Prevention of nonadherence to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications for newly diagnosed patients with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.

Adherence to medications for chronic pediatric diseases decreases over time. This randomized controlled trial evaluated a clinic-based, nurse-administered educational and behavioral intervention to prevent the anticipated drop in adherence to nonsteroidal medications among newly diagnosed patients with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Thirty-four participants completed the study (mean age = 8.44 years, SD = 3.96), including 19 in the experimental group and 15 in the standard-treatment (education) control group. There were significant group and Group X Time effects for adherence (assessed with an electronic monitor over a 13-month period) favoring the experimental group. In contrast, the groups did not differ significantly in disease activity or functional limitations. Factors that may have prevented detection of differences in these health parameters are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Estimating errors of certain Gauss quadrature formulae

Using Cauchy's integral formula (as in [8]) we obtain the closed form error-estimates for the general Gauss-Chebyshev quadrature formulas. Some of the estimates of the errors of these quaratdures are excellent in the sense of Chawla [3].     

Intelligence and lead: The "known" is not known.

Argues that the APA Task Force on Intelligence report (U. Neisser et al; see record 83-26553) is misleading in its special section on lead as a biological variable with a negative effect on intelligence. The most comprehensive review available (S. J. Pocock et al; 1994) reflects the inconsistencies in research findings; other studies also highlight the uncertainties surrounding this area, making it difficult to assert a definite cause–effect relationship between IQ and lead levels. Policy implications of such a misleading claim are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relationships of self-efficacy for the Holland themes to gender, occupational group membership, and vocational interests.

The studies presented in this article resulted in the findings that gender differences in self-efficacy for the Holland themes are consistent with previous findings regarding gender differences in Holland interest patterns, although the gender differences are less pronounced in employed adults than in college students. Within occupational group, the self-efficacy profiles of women and men were very similar and closely corresponded to the Holland interest code of the occupation. Confidence for and interest in a theme were moderately correlated, and recommendations for the counseling use of joint combinations of interests and self-efficacy are made. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Recovery of neonatal head turning to decreased sound pressure level.

Human newborns' responses to decreased sound pressure level (SPL) were investigated with a localized head-turning habituation procedure. Recovery to a decrement in volume contradicts a selective receptor adaptation view because a lower intensity stimulus does not engage a separate set of receptor cells. Ninety-six infants (mean age 41 hrs) were presented with the same sound for 2 infant-controlled phases. After criterion orientation (3 head turns toward the sound in 4 consecutive trials) and criterion habituation (3 consecutive trials with no head turns or head turns away) to 1 of 2 stimulus intensities (72 or 78 dB [SPL]), infants were randomly assigned to test trials at an intensity of 66, 72, or 78 dB (SPL). Planned comparisons of percentage of test trials with head turns toward the sound revealed that decreased SPL produced recovery of localized head turning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Maternal correlates of children's vicarious emotional responsiveness.

Children's vicarious emotional responses and prosocial behavior were assessed, and the relations of these indexes to their mothers' sympathetic dispositions were examined. Mothers who were more sympathetic and better perspective takers had girls who reported feeling more sympathy and negative affect and less happiness after exposure to needy others. Mothers who reported more distress had girls who reported less negative affect and more happiness after exposure. Fewer relations between mothers' sympathy and vicarious emotional responsiveness were found for boys; however, there were more relations between boys' emotional responses and their helpfulness; boys who expressed more negative affect tended to be more helpful. These findings support the notion that the correlates of vicarious emotional responsiveness and prosocial tendencies are similar. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Training effects on Raven's Progressive Matrices in young, middle-aged, and elderly adults.

Previous training studies of fluid intellectual abilities have involved training on either figural relations or induction tasks. In the present study, young, middle-aged, and elderly adults were given training on another measure of fluid ability—Raven's Progressive Matrices. The training involved a strategy-modeling technique that lasted no more than a few minutes. The results indicated that (a) performance on the Raven decreased with increasing age, (b) training significantly improved performance, and (c) the effect of training did not differ as a function of the age or sex of the subjects. Thus, the results indicate that performance on the Raven can be significantly improved in a single brief training session. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parent–child interaction: The influence of maternal employment.

Data were collected from 40 mother–father–preschool child triads, including 20 employed and 20 nonemployed mothers. Information from the Parent-Child Activity Questionnaire, in-home unstructured observations, play task observations, and observer ratings indicated that maternal employment did not significantly alter the role specialization observed in single earner families. Mothers exhibited more caretaking, quiet play, positive affect, and speaking, whereas fathers exhibited more active play. Parents from single earner families demonstrated more speaking and quiet play than parents from dual earner families. Sons received more attention in families with nonemployed mothers, whereas daughters received more attention in families with employed mothers. Parents from families with employed mothers had more favorable attitudes toward dual roles for women. There was increased negative affect in families experiencing incongruence between parents' attitudes and the mother's employment status. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of humorous distortions on children's learning from educational television.

Exposed 64 kindergarten, 1st-grade, and 4th-grade students to an educational TV program that entailed (a) distortion-free humor, (b) humor that compatibly distorted educational information (exaggeration), (c) humor that incompatibly distorted it (irony), and (d) humor that distorted it incompatibly followed by the correction of the humorous distortion. Information acquisition and funniness were assessed after exposure. Both irony and exaggeration were found to produce perceptual distortions of the associated educational information. Compared with distortion-free humor, irony resulted in underestimates and exaggeration resulted in overestimates of properties of novel objects that the program introduced. Correction after irony largely failed to remove the perceptual distortion resulting from irony. Counter to initial expectations, perceptual distortion did not diminish with age. Grade proved immaterial, as did gender. Humorous distortion, when uncorrected, tended to enhance funniness regardless of grade or gender. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)