The aim of this study was to examine differences and associations concerning physical activity and cognitive functioning among children born preterm in comparison to those born full term. The sample consisted of 130 children at early school age (mean = 7.8 years), born at a gestational age (GA) of 23 - 42 weeks, and categorized into three groups; children born full term (GA 39 - 42), moderately preterm (GA 34 – 36) and very preterm (GA 23 - 33). Physical activities were perceived from parents’ ratings by use of the Child behaviour checklist (CBCL), and cognitive functioning by WISC-IV. Results showed that children born moderately preterm performed comparable to children born full term, both regarding physical activity ratings and cognitive performance. Children born very preterm were found to have significantly poorer full scale IQ, lower physical performance, fewer sport activities, and were less lateralized, in comparison to both children born full term and those born moderately preterm. Conclusion: a very preterm birth seems to generate long-term effects on physical activities, sport performance and cognitive functioning. Thus, more focus should be paid to children born at a very low GA to identify early deviations and to provide interventions to improve cognitive functioning and enhance physical performance; also in contexts other than sport activities. / Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka skillnader och samband mellan fysisk aktivitet och kognitivt fungerande inom gruppen för tidigt födda barn och i jämförelse med fullgångna barn. Urvalet bestod av 130 barn i tidig skolålder (medel = 7.8 år), födda i gestationsålder (GA) mellan 23 – 42 veckor kategoriserade i tre grupper; fullgångna barn (GA 39 – 42), moderat förtidigt födda (GA 34 – 36) och mycket förtidigt födda (GA 23 – 33). Fysisk aktivitet undersöktes utifrån föräldrars skattning genom användande av Child behaviour checklist (CBCL) och kognitivt fungerande utifrån WISC-IV. Resultaten visade att de moderat för tidigt födda barnen presterade jämförbart med de fullgångna barnen både vad beträffar fysisk aktivitet och kognitivt fungerande. De mycket för tidigt födda barnen visade sig ha signifikant sämre fullskale-IQ, lägre sportsliga prestationer, färre antal sporter och var mindre lateraliserade, jämfört med både de fullgångna barnen och de moderat förtidigt födda. Slutsats: en mycket förtidig födsel tycks generera långvariga effekter på fysiska aktiviteter, sportsliga prestationer och kognitivt fungerande. Således bör större fokus läggas på barn födda med en mycket låg GA för att identifiera tidiga avvikelser och tillhandahålla interventioner för att förbättra kognitivt fungerande och stimulera/förhöja fysiska prestationer; även i andra kontexter än sportsliga aktiviteter.

Broadband behavior rating scales are commonly used in schools to gain data to help make critical decisions about a student’s educational programming and whether he or she is eligible to receive special education services. Several broadband behavior rating scales are beginning to include a scale that assesses executive functioning. This study investigated how scores from an executive functioning scale on a broadband behavior rating scale (Conners 3, Conners, 2008) compared to an established scale that only measures executive functioning (Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function [BRIEF], Gioia, Isquith, Guy, & Kenworthy, 2000). Teachers completed both scales at the same point in time on students receiving academic interventions or special education services. Results indicated that the Conners 3 executive functioning scale primarily measures one scale on the BRIEF related to planning and organization skills. These results suggest that those using the Conners 3 executive functioning scale should be aware of the limited range of skills assessed and that they should be cautious in their interpretation of the scale when evaluating a student’s executive functioning skills.

Psychosocial functioning is a key component of screening and treatment of Temporomandibular Disorders (TMD) in adults; however, psychosocial functioning in adolescents with TMD has received little empirical attention. The present study aims to examine group difference between adolescents and adults with TMD on pain and prominent psychosocial factors, such as anxiety, depression, and somatization, as well as to explore additional developmentally sensitive psychosocial factors that may be associated more with the adolescent TMD pain. Participants included 35 adolescents aged 12-17 (M=14.89 years, SD=1.84) with TMD muscle pain who completed pain questionnaires and a comprehensive dental examination. Patients and their primary caregivers completed behavioral questionnaires to examine psychosocial functioning. Thirty-five adults matched on gender, diagnosis, and duration of pain were selected from a large pre-existing database of previous orofacial pain patients. Adolescents and adults reported descriptively similar TMD pain and equivalent rates of anxiety, depression, and somatization; however, the relationship between these psychosocial factors and TMD pain appear to be more salient for adults compared to adolescents. In adolescents, increased pain-related interference was significantly associated with positive attitudes toward school, better anger control, and deficits in functional communication; whereas, more frequent TMD pain was significantly associated with sense of inadequacy and parent-reported withdrawal, though not in the expected direction. Screening for TMD in adults typically focuses on anxiety, depression, and somatization; however, these psychosocial factors overall did not appear as salient in adolescents as attitude toward school, anger control, sense of inadequacy, withdrawal, and functional communication, suggesting that adult psychosocial screen may need to be revised to include developmentally sensitive targets that may be particularly important for screening of TMD in adolescents.

Social functioning impairments are a core, debilitating, and treatment refractory feature of schizophrenia. The mechanisms contributing to these impairments are unknown. Cognitive control mechanisms, mediated by the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC), are known to influence response to interpersonal stressors in healthy individuals, thus impairments in these processes may contribute to social deficits. Deficits in cognitive control and lateral prefrontal abnormalities are well-documented in schizophrenia, but the relationship between these deficits and social interactions has received limited attention in the literature. The current dissertation presents a systematic examination of the contribution of the behavioral and neural mechanisms of cognitive control to social functioning impairments in schizophrenia. Three papers are presented. / Psychology

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most commonly diagnosed of child clinical syndromes and is associated with poor academic achievement, poor peer and family relations, and an elevated risk for anxiety, depression, and conduct disorder (Barkley ,1990; Barkley, Guevremont, Anastopoulos, DuPaul, & Shelton, 1993; Barkley, Murphy, & Kwasnik, 1996; Beiderman, Faraone, & Lapey, 1992; Fischer, Fischer, et al., 1990; Hinshaw, 1994; Nadeau 1995; Weiss & Hechtman, 1993). Although ADHD is one of the most commonly diagnosed and widely researched disorders, the diagnostic criteria and defining characteristics of ADHD remain controversial (Wolraich, 1999). The current diagnostic formulation, as specified by the DSM-IV-TR, includes three distinct subtypes: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder- Predominantly Hyperactive Impulsive Type (ADHD-H), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Predominantly Inattentive Type (ADHD-PI) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder- Combined Typed (ADHD-C). Perhaps the most controversial aspect of the current nosology is the inclusion of the inattention symptoms within the family of ADHD diagnoses (Milich, Balentine, Lynam, 2001). Researchers and clinicians have further posited that ADHD-PI represents a distinct disorder with two subtypes: inattentive-disorganized and sluggish cognitive tempo. This study explored the relation between reading fluency, sluggish cognitive tempo symptoms, disorganized symptoms, processing speed and ADHD diagnosis. This study examined performance of children diagnosed 77 children diagnosed with ADHD (i.e. 53 participants met criteria for ADHD-PI and 24 participants met criteria for ADHD-C) on measures of cognitive functioning, processing speed, behavioral reports, sluggish cognitive tempo, disorganization and reading fluency. Significant group differences did not emerge on measures of processing speed, sluggish cognitive tempo symptoms or disorganized symptoms. Path analysis was employed to examine the simultaneous effects of processing speed on inattention symptoms, hyperactive/impulsive symptoms, SCT symptoms, DO symptoms, reading fluency, and internalizing symptoms. In addition, the paths from SCT symptoms, DO symptoms, inattention symptoms, and hyperactive/impulsive symptoms to reading fluency and internalizing symptoms were also be examined. Processing speed had a significant direct effect on SCT symptoms, Inattention Symptoms and Reading Fluency. In addition, SCT symptoms had a significant direct effect on anxiety symptoms. In summary, findings from the study provide important information about the link between processing speed, attention written, and reading fluency. Limitations of the study and implications for future research and practice are discussed. / text

Guided by a conceptual framework regarding how supportive messages interpreted as negatively controlling are related to individuals’ relational health and weight management efforts, this research explored participants’ interpretations of their romantic partner’s weight management messages in a two-phase study. In phase one, college students were presented with a sample of supportive weight management messages. Participants were asked to describe the degree to which each message communicated support and negative control as well as respond to items concerning their personal and relational characteristics. In phase two, participants were asked to report a memorable weight management message they received from their current romantic partner. These messages were then assessed for their degree of support and negative control by the participant. Additionally, students responded to measures concerning how perceptions of their health attitude and relational qualities changed after receiving the message. Results from phase one indicated that readiness to change, body esteem, external and internal locus of control, history of received support, and level of relational distress were all significant predictors of interpreting a supportive weight management message as negatively controlling. Phase two results indicated that perceived negative control in a partner’s weight management message is a significant predictor of perceived level of trust in their relationship, weight management commitment, exercise self-efficacy, diet self-efficacy, and perceived negative change in relational quality. The relevance of perceived negative control for relational functioning and health attitudes is discussed. / text

Rationale: Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder with onset prior to the age of three years characterized by qualitative impairments in social interaction and communication skill, along with a restricted repetitive and stereotyped pattern of behavior, interests, and activities. In addition to these core diagnostic features, aberrant sensory responding has also been widely reported in the literature describing children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Aberrant sensory processing has, however, been infrequently studied compared to communication and cognition in autism and existing studies have had multiple methodological deficiencies, especially with sampling procedures. Purpose. The purpose of this study is to describe patterns of sensory processing found in children with an ASD to test the relationship(s) of these patterns to diagnostic and developmental variables. Method. Retrospective data collection was used to collect developmental and sensory processing variables of 400 children with an ASD. Sensory processing abilities were measured by the SSP. Results. The majority of the sample (80.5%) had a diagnosis of autism. The average age of the sample was 49.58 months. The adaptive, social, language, and motor developmental variables were consistent with diagnostic patterns in that the children with Asperger Disorder demonstrated higher developmental levels than the children with autism and PDD-NOS. Eighty-nine percent of the sample demonstrated some degree of sensory processing dysfunction on the SSP Total Score with the greatest difficulties reported on the Underresponsive/Seeks Sensation, Auditory Filtering, and Tactile Sensitivity sections. Exploratory factor analysis identified 6 parsimonious factors: Low Energy/Weak, Tactile and Movement Sensitivity, Taste/Smell Sensitivity, Auditory and Visual Sensitivity, Sensory Seeking/Distractibility, and Hypo-responsivity. These factor variables contributed to explaining the differences in five of six developmental variables of the sample that are associated with the diagnosis of autism. Receptive language, adaptive and expressive language performance were significantly correlated with sensory processing factor scores. Conclusions. Together, the sensory processing findings noted in this study describe a pattern of dysfunctional sensory modulation. These findings have significant implications for intervention programs involving individuals with an ASD, given the potential impact of these findings on a childs ability to maintain active engagement.

This study compared psychological and physiological differences between children diagnosed with migraine and their healthy peers. Physiological measures were obtained at baseline, after discussing an emotionally relevant stressor, and after recovery in 21 children with pediatric migraine and 32 healthy peers. Comparisons were also made on psychological measures investigating sleep problems, anxiety, and family stress. It was hypothesized that children with migraine compared to their peers 1) would report more sleep disturbances, anxiety, and family stress 2) would exhibit greater sympathetic activation at rest, in response to an emotional stressor, and after a recovery period and 3) that autonomic functioning would mediate the relation between the presence of pediatric migraine and sleep disturbances. Results indicated that the migraine group reported significantly greater anxiety compared to peers but there were no significant differences in sleep disturbances or family stress. Within the migraine group, migraine severity was significantly associated with total sleep disturbance and greater incidence of parasomnias, while migraine duration was significantly associated with greater night time awakenings. Migraine children also exhibited a significantly higher pulse rate compared to their peers at rest and a significantly higher diastolic blood pressure and marginally significant higher LF/HF ratio at recovery from an emotional stressor. These findings suggest that sleep disturbance and pediatric migraine are significantly related but the relation is unclear and warrants additional research. Results also indicate that children with migraine may experience more anxiety than peers. Of most interest, results suggest that children with migraine may experience a disinhibition of the autonomic nervous system characterized by a dominance of the sympathetic nervous system resulting in a longer recovery period following an emotional stressor.

Women suffer a high prevalence rate of several mental disorders. National U.S. data (N = 9,282) shows that 23.4% of women meet the criteria for an anxiety disorder, 8.6% for depression, and 11.6% for a mood disorder (Kessler et al., 2005). Compared to men, women are two times more likely to be depressed (Lewinsohn, Rhode, Seeley, & Baldwin, 2001) and two to three times more likely to suffer from anxiety disorders such as panic disorders, phobias, obsessive compulsive disorders, and Posttraumatic Stress (Kessler et al., 2005). Due to experiencing a high number of mental disorders, women’s psychological well-being (PWB) has been questioned (OWH, 2009). Considerable research describes the negative influence psychological distress has on women’s lives, but little is understood of what constitutes PWB. Ryff (1989) proposed that existing models of mental health too often focus on illness and disorders, neglecting important aspects of positive functioning. This study was based on Ryff’s (1989) conceptualization that improved PWB would reflect the perception of functioning well in life (Ryff, 1989). The purpose of the present study was to identify factors important in women’s PWB. Factors included: age, household income, education, marital status, race/ethnicity, perceived social support, psychological distress, and PWB. The design of the study was a secondary data analysis based on an existing study, “The Psychological Well-Being of Women Pre- and Post- a Breast Cancer Diagnosis.” Women recalled for a diagnostic mammogram, but not diagnosed, were included in the study (N = 2,746). Measures used included: a demographic questionnaire, Scales of psychological well-being (Ryff, 1989); Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scales (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995); and a Visual Analog Scale of Perceived Social Support. Findings showed that income, education, and perceived social support showed statistically significant different PWB scores in the positive direction. Married women scored higher PWB scores than women of other types of marital status, but neither age nor race/ethnicity showed differences in outcome scores. Psychological distress and PWB were strongly and inversely correlated, suggesting that the constructs are more directly related than previously identified. Implications for therapeutic practice and future research are discussed.

This study examined the emotion recognition of children (ages 7-9 years) with and without Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Children completed two emotion recognition measures, the Diagnostic Analysis of Nonverbal Accuracy 2 (DANVA2) and the Child and Adolescent Social Perception measure (CASP). Children and their parents also completed an assessment of children’s social skills, the Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS). Children with ADHD reported a significantly greater level of depressive symptoms and had significantly lower full scale IQ scores than children without ADHD. When these differences were accounted for, children with ADHD continued to show a handful of deficits in emotion recognition. They demonstrated difficulties in emotion recognition on the DANVA2 regarding specific emotions, fear and sadness. On the CASP, children with ADHD made significantly more errors than children without ADHD due to a tendency to make up information to explain how they were able to identify feelings. Children’s performance on the emotion recognition measures did not significantly mediate the relation between their diagnostic status and social skills (as rated by parents). In summary, additional evidence was found regarding the deficits in emotion recognition experienced by children with ADHD, however, further work needs to be done to determine if these deficits relate to the peer difficulties experienced by these children.