Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones but Words Relate to Adult Physiology? Child Abuse Experience and Women's Sympathetic Nervous System Response while Self-Reporting Trauma

Child abuse predicts a wide range of long-lasting deleterious outcomes, including disruptions in the biological systems central to emotion arousal and regulation. However, little is known about the specific ways in which child abuse affects adulthood sympathetic reactivity and recovery. This study investigated the association between child abuse experience and adult skin conductance level and habituation in 85 at-risk women as they completed a self-report trauma questionnaire. Childhood emotional abuse was independently associated with blunted skin conductance habituation over the course of survey completion after controlling for other abuse subtypes and current trauma symptoms. These results suggest that women emotionally abused as children experience prolonged emotional arousal and poor physiological regulation of emotion in response to reminders of traumatic experiences.     

Yoga Practice May Buffer the Deleterious Effects of Abuse on Women's Self-Concept and Dysfunctional Coping

Women who experienced abuse as children or adults can suffer from symptoms such as dissociations, physiological regulation difficulties, and mood disturbances that might not respond to traditional interventions. Given the benefits of yoga, we hypothesized that yoga practice would ameliorate the negative impact of abuse on psychological functioning. Our findings suggest that frequent yoga practice might ameliorate the negative impact of abuse history on self-concept and coping skills. In addition, our findings suggest that women who incorporate yoga into other areas of life could get the greatest psychological benefits. Given the preliminary nature of this study, further research into the benefits of yoga on women who have child or adult abuse histories is warranted.     

Gender Differences in Reporting Psychological Abuse in a National Sample

Understanding the nature and impact of psychological abuse for males and females is crucial because it might be the precursor of other forms of violence. This study examines reported gender differences in psychologically abusive acts using a national sample of U.S. citizens. The data were collected anonymously from an online administration of the Measure of Psychological Abuse (MPAB). Other measures were included to assess outcomes that might occur due to psychological abuse. Results indicate that there are more similarities than differences in the gender reports of psychological abuse. Compared to males' reports, differences include female reports of certain behaviors leading to more negative emotional and behavioral impact and more negative outcomes due to being in a psychologically abusive relationship.     

Establishing a Link Between Attention Deficit Disorder/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Childhood Physical Abuse

Attention deficit disorder and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders (ADD/ADHD) are found in approximately 5% to 10% of school-aged children. This study examined whether childhood physical abuse was associated with ADD/ADHD. Data were derived from a population-based sample of 13,054 adults from the 2005 Canadian Community Health Survey. We used logistical regression analysis in 2 models, both of which had ADD/ADHD as the criterion variable. There were 7 times higher odds of ADD/ADHD among those who reported they had been abused after controlling for several potential mediating factors, including age, race, gender, and 3 other types of adverse childhood experiences (parental divorce, parental addictions, and long-term parental unemployment) in comparison to those who were not abused. The results of this analysis show a strong link between childhood abuse and ADD/ADHD, an association that requires further study.     

Foster Care Youth Share Stories of Trauma Before,During, and After Placement: Youth Voices for Building Trauma-Informed Systems of Care

Many research studies address child trauma experiences that take place before foster care placement. However, few studies focus on the types and patterns of trauma experiences that reportedly take place during and after foster care placement; that is, after entry into adult living. This study examined the testimony of 43 foster care youth who spoke to a listening panel comprised of state legislators, child welfare professionals, and university educators. Qualitative analyses of transcribed text data revealed 3 main themes. First, the youth reported experiencing trauma before, during, and after placement. Second, the youth described trauma events and situations that were chronic (i.e., intense, composite, or cumulative). Third, youth offered suggestions for reducing traumatic experiences for foster care youth. They recommended earlier family interventions, access to people who listen and care, improved parenting skills for foster parents, continuity of relationships, and opportunities for leadership for foster youth. Foster youth voices offer important suggestions for building, strengthening, and evaluating trauma-informed systems of care.     

Mental Representations in Stressful Situations: The Calming and Distressing Effects of Significant Others

According to attachment theory, attachment figures serve a safe haven function in stressful situations by reducing anxiety through physical proximity. The current study tested the effects of cognitive safe haven in adulthood. Thoughts of a significant other who was not physically present were hypothesized to reduce feelings of anxiety in a stressful situation. Participants imagined and described either a significant other or an acquaintance while waiting to take part in a potentially stressful task. An interaction between working models of attachment and experimental condition was found for distress scores. Thinking about a significant other led to lower levels of distress for individuals with a positive model of self, but higher levels of distress for individuals with a negative model of self.     

Adult Israeli Community Norms for the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI)

The study aim is to establish Israeli norms for the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). A nationwide representative sample of 510 community respondents (age range 35–65, 51.4% women) completed the Hebrew version of the BSI. The data showed high internal reliabilities for the 9 BSI scales, as well as for their total score, indicated by the General Severity Index (GSI). Higher levels of GSI were found for widowed, divorced, and single respondents than for married respondents. Higher GSI was also found for unemployed and retired men than the self-employed and employees, validating the GSI as a measure of distress. Most importantly, the scores of the Israeli GSI, as well as each of the 9 scales, were higher than those reported in either the U.S. or the British norms. These findings may indicate that Israeli society is experiencing relatively high distress, highlighting the need for establishing BSI norms for each culture.     

Introduction: Attaining a New Stage

The current issue of The Journal of Adult Development addresses one of the threads of adult development, namely stage and stage change. There are four major forms of adult developmental study that can be identified: positive adult development, directionless change, stasis, and decline. The first of the four forms, positive adult developmental processes, is divided into at least six areas of study: hierarchical complexity (orders, stages), knowledge, experience, expertise, wisdom, and spirituality. The topic of this special issue, stage and stage change, is therefore part of the study of positive adult developmental processes. Finally, the manner in which these topics are studied both in this special issue and elsewhere can be characterized in terms of three broad classifications (Commons & Bresette, 2000, Commons & Miller, 1998) for the acquisition of knowledge and the verification of truth in general. These classifications include analytic, experiential, and empirical means to reach truth.     

异体造血干细胞移植问题、发展与思考

异体造血干细胞移植(Allo-HSCT)已成为治疗恶性血液病及其他各种疾病的有效方法之一。在Allo-HSCT中由于供体和受体免疫屏障的存在。从而一开始就是一个供受体矛盾的对立统一的过程。对其中矛盾的研究和解决充满了辩证唯物的哲学思想。也促使Allo-HSCT技术不断发展。新的方法和理念不断出现。使Allo-HSCT治疗白血病的疗效不断提高。