Maternal mind-mindedness: stability over time and consistency across relationships

Maternal mind-mindedness has been described both as a cognitive-behavioural trait and as a relational construct. This study assessed stability over time and consistency across relationships of maternal mind-mindedness in relation to preschool and primary school siblings and compared representational and interactional mind-mindedness. Mothers with two children between 2½ and 10 years were assessed twice, nine months apart (N = 32 at Time 1; N = 30 at Time 2). Representational mind-mindedness for a partner/friend was also assessed twice. Mothers’ representational mind-mindedness showed temporal stability but was inconsistent across relationships with two children and a partner/friend. Conversely, mothers’ interactional mind-mindedness was stable and highly consistent across relationships with two children. This supports the possibility that mothers’ interactional mind-mindedness is trait-like, while findings are equivocal for representational mind-mindedness. Representational mind-mindedness and interactional mind-mindedness were unrelated in this preliminary study, suggesting that these measures of maternal mind-mindedness were not equivalent for this age group.     

Reviews

Rottschaefer, William A. The Biology and Psychology of Moral Agency
Mccutcheon, Russell T. Manufacturing Religion: The Discourse on Sui Generis Religion and the Politics of Nostalgia
Drengson, Alan The Practice of Technology: Exploring Technology,Ecophilosophy, and Spiritual Disciplines for Vital Links
Burrell, David B. and Mcginn, Bernard (eds.) God and Creation: An Ecumenical Symposium     

A comparison of group contingencies on academic compliance

We used a reversal design with an embedded multielement design to compare the effects of an independent group contingency and a randomized dependent group contingency on compliance with assigned literacy worksheets in a first‐grade general education classroom. Nine participants were selected based on low levels of compliance in baseline or by teacher identification. Results indicated that both group contingencies increased compliance relative to baseline for the majority of participants. The independent condition produced higher levels of compliance for four students and the randomized dependent condition produced higher levels of compliance for one student. For four students, the two group contingencies were equally effective. A preference assessment indicated that the majority of target students preferred the randomized dependent condition and the majority of nontarget students preferred the independent condition. A number of potential explanations for our preference findings, including the possible role of obtained reinforcement, are discussed.     

Does the Good Behavior Game evoke negative peer pressure? Analyses in primary and secondary classrooms

The Good Behavior Game (GBG) is a classroom management system that employs an interdependent group contingency, whereby students work as a team to win the game. Although previous anecdotal data have suggested that this arrangement may promote prosocial behavior, teachers may have concerns about its fairness and potential to evoke negative peer interactions (especially toward students who break the rules). We evaluated disruptive behaviors and social interactions during the GBG in a secondary classroom for students with emotional and behavioral disorders, as well as in a primary classroom for students with mild developmental disabilities. Results indicate that the GBG reduced disruptive behaviors; further, negative peer interactions decreased and positive interactions increased when the game was being played. Social validity results indicate that the majority of students thought the interdependent group contingency was fair.     

Mind the baby: The role of the nanny in infant observation

The influence of nannies and other significant caregivers on a child's psychological and emotional development may be profound and if unrecognized may contribute to psychopathology in adulthood. However, the significance of the nanny has been relatively neglected within the psychoanalytic literature. In this paper I will discuss the impact of early caregivers other than the biological mother on the psychic development of the child, and the role of the nanny within the family dynamics as a figure attracting powerful unconscious phantasies and unwanted projections. These ideas will be illustrated by a detailed account of a year‐long observation of an infant who had a succession of several different nannies in her first three months before her parents employed a more permanent nanny. It is proposed that the baby's emerging attachments to her two primary caregivers, mother and nanny, developed in parallel and influenced each other, with observable impact on her behaviour and developing personality. The paper concludes with a review of the place of infant observation within psychoanalytic training and how the experience of witnessing the earliest infant‐caregiver relationships in an extra‐analytic setting both refines understanding of developmental theory and builds a foundation for psychoanalytic practice.     

学思维网络活动对小学生创造性的影响:认知风格的调节作用

以89名小学生为被试,采用实验组对照组前后测实验设计,考察学思维网络活动对培养小学生创造性思维和创造性倾向的影响,以及认知风格的调节作用。结果发现：（1）学思维网络活动能有效促进小学生创造性思维以及创造性倾向的想象力和好奇心的发展;（2）学思维课堂活动和学思维网络活动对于培养小学生的创造性思维和创造性倾向具有一致的效果;（3）认知风格在学思维网络活动和学思维课堂活动对小学生创造性思维的影响中起调节作用：对于场依存学生,学思维网络活动能更大程度地提高其流畅性和独创性的表现。     

在家庭自由游戏和智力任务游戏中亲子交往行为特征

本研究采用家庭录像观察,考察了53名4岁儿童及其父母在自然的家庭环境中的两个情境———自由游戏和完成拼图任务的智力游戏情境中儿童与其父母交往的行为特征和互动类型。结果发现:(1)在儿童4岁时,在家庭自由游戏情境中母亲的各种行为均显著多于父亲的各种行为,这表明在游戏过程中,母亲是儿童主要的交往对象。在拼图游戏情境中,除了父亲和母亲在商量和交流行为上没有显著差异之外,母亲的其他行为显著多于父亲的其他行为。儿童在这两个游戏情境中均表现出较多的顺从行为。(2)在自由游戏情境中,亲子互动类型包括四种:父母交流-儿童不交流型、母亲高控-儿童顺从型、父亲控制-儿童不顺从型和母亲不交流-儿童交流型。拼图游戏情境中,亲子互动类型有四种:父母放任-儿童独立型、父母控制-儿童顺从型、母子交流型和父亲控制-儿童顺从型。     

班主任教师班级管理效能感对学生学习态度及其与学业效能间关系的影响

研究目的在于验证班主任教师的班级管理效能感对学生学习态度等方面有正向预测作用及其对学生学业效能和学习态度间的关系具有调节作用的假设。通过对109个班级的班主任教师和3066名三到六年级的小学生进行问卷调查,多层线性模型(HLM)分析结果表明:(1)在控制学生性别影响时,学生的学习态度、学习方法和学习技术存在显著的班级水平差异;学生学业效能对学生学习态度、学习方法和学习技术有显著的预测作用,且这一影响强度存在显著的班级水平差异。(2)在控制教师所教年级的影响下,班主任教师班级管理效能的高低对学生学习态度、学习方法和学习技术的班级差异具有显著的预测作用,班主任教师班级管理效能感高的班级,学生学习态度越积极;(3)班主任教师班级管理效能感对学生学业效能与学生学习态度和学习方法之间的关系具有显著的调节作用,班主任教师班级管理效能感越高,学生学业效能对学习态度和学习方法的影响越弱,反之班主任教师管理效能感低的班级,学生学业效能感对学习态度的影响较大。     

Behavior Ratings and Observations of Externalizing Symptoms in Girls: The Role of Child Popularity with Adults

This study examined staff ratings and live observations of externalizing behavior in 149 girls with and without attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), who participated in all-female naturalistic research camps. Girls' popularity with adult camp staff was hypothesized to explain discrepancies between ratings and observations. Compared to behavior observations, staff ratings overestimated the externalizing behavior of girls who were disliked by staff. In contrast, ratings and observations were consistent for girls who were liked by staff. Among girls who were disliked by staff, unpopularity with peers predicted a larger discrepancy between staff ratings and observations, but peer status made little difference in rating–observation discrepancies of girls liked by staff. All results held after controlling for the participants' ADHD versus comparison status. Results suggest that staff ratings may be biased by personal feelings about children and that direct observations may be more immune to such bias.     

Newborns' preference for goal-directed actions

The central role of sensory-motor representations in cognitive functions is almost universally accepted. However, determining the link between motor execution and its sensory counterpart and when, during ontogenesis, this link originates are still under investigation. The aim of the present study is to investigate whether at birth this link is already present and 2-day-old newborns are able to discriminate between visual cues indicating goal-directed or non-goal-directed actions. Here, with a preferential looking technique, a hand grasping a ball was the observed movement and we orthogonally manipulated the three factors necessary to successfully reach the goal: (a) presence of the ball, (b) direction of the arm movement, and (c) hand shaping. Results indicated that newborns orient more frequently and look longer at a hand shape for whole hand prehension but only when the movement is directed away from the body and toward the external world. In addition, newborns prefer the away from the body movement only when the object is present. We argue that newborns prefer a movement directed toward the external world only when it may develop into a purposeful movement because of the presence of the to-be-grasped object. Overall, our results support the existence of primitive sensory-motor associations since the first days after birth.