Family process and child anxiety and aggression: An observational analysis

Barrett, Rapee, Dadds, and Ryan (1996) described a phenomenon whereby family discussions magnified the style of children's problem solving in a way characteristic of their particular clinical diagnosis. That is, anxious children became more avoidant, aggressive children more aggressive, and nonclinic children more prosocial, after discussing ambiguous hypothetical situations with their parents. This study examined specific sequences of communications exchanged between parents and children hypothesized to underlie this family exacerbation of child cognitive style. Family discussions were videotaped and categorized for groups of anxious, aggressive, and nonclinic children and their parents. Results revealed differences between groups of parents in frequency of agreeing with and listening to their child and the frequency of pointing out positive consequences. Conditional probability analyses showed that parents of anxious children were more likely to reciprocate avoidance, while parents of nonclinic children were more likely to agree with and listen to prosocial plans from their child. Differences in parent behaviors observed during the family discussions were reliably associated with the child's response to the ambiguous situation proposed after the family discussion. Results support a model of developmental anxiety and aggression that emphasizes the interaction of family processes and social-cognitive development in the child.This research was supported by grants from The National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia, The University of Queensland, and The Myer Foundation of Australia.     

Self-reported cognitive failures and neurotic symptomatology

Three studies examined the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) and its psychopathological correlates. In Study 1, the psychometric qualities of the Dutch translation of the CFQ were evaluated in a student sample. Internal consistency and test-retest stability were found to be satisfactory. Furthermore, CFQ was positively correlated with anxiety symptoms, even when the influence of traditional trait variables (i.e., neuroticism and trait anxiety) was partialled out. Study 2 examined the CFQ as a predictor of treatment outcome in spider phobia. No evidence was found to suggest that high CFQ scores are associated with a less favourable treatment outcome. Also, spider phobics had CFQ scores in the normal range. Study 3 evaluated the CFQ in a mixed sample of anxiety disordered and depressive outpatients. Depressive patients, but not anxiety disordered patients, were found to have heightened CFQ scores. Overall, CFQ scores were positively associated with symptom severity. Yet, there were no indications that patients with high CFQ scores profit less from treatment than those with low CFQ scores. Taken together, the results provide support for the view that the CFQ taps daily cognitive routines that are undermined by anxiety and depression. However, the findings do not point to the CFQ being a cognitive vulnerability measure that is related to treatment success.     

Agricultural research networks in sub-Saharan Africa: An analysis of the situation and its consequences

The purpose of this article is to compare the theory and reality of agricultural research networks in sub-Saharan Africa. Networking is a mode of organization that generally suits the new environmental conditions. The analysis of the agricultural research network environment in sub-Saharan Africa shows that when institutional networks started to proliferate, human and institutional conditions were not yet ripe. This explained some of the problems. Nowadays, conditions have improved. Despite all difficulties, networks have contributed to creating a scientific community, have participated in apportioning and even harmonizing research activities, and have made it possible to maintain research activities in countries going through a crisis. Marie de Lattre-Gasquet is a researcher from the Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement (CIRAD), in France. Within the external relations directorate of CIRAD, she has been responsible for the relationships between CIRAD and international organizations. She has also actively participated in the preparation of CIRAD’s long-term strategy. She worked for the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR) in The Netherlands from 1983 to 1985. She holds a Master in International Management (AGSIM, Thunderbird Campus) and a Doctorate in Economy (Université de Paris X). He is mostly working on the agricultural research networks in sub-Saharan Africa. He holds a diploma from the Institut National d’Agronomie—Paris Grignon.     

Reasoning about update logic

Logical frameworks for analysing the dynamics of information processing abound [4, 5, 8, 10, 12, 14, 20, 22]. Some of these frameworks focus on the dynamics of the interpretation process, some on the dynamics of the process of drawing inferences, and some do both of these. Formalisms galore, so it is felt that some conceptual streamlining would pay off.This paper is part of a larger scale enterprise to pursue the obvious parallel between information processing and imperative programming. We demonstrate that logical tools from theoretical computer science are relevant for the logic of information flow. More specifically, we show that the perspective of Hoare logic [13, 18] can fruitfully be applied to the conceptual simplification of information flow logics.     

Self-Serving Evaluations of Conflict Behavior and Escalation of the Dispute1

There is good evidence that people generally tend to evaluate behaviors, contributions, and outcomes in terms favorable to the self. The present series of studies expands this finding by showing that professional negotiators (Study 1), governmental decision makers (Study 2), and organizational consultants (Study 3) make self-serving evaluations of conflict behavior: They view their own conflict behaviors as more constructive and as less destructive than those of their opponents. In addition, results revealed that self-serving evaluation of conflict behavior is associated with increased frustration, with reduced problem solving, and with enhanced likelihood of future conflict. It is argued that these findings expand the conflict literature in that they provide better insight into the motivational-cognitive antecedents and consequences of conflict escalation.     

Correspondence analysis and association models constrained by a conditional independence graph

The manner in which the conditional independence graph of a multiway contingency table effects the fitting and interpretation of the Goodman association model (RC) and of correspondence analysis (CA) is considered.Estimation of the row and column scores is presented in this context by developing a unified framework that includes both models. Incorporation of the conditional independence constraints inherent in the graph may lead to equal or additive scores for the corresponding marginal tables, depending on the topology of the graph. An example of doubly additive scores in the analysis of a Burt subtable is given.Thanks are due to anonymous referees who substantially improved the original draft of this paper.     

Gender differences in awareness of courtship initiation tactics

In this study, two phases of the initiation of courtship behavior are distinguished, namely the first move of making the contact, and the self-presentation after the contact has been established. Gender differences with respect to cognitions and expectations of courtship behavior were analyzed through self-report in a Dutch Caucasian student population. Our goal was to assess male and female roles in these two phases, and to relate the findings to hypothesized gender role changes. It appeared that both men and women were apparently unaware of which gender usually initiates courtship. Furthermore, both genders reported eye contact as the most frequently used initiation tactic. However, the genders differed in other tactics, women reporting the use of indirect nonverbal tactics more often than men, and men reporting their engagement in direct verbal ones more often than women. In presenting themselves, men stressed personal characteristics that are traditionally interpreted as female-valued (such as tenderness) more than women did, whereas women stressed characteristics that are traditionally interpreted as male-valued (such as being prestigiously occupied) more than men did. This apparent change in gender role pattern is discussed against the background of the assumed function of courtship behavior and societal developments.