A national examination of poverty and interactive caregiving practices among parents of young children

Journal of Child and Family Studies - Interactive caregiving practices can be protective for the development of the brain in early childhood, particularly for children experiencing poverty. There...     

Polger on the Illusion of Contingent Identity

Abstract

Thomas Polger has argued in favour of the mind–brain type‐identity theory, the view that mental states or processes are type‐identical to states of the central nervous system. Acknowledging that the type‐materialist must respond to Kripke’s modal anti‐materialist argument, Polger insists that Kripke’s argument rests on dubious assumptions concerning the identity conditions of brain states. In brief, Polger claims that one knows that x and y are non‐identical when one knows the identity conditions for both x and y. Replace x and y with ‘brain states’ and ‘sensations’ and it follows that one can know that brain states and sensations are non‐identical only if one knows the identity conditions for brain states. But according to Polger, we do not know the identity conditions for brain states. Hence, we should not be so confident that brain states and sensations are non‐identical after all. But Polger’s account is terribly flawed. Ironically, if Polger’s scepticism is warranted, then Polger himself has no good reasons to be a type‐materialist. But more importantly, Polger’s scepticism regarding the identity conditions of brain states is deeply defective. We do, I submit, understand the identity conditions of brain states. In the end, I submit, Kripke is safe from Polger.     

Traumatic Brain Injury in School-Age Children Academic and Social Outcome

School-aged children with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) require extraordinary effort and energy from individuals in their school, home, and community. The purpose of this study was to examine the academic, behavioral, and social outcomes of a cohort of children and adolescents following TBI. A comprehensive assessment of cognitive functioning, achievement, and adaptive behavior was administered to 43 school-aged children 2 years after their TBI. Premorbid functioning for each participant was obtained from state-mandated test scores assessed prior to the TBI. The predictive utility of premorbid functioning, TBI severity, and age at injury were examined. Findings revealed that premorbid functions were significant predictors of reading and spelling achievement and adaptive functioning. Severity of injury was predictive of adaptive functioning. Implications of findings include program development, reintegration into school, and educating parents and teachers.     

Development and Validation of a Parent Report Measure for Assessing Social-Emotional Competencies of Children and Adolescents

Based on the premises that strength-based assessment of children and adolescents is an important emerging area, and that additional tools for this purpose are needed, this study details development and validation efforts on a new strength-based assessment: the Social-Emotional Assets and Resilience Scale, parent form (SEARS-P). Following careful development of a comprehensive research prototype assessment, a large and diverse nationwide sample of more than 2,000 ratings of school-age children and adolescents were obtained from their parents and other caregivers. Factor analytic procedures revealed a robust and replicable underlying factor structure, including Self-Regulation/Responsibility, Social Competence, and Empathy factors. The factor scores and total score of the SEARS-P were shown to have strong internal consistency reliability, as well as strong interrater reliability between mother-father pairs who rated the same child. Convergent construct validity of the SEARS-P was established through findings of significant correlations with two established strength-based rating scales for use by parents. Construct validity of the SEARS-P was further bolstered through findings of significant gender differences in scores (with females rated as having higher levels of competency than males), as well as significant differences in scores based on educational disability status. Limitations and future research needs are discussed, as are implications of this study for research and practice with children and families.     

Safety first,but for whom? Shifts in risk perception for self and others following COVID-19 vaccination

Vaccines can affect the mind as well as the body. Research on the psychological impact of vaccines has largely focused on risk-related judgments and behaviors involving the recipient. Here, we extend this work to risk-related judgments of others. In a prospective cohort study involving three samples and two timepoints (N = 588 adults), we tested competing hypotheses about the effects of receiving a COVID-19 vaccine on perceived risks to the unvaccinated: (1) a self/other differentiation hypothesis (vaccination will lead to estimation of lower risk for the self but higher risk for others) versus (2) a self/other correspondence hypothesis (vaccination will lead to estimation of lower risk from contracting COVID-19 for both self and others). Results revealed risk estimates as well as preferences for COVID-related social policies more consistent with the former hypothesis. We discuss potential psychological mechanisms and implications of these findings.     

Innovations in Assessing ADHD: Development, Psychometric Properties, and Factor Structure of the ADHD Symptoms Rating Scale (ADHD-SRS)

This research involved the development of a behavior rating scale designed to measure ADHD and the investigation of the scale's psychometric properties and factor structure. This scale, the ADHD Symptoms Rating Scale (ADHD-SRS), was developed for the assessment of ADHD in the school-age (K–12) population. Participants were 1006 children and adolescents (in grades K–12) who were rated by their parents and/or teachers. The results indicate that the ADHD-SRS possesses strong internal consistency reliability and test–retest reliability and moderate cross-informant reliability. The data also suggest that the ADHD-SRS has strong content validity. Convergent validity of this instrument was also high, as demonstrated by correlations with three previously validated behavior rating scales. Significant age and gender differences in ADHD symptoms were found with both the parent and teacher respondent populations. Finally, the factor analysis of the ADHD-SRS suggested a two factor oblique rotation as the best fit for both the parent and the teacher data. After a visual inspection of the items which loaded on each factor, Factor 1 was named Hyperactive-Impulsive and Factor 2 was named Inattention. These two factors, along with the items which loaded on each factor, appear to be remarkably similar to the two categories listed in the DSM-IV for ADHD. Directions for future research, as well as clinical implications and limitations of the research are discussed.