Volume contents

Volume Contents

Volume contents     

Automatic segmentation as a tool for examining the handwriting process of children with dysgraphic and proficient handwriting

The purpose of this study was to use an x-y digitizer to collect handwriting samples typical of those written by the child in his or her natural environment, to analyze these samples with novel segmentation algorithms, and to present them visually in ways that illuminate spatial and temporal dynamic features amongst children with dysgraphic and proficient handwriting. While using the POET software (Penmanship Objective Evaluation Tool), a paragraph was copied onto paper affixed to an x-y digitizer by third-grade students, 14 with proficient and 14 with poor handwriting. A segmentation algorithm was developed to automatically isolate writing segments. Results yielded significant differences between the groups in various measures, including the number of the raw segments (i.e., the number of segments before combined with letters), the number of reverse segments (i.e., when the participant returned to correct or complete a previously written segment), the number of letters per minute, and the mean "In-Air" time between letters. Variability in both the spatial and temporal domains of instances of the same letter throughout the text was greater among the dysgraphic handwriters in comparison to the variability among the proficient. These results demonstrated the potential of using automated analytic techniques and visual display to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of handwriting difficulties.     

Cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of biogenic amines and corticotropin-releasing factor in adolescent non-human primates as a function of the timing of adverse early rearing

Adolescent bonnet macaques nursed as infants by mothers facing unpredictable requirements for food procurement (variable foraging demand, VFD) display persistent neurobiological disturbances. This study examined the long-term neurochemical and behavioral effects of adverse rearing initiated later in infancy than in previous cohorts of subjects to test the hypothesis that the timing of an early adverse experience would influence patterns of biobehavioral outcome. Cisternal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) monoamine and corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) concentrations were obtained from 20 bonnet macaques (11 VFD-reared and 9 normally reared controls) approximately 2 years after the end of differential rearing. VFD-reared primates displayed on multiple samplings significantly lower CSF CRF concentrations and higher CSF 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) concentration compared to controls. In the VFD-reared, significant inverse correlations between CRF and all three monoamines were found (5-HIAA, 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenethyleneglycol and homovanillic acid), most prominently for 5-HIAA. In controls, but not VFD-reared subjects, CSF CRF was positively correlated with changes in "gregariousness" upon presentation of a fear stimulus. VFD-reared subjects displayed greater baseline hierarchical engagement than controls. In contrast to prior findings, in which rearing under VFD conditions at an earlier age led to increased CSF CRF compared with controls, CSF CRF was lower after later exposure to VFD rearing than in controls. Thus, the timing of exposure to VFD conditions early in life evidently determines whether CSF CRF was found to be elevated or decreased, within the context of increased serotonin metabolism, during the course of primate maturation.     

Glutamate-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis interactions: implications for mood and anxiety disorders

Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is a pathologic feature of certain mood and anxiety disorders that results in the increased production and secretion of corticotropin-releasing factor. There is increasing preclinical evidence that glutamate, an excitatory amino acid, plays an important role in the regulation of the HPA axis. Activation of glutamatergic projections to limbic structures such as the amygdala and brainstem structures such as the nucleus tractus solitarius is implicated in the stress response. There are laboratory and clinical suggestions that glutamatergic N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists function as antidepressants, and that chronic antidepressant treatments have a significant impact on NMDA receptor function. Clinical investigations of glutamate antagonists in patients with mood and anxiety disorders are in their infancy, with a few reports suggesting the presence of mood-elevating properties. Ultimately, HPA axis modulators, serotonin-enhancing agents, and glutamate antagonists might serve to increase neurotropic factors in key brain regions for affective and anxiety regulation, providing a putative final common pathway.     

Parenting and toddler self-regulation in low-income families: What does sleep have to do with it?

Toddlerhood is a sensitive period in the development of self-regulation, a set of adaptive skills that are fundamental to mental health and partly shaped by parenting. Healthy sleep is known to be critical for self-regulation; yet, the degree to which child sleep alters interactive child–parent processes remains understudied. This study examines associations between observed parenting and toddler self-regulation, with toddler sleep as a moderator of this association. Toddlers in low-income families (N = 171) and their mothers were videotaped during free play and a self-regulation challenge task; videos were coded for mothers’ behavior and affect (free play) and toddlers’ self-regulation (challenge task). Mothers reported their child's nighttime sleep duration via questionnaire. Results revealed significant Sleep × Maternal Negative Affect and Sleep × Maternal Negative Control interactions. Children who did not experience negative parenting had good self-regulation regardless of their nighttime sleep duration. For children who did experience negative parenting, self-regulation was intact among those who obtained more nighttime sleep, but significantly poorer among children who were getting less nighttime sleep. Thus, among children who were reported to obtain less nighttime sleep, there were more robust associations between negative parenting and poorer self-regulation than among toddlers who were reported to obtain more sleep.     

Infant mental health home visiting therapists’ reflective supervision self-efficacy in community practice settings

In recent years, there has been an increase in the research on reflective supervision, including the development of tools designed to measure reflective practice in the context of reflective supervision. The Reflective Supervision Self-Efficacy Scale for Supervisees (RSSESS) is a self-report measure that has been used in previous evaluations and is designed to assess perceived reflective practice self-efficacy for Infant Mental Health-Home Visiting (IMH-HV) therapists. Properties of the RSSESS including factor structure and reliability are explored in a first study that lays the foundation for the use of the RSSESS in an IMH-HV evaluation in the State of Michigan. IMH-HV therapists completed the RSSESS at 4 time points over a 12-month period and also completed a Clinician Profile Form that included questions about their IMH background and their work experience, including job satisfaction and burnout. Results indicated that the RSSESS is a reliable tool to measure change in reflective practice skills. IMH-HV therapists demonstrated growth in their use of reflective practice skills with families and their observational skills over the 12-month period. In addition, results indicated correlations between reflective supervision self-efficacy and job satisfaction as well as burnout.     

Infant mental health home visiting therapists’ fidelity to the Michigan IMH-HV model in community practice settings

Implementation research suggests that fidelity to a therapeutic model is important for enhancing outcomes, yet can be difficult to achieve in community practice settings. Furthermore, few published studies have reported on characteristics of treatment fidelity. The present study examined fidelity to the Infant Mental Health Home Visiting (IMH-HV) model among 51 therapists with a range of experience practicing in community settings across the state of Michigan. IMH therapists completed fidelity checklists after every session with participating families to track use of 15 treatment strategies central to the IMH-HV model across the 12-month study period. Results indicated that the most commonly endorsed components utilized in home visits were developmental guidance and infant–parent psychotherapy, followed by the provision of emotional support. Use of IMH-HV components did not vary over time for the entire sample; however, patterns of strategies used showed somewhat more variability among more experienced therapists and when serving higher risk families. Findings demonstrate that IMH-HV therapists report a range of adherence to the model in community settings, with greatest fidelity to several model core components. Ongoing training in the flexible use of all core strategies may further enhance fidelity and contribute to positive outcomes for caregivers and their children receiving IMH-HV services.