One-year test–retest reliability of the Maryland Resource for the Behavioral Utilization of the Reinforcement of Negative Stimuli (MRBURNS)

The Maryland Resource for the Behavioral Utilization of the Reinforcement of Negative Stimuli (MRBURNS) is a novel behavioral task designed to measure individual differences in negative reinforcement-based risk taking propensity. Performance on the MRBURNS has been linked with alcohol-related problems and negative reinforcement-based drinking motives, as well as symptoms of anxiety and depression; however, it is unclear if performance on the task represents a stable measure of negative reinforcement-based risk taking over time. As such, the current study aimed to examine the test–retest reliability of the MRBURNS over a period of one year. Results indicate that the correlation between year 1 and year 2 risk behavior (average number of pumps) on the MRBURNS was .43 across all trials. With the one year test–retest reliability of the MRBURNS established, the MRBURNS may be a useful approach to measuring the relative contribution of negative reinforcement-based risk taking in the development of risky behaviors over time, and may be used to monitor the effects of novel interventions that aim to reduce negative reinforcement based risk taking in the real world.     

Threat perception distortions and psychopathological symptoms in typically developing children

This study examined relationships between symptoms of anxiety, aggression, and depression, on the one hand, and threat perception distortions, on the other hand. A large sample of typically developing children aged 8–12 years (N=157) were interviewed with an instrument for assessing the main types of childhood psychopathology, and were then exposed to a series of ambiguous vignettes in order to measure threat perception. As all measures were obtained twice, some 8 weeks apart, it was also possible to study prospective relationships between threat perception distortions and psychopathological symptoms. Results showed that threat perception was associated with a broad range of psychopathological symptoms, although the connection with anxiety was the most robust. No support was found for the notion that threat perception scores were predictive for the persistence of psychopathological symptoms during the 8‐weeks period. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.