The influence of performance feedback on goal-setting and mental effort regulation

Goal-setting and mental effort investment may be influenced by the perception of success or failure. The aim of the current study was to investigate the dynamics of motivational intensity model using false performance feedback. Forty participants performed a demanding cognitive task over five successive (5 min) blocks. Participants received performance feedback of either progressive success or progressive failure. A number of psychophysiological variables were used to index mental effort investment and emotion, including: HRV components, blood pressure, skin conductance level, EEG, and facial EMG. Subjective estimates of mood, workload and motivation were also collected alongside performance measures. The success group experienced positive affect and a less pronounced decline in subjective motivation in response to a perception of successful achievement. In contrast, feedback of failure led to adverse changes in mood/motivation, but did not lead to the absolute withdrawal of effort, although trends in the psychophysiological data suggest that participants in the failure group were on the verge of abandoning the task. The implications of these findings are discussed within the context of goal-setting and effort regulation models.     

Is it prudent to administer all items for each Child Behavior Checklist cross-informant syndrome? Evaluating the psychometric properties of the Youth Self-Report dimensions with confirmatory factor analysis and item response theory

Through surveying of children in 10 nations with parent, teacher, and Youth Self-Report (YSR) forms of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), cross-informant syndromes (CISs) were derived and cross-validated by sample-dependent methodology. Generalizing CBCL syndromes and norms to nations excluded from its normative sample is problematic. This study used confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) to test factor model fit for CISs on the YSR responses of 625 Jamaican children ages 11 to 18 years. Item response theory (IRT), a sample-independent methodology, was used to estimate the psychometric properties of individual items on each dimension. CFAs indicated poor to moderate model-to-data fit. Across all syndromes, IRT analyses revealed that more than 3/4 of the cross-informant items yielded little information. Eliminating such items could be cost effective in terms of administration time yet improve the measures discrimination across syndrome severity levels.     

Culture and body image: Body perception and weight concern in young Asian and Caucasian British women

The comparatively lower prevalence of eating disorders among Asian and Afro-Caribbean than Caucasian women in the UK has often been attributed to cultural differences in pressures for slimness. However, there have been no attempts to evaluate cultural differences in ideals for female physique directly among women in the at risk age groups. In the present study, cultural influences on body image were evaluated by comparing the body size ideals, body image and dieting concerns in a sample of 274 young white and Asian British women. The results indicate that Asian women are less likely to describe themselves as too fat, were less dissatisfied with their body size, less likely to want to lose weight and less restrained. However, Asian women were slimmer than white women and, after controlling for the difference in body size, the effects were reduced. The hypothesis that any body satisfaction differences could be explained by differences in ideal body size between the two groups were not supported; Asian women favoured even slimmer ideal body sizes than white women. Alternative explanations in terms of cultural differences in evaluation of fatness are discussed.     

Impact of End-of-Life Circumstances on the Adjustment of Bereaved Siblings of Children Who Died from Cancer

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of end-of-life (EoL) circumstances on grief and internalizing symptoms among bereaved siblings. Bereaved families (N?=?88) were recruited from three sites 3–12 months (M?=?11.57, SD?=?3.48) after their child’s death from cancer. One sibling per family aged 8–17 years (M?=?12.41, SD?=?2.64) was randomly selected to participate. Families completed measures of siblings’ grief and internalizing symptoms, as well as a structured interview about circumstances surrounding the death. Mother and sibling reports of EoL circumstances were generally concordant, except there was a discrepancy between mothers and children about whether or not children expected their sibling’s death (t(75)?=?1.52, p?=?.018). Mother reports of sibling internalizing symptoms were above the normative mean (t(83)?=?4.44, p?≤?.001 (M?=?56.01?±?12.48), with 39% (n?=?33) in the borderline/clinical range. Sibling opportunity to say goodbye was associated with greater grief-related growth (t(79)?=?? 1.95, p?=?.05). Presence at the death and wishing they had done something differently were both associated with greater grief (t(80)?=?? 2.08, p?=?.04 and t(80)?=?? 2.24, p?=?.028, respectively) and grief-related growth (t(80)?=?? 2.01, p?=?.048 and t(80)?=?? 2.31, p?=?.024, respectively). However, findings were primarily unique to sibling report, with few mother-reported effects. The adjustment of bereaved siblings may be affected by certain modifiable circumstances surrounding the death of their brother or sister. A proportion of bereaved siblings had elevated internalizing symptoms irrespective of circumstances at EoL. Further work is needed to understand predictors of adjustment among bereaved siblings to provide better support and optimize their outcomes.

     

Longitudinal Results of Cognitive Behavioral Treatment for Youths with Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Depressive Symptoms

Youths with chronic physical illnesses face increased rates of psychological problems and the burden of coping with physical illness-related challenges. The following data describes treatment outcome maintenance results from a randomized clinical trial investigating the impact of a cognitive behavioral intervention Primary and Secondary Control Enhancement Therapy-Physical Illness (PASCET-PI) as compared to treatment as usual (TAU) on youths with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Forty-one participants aged 11-17 with IBD and concurrent depressive symptomatology were randomized to PASCET-PI (n?=?22) or TAU (n?=?19). Self-reported depressive features, global functioning, and DSM-IV depressive symptomatology were assessed immediately post-treatment (T2), followed by assessments at 6-months (T3) and 12-months (T4) post-treatment initiation. Repeated measure models revealed significantly improved global psychosocial functioning in youths randomized to PASCET-PI compared to youths randomized to TAU. Improvements in self-reported depressive features and DSM-IV depressive symptoms were found at the trend level for youths randomized to PASCET-PI relative to those receiving TAU. Effect size estimates for all outcome variables suggested large to medium treatment effects.