Delinquent peer affiliation and conduct problems: A twin study

Many putative environmental risks correlate with individuals' genotypes. The association between delinquent peer affiliation and conduct problems may occur because of shared genetic liability. Five hundred fifty three monozygotic and 558 dizygotic twin pairs, aged 11 to 18 years, were assessed for delinquent peer affiliation and conduct problems. The authors investigated whether genes contribute to both delinquent peer affiliation and the correlation between delinquent peer affiliations and conduct problems. Delinquent peer affiliation was influenced by genetic, shared environmental, and nonshared environmental factors; genetic factors also contributed to the correlation between delinquent peer affiliations and conduct problems, providing evidence for genotype-environment correlation. The magnitude of the genetic variance of conduct problems was contextually dependent on levels of delinquent peer affiliation and was greater at higher levels of delinquent peer affiliation.     

Scientific Meeting of the American Institute for Psychoanalysis

The American Journal of Psychoanalysis -     

Night-time eating in men and women with binge eating disorder

This study examined the frequency of night-time eating (NE) and its correlates in men and women with binge eating disorder (BED). Two-hundred and seven consecutively evaluated adults (45 men and 162 women) with BED were assessed with semi-structured interviews and a battery of behavioral and psychological measures. Overall, 28% (N = 58) of the participants reported NE. A significantly higher proportion of men (42%) than women (24%) reported NE. Overall, participants who reported NE had a significantly higher body mass index, but otherwise differed little from those who did not report NE. Men and women without NE differed little on behavioral and psychological measures, whereas women with NE had significantly higher levels of eating-, weight-, and shape-concerns than men with NE.     

Suicide risk screening in an urban high school

Qualitative data from an empirical study of adolescent suicide risk were analyzed to examine the screening component built in to a larger protocol. It was determined that a significant number of students were being identified as being in need of follow-up. Although the majority (88.7%) of students screened met criteria for placement in the no indicators (of risk) category, 3.8% evidenced apparent need of follow-up, 4.4% qualified for notable concern, and 3.1% were deemed to be at-risk or in crisis. Several gender and ethnic differences in risk category status are also discussed. The system utilized at the school and examples of the range of interventions utilized are discussed. Evidence for the positive effects of this screening on individual students and the school as a whole are presented. Arguments for the regular use of screening measures in high schools and suggestions for implementation are also given.     

Effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy for adolescent depression: a benchmarking investigation

In this study, we examined the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for adolescent depression. Outcomes of 80 youth treated with CBT in an outpatient depression specialty clinic, the Services for Teens at Risk Center (STAR), were compared to a "gold standard" CBT research benchmark. On average, youths treated with CBT in STAR experienced significantly slower symptom improvement than youths in the CBT benchmark. However, outcomes for STAR teens were more similar to the research benchmark when accounting for differences in referral source (clinical versus advertisement) between the datasets. Results support further efforts to test the effectiveness of CBT in clinically representative community practice settings and samples.     

Shared, not unique, components of personality and psychosocial functioning predict depression severity after acute-phase cognitive therapy

In a sample of 100 patients with recurrent major depression, we collected depression severity data early and late in acute-phase cognitive therapy, plus a wide range of psychosocial variables that have been studied extensively in depression research, including measures of interpersonal, cognitive, and social functioning, and personality traits using an inventory that is linked with the Big-Three tradition in personality assessment theory. By assessing this broad range of variables in a single study, we could examine the extent to which relations of these variables with depression were due to (a) a common factor shared across this diverse set of constructs, (b) factors shared among each type of construct (personality vs. psychosocial measures), or (c) specific aspects of the individual measures. Only the most general factor shared across the personality and psychosocial variables predicted later depression.     

A New Definition of Genetic Counseling: National Society of Genetic Counselors’ Task Force Report

The Genetic Counseling Definition Task Force of the National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC) developed the following definition of genetic counseling that was approved by the NSGC Board of Directors: Genetic counseling is the process of helping people understand and adapt to the medical, psychological and familial implications of genetic contributions to disease. This process integrates the following: •Interpretation of family and medical histories to assess the chance of disease occurrence or recurrence. •Education about inheritance, testing, management, prevention, resources and research. •Counseling to promote informed choices and adaptation to the risk or condition. The definition was approved after a peer review process with input from the NSGC membership, genetic professional organizations, the NSGC legal counsel, and leaders of several national genetic advocacy groups.