TREATING SELF-INJURY: WATER MIST SPRAY VERSUS FACIAL SCREENING OR FORCED ARM EXERCISE

In three experiments, the effect of water mist spray on self-injurious and collateral behaviors was compared with either facial screening or forced arm exercise. Water mist spray was as effective as facial screening in suppressing face-slapping in Experiment 1. However, it was not as effective as facial screening for self-injurious finger-licking in Experiment 2 or forced arm exercise for excessive ear-rubbing in Experiment 3. These results suggest that while water mist spray is effective, it may be less so than alternative procedures. In Experiments 2 and 3 there was a consistent decrease in the occurrence of untreated maladaptive behaviors. In addition, there was a moderate increase in appropriate social interaction in Experiment 2 and a substantial increase in Experiment 3.     

The nontruncated marginal of a truncated bivariate normal distribution

Inference is considered for the marginal distribution ofX, when (X, Y) has a truncated bivariate normal distribution. TheY variable is truncated, but only theX values are observed. The relationship of this distribution to Azzalini's skew-normal distribution is obtained. Method of moments and maximum likelihood estimation are compared for the three-parameter Azzalini distribution. Samples that are uniformative about the skewness of this distribution may occur, even for largen. Profile likelihood methods are employed to describe the uncertainty involved in parameter estimation. A sample of 87 Otis test scores is shown to be well-described by this model.     

Fifth grade school adjustment and later arrest rate: A longitudinal study of middle school antisocial boys

This study investigated the efficacy of three different regression models in predicting arrest rate over the fifth to seventh grade range for a sample of antisocial and at risk control middle school boys (N=76). These boys were selected from a larger sample of approximately 200 boys and their families for inclusion in a long term longitudinal study beginning in the fourth grade. Subjects in the present study were identified when they were in the fifth grade and school measures of adjustment were recorded annually for them on two occasions (fall, spring) through the ninth grade. Predictors were derived from the following variables: (a) teacher ratings of social skills; (b) direct observations of academic engagement in classroom settings; (c) direct observations of the playground social behavior of target subjects and peers; and (d) discipline contacts with the principal's office as extracted from archival school records. These predictor variables appeared to assess respectively teacher related and peer related forms of school adjustment. The regression models investigated yielded R-Squares of approximately 30 between arrest rate and two to three predictor variables in each analysis. However, following the deletion of two subject cases that represented extreme instances of underprediction (i.e., subjects who were arrested [i.e., seven arrests each] but whose fifth grade behavioral profiles suggested they would not be), the obtained R-Squares increased to approximately .55. Implications of the findings for the early screening and identification of at risk students are discussed.     

VISUAL SCREENING: AN ALTERNATIVE METHOD FOR REDUCING STEREOTYPIC BEHAVIORS

Visual screening, a mildly aversive response suppression procedure, was evaluated across two studies for its effectiveness in reducing topographically similar and dissimilar stereotypic behaviors of four developmentally disabled children. In the first study, a multiple baseline design across subjects and behaviors was used to assess the effectiveness of the procedure as a treatment for reducing the visual and auditory self-stimulatory responses of two 9-yr-old mentally retarded and behaviorally disturbed children. A multiple baseline design across subjects was used in the second study to evaluate the effectiveness of visual screening as a treatment for reducing stereotypic fabric pulling and self-mutilative ear bending, respectively, of two 13-yr-old mentally retarded, autisticlike adolescents. Long-term follow-up data for both studies were reported. The results suggested that visual screening was an easily administered, effective, and exceptionally durable treatment procedure for controlling a variety of stereotypic behaviors commonly associated with the developmentally disabled.     

基于Gini指数的认知诊断计算机化自适应选题策略

Gini指数可用来描述分布的不均匀性,已广泛应用于决策树算法,本文开发了基于Gini指数的认知诊断计算机化自适应选题策略,并在饱和模型和缩减模型下与SHE, MPWKL,GDI,PWKL选题策略进行比较。模拟研究表明,基于Gini指数的选题策略与SHE,MPWKL,GDI相比,分类精度相近并提高了题库的利用率;与PWKL相比,提高了分类的精度和选题速度,综合来看,基于Gini指数的选题策略能够兼顾分类精度和题库使用均匀性。     

Multifactorial pathways facilitate resilience among kindergarteners at risk for dyslexia: A longitudinal behavioral and neuroimaging study

Recent efforts have focused on screening methods to identify children at risk for dyslexia as early as preschool/kindergarten. Unfortunately, while low sensitivity leads to under‐identification of at‐risk children, low specificity can lead to over‐identification, resulting in inaccurate allocation of limited educational resources. The present study focused on children identified as at‐risk in kindergarten who do not subsequently develop poor reading skills to specify factors associated with better reading outcomes among at‐risk children. Early screening was conducted in kindergarten and a subset of children was tracked longitudinally until second grade. Potential protective factors were evaluated at cognitive‐linguistic, environmental, and neural levels. Relative to at‐risk kindergarteners with subsequent poor reading, those with typical reading outcomes were characterized by significantly higher socioeconomic status (SES), speech production accuracy, and structural organization of the posterior right‐hemispheric superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF). A positive association between structural organization of the right SLF and subsequent decoding skills was found to be specific to at‐risk children and not observed among typical controls. Among at‐risk children, several kindergarten‐age factors were found to significantly contribute to the prediction of subsequent decoding skills: white matter organization in the posterior right SLF, age, gender, SES, and phonological awareness. These findings suggest that putative compensatory mechanisms are already present by the start of kindergarten. The right SLF, in conjunction with the cognitive‐linguistic and socioeconomic factors identified, may play an important role in facilitating reading development among at‐risk children. This study has important implications for approaches to early screening, and assessment strategies for at‐risk children.     

Legal and Ethical Considerations in Allowing Parental Exemptions From Newborn Critical Congenital Heart Disease (CCHD) Screening

Critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) screening is rapidly becoming the standard of care in the United States after being added to the Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP) in 2011. Newborn screens typically do not require affirmative parental consent. In fact, most states allow parents to exempt their baby from receiving the required screen on the basis of religious or personally held beliefs. There are many ethical considerations implicated with allowing parents to exempt their child from newborn screening for CCHD. Considerations include the treatment of religious exemptions in our current legal system, as well as medical and ethical principles in relation to the rights of infants. Although there are significant benefits to screening newborns for CCHD, when a parent refuses for religious or personal beliefs, in the case of CCHD screening, the parental decision should stand.     

Psychometric properties of the mini-social phobia inventory (Mini-SPIN) in a large online treatment-seeking sample

The Mini-Social Phobia Inventory (Mini-SPIN) is a brief, three-item measure designed as a screening tool for social anxiety disorder (SAD). This study investigated the Mini-SPIN’s psychometric properties in a series of trials of Internet-delivered treatment. Participants were 993 people seeking Internet-delivered cognitive behavioural therapy for a range of anxiety and mood disorders. Participants completed the Mini-SPIN, and were diagnosed using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview Version 5.0.0 (MINI). They also completed measures of depression, general anxiety, panic, neuroticism and general impairment. The Mini-SPIN’s ability to discriminate between people with and without SAD, within a large sample of people seeking treatment for a range of psychological disorders, was assessed at initial assessment and three-month follow-up. The Mini-SPIN’s criterion group validity, internal consistency, test–retest reliability, construct validity and responsiveness to treatment were also examined. Results demonstrated that the Mini-SPIN has an excellent ability to discriminate between those with and without SAD in a highly comorbid clinical sample, and also has good criterion group validity. The Mini-SPIN also exhibited excellent internal consistency, good test–retest reliability, and was responsive to treatment. These results highlight the Mini-SPIN’s potential as an efficient and reliable measure of SAD in heterogenous populations.