In this study I first examined whether the cognitive processes (hot versus cold cognition) underlying judgments to traditional moral situations are universal to situations that are morally neutral, and whether individual differences in cognitive ability moderate these judgments. Second, I tested whether it was possible to modify the impact of hot versus cold processing systems on judgment deliberation by shifting the focus of attention during the decision-making process. I conclude that moral judgment is not simply the product of cognitive ability and is not sufficiently motivated by hot cognitive experiences alone. The role of cognitive abilities on moral valuation requires further examination.

Little is known about how maternal positive affect (PA) relates to maternal patterns of emotion socialization about positive emotions. The current study examined the hypothesis that mothers’ self-reported PA, independent of their negative affect (NA), is associated with increased and more appropriate modeling of verbal and nonverbal expressions of positive emotions in mothers. I examined associations between self-reported maternal PA and behaviors during video-taped discussions of times when the mothers and children were happy in 53 healthy mother-child dyads. These tapes were coded using standard observational coding schemes. Results suggest that mothers with higher ratings of PA, independent of NA, positively predicted levels of observed maternal positive involvement and communication while reminiscing. Maternal PA was unrelated to observed dyadic mutual enjoyment, positive emotion words and teaching during mother-child reminiscing. Results add to the existing literature on positive psychology in important ways. Theoretical implications for understanding positive emotions are discussed.

The purpose of the current study was to evaluate changes in attentional biases following CBT for Social Phobia. It was found that 1.) consistent with previous investigations, the overall sample displayed vigilance toward threatening facial stimuli prior to receiving treatment, and 2.) participants’ pattern of responding to threatening facial stimuli changed following treat-ment, but only when the sample was divided into those who were vigilant and those who were avoidant prior to treatment. Findings provide support for the presence of two distinct sub-groups with differing attentional styles, one with a tendency for vigilance toward social threats, and a second with a tendency to avoid threat cues. These findings have important implications for how individuals may differentially respond to treatment and may help explain some of the mixed findings in the extant literature on Social Phobia and attention bias.

Multiple theories suggest that the early parent-child relationship plays an important role in development. Past research has shown linkages between parenting style and aggression as well as between language and aggression. Emerging evidence suggests that attachment security is an important predictor of language development. It was hypothesized that there would be an effect of parent-child relationship quality at 36 months on aggression at school entry via language ability at 54 months. To test this hypothesis, path analysis in M-Plus was used. Data for this study were collected as a part of the NICHD, Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (N = 1,364). Mediation was tested with bootstrapped estimates of indirect effects. The results did not support the hypothesized m

Homework compliance has been identified as a robust predictor of treatment outcome for depression and, to a lesser extent, anxiety disorders, including social phobia. The current study tested the following hypotheses: (1) homework compliance is positively related to ratings of global improvement, (2) homework compliance is negatively related to symptom reduction, (3) the relation between homework compliance and treatment outcome varies according to the nature of the homework exercise, and (4) expectancy is positively related to early homework compliance, in a clinical sample of individuals with social phobia. Results provided limited support for the relation between compliance and ratings of improvement, but did not support a negative relation between compliance and symptom reduction. Further, the results provided limited support for the hypothesis that compliance with exposure versus non-exposure homework would differ significantly in terms of their relation to treatment outcome, but did not support the relation between compliance and expectancy.

Mitochondrial Diseases (MD) are disorders of function in cellular oxidative phosphorylation caused by diverse nuclear DNA and mtDNA mutations and seen in 1/5,000 births. The purpose of this study was to examine relationships across medical indices, biochemical measures, and neurobehavioral functioning in children with MD. Findings from Western Blot, Native Gels, High Resolution Respirometry, and the Nijmegen diagnostic criteria were assessed in relation to children’s processing speed and attention, based on the prediction that impaired functioning of proteins, complexes, and cellular respiration, that are critical in ATP production, will impact neurodevelopment and related neuropsychological processes in children with MD. Twenty-five children (ages 4-13) were administered subtests from the DAS-II and NEPSY-II. Results from multiple regression analyses suggest that processing speed and attention deficits may be markers of abnormal protein expression that interferes with the production of ATP in the oxidative phosphorylation process; implications for future research are presented.

The most devastating effects of climate change may be avoided if humans reduce activities that produce greenhouse gases and engage instead in more sustainable ecological behaviors. The current mixed methods study of 279 undergraduate students explored whether environmental worldview, belief in climate change, knowledge of climate change, personal efficacy, and intention to address climate change influenced participants’ engagement in ecological behavior. Results indicated that those with a stronger intention to address climate change and a more ecocentric worldview reported significantly more ecological behavior. Next, the study examined whether participants’ intentions to address climate change mediated the relationship between their belief in climate change and engagement in ecological behavior and whether intentions mediated the relationship between efficacy and ecological behavior. Intentions to address climate change did not mediate the relationship between belief and ecological behavior but fully mediated the relationship between efficacy to address climate change and ecological behavior.

Humans are exceptional in their willingness to and frequency with which they help one another. However, nonhuman primates also exhibit prosocial behavior. Recently, a number of laboratory studies examining prosociality among primates have yielded conflicting results. These contradictory findings may be due to a reliance on human interaction, tokens, or interactions in the direct context of food, a highly valued resource for animals. The current study examined prosocial behavior among capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella) in a tool task designed to address these issues by examining whether capuchins would transfer a necessary tool to a partner in different payoff conditions. Some capuchins’ behavior indicated that they understood the task, passing the tool when a partner and food were present. Notably, tool transfer in both tasks was overwhelmingly active rather than passive, which is unusual in the context of food; indicating active prosocial behavior is present amongst primates other than cooperative breeders.

Agency, a behavioral and psychological concept, is an individual’s sense of what they can do and what they think they can do. It is imperative to understand how a sense of agency in youths can be fostered and transformed into constructive action. This study builds on previous research to better identify predictors of agency, focusing on social and political involvement and opportunity structure. Additionally, it analyzes and proposes the use of a new measure of agency, the Community Leadership (CL) scale. Eighty-five teens (ages 13 to 18) were administered surveys. Involvement was found to be significantly related to agency. It was also related to opportunity structure, but opportunity structure was not significantly related to agency. Opportunity structure seems to partly influence the relationship between involvement and agency. When compared to previously validated measures of agency, the CL scale proved to be a shorter and psychometrically sound alternative measure.

Given the increase of Spanish- and English-speaking bilingual students in US schools, identifying the predictors of reading in this group of students is of significant importance to developing appropriate screening measures and intervention strategies. Thus, the current study evaluated the pattern of language preference in an elementary school bilingual (Spanish-English) population and its relationship with expressive and receptive vocabulary, and broad reading ability in English and Spanish. Participants were 58 Latino students ranging in age from 7 years, 5 months to 11 years, 1 month (M = 8.98, SD = .98) with 48% born in the United States. Results indicated that English expressive vocabulary partially mediated the relationship between outside language preference and English broad reading ability. In contrast, neither Spanish expressive nor receptive vocabulary mediated the relationship between outside language preference and Spanish broad reading ability.