The Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ): A Unidimensional Item Response Theory and Categorical Data Factor Analysis of Self-Report Ratings from a Community Sample of 7-through 11-Year-Old Children

Item response theory (IRT) and categorical data factor analysis (CDFA) are complementary methods for the analysis of the psychometric properties of psychiatric measures that purport to measure latent constructs. These methods have been applied to relatively few child and adolescent measures. We provide the first combined IRT and CDFA analysis of a clinical measure (the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire—SMFQ) in a community sample of 7-through 11-year-old children. Both latent variable models supported the internal construct validity of a single underlying continuum of severity of depressive symptoms. SMFQ items discriminated well at the more severe end of the depressive latent trait. Item performance was not affected by age, although age correlated significantly with latent SMFQ scores suggesting that symptom severity increased within the age period of 7–11. These results extend existing psychometric studies of the SMFQ and confirm its scaling properties as a potential dimensional measure of symptom severity of childhood depression in community samples.     

“Social Separation” Among Women Under 40 Years of Age Diagnosed with Breast Cancer and Carrying a BRCA1 or BRCA2 Mutation

We conducted an exploratory, qualitative study investigating experiences of women who had developed breast cancer under the age of 40 and who were identified as BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation carriers. These germline mutation carriers face an increased lifetime risk of a second primary breast cancer and an increased risk for a primary ovarian cancer. Thirteen women who fit this criteria participated in three focus groups conducted at a major cancer center in the UK during Spring 2003. We asked broad, open-ended questions that allowed for a wide range of responses about their cancer and genetic testing experiences, physical and psycho-social concerns, family and partner reactions and their need for social support. The women expressed feelings of devastation, loneliness, feeling different and isolation, ambivalence about having to support family members, worries about partner’s anxiety and depression, and anxiety about talking to family members, especially children. These feelings were stronger after the cancer diagnosis and compounded by the genetic test results that occurred at a later time. We also found that, at least temporarily, the women experienced what we call “social separation”—emotional distance from, or dissonance with groups they interact with or are part of, e.g., family and friends, frequently leading to a reduction in communication or a change in previously unstated, but accepted normal interaction. We concentrate on a few characteristics of social separation—feelings of aloneness, isolation and separation, use of silence and verbal discretion, the relationship between estrangement and kinship interaction and norm disruption, and are looking at social patterns of interpersonal relationships that may occur when risk and illness statuses are new and framing and feeling rules have not as yet been clearly developed due to a cultural lag.     

Implications of Timing of Maternal Depressive Symptoms for Early Cognitive and Language Development

: Statistically, women, particularly pregnant women and new mothers, are at heightened risk for depression. The present review describes the current state of the research linking maternal depressed mood and children's cognitive and language development. Exposure to maternal depressive symptoms, whether during the prenatal period, postpartum period, or chronically, has been found to increase children's risk for later cognitive and language difficulties. The present review considers both the timing of maternal depression and the chronicity of mothers' depression on children's risk for cognitive and language delays. Infancy is frequently identified as a sensitive period in which environmental stimulation has the potential to substantially influence children's cognitive and language development. However, children's exposure to chronic maternal depression seems to be associated with more problematic outcomes for children, perhaps because depression interferes with mothers' ability to respond sensitively and consistently over time. Consistent with this expectation, interventions targeting parenting practices of depressed mothers have been found to increase children's cognitive competence during early childhood. The current review provides a synthesis of the current state of the field regarding the association between maternal depression and children's cognitive and language development during early childhood.     

The academic achievement of African American students during early adolescence: an examination of multiple risk,promotive, and protective factors

This study examined the effects of multiple risk, promotive, and protective factors on three achievement-related measures (i.e., grade point average, number of absences, and math achievement test scores) for African American 7th-grade students (n = 837). There were 3 main findings. First, adolescents had lower grade point averages, more absences, and lower achievement test scores as their exposure to risk factors increased. Second, different promotive and protective factors emerged as significant contributors depending on the nature of the achievement-related outcome that was being assessed. Third, protective factors were identified whose effects were magnified in the presence of multiple risks. Results were discussed in light of the developmental tasks facing adolescents and the contexts in which youth exposed to multiple risks and their families live.     

Neighborhood Contextual Factors and Early-Starting Antisocial Pathways

This paper examines research investigating the effects of neighborhood context on the onset and persistence of early-starting antisocial pathways across middle and late childhood. The review begins by presenting theory and research mapping the early-starting developmental pathway. Next, sociologically and psychologically based investigations linking neighborhood context and early antisocial behavior are examined, in order to posit and evaluate the effects of community economic disadvantage, exposure to neighborhood violence, and involvement with neighborhood-based deviant peer groups on the development of antisocial behavior. It is suggested that middle childhood may represent a critical developmental period during which children are at heightened risk for neighborhood-based effects on antisocial behavior problems. Key methodological issues are addressed, and recommendations for future research integrating developmental pathways and neighborhood theory and research are advanced.     

How urban African American young adolescents spend their time: time budgets for locations, activities, and companionship

The time budgets of a population of youth provide important information about their daily experience and socialization. This study reports data on the time budgets of a sample of 253 urban African American poor to working- and middle-class 5th-8th graders in Chicago. These youth were found to spend less time in school than other postindustrial adolescent populations, but spent no less time doing homework than White suburban U.S. young adolescents. They spent large quantities of time at home and with their families--at rates comparable to rates for young adolescents in a society with collectivist values like India. Unlike with other populations, early adolescence was not associated with major age changes in time allocations. Amount of time in schoolwork did not differ by grade, and amount of time with family did not show the decline with age that has been found for European American suburban adolescents.     

Neuropsychological Findings in Congenital and Acquired Childhood Hydrocephalus

Hydrocephalus is an increase in cerebrospinal fluid volume that can be caused by a variety of etiologies. The most common connatal and acquired causes of hydrocephalus are spina bifida, aqueduct stenosis, and preterm low birthweight infants with ventricular hemorrhage. In general, the literature suggests mild neuropsychological deficits associated with hydrocephalus, which are predominant in visuospatial and motor functions, and other nonlanguage skills. Although the precise nature of the neuropsychological deficits in hydrocephalus are not completely known, several factors such as etiology, raised intracranial pressure, ventricular size, and changes in gray and white matter tissue composition as well as shunt treatment complications have been shown to influence cognition. In fact, the presence of complications and other brain abnormalities in addition to hydrocephalus such as infections, trauma, intraventricular hemorrhage, low birthweight, and asphyxia are important determinants of the ultimate cognitive status, placing the child at a high risk of cognitive impairment.     

Mother–child relationship quality from preschool to adolescence: Variation by maternal education

Using longitudinal data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (N = 1088), we examine changes in maternal perception of closeness and conflict in the mother–child relationship from the child's preschool to adolescent years, with attention to variation by maternal education. Analyses using individual growth models show that mother–child closeness increases, while mother–child conflict decreases, from preschool to first grade. From first grade to age 15, mother–child closeness decreases, while mother–child conflict increases, both gradually. The decrease in mother–child conflict from preschool to first grade and the increases in mother–child conflict from first to fifth grade, sixth grade, and age 15 are less steep for mothers with a college degree than for mothers without a college degree. These findings underscore the importance of examining changes in parent–child relationships using longitudinal data across children's developmental stages and their variations by parental social and economic status.     

Vulnerability of facial attractiveness perception to early and multi-year visual deprivation

Judgments of facial attractiveness invariably accompany our perception of faces. Even neonates appear to be capable of making such judgments in a manner consistent with adults. This suggests that the processes supporting facial attractiveness require little, if any, visual experience to manifest. Here we investigate the resilience of these processes to several years of early-onset visual deprivation. Specifically, we study whether congenitally blind children treated several years after birth possess the ability to rate facial attractiveness in a manner congruent to normally sighted individuals. The data reveal significant individual variability in the way each newly sighted child perceives attractiveness. This is in marked contrast to data from normally sighted controls who exhibit strong across-subject agreement in facial attractiveness ratings. This variability may be attributable, in part, to atypical facial encoding strategies used by the newly sighted children. Overall, our results suggest that the development of facial attractiveness perception is likely to be vulnerable to early visual deprivation, pointing to the existence of a possible sensitive period early in the developmental trajectory.     

Pilot test of a measure to assess clients’ perceptions of their home visitors

Home visiting services for caregivers of infants and young children have been found to be an effective method for promoting child development. Unfortunately, such services suffer from high rates of attrition, suggesting the need to identify factors related to client retention in services. Research has indicated that the client-provider relationship is an important predictor of client retention in home visiting services; however, measures to assess this relationship are limited. This study reports on a pilot test of the Client Perceptions of Home Visitors Questionnaire, developed to assess home visiting clients’ perceptions of their relationship with their home visitor. The measure was completed by 39 diverse home visiting clients during pregnancy in a midwestern town in the United States. The scale was found to have good internal consistency. Validity analyses found that the scale was positively associated with client satisfaction with services and perceived provider cultural sensitivity. The scale was also positively associated with retention in services at an 8-month follow-up. Additional research should examine the measure's psychometrics with larger samples.