A Review of Functional Analysis Methods Conducted in Public School Classroom Settings

The use of functional behavior assessments (FBAs) to address problem behavior in classroom settings has increased as a result of education legislation and long-standing evidence supporting function-based interventions. Although functional analysis remains the standard for identifying behavior–environment functional relations, this component is rarely included in FBAs in practice. To address this research-to-practice gap, we searched the FBA literature to identify studies including functional analyses (FAs) conducted in students’ usual classrooms and implemented by school personnel in public school settings. FAs were defined broadly as assessments involving systematic manipulation of one or more antecedent or consequent variable to evaluate environmental influences on student problem behavior. We identified 39 studies including FAs for 88 participants. All studies were coded with regard to FA approaches and procedures as well as student, classroom, and implementer characteristics. In addition, we evaluated the extent to which FA methods in the study sample aligned with previous recommendations to address practical barriers to implementation. Results revealed a range of FA approaches that varied according to student and classroom characteristics, as well as several strategies to address implementation barriers that have been under-utilized in classroom-based FAs to date.     

“Be Prepared if I Bring It Up:” Patients’ Perceptions of the Utility of Religious and Spiritual Discussion During Genetic Counseling

As debates continue about the relevance of religion to health care, research is needed to guide decisions about whether genetic counselors (GCs) should routinely address religious and/or spiritual (R/S) issues with their patients. We conducted an online survey to gauge patient perspectives on this issue. Among the 70 respondents, frequencies of closed-ended responses and thematic analyses of open-ended responses revealed multiple patient concerns related to R/S discussions with GCs. Although 60 respondents reported being R/S, only a small minority would want to discuss R/S issues if it meant less time discussing medical information. Most respondents also expressed opinions that: 1) genetic counseling should be about science; 2) GCs are not qualified to discuss R/S issues; 3) other outlets are available to meet the needs of patients who want R/S counseling; and/or 4) R/S discussions are more likely to be acceptable if patients broach the topic or in specific circumstances (e.g., when patients are facing end-of life issues). Overall, responses suggest routine or comprehensive R/S assessments or discussions are not necessary and that GCs would be best equipped to help all their patients if they were prepared to listen, be supportive, and make referrals when R/S issues arise in clinic.     

Dirty dozen: A concise measure of dark triad traits among at-risk youths

Current Psychology - The Dark Triad is a term used to describe a constellation of three socially undesirable personality traits: psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism. The aim of the...     

A Cluster Analysis of Peer Support Training Needs for Foster Parents

Peer volunteers provide valuable support to foster parents. However, there has been limited research on what they consider to be valuable preparation for the role. In the present study, they were asked: “What is essential training for peer support volunteers to receive before starting?”. Fifteen participants grouped 41 different responses that were analyzed using multidimensional scaling and cluster analyses. The resulting concepts included: (a) self-care, (b) effective use of self, (c) policies and procedures, (d) finding information and (e) how to address common challenges.

     

Improved Parent–Child Interactions Predict Reduced Internalizing Symptoms Among the Offspring of Parents with Bipolar Disorder Undergoing a Prevention Program: A Proof-of-Concept Study

Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology - The offspring of parents with bipolar disorder (OBD) exhibit elevated rates of psychopathology. However, preventative interventions are lacking....     

Correction to: Improved Parent–Child Interactions Predict Reduced Internalizing Symptoms Among the Offspring of Parents with Bipolar Disorder Undergoing a Prevention Program: A Proof‑of‑Concept Study

Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology - Correction to: Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology     

Re-examination of “release-from-PI” phenomena: recall accuracy does not recover after a semantic switch

Recall accuracy decreases over successive memory trials using similar memoranda. This effect reflects proactive interference (PI) – the tendency for previously studied information to reduce recall of new information. However, recall improves if memoranda for a subsequent trial are semantically dissimilar from the previous trials. This improvement is thought to reflect a release from PI. We tested whether PI is reduced or released from the semantic category for which it had been induced by employing paradigms which featured inducement, semantic switch, and then return-to-original category epochs. Two experiments confirmed that PI was not released after various semantic switch trials (effects from d?=??0.93 to ?1.6). Combined analyses from both studies demonstrated that the number of intervening new category trials did not reduce or release PI. In fact, in all conditions recall accuracy decreased, demonstrating that PI is maintained and can increase after the new category trials. The release-from-PI account cannot accommodate these broader dynamics of PI. This account is also incongruent with evidence and theory from cognitive psychology, linguistics, and neuroscience. We propose a reintroduction-of-PI account which explains these broader PI dynamics and is consistent with the wider psychological and neurosciences.     

The role of appraisal in dysphoric affect reactivity to positive laboratory films and daily life events in depression

Hedonic deficits are linked to protracted dysphoric affect (DA) in depression, a disorder characterised by emotion context insensitivity (ECI). Recent findings from daily life studies contradict the ECI view. This study longitudinally investigated DA across laboratory and daily life contexts and the conditions associated with discrepancies in DA reactivity. Thirty-three healthy controls and 41 adults with major depressive disorder (MDD) provided responses to neutral and positive (a) films viewed in the laboratory and (b) daily events recorded over the course of three days using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) methodology. The current study reports on participants’ appraisals of films and events and their subsequent DA, both rated individually after each task and daily event. Despite large group similarities in appraisals of the positive film and life events, MDDs appraised the neutral film and neutral life events as less important (film: d?=?.58; event: η²?=?.07) and less pleasant (film: d?=?.56; event: η²?=?.18) relative to controls. While MDDs reported higher DA both in the laboratory and in daily life, they experienced larger decreases in DA during positive life events (B?=??.77, SE?=?.28, t(73)?=??2.70, p?=?.009), but not in response to the positive film relative to controls. Results indicate that higher pleasantness appraisals in daily life predicted larger decreases in DA among MDDs than controls (B?=??.24, SE?=?.06, t(73)?=??4.10, p?B?=?1.28, SE?=?.46, t(73)?=?2.77, p?=?.006). The implications of valence and relevance of context for DA reactivity and mood repair are discussed.