“There's more love between us”: The parental experience of attending Mellow Babies,a targeted,early intervention program for parents and their babies

It is recognized that parenthood in the context of psychosocial adversity can have negative implications for infant development. Parenting programs are the first line of intervention to improve outcomes for families; however, evidence for the effectiveness of group-based, targeted early interventions is still scarce. Preliminary findings indicate Mellow Babies (MB) as a promising group-based parenting program for families at risk for parenting difficulties. Using thematic analysis, we aimed to understand: (i) the aspects of the intervention that enabled parents to complete the program and (ii) the relational and behavioral changes perceived as valuable for parents and their babies post-intervention. In total, 68 parents residing in the United Kingdom were interviewed after completing MB (49 mothers and 19 fathers; 88% self-identified as British). Three themes and six subthemes were generated from the data. Parents identified several intervention components as beneficial, including the facilitators' interpersonal skills and multi-dimensional, group-based approach. Participant reflections highlighted three underlying mechanisms that enabled positive change: (i) the sense of community cultivated within the group, (ii) the process of formulating and re-conceptualizing one's difficulties, and (iii) the opportunity to reshape interpersonal interactions. Findings are discussed within the context of perinatal and infant mental health.     

Contemporary Sociological Theory and Techno-Nihilist Capitalism

The problem advanced societies have tried to answer since the last part of the twentieth century can be ascribed to a fundamental question: how to go beyond the constitutive (and unsustainable) limit of nation-state capitalism, constrained by an excessively circumscribed and univocal idea of social organization, without losing the ability to govern? Or, expressed in other terms, how can you dismantle the center (the state) without losing the power to control? The answer to this (difficult) question has been sought for along two main axes. The first has concerned the seizing of new opportunities distributed over a space larger than the national space. As historians have shown (Arrighi 1996 Arrighi, G. 1996. Il lungo XX secolo, Milan: Il Saggiatore.  [Google Scholar]), if global projection is a constant of capitalism only the disastrous politico-military vicissitudes of the first half of the twentieth century created the conditions according to which the nation-state capitalism model could be born, in the form that dominated the fifty years following the Second World War. But first the exhaustion of colonialism, then the urgency of the energy question, the signs of a possible demise of Anglo-Saxon hegemony and, subsequently, the collapse of the Soviet empire, have changed the rules of the game. Within a rapidly transforming international framework, the recovery of a global outlook promised the exploitation of important opportunities with the opening of new markets, the valorization of investment possibilities, the displacement and utilization of low-wage labor, financial speculation, the acquisition and control of energy resources and raw materials. It is a promise that Anglo-Saxon elites have contemplated since the early 1980s, the moment in which—to counter the increasingly worrying signs of decline of their hegemony—they abandoned the Keynesian doctrine to embrace the neoliberal doctrine. The second axis along which a new growth cycle has been developed has to do with the increased manipulation of meanings available individually and collectively. Such a process is formed from the combination of two rationales, the subjectivist imperative, which inscribes into social life some of the philosophical developments of the twentieth century, and the formation of De-territorialized Aesthetic Space, which makes technically possible, a degree of cultural mobility hitherto unthinkable. Both these factors facilitate the insertion of the immaterial dimension into the cycle of capitalist valorization, making it more readily available for exploitation by economic forces on a global scale.     

人格对幼儿白谎行为的影响：“冷”“热”执行功能的并行中介作用

为探讨人格对幼儿白谎行为的影响,及“冷”“热”执行功能的中介作用机制,采用问卷法和测验法对218名3～6岁幼儿的人格、言语能力、“冷”“热”执行功能和白谎行为进行测试。结果显示：控制年龄和言语能力后,智能特征和亲社会性可显著正向预测幼儿白谎行为;“冷”执行功能在智能特征和白谎行为间发挥部分中介作用;“热”执行功能在亲社会性和白谎行为间发挥部分中介作用;“热”执行功能在外倾性和白谎行为间发挥完全中介作用;“冷”“热”执行功能在认真自控和白谎行为间发挥完全中介作用。研究结果进一步揭示了人格对幼儿白谎行为影响的内在机制。     

Comparing the Characteristics of Homeless Adults in Poland and the United States

This study compared the characteristics of probability samples of homeless adults in Poland (N = 200 from two cities) and the United States (N = 219 from one city), using measures with established reliability and validity in homeless populations. The same measures were used across nations and a systemic translation procedure assured comparability of measurement. The two samples were similar on some measures: In both nations, most homeless adults were male, many reported having dependent children and experiencing out-of-home placements when they themselves were children, and high levels of physical health problems were observed. Significant national differences were also found: Those in Poland were older, had been homeless for longer, showed lower rates on all psychiatric diagnoses assessed (including severe mental and substance abuse disorders), reported less contact with family and supportive network members, were less satisfied when they sought support from their networks, and reported fewer recent stressful life events and fewer risky sexual behaviors. Culturally-informed interpretations of these findings and their implications are presented.     

Toward a Cosmic Christology: A Kerygmatic Proposal

This kerygmatic (Tillich) proposal for a cosmic christology presupposes (with Sittler) that in our times the scope of christology must be as large as the whole creation. Noting a body of extant literature pertaining to the theme (Teilhard de Chardin, Tillich, Gunton, Moltmann, Fox, McFague, Edwards), this article argues that Martin Luther's “ubiquity Christology” should receive a fresh hearing in order to broaden and deepen the current discussion, in a way that can contribute both to kerygmatic and apologetic theological constructions. Concerns of critics of Luther's ubiquity Christology are addressed and its underdeveloped character is noted, with suggestions for expanding Luther's vision. At the end, the potential ecumenical benefits of this kind of reclamation of Luther's thought are affirmed, as is the need for kerygmatic theologians to develop not only cosmic christologies, but also cosmic pneumatologies.     

Normand Laurendeau: Spirituality and Science at the Apex of His Life's Vision

Abstract

This article discusses the noteworthy approach of a twentieth-century Muslim scholar, Bediüzzaman Said Nursi (1877–1960), to the issue of Qur'an and science. Nursi points out the “problem of authoritarianism” in both religious and secularist discourses, arguing that many of the clashes between faith and reason result from a misunderstanding of spheres of expertise. Nursi also argues that even at the height of scientific and technological development, the Qur'an remains indispensable in humankind interpreting the world around them. Nursi's case illustrates that the task of relating the modern science and the Qur'an requires attention to their interpretive dimensions.     

Response to “Turning Words and Twisting Truths”

SUMMARY

Too often, in discussions of psychotherapy, the techniques are given undue emphasis. Research suggests that the same techniques are differentially effective when used by equally trained and supervised therapists. Not only are some therapists more effective, irrespective of the type of therapy they practice, but some, because of their personal qualities, may actually harm those with whom they work. This research reflects the vast importance of the ubiquitous element in therapy, that of the “person” of the therapist. The question, then, follows, how may personhood be developed? This question is explored as it relates to both breadth and depth of life experience.     

Experiencia lingüística y desarrollo cognitivo: las ventajas del bilingüismo

RESUMEN

En este artículo se mantiene la hipótesis de la correlación positiva entre inteligencia y bilingüismo, debida a la existencia de ventajas cognitivas. La autora repasa algunos estudios con niños bilingües -destacando el de Okoh (1980)-, afirmando que estas investigaciones indican la presencia de ventajas cognitivas en tareas de creatividad verbal. Con relación a la influencia de la experiencia bilingüe en otras operaciones cognitivas, explica algunas dificultades para relacionar ambas, por lo que habría que realizar un considerable trabajo previo para poder extraer conclusiones definitivas sobre las dimensiones del desarrollo cognitivo que pueden beneficiarse. Respecto a los mecanismos a través de los que se produce dicha influencia, resalta la explicación estructural de Ben- Zeev (1977) recogiendo el concepto de competencia lingüística chomskyano. Tras profundizar en el modelo de Cummins (1981), con su análisis de los distintos tipos de competencia y la “hipótesis de los umbrales”, la autora se centra finalmente en los efectos cognitivos de diferentes tipos de bilingüismo.     

El fenómeno de la «punta de la lengua» y la recuperación léxica: estudio de sus propiedades en castellano y el efecto de la frecuencia del estímulo

Resumen

En este trabajo se examina, a través de dos estudios, el fenómeno de la “punta de la lengua” (PL, TOT en la literatura internacional) en el idioma castellano. En el estudio 1, 101 sujetos contestaron un cuestionario retrospetivo sobre la ocurrencia de PLs en situaciones naturales cotidianas. Los resultados sugieren que el fenómeno PL constituye una experiencia familiar a todos los hablantes, sucede promedialmente en torno a una vez por semana, es causado frecuentemente por nombres propios, el hablante tiene en mucho casos información estructural relevante sobre la palabra buscada, y con frecuencia los PLs se acompañan de la presencia de otras palabras persistentes distintas de la buscada. En el estudio 2, estos hallazgos básicos resultan replicados en un estudio de laboratorio con 1 (02 sujetos y siguiendo la metodología experimental de Brown y McNeill (1966). Los datos muestran, además, una moderad correlacción negativa de -0.35 entre frecuencia léxica de los estímulos y el número de PLs elicitados por ellos, si bien no sólo las palabras de baja frecuencia son las únicas que causan estados PL. Por otra parte, surge una relación significativa de signo negativo entre la presencia durante un PL de palabras alternativas persistentes y la probabilidad de resolución inmediata del PL. Esta relación apoya la hipótesis del bloqueo sobre el fenómeno PL y los resultados son interpretados desde la perspectiva del modelo de Burke et al. (1991).