Psychometric properties of the Escala de Autoeficacia para el Afrontamiento del Estrés (EAEAE)

This paper presents the theoretical construct of and an instrument for its assessment, the Escala de Autoeficacia para el Afrontamiento del Estrés (EAEAE; in English, Coping with Stress Self-Efficacy Scale), as well as the results obtained concerning its psychometric properties from an adult population. 812 individuals, aged 18 to 64 years old ( M = 26.46, SD = 9.93, 62.6% females and 37.4% males), recruited from various contexts, participated in this study. Participants completed the EAEAE along with other measures of constructs theoretically related to this specific self-efficacy. The EAEAE shows appropriate reliability in its complete form as well as in its two subscales of Efficacy Expectations and Outcome Expectations, and adequate factorial construct validity (which reveals the bi-dimensionality of the instrument), and convergent validity with the remaining measures. The characteristics of brevity and ease of application of the scale, in addition to its adequate psychometric properties, indicate that the EAEAE is an appropriate tool to assess and investigate coping with stress self-efficacy in research as well as clinical settings.     

Parenting styles

Parental educational styles constitute one of the key elements of family socialization. The aim of the present essay is to present the results of a research project carried out in the Principality of Asturias (Spain) among 2,965 families with children of infant and primary-school age (5-8 years old). This research attempts to analyse, among other aspects, parental behaviour tendencies in child upbringing. The analysis of the results obtained allows us to: 1) identify the most common attitudinal and behavioural tendencies of parents in the upbringing of their children; 2) determine how many people have a well defined parental style, and delimit their socio-educational characteristics. Lastly, we consider the need to change some parental behaviour patterns and stress the importance of family education programmes, with the aim of promoting appropriate parenting models and modifying or improving current practices.     

Physical self-concept, anxiety, depression, and self-esteem in children with cancer and healthy children without cancer history

The main purpose of this study is to test if children with cancer receiving chemotherapy show a poorer physical self-concept, less self-esteem and more anxiety and depression than healthy children (with no cancer history) within the same age range (9-16 years old) and social condition. Furthermore, the capacity of self-concept and self-esteem to predict emotional distress is analyzed. The Spanish versions of PSDQ, CDI and STAIC were administered to 30 children with cancer and 90 healthy children. Except for the health and flexibility dimensions in the PSDQ, no significant differences between groups were found. Self-esteem was the best predictor of depression, whereas health and self-concept predicted anxiety.     

Processing two tasks with varying task order: central stage duration influences central processing order

In a recent study, Sigman and Dehaene (2006, PLoS Biology, 4, 1227–1238) reported that perceptual processing duration influences processing order of two tasks in the psychological refractory period paradigm (PRP). The present study examines whether the duration of central processes also influences processing order. For this purpose, we employed letter tasks with different central processing durations and varied task order in the PRP. In one part of the experiment, a tone discrimination task was combined with a similar time-consuming letter discrimination task. In the other part, the tone task was combined with a more time-consuming letter task, which required a mental rotation of the letter thereby prolonging central processing. If the duration of central processes influences processing order, participants should perform the tone task first more often when it is presented with the more time-consuming mental rotation task, than when it is presented with the similar time-consuming letter task. The results clearly confirm this prediction and thus show that not only perceptual processing duration but also central processing duration affects processing order in a dual-task situation. We suggest that the reported effect mirrors a tendency of participants to minimize total reaction time to both tasks by reducing slack time.     

Assessing reading comprehension with narrative and expository texts: Dimensionality and relationship with fluency,vocabulary and memory

Reading comprehension assessment should rely on valid instruments that enable adequate conclusions to be taken regarding students' reading comprehension performance. In this article, two studies were conducted to collect validity evidence for the vertically scaled forms of two Tests of Reading Comprehension for Portuguese elementary school students in the second to fourth grades, one with narrative texts (TRC‐n) and another with expository ones (TRC‐e). Two samples of 950 and 990 students participated in Study 1, the study of the dimensionality of the TRC‐n and TRC‐e forms, respectively. Confirmatory factor analyses provided evidence of an acceptable fit for the one‐factor solution for all test forms. Study 2 included 218 students to collect criterion‐related validity. The scores obtained in each of the test forms were significantly correlated with the ones obtained in other reading comprehension measures and with the results obtained in oral reading fluency, vocabulary and working memory tests. Evidence suggests that the test forms are valid measures of reading comprehension.     

Father involvement and marital relationship during transition to parenthood: differences between dual and single-earner families

Research into the process of becoming mother or father shows very conclusively that this important life transition is accompanied by both a decrease in marital quality and a more traditional division of labour. In this paper these changes are analyzed with special emphasis on the relationships between them and exploring the role played in this process by the mother's work status. Results showed a significant link between the development of marital quality and violated expectations regarding father involvement on childrearing. Dual-earner families were characterized by a specific pattern of changes, with greater stability than single-earner families in marital and parental roles during transition to parenthood and a significant role played by spouse support as a partner, but not as a parent.     

“Building Hope for the Future”: A Program to Foster Strengths in Middle-School Students

The authors investigated the effectiveness of a 5-week hope-based intervention designed to enhance hope, life satisfaction, self-worth, mental health and academic achievement in middle school students. The study includes a sample of 31 students from a community school, a matched comparison group of 31 students, and 2 secondary groups—guardians and teachers of the students’ intervention group. Students completed a questionnaire packet that included demographic information, the Portuguese versions of the Children’s Hope Scale, Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale, Mental Health and Self-Worth Scales. Academic achievement was obtained from school records. At baseline, groups are statistically similar on the variables of interest. At post-test the intervention group had enhanced hope, life satisfaction and self-worth. In the intervention group, benefits in hope, life satisfaction and self-worth were maintained at the 18-month follow up. Results suggest that a brief hope intervention can increase psychological strengths, and participants continue to benefit up to 1-year and 6-months later.     

Validation of a telephone screening test for Alzheimer's disease

Financial constraints, mobility issues, medical conditions, crime in local areas can make cognitive assessment difficult for elders and telephone interviews can be a good alternative. This study was carried out to evaluate the reliability, validity and clinical utility of a Brazilian telephone version of the Mini Mental State Examination (Braztel-MMSE) in a community sample of healthy elderly participants and AD patients. The MMSE and the Braztel-MMSE were applied to 66 AD patients and 67 healthy elderly participants. The test-retest reliability was strong and significant (r = .92, p = .01), and the correlation between the Braztel-MMSE and the MMSE were significant (p = .01) and strong (r = .92). The general screening ability of the Braztel-MMSE was high (AUC = 0.982; CI95% = 0.964-1.001). This telephone version can therefore be used as a screening measure for dementia in older adults that need neuropsychological screening and cannot present for an evaluation.     

Object naming in dyslexic children: more than a phonological deficit

In the present study, the authors investigate how some visual factors related to early stages of visual-object naming modulate naming performance in dyslexia. The performance of dyslexic children was compared with 2 control groups-normal readers matched for age and normal readers matched for reading level-while performing a discrete naming task in which color and dimensionality of the visually presented objects were manipulated. The results showed that 2-dimensional naming performance improved for color representations in control readers but not in dyslexics. In contrast to control readers, dyslexics were also insensitive to the stimulus's dimensionality. These findings are unlikely to be explained by a phonological processing problem related to phonological access or retrieval but suggest that dyslexics have a lower capacity for coding and decoding visual surface features of 2-dimensional representations or problems with the integration of visual information stored in long-term memory.