Recovery of Locomotion in Monkeys With Spinal Cord Lesions

This study reanalyzes kinematically (via film) the pre- and postoperative locomotor behavior of 4 of the 10 monkeys with partial spinal cord lesions (T8) briefly described by Eidelberg, Walden, and Nguyen (1981). The behavior of the remaining 6 monkeys is qualitatively described. The analysis reveals that 5 of the animals initially exhibited unilateral hind limb stepping. Hind and forelimb cycle durations often differed postoperatively; the hind limbs commonly showed increased values, whereas forelimb cycle durations were reduced: ipsilateral interlimb phase values were usually inconsistent. A review of prior studies of primate spinal cord lesions indicates that sparing of the ventrolateral quadrant may not be essential for locomotor recovery (cf. Eidelberg, Walden, & Nguyen, 1981). Furthermore, this review as well as the kinematic analysis indicates that primates with very significant spinal lesions can stilI exhibit locomotor movements. Thus, although the primate's spinal cord seems less able than other mammals' to readily organize locomotor movements (Eidelberg, Walden, & Nguyen, 1981), the total absence of stepping in primates with completely transected cords is unexpected and warrants further research.     

Perceptions of the parent-adolescent relationship: a longitudinal investigation

A self-report measure of conflict and aspects of warmth in the parent-child relationship was completed by 1,330 11-year-old twins, 1,176 of whom completed the inventory again 3 years later. On average, adolescents' perceptions of the quality of the parent-child relationship declined consistently and moderately between age 11 and age 14. Conflict with parents increased, whereas all aspects of warmth decreased; changes were significantly greater for girls than boys. Variances increased with age, primarily because of increases in the magnitude of genetic effects. Heritability estimates ranged from .09 to .31 at intake and .35 to .45 at follow-up and tended to be higher for boys than girls. Changes in the parent-child relationship are interpreted as reflecting genotype-environment correlation processes whereby adolescents increasingly influence their relationships with their parents.     

Identifying shared environmental contributions to early substance use: the respective roles of peers and parents

Although behavior genetic studies have suggested that early substance use is primarily environmentally mediated, no study has sought to identify the specific sources of environmental variance. Using data obtained from multiple informants, this study assessed the contributions of peer deviance and parent-child relationship problems to substance use in 14-year-old male and female twins (N = 1,403) drawn from the Minnesota Twin Family Study (MTFS). All three phenotypes were influenced primarily by shared environmental variance (average c(2) =.51), as was the overlap among them. Moreover, peer deviance and parent-child relationship problems accounted for approximately 77% of the variance in early substance use. Findings also indicated that peer deviance, but not parent-child relationship problems, accounted uniquely for variance in early substance use.     

How I feel: a self-report measure of emotional arousal and regulation for children

This article details the development and preliminary validation of a multidimensional self-report measure of emotion for 8- to 12-year-old children--the How I Feel (HIF). Item generation and selection occurred via 2 pilot administrations (ns = 250 and 378, respectively). Ten experts provided data on content validity. Exploratory factor analysis and subsequent confirmatory factor analysis with samples of 406, 524, 349, and 349 3rd-through 6th-grade children supported a 3-factor model, including the frequency and intensity of (a) positive emotion, (b) negative emotion, and (c) positive and negative emotion control. Results showed moderate longitudinal stability for 120 children over 2 years. Concurrent validity was established. The HIF can be useful in understanding the interplay between arousal and control in social-emotional adjustment in school-age children.     

MUSIC OF THE “FOLKS‐NESHOME”

In their task of creating a style of “Jewish” national art music based on ethnographic research, many of the composers affiliated with the St. Petersburg Society for Jewish Folk Music wrote arrangements of traditional ethnic songs and dances for small chamber ensembles. These works, generally no longer than the duration of a traditional folk melody, and written with the aim of evoking Jewish village folk culture, occupy a genre that I call the “rural miniature”. This genre was popular in Eastern and Central Europe during this period, and was most commonly composed and performed by musicians who conducted ethnographic fieldwork themselves or studied the findings of other ethnographers of music. The rural miniature was a critical art music genre in the development of state and diaspora musical nationalism. Works in the genre assumed a standard role in the chamber music and solo repertoire during the first four decades of the twentieth century. As the genre’s early proponents moved away from their homes and settled throughout the diaspora, however, the continued survival of rural Jewish life appeared increasingly imperilled by urbanization, emigration, and anti‐Semitism. A discussion of Joseph Achron’s “Hebrew Melody” will demonstrate that, with this cultural migration, the ethnographic component of the rural miniature came gradually to be superseded by the aesthetic elements of propaganda and nostalgia, as the genre was appropriated for fictional idealizations of traditional life in the Eastern European shtetl ¹ 1. David Assaf defines the shtetl as “a physical enclave represented by hundreds of small and midsized towns in Eastern Europe whose Jewish character was in clear evidence”. Assaf, Journey to a Nineteenth‐Century Shtetl, 20. View all notes and expressions of a Zionist longing for the biblical Jewish homeland.     

Examining Correctional Staff Members’ Engagement in Rehabilitation as Part of Their Everyday Practices in Short‐term Juvenile Detention

Research on the rehabilitation of juvenile justice‐involved youth is often focused on specific evidence‐based interventions. Less attention has been paid to everyday interactions that correctional staff members have with detained youth and, further, how these may align with trauma‐informed care principles and thus encourage a more supportive setting. Using an ethnographic case study approach, this study addressed this gap in knowledge by documenting the nature of rehabilitative practices as they naturally occurred in the context of short‐term detention staff members’ daily routine and interactions with detained youth. This study found evidence for three primary forms of routine rehabilitative practices: (a) promotion of youths’ emotional safety and well‐being, (b) provision of rights‐based information and explanations, and (c) encouraging youths’ success in and beyond detention. These practices were observed across several key setting contexts: (a) staff‐led group activities, (b) routine contact between individual youth and staff (e.g., formal procedures, informal conversations), and (c) staff‐only spaces. Our findings highlight the need for ongoing research to effectively translate promising intervention approaches, such as trauma‐informed care, into juvenile detainment settings.     

Effects of resource availability and importance of behavior on the experience of crowding.

According to the interference formulation, participants in a crowded setting will experience interference to the extent that behavioral goals conflict with environmental conditions. The importance of the behavioral goals directly affects not only the magnitude of the interference but also the mechanism by which people cope with interference. It was reasoned that important goals would induce a more active coping strategy in a crowded setting than in an uncrowded setting and would maintain task performance at the price of increasing crowding stress. When the behavioral goal is unimportant, decrements in task performance preclude a rise in stress. A laboratory study manipulated group size, in order to vary the availability of resources, and the importance of the task behavior. The predictions were confirmed, and partial confirmation was obtained for predictions involving the effects of the internal-external personality dimension. The meaning of the results is discussed in terms of other findings in the literature on crowding and the mediating role of the type of mechanism used to cope with interference.