REINFORCER VARIATION: IMPLICATIONS FOR MOTIVATING DEVELOPMENTALLY DISABLED CHILDREN

Motivating developmentally disabled children to participate in educational activities can be very difficult. This is especially true for children diagnosed autistic. Because there is some evidence to suggest that stimulus variation may influence motivation, the present study investigated the effects of constant vs. varied reinforcer presentation on correct responding and on-task behavior. Results from a reversal design showed declining trends in both correct responding and on-task behavior when the same reinforcer was consistently presented, whereas, varying the reinforcers produced significantly improved and stable responding. The results are discussed in relation to the literature on stimulus variation and its effects on responsivity.     

The relationship between acculturation and problem behavior proneness in a Hispanic youth sample: a longitudinal mediation model

This study, using secondary data analysis, examined prospectively a mediation model of the relationship between acculturation and problem behavior proneness among 330 Hispanic children and adolescents from an urban school district in the southwest region of the United States. Acculturation was predicted to have an indirect, but positive, relationship to problem behavior proneness through parental involvement and self-esteem. The results partially supported the model and indicated that parental involvement, but not self-esteem, played a significant mediational role in children's problem behavior proneness. The individual indicators of problem behavior proneness among Hispanic youth were significantly interrelated, which is consistent with problem behavior theory as conceptualized by R. Jessor (1984) and R. Jessor and S. L. Jessor (1977). Findings from this study provide implications for future research and intervention designs.     

How (and where) does moral judgment work?

Moral psychology has long focused on reasoning, but recent evidence suggests that moral judgment is more a matter of emotion and affective intuition than deliberate reasoning. Here we discuss recent findings in psychology and cognitive neuroscience, including several studies that specifically investigate moral judgment. These findings indicate the importance of affect, although they allow that reasoning can play a restricted but significant role in moral judgment. They also point towards a preliminary account of the functional neuroanatomy of moral judgment, according to which many brain areas make important contributions to moral judgment although none is devoted specifically to it.     

正确认识医疗诉讼的举证责任倒置、规范医务人员的医疗行为

针对就如何正确理解医疗诉讼举证责任倒置的规定,举证责任倒置给我国医疗卫生界带来挑战,以及如何适应举证责任倒置规定等问题进行了论述,提出了提高医务人员法律素质,依法行医,防范医疗纠纷的办法。     

Cognitive behavior therapy in treatment-naive children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder: an open trial

This work aims is to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) in pediatric patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) who had not previously been treated with either pharmacotherapy or psychotherapy and who remained medication-free during CBT. Sixteen OCD outpatients, 8-17 years of age, were treated in a 12-week open trial with manualized CBT. Target symptoms were rated at two-week intervals with the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS), the National Institute of Mental Health Global Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (NIMH Global), the Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI), and the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (Ham-A). Statistical analyses showed a significant benefit for treatment. Ten patients experienced at least a 50% reduction in symptoms on the CY-BOCS; seven were asymptomatic on the NIMH Global. These results build on previous reports that CBT may be effective in the acute treatment of pediatric OCD. Further, the results of this study suggest that CBT can be efficacious in alleviating OCD symptoms in the absence of pharmacotherapy. These results must be considered preliminary, given the small sample size and open administration of treatment.     

发展中的行为决策研究

行为决策研究人们如何进行判断与选择。该学科希望能在描述决策的过程中帮助人们更好地进行决策,其研究的使命是促进和改善我们对人类决策行为的理解。在过去的1年里,中国科学院心理研究所行为决策课题组在社会与经济决策领域中已开展的研究包括：行为决策与脑、社会互动与决策、决策的文化差异、消费与投资的行为决策、效用最大化与幸福感。该文着重报告并讨论了我们在行为决策及其跨文化比较研究中的一些最新的主要发现     

影响大学生参与网上招聘意向的因素模型

该研究基于“计划行为理论”探索了影响大学生参与网上招聘意向的因素模型。研究结果证实了创建的模型对大学生参与网上招聘意向的预测和解释效力:(1)态度、针对网上招聘的特殊互联网自我效能感以及知觉到的对行为实施与否的控制力对大学生参与网上招聘的意向有显著的直接正向影响;(2)人际规范和知觉到的有用性对态度有显著的正向影响,知觉到的危险性对态度有显著的负向影响;(3)一般互联网自我效能感(ISE)对针对网上招聘的特殊ISE有显著的正向影响,对大学生参与网上招聘意向并没有直接的影响,而是通过针对网上招聘的特殊ISE这一中介变量产生间接影响。     

Effects of White Noise on Off-Task Behavior and Sleep for Elementary-Age Students with ADHD

Abstract

Children with ADHD were administered 75?dB of continuous white noise during independent seat work in the classroom and during bedtime in their homes. Compared to baseline all three students exhibited decreases in off-task behavior. Off-task behavior returned to original baseline levels when white noise was removed and decreased again when reintroduced in classrooms. White noise also decreased bedtime sleep latency and spontaneous night wakings at home. Both sleep latencies and night wakings increased during return-to-baseline conditions. Surprisingly, when white noise was reintroduced only in the classrooms sleep improved a second time. White noise in classrooms with or without simultaneous treatment during sleep at night resulted in lower levels of off-task classroom behavior as well as less disruptive sleep. Results were independent of whether children were on ADHD medication. Children, teachers, and parents all rated white noise favorably.