Problematic mobile phone use as impulsive choice: Development and empirical verification of a reinforcer-pathology model

Problematic mobile phone use is characterized by its “impulsive” nature; users engage in it despite their negative attitude toward it. From a behavioral-economic perspective, this attitude–behavior discrepancy is generated by competing contingencies that involve smaller-sooner social reinforcers associated with mobile phone use and larger-later prosocial reinforcers potentially compromised by phone use. Based on this conceptualization, the reinforcer-pathology model of problematic mobile phone use is proposed, which posits that such phone use stems from excessive delay discounting of the social and prosocial reinforcers and/or excessive demand for the social reinforcers. A secondary data analysis of previously published studies was conducted, with the novel addition of principal component analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis of these data. The results generated evidence that supports the reinforcer-pathology model proposed in this article. Based on the theoretical analyses and accumulated empirical evidence, theory-driven prevention and intervention strategies for problematic mobile phone use are proposed. Overall, the reinforcer-pathology model of problematic mobile phone use provides a comprehensive framework for understanding and addressing this growing issue.     

Effects of television exposure on developmental skills among young children

BackgroundLiterature addressing the effects of television exposure on developmental skills of young children less than 36 months of age is scarce. This study explored how much time young children spend viewing television and investigated its effects on cognitive, language, and motor developmental skills.MethodsData were collected from the Pediatric Clinics at University Medical Center in Southern Taiwan. The participants comprised 75 children who were frequently exposed to television and 75 children who were not or infrequently exposed to television between 15 and 35 months old. The age and sex were matched in the two groups. The Bayley Scales of Infant Development-second edition and Peabody Developmental Motor Scales-second edition were used to identify developmental skills. Independent t-tests, χ² tests, and logistic regression models were conducted.ResultsAmong 75 children who were frequently exposed to television, young children watched a daily average of 67.4 min of television before age 2, which was excessive according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Viewing television increased the risk of delayed cognitive, language, and motor development in children who were frequently exposed to television. Cognitive, language, and motor delays in young children were significantly associated with how much time they spent viewing television. The type of care providers was critical in determining the television-viewing time of children.ConclusionWe recommend that pediatric practitioners explain the impacts of television exposure to parents and caregivers to ensure cognitive, language, and motor development in young children. Advocacy efforts must address the fact that allowing young children to spend excessive time viewing television can be developmentally detrimental.     

Evaluating the efficacy and generality of a skill-based approach for promoting universal behavioral readiness

Behavioral readiness can take the form of communication and self-control skills during challenging situations that are correlated with the development of problem behavior. A skill-based approach can teach behavioral readiness using procedures that involve synthesized reinforcement, probabilistic reinforcement, and contingency-based delays; however, this approach is commonly used to address severe behavior under specific situations. There is limited research evaluating a skill-based approach to teaching behavioral readiness and addressing emerging problem behavior. Also, it is unclear whether teaching effects under specific situations transfer across other, functionally distinct, situations. We evaluated the generality of a skill-based approach by teaching skills systematically across primary challenging situations involving the interruption of play, presentation of instructions, and removal of reinforcers. Teaching increased communication and self-control skills, and most skills transferred to secondary challenging situations (treatment extension probes) and caregiver-implemented sessions. We discuss challenging situations that required teaching, the generality of teaching, and procedural considerations.     

Why are people with insecure attachments unhappy? The mediation of meaning in life

This study explores the mediating role of meaning in life with respect to the relationship between adult attachment and psychological well‐being. This study proposed that because people with insecure attachments have difficulty in connecting with the external world, this may decrease their ability to attain meaning in life, which may in turn diminish their well‐being. Two studies (N = 155 and 234, respectively, with age range from 18 to 31) were conducted. Participants completed self‐report measures of attachment, well‐being and meaning in life. The results consistently revealed a full mediation effect of meaning in life on the relationship between attachment and well‐being. The findings suggested that a deeper sense of meaning in life comes from one's connection with the external world, especially with other people.     

Periodic change in phase relationship between target and hand motion during visuo-manual tracking task: Behavioral evidence for intermittent control

When one performs visuo-manual tracking tasks, velocity profile of hand movements shows discontinuous patterns even if the target moves smoothly. A crucial factor of this “intermittency” is considerable delay in the sensorimotor feedback loop, and several researchers have suggested that the cause is intermittent correction of motor commands. However, when and how the brain monitors task performance and updates motor commands in a continuous motor task is uncertain. We examined how tracking error was affected by the timing of target disappearance during a tracking task. Results showed that tracking error, defined as the average phase difference between target and hand, varied periodically in all conditions. Hand preceded target at one specific phase but followed it at another, implying that motor control was not performed in a temporally uniform manner. Tracking stability was evaluated by the variance in phase difference, and changed depending on the timing of target-removal. The variability was larger when target disappeared around turning points than that when it disappeared around the center of motion. This shows that visual information at turning points is more effectively exploited for motor control of sinusoidal target tracking, suggesting that our brain controls hand movements with intermittent reference to visual information.     

An evaluation of toy quality for increasing self‐control in typically developing preschool children

Children often make impulsive choices, and previous research has shown that access to activities during the delay may enhance self‐control (e.g., Newquist, Dozier, & Neidert, 2012). The purpose of the current study was to extend the results of Newquist et al. (2012) by comparing the effects of access to low‐preference, moderate‐preference, and high‐preference toys during delays. Results showed that (a) all toys increased self‐control for 2 participants when toys were available for all choice options and (b) high‐preference toys (and sometimes moderate‐preference toys) increased self‐control for 3 participants when the toys were available only for large delayed choices.     

The effects of intertrial interval and instructional format on skill acquisition and maintenance for children with autism spectrum disorders

We replicated and extended the study by Koegel, Dunlap, and Dyer (1980) by examining the effects of 3 intertrial‐interval (ITI) durations on skill acquisition in 2 children with autism spectrum disorders. Specifically, we compared the effect of short (2 s), progressive (2 s to 20 s), and long (20 s) ITIs on participants’ mastery of tacts or intraverbals presented in massed‐trial and varied‐trial instructional formats. We also measured (a) stereotypic and problem behavior during the ITI, (b) maintenance of skills, and (c) responding to novel adults and settings. Results showed that short ITIs in a varied‐trial format produced the most efficient acquisition of skills; however, most ITI durations produced more efficient skill acquisition in a varied format compared to a massed format. The trial format and ITI duration associated with the lowest levels of stereotypic and problem behavior during the ITI and responding during maintenance and novel adult and setting probes differed across participants.