Longitudinal associations between television viewing patterns and adolescent body satisfaction

This study addressed profiles of adolescent television use and associations between television viewing profiles and the development of body satisfaction. A sample of 841 adolescent boys and girls, ages 11-17, was recruited for participation in a longitudinal study of adolescent media use. Prior research established eight adolescent television profiles among this sample, reflecting unique patterns of consumption of certain genres, character types, and themes (e.g., romance). This study examined whether an adolescent's television profile predicted Time 2 body satisfaction, after controlling for Time 1 body satisfaction. Among boys, television viewing was unrelated to Time 2 body satisfaction. After controlling for initial body satisfaction, hours spent watching television marginally predicted lower Time 2 body satisfaction among girls. After including television profiles alongside television hours, however, television profile emerged as the stronger predictor. Specifically, a group of girls who watched television frequently and indiscriminately reported the most severe drop in body satisfaction.     

Distinguishing among nondirect forms of aggression

This study explored the relationships and differences among two measures of indirect aggression [Bjorkqvist et al., 1994; Richardson and Green, 1997] and one of relational aggression [Crick and Grotpeter, 1995]. Over 300 students (mean age 22.8 years; 61.5% female) from two colleges in the Southeastern United States completed measures of indirect and relational aggression and related constructs (e.g., empathy, anger expression, direct aggression). Although there were subtle differences among the three measures with regard to their relationships with associated variables, overall the patterns of relationships were similar as well as distinct from the pattern for direct aggression. Factor analysis of scores for measures of aggression revealed that the indirect and relational measures composed a single factor of nondirect aggression, separate from direct aggression. Further factor analysis of all unique items from the nondirect scales found the overall construct of nondirect aggression to comprise six distinct factors. Implications for applications and further research are discussed.     

A preliminary study of sex differences in brain activation during a spatial navigation task in healthy adults

The hippocampus plays a significant role in spatial memory processing, with sex differences being prominent on various spatial tasks. This study examined sex differences in healthy adults, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in areas implicated in spatial processing during navigation of a virtual analogue of the Morris water-maze. There were three conditions: learning, hidden, and visible control. There were no significant differences in performance measures. However, sex differences were found in regional brain activation during learning in the right hippocampus, right parahippocampal gyrus, and the cingulate cortex. During the hidden condition, the hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, and cingulate cortex were activated in both men and women. Additional brain areas involved in spatial processing may be recruited in women when learning information about the environment, by utilizing external cues (landmarks) more than do men, contributing to the observed sex differences in brain activation.     

Science as (Historical) Narrative

The traditional mode of explanation in physics via deduction from partial differential equations is contrasted here with explanation via simulations. I argue that the different technologies employed constitute different languages, which support different sorts of narratives. The narratives that accompany simulations and articulate their meaning are typically historical or natural historical in kind. They explain complex phenomena by growing them rather than by referring them to general laws. Examples of such growth simulations and growth narratives come from the evolution of wave functions in quantum chaos, snowflake formation, and Etruscan genetics. The examples suggest a few concluding remarks on historical explanation.     

Psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Collective Efficacy Questionnaire for Sports

The present study analyses the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Collective Efficacy Questionnaire in Sports (CEQS). The sample comprises 312 athletes (167 males and 145 females), with a mean age of 24.09 (SD= 6.67), with diverse performance levels (professional, semiprofessional and university level), all practitioners of team sports. The factor structure of the questionnaire was analyzed with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The results confirm the 5-factor internal structure of the CESQ (Effort, Ability, Unity, Perseverance and Preparation), made up of four items each. We also found acceptable values of the alpha coefficient, which confirms that the CESQ is a reliable instrument. Lastly, we found preliminary support for the validity of the construct of the CESQ, which is sufficient evidence to justify its use to measure the collective efficacy in Spanish athletes.     

Immigration, suicidal ideation and deliberate self-injury in the Boston youth survey 2006

The prevalence and immigration-related correlates of deliberate self-injury (DSI) and suicidal ideation (SI) were estimated in a sample of Boston public high school students in 2006. Compared with U.S.-born youth, immigrant youth were not at increased risk for DSI or SI, even if they had experienced discrimination due to their ancestry. By contrast, U.S.-born youth who reported having been discriminated against because of their ancestry had an increased risk of deliberate self-injury (odds ratio [OR] = 3.1, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.6-5.9) and suicidal ideation (OR = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.2-3.8). The combination of being U.S.-born and experiencing ancestry-based discrimination identifies youth at increased risk for suicidal behavior.     

The import of the cortisol rise in child care differs as a function of behavioral inhibition

Children of ages 3 to 4.5 years (N = 107; 45 boys, 62 girls) were studied twice, 6 months apart, to examine whether the cortisol rise in child care at Time 1 (T1) was associated with (a) changes in anxious, vigilant behavior from T1 to Time 2 (T2) and (b) higher internalizing symptoms at T2. Controlling for measures of home environment and child care quality at T1, as well as for cortisol activity at T2, we obtained results indicating that behavioral inhibition moderated the associations between the rise in cortisol at T1 and child outcomes at T2 (i.e., anxious, vigilant behavior and internalizing symptoms). For both outcomes, the rise in cortisol at T1 became more positively predictive at increasing levels of behavioral inhibition. Specifically, at higher levels of behavioral inhibition, children with larger T1 cortisol increases expressed more internalizing symptoms than did children at lower levels of behavioral inhibition; in contrast, for those with low cortisol activity at T1, children with higher levels of inhibition expressed fewer internalizing symptoms than did children at lower levels of inhibition. In addition, children with higher levels of behavioral inhibition and lower cortisol activity at T1 exhibited reductions in anxious, vigilant behavior from T1 to T2, whereas at lower levels of behavioral inhibition, variations in the T1 cortisol rise bore no relation to changes in this behavior. These results suggest that the rise in cortisol at child care may have differential predictive value as a function of behaviorally inhibited temperament.     

Relations between Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-A scales and Rorschach variables with the scope and severity of maltreatment among adolescents

This study examined preexisting Rorschach (Exner, 2001) and Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-A (MMPI-A; Butcher et al., 1992) profiles to determine if selected MMPI-A scales and Rorschach variables would jointly associate with the number and severity of maltreatment subtypes (physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, and emotional maltreatment) of 157 adolescents (ages 14-17) with documented maltreatment histories. The Maltreatment Classification System was used to systematically code the maltreatment attributes. Six Rorschach variables (MOR, PER, Afr, SumY, SumC', Human Content) were significantly correlated with the number of maltreatment subtypes, but none of the anticipated MMPI-A scales were related. MMPI-A Scale 7 and Rorschach variables Ego, MOR, and PER were jointly associated with physical abuse severity. MMPI-A Scale 0 and Rorschach variables MOR, PER, SumY, SumC', PTI, Human Content, and Texture jointly associated with sexual abuse severity. This study supports the potential for certain MMPI-A scales and Rorschach variables to reflect the impact of adolescents' maltreatment experiences in terms of the number and severity of types of maltreatment experienced. Because both instruments captured different aspects of adolescents' maltreatment experiences, clinicians should consider using both when evaluating the impact of maltreatment on adolescents.     

Associations between serotonin transporter gene promoter region (5-HTTLPR) polymorphism and gaze bias for emotional information

The serotonin transporter promoter region polymorphism (5-HTTLPR) is associated with neural response to negative images in brain regions involved in the experience of emotion. However, the behavioral implications of this sensitivity have been studied far less extensively. The current study used eye-tracking methodology to examine how individuals genotyped for the 5-HTTLPR, including the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs25531, allocated attention during prolonged (30-s) exposure to face stimuli depicting positive and negative emotion. Short 5-HTTLPR allele carriers and carriers of the long allele with guanine at the sixth nucleotide (S/LG) displayed a stronger gaze bias (total fixation time, number of fixations, mean fixation length) for positive than for sad, threat, or neutral stimuli. In contrast, those homozygous for the long 5-HTTLPR allele with adenine at the sixth nucleotide (LA) viewed the emotion stimuli in an unbiased fashion. Time course analyses indicated no initial 5-HTTLPR group differences; however, S/LG 5-HTTLPR allele carriers were more likely than LA 5-HTTLPR homozygotes to direct gaze toward happy than toward sad stimuli over time. This bias toward positive stimuli during the later stages of information processing likely reflects a strategic effort to downregulate heightened reactivity to negative stimuli among 5-HTTLPR S/LG allele carriers.     

Meta‐Analysis of Clerical Performance Predictors: Still stable after all these years

Pearlman, Schmidt, and Hunter (1980) published a seminal paper on the validity of various measures for predicting performance in clerical jobs. They concluded that for both job and training performance criteria, 10 types of tests (e.g., perceptual speed, clerical aptitude, verbal ability) predicted performance across 5 clerical job families. This paper describes a psychometric meta‐analysis of validity studies using similar measures for clerical jobs conducted since 1980 to examine the stability of Pearlman and colleagues' validity estimates. This paper contributes to the literature by investigating the long‐term stability of validity generalization estimates over a period of several decades. Clerical jobs provide a compelling case study because these jobs have changed considerably due to the increased use of computers and technology in the office environment. Results showed that the mean population estimates in the present study were consistent with, or higher than, those obtained by Pearlman and colleagues, thus demonstrating the long‐term stability of meta‐analytic estimates of validity. The relative stability of the validity estimates also supports the robustness of g as a predictor, even as jobs change over time.