Tier 1 and Tier 2 early intervention for handwriting and composing

Three studies evaluated Tier 1 early intervention for handwriting at a critical period for literacy development in first grade and one study evaluated Tier 2 early intervention in the critical period between third and fourth grades for composing on high stakes tests. The results contribute to knowledge of research-supported handwriting and composing instruction that informs practice as school psychologists are empowered to embrace the role of intervention specialist. The first study found that neurodevelopmental training (orthographic-free motor activities and motor-free orthographic activities) led to improved accuracy and legibility of letter formation, but that direct handwriting instruction with visual cues and verbal mediation led to improved automatic handwriting (rate of writing legible letters) and transfer to improved word reading. The second study found that neither motor training nor orthographic training alone added value to direct instruction in automatic letter writing and composing practice in developing handwriting skills, which transferred to improved word reading; but the added motor training did improve performance on a grapho-motor planning task for sequential finger movements that is relevant to composing. A related analysis showed that direct instruction with visual cues and memory delays may reduce reversals. A third study found that adding handwriting to reading instruction improved handwriting but did not add value to reading outcomes for at risk readers; reading instruction alone was beneficial for word reading, decoding, and comprehension. The fourth study showed that comprehensive, explicit instruction in the processes of composition led to more significant improvement, based on group and individual data, than did the regular fourth grade program, on high stakes writing assessment.     

Evaluating anxiety and depression symptoms in children and adolescents with prior mild traumatic brain injury: Agreement between methods and respondents

Psychological functioning can be adversely impacted after a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and may be a potential target for intervention. Despite the use of symptom ratings or structured diagnostic interview to assess long-term anxiety and depression symptoms in children and adolescents post-injury, no known studies have considered the agreement between different assessment methods and between respondents. The objectives of this study were to investigate the agreement between symptom ratings and structured diagnostic interview and between children and parents’ symptom reporting. Participants (N = 33; 9–18 years old) were recruited from the Emergency Department and assessed on average 22.8 months (SD = 5.6) after their mTBI. Anxiety and depression symptoms were evaluated via subscales of a questionnaire (Behavior Assessment System for Children) and parts of a computerized structured diagnostic interview (generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive episode; Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children – C-DISC-IV) administered individually to children and their parents. Results showed that the inter-method agreement to identify high levels of anxiety and depression was moderate to perfect in children while it was lower in parents. Although a similar percentage of participants with elevated anxiety or depression were identified by both children and parents, the agreement between youth and parents was variable, ranging from poor to good for anxiety and poor to moderate for depression. These results highlight the importance of collecting youth and parents’ reports of anxiety and depression symptoms and considering potential discrepancies between informants’ answers.     

Is there a bilingual advantage on interference-control tasks? A multiverse meta-analysis of global reaction time and interference cost

A contentious issue in contemporary psycholinguistics is whether bilingualism enhances executive functions. Here, we report a meta-analysis of 80 studies (253 effect sizes) comparing performance of monolinguals and bilinguals on non-verbal interference-control tasks, while examining potential moderators of effects on two dependent variables (DVs): global reaction time (RT) and interference cost. We used a multiverse approach to determine how robust conclusions were to several dataset construction and analysis decisions. In our “preferred” analysis, using a broad definition of bilinguals and standard versions of interference-control tasks, there was a very small but significant bilingual advantage for global RT (g =.13), which became non-significant once corrected for publication bias. For interference cost, there was a very small but significant bilingual advantage (g =.11). Effects were not significantly moderated by task or participant age, but were moderated by an interaction between age of second language acquisition (AoA) and the DV. Unexpectedly, larger effect sizes for interference cost were observed for studies involving bilinguals with late as opposed to early AoA. The multiverse analysis produced results largely consistent with the preferred analysis, confirming our conclusion that evidence for a bilingual advantage on interference-control tasks is weak.

     

Der bewegliche Mensch

Zusammenfassung. Diese Arbeit unterscheidet drei Konzepte der Identit?t (substanzielle, formale und qualifizierte Identit?t) und ordnet sie verschiedenen intellektuellen Traditionen zu. Besondere Aufmerksamkeit verdient der systematisch wichtigste Identit?tsbegriff, die „qualifizierte Identit?t.” Hingewiesen wird auf die Schwierigkeiten, die sich aus einer rein „narrativen” Fundierung dieser Identit?t ergeben; im Kontrast hierzu wird die Notwendigkeit betont, Identit?t in einem „dramatischen” Kontext zu sehen. Von dort her ergeben sich wichtige Vorgaben zur Ausrichtung therapeutischer Intervention. Die Vernachl?ssigung jenes dramatischen Kontexts führt zu einer Einengung des Identit?tsbegriffs, die besonders deutlich bei den Aporien der „Selbstverwirklichung” zutage tritt. Abschlie?end wird auf einige Gefahren hingewiesen, die sich aus der individualistischen Verzerrung des Identit?tsbegriffs in modernen Gesellschaften ergeben; von besonderer Bedeutung sind hier die soziale Erosion, aus der sich eine Krise im Verh?ltnis zwischen den Generationen ableitet, sowie – in engem Zusammenhang damit – das K?rperbild, das dem modernen Jugendkult zugrunde liegt.

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The human being in movement. Modern identity from a philosophical point of view

Summary. This paper draws a distinction between „substantive”, „formal”, and „qualified” identity, and gives hints at the intellectual traditions linked to these different accounts. The systematically most advanced concept of identity, i.e., „qualified identity”, deserves particular attention. With regard to the „making” of this identity, both its „narrative” foundation and its „dramatic” contextualization need to be discussed. The author hints at systematic problems involved in a merely „narrative” (re-)construction of identity and pleads for a „dramatic” contextualization of identity. Following this „dramatic” turn, the focus for therapeutic intervention is to be elucidated in a new way. Whereas a „dramatic” approach to identity allows to encompass the social context, an individualistic approach leads to serious distortions; this becomes evident in the aporetic figure of „self-realization”, which is reflected in the erosion of social relations, the struggle between generations, and the modern body-image of „youthfulness.”

     

Ausbildungs- und Berufserfahrungen älterer Psychoanalytiker

Based on the discussion about the crisis of psychoanalysis and in particular of psychoanalytic training, 145 (female and male) analysts older than 70 years of age were interviewed about their training and professional experiences as well as about their attitudes towards psychoanalysis. This older generation is of great interest because their training generally took place prior to 1967 and preceded the introduction of guideline therapy (cost coverage by the general health insurance) and under much less formalized conditions, which can be seen almost as a contrast to the current circumstances and conditions. This research has shown that especially personal or content and value-based motivations (personal problems, therapeutic experience, interest in the subject, the desire for depth, self-realization and expansion of the situation perceived as restrictive of their former profession) were the main determining factors for the choice of career. The training analyses were, despite some exceptions, of substantial length even then (an average of 544 h), but often had a lower frequency (30% had less than 3 h per week). Since the age limitation for running a psychoanalytic practice within the general health services (formerly 68 years) is no longer compulsory, the results of this study regarding the professional life of older psychoanalysts are of special interest. Of the respondents 45% are still running their own practice and 22% are working as training analysts.     

MATERIALISM, SOCIOCULTURAL APPEARANCE MESSAGES, AND PATERNAL ATTITUDES PREDICT COLLEGE WOMEN'S ATTITUDES ABOUT COSMETIC SURGERY

Rates of cosmetic surgery procedures have increased dramatically over the past several decades, but only recently have studies of cosmetic surgery attitudes among the general population begun to appear in the literature. The vast majority of those who undergo cosmetic surgery are women. We examined cosmetic surgery attitudes among 218 undergraduate women, most of whom were White. Specifically, we examined their acceptance of cosmetic surgery and expressed desire to undergo cosmetic surgery procedures, and several potential predictors: appearance attitudes of mothers, fathers, and friends; awareness and internalization of sociocultural appearance messages; and materialism. Multiple regression analyses indicated that materialism and internalization of sociocultural messages consistently emerged as significant predictors of acceptance of cosmetic surgery and desire for cosmetic surgery procedures. Paternal attitudes positively predicted acceptance of cosmetic surgery for social reasons and desire for cosmetic surgery; nonmaterialism negatively predicted considering cosmetic surgery and the desire for cosmetic surgery procedures.