The Role of Perspective Taking and Self-Control in a Preventive Intervention Targeting Childhood Disruptive Behavior

Prevention studies typically focus on outcome variables such as reductions in problem behavior, rather than targeted factors (e.g., cognitions), or the relation between change in targeted factors and outcomes. Therefore, the current study examined the effect of a targeted prevention program for childhood disruptive behavior on targeted factors (i.e., perspective taking and self-control) and associations between change in targeted factors and outcomes (i.e., aspects of disruptive behavior). The sample consisted of 173 children (Mage?=?10.2 years) who were randomly assigned to an intervention condition (n?=?70) or waitlist control condition (n?=?103). Assessment took place at pre-, post- and follow-up measurements. For ethical considerations, follow-up data was not available for children on the waitlist. Findings revealed a direct intervention effect on self-control. From pre-test to follow-up, children who received the intervention improved in perspective taking and self-control. Moreover, improvements in self-control were associated with and predicted reductions in teacher-reported symptoms of oppositional defiant disorder. No associations were found between changes in perspective taking and disruptive behavior. These findings suggest that self-control may be an important target factor in reducing childhood disruptive behavior in targeted prevention.

     

Age differences in women’s tendency to gossip are mediated by their mate value

In the current study it was investigated whether age differences in women’s tendency to gossip exist, and whether these could be accounted for by self-reported mate value. It was expected that younger women would report a higher tendency to gossip after reading a scenario in which a romantic rival was introduced, because they are at an age when competition for mates is salient and often intense. Moreover, it was hypothesized that this higher tendency to gossip would be attributable to these women’s higher mate value, since younger women have a higher reproductive capacity than older women. The results confirm these expectations: age differences in women’s tendency to gossip disappeared when controlling for mate value. Discussion focuses on the interpretation and implications of these results.     

Transcranial direct-current stimulation enhances implicit motor sequence learning in persons with Parkinson's disease with mild cognitive impairment

Implicit motor sequence learning (IMSL) is affected in Parkinson's disease (PD). Research in healthy young participants shows the potential for transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS) over the primary motor cortex (M1) to enhance IMSL. In PD, only null effects have been reported to date. We determined concurrent, short-term, and long-term effects of anodal tDCS over M1 on IMSL, as measured by the serial reaction time (SRT) task, in persons with PD with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Concurrent (anodal/sham tDCS intervention during the SRT task), short-term (5 min post-intervention), and long-term (1 week post-intervention) effects on IMSL were evaluated in persons with idiopathic PD (Hoehn and Yahr stage II-III) with MCI. Results of 11 persons with PD (8 men and 3 women; mean age = 77.1 years; mean disease duration = 7.7 years) showed significant IMSL in the anodal (p = .016), but not in the sham tDCS condition (p = .937). Post-hoc analyses showed that IMSL reached statistical significance at 1 week post-intervention (p < .001). Anodal tDCS over M1 exerted beneficial effects on IMSL in persons with PD with MCI, in particular one week post-intervention. Our study is the first to report a positive effect of tDCS on IMSL in PD. Further research should include a larger, more cognitively diverse sample and additional follow-up periods.     

Sex,germs, and health: pathogen-avoidance motives and health-protective behaviour

Objective: Recent work suggests that the psychology of pathogen-avoidance has wide-reaching effects on how people interact with the world. These processes – part of what has been referred to as the behavioural immune system – are, in a way, our ‘evolved’ health psychology. However, scholars have scarcely investigated how the behavioural immune system relates to health-protective behaviours. The current research attempts to fill this gap.

Design: Across two cross-sectional studies (N = 386 and 470, respectively), we examined the relationship between pathogen-avoidance motives and health-protective behaviour.

Outcome Measures: The studies used self-reported measures of attitude and intention as indicators of health-protective behaviour.

Results: Data collected in Study 1 revealed that pathogen-avoidance motivation related to participants’ attitude and intention towards sexually transmitted infections screening. High levels of pathogen-avoidance motivation were also related to having had fewer sexual partners, which partially mediated the effect of pathogen-avoidance variables on testing motivation. Study 2 extended these findings by showing moderate associations between pathogen-avoidance motivation and a broad range of health-protective behaviours, including but not limited to pathogen-related health concerns.

Conclusion: We argue that understanding and targeting pathogen-avoidance psychology can add novel and important understanding of health-protective behaviour.     

The effect of a subliminally primed context on intrasexual competition depends on individual differences in sex drive

We argue that sex drive can be regarded as a fundamental correlate of individual differences in mating strategies, and that it modulates men’s tendencies to engage in intrasexual competition. We expected that men with a high sex drive would be more threatened by a rival in a sexual context than in a commitment context, whereas men with a low sex drive would be more threatened by a rival in a commitment context. Male participants were subliminally primed with either sex-related or commitment-related words, and then confronted with a romantic rival. The results confirm expectations and are discussed in light of other research.     

Jealousy in the blink of an eye: Jealous reactions following subliminal exposure to rival characteristics

In the present experiment it was investigated whether the evaluation of rivals could be an unconscious process, engaged in automatically whenever a rival is present. To this end, participants were subliminally primed with words relating to rival characteristics after which they read a jealousy inducing scenario and their jealousy was assessed. It was hypothesized that for women, their self‐reported mate value would act as a moderator on the effect the rival characteristics would have on jealousy. For men, it was expected that their satisfaction with their current relationship would act as a moderator. The results confirmed the expectations: women with low mate value reported more overall jealousy, but women with high mate value were more jealous after priming with attractiveness words. Men with high relationship satisfaction reported more overall jealousy than men with low relationship satisfaction, and especially after priming with social dominance words. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.