The role of the shared family context in differential parenting

This article examines the role of the shared family context in understanding differential parental treatment of children. Child-specific and family-context predictors of differential parental positivity and negativity were examined using multilevel modeling in a population of 8,476 children nested in 3,762 families. Child age was the strongest child-specific predictor of positivity and differential positivity. Lower socioeconomic status (SES), marital dissatisfaction, and larger family size were associated with higher levels of differential positivity. There was evidence of potentiation when risks were combined. Children's temperament was associated with parental negativity and differential negativity. The strength of this association was moderated by SES. Mixed-gender sibships in families with marital dissatisfaction and children in single-parent families received the highest levels of differential negativity. The findings are discussed in the context of shared and nonshared environmental influences on development.     

The effects of presession attention on problem behavior maintained by different reinforcers

The effect of presession attention on the later occurrence of problem behavior was examined with elementary-school children with a range of disabilities. Results of analogue functional analyses suggested an escape function, an attention function, or both. Following the analogue functional analyses, the effects of two antecedent conditions (10-min ignore vs. 10-min attention) were compared on problem behavior in subsequent test conditions. For participants who displayed attention-maintained problem behavior, the test condition involved contingent attention for problem behavior. For participants who displayed escape-maintained problem behavior, the test condition involved contingent escape for problem behavior. Results indicated that participants who displayed attention-maintained problem behavior displayed less problem behavior following presession exposure to attention than when ignored. No such effect was found for presession attention on escape-maintained problem behavior. We discuss matching antecedent-based interventions to the results of functional analysis.     

Effects of the terrorist attacks of 9/11/01 on employee attitudes

Much has been stated in the popular press about the effects of the events of 9/11/01 on employee attitudes about work. This study examined a large sample (N = 70,671) of employees of a multinational manufacturer whose annual employee survey data collection was interrupted by the events. After demonstrating measurement equivalence across time and countries, changes in attitudes pre- and post-9/11 were examined. Only negligible differences were found in Job Satisfaction, Supervisor Evaluation, Stress, and Organizational Commitment to Diversity for U.S. employees or for employees worldwide. Demographic differences in response to events were not found. Implications for understanding effects of stressful external events on employee perceptions of work are discussed.     

Four studies extending the utility of the Schwartz Outcome Scale (SOS-10)

The Schwartz Outcome Scale (SOS-10; Blais et al., 1999) is a brief, cost free, and easy to administer assessment device designed to measure a broad domain of psychological health. The 4 studies using the SOS-10 reported here extend the initial reliability and validity studies beyond psychiatric patients in a hospital setting to examine (a) test-retest reliability in a college student population, (b) concurrent validity with college students using an indirect technique assessing maladjustment, (c) concurrent validity with college counseling center clients using a self-report measure of client distress, and (d) sensitivity to treatment changes with outpatient clients. These studies lend further support for using the SOS-10 as a measure of psychological well-being and as an outcome measure in varied settings.     

Equivalence relations in individuals with language limitations and mental retardation

The study of equivalence relations exhibited by individuals with mental retardation and language limitations holds the promise of providing information of both theoretical and practical significance. We reviewed the equivalence literature with this population, defined in terms of subjects having moderate, severe, or profound mental retardation. The literature includes 55 such individuals, most of whom showed positive outcomes on equivalence tests. The results to date suggest that naming skills are not necessary for positive equivalence test outcomes. Thus far, however, relatively few subjects with minimal language have been studied. Moreover, we suggest that the scientific contributions of studies in this area would be enhanced with better documentation of language skills and other subject characteristics. With recent advances in laboratory procedures for establishing the baseline performances necessary for equivalence tests, this research area is poised for rapid growth.     

An information theory analysis of duration of lifeguards' scanning

Observers recorded the duration of scanning by six lifeguards in three indoor swimming pools. Duration of scanning was significantly predicted by the absolute numbers of child swimmers (< 17 years) in the pools and when numbers of child swimmers were represented in terms of bits of information. Duration of scanning increased as a linear function of both numbers of children and child bits of information. These results are interpreted in terms of the Hick-Hyman law of information theory. Lifeguards appear to simplify the task of information processing and decision-making by concentrating on children as a more at-risk group of swimmers. Duration of scanning was not significantly related to changes in number of adult swimmers.     

Subfactors of DSM-IV Conduct Disorder: Evidence and Connections with Syndromes from the Child Behavior Checklist

Is conduct disorder (CD) as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) a unitary entity, or do variants of CD exist? We addressed this question, using data collected from the parents of 1,669 Australian boys, aged 6–17. Parents were interviewed to assess DSM-IV Conduct Disorder (DSM-IV CD) criteria. Results revealed 2 subfactors of DSM-IV CD symptoms, made up of overt behaviors (e.g., initiating physical fights) and covert behaviors (e.g., stealing without confrontation). Ordinary least squares regressions showed the 2 CD subfactors to be significantly and uniquely predicted by Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL; T. M. Achenbach, 1991a, 1991b) syndromes labeled Aggressive Behavior and Delinquent Behavior, respectively. The results are discussed in terms of the utility of differentiating these 2 variants of CD in future editions of the DSM.     

Untangling developmental relations between depressed mood and delinquency in male adolescents

Relations between depressed mood and delinquency were investigated in a longitudinal sample of 506 urban adolescent males across ages 13.5–17.5, while adjusting for common risk factors. Adolescents provided yearly reports of their delinquent activities and depressed mood, as well as reports of peer delinquency at age 13.5 (i.e., baseline). Primary caregivers and teachers provided reports of risk factors for depressed mood and delinquency such as aggressive behavior problems and low academic achievement. Two-level hierarchical generalized linear models of concurrent relations indicated that depressed mood predicted concurrent variety of delinquent acts, and more variety of delinquent acts predicted concurrent depressed mood, even after controlling common risk factors. Longitudinal analyses indicated that after controlling for common risk factors, depressed mood had a more robust effect on delinquency variety trajectories than delinquency variety had on depressed mood trajectories. Time-averaged depressed mood significantly predicted a more positive rate of change in delinquency variety across time. Baseline delinquency variety predicted baseline depressed mood and time-averaged delinquency variety predicted a more positive rate of change in depressed mood; however, both effects were marginally significant. Implications of the results for theory and intervention are discussed.     

The unification of mind: Integration of hemispheric semantic processing

Seventy-six participants performed a visual half-field lexical decision task at two different stimulus onset asynchronies (50 or 750 ms). Word targets were primed either by a highly associated word (e.g., CLEAN-DIRTY), a weakly associated word (e.g., CLEAN-TIDY), or an unrelated word (e.g., CLEAN-FAMILY) projected to either the same or opposite visual field (VF) as the target. In the short SOA, RVF-left hemisphere primes resulted in high associate priming regardless of target location (ipsilateral or contralateral to the prime) whereas LVF-right hemisphere primes produced both high and low associate priming across both target location conditions. In the long SOA condition, contralateral priming patterns converged, demonstrating only high associate priming in both VF locations. The results of this study demonstrate the critical role of interhemispheric transfer in semantic processing and indicate a need to elaborate current models of semantic processing.     

Intrinsic and extrinsic work orientations as moderators of the effect of annual income on subjective well-being: a longitudinal study

Income is only weakly associated with both subjective well-being (SWB) and job satisfaction in the United States, a surprising finding in light of the importance placed on financial status in capitalistic societies. To explore this further, the authors examined intrinsic and extrinsic work orientations as potential moderators of the effects of financial compensation on SWB and job satisfaction. Master's of business administration students (N = 124) completed measures of work orientation and, 4 to 9 years later, reported their current salary, SWB, and job satisfaction. As predicted, individuals high in extrinsic orientation experienced higher SWB and job satisfaction to the degree that they earned more money, whereas those high in intrinsic orientation were lower on SWB at higher income levels. These findings are discussed in terms of the Values as Moderators Perspective of SWB and Cognitive Evaluation Theory.