How many infants are temperamentally difficult? Comparing norms from the Revised Infant Temperament Questionnaire to a population sample of UK infants

The original norms for the Revised Infant Temperament Questionnaire (RITQ) were published in 1978 and were based on a small sample from the US. The aim of this study is to compare temperament scores from the original RITQ against scores from a large population-based cohort of infants from the UK. This study consists of 10,937 infants from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) born between April 1991 and December 1992 in the southwest of England. Infant temperament at 6 months of age was reported by parents using the adapted RITQ. Responses were scored according to the RITQ manual and then categorized into temperament groups (easy, intermediate low, intermediate high, and difficult) using either the RITQ norms or norms derived from the data. The scores for each temperament subscale and the proportion of children in each temperament group were compared across the two methods. Subscale scores for the ALSPAC sample were higher (more “difficult”) than the RITQ norms for rhythmicity, approach, adaptability, intensity, and distractibility. When RITQ norms were applied, 24% infants were categorized as difficult and 25% as easy, compared with 15% difficult and 38% easy when ALSPAC norms were used. There are discrepancies between RITQ norms and the ALSPAC norms which resulted in differences in the distribution of temperament groups. There is a need to re-examine RITQ norms and categorization for use in primary care practice and contemporary population-based studies.     

On the asymptotic standard error of a class of robust estimators of ability in dichotomous item response models

In item response theory, the classical estimators of ability are highly sensitive to response disturbances and can return strongly biased estimates of the true underlying ability level. Robust methods were introduced to lessen the impact of such aberrant responses on the estimation process. The computation of asymptotic (i.e., large‐sample) standard errors (ASE) for these robust estimators, however, has not yet been fully considered. This paper focuses on a broad class of robust ability estimators, defined by an appropriate selection of the weight function and the residual measure, for which the ASE is derived from the theory of estimating equations. The maximum likelihood (ML) and the robust estimators, together with their estimated ASEs, are then compared in a simulation study by generating random guessing disturbances. It is concluded that both the estimators and their ASE perform similarly in the absence of random guessing, while the robust estimator and its estimated ASE are less biased and outperform their ML counterparts in the presence of random guessing with large impact on the item response process.     

Brain lateralization of complex movement: Neuropsychological evidence from unilateral stroke

Complex movement (CM) refers to the representation of a goal-oriented action and is classified as either transitive (use of tools) or intransitive (communication gestures). Both types of CM have three specific components: temporal, spatial, and content, which are subdivided into specific error types (SET). Since there is debate regarding the contribution of each brain hemisphere for the types of CM, our objective was to describe the brain lateralization of components and SET of transitive and intransitive CM. We studied 14 patients with a left hemisphere stroke (LH), 12 patients with a right hemisphere stroke (RH), and 16 control subjects. The Florida Apraxia Screening Test-Revised (FAST-R, Rothi et al., 1988) was used for the assessment of CM. Both clinical groups showed a worse performance than the control group on the total FAST-R and transitive movement scores (p < 0.001). Failures in Spatial and Temporal components were found in both clinical groups, but only LH patients showed significantly more Content errors (p < 0.01) than the control group. Also, only the LH group showed a higher number of errors for intransitive movements score (p = 0.017), due to lower scores in the content component, compared to the control group (p = 0.04). Transitive and intransitive CMs differ in their neurocognitive representation; transitive CM shows a bilateral distribution of its components when compared to intransitive CM, which shows a preferential left hemisphere representation. This could result from higher neurocognitive demands for movements that require use of tools, compared with more automatic communication gestures.     

用于处理不努力作答的标准化残差系列方法和混合多层模型法的比较

文章采用模拟研究, 分别在混合多层模型假设满足和违背的情境下, 比较了混合多层模型方法与标准化残差系列方法在识别不努力作答和参数估计方面的表现。结果显示：(1)不存在不努力作答或其严重性低时, 各方法表现接近; (2)不努力作答严重性高时, 固定参数迭代标准化残差法普遍更优, 混合多层模型法仅在假设满足且两种作答反应时差异大的条件下表现较好。建议实际应用中优先选择固定参数迭代标准化残差法。     

Neural correlates of feigned memory impairment are distinguishable from answering randomly and answering incorrectly: an fMRI and behavioral study

Previous functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have identified activation in the prefrontal-parietal-sub-cortical circuit during feigned memory impairment when comparing with truthful telling. Here, we used fMRI to determine whether neural activity can differentiate between answering correctly, answering randomly, answering incorrectly, and feigned memory impairment. In this study, 12 healthy subjects underwent block-design fMRI while they performed digit task of forced-choice format under four conditions: answering correctly, answering randomly, answering incorrectly, and simulated feigned memory impairment. There were three main results. First, six areas, including the left prefrontal cortex, the left superior temporal lobe, the right postcentral gyrus, the right superior parietal cortex, the right superior occipital cortex, and the right putamen, were significantly modulated by condition type. Second, for some areas, including the right superior parietal cortex, the right postcentral gyrus, the right superior occipital cortex, and the right putamen, brain activity was significantly greater in feigned memory impairment than answering randomly. Third, for the areas including the left prefrontal cortex and the right putamen, brain activity was significantly greater in feigned memory impairment than answering incorrectly. In contrast, for the left superior temporal lobe, brain activity was significantly greater in answering incorrectly than feigned memory impairment. The results suggest that neural correlates of feigned memory impairment are distinguishable from answering randomly and answering incorrectly in healthy subjects.     

教师心理健康的标准和对策

本文首先讨论了提高教师心理健康水平对建设高质量教师队伍及提高学生心理健康的重要性 ,它也是落实素质教育的重要举措。文章还阐述了教师心理健康的标准 ,最后提出了提高教师心理素质的对策。     

科学的划界与医学：—一论在医学中坚持科学精神

这里所论的科学划界标准是就自然科学而言的，区分科学与非科学最重要的标准是它的可检验性和可重复性。科学的这个划界标准今天并未过时，医学和一般自然科学相比有其特点，但其为实验科学的医学也应坚持这个标准。     

Test-dependent expression of behavioral syndromes: A study of aggressiveness,activity, and stress of chub

Aggressiveness has been one of the behavioral traits most examined with various standard testing methods. We used two distinct methods (the mirror and the real opponent tests) to evaluate individual aggression and relate it to the activity and individual stress of chub (Squalius cephalus L.). Three hypotheses were formulated and tested: (a) there is a significant positive relationship between the aggressiveness of individuals measured with the mirror and the real opponent tests, indicating their convergent validity; (b) the irregularities in response to the aggressiveness and activity tests lead to the context-specific expression of the behavioral syndromes; and (c) there is a significant positive relationship between the stress induced in individuals by both tests of aggressiveness, demonstrating individually consistent stress-coping strategies. The first and the second hypothesis were confirmed, while the third hypothesis was rejected. Our results suggest that particular tests of aggressiveness could act as a situation with high strength, leaving little variation between individual responses. Thus, we propose that for the proper interpretation of various studies using different tests to study identical behavioral traits, it is important to consider the convergent validity of not only the tested behavioral traits but also the individual stress responses. The chub also showed stress relieve through aggressiveness, suggesting the species as a prospective animal model to the study interaction between the stress and the aggressiveness. A detailed aggression ethogram of chub was provided to facilitate the use of this specie in future studies.     

Perceptions of Forgetfulness in Adulthood

Abstract

In two experiments, we examined younger and older participants’ appraisals of memory failures in fictitious characters portrayed as younger (in their 20’s to 30’s) or older (in their 60’s to 70’s) adults. Participants read vignettes where forgetful behavior had minor or more severe consequences for the target character (Experiment 1) or for the character and others in the social environment (Experiment 2). Participants rated potential causes of the forgetfulness and opinions concerning the target character’s cognitive health. In Experiment 1, an age-based double standard was observed, where both age groups rated ability as a cause of forgetting more often for older than younger characters. Ratings of forgetfulness as a sign of mental difficulty, need for memory training, and professional evaluation were also higher for older compared to younger characters. In Experiment 2, the Attribution Type by Target Age interaction effect was replicated. Ability and effort contributed to the significance of the interaction, confirming the reliability and generalizability of the age-based double standard. Forgetfulness was rated as a sign of mental difficulty more often for the older than younger characters, replicating Experiment 1. In both experiments, the consequences of the forgetting had a large impact on the attribution and opinion ratings for younger and older forgetful characters. These data suggest that people of all ages evaluate forgetful characters in light of situational outcomes as well as ageist presumptions of cognitive frailty in later life.