perceived it as a commonplace problem. “It is a part of school life”, admitted one PRHO. Copying during exam appeared to be the commonest form of cheating. Another respondent opined that “The lecturers should be more concerned with helping students understand better. They should not make passing an exam a do-or-die affair.” The perception and attitudes towards academic misconduct may be a reflection of the prevailing moral decline in the contemporary Nigerian society. Underlying the reasons adduced by the participants for getting involved in academic misconduct is the fear of failure in examinations. Apart from consolidating formal and informal medical ethics education, the medical schools should ensure that the opportunities and pressures to indulge in academic misconduct are minimized.     

Can Facebook Informational Use Foster Adolescent Civic Engagement?

The findings on the association between Social Networking Sites and civic engagement are mixed. The present study aims to evaluate a theoretical model linking the informational use of Internet‐based social media (specifically, Facebook) with civic competencies and intentions for future civic engagement, taking into account the mediating role of civic discussions with family and friends and sharing the news online. Participants were 114 Italian high school students aged 14–17 years (57 % boys). Path analysis was used to evaluate the proposed theoretical model. Results showed that Facebook informational use was associated with higher levels of adolescent perceived competence for civic action, both directly and through the mediation of civic discussion with parents and friends (offline). Higher levels of civic competencies, then, were associated with a stronger intention to participate in the civic domain in the future. Our findings suggest that Facebook may provide adolescents with additional tools through which they can learn civic activities or develop the skills necessary to participate in the future.