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Sample records for parental social cognitions

  1. Social cognitive mediators of parent-child sexual communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evans, W Douglas; Blitstein, Jonathan L; Davis, Kevin C

    2011-07-01

    To test a social cognitive behavior change model and identify mediators of the effects of the Parents Speak Up National Campaign (PSUNC) on parent-child sexual communication. Investigators used 5 waves of data from an online randomized controlled trial. Latent variables were developed based on item response theory and confirmatory factor analysis. Structural equation modeling was used to test mediation. Outcome expectations mediated effects of social norms and self-efficacy on sexual communication. Other hypothesized mediators were not confirmed. Interventions to promote parent-child sexual communication should target outcome expectations. Future research should investigate parents' health information seeking.

  2. Relational and Social-Cognitive Correlates of Early Adolescents' Forgiveness of Parents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christensen, Katherine J.; Padilla-Walker, Laura M.; Busby, Dean M.; Hardy, Sam A.; Day, Randal D.

    2011-01-01

    This study examined how mother and father-child relationship quality and marital forgiveness were related to early adolescents' forgiveness of mothers and fathers. Adolescents' social-cognitive skills (empathy and emotional regulation) and parents' forgiveness of child were examined as mediators. Mother, father, and child self-reported…

  3. Social-Cognitive Predictors of Low-Income Parents' Restriction of Screen Time among Preschool-Aged Children

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    Lampard, Amy M.; Jurkowski, Janine M.; Davison, Kirsten K.

    2013-01-01

    Parents' rules regarding child television, DVD, video game, and computer use (screen time) have been associated with lower screen use in children. This study aimed to identify modifiable correlates of this behavior by examining social-cognitive predictors of parents' restriction of child screen time. Low-income parents ("N" = 147) of…

  4. Parental Cognitions, Parental Behavior, and the Child's Understanding of the Parent-Child Relationship.

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    Dekovic, Maja; And Others

    1991-01-01

    Studied the relationship of parental reasoning complexity to parental behavior during parent-child interactions, and the effect of this relationship on children's social cognitions. Results indicate that parental reasoning complexity is related to parental behaviors of restrictive control, authoritative control, and support, which, in turn, are…

  5. Racial/ethnic socialization and parental involvement in education as predictors of cognitive ability and achievement in African American children.

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    Banerjee, Meeta; Harrell, Zaje A T; Johnson, Deborah J

    2011-05-01

    Racial/ethnic socialization has not been studied in the context of other parenting behaviors such as parental involvement in education and its relationship to children's cognitive outcomes. The present study tested the impact of racial/ethnic socialization and parental involvement in education on cognitive ability and achievement in a sample of African American youth. Two dimensions of racial/ethnic socialization, cultural exposure (i.e., exposure to diverse cultures) and cultural socialization (i.e., in-group pride), were examined in a sample of 92 African American mother-child dyads, of which 50% were female. Maternal reports of involvement during their child's 5th grade year were examined as a moderator in the relationship between racial/ethnic socialization and cognitive ability and achievement. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that mothers' reports of cultural exposure messages measured in 4th grade predicted children's scores on 5th grade assessments of passage comprehension. There was also a significant interaction indicating that greater cultural exposure and more parental involvement in education predicted better reading passage comprehension scores over time. The implications for assessing dimensions relevant to cognitive ability and achievement in African American children are discussed.

  6. Overcoming barriers to exercise among parents: A social cognitive theory perspective

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    Mailey, Emily L.; Phillips, Siobhan M.; Dlugonski, Deirdre; Conroy, David E.

    2017-01-01

    Parents face numerous barriers to exercise and exhibit high levels of inactivity. Examining theory-based determinants of exercise among parents may inform interventions for this population. The purpose of this study was to test a social-cognitive model of parental exercise participation over a 12-month period. Mothers (n=226) and fathers (n=70) of children exercise, barriers self-efficacy, perceived barriers, and exercise planning at baseline and one year later. Panel analyses were used to test the hypothesized relationships. Barriers self-efficacy was related to exercise directly and indirectly through perceived barriers and prioritization/planning. Prioritization and planning also mediated the relationship between perceived barriers and exercise. These paths remained significant at 12 months. These results suggest efforts to increase exercise in parents should focus on improving confidence to overcome exercise barriers, reducing perceptions of barriers, and helping parents make specific plans for prioritizing and engaging in exercise. PMID:27108160

  7. Influence of Mother, Father, and Child Risk on Parenting and Children's Cognitive and Social Behaviors

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    Cabrera, Natasha J.; Fagan, Jay; Wight, Vanessa; Schadler, Cornelia

    2011-01-01

    The association among mothers', fathers', and infants' risk and cognitive and social behaviors at 24 months was examined using structual equation modeling and data on 4,200 on toddlers and their parents from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort. There were 3 main findings. First, for cognitive outcomes, maternal risk was directly…

  8. Intellectual Disabilities and Neglectful Parenting: Preliminary Findings on the Role of Cognition in Parenting Risk

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    Azar, Sandra T.; Stevenson, Michael T.; Johnson, David R.

    2012-01-01

    Parents with intellectual disabilities (PID) are overrepresented in the child protective services (CPS) system. This study examined a more nuanced view of the role of cognition in parenting risk. Its goal was to validate a social information processing (SIP) model of child neglect that draws on social cognition research and advances in…

  9. Overcoming barriers to exercise among parents: a social cognitive theory perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mailey, Emily L; Phillips, Siobhan M; Dlugonski, Deirdre; Conroy, David E

    2016-08-01

    Parents face numerous barriers to exercise and exhibit high levels of inactivity. Examining theory-based determinants of exercise among parents may inform interventions for this population. The purpose of this study was to test a social-cognitive model of parental exercise participation over a 12-month period. Mothers (n = 226) and fathers (n = 70) of children self-efficacy, perceived barriers, and exercise planning at baseline and 1 year later. Panel analyses were used to test the hypothesized relationships. Barriers self-efficacy was related to exercise directly and indirectly through perceived barriers and prioritization/planning. Prioritization and planning also mediated the relationship between perceived barriers and exercise. These paths remained significant at 12 months. These results suggest efforts to increase exercise in parents should focus on improving confidence to overcome exercise barriers, reducing perceptions of barriers, and helping parents make specific plans for prioritizing and engaging in exercise.

  10. Cognitive deconstruction of parenting in schizophrenia: the role of theory of mind.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mehta, Urvakhsh M; Bhagyavathi, Haralahalli D; Kumar, Channaveerachari Naveen; Thirthalli, Jagadisha; Gangadhar, Bangalore N

    2014-03-01

    Schizophrenia patients experience impairments across various functional roles. Emotional unresponsiveness and an inability to foster intimacy and display affection may lead to impairments in parenting. A comprehensive cognitive understanding of parenting abilities in schizophrenia has the potential to guide newer treatment strategies. As part of a larger study on functional ability in schizophrenia patients, we attempted a cognitive deconstruction of their parenting ability. Sixty-nine of the 170 patients who participated in a study on social cognition in remitted schizophrenia were parents (mean age of their children: 11.8 ± 6.2 years). They underwent comprehensive assessments for neurocognition, social cognition (theory of mind, emotion processing, social perception and attributional bias), motivation and insight. A rater blind to their cognitive status assessed their social functioning using the Groningen Social Disabilities Schedule. We examined the association of their functional ability (active involvement and affective relationship) in the parental role with their cognitive performance as well as with their level of insight and motivation. Deficits in first- and second-order theory of mind (t = 2.57, p = 0.01; t = 3.2, p = 0.002, respectively), speed of processing (t = 2.37, p = 0.02), cognitive flexibility (t = 2.26, p = 0.02) and motivation (t = 2.64, p = 0.01) had significant association with parental role dysfunction. On logistic regression, second-order theory of mind emerged as a specific predictor of parental role, even after controlling for overall functioning scores sans parental role. Second-order theory of mind deficits are specifically associated with parental role dysfunction of patients with schizophrenia. Novel treatment strategies targeting theory of mind may improve parenting abilities in individuals with schizophrenia.

  11. Social Cognition in Williams Syndrome: Relations Between Performance on the Social Attribution Task and Cognitive and Behavioral Characteristics

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    Faye eVan der Fluit

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Williams syndrome (WS is a developmental disorder of genetic origin, with characteristic cognitive and personality profiles. Studies of WS point to an outgoing and gregarious personality style, often contrasted with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs; however, recent research has uncovered underlying social reciprocity difficulties in people with WS. Participants in the current study included 24 children with WS ages 8 through 15. A lab-based measure of social perception and social cognition was administered (Social Attribution Test, as well as an intellectual functioning measure (KBIT-II and parent reports of communication and reciprocal social skills (Social Communication Questionnaire, Social Responsiveness Scale. Relations between social cognition, cognitive abilities, and social-communication were examined. Results demonstrated relations between parent-reported social reciprocity and the typicality of the responses provided in the lab-based measure, even once variability in intellectual functioning was taken into account. In addition, a significant improvement in performance was seen with the added scaffolding particularly for participants with stronger intellectual functioning.

  12. Comparison of Cognitive, Psychological and Social Characteristics, between Parents Who Have More Than One Exceptional Child with Parents of Normal Child

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    Mohammad Mousavy-Khatat

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE FA /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal" mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0 mso-tstyle-colband-size:0 mso-style-noshow:yes mso-style-priority:99 mso-style-parent:"" mso-padding-alt:0mm 5.4pt 0mm 5.4pt mso-para-margin-top:0mm mso-para-margin-right:0mm mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt mso-para-margin-left:0mm line-height:115% mso-pagination:widow-orphan font-size:11.0pt font-family:"Times New Roman","serif" mso-ascii-font-family:"Times New Roman" mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin mso-hansi-font-family:"Times New Roman" mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin mso-bidi-font-family:"XB Niloofar" mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi} Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the cognitive, psychological and social characteristics between parents who have more than one exceptional child and those parents with normal child. Materials & Methods: In this cross sectional and comparative study, 80 families who had more than one exceptional child were conveniently selected and 53 families with normal child were selected using multi-stage sampling in schools of Uromia city, western Iran. The Cognitive, Psychological and Social Characteristics of Parents with more than One Special Child Questionnaire, General Health Questionnaire (GHQ and Evaluation and Nurturing Relationship Issues Communication and Happiness (ENRICH were used. Compromise Xi Chi, Yu-Man Whitney and t tests were used for data analysis. Results: Among cognitive, psychological and social variables, job (Father and Mother (P<0.001 education (Father & Mother time of disability awareness (P<0.001 parents' level of interest to marriage (P<0.001 parents' relationship before birth (P<0.001 parents' relationship during pregnancy (P<0.001 Mothers' mental health (physical symptoms P=0.037, depression P=0.041, social dysfunction P=0.04, anxiety and insomnia P=0.001 and marital satisfaction (P=0.030 were statistically significant between the two

  13. Social and cognitive factors associated with children’s secret-keeping for a parent

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    Gordon, Heidi M.; Lyon, Thomas D.; Lee, Kang

    2014-01-01

    This study examined children’s secret-keeping for a parent and its relationship to trust, theory of mind, secrecy endorsement, and executive functioning (EF). Children (N = 107) between 4 and 12 years of age participated in a procedure wherein parents broke a toy and asked children to promise secrecy. Responses to open-ended and direct questions were examined. Overall, secret-keeping increased with age and promising to keep the secret was related to fewer disclosures in open-ended questioning. Children who kept the secret in direct questioning exhibited greater trust and better parental ratings of EF than children who disclosed the secret. Findings highlight the importance of both social and cognitive factors in secret-keeping development. PMID:25291258

  14. Social and cognitive factors associated with children's secret-keeping for a parent.

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    Gordon, Heidi M; Lyon, Thomas D; Lee, Kang

    2014-01-01

    This study examined children's secret-keeping for a parent and its relation to trust, theory of mind, secrecy endorsement, and executive functioning (EF). Children (N = 107) between 4 and 12 years of age participated in a procedure wherein parents broke a toy and asked children to promise secrecy. Responses to open-ended and direct questions were examined. Overall, secret-keeping increased with age and promising to keep the secret was related to fewer disclosures in open-ended questioning. Children who kept the secret in direct questioning exhibited greater trust and better parental ratings of EF than children who disclosed the secret. Findings highlight the importance of both social and cognitive factors in secret-keeping development. © 2014 The Authors. Child Development © 2014 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

  15. Early Social Cognition in Three Cultural Contexts

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    Callaghan, Tara; Moll, Henrike; Rakoczy, Hannes; Warneken, Felix; Liszkowski, Ulf; Behne, Tanya; Tomasello, Michael

    2011-01-01

    The influence of culture on cognitive development is well established for school age and older children. But almost nothing is known about how different parenting and socialization practices in different cultures affect infants' and young children's earliest emerging cognitive and social-cognitive skills. In the current monograph, we report a…

  16. Parent socialization effects in different cultures: significance of directive parenting.

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    Sorkhabi, Nadia

    2012-06-01

    In this article, the controversy of divergent findings in research on parental socialization effects in different cultures is addressed. Three explanations intended to address divergent findings of socialization effects in different cultures, as advanced by researchers who emphasize cultural differences, are discussed. These include cultural differences in socialization values and goals of parents, parental emotional and cognitive characteristics associated with parenting styles, and adolescents' interpretations or evaluations of their parents' parenting styles. The empirical evidence for and against each of these arguments is examined and an alternative paradigm for understanding and empirical study of developmental outcomes associated with parenting styles in different cultures is suggested. Baumrind's directive parenting style is presented as an alternative to the authoritarian parenting style in understanding the positive developmental effects associated with "strict" parenting in cultures said to have a collectivist orientation. Directions for research on the three explanations are mentioned.

  17. Intellectual Disabilities and Neglectful Parenting: Preliminary Findings on the Role of Cognition in Parenting Risk

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    Azar, Sandra T.; Stevenson, Michael T.; Johnson, David R.

    2012-01-01

    Parents with intellectual disabilities (PID) are over-represented in the child protective services (CPS) system. This study examined a more nuanced view of the role of cognition in parenting risk. Its goal was to validate a social information processing (SIP) model of child neglect that draws on social cognition research and advances in neuroscience. Mothers who had CPS child neglect cases were compared with mothers with no CPS involvement on a set of SIP factors. Mothers with low IQs were ov...

  18. Peer Victimization and Harsh Parenting Predict Cognitive Diatheses for Depression in Children and Adolescents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cole, David A.; Sinclair-McBride, Keneisha R.; Zelkowitz, Rachel; Bilsky, Sarah A.; Roeder, Kathryn; Spinelli, Tawny

    2015-01-01

    Objective The current study examined peer victimization and harsh parenting as longitudinal predictors of broadband and narrowband cognitions associated with the etiology of depression in children and adolescents. Method The sample consisted of 214 elementary and middle school students. At the start of the study, their average age was 12.2 years (SD = 1.0). The sex ratio was 112 girls to 102 boys. The sample was ethnically diverse (58.9% Caucasian, 34.1% African American, 10.7% Hispanic, 3.3% Asian, and 5.2% other). Children and their parents completed measures of peer victimization and harsh parenting. At two waves one year apart, children also completed questionnaire measures of negative and positive broadband cognitive style (e.g., personal failure, global self-worth) and narrowband self-perceptions (e.g., perceived social threat, social acceptance). Results Every wave 2 cognitive variable was predicted by peer victimization or harsh parenting or both, even after controlling for a wave 1 measure of the same cognitive variable. Peer victimization more consistently predicted narrowband social/interpersonal cognitions, whereas harsh parenting more consistently predicted broadband positive and negative cognitions. Furthermore, controlling for positive and negative self-cognitions eliminated a statistically significant effect of harsh parenting and peer victimization on depressive symptoms. Conclusions Support emerged for the social learning of negative self-cognitions. Support also emerged for negative self-cognitions as a mediator of depressive symptoms. Implications for theory and practice are discussed. PMID:25751612

  19. Peer Victimization and Harsh Parenting Predict Cognitive Diatheses for Depression in Children and Adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cole, David A; Sinclair-McBride, Keneisha R; Zelkowitz, Rachel; Bilsk, Sarah A; Roeder, Kathryn; Spinelli, Tawny

    2016-01-01

    The current study examined peer victimization and harsh parenting as longitudinal predictors of broadband and narrowband cognitions associated with the etiology of depression in children and adolescents. The sample consisted of 214 elementary and middle school students. At the start of the study, their average age was 12.2 years (SD = 1.0). The sex ratio was 112 girls to 102 boys. The sample was ethnically diverse (58.9% Caucasian, 34.1% African American, 10.7% Hispanic, 3.3% Asian, and 5.2% other). Children and their parents completed measures of peer victimization and harsh parenting. At two waves 1 year apart, children also completed questionnaire measures of negative and positive broadband cognitive style (e.g., personal failure, global self-worth) and narrowband self-perceptions (e.g., perceived social threat, social acceptance). Every Wave 2 cognitive variable was predicted by peer victimization or harsh parenting or both, even after controlling for a Wave 1 measure of the same cognitive variable. Peer victimization more consistently predicted narrowband social/interpersonal cognitions, whereas harsh parenting more consistently predicted broadband positive and negative cognitions. Furthermore, controlling for positive and negative self-cognitions eliminated a statistically significant effect of harsh parenting and peer victimization on depressive symptoms. Support emerged for the social learning of negative self-cognitions. Support also emerged for negative self-cognitions as a mediator of depressive symptoms. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

  20. Parental social coaching promotes adolescent peer acceptance across the middle school transition.

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    Gregson, Kim D; Tu, Kelly M; Erath, Stephen A; Pettit, Gregory S

    2017-09-01

    The present study investigated longitudinal associations between behavioral and cognitive dimensions of parental social coaching (i.e., advice about how to behave or think about peer challenges) and young adolescents' peer acceptance, and whether such associations are moderated by youths' social skills. Time 1 (T1) participants included 123 young adolescents (M age = 12.03 years; 50% boys; 58.5% European American). Parents gave open-ended reports about their social coaching to hypothetical peer stress scenarios, which were coded from low to high quality on behavioral and cognitive dimensions. Parents and teachers reported on adolescent prosocial behavior (i.e., social-behavioral skills), and adolescents reported on their social appraisals and social self-efficacy (i.e., social-cognitive skills). At T1 (before the first year of middle school) and Time 2 (approximately 10 months later, after the first year of middle school), parents and teachers rated adolescent peer acceptance. Analyses revealed that parents' prosocial behavioral advice and benign cognitive framing independently predicted adolescents' higher peer acceptance prospectively (controlling for earlier levels of peer acceptance). Furthermore, adolescent social skills moderated links between coaching and peer acceptance. Specifically, adolescents with higher, but not lower, social-cognitive skills became more accepted in the context of higher-quality coaching, supporting a "capitalization" pattern, such that these youth may be better able to utilize coaching suggestions. Results underscore the utility of parents' behavioral advice and cognitive framing for adolescent peer adjustment across the middle school transition and suggest that optimal social-coaching strategies may depend in part on adolescent social skill level. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  1. Social-cognitive predictors of low-income parents' restriction of screen time among preschool-aged children.

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    Lampard, Amy M; Jurkowski, Janine M; Davison, Kirsten K

    2013-10-01

    Parents' rules regarding child television, DVD, video game, and computer use (screen time) have been associated with lower screen use in children. This study aimed to identify modifiable correlates of this behavior by examining social-cognitive predictors of parents' restriction of child screen time. Low-income parents (N = 147) of preschool-aged children (2-6 years) completed self-administered questionnaires examining parent and child screen time, parent restriction of screen time, self-efficacy to restrict screen time, and beliefs about screen time. Structural equation modeling results indicated that greater self-efficacy to restrict screen time (β = .29, p = .016) and greater perceived importance of restricting child screen use (β = .55, p < .001) were associated with greater restriction of child screen use, after controlling for parent screen time. Family-based interventions that consider broader attitudinal factors around child screen time may be necessary to engage parents in restricting screen use.

  2. The role of social and cognitive processes in the relationship between fear network and psychological distress among parents of children undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

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    Virtue, Shannon Myers; Manne, Sharon; Mee, Laura; Bartell, Abraham; Sands, Stephen; Ohman-Strickland, Pamela; Gajda, Tina Marie

    2014-09-01

    The current study examined whether cognitive and social processing variables mediated the relationship between fear network and depression among parents of children undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). Parents whose children were initiating HSCT (N = 179) completed survey measures including fear network, Beck Depression Inventory, cognitive processing variables (positive reappraisal and self-blame) and social processing variables (emotional support and holding back from sharing concerns). Fear network was positively correlated with depression (p fear network and depression. Together they accounted for 34.3% of the variance in the relationship between fear network and depression. Positive reappraisal and emotional support did not have significant mediating effects. Social and cognitive processes, specifically self-blame and holding back from sharing concerns, play a negative role in parents' psychological adaptation to fears surrounding a child's HSCT.

  3. Social Cognitive Career Theory and Middle School Student Career Exploration

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    Sickinger, Pamela H.

    2013-01-01

    Within the framework of social cognitive career theory, social cognitive career variables, demographic variables, and the contextual variable, parent support, were examined to determine their predictive value for eighth-grade students' career exploration behavior. Results suggest that the social cognitive career variable, intentions/goals,…

  4. Parent Social Networks and Parent Responsibility: Implications for School Leadership

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    Curry, Katherine A.; Adams, Curt M.

    2014-01-01

    Family-school partnerships are difficult to initiate and sustain in ways that actually promote student learning, especially in high-poverty communities. This quantitative study was designed to better understand how social forces shape parent responsibility in education. Based on social cognitive theory as the conceptual framework, the…

  5. Developmental Pathways for Social Understanding: Linking Social Cognition to Social Contexts

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    Kimberly eBrink

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Contemporary research, often with looking-time tasks, reveals that infants possess foundational understandings of their social worlds. However, few studies have examined how these early social cognitions relate to the child’s social interactions and behavior in early development. Does an early understanding of the social world relate to how an infant interacts with his or her parents? Do early social interactions along with social-cognitive understandings in infancy predict later preschool social competencies? In the current paper, we propose a theory in which children’s later social behaviors and their understanding of the social world depend on the integration of early social understanding and experiences in infancy. We review several of our studies, as well as other research, that directly examine the pathways between these competencies to support a hypothesized network of relations between social-cognitive development and social-interactive behaviors in the development from infancy to childhood. In total, these findings reveal differences in infant social competences that both track the developmental trajectory of infants’ understanding of people over the first years of life and provide external validation for the large body of social-cognitive findings emerging from laboratory looking-time paradigms.

  6. Maternal depression: effects on social cognition and behavior in parent-child interactions.

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    Lovejoy, M C

    1991-12-01

    The social interactions of depressed and nondepressed mothers and their preschool-age children were observed and mothers' perceptions of child behavior assessed. Depressed mothers, as a group, exhibited more negative behavior than controls; however, no differences were found for maternal positive behavior or contingent responding. There was a high degree of reciprocity between child and mother behavior in both groups and there was a trend for children of the depressed mothers to be more negative than the control children. The results with cognitive measures were consistent with depressive realism in perception of social interactions: Depressed mothers recalled more negative child behavior than nondepressed mothers; however, these perceptions paralleled the observed interactions. Overall, the results suggest that maternal depression is associated with negative parent-child interactions and more negative, albeit fairly accurate, perceptions of child behavior.

  7. Parents Representations of the Legal Socialization of Children

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    Kalashnikova A.S.,

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Insufficient knowledge about the impact of parental education on the development strategies of justice of children and adolescents in destabilizing the social conditions of modern society determines the relevance of the author's work. The study involved 64 subjects (39 women and 25 men aged 24 to 48 years, with minor children, including 30 subjects with a harmonious style of parenting and 34 - with disharmonious style. We used a questionnaire "Analysis of family relationships" (E.G. Eidemiller, V.V. Yustitskis, a technique of studying legal awareness of J. Tapp and F. Levine, as well as specially designed questionnaires, aimed at studying the cognitive (knowledge of parents about legal socialization and behavioral (conversations on topics of law, reinforcement and punishment of right and wrong actions, monitoring of performance, personal example components of legal socialization. We obtained new empirical evidence on the relation between the features of legal socialization of children and parent-child relationship, clarified the role of the individual types of parental attitudes in the formation of the legal socialization of children, revealed the factors of parental attitudes that hinder and facilitate the process of legal socialization of children

  8. Maternal Personality, Parenting Cognitions and Parenting Practices

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    Bornstein, Marc H.; Hahn, Chun-Shin; Haynes, O. Maurice

    2011-01-01

    A community sample of 262 European American mothers of firstborn 20-month-olds completed a personality inventory and measures of parenting cognitions (knowledge, self-perceptions, and reports about behavior) and was observed in interaction with their children from which measures of parenting practices (language, sensitivity, affection, and play) were independently coded. Factor analyses of the personality inventory replicated extraction of the Five-Factor model of personality (Openness, Neuroticism, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness). Controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, the five personality factors qua variables and in patterns qua clusters related differently to diverse parenting cognitions and practices, supporting the multidimensional, modular, and specific nature of parenting. Maternal personality in the normal range, a theoretically important but empirically neglected factor in everyday parenting, has meaning in studies of parenting, child development, and family process. PMID:21443335

  9. Social cognition in preschoolers: effects of early experience and individual differences

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    Daniela Bulgarelli

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Social cognition is the way in which people process, remember and use information in social contexts to explain and predict their own behaviour and that of others. Children’s social cognition may be influenced by multiple factors, both external and internal to the child. In the current study, two aspects of social cognition were examined: Theory of Mind (ToM and Emotion Understanding (EU. The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of type of early care (0-3 years of age, maternal education, parents’ country of birth, and child’s language on the social cognition of 118 Italian preschoolers. To our knowledge, the joint effect of these variables on social cognition has not previously been investigated in the literature. The measures used to collect social cognition and linguistic data were not parent- or teacher-reports, but based on direct assessment of the children through two standardized tests, the Test of Emotion Comprehension and the ToM Storybooks. Relationships among the variables showed a complex pattern. Overall, maternal education and linguistic competence showed a systematic effect on social cognition; the linguistic competence mediated the effect of maternal education. In children who had experienced centre-base care in the first three years of life, the effect of maternal education disappeared, supporting the protective role of centre-base care for children with less educated mothers. The children with native and foreign parents did not significantly differed on the social cognition tasks. Limits of the study, possible educational outcomes and future research lines were discussed.

  10. Parental Cognitive Errors Mediate Parental Psychopathology and Ratings of Child Inattention.

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    Haack, Lauren M; Jiang, Yuan; Delucchi, Kevin; Kaiser, Nina; McBurnett, Keith; Hinshaw, Stephen; Pfiffner, Linda

    2017-09-01

    We investigate the Depression-Distortion Hypothesis in a sample of 199 school-aged children with ADHD-Predominantly Inattentive presentation (ADHD-I) by examining relations and cross-sectional mediational pathways between parental characteristics (i.e., levels of parental depressive and ADHD symptoms) and parental ratings of child problem behavior (inattention, sluggish cognitive tempo, and functional impairment) via parental cognitive errors. Results demonstrated a positive association between parental factors and parental ratings of inattention, as well as a mediational pathway between parental depressive and ADHD symptoms and parental ratings of inattention via parental cognitive errors. Specifically, higher levels of parental depressive and ADHD symptoms predicted higher levels of cognitive errors, which in turn predicted higher parental ratings of inattention. Findings provide evidence for core tenets of the Depression-Distortion Hypothesis, which state that parents with high rates of psychopathology hold negative schemas for their child's behavior and subsequently, report their child's behavior as more severe. © 2016 Family Process Institute.

  11. Physical activity and parents of very young children: The role of beliefs and social-cognitive factors.

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    Cowie, Eloise; White, Katherine; Hamilton, Kyra

    2018-05-14

    Despite the unequivocal benefits of regular physical activity, many parents engage in lower levels of physical activity (PA) following the birth of a child. Drawing on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and health action process approach (HAPA), an integrative model was developed to examine variables predicting PA in parents of very young children. In addition, key beliefs related to PA intentions and behaviour among parents of very young children were investigated. A prospective-correlational design with two waves of data collection, spaced one week apart, was adopted. Parents (N = 297) completed an online- or paper-based questionnaire assessing TPB global constructs and belief-based items as well as family social support and planning from the HAPA. One week later, parents self-reported their PA behaviour. Data were analysed using latent variable structural equation modelling. Findings revealed the model was a good fit to the data, accounting for 62% and 27% of the variance in PA intentions and behaviour, respectively. Attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioural control predicted intentions. Family social support failed to predict both planning and intentions. Physical activity was predicted by planning only, with an indirect effect occurring from intentions to behaviour through planning. A number of key beliefs on intentions and behaviour were also identified. This formative research provides further understanding of the factors that influence the PA behaviour of parents of very young children. Results provide targets for future interventions to increase PA for parents in a transition phase where PA levels decline. Statement of Contribution What is already known on this subject? Despite physical activity benefits, many parents are inactive following the birth of a child Social-cognitive models have demonstrated efficacy in predicting physical activity Weaknesses are inherent in the use of single theories to explain behaviour What does this study

  12. Physical Activity in Parents of Young African American Children: The Application of Social Cognitive Theory.

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    Webber-Ritchey, Kashica J; Taylor-Piliae, Ruth E; Loescher, Lois J

    2018-02-01

    Social cognitive theory (SCT) proposes that personal and environmental factors influence behavior bidirectionally. Research examining the personal and environmental factors of physical activity (PA) among African Americans (AAs) framed by SCT is scarce. The purpose of this article is to enhance knowledge of SCT as a foundation for health promotion and PA research, in general, and among AAs. Findings from a previous study provide exemplars for key factors and relationships in SCT. The SCT serves as a good framework for researchers studying health promotion and PA in generalamong AA parents.

  13. Predictors of parenting stress among Vietnamese mothers of young children with and without cognitive delay.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shin, Jin Y; Nhan, Nguyen Viet

    2009-03-01

    The study examined whether Vietnamese mothers of children with cognitive delay experienced more parenting stress compared to mothers of children without delay, and the factors that contribute to the parenting stress. The study sample included 225 mothers of children with and without cognitive delays from Hue City in Vietnam. The study protocol included mothers reporting on the scales of parenting stress and perceived social support, and on demographic questions. Mothers of children with cognitive delay experienced more stress. They were poorer and less educated, and perceived less social support. More mothers of these children had health issues. Having a child with cognitive delay was the strongest predictor of stress after controlling other demographic and psychosocial variables. Special education and early intervention services should be developed and available to educate the children with cognitive delay and support their mothers in Vietnam. Effective services also need to address their poverty and health care needs.

  14. Economic Cognitions Among Older Adults: Parental Socialization Predicts Financial Planning for Retirement

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francisco Palaci

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Drawing on the model on financial planning for retirement (FPR, the aim of this work is to explore how parental economic socialization both directly and indirectly affects FPR through the mediation of financial literacy, financial planning decisions and financial management. Data from a sample of 280 participants aged between 45 and 63 years were used. The results show that parental economic socialization directly and indirectly influences FPR. Moreover, parental economic behavior acts as a positive model for the development of financial literacy and skills and for decisions about FPR. All the variables increased the explained variance of FPR. Lastly, we discuss the process by which parental economic socialization is positively related to financial literacy and skills that impact on FPR, indicating some implications and future lines of research.

  15. Economic Cognitions Among Older Adults: Parental Socialization Predicts Financial Planning for Retirement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palaci, Francisco; Jiménez, Irene; Topa, Gabriela

    2017-01-01

    Drawing on the model on financial planning for retirement (FPR), the aim of this work is to explore how parental economic socialization both directly and indirectly affects FPR through the mediation of financial literacy, financial planning decisions and financial management. Data from a sample of 280 participants aged between 45 and 63 years were used. The results show that parental economic socialization directly and indirectly influences FPR. Moreover, parental economic behavior acts as a positive model for the development of financial literacy and skills and for decisions about FPR. All the variables increased the explained variance of FPR. Lastly, we discuss the process by which parental economic socialization is positively related to financial literacy and skills that impact on FPR, indicating some implications and future lines of research.

  16. Parents perceptions of social inclusion for children with Williams Syndrome

    OpenAIRE

    Gulliver, Katherine

    2016-01-01

    This thesis explores parents’ perceptions of social inclusion for children with Williams Syndrome; a rare intellectual disability with a distinct social cognitive profile. 5 interviews with parents give rich understanding to what parents’ value for their child’s education, and how this is achieved. Thematic analysis highlights key similarities and differences in experiences between parents of children attending mainstream schools and one special school. Severity of disability affects how pare...

  17. Social Cognition in Children Born Preterm: A Perspective on Future Research Directions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Norbert Zmyj

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Preterm birth is a major risk factor for children’s development. It affects children’s cognitive and intellectual development and is related to impairments in IQ, executive functions, and well-being, with these problems persisting into adulthood. While preterm children’s intellectual and cognitive development has been studied in detail, their social development and social-cognitive competencies have received less attention. Namely, preterm children show problems in interactions with others. These interaction problems are present in relationships with parents, teachers, and peers. Parents’ behavior has been identified as a possible mediator of children’s social behavior. Maternal sensitivity and responsiveness as well as absence of mental disorders foster children’s social development. In this article, we will report on the social side of impairments that preterm children face. The review of the literature revealed that preterm infants’ joint attention abilities are impaired: They are less likely to initiate joint attention with others and to respond to others’ efforts to engage in joint attention. These deficits in joint attention might contribute to later impairments in social cognition, which in turn might affect social interaction skills. Based on these three domains (i.e., problems in social interaction, parental behavior, and impairments in joint attention, we suggest that preterm children’s social cognitive abilities should be investigated more intensively.

  18. Asian cultural values gap, cognitive flexibility, coping strategies, and parent-child conflicts among Korean Americans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahn, Annie J; Kim, Bryan S K; Park, Yong S

    2008-10-01

    The study examined Korean American college students' perceived Asian cultural values gap between themselves and their parents, cognitive flexibility, and coping strategies. The relationships between these factors were studied with the intensities and types of parent-child conflicts. The results indicated that the participants adhered less strongly to Asian values than their parents. When faced with conflicts, the participants reported using problem solving coping strategy to the greatest extent, followed by social support coping strategy, and then avoidance coping strategy. Simultaneous regression analyses revealed a positive relationship between the participant-perceived parent-child values gap and the intensity of conflicts, particularly in the area of dating and marriage. There were inverse relationships between cognitive flexibility and the intensity of conflicts, specifically in the area of dating and marriage. A positive relationship was observed between the use of social support coping strategy and intensity of conflicts. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed a significant interaction effect in which participant-perceived parent-child values gap and cognitive flexibility were related to increased frequency of dating and marriage conflicts.

  19. Reducing children's social anxiety symptoms: exploring a novel parent-administered cognitive bias modification training intervention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lau, Jennifer Y F; Pettit, Eleanor; Creswell, Cathy

    2013-07-01

    Social fears and worries in children are common and impairing. Yet, questions have been raised over the efficacy, suitability and accessibility of current frontline treatments. Here, we present data on the effectiveness of a novel parent-administered Cognitive Bias Modification of Interpretations (CBM-I) training tool. CBM-I capitalises on findings demonstrating an association between anxiety symptoms and biased interpretations, the tendency to interpret ambiguous situations negatively. Through CBM-I training, participants are exposed to benign resolutions, and reinforced for selecting these. In adults and adolescents, CBM-I training is effective at reducing symptoms and mood reactivity. In the present study, we developed a novel, child-appropriate form of CBM-I training, by presenting training materials within bedtime stories, read by a parent to the child across three consecutive evenings. Compared to a test-retest control group (n = 17), children receiving CBM-I (n = 19) reported greater endorsement of benign interpretations of ambiguous situations post-training (compared to pre-training). These participants (but not the test-retest control group) also showed a significant reduction in social anxiety symptoms. Pending replication and extensions to a clinical sample, these data may implicate a cost-effective, mechanism-driven and developmentally-appropriate resource for targeting social anxiety problems in children. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Maternal Personality and Parenting Cognitions in Cross-Cultural Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bornstein, Marc H.; Hahn, Chun-Shin; Haynes, O. Maurice; Belsky, J.; Azuma, Hiroshi; Kwak, Keumjoo; Maital, Sharone; Painter, Kathleen M.; Varron, Cheryl; Pascual, Liliana; Toda, Sueko; Venuti, Paola; Vyt, Andre; de Galperin, Celia Zingman

    2007-01-01

    A total of 467 mothers of firstborn 20-month-old children from 7 countries (103 Argentine, 61 Belgian, 39 Israeli, 78 Italian, 57 Japanese, 69 Korean, and 60 US American) completed the "Jackson Personality Inventory" (JPI), measures of parenting cognitions (self-perceptions and knowledge), and a social desirability scale. Our first…

  1. Longitudinal associations of social cognition and substance use in childhood and early adolescence: findings from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fluharty, Meg E; Heron, Jon; Munafò, Marcus R

    2018-06-01

    Substance use is associated with impaired social cognition. Experimental studies have shown that acute intoxication of alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis decreases the performance in non-verbal, social communication and theory of mind tasks. However, in epidemiological studies the temporal direction of this association has gone relatively unstudied. We investigated both directions of association within an adolescent birth cohort: the association of social cognition with subsequent substance use, and the association of early substance use with subsequent social cognition. We used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, a UK birth cohort. Logistic regression indicated that poor childhood non-verbal communication was associated with decreased odds of adolescent alcohol (OR 0.70, 95% 0.54-0.91), tobacco (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.47-0.83), and cannabis use (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.46-0.83). Early adolescent substance use was associated with increased odds of poor social communication (alcohol: OR 1.46, 95% CI 0.99-2.14; tobacco: OR 1.95, 95% CI 1.33-2.86) and poor social reciprocity (alcohol: OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.18-2.09; tobacco: OR 1.92, 95% CI 1.43-2.58; cannabis: OR 1.54, 95% CI 1.16-2.05). Overall, the relationship between social cognition and substance use was different in each temporal direction. Poor non-verbal communication in childhood appeared protective against later substance use, while adolescent substance use was associated with decreased social cognitive performance.

  2. Interpretation bias modification for youth and their parents: a novel treatment for early adolescent social anxiety.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reuland, Meg M; Teachman, Bethany A

    2014-12-01

    Social anxiety is the most prevalent anxiety disorder of late adolescence, yet current treatments reach only a minority of youth with the disorder. Effective and easy-to-disseminate treatments are needed. This study pilot tested the efficacy of a novel, online cognitive bias modification for interpretation (CBM-I) intervention for socially anxious youth and their parents. The CBM-I intervention targeted cognitive biases associated with early adolescents' maladaptive beliefs regarding social situations, and with parents' intrusive behavior, both of which have been theoretically linked with the maintenance of social anxiety in youth. To investigate the efficacy of intervening with parents and/or children, clinically diagnosed early adolescents (ages 10-15; N=18) and their mothers were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: the first targeted early adolescents' cognitive biases related to social anxiety (Child-only condition); the second targeted parents' biases associated with intrusive behavior (Parent-only condition); and the third targeted both youth and parents' biases in tandem (Combo condition). The use of a multiple baseline design allowed for the efficient assessment of causal links between the intervention and reduction in social anxiety symptoms in youth. Results provided converging evidence indicating modest support for the efficacy of CBM-I, with no reliable differences across conditions. Taken together, results suggest that online CBM-I with anxious youth and/or their parents holds promise as an effective and easily administered component of treatment for child social anxiety that deserves further evaluation in a larger trial. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Maternal Personality, Parenting Cognitions, and Parenting Practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bornstein, Marc H.; Hahn, Chun-Shin; Haynes, O. Maurice

    2011-01-01

    A community sample of 262 European American mothers of firstborn 20-month-olds completed a personality inventory and measures of parenting cognitions (knowledge, self-perceptions, and reports about behavior) and was observed in interaction with their children from which measures of parenting practices (language, sensitivity, affection, and play)…

  4. Cognitive impulsivity and the development of delinquency from late childhood to early adulthood: Moderating effects of parenting behavior and peer relationships.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Menting, Barbara; Van Lier, Pol A C; Koot, Hans M; Pardini, Dustin; Loeber, Rolf

    2016-02-01

    Cognitive impulsivity may increase children's risk of developing delinquent behavior. However, the influence of cognitive impulsivity may depend on social environmental risk factors. This study examined the moderating effect of late childhood parenting behaviors and peer relations on the influence of children's cognitive impulsivity on delinquency development across adolescence and early adulthood, while taking possible interactions with intelligence also into account. Delinquent behavior of 412 boys from the Pittsburgh Youth Study was measured annually from ages 13 to 29 years with official arrest records. Cognitive impulsivity (neurocognitive test scores) and intelligence were assessed at age 12-13. Parenting behaviors (persistence of discipline, positive reinforcement, and parental knowledge), peer delinquency, and peer conventional activities were assessed between ages 10 and 13 years. Results showed that, while controlling for intelligence, the influence of youths' cognitive impulsivity on delinquency depended on their parents' behaviors. An interaction was found among cognitive impulsivity, intelligence, and peer delinquency, but instead of cognitive impulsivity, the effect of intelligence on delinquency was particularly moderated. Overall, findings suggest that when there was moderation, high cognitive impulsivity and low intelligence were associated with an increased probability for engaging in delinquency predominantly among boys in a good social environment, but not in a poor social environment.

  5. Cognitive, personality, and social factors associated with adolescents' online personal information disclosure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Cong; Ang, Rebecca P; Lwin, May O

    2013-08-01

    The current study aims to understand the factors that influence adolescents' disclosure of personally identifiable information (PII) on social networking sites (SNSs). A survey was conducted among 780 adolescent participants (between 13 and 18) who were Facebook users. Structural equation modeling was used for analyzing the data and obtaining an overarching model that include cognitive, personality, and social factors that influence adolescents' PII disclosure. Results showed privacy concern as the cognitive factor reduces adolescents' PII disclosure and it serves as a potential mediator for personality and social factors. Amongst personality factors, narcissism was found to directly increase PII disclosure, and social anxiety indirectly decreases PII disclosure by increasing privacy concern. Amongst social factors, active parental mediation decreases PII disclosure directly and indirectly by increasing privacy concern. Restrictive parental mediation decreases PII disclosure only indirectly by increasing privacy concern. Implications of the findings to parents, educators, and policy makers were discussed. Copyright © 2013 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Alcohol-specific parenting, adolescent alcohol use and the mediating effect of adolescent alcohol-related cognitions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Mares, S.H.W.; Lichtwarck-Aschoff, A.; Engels, R.C.M.E.

    2013-01-01

    Objectives : Previous research indicated that alcohol-specific parenting is an important precursor of adolescent alcohol use, but failed to define the underlying mechanism. Based on social cognitive theory, alcohol-related cognitions such as alcohol refusal self-efficacy and alcohol-related

  7. Examining social-cognitive predictors of parenting skills among mothers with preschool and early elementary school-aged children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Norouzi, Saiideh; Moghaddam, Mohammad Hossein Baghiani; Morowatisharifabad, Mohammad Ali; Norouzi, Ali; Jafari, Ali Reza; Fallahzadeh, Hossein

    2015-01-01

    Identification of parenting skills determinants among mothers is an ongoing field of research. The aim of this study was to identify the social cognitive predictors of parenting skills among mothers. Previous studies have demonstrated the health action process approach (HAPA) as a credible frame for predicting behavior, but the number of studies considering the predictive value of parenting skills determinants among mothers is rare. An 8 months prospective design was applied. Participants were mothers with preschool and early elementary school-aged children. At the 1(st) time, 120 participants completed self-report questionnaires regarding their risk perception, outcome expectancies, task self-efficacy, and intentions toward parenting skills. At the 2(nd) time, they returned a follow-up questionnaire, which measured planning, coping self-efficacy, and recovery self-efficacy and finally, 8 months later as the 3(rd) time, parenting skills were measured. Path analysis was used for analysis. Path analysis indicated that, in the motivational phase, there was no relationship between parenting skills intention and risk perception, outcome expectancies, and task self-efficacy. Furthermore, no relationship was found between parenting skills intention and planning. In the volitional phase, coping self-efficacy, recovery self-efficacy, and planning were statistically significant predictors of parenting skills. The results of this study confirm that volitional phase of the HAPA model is useful in determining parenting skills. However, the role motivational variables seem to be unimportant in performing these behaviors. It was concluded that everybody intended to apply parenting skills, in nature, and intervention strategies should be focused on turning intentions into behavior.

  8. Emotion discourse, social cognition, and social skills in children with and without developmental delays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fenning, Rachel M; Baker, Bruce L; Juvonen, Jaana

    2011-01-01

    This study examined parent-child emotion discourse, children's independent social information processing, and social skills outcomes in 146 families of 8-year-olds with and without developmental delays. Children's emergent social-cognitive understanding (internal state understanding, perspective taking, and causal reasoning and problem solving) was coded in the context of parent-child conversations about emotion, and children were interviewed separately to assess social problem solving. Mothers, fathers, and teachers reported on children's social skills. The proposed strengths-based model partially accounted for social skills differences between typically developing children and children with delays. A multigroup analysis of the model linking emotion discourse to social skills through children's prosocial problem solving suggested that processes operated similarly for the two groups. Implications for ecologically focused prevention and intervention are discussed. © 2011 The Authors. Child Development © 2011 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

  9. Could cash and good parenting affect child cognitive development? A cross-sectional study in South Africa and Malawi.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sherr, Lorraine; Macedo, Ana; Tomlinson, Mark; Skeen, Sarah; Cluver, Lucie Dale

    2017-05-12

    Social protection interventions, including cash grants and care provision have been shown to effectively reduce some negative impacts of the HIV epidemic on adolescents and families. Less is known about the role of social protection on younger HIV affected populations. This study explored the impact of cash grants on children's cognitive development. Additionally, we examined whether combined cash and care (operationalised as good parenting) was associated with improved cognitive outcomes. The sample included 854 children, aged 5 - 15, participating in community-based organisation (CBO) programmes for children affected by HIV in South Africa and Malawi. Data on child cognitive functioning were gathered by a combination of caregiver report and observer administered tests. Primary caregivers also reported on the economic situation of the family, cash receipt into the home, child and household HIV status. Parenting was measured on a 10 item scale with good parenting defined as a score of 8 or above. About half of families received cash (55%, n = 473), only 6% (n = 51) reported good parenting above the cut-off point but no cash, 18% (n = 151) received combined cash support and reported good parenting, and 21% (n = 179) had neither. Findings show that cash receipt was associated with enhanced child cognitive outcomes in a number of domains including verbal working memory, general cognitive functioning, and learning. Furthermore, cash plus good parenting provided an additive effect. Child HIV status had a moderating effect on the association between cash or/plus good parenting and cognitive outcomes. The association between cash and good parenting and child cognitive outcomes remained significant among both HIV positive and negative children, but overall the HIV negative group benefited more. This study shows the importance of cash transfers and good parenting on cognitive development of young children living in HIV affected environments. Our data clearly

  10. Relations Between Nonverbal and Verbal Social Cognitive Skills and Complex Social Behavior in Children and Adolescents with Autism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Demopoulos, Carly; Hopkins, Joyce; Lewine, Jeffrey D

    2016-07-01

    Although there is an extensive literature on domains of social skill deficits in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), little research has examined the relation between specific social cognitive skills and complex social behaviors in daily functioning. This was the aim of the present study. Participants were 37 (26 male and 11 female) children and adolescents aged 6-18 years diagnosed with ASD. To determine the amount of variance in parent-rated complex social behavior accounted for by the linear combination of five directly-assessed social cognitive variables (i.e., adult and child facial and vocal affect recognition and social judgment) after controlling for general intellectual ability, a hierarchical regression analysis was performed. The linear combination of variables accounted for 35.4 % of the variance in parent-rated complex social behavior. Vocal affect recognition in adult voices showed the strongest association with complex social behavior in ASD. Results suggest that assessment and training in vocal affective comprehension should be an important component of social skills interventions for individuals with ASD.

  11. Studying fish social behavior and cognition: implications for fish welfare and conservation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rui F Oliveira

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Within vertebrates teleost fish are the most diverse and plastic taxa in terms of social behavior. With over 29,000 species described so far, one can find all different types of social organization, mating systems and parental care types. Moreover, it is relatively common to find variation of these characters within closely related species, which makes them suitable for comparative studies on the evolution of social behavior (e.g. variation in mating systems and parental care type in African cichlids. Fish are also champions of social plasticity, as can be illustrated by the flexible patterns of sexual expression, as in the case of protrandrous and protogynous sex-change, simultaneous hermaphroditism and intra-sexual variation in the form of discrete alternative male phenotypes. Complex cognitive abilities used in social interactions have also evolved in fish, such as individual recognition, transitive inference and social learning. Therefore, teleosts offer unique opportunities to study both the evolution and the function of social behavior and cognition. In this talk I will summarize the work that our lab has been doing to establish zebrafish as a model organism for the study of social behavior and cognition and I will illustrate how knowledge on this are can be applied to fish welfare and to conservation issues.

  12. Social Cognition and Conduct Problems: A Developmental Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oliver, Bonamy R.; Barker, Edward D.; Mandy, William P. L.; Skuse, David H.; Maughan, Barbara

    2011-01-01

    Objective: To estimate associations between trajectories of conduct problems and social-cognitive competences through childhood into early adolescence. Method: A prospective population-based cohort, the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) recruited in the prenatal period (13,988 children alive at 12 months) formed the basis…

  13. Parents and the media. A study of social differentiation in parental media socialization.

    OpenAIRE

    Notten, N.; Kraaykamp, G.

    2009-01-01

    In this study we analysed the effects of parental social background and family composition on various types of parental media socialization. We employed the Family Survey Dutch Population 1998, 2000 and 2003 (N = 2608), and analysed respondents’ reports of socialization practices in their parental home. Respondents from high-status families report more extensive parental media socialization in all highbrow and guidance activities. In contrast, a parental example of popular television viewing ...

  14. Neuro-cognition and social cognition elements of social functioning and social quality of life.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hasson-Ohayon, Ilanit; Mashiach-Eizenberg, Michal; Arnon-Ribenfeld, Nitzan; Kravetz, Shlomo; Roe, David

    2017-12-01

    Previous studies have shown that deficits in social cognition mediate the association between neuro-cognition and functional outcome. Based on these findings, the current study presents an examination of the mediating role of social cognition and includes two different outcomes: social functioning assessed by objective observer and social quality of life assessed by subjective self-report. Instruments measuring different aspects of social cognition, cognitive ability, social functioning and social quality of life were administered to 131 participants who had a diagnosis of a serious mental illness. Results showed that emotion recognition and attributional bias were significant mediators such that cognitive assessment was positively related to both, which in turn, were negatively related to SQoL. While one interpretation of the data suggests that deficits in emotion recognition may serve as a possible defense mechanism, future studies should re-assess this idea. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Early social cognition in three cultural contexts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Callaghan, Tara; Moll, Henrike; Rakoczy, Hannes; Warneken, Felix; Liszkowski, Ulf; Behne, Tanya; Tomasello, Michael

    2011-08-01

    The influence of culture on cognitive development is well established for school age and older children. But almost nothing is known about how different parenting and socialization practices in different cultures affect infants' and young children's earliest emerging cognitive and social-cognitive skills. In the current monograph, we report a series of eight studies in which we systematically assessed the social-cognitive skills of 1- to 3-year-old children in three diverse cultural settings. One group of children was from a Western, middle-class cultural setting in rural Canada and the other two groups were from traditional, small-scale cultural settings in rural Peru and India.In a first group of studies, we assessed 1-year-old children's most basic social-cognitive skills for understanding the intentions and attention of others: imitation, helping, gaze following, and communicative pointing.Children's performance in these tasks was mostly similar across cultural settings. In a second group of studies, we assessed 1-year-old children's skills in participating in interactive episodes of collaboration and joint attention.Again in these studies the general finding was one of cross-cultural similarity. In a final pair of studies, we assessed 2- to 3-year-old children's skills within two symbolic systems (pretense and pictorial). Here we found that the Canadian children who had much more experience with such symbols showed skills at an earlier age.Our overall conclusion is that young children in all cultural settings get sufficient amounts of the right kinds of social experience to develop their most basic social-cognitive skills for interacting with others and participating in culture at around the same age. In contrast, children's acquisition of more culturally specific skills for use in practices involving artifacts and symbols is more dependent on specific learning experiences.

  16. Mindful Parenting and Emotion Socialization Practices: Concurrent and Longitudinal Associations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKee, Laura G; Parent, Justin; Zachary, Chloe R; Forehand, Rex

    2017-11-01

    Caregivers play a crucial role in the socialization of youth emotion understanding, competence, and regulation, which are implicated in youth social and emotional health; however, there is less understanding of parental psychosocial or cognitive factors, like mindful parenting, that may be associated with the use of particular emotion socialization (ES) strategies. This study tests a model of the cross-sectional and short-term longitudinal associations between mindful parenting and supportive and nonsupportive ES strategies in a community sample of parents (N = 246; 63.8% mothers) of youth ranging from ages 3-12. Caregivers reported on mindful parenting and ES strategies at two time points 4 months apart. The structural equation model indicated that higher levels of mindful parenting are positively related to supportive ES responses and negatively related to nonsupportive ES responses both concurrently and over time. The longitudinal association between mindful parenting and nonsupportive, but not supportive, ES was marginally larger for fathers as compared to mothers. Given the documented impact of ES strategies on youth emotional and behavioral outcomes and interventions emerging to educate parents about how to provide a healthy emotional atmosphere, incorporating a focus on mindful parenting strategies may provide one pathway to increase supportive responses and decrease nonsupportive ones. © 2017 Family Process Institute.

  17. Effects of Cognitive Versus Cognitive-Behavioral Divorce-Parenting Programs on Parental Conflict, Intimate Violence, Parental Communication, Divorce-Related Parental Behaviors and Children's Behavioral Problems

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Whitworth, James

    2000-01-01

    This study examines the effects of two State of Florida mandated divorce- parenting classes, one cognitive-based and the other cognitive-behavioral based, on several individual and family variables...

  18. Developmental Trajectories of Social Skills during Early Childhood and Links to Parenting Practices in a Japanese Sample.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takahashi, Yusuke; Okada, Kensuke; Hoshino, Takahiro; Anme, Tokie

    2015-01-01

    This study used data from a nationwide survey in Japan to model the developmental course of social skills during early childhood. The goals of this study were to identify longitudinal profiles of social skills between 2 and 5 years of age using a group-based trajectory approach, and to investigate whether and to what extent parenting practices at 2 years of age predicted developmental trajectories of social skills during the preschool period. A relatively large sample of boys and girls (N > 1,000) was assessed on three social skill dimensions (Cooperation, Self-control, and Assertion) at four time points (ages 2, 3, 4, and 5), and on four parenting practices (cognitive and emotional involvement, avoidance of restriction and punishment, social stimulation, and social support for parenting) at age 2. The results indicated that for each social skill dimension, group-based trajectory models identified three distinct trajectories: low, moderate, and high. Multinomial regression analysis revealed that parenting practice variables showed differential contributions to development of child social skills. Specifically, Cooperation and Assertion were promoted by cognitive and emotional involvement, Self-control by social stimulation, and Assertion by avoidance of restriction and punishment. Abundant social support for parenting was not associated with higher child social skills trajectories. We found heterogeneity in developmental profiles of social skills during the preschool ages, and we identified parenting practices that contributed to different patterns of social skills development. We discussed the implications of higher-quality parenting practices on the improvement of child social skills across early childhood.

  19. The social life of cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Korman, Joanna; Voiklis, John; Malle, Bertram F

    2015-02-01

    We begin by illustrating that long before the cognitive revolution, social psychology focused on topics pertaining to what is now known as social cognition: people's subjective interpretations of social situations and the concepts and cognitive processes underlying these interpretations. We then examine two questions: whether social cognition entails characteristic concepts and cognitive processes, and how social processes might themselves shape and constrain cognition. We suggest that social cognition relies heavily on generic cognition but also on unique concepts (e.g., agent, intentionality) and unique processes (e.g., projection, imitation, joint attention). We further suggest that social processes play a prominent role in the development and unfolding of several generic cognitive processes, including learning, attention, and memory. Finally, we comment on the prospects of a recently developing approach to the study of social cognition (social neuroscience) and two potential future directions (computational social cognition and social-cognitive robotics). Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Parenting Beliefs, Parental Stress, and Social Support Relationships

    Science.gov (United States)

    Respler-Herman, Melissa; Mowder, Barbara A.; Yasik, Anastasia E.; Shamah, Renee

    2012-01-01

    The present study built on prior research by examining the relationship of parental stress and social support to parenting beliefs and behaviors. A sample of 87 parents provided their views concerning the importance of parenting characteristics as well as their level of parental stress and perceived social support. These parents completed the…

  1. Social-cognitive functioning and social skills in patients with early treated phenylketonuria: a PKU-COBESO study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jahja, Rianne; van Spronsen, Francjan J; de Sonneville, Leo M J; van der Meere, Jaap J; Bosch, Annet M; Hollak, Carla E M; Rubio-Gozalbo, M Estela; Brouwers, Martijn C G J; Hofstede, Floris C; de Vries, Maaike C; Janssen, Mirian C H; van der Ploeg, Ans T; Langendonk, Janneke G; Huijbregts, Stephan C J

    2016-05-01

    Early treatment of phenylketonuria (ET-PKU) prevents mental retardation, but many patients still show cognitive and mood problems. In this study, it was investigated whether ET-PKU-patients have specific phenylalanine (Phe-)related problems with respect to social-cognitive functioning and social skills. Ninety five PKU-patients (mean age 21.6 ± 10.2 years) and 95 healthy controls (mean age 19.6 ± 8.7 years) were compared on performance of computerized and paper-and-pencil tasks measuring social-cognitive abilities and on parent- and self-reported social skills, using multivariate analyses of variance, and controlling for general cognitive ability (IQ-estimate). Further comparisons were made between patients using tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4, N = 30) and patients not using BH4. Associations with Phe-levels on the day of testing, during childhood, during adolescence and throughout life were examined. PKU-patients showed poorer social-cognitive functioning and reportedly had poorer social skills than controls (regardless of general cognitive abilities). Quality of social-cognitive functioning was negatively related to recent Phe-levels and Phe-levels between 8 and 12 years for adolescents with PKU. Quality of social skills was negatively related to lifetime phenylalanine levels in adult patients, and specifically to Phe-levels between 0 and 7, and between 8 and 12 years. There were no differences with respect to social outcome measures between the BH4 and non-BH4 groups. PKU-patients have Phe-related difficulties with social-cognitive functioning and social skills. Problems seem to be more evident among adolescents and adults with PKU. High Phe-levels during childhood and early adolescence seem to be of greater influence than current and recent Phe-levels for these patients.

  2. Parents and the media. A study of social differentiation in parental media socialization.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Notten, N.; Kraaykamp, G.

    2009-01-01

    In this study we analysed the effects of parental social background and family composition on various types of parental media socialization. We employed the Family Survey Dutch Population 1998, 2000 and 2003 (N = 2608), and analysed respondents’ reports of socialization practices in their parental

  3. Parents and the media: A study of social differentiation in parental media socialization

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Notten, N.J.W.R.; Kraaykamp, G.L.M.

    2009-01-01

    In this study we analysed the effects of parental social background and family composition on various types of parental media socialization. We employed the Family Survey Dutch Population 1998, 2000 and 2003 (N = 2608), and analysed respondents' reports of socialization practices in their parental

  4. The influence of parenting on maladaptive cognitive schema: a cross-sectional research on a group of adults

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pellerone M

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available Monica Pellerone,1 Calogero Iacolino,1 Giuseppe Mannino,2 Ivan Formica,3 Simona Maria Zabbara1 1Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, “Kore” University of Enna, Enna, Sicily, Italy; 2Department of Jurisprudence, “LUMSA” University, Rome, Italy; 3Department of Cognitive, Psychological, Pedagogical Sciences and Cultural Studies, University of Study of Messina, Messina, Sicily, Italy Background: The literature emphasizes the role of early interpersonal experiences in the development of cognitive vulnerability; in particular, interruptions in early family relationships, parental unavailability and dysfunctional parenting are potential evolutionary precursors to negative cognitive style and emotional disorders.Materials and methods: This study measured the relationship of retrospective ratings on parental bonding with cognitive patterns in a group of Italian adults. The objectives of this study were as follows: to analyze the influence of age and education level on cognitive domains; to verify whether being parents and living at home with parents affect both parenting style and cognitive domains; to investigate how the type of the maternal and paternal parenting independently affects cognitive styles; to measure the predictive variables for the use of cognitive dysfunctional patterns and to investigate age as a moderating variable of the relation between parenting styles and cognitive domains in a group of adult men and women. The research involved 209 adults (118 males and 91 females living in Sicily (Italy aged between 20 and 60 years (M = 37.52; SD = 11.42. The research lasted for 1 year. The instruments used were the Parental Bonding Instrument to measure the perception of parenting during childhood and the Young Schema Questionnaire-3 to investigate cognitive patterns.Results: Data show that being a younger adult male with mother’s parenting style characterized by a lower level of nurturance is predictive of the disconnection and

  5. Embodied social cognition

    CERN Document Server

    Lindblom, Jessica

    2015-01-01

    This book clarifies the role and relevance of the body in social interaction and cognition from an embodied cognitive science perspective. Theories of embodied cognition have during the last decades offered a radical shift in explanations of the human mind, from traditional computationalism, to emphasizing the way cognition is shaped by the body and its sensorimotor interaction with the surrounding social and material world. This book presents a theoretical framework for the relational nature of embodied social cognition, which is based on an interdisciplinary approach that ranges historically in time and across different disciplines. It includes work in cognitive science, artificial intelligence, phenomenology, ethology, developmental psychology, neuroscience, social psychology, linguistics, communication, and gesture studies. The theoretical framework is illustrated by empirical work that provides some detailed observational fieldwork on embodied actions captured in three different episodes of spontaneous s...

  6. Interpretation Bias Modification for Youth and their Parents: A Novel Treatment for Early Adolescent Social Anxiety

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reuland, Meg M.; Teachman, Bethany A.

    2014-01-01

    Social anxiety is the most prevalent anxiety disorder of late adolescence, yet current treatments reach only a minority of youth with the disorder. Effective and easy-to-disseminate treatments are needed. This study pilot tested the efficacy of a novel, online cognitive bias modification for interpretation (CBM-I) intervention for socially anxious youth and their parents. The CBM-I intervention targeted cognitive biases associated with early adolescents’ maladaptive beliefs regarding social situations, and with parents’ intrusive behavior, both of which have been theoretically linked with the maintenance of social anxiety in youth. To investigate the efficacy of intervening with parents and/or children, clinically diagnosed early adolescents (ages 10–15; N = 18) and their mothers were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: the first targeted early adolescents’ cognitive biases related to social anxiety (Child-only condition); the second targeted parents’ biases associated with intrusive behavior (Parent-only condition); and the third targeted both youth and parents’ biases in tandem (Combo condition). The use of a multiple baseline design allowed for the efficient assessment of causal links between the intervention and reduction in social anxiety symptoms in youth. Results provided converging evidence indicating modest support for the efficacy of CBM-I, with no reliable differences across conditions. Taken together, results suggest that online CBM-I with anxious youth and/or their parents holds promise as an effective and easily administered component of treatment for child social anxiety that deserves further evaluation in a larger trial. PMID:25445075

  7. Parental Socialization of Emotion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eisenberg, Nancy; Cumberland, Amanda; Spinrad, Tracy L

    1998-01-01

    Recently, there has been a resurgence of research on emotion, including the socialization of emotion. In this article, a heuristic model of factors contributing to the socialization of emotion is presented. Then literature relevant to the socialization of children's emotion and emotion-related behavior by parents is reviewed, including (a) parental reactions to children's emotions, (b) socializers' discussion of emotion, and (c) socializers' expression of emotion. The relevant literature is not conclusive and most of the research is correlational. However, the existing body of data provides initial support for the view that parental socialization practices have effects on children's emotional and social competence and that the socialization process is bidirectional. In particular, parental negative emotionality and negative reactions to children's expression of emotion are associated with children's negative emotionality and low social competence. In addition, possible moderators of effects such as level of emotional arousal are discussed.

  8. Parental changes after involvement in their anxious child's cognitive behavior therapy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Esbjørn, Barbara Hoff; Sømhovd, Mikael Julius; Nielsen, Sara Kerstine

    2014-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: Specific parental behaviors and cognitions are associated with child anxiety. Studies informing us of the directionality of the associations are lacking. We investigated the effect of parental involvement in children's anxiety treatment on parental behaviors and cognitions. METHOD: Chi......-reported maternal autonomy-granting (non-involved mothers showed a greater increase). CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that child anxiety significantly influences parental behaviors and cognitions. Child therapy may successfully change the family system.......OBJECTIVE: Specific parental behaviors and cognitions are associated with child anxiety. Studies informing us of the directionality of the associations are lacking. We investigated the effect of parental involvement in children's anxiety treatment on parental behaviors and cognitions. METHOD......: Children (N=54, 7-12 years) and parents were randomly allocated to different treatment groups (involved, not involved). Observed behavior, self-reported behavior and cognitions were assessed separately for mothers and fathers at pre-, posttreatment and follow-up. RESULTS: There were no differences over...

  9. Parental attitude toward deviance as a predictor of delinquency: making the connection via perception and cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walters, Glenn D

    2015-02-01

    This study tested a core postulate of social cognitive theory: i.e., that perception precedes cognition in the development of behavior. Using data from four of the first five waves of the 1725-member (918 males, 807 females) National Youth Survey (NYS), youth perception of parental attitude toward deviance and youth attitude toward deviance at Waves 2 and 3 were tested as possible mediators of the relationship between Wave 1 parental attitude toward deviance and self-reported delinquency at Wave 5. The target chain was both significant and significantly stronger than the reverse chain and there was no evidence that age, race, or sex moderated this mediated relationship. These results support the presence of a chaining process in which proximal social, perceptual, and cognitive events link to distal behavioral outcomes like delinquency. Copyright © 2014 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Parental overprotection and interpersonal behavior in generalized social phobia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Charles T; Alden, Lynn E

    2006-03-01

    Forty-one people with generalized social phobia (GSP) and 42 community controls completed a measure of social developmental experiences and then participated in a social interaction with an experimental assistant whose behavior was either friendly or ambiguous. Following the interaction, confederates rated participants' behavior and their desire to interact with their partner again. In people with social phobia, but not controls, perceptions of parental overprotection were associated with less responsiveness to partner behavior. Moreover, failure to reciprocate the friendly partner's behavior led to social rejection. The results support the value of incorporating social developmental concepts into cognitive-behavioral models of social phobia and highlight the contribution of social learning experiences to the development of maladaptive interpersonal behavior in these individuals.

  11. Parental Cognitive Impairment and Child Maltreatment in Canada

    Science.gov (United States)

    McConnell, David; Feldman, Maurice; Aunos, Marjorie; Prasad, Narasimha

    2011-01-01

    Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of parental cognitive impairment in cases opened for child maltreatment investigation in Canada, and to examine the relationship between parental cognitive impairment and maltreatment investigation outcomes including substantiation, case disposition and court application. Methods:…

  12. Relationship between Parenting and Cognitive Schemas in a Group of Male Adult Offenders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pellerone, Monica; Craparo, Giuseppe; Tornabuoni, Ylenia

    2016-01-01

    This work analyzes the correlation of retrospective ratings on parental binding with cognitive patterns in the inmates for property crimes. The participant group comprehended 248 adults men, including 130 marked out as offenders (the target group), aged between 19 and 70, currently serving sentences in the Cavadonna prison in Siracusa, and 118 marked out as non-offenders (the control group), aged between 20 and 70, living in Siracusa (Sicily). The instruments used were the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI), and the Young Schema Questionnaire-3 (YSQ). The preliminary analysis showed a high percentage of offenders who experienced an affectionate constraint parenting. Offenders scored significantly higher than the non-offenders on the level of paternal control and the YSQ subscales. The study underlines the influence of maternal care on most of the cognitive schemas, and the role of father's control on the tendency to social isolation and defectiveness in the offenders.

  13. An investigation of social class inequalities in general cognitive ability in two British birth cohorts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Connelly, Roxanne; Gayle, Vernon

    2017-12-19

    The 'Flynn effect' describes the substantial and long-standing increase in average cognitive ability test scores, which has been observed in numerous psychological studies. Flynn makes an appeal for researchers to move beyond psychology's standard disciplinary boundaries and to consider sociological contexts, in order to develop a more comprehensive understanding of cognitive inequalities. In this article we respond to this appeal and investigate social class inequalities in general cognitive ability test scores over time. We analyse data from the National Child Development Study (1958) and the British Cohort Study (1970). These two British birth cohorts are suitable nationally representative large-scale data resources for studying inequalities in general cognitive ability. We observe a large parental social class effect, net of parental education and gender in both cohorts. The overall finding is that large social class divisions in cognitive ability can be observed when children are still at primary school, and similar patterns are observed in each cohort. Notably, pupils with fathers at the lower end of the class structure are at a distinct disadvantage. This is a disturbing finding and it is especially important because cognitive ability is known to influence individuals later in the lifecourse. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2017.

  14. Cognitive functioning and behaviour of epileptic children in parents' assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Talarska, Dorota; Steinborn, Barbara; Michalak, Michał

    2011-01-01

    Cognitive functioning and behaviour of chronically ill children are affected by many factors, including anxiety due to hospitalization, persistent symptoms of sickness and adverse side effects of medications. The aim of this work was to seek out parents' opinion concerning cognitive functioning and behaviour of children with epilepsy. The study comprised 156 children with epilepsy aged 7-18 and treated in the Department of Developmental Neurology at Karol Marcinkowski Poznan University of Medical Sciences and in an outpatient clinic. The research tool used was the questionnaire Quality of Life in Childhood Epilepsy (QOLCE) completed by parents. Assessment of cognitive functioning and behaviour was based on the analysis of the areas V (cognitive processes) and VII (behaviour). Parents assessed children's functioning in the areas of cognitive processes and behaviour at a similar level - 55 points. In the area of cognitive processes, concentration while performing some tasks and reading was assessed as the worst. A significant difference in caregivers' assessment was found according to age, frequency of seizures and duration of disease. In the area analysing the child's behaviour, parents indicated getting angry easily and not being upset by other people's opinions. The display of aggression towards others got the lowest number of comments. The children's functioning was assessed by parents as rather poor in both analysed areas. Parents of children treated with polytherapy noticed more difficulties in cognitive functioning and behaviour than parents of children treated with one medication.

  15. Aging children of long-lived parents experience slower cognitive decline.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dutta, Ambarish; Henley, William; Robine, Jean-Marie; Llewellyn, David; Langa, Kenneth M; Wallace, Robert B; Melzer, David

    2014-10-01

    Parental longevity confers lower risks for some age-related diseases in offspring. We tested the association between parental longevity and late-life cognitive decline or dementia. Data were from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a US national sample. Biennial cognitive assessment (Telephone Interview of Cognitive Status-Modified [TICS-m]) occurred for ages 64 years or older in 1996 through 2008 (maximum, 79 years), including physician-diagnosed memory disorder. Offspring were categorized into parental longevity groups based on gender-specific distributional cut points. Model covariates included race, respondents' education, and income status during childhood and adulthood. Offspring groups did not differ on TICS-m scores at baseline. During follow-up, offspring of two long-lived parents experienced 40% slower rates of TICS-m decline than those with no long-lived parents (95% confidence interval, 12-72; P=.003; n=4731). Increased parental longevity was also associated with lower risk of physician-diagnosed memory disorder. Estimates did not change after controlling for environmental variables. Parental longevity is associated inversely with cognitive decline and self-reported diagnosed memory disorders in aging offspring. Parental longevity may be a valuable trait for identifying early biomarkers for resistance to cognitive decline in aging. Copyright © 2014 The Alzheimer's Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Social cognitive radio networks

    CERN Document Server

    Chen, Xu

    2015-01-01

    This brief presents research results on social cognitive radio networks, a transformational and innovative networking paradigm that promotes the nexus between social interactions and cognitive radio networks. Along with a review of the research literature, the text examines the key motivation and challenges of social cognitive radio network design. Three socially inspired distributed spectrum sharing mechanisms are introduced: adaptive channel recommendation mechanism, imitation-based social spectrum sharing mechanism, and evolutionarily stable spectrum access mechanism. The brief concludes with a discussion of future research directions which ascertains that exploiting social interactions for distributed spectrum sharing will advance the state-of-the-art of cognitive radio network design, spur a new line of thinking for future wireless networks, and enable novel wireless service and applications.

  17. Depressive Symptoms in Chinese Elementary School Children: Child Social-Cognitive Factors and Parenting Factors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, Siu Mui; Oi Poon, Scarlet Fung

    2016-01-01

    This study examined child cognitive-behavioural factors and parenting factors related to childhood depressive symptoms. Results indicate that positive and negative attributional styles were protective and vulnerable factors of depression symptoms, respectively, and the attribution-depression link was mediated by self-esteem and coping responses.…

  18. Introduction to the special section: Mind and matter: New insights on the role of parental cognitive and neurobiological functioning in process models of parenting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deater-Deckard, Kirby; Sturge-Apple, Melissa L

    2017-02-01

    This is an introduction to the special section on neurobiological and neurocognitive factors in parenting. The collection of 11 papers are published in 2 serial subsections of consecutive issues of the journal. The science they present captures the leading edge of work examining the interface of cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physiological self-regulation in parenting and how these operate to protect or increment risk for poorer parenting among families who face chronic stressors (e.g., poverty, single parenthood, homelessness, mood disorders). Samples span the poor to the affluent, many ethnicities, several nationalities, and a wide variety of geographic locations. The studies also are diverse in the methods employed, spanning behavioral and questionnaire indicators of executive function and effortful control, attentional and social-cognitive biases, and psychophysiology. Taken together, the papers present clear and compelling evidence for the crucial role of parental neurobiological and neurocognitive deficits and strengths in the etiology of distressed and resilient parenting. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  19. New social tasks for cognitive psychology; or, new cognitive tasks for social psychology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wettersten, John

    2014-01-01

    To elucidate how differing theories of rationality lead to differing practices, their social rules must be analyzed. This is true not merely in science but also in society at large. This analysis of social thinking requires both the identification of innate cognitive social psychological processes and explanations of their relations with differing rules of rational practice. These new tasks can enable social psychologists to contribute to the study of how social situations facilitate or inhibit rational practice and enable cognitive psychologists to improve social psychological theory. In contrast to dominant current research strategies, social and cognitive psychologists can integrate social studies of rational practices and their consequences with studies of underlying cognitive psychological processes. In this article I do not attempt to carry out these tasks but rather point to both their lack of recognition and their importance.

  20. Parents' Cognitions and Expectations about Their Pre-School Children: The Contribution of Parental Anxiety and Child Anxiety

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wheatcroft, Rebecca; Creswell, Cathy

    2007-01-01

    This study investigated the relative associations between parent and child anxiety and parents' cognitions about their children. One hundred and four parents of children aged 3-5 years completed questionnaires regarding their own anxiety level, their child's anxiety level and their cognitions about the child, specifically parents' expectations…

  1. Parental Involvement, Parenting Behaviors, and Children's Cognitive Development in Low-Income and Minority Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Mido; Park, Boyoung; Singh, Kusum; Sung, Youngji Y.

    2009-01-01

    The study examined the longitudinal association of parental involvement in Head Start parent-focused programs, parenting behaviors, and the cognitive development of children by specifying two longitudinal growth models. Model 1 examined the longitudinal effects of the parental involvement in three Head Start parenting programs (parenting classes,…

  2. Relationship between parenting and cognitive schemas in a group of male adult offenders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Monica ePellerone

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available This work analyzes the correlation of retrospective ratings on parental binding with cognitive patterns in the inmates for property crimes. The participant group comprehended 248 adults men, including 130 marked out as offenders (the experimental group, aged between 19 and 70, currently serving sentences in the Cavadonna prison in Siracusa, and 118 marked out as non-offenders (the control group, aged between 20 and 70, living in Siracusa (Sicily.The instruments used were the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI, and the Young Schema Questionnaire-3 (YSQ. The preliminary analysis showed an high percentage of offenders who experienced an affectionate constraint parenting. Offenders scored significantly higher than the non-offenders on the level of paternal control and the YSQ subscales. The study underlines the influence of maternal care on most of the cognitive schemas, and the role of father’s control on the tendency to social isolation and defectiveness in the offenders.

  3. Early Childhood Cognitive Development and Parental Cognitive Stimulation: Evidence for Reciprocal Gene-Environment Transactions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tucker-Drob, Elliot M.; Harden, K. Paige

    2012-01-01

    Parenting is traditionally conceptualized as an exogenous environment that affects child development. However, children can also influence the quality of parenting that they receive. Using longitudinal data from 650 identical and fraternal twin pairs, we found that, controlling for cognitive ability at age 2 years, cognitive stimulation by parents…

  4. Relationships among Negative Emotionality, Responsive Parenting and Early Socio-Cognitive Development in Korean Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cha, Kijoo

    2017-01-01

    The present study examined the interplay among negative emotionality, responsive parenting and socio-cognitive developmental outcomes (i.e., communication, personal-social and problem-solving outcomes) in about 1620 Korean children using three waves of longitudinal data spanning the first 2 years of their life. Results from the Structural Equation…

  5. Childhood social class and cognitive aging in the Swedish Adoption/Twin Study of Aging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ericsson, Malin; Lundholm, Cecilia; Fors, Stefan; Dahl Aslan, Anna K; Zavala, Catalina; Reynolds, Chandra A; Pedersen, Nancy L

    2017-07-03

    In this report we analyzed genetically informative data to investigate within-person change and between-person differences in late-life cognitive abilities as a function of childhood social class. We used data from nine testing occasions spanning 28 y in the Swedish Adoption/Twin Study of Aging and parental social class based on the Swedish socioeconomic index. Cognitive ability included a general factor and the four domains of verbal, fluid, memory, and perceptual speed. Latent growth curve models of the longitudinal data tested whether level and change in cognitive performance differed as a function of childhood social class. Between-within twin-pair analyses were performed on twins reared apart to assess familial confounding. Childhood social class was significantly associated with mean-level cognitive performance at age 65 y, but not with rate of cognitive change. The association decreased in magnitude but remained significant after adjustments for level of education and the degree to which the rearing family was supportive toward education. A between-pair effect of childhood social class was significant in all cognitive domains, whereas within-pair estimates were attenuated, indicating genetic confounding. Thus, childhood social class is important for cognitive performance in adulthood on a population level, but the association is largely attributable to genetic influences.

  6. Influence of social factors on the relation between lie-telling and children's cognitive abilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Talwar, Victoria; Lavoie, Jennifer; Gomez-Garibello, Carlos; Crossman, Angela M

    2017-07-01

    Lie-telling may be part of a normative developmental process for children. However, little is known about the complex interaction of social and cognitive factors related to this developmental behavior. The current study examined parenting style, maternal exposure to stressors, and children's cognitive abilities in relation to children's antisocial lie-telling behavior in an experimental setting. Children (3-6years, N=157) participated in a modified temptation resistance paradigm to elicit spontaneous lies. Results indicate that high authoritative parenting and high inhibitory control interact to predict a lower propensity to lie, but those who did lie had better semantic leakage control. This suggests that although children's lie-telling may be normative during early development, the relation to children's cognitive abilities can be moderated by responsive parenting behaviors that discourage lying. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Preadolescent girls with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: I. Background characteristics, comorbidity, cognitive and social functioning, and parenting practices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hinshaw, Stephen P

    2002-10-01

    This study investigated a diverse sample of girls (6-12 years of age) with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), combined type (n = 93) and inattentive type (n = 47), plus age- and ethnicity-matched comparison girls (n = 88), who participated in research summer programs. Speech and language problems, grade retention, and adoption characterized the ADHD sample; documented abuse characterized the combined type. Girls with ADHD showed dysfunction in terms of externalizing and internalizing behaviors and comorbidities, cognitive and academic performance, authoritarian parenting, and peer status. The inattentive type was more socially isolated but less rejected by peers than the combined type. ADHD-related impairment was independent of age and disruptive comorbidity. Further examination of processes related to psychopathology and competencies in girls with ADHD is needed.

  8. Social cognition is not associated with cognitive reserve in older adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lavrencic, Louise M; Kurylowicz, Lisa; Valenzuela, Michael J; Churches, Owen F; Keage, Hannah A D

    2016-01-01

    Social and general cognitive abilities decline in late life. Those with high cognitive reserve display better general cognitive performance in old age; however, it is unknown whether this is also the case for social cognition. A total of 115 healthy older adults, aged 60-85 years (m = 44, f = 71) were assessed using The Awareness of Social Inference Test (TASIT-R; social cognition), the Lifetime of Experiences Questionnaire (LEQ; cognitive reserve), and the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI-II; general cognitive ability). The LEQ did not predict performance on any TASIT-R subtest: Emotion Evaluation Test (β = -.097, p = .325), Social Inference - Minimal (β = -.004, p = .972), or Social Inference - Enriched (β = -.016, p = .878). Sensitivity analyses using two alternative cognitive reserve measures, years of education and the National Adult Reading Test, supported these effects. Cognitive reserve was strongly related to WASI-II performance. Unlike general cognitive ability, social cognition appears unaffected by cognitive reserve. Findings contribute to the emerging understanding that cognitive reserve differentially affects individual cognitive domains, which has implications for the theoretical understanding of cognitive reserve and its brain correlates. Cognitive measures unbiased by cognitive reserve may serve as best indicators of brain health, free of compensatory mechanisms.

  9. Cognitive impulsivity and the development of delinquency from late childhood to early adulthood : Moderating effects of parenting behavior and peer relationships

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Menting, Barbara; Van Lier, Pol A C; Koot, Hans M.; Pardini, Dustin; Loeber, Rolf

    2015-01-01

    Cognitive impulsivity may increase children's risk of developing delinquent behavior. However, the influence of cognitive impulsivity may depend on social environmental risk factors. This study examined the moderating effect of late childhood parenting behaviors and peer relations on the influence

  10. PERCEIVED SOCIAL SUPPORT AND PARENTS ADJUSTMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patrizia VELOTTI

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available Social networks often provide an important source of support for new parents. General, parent support programs sustain social-emotional development of children. Different aspects could impact both the quantity and quality of the sources of social support and the perception that parents would had. This study examines the role of social support in the couples of new-parents and assesses the influence of attachment models on it. The Adult Attachment Interview (AAI and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS were administered to a sample of 100 participants. Results indicated a perception of social support more pronounced in women, mainly on the dimension of social support derived from the partner. Furthermore, for women and not for men, an association between attachment models to the AAI and the different perceptions of social support was revealed. Data seems support the opportunity to assess parents during early rehabilitation interventions. Support groups could be used with insecure parents and has positive effects in reducing stress and promoting adjustment to the disability for children and their families.

  11. The Effects of Knowledge of Child Development and Social Emotional Maturity on Adolescent Attitudes Toward Parenting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Larsen, John L.; Juhasz, Anne McCreary

    Parenting, always a complex and difficult task, is even more difficult for teenage parents who are generally less able financially, emotionally, and cognitively than adults to nurture and care for their children. The relationship between the combined effect of knowledge of child development and level of social-emotional maturity, and the extent to…

  12. Parenting stress in mothers of adults with an intellectual disability: parental cognitions in relation to child characteristics and family support.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, C; Rose, J

    2009-12-01

    There is a body of evidence that indicates that the cognitions of parents of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) play an important role in influencing parental stress. However, there is a paucity of evidence about the experience of parents of adult children with ID. This study sought to apply a model of parenting stress to mothers of adults with ID. Of particular interest were the parental cognitions of parenting self-esteem and parental locus of control. Face-to face interviews were administered with 44 mothers of adults with ID. They completed the Vineland Adaptive and Maladaptive Behaviour Scale, the Family Support Scale, the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale, a shortened version of the Parental Locus of Control Scale and the Parenting Stress Index. Correlations were observed between parenting stress and the other study variables. Regression analysis revealed that parental cognitive variables predicted 61% of the variance in parenting stress. Parenting satisfaction, a subscale of the measure of parenting sense of competence, mediated the relationships between adaptive behaviour and parenting stress and between family support and parenting stress. These results indicate the importance of cognitive variables in the stress of mothers of adults with ID. Potential avenues of future research might focus on the experience of fathers and the impact of positive perceptions as a cognitive factor.

  13. Socially Extended Cognition and Shared Intentionality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Holger Lyre

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available The paper looks at the intersection of extended cognition and social cognition. The central claim is that the mechanisms of shared intentionality can equally be considered as coupling mechanisms of cognitive extension into the social domain. This claim will be demonstrated by investigating a detailed example of cooperative action, and it will be argued that such cases imply that socially extended cognition is not only about cognitive vehicles, but that content must additionally be taken into account. It is finally outlined how social content externalism can in principle be grounded in socially extended cognition.

  14. Parental Socialization of Emotion

    OpenAIRE

    Eisenberg, Nancy; Cumberland, Amanda; Spinrad, Tracy L.

    1998-01-01

    Recently, there has been a resurgence of research on emotion, including the socialization of emotion. In this article, a heuristic model of factors contributing to the socialization of emotion is presented. Then literature relevant to the socialization of children’s emotion and emotion-related behavior by parents is reviewed, including (a) parental reactions to children’s emotions, (b) socializers’ discussion of emotion, and (c) socializers’ expression of emotion. The relevant literature is n...

  15. Exploring social cognition in schizophrenia

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Revsbech, Rasmus; Mortensen, Erik Lykke; Frederiksen, Julie Elisabeth Nordgaard

    2017-01-01

    The aim of the study was to compare social cognition between groups of patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and healthy controls and to replicate two previous studies using tests of social cognition that may be particularly sensitive to social cognitive deficits in schizophrenia. Thirty......-eight first-admitted patients with schizophrenia and 38 healthy controls solved 11 “imaginary conversation (i.e., theory of mind)” items, 10 “psychological understanding” items, and 10 “practical understanding” items. Statistical tests were made of unadjusted and adjusted group differences in models adjusting...... nonsignificant. When intelligence and global cognitive functioning is taken into account, schizophrenia patients and healthy controls perform similarly on social cognitive tests. © 2016 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg...

  16. Social cognition in schizophrenia: cognitive and affective factors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ziv, Ido; Leiser, David; Levine, Joseph

    2011-01-01

    Social cognition refers to how people conceive, perceive, and draw inferences about mental and emotional states of others in the social world. Previous studies suggest that the concept of social cognition involves several abilities, including those related to affect and cognition. The present study analyses the deficits of individuals with schizophrenia in two areas of social cognition: Theory of Mind (ToM) and emotion recognition and processing. Examining the impairment of these abilities in patients with schizophrenia has the potential to elucidate the neurophysiological regions involved in social cognition and may also have the potential to aid rehabilitation. Two experiments were conducted. Both included the same five tasks: first- and second-level false-belief ToM tasks, emotion inferencing, understanding of irony, and matrix reasoning (a WAIS-R subtest). The matrix reasoning task was administered to evaluate and control for the association of the other tasks with analytic reasoning skills. Experiment 1 involved factor analysis of the task performance of 75 healthy participants. Experiment 2 compared 30 patients with schizophrenia to an equal number of matched controls. Results. (1) The five tasks were clearly divided into two factors corresponding to the two areas of social cognition, ToM and emotion recognition and processing. (2) Schizophrenics' performance was impaired on all tasks, particularly on those loading heavily on the analytic component (matrix reasoning and second-order ToM). (3) Matrix reasoning, second-level ToM (ToM2), and irony were found to distinguish patients from controls, even when all other tasks that revealed significant impairment in the patients' performance were taken into account. The two areas of social cognition examined are related to distinct factors. The mechanism for answering ToM questions (especially ToM2) depends on analytic reasoning capabilities, but the difficulties they present to individuals with schizophrenia are due

  17. Illness cognitions and family adjustment: psychometric properties of the Illness Cognition Questionnaire for parents of a child with cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sint Nicolaas, Simone M; Schepers, Sasja A; van den Bergh, Esther M M; Evers, Andrea W M; Hoogerbrugge, Peter M; Grootenhuis, Martha A; Verhaak, Christianne M

    2016-02-01

    Illness cognitions are an important mediator between disease and psychological adjustment. This study assessed the psychometric properties of the Illness Cognition Questionnaire (ICQ), adjusted for the parents of an ill child. Participants were recruited from two multicenter studies: sample 1 included 128 parents of a child diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) (response rate 82 %) and sample 2 included 114 parents of a child diagnosed with cancer (response rate 74 %). Parents completed an adapted version of the ICQ (Illness Cognition Questionnaire-Parent version (ICQ-P)), together with the Profile of Mood States (POMS; sample 1) or the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS; sample 2). The factor structure of the ICQ-P was examined by means of principal component analysis. Cronbach's alpha for each subscale and correlations between the ICQ-P scales and the HADS and POMS were calculated. The illness cognitions of parents with and without psychological distress were compared. Factor analysis confirmed the hypothesized structure of the ICQ-P in our sample (n = 242). The three scales Helplessness, Acceptance, and Perceived Benefits explained 9.8, 31.4, and 17.9 % of the variance, respectively. Cronbach's alpha showed adequate internal consistency (.80-.88). Concurrent and criterion-related validity were appropriate. The results confirm that the ICQ-P reliably assesses the illness cognitions of the parents of a child with cancer. Psychologically distressed parents showed less acceptance and more helplessness. The availability of a short and valid illness cognition questionnaire will help clinicians gain insight into parental cognitions regarding the illness of their child, information that might be helpful for targeting interventions.

  18. Cognitive Development of Toddlers: Does Parental Stimulation Matter?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malhi, Prahbhjot; Menon, Jagadeesh; Bharti, Bhavneet; Sidhu, Manjit

    2018-02-01

    To examine the impact of quality of early stimulation on cognitive functioning of toddlers living in a developing country. The developmental functioning of 150 toddlers in the age range of 12-30 mo (53% boys; Mean = 1.76 y, SD = 0.48) was assessed by the mental developmental index of the Developmental Assessment Scale for Indian Infants (DASII). The StimQ questionnaire- toddler version was used to measure cognitive stimulation at home. The questionnaire consists of four subscales including availability of learning materials (ALM), reading activities (READ), parent involvement in developmental activities (PIDA), and parent verbal responsivity (PVR). Multivariate regression analysis was used to predict cognitive scores using demographic (age of child), socio-economic status (SES) (income, parental education), and home environment (subscale scores of StimQ) as independent variables. Mean Mental Development Index (MDI) score was 91.5 (SD = 13.41), nearly one-fifth (17.3%) of the toddlers had MDI scores less than 80 (cognitive delay). Children with cognitive delay, relative to typically developing (TD, MDI score ≥ 80) cohort of toddlers, had significantly lower scores on all the subscales of StimQ and the total StimQ score. Despite the overall paucity of learning materials available to toddlers, typical developing toddlers were significantly more likely to have access to symbolic toys (P = 0.004), art materials (P = 0.032), adaptive/fine motor toys (P = 0.018), and life size toys (P = 0.036). Multivariate regression analysis results indicated that controlling for confounding socio-economic status variables, higher parental involvement in developmental activities (PIDA score) and higher parental verbal responsivity (PVR score) emerged as significant predictors of higher MDI scores and explained 34% of variance in MDI scores (F = 23.66, P = 0.001). Disparities in child development emerge fairly early and these differences are not

  19. Investigating social functioning after early mild TBI: the quality of parent-child interactions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lalonde, Gabrielle; Bernier, Annie; Beaudoin, Cindy; Gravel, Jocelyn; Beauchamp, Miriam H

    2018-03-01

    The young brain is particularly vulnerable to injury due to inherent physiological and developmental factors, and even mild forms of traumatic brain injury (mTBI) can sometimes result in cognitive and behavioural difficulties. Despite the high prevalence of paediatric mTBI, little is known of its impact on children's social functioning. Parent-child relationships represent the centre of young children's social environments and are therefore ideal contexts for studying the potential effects of mTBI on children's social functioning. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of parent-child interactions after mTBI using observational assessment methods and parental report. The sample included 130 children (18-60 months at recruitment) divided into three groups: children with uncomplicated mTBI (n = 47), children with orthopaedic injury (OI, n = 27), and non-injured children (NI, n = 56). The quality of parent-child interactions was assessed 6 months post-injury using the Mutually Responsive Orientation (MRO) scale, an observational measure which focuses on the dyadic nature of parent-child exchanges, and the Parental Stress Index questionnaire (Parent-Child Dysfunctional Interaction (PCDI) domain). Significant differences with medium effect sizes were found between the mTBI group and the NI group on the MRO, but not between the OI group and the other two groups. PCDI scores did not differ across groups, suggesting that observational measures may be more sensitive to changes in parent-child interactions after TBI. The current findings have implications for children's post-injury social development and highlight the importance of monitoring social outcomes even after minor head injuries. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

  20. Still lonely: Social adjustment of youth with and without social anxiety disorder following cognitive behavioral therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Suveg, Cynthia; Kingery, Julie Newman; Davis, Molly; Jones, Anna; Whitehead, Monica; Jacob, Marni L

    2017-12-01

    Social experiences are an integral part of normative development for youth and social functioning difficulties are related to poor outcomes. Youth with anxiety disorders, and particularly social anxiety disorder, experience difficulties across many aspects of social functioning that may place them at risk for maladjustment. The goal of this paper was to compare social experiences of youth across anxiety diagnoses and examine whether treatment is helpful in improving social functioning. Ninety-two children (age 7-12 years; 58% male; 87.0% White) with a primary diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder, separation anxiety disorder, and/or social anxiety disorder participated in cognitive behavioral therapy. At both pre- and post-treatment, children with social anxiety disorder self-reported greater loneliness than youth without social anxiety disorder, though levels of peer victimization and receipt of prosocial behavior were similar across groups. Parents reported greater social problems for youth with social anxiety disorder compared to those without social anxiety disorder. All youth experienced improved social functioning following treatment per child- and parent-reports. The results call for an increased focus on the social experiences of youth with anxiety disorders, and particularly loneliness, for children with social anxiety disorder. The results document ways that evidenced-based practice can improve social functioning for youth with anxiety disorders. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Meta-Analysis of Social Cognition in Mild Cognitive Impairment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bora, Emre; Yener, Görsev G

    2017-07-01

    Social cognitive abilities are impaired in Alzheimer disease and other dementias. Recent studies suggested that social cognitive abilities might be also impaired in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Current meta-analysis aimed to summarize available evidence for deficits in theory of mind (ToM) and emotion recognition in MCI. In this meta-analysis of 17 studies, facial emotion recognition and ToM performances of 513 individuals with MCI and 693 healthy controls were compared. Mild cognitive impairment was associated with significant impairments falling in the medium effect sizes range in ToM ( d = 0.63) and facial emotion recognition ( d = 0.58). Among individual emotions, recognition of fear and sadness were particularly impaired. There were no significant between-group differences in recognition of disgust, happiness, and surprise. Social cognitive deficits were more severe in multidomain MCI. There is a need for longitudinal studies investigating the potential role of social cognitive impairment in predicting conversion to dementia.

  2. A Metaphor-Enriched Social Cognition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Landau, Mark J.; Meier, Brian P.; Keefer, Lucas A.

    2010-01-01

    Social cognition is the scientific study of the cognitive events underlying social thought and attitudes. Currently, the field's prevailing theoretical perspectives are the traditional schema view and embodied cognition theories. Despite important differences, these perspectives share the seemingly uncontroversial notion that people interpret and…

  3. Gestural coupling and social cognition

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Michael, John; Krueger, Joel William

    2012-01-01

    Social cognition researchers have become increasingly interested in the ways that behavioral, physiological, and neural coupling facilitate social interaction and interpersonal understanding. We distinguish two ways of conceptualizing the role of such coupling processes in social cognition: strong...... an essential enabling feature for social interaction and interpersonal understanding more generally and thus ought to exhibit severe deficits in these areas. We challenge SI's prediction and show how MS cases offer compelling reasons for instead adopting MI's pluralistic model of social interaction...... and interpersonal understanding. We conclude that investigations of coupling processes within social interaction should inform rather than marginalize or eliminate investigation of higher-level individual cognition...

  4. The Effectiveness of Social Skills Training by Cognitive-Behavioral Group in the Increase of Girls’ Self-Esteem and Assertiveness with Addicted Parents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maryam Esmaeili

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available Objective: The aim of the study was the survey of social skills training by cognitive behavioral group in the increase of girls’ self-esteem and assertiveness with addicted parents in Isfahan. Method: 20 students with addicted parents who had the lowest rate of assertiveness were selected by semi-experimental method in third to fifth grades. Randomly research projects pre-test-post-test control group. Questionnaire to measure assertiveness and assertiveness Gmbryl and Richie Esteem Questionnaire to measure students' self-esteem was used. After the pre-test training program assertiveness over 10 weeks, each week, one session, lasting from one hour and half and at the end of the test was performed after 40 days in both groups re-testing were results using software spss case were analyzed by descriptive statistical methods and two-factor analysis of variance with repeated measures on one factor was used. Results: The results showed that participants in the program and self-assertiveness therapy increased. These results were confirmed in a follow up phase. Conclusion: the training of social skills speeds up assertiveness and self-esteem of students.

  5. Explaining use of food parenting practices: the importance of predisposing factors and parental cognitions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gevers, Dorus Wm; van Assema, Patricia; de Vries, Nanne K; Kremers, Stef Pj

    2017-09-01

    The high energy intake from energy-dense foods among children in developed countries is undesirable. Improving food parenting practices has the potential to lower snack intakes among children. To inform the development of interventions, we aimed to predict food parenting practice patterns around snacking (i.e. 'high covert control and rewarding', 'low covert control and non-rewarding', 'high involvement and supportive' and 'low involvement and indulgent'). A cross-sectional survey was conducted. To predict the patterns of food parenting practices, multinomial logistic regression analyses were run with 888 parents. Predictors included predisposing factors (i.e. parents' and children's demographics and BMI, parents' personality, general parenting, and parenting practices used by their own parents) and parents' cognitions (i.e. perceived behaviour of other parents, subjective norms, attitudes, self-efficacy and outcome expectations). The Netherlands (October-November 2014). Dutch parents of children aged 4-12 years old. After backward elimination, nineteen factors had a statistically significant contribution to the model (Nagelkerke R 2=0·63). Overall, self-efficacy and outcome expectations were among the strongest explanatory factors. Considering the predisposing factors only, the general parenting factor nurturance most strongly predicted the food parenting clusters. Nurturance particularly distinguished highly involved parents from parents employing a pattern of low involvement. Parental cognitions and nurturance are important factors to explain the use of food parenting practices around snacking. The results suggest that intervention developers should attempt to increase self-efficacy and educate parents about what constitute effective and ineffective parenting practices. Promoting nurturance might be a prerequisite to achieve prolonged change.

  6. Social cognition in schizophrenia: from social stimuli processing to social engagement

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pablo eBilleke

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available Social cognition consists of several skills which allow us to interact with other humans. These skills include social stimuli processing, drawing inferences about others' mental states, and engaging in social interactions. In recent years, there has been growing evidence of social cognitive impairments in patients with schizophrenia. Apparently, these impairments are separable from general neurocognitive impairments, such as attention, memory and executive functioning. Moreover, social cognition seems to be a main determinant of functional outcome and could be used as a guide to elaborate new pharmacological and psychological treatments. However, most of these studies focus on individual mechanisms and observational perspectives; only few of them study schizophrenic patients during interactive situations. We first review evidences of social cognitive impairments both in social stimuli processing and in mental state attribution. We focus on the relationship between these functions and both general cognitive impairments and functional outcome. We next review recent game theory approaches to the study of how social engagement occurs in schizophrenic patients. The advantage of using game theory is that game-oriented tasks can assess social decision-making in an interactive everyday situation model. Finally, we review proposed theoretical models used to explain social alterations and their underlying biological mechanisms. Based on interactive studies, we propose a framework which takes into account the dynamic nature of social processes. Thus, understanding social skills as a result of dynamical systems could facilitate the development of both basic research and clinical applications oriented to psychiatric populations.

  7. Enabling Robotic Social Intelligence by Engineering Human Social-Cognitive Mechanisms

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wiltshire, Travis; Warta, Samantha F.; Barber, Daniel

    2017-01-01

    for artificial cognitive systems. We discuss a recent integrative perspective of social cognition to provide a systematic theoretical underpinning for computational instantiations of these mechanisms. We highlight several commitments of our approach that we refer to as Engineering Human Social Cognition. We...... then provide a series of recommendations to facilitate the development of the perceptual, motor, and cognitive architecture for this proposed artificial cognitive system in future work. For each recommendation, we highlight their relation to the discussed social-cognitive mechanisms, provide the rationale...

  8. Pathways of Influence: Chinese Parents' Expectations, Parenting Styles, and Child Social Competence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ren, Lixin; Edwards, Carolyn Pope

    2015-01-01

    This study examines relations among Chinese parents' expectations for children's development of social-emotional skills, parenting styles, and child social competence. A total of 154 parents with preschool-aged children from mainland China completed questionnaires measuring their timing of expectations for children's mastery of social-emotional…

  9. Differential effects of parenting in preterm and full-term children on developmental outcomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maupin, Angela N; Fine, Jodene Goldenring

    2014-12-01

    To examine the relations between preterm birth, parenting behavior during early childhood, cognitive development, and social-emotional outcomes at Kindergarten entry, and to determine whether parenting behavior differentially influences this developing system in children born preterm compared to children born full-term. The nationally representative sample comprised 3600 full-term and 1300 preterm children born in the US in the year 2001. All children who entered Kindergarten and who participated in data collection at 9 months, 24 months, and Kindergarten entry were included in the study. Measures of parenting behavior were collected at 9 and 24 months and cognitive development at 24 months via home visits. Social-emotional outcomes were assessed at Kindergarten entry via parent and teacher report. Multiple-sample Structural Equation Modeling was used to analyze group differences in a model whereby early childhood parenting behavior predicted cognitive outcomes, and social-emotional outcomes at Kindergarten entry, and indirectly predicted social-emotional outcomes via early cognitive processes. The full sample developmental model indicated excellent fit to the data. Preterm birth status indirectly influenced social-emotional outcomes at Kindergarten entry via its effect on early childhood parenting behavior and cognitive development. The multi-sample model revealed significant differences in the way in which early parenting behavior exerted its influence on outcomes at Kindergarten entry in preterm children compared to full-term children. For preterm children, parenting indirectly influenced social-emotional outcomes via early cognitive functioning. Findings highlight the importance of early identification and targeted parenting programs to support early cognitive development in preterm children. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Sleep, Internalizing Problems, and Social Withdrawal: Unique Associations in Clinic-Referred Youth With Elevated Sluggish Cognitive Tempo Symptoms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rondon, Ana T; Hilton, Dane C; Jarrett, Matthew A; Ollendick, Thomas H

    2018-02-01

    We compared clinic-referred youth with ADHD + sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT; n = 34), ADHD Only ( n = 108), and SCT Only ( n = 22) on demographics, co-occurring symptomatology, comorbid diagnoses, and social functioning. In total, 164 youth (age = 6-17 years, M = 9.97) and their parent(s) presented to an outpatient clinic for a psychoeducational assessment. Between-group analyses and regressions were used to examine study variables. SCT groups were older and exhibited more parent-reported internalizing problems, externalizing problems, sleep problems, and social withdrawal on the Child Behavior Checklist. No significant differences emerged between groups on the Teacher Report Form. Regression analyses involving multiple covariates revealed that SCT symptoms were uniquely related to social withdrawal but not general social problems. Based on parent report, SCT symptoms have a unique relationship with internalizing problems, sleep problems, and social withdrawal. Future research should explore correlates of SCT in youth using multiple informants.

  11. Exploring social cognition in schizophrenia

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Revsbech, R.; Mortensen, E. L.; Nordgaard, J.

    2017-01-01

    The aim of the study was to compare social cognition between groups of patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and healthy controls and to replicate two previous studies using tests of social cognition that may be particularly sensitive to social cognitive deficits in schizophrenia. Thirty......-eight first-admitted patients with schizophrenia and 38 healthy controls solved 11 “imaginary conversation (i.e., theory of mind)” items, 10 “psychological understanding” items, and 10 “practical understanding” items. Statistical tests were made of unadjusted and adjusted group differences in models adjusting...... for intelligence and neuropsychological test performance. Healthy controls performed better than patients on all types of social cognitive tests, particularly on “psychological understanding.” However, after adjusting for intelligence and neuropsychological test performance, all group differences became...

  12. Brief Report: Effects of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Parent-Reported Autism Symptoms in School-Age Children with High-Functioning Autism

    OpenAIRE

    Wood, Jeffrey J.; Drahota, Amy; Sze, Karen; Dyke, Marilyn; Decker, Kelly; Fujii, Cori; Bahng, Christie; Renno, Patricia; Hwang, Wei-Chin; Spiker, Michael

    2009-01-01

    This pilot study tested the effect of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on parent-reported autism symptoms. Nineteen children with autism spectrum disorders and an anxiety disorder (7?11?years old) were randomly assigned to 16 sessions of CBT or a waitlist condition. The CBT program emphasized in vivo exposure supported by parent training and school consultation to promote social communication and emotion regulation skills. Parents completed a standardized autism symptom checklist at baselin...

  13. Relationships among Parenting Practices, Parental Stress, Child Behaviour, and Children's Social-Cognitive Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guajardo, Nicole R.; Snyder, Gregory; Petersen, Rachel

    2009-01-01

    The present study included observational and self-report measures to examine associations among parental stress, parental behaviour, child behaviour, and children's theory of mind and emotion understanding. Eighty-three parents and their 3- to 5-year-old children participated. Parents completed measures of parental stress, parenting (laxness,…

  14. Predicting Parent-Child Aggression Risk: Cognitive Factors and Their Interaction With Anger.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodriguez, Christina M

    2018-02-01

    Several cognitive elements have previously been proposed to elevate risk for physical child abuse. To predict parent-child aggression risk, the current study evaluated the role of approval of parent-child aggression, perceptions of children as poorly behaved, and discipline attributions. Several dimensions of attributions specifically tied to parents' discipline practices were targeted. In addition, anger experienced during discipline episodes was considered a potential moderator of these cognitive processes. Using a largely multiple-indicator approach, a sample of 110 mothers reported on these cognitive and affective aspects that may occur when disciplining their children as well as responding to measures of parent-child aggression risk. Findings suggest that greater approval of parent-child aggression, negative perceptions of their child's behavior, and discipline attributions independently predicted parent-child aggression risk, with anger significantly interacting with mothers' perception of their child as more poorly behaved to exacerbate their parent-child aggression risk. Of the discipline attribution dimensions evaluated, mothers' sense of external locus of control and believing their child deserved their discipline were related to increase parent-child aggression risk. Future work is encouraged to comprehensively evaluate how cognitive and affective components contribute and interact to increase risk for parent-child aggression.

  15. Parental Employment and Child Cognitive Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruhm, Christopher J.

    2004-01-01

    A more pessimistic assessment to study the effects of maternal employment on children's learning abilities is presented. Parental investments during infancy and childhood not only result in improved cognitive development but also in overall improvement in learning abilities.

  16. Social Cognition in the Mirrors of «Cognitive Revolutions»

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khoroshilov D.A.

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The article discusses the problem of the social determination of cognition from the point of view of «cognitive revolutions» (R. Harré in dialogue between psychology, social theory and history, neurobiology and aesthetics. The research inquiry is the cultural-historical analysis of the social representations of the everyday life. The «aesthetic paradigm» (T.D. Martsinkovskaya uses the art-based methods to study the cultural forms of social cognition. Theoretical discussions are illustrated by the social psychological, clinical and contemporary art research of the mass consciousness of the Russian society at the beginning of the 21st century. The article presents the experience of the genre analysis of the tragedy of culture (G. Simmel, personal drama (L.S. Vygotsky and comedy of social life (A.P. Chekhov. The final result is a new aesthetic concept of social cognition.

  17. Parental Perceived Control and Social Support: Linkages to Change in Parenting Behaviors During Early Adolescence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lippold, Melissa A; Glatz, Terese; Fosco, Gregory M; Feinberg, Mark E

    2018-06-01

    Prior studies have found that parents' perceptions of control over their lives and their social support may both be important for parenting behaviors. Yet, few studies have examined their unique and interacting influence on parenting behaviors during early adolescence. This longitudinal study of rural parents in two-parent families (N = 636) investigated (a) whether perceived control and social support when their youth were in sixth grade were independently or interactively associated with changes in parenting behaviors (discipline, standard setting) and parent-child warmth and hostility 6 months later and (b) if these linkages differed by parent gender. We also investigated the interactive links between perceived control, social support, and parenting. Specifically, we tested if parents' perceived control moderated the linkages between social support and parenting and if these linkages differed by parent gender. Greater perceived control predicted more increases in parents' consistent discipline and standard setting, whereas greater social support predicted increases in parent-child warmth and decreases in parent-child hostility. Parental perceived control moderated the effect of social support on parental warmth: For mothers only, social support was significantly linked to parent-child warmth only when mothers had low (but not high) perceived self-control. The discussion focuses on reasons why perceived control and social support may have associations with different aspects of parenting and why these might differ for mothers and fathers. © 2017 Family Process Institute.

  18. Antecedents of Looming Cognitive Style: Associations With Reported Perceived Parenting and Attachment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Altan-Atalay, Ayşe; Ayvaşık, Halise Belgin

    2018-01-01

    Looming Cognitive Style, which was proposed as cognitive vulnerability model specific for anxiety disorders, suggests that anxiety-prone individuals have a tendency to perceive threats and dangers as getting closer, becoming larger, and more agonizing every passing minute. Yet, very few studies focused on the family-related variables that are associated with development of Looming Cognitive Style. This study aims to investigate the relationship of Looming Cognitive Style with measures perceived parenting and attachment. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 389 university students aged between 18 and 35 as participants. The participants were assessed through Looming Cognitive Style, perceived parenting, attachment anxiety, and avoidance. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated Looming Cognitive Style to be significantly predicted by maternal overprotection and anxiety dimension of attachment. The results are important in understanding how parenting-related variables are related to development of cognitive vulnerabilities specific to anxiety disorders.

  19. Are They Listening? Parental Social Coaching and Parenting Emotional Climate Predict Adolescent Receptivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gregson, Kim D; Erath, Stephen A; Pettit, Gregory S; Tu, Kelly M

    2016-12-01

    Associations linking parenting emotional climate and quality of parental social coaching with young adolescents' receptivity to parental social coaching were examined (N = 80). Parenting emotional climate was assessed with adolescent-reported parental warmth and hostility. Quality of parental social coaching (i.e., prosocial advice, benign framing) was assessed via parent-report and behavioral observations during a parent-adolescent discussion about negative peer evaluation. An adolescent receptivity latent variable score was derived from observations of adolescents' behavior during the discussion, change in adolescents' peer response plan following the discussion, and adolescent-reported tendency to seek social advice from the parent. Parenting climate moderated associations between coaching and receptivity: Higher quality coaching was associated with greater receptivity in the context of a more positive climate. Analyses suggested a stronger association between coaching and receptivity among younger compared to older adolescents. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Research on Adolescence © 2015 Society for Research on Adolescence.

  20. Cognitive functioning in socially anxious adults: Insights from the NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sonya Violet Troller-Renfree

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Theory suggests that individuals with social anxiety manifest unique patterns of cognition with less efficient fluid cognition and unperturbed crystallized cognition; however, empirical support for these ideas remains inconclusive. The heterogeneity of past findings may reflect unreliability in cognitive assessments or the influence of confounding variables. The present study examined the relations among social anxiety and performance on the reliable, newly established NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery. Results indicate that high socially anxious adults performed as well as low anxious participants on all measures of fluid cognition. However, highly socially anxious adults demonstrated enhanced crystallized cognitive abilities relative to a low socially anxious comparison group.

  1. Quality of Parent/Adolescent Attachment and Aggression in Young Adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simons, Kevin J.; Paternite, Carl E.; Shore, Cecilia

    2001-01-01

    Examined association between adolescents' perception of parent-adolescent attachment quality and adolescent aggression, as mediated by social cognition and self-esteem. Found that higher social cognition was associated with lower self-reported aggression when parent-adolescent attachments and adolescent self-esteem were controlled. When…

  2. [Parental involvement in cognitive-behavioral therapy for children with anxiety disorders].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aydın, Arzu

    2014-01-01

    A growing body of literature suggests that parents play a critical role in the development and/or maintenance of child anxiety. One of the main purposes of this article is to identify common parental involvement techniques and most common obstacles derived from parents in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with anxious children. Another purpose of the present study is to revise empirical studies comparing child-focused CBT with and without parental involvement. The PsycARTICLES, MEDLINE and PubMed databases were searched to identify articles in English that were published between the years of 1990 and 2012 (October) using the following keywords; (1) anxiety, (2) cognitive behavioral therapy, (3) parental involvement. Studies were only included in this review if they were comparing the treatment effect of child-only CBT and CBT with additional parental components. Thirteen studies were introduced in the context of method (diagnosis of children, age range of children, follow-up, results, etc.) and therapy characteristics (number of sessions, frequency of sessions, treatment components both child focused CBT and CBT with parental involvement, etc.). The common techniques of therapy with parental involvement are psychoeducation, contingency management, cognitive restructuring, reducing parental anxiety, improving parent-child relationship, and relapse prevention. Parental psychopathology, parental inappropriate expectations and family dysfunctions are important difficulties derived from parents in CBT with anxious children. The results of the studies suggested that parental involvement have increased the efficacy of the treatment in CBT especially working with young children and having at least one anxious parent.

  3. Mental exercising through simple socializing: social interaction promotes general cognitive functioning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ybarra, Oscar; Burnstein, Eugene; Winkielman, Piotr; Keller, Matthew C; Manis, Melvin; Chan, Emily; Rodriguez, Joel

    2008-02-01

    Social interaction is a central feature of people's life and engages a variety of cognitive resources. Thus, social interaction should facilitate general cognitive functioning. Previous studies suggest such a link, but they used special populations (e.g., elderly with cognitive impairment), measured social interaction indirectly (e.g., via marital status), and only assessed effects of extended interaction in correlational designs. Here the relation between mental functioning and direct indicators of social interaction was examined in a younger and healthier population. Study 1 using survey methodology found a positive relationship between social interaction, assessed via amount of actual social contact, and cognitive functioning in people from three age groups including younger adults. Study 2 using an experimental design found that a small amount of social interaction (10 min) can facilitate cognitive performance. The findings are discussed in the context of the benefits social relationships have for so many aspects of people's lives.

  4. Cognitive control moderates parenting stress effects on children's diurnal cortisol

    OpenAIRE

    Raffington, Laurel; Schmiedek, Florian; Heim, Christine; Shing, Yee Lee

    2018-01-01

    This study investigated associations between parenting stress in parents and self-reported stress in children with children's diurnal cortisol secretion and whether these associations are moderated by known stress-regulating capacities, namely child cognitive control. Salivary cortisol concentrations were assessed from awakening to evening on two weekend days from 53 6-to-7-year-old children. Children completed a cognitive control task and a self-report stress questionnaire with an experiment...

  5. Social Institutions as Tools in Normative Cognition

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Jeppe Sinding

    Social institutions are normative cognitive tools, the functions of which should be an important subject in cognitive anthropology......Social institutions are normative cognitive tools, the functions of which should be an important subject in cognitive anthropology...

  6. The relationship between optimal parenting, Internet addiction and motives for social networking in adolescence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Floros, Georgios; Siomos, Konstantinos

    2013-10-30

    This paper presents a cross-sectional study of a large, high-school Greek student sample (N=1971) with the aim to examine adolescent motives for participating in social networking (SN) for a possible link with parenting style and cognitions related to Internet addiction disorder (IAD). Exploratory statistics demonstrate a shift from the prominence of online gaming to social networking for this age group. A regression model provides with the best linear combination of independent variables useful in predicting participation in SN. Results also include a validated model of negative correlation between optimal parenting on the one hand and motives for SN participation and IAD on the other. Examining cognitions linked to SN may assist in a better understanding of underlying adolescent wishes and problems. Future research may focus in the patterns unveiled among those adolescents turning to SN for the gratification of basic unmet psychological needs. The debate on the exact nature of IAD would benefit from the inclusion of SN as a possible online activity where addictive phenomena may occur. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Attention, Joint Attention, and Social Cognition

    OpenAIRE

    Mundy, Peter; Newell, Lisa

    2007-01-01

    Before social cognition there is joint processing of information about the attention of self and others. This joint attention requires the integrated activation of a distributed cortical network involving the anterior and posterior attention systems. In infancy, practice with the integrated activation of this distributed attention network is a major contributor to the development of social cognition. Thus, the functional neuroanatomies of social cognition and the anterior–posterior attention ...

  8. Mediating social media use : connecting parents mediation strategies and social media literacy

    OpenAIRE

    Daneels, Rowan; Vanwynsberghe, Hadewijch

    2017-01-01

    Abstract: Increasingly complex and multipurpose social media platforms require digital competences from parents and adolescents alike. While adolescents grow up with social media, parents have more difficulties with them, leading to uncertainties regarding their adolescents social media mediation. This study contributes to parental mediation research by (1) investigating whether mediation strategies defined by previous research are also relevant for social media use, and (2) exploring whether...

  9. Social cognition in humans

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Frith, Christopher; Frith, Uta

    2007-01-01

    We review a diversity of studies of human social interaction and highlight the importance of social signals. We also discuss recent findings from social cognitive neuroscience that explore the brain basis of the capacity for processing social signals. These signals enable us to learn about...

  10. Evaluation of the Relevance of Piaget's Cognitive Principles among Parented and Orphan Children in Belagavi City, Karnataka, India: A Comparative Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    M Badakar, Chandrashekhar; J Thakkar, Prachi; M Hugar, Shivayogi; Kukreja, Pratibha; G Assudani, Harsha; Gokhale, Niraj

    2017-01-01

    To determine and compare the relevance of Piaget's cognitive principles among 4- to 7-year-old parented and orphan children in Belagavi City, Karnataka, India. This study was conducted on 240 children between the ages of 4 to 7 years who were equally divided into two groups of 120 parented and 120 orphan children. These were subdivided into four groups of 30 children each. Various characteristics like egocentrism, concept of cardinal numbers based on centration, lack of conservation, and reversibility were assessed, using experiments and comparison of their prevalence between two groups was carried out. There is a statistically significant difference in the cognitive development among parented and orphan children age 4 to 7 years. There is a significantly better cognitive development among parented children as compared with orphan children in Belagavi city. A child is not a miniature adult but rather can think and perceive the world differently from an adult. Understanding a child's intellectual level can enable a pedodontist to deliver improved quality care to children. According to Jean Piaget, in the preoperational period, children think symbolically and their reasoning is based more on appearance rather than logic. It is often rightly said that a child's behavior is a reflection of his parents. However, Piaget did not consider the effect of social setting and culture on the cognitive development. This study was carried out as there is not much literature available to describe the cognitive development of children in the Indian scenario and the influence of parental presence on the same. How to cite this article: Badakar CM, Thakkar PJ, Hugar SM, Kukreja P, Assudani HG, Gokhale N. Evaluation of the Relevance of Piaget's Cognitive Principles among Parented and Orphan Children in Belagavi City, Karnataka, India: A Comparative Study. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2017;10(4):346-350.

  11. Cambodian Parental Involvement: The Role of Parental Beliefs, Social Networks, and Trust

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eng, Sothy; Szmodis, Whitney; Mulsow, Miriam

    2014-01-01

    The role of social capital (parental beliefs, social networks, and trust) as a predictor of parental involvement in Cambodian children's education was examined, controlling for human capital (family socioeconomic status). Parents of elementary students (n = 273) were interviewed face to face in Cambodia. Teacher contact scored highest, followed by…

  12. Emerging Adults' Stress and Health: The Role of Parent Behaviors and Cognitions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donnelly, Reesa; Renk, Kimberly; McKinney, Cliff

    2013-01-01

    Although parent behaviors and cognitions are important for stress/health outcomes throughout development, little research examines whether cognitions mediate the relationship between parent behaviors and stress/health outcomes. As a result, the current study examined the reports of 160 emerging adults regarding their mothers' and fathers'…

  13. Cultural Predictors of the Parenting Cognitions of Immigrant Chinese Mothers and Fathers in Canada

    Science.gov (United States)

    Costigan, Catherine; Su, Tina F.

    2008-01-01

    This study explored the predictors of parenting cognitions among 94 married immigrant Chinese couples with early-adolescent children in Canada. Mothers and fathers separately completed questionnaires assessing their culturally based parenting cognitions (interdependent childrearing goals, family obligation expectations and Chinese parent role…

  14. Parenting style impacts cognitive and behavioural outcomes of former preterm infants: A systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neel, M L M; Stark, A R; Maitre, N L

    2018-03-25

    We sought to evaluate published evidence in aggregate regarding the impact of parenting style on the cognitive and behavioural outcomes of former preterm infants. We searched 5 databases using germane MeSH terms. Parenting style was defined as any descriptor of parenting using ≥2 dimensions on published parenting axes. We evaluated studies for quality of evidence and strength of recommendations using standardized tools and categorized summative recommendations by parenting axis and child outcome. Twenty-seven articles met our inclusion criteria. Parental responsivity is the only parenting axis strongly associated with both improved child cognition and behaviour. Parental demandingness is associated only with improved child cognition, and parental warmth and rejection are associated only with child behaviour. Parental coercion is not associated with subsequent child outcomes. Parental responsivity may be essential in optimizing neurodevelopment in former preterm infants. More targeted studies are needed to inform this relationship and identify opportunities for intervention. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  15. The developmental origins of cognitive vulnerability to depression: temperament, parenting, and negative life events in childhood as contributors to negative cognitive style.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mezulis, Amy H; Hyde, Janet Shibley; Abramson, Lyn Y

    2006-11-01

    Cognitive models of depression have been well supported with adults, but the developmental origins of cognitive vulnerability are not well understood. The authors hypothesized that temperament, parenting, and negative life events in childhood would contribute to the development of cognitive style, with withdrawal negativity and negative parental feedback moderating the effects of negative life events to predict more depressogenic cognitive styles. These constructs were assessed in 289 children and their parents followed longitudinally from infancy to 5th grade; a subsample (n = 120) also participated in a behavioral task in which maternal feedback to child failure was observed. Results indicated that greater withdrawal negativity in interaction with negative life events was associated with more negative cognitive styles. Self-reported maternal anger expression and observed negative maternal feedback to child's failure significantly interacted with child's negative events to predict greater cognitive vulnerability. There was little evidence of paternal parenting predicting child negative cognitive style.

  16. Parenting stress in mothers of children with an intellectual disability: the effects of parental cognitions in relation to child characteristics and family support.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hassall, R; Rose, J; McDonald, J

    2005-06-01

    Recent theories of stress and coping in parents of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) emphasize the importance of cognitive appraisals in influencing parents' levels of stress and their adaptations to difficulties presented by the children. This study investigated the relationships between parental cognitions, child characteristics, family support and parenting stress. The aspects of cognitions studied were: parenting self-esteem (including efficacy and satisfaction) and parental locus of control. The group studied consisted of 46 mothers of children with ID. The Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales and Maladaptive Behavior Domain were administered by interview. Mothers also completed four questionnaires: the Family Support Scale, the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale, a shortened form of the Parental Locus of Control Scale and the Parenting Stress Index (Short Form). Data were analysed using Pearson's correlation coefficients, partial correlations and a regression analysis. The results indicated that most of the variance in parenting stress was explained by parental locus of control, parenting satisfaction and child behaviour difficulties. Whilst there was also a strong correlation between family support and parenting stress, this was mediated by parental locus of control. The results demonstrate the potential importance of parental cognitions in influencing parental stress levels. It is argued that these results have implications for clinical interventions for promoting parents' coping strategies in managing children with ID and behavioural difficulties.

  17. Parental Depression, Overreactive Parenting, and Early Childhood Externalizing Problems: Moderation by Social Support.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taraban, Lindsay; Shaw, Daniel S; Leve, Leslie D; Natsuaki, Misaki N; Ganiban, Jody M; Reiss, David; Neiderhiser, Jenae M

    2018-02-20

    This study used a large (N = 519), longitudinal sample of adoptive families to test overreactive parenting as a mediator of associations between parental depressive symptoms and early childhood externalizing, and parents' social support satisfaction as a moderator. Maternal parenting (18 months) mediated the association between maternal depressive symptoms (9 months) and child externalizing problems (27 months). Paternal parenting was not a significant mediator. Unexpectedly, we found a cross-over effect for the moderating role of social support satisfaction, such that partners' social support satisfaction reduced the strength of the association between each parent's own depressive symptoms and overreactive parenting. Results point to the importance of accounting for broader family context in predicting early childhood parenting and child outcomes. © 2018 The Authors. Child Development © 2018 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

  18. Oxytocin, testosterone, and human social cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crespi, Bernard J

    2016-05-01

    I describe an integrative social-evolutionary model for the adaptive significance of the human oxytocinergic system. The model is based on a role for this hormone in the generation and maintenance of social familiarity and affiliation across five homologous, functionally similar, and sequentially co-opted contexts: mothers with offspring, female and male mates, kin groups, individuals with reciprocity partners, and individuals within cooperating and competing social groups defined by culture. In each situation, oxytocin motivates, mediates and rewards the cognitive and behavioural processes that underlie the formation and dynamics of a more or less stable social group, and promotes a relationship between two or more individuals. Such relationships may be positive (eliciting neurological reward, reducing anxiety and thus indicating fitness-enhancing effects), or negative (increasing anxiety and distress, and thus motivating attempts to alleviate a problematic, fitness-reducing social situation). I also present evidence that testosterone exhibits opposite effects from oxytocin on diverse aspects of cognition and behaviour, most generally by favouring self-oriented, asocial and antisocial behaviours. I apply this model for effects of oxytocin and testosterone to understanding human psychological disorders centrally involving social behaviour. Reduced oxytocin and higher testosterone levels have been associated with under-developed social cognition, especially in autism. By contrast, some combination of oxytocin increased above normal levels, and lower testosterone, has been reported in a notable number of studies of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression, and, in some cases, higher oxytocin involves maladaptively 'hyper-developed' social cognition in these conditions. This pattern of findings suggests that human social cognition and behaviour are structured, in part, by joint and opposing effects of oxytocin and testosterone, and that extremes of such joint

  19. Parental socialization styles, parents' educational level, and sexist attitudes in adolescence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garaigordobil, Maite; Aliri, Jone

    2012-07-01

    The aims of this study were to analyze the differences in the mothers' and fathers' socialization styles depending on their children's sex; whether there are differences in hostile, benevolent, and ambivalent sexism, and neosexism as a function of both parents' socialization styles; and whether the parents' educational level affects their level of sexism and their children's sexism. The sample included 1,455 adolescents and their parents (764 mothers and 648 fathers). The results showed no differences in the socialization style of the father with his children's sexism, but the mother used a more authoritarian style with her daughters. The parents' socialization style had little influence on their children's sexism, although it had a higher impact on the sons' sexism. The father's style had less influence than the mother's on their sons' sexism, and it had no influence on their daughters' sexism. The indulgent style of both parents had the highest relation with a low level of sexism. Moreover, a negative correlation was found between the parents' educational level and their level of sexism, as well as between the mother's educational level and her daughters' sexism. To conclude, the indulgent style and the mother's high educational level promote fewer sexist attitudes.

  20. Development of social-cognitive and communication skills in children born deaf.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peterson, Candida C

    2009-10-01

    Central to the interface of social-cognitive and communicative development is the growth of a theory of mind (ToM). ToM is mastered by most hearing children and deaf children of signing deaf parents by the age of 5 or 6 but is often seriously delayed in deaf children of hearing parents. This paper reviews recently published research on deaf children's ToM development and presents an original study consisting of eight longitudinal case histories that collectively map late-signing deaf children's ToM performance from 44 to 158 months of age. While five tentative conclusions can be posited from the collective research so far, further investigation of each of these possibilities is clearly needed.

  1. Parental Involvement in Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Children with Anxiety Disorders

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Walczak, Monika; Esbjørn, Barbara H; Breinholst, Sonja

    2017-01-01

    Parental factors have been linked to childhood anxiety, hence, parental involvement in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxious children has been examined. However, findings do not consistently show added effects of parent-enhanced CBT, longitudinal investigations are scarce and long...

  2. Interparental conflict, parenting, and childhood depression in a diverse urban population: the role of general cognitive style.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Donnell, Ellen H; Moreau, Melissa; Cardemil, Esteban V; Pollastri, Alisha

    2010-01-01

    Research on the mechanisms by which interparental conflict (IPC) affects child depression suggests that both parenting and children's conflict appraisals play important roles, but few studies have explored the role of general cognitive style or included both parenting and cognitions in the same design. Moreover, the effects of IPC on minority children are not well understood. In this longitudinal study, parenting was examined as a mediator of the relation between increasing IPC and change in depression. General cognitive style was included as a moderator. The combined influence of parenting and cognitions was also explored. A racially and ethnically diverse sample of 88 fifth and sixth graders from two urban schools reported their cognitive style, depressive symptoms, and perceptions of conflict and parenting at two time points separated by one year. Parental warmth/rejection mediated the relation between IPC and depression, and general cognitive style acted as a moderator. Parenting, cognitive style, and IPC did not significantly interact to predict change in depression over time. Findings indicate that both parenting and children's general cognitive style play a role in understanding the impact of increasing IPC on children's well-being.

  3. Can Social Functioning in Schizophrenia Be Improved through Targeted Social Cognitive Intervention?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David L. Roberts

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Efforts to use cognitive remediation in psychosocial intervention for schizophrenia have increasingly incorporated social cognition as a treatment target. A distinction can be made in this work between “broad-based” interventions, which integrate social cognitive training within a multicomponent suite of intervention techniques and “targeted” interventions; which aim to enhance social cognition alone. Targeted interventions have the potential advantage of being more efficient than broad-based interventions; however, they also face difficult challenges. In particular, targeted interventions may be less likely to achieve maintenance and generalization of gains made in treatment. A novel potential solution to this problem is described which draws on the social psychological literature on social cognition.

  4. How social cognition can inform social decision making

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Victoria K.; Harris, Lasana T.

    2013-01-01

    Social decision-making is often complex, requiring the decision-maker to make inferences of others' mental states in addition to engaging traditional decision-making processes like valuation and reward processing. A growing body of research in neuroeconomics has examined decision-making involving social and non-social stimuli to explore activity in brain regions such as the striatum and prefrontal cortex, largely ignoring the power of the social context. Perhaps more complex processes may influence decision-making in social vs. non-social contexts. Years of social psychology and social neuroscience research have documented a multitude of processes (e.g., mental state inferences, impression formation, spontaneous trait inferences) that occur upon viewing another person. These processes rely on a network of brain regions including medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), superior temporal sulcus (STS), temporal parietal junction, and precuneus among others. Undoubtedly, these social cognition processes affect social decision-making since mental state inferences occur spontaneously and automatically. Few studies have looked at how these social inference processes affect decision-making in a social context despite the capability of these inferences to serve as predictions that can guide future decision-making. Here we review and integrate the person perception and decision-making literatures to understand how social cognition can inform the study of social decision-making in a way that is consistent with both literatures. We identify gaps in both literatures—while behavioral economics largely ignores social processes that spontaneously occur upon viewing another person, social psychology has largely failed to talk about the implications of social cognition processes in an economic decision-making context—and examine the benefits of integrating social psychological theory with behavioral economic theory. PMID:24399928

  5. How social cognition can inform social decision making.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Victoria K; Harris, Lasana T

    2013-12-25

    Social decision-making is often complex, requiring the decision-maker to make inferences of others' mental states in addition to engaging traditional decision-making processes like valuation and reward processing. A growing body of research in neuroeconomics has examined decision-making involving social and non-social stimuli to explore activity in brain regions such as the striatum and prefrontal cortex, largely ignoring the power of the social context. Perhaps more complex processes may influence decision-making in social vs. non-social contexts. Years of social psychology and social neuroscience research have documented a multitude of processes (e.g., mental state inferences, impression formation, spontaneous trait inferences) that occur upon viewing another person. These processes rely on a network of brain regions including medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), superior temporal sulcus (STS), temporal parietal junction, and precuneus among others. Undoubtedly, these social cognition processes affect social decision-making since mental state inferences occur spontaneously and automatically. Few studies have looked at how these social inference processes affect decision-making in a social context despite the capability of these inferences to serve as predictions that can guide future decision-making. Here we review and integrate the person perception and decision-making literatures to understand how social cognition can inform the study of social decision-making in a way that is consistent with both literatures. We identify gaps in both literatures-while behavioral economics largely ignores social processes that spontaneously occur upon viewing another person, social psychology has largely failed to talk about the implications of social cognition processes in an economic decision-making context-and examine the benefits of integrating social psychological theory with behavioral economic theory.

  6. Self-referenced memory, social cognition, and symptom presentation in autism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henderson, Heather A; Zahka, Nicole E; Kojkowski, Nicole M; Inge, Anne P; Schwartz, Caley B; Hileman, Camilla M; Coman, Drew C; Mundy, Peter C

    2009-07-01

    We examined performance on a self-referenced memory (SRM) task for higher-functioning children with autism (HFA) and a matched comparison group. SRM performance was examined in relation to symptom severity and social cognitive tests of mentalizing. Sixty-two children (31 HFA, 31 comparison; 8-16 years) completed a SRM task in which they read a list of words and decided whether the word described something about them, something about Harry Potter, or contained a certain number of letters. They then identified words that were familiar from a longer list. Dependent measures were memory performance (d') in each of the three encoding conditions as well as a self-memory bias score (d' self-d' other). Children completed The Strange Stories Task and The Children's Eyes Test as measures of social cognition. Parents completed the SCQ and ASSQ as measures of symptom severity. Children in the comparison sample showed the standard SRM effect in which they recognized significantly more self-referenced words relative to words in the other-referenced and letter conditions. In contrast, HFA children showed comparable rates of recognition for self- and other-referenced words. For all children, SRM performance improved with age and enhanced SRM performance was related to lower levels of social problems. These associations were not accounted for by performance on the mentalizing tasks. Children with HFA did not show the standard enhanced processing of self- vs. other-relevant information. Individual differences in the tendency to preferentially process self-relevant information may be associated with social cognitive processes that serve to modify the expression of social symptoms in children with autism.

  7. Social Cognition in Children with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Associations with Executive Functions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Miranda

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Autism spectrum disorder (ASD and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD are neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by social impairments. The first objective of this study was to analyze social cognition deficits of children with ADHD, high-functioning ASD (HFASD, and typical development (TD in their performance on explicit and applied measures of theory of mind (ToM. The second objective was to investigate the relationships between executive functions and social cognition in HFASD and ADHD. One hundred and twenty-six 7- to 11-year old children, 52 with HFASD, 35 with ADHD, and 39 with TD, performed the NEPSY-II social perception subtests. Parents estimated their children's ToM skills using the Theory of Mind Inventory (ToMI. Teacher-reported data from the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF were also obtained. The HFASD and ADHD groups showed worse performance on the verbal ToM task than the TD group, and only the performance of the HFASD group was significantly lower than the TD group on the contextual ToM task. Parents also estimated that the HFASD group had more difficulties on the applied ToM than the ADHD and TD groups. Furthermore, there is a different executive function-theory of mind link in the HFASD and ADHD groups: behavioral regulation processes such as inhibition and emotional control are more associated with social cognition in children with ADHD, whereas metacognitive processes such as initiation and planning have a strong association with social cognition in children with HFASD. These findings have implications for understanding social perception deficits in neurodevelopmental disorders, highlighting the need for early intervention.

  8. The influence of parenting on maladaptive cognitive schema: a cross-sectional research on a group of adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pellerone, Monica; Iacolino, Calogero; Mannino, Giuseppe; Formica, Ivan; Zabbara, Simona Maria

    2017-01-01

    The literature emphasizes the role of early interpersonal experiences in the development of cognitive vulnerability; in particular, interruptions in early family relationships, parental unavailability and dysfunctional parenting are potential evolutionary precursors to negative cognitive style and emotional disorders. This study measured the relationship of retrospective ratings on parental bonding with cognitive patterns in a group of Italian adults. The objectives of this study were as follows: to analyze the influence of age and education level on cognitive domains; to verify whether being parents and living at home with parents affect both parenting style and cognitive domains; to investigate how the type of the maternal and paternal parenting independently affects cognitive styles; to measure the predictive variables for the use of cognitive dysfunctional patterns and to investigate age as a moderating variable of the relation between parenting styles and cognitive domains in a group of adult men and women. The research involved 209 adults (118 males and 91 females) living in Sicily (Italy) aged between 20 and 60 years ( M = 37.52; SD = 11.42). The research lasted for 1 year. The instruments used were the Parental Bonding Instrument to measure the perception of parenting during childhood and the Young Schema Questionnaire-3 to investigate cognitive patterns. Data show that being a younger adult male with mother's parenting style characterized by a lower level of nurturance is predictive of the disconnection and rejection domain, whereas, being a younger adult woman, with a higher level of maternal control is predictive of the impaired limits domain. This study underlines that because mothers and fathers establish different bonds with their children, care and control by both parents might impact different domains of development.

  9. Bilingualism, social cognition and executive functions: A tale of chickens and eggs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cox, Simon R; Bak, Thomas H; Allerhand, Michael; Redmond, Paul; Starr, John M; Deary, Ian J; MacPherson, Sarah E

    2016-10-01

    The influence of bilingualism on cognitive functioning is currently a topic of intense scientific debate. The strongest evidence for a cognitive benefit of bilingualism has been demonstrated in executive functions. However, the causal direction of the relationship remains unclear: does learning other languages improve executive functions or are people with better executive abilities more likely to become bilingual? To address this, we examined 90 male participants of the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936; 26 were bilingual, 64 monolingual. All participants underwent an intelligence test at age 11 years and were assessed on a wide range of executive and social cognition tasks at age 74. The only notable differences between both groups were found for the Simon Effect (which indexes stimulus-response conflict resolution; β=-.518, p=0.025) and a trend effect for the Faux Pas task (a measure of complex theory of mind; ToM, β=0.432, p=0.060). Controlling for the influence of childhood intelligence, parental and own social class significantly attenuated the bilingual advantage on the Faux Pas test (β=0.058, p=0.816), whereas the Simon task advantage remained (β=-.589, p=0.049). We find some weak evidence that the relationship between bilingualism and cognitive functions may be selective and bi-directional. Pre-existing cognitive and social class differences from childhood may influence both ToM ability in older age and the likelihood of learning another language; yet, bilingualism does not appear to independently contribute to Faux Pas score. Conversely, learning a second language is related to better conflict processing, irrespective of initial childhood ability or social class. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  10. Oxytocin and Social Cognition in Affective and Psychotic Disorders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perez-Rodriguez, M. Mercedes; Mahon, Katie; Russo, Manuela; Ungar, Allison K.; Burdick, Katherine E.

    2014-01-01

    Impairments in social cognition are now recognized as core illness features in psychotic and affective disorders. Despite the significant disability caused by social cognitive abnormalities, treatments for this symptom dimension are lacking. Here, we describe the evidence demonstrating abnormalities in social cognition in schizophrenia, major depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder, as well as the neurobiology of social cognition including the role of oxytocin. We then review clinical trials of oxytocin administration in psychotic and affective disorders and the impact of this agent on social cognition. To date, several studies have demonstrated that oxytocin may improve social cognition in schizophrenia; too few studies have been conducted in affective disorders to determine the effect of oxytocin on social cognition in these disorders. Future work is needed to clarify which aspects of social cognition may be improved with oxytocin treatment in psychotic and affective disorders. PMID:25153535

  11. Gender-Specific Effects of Cognitive Load on Social Discounting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strombach, Tina; Margittai, Zsofia; Gorczyca, Barbara; Kalenscher, Tobias

    2016-01-01

    We live busy, social lives, and meeting the challenges of our complex environments puts strain on our cognitive systems. However, cognitive resources are limited. It is unclear how cognitive load affects social decision making. Previous findings on the effects of cognitive load on other-regarding preferences have been ambiguous, allowing no coherent opinion whether cognitive load increases, decreases or does not affect prosocial considerations. Here, we suggest that social distance between individuals modulates whether generosity towards a recipient increases or decreases under cognitive load conditions. Participants played a financial social discounting task with several recipients at variable social distance levels. In this task, they could choose between generous alternatives, yielding medium financial rewards for the participant and recipient at variable social distances, or between a selfish alternative, yielding larger rewards for the participant alone. We show that the social discount function of male participants was significantly flattened under high cognitive load conditions, suggesting they distinguished less between socially close and socially distant recipients. Unexpectedly, the cognitive-load effect on social discounting was gender-specific: while social discounting was strongly dependent on cognitive load in men, women were nearly unaffected by cognitive load manipulations. We suggest that cognitive load leads men, but not women to simplify the decision problem by neglecting the social distance information. We consider our study a good starting point for further experiments exploring the role of gender in prosocial choice.

  12. How Social Cognition Can Inform Social Decision Making

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Victoria eLee

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Social decision-making is often complex, requiring the decision-maker to make inferences of others’ mental states in addition to engaging traditional decision-making processes like valuation and reward processing. A growing body of research in neuroeconomics has examined decision- making involving social and nonsocial stimuli to explore activity in brain regions such as the striatum and prefrontal cortex, largely ignoring the power of the social context. Perhaps more complex processes may influence decision-making in social versus nonsocial contexts. Years of social psychology and social neuroscience research have documented a multitude of processes (e.g. mental state inferences, impression formation, spontaneous trait inferences that occur upon viewing another person. These processes rely on a network of brain regions including medial prefrontal cortex, superior temporal sulcus, temporal parietal junction, and precuneus among others. Undoubtedly, these social cognition processes affect social decision-making since mental state inferences occur spontaneously and automatically. Few studies have looked at how these social inference processes affect decision-making in a social context despite the capability of these inferences to serve as predictions that can guide future decision-making. Here we review and integrate the person perception and decision-making literatures to understand how social cognition can inform the study of social decision-making in a way that is consistent with both literatures. We identify gaps in both literatures—while behavioral economics largely ignores social processes that spontaneously occur upon viewing another person, social psychology has largely failed to talk about the implications of social cognition processes in an economic decision-making context—and examine the benefits of integrating social psychological theory with behavioral economic theory.

  13. Neural activity during emotion recognition after combined cognitive plus social-cognitive training in schizophrenia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hooker, Christine I.; Bruce, Lori; Fisher, Melissa; Verosky, Sara C.; Miyakawa, Asako; Vinogradov, Sophia

    2012-01-01

    Cognitive remediation training has been shown to improve both cognitive and social-cognitive deficits in people with schizophrenia, but the mechanisms that support this behavioral improvement are largely unknown. One hypothesis is that intensive behavioral training in cognition and/or social-cognition restores the underlying neural mechanisms that support targeted skills. However, there is little research on the neural effects of cognitive remediation training. This study investigated whether a 50 hour (10-week) remediation intervention which included both cognitive and social-cognitive training would influence neural function in regions that support social-cognition. Twenty-two stable, outpatient schizophrenia participants were randomized to a treatment condition consisting of auditory-based cognitive training (AT) [Brain Fitness Program/auditory module ~60 minutes/day] plus social-cognition training (SCT) which was focused on emotion recognition [~5–15 minutes per day] or a placebo condition of non-specific computer games (CG) for an equal amount of time. Pre and post intervention assessments included an fMRI task of positive and negative facial emotion recognition, and standard behavioral assessments of cognition, emotion processing, and functional outcome. There were no significant intervention-related improvements in general cognition or functional outcome. FMRI results showed the predicted group-by-time interaction. Specifically, in comparison to CG, AT+SCT participants had a greater pre-to-post intervention increase in postcentral gyrus activity during emotion recognition of both positive and negative emotions. Furthermore, among all participants, the increase in postcentral gyrus activity predicted behavioral improvement on a standardized test of emotion processing (MSCEIT: Perceiving Emotions). Results indicate that combined cognition and social-cognition training impacts neural mechanisms that support social-cognition skills. PMID:22695257

  14. [Social Networks of Children with Mentally Ill Parents].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stiawa, Maja; Kilian, Reinhold

    2017-10-01

    Social Networks of Children with Mentally Ill Parents Mental illness of parents can be a load situation for children. Supporting social relations might be an important source in such a situation. Social relations can be shown by social network analysis. Studies about social networks and mental health indicate differences regarding structure and potential for support when compared with social networks of healthy individuals. If and how mental illness of parents has an impact on their children's network is widely unknown. This systematic review shows methods and results of studies about social networks of children with mentally ill parents. By systematic search in electronic databases as well as manual search, two studies were found who met the target criteria. Both studies were conducted in the USA. Results of studies indicate that parental mental illness affects the state of mental health and social networks of children. Symptomatology of children changed due to perceived social support of network contacts. Impact of social support and strong network contacts seems to depend on age of children and the family situation. That's why support offers should be adapt to children's age. Focusing on social networks as potential resource for support and needs of the family affected seems appropriate during treatment.

  15. [Effects of Group Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Social Anxiety Disorders].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yu-Chen; Meng, Ya-Jing; Yuan, Min-Lan; Zhu, Hong-Ru; Ren, Zheng-Jia; Qiu, Chang-Jian; Zhang, Wei

    2017-11-01

    To evaluate the effect of group cognitive behavioral therapy (GCBT) on social anxiety disorders (SAD). A total of 50 patients with SAD were recruited in this study. A survey containing the Liebowitz social anxiety scale (LSAS),the automatic thoughts questionnaire (ATQ),the fear of negative evaluation questionnaire (FNE),the social support rating scale (SSRS),the tridimensional personality questionnaire (TPQ),and the egna minnen barndoms uppfostran (EMBU) was administered before and (one week) after the GCBT,including in the 50 healthy controls. About 21 patients completed the eight-week GCBT (once a week,2 h a session). Follow-up surveys were conducted on 40 patients (22 patients treated with GCBT and 18 untreated) over a 1-5 year period. Significant differences were found between the SAD patients and healthy controls in thinking mode,personality characteristics,social support,parental rearing styles,and social anxiety symptoms. Significant decrease in social anxiety symptom ( t =4.06, P =0.000) , negative automatic thoughts ( t =4.58, P =0.000) and fear for rejection ( t =3.85, P =0.000) were observed after the GCBT therapy. Such improvement was positively correlated with subjective social support ( r =0.361, P =0.022) ,and negatively correlated with rejection of father ( r =-0.431, P =0.005) . There was also statistical difference between the patients with and without the GCBT therapy ( P =0.033) . GCBT treatment can relieve SAD symptoms by changing the negative cognitive of SAD patients. Social support and rejection of father affects the prognosis of SAD.

  16. Social anxiety and perception of early parenting among American, Chinese American, and social phobic samples.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leung, A W; Heimberg, R G; Holt, C S; Bruch, M A

    1994-01-01

    Emotionally distant and controlling child-rearing attitudes have been reported to characterize the parents of American or western European social phobics in previous research. However, the notion that these parental attitudes may be associated with social anxiety only in some cultures has not been investigated. The present study examined social anxiety among American social phobics and American and Chinese/Chinese American volunteer samples and how it may relate to their parents' child-rearing attitudes. Multivariate analyses of variance revealed overall group differences. Both volunteer samples reported lower levels of anxiety than social phobics. Parents of Chinese/Chinese Americans and social phobics were reported to be similar in their (1) isolation of children from social activities; (2) over-emphasis of others' opinions; and (3) use of shame tactics for discipline (more so than American volunteers' parents). However, parents of nonsocial phobics were more likely to attend family social activities than social phobics' parents. Overall, the association between a reported parenting style emphasizing others' opinions and shame tactics and social anxiety in their adult children was more evident in both American samples than among Chinese/Chinese Americans.

  17. English Validation of the Parental Socialization Scale?ESPA29

    OpenAIRE

    Mart?nez, Isabel; Cruise, Edie; Garc?a, ?scar F.; Murgui, Sergio

    2017-01-01

    Parenting styles have traditionally been studied following the classical two-dimensional orthogonal model of parental socialization. The Parental Socialization Scale ESPA29 is used to measure the four styles of parental socialization through the acceptance/involvement and strictness/imposition dimensions. The ESPA29 scale is a developmentally appropriate measure of parenting styles, which has been validated in several languages including Spanish, Italian, and Brazilian Portuguese. In this stu...

  18. Sex-Specific Effect of Recalled Parenting on Affective and Cognitive Empathy in Adulthood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lyons, Minna T; Brewer, Gayle; Bethell, Emily J

    2017-01-01

    Previous research has demonstrated the influence of parenting on the development of children's empathy. However, few studies have considered the impact of parents on empathy in adulthood, specific components of empathy, or the importance of parent and child biological sex. In the present study, 226 participants (71 men) completed online versions of the Parental Bonding Instrument (Parker et al. British Journal of Medical Psychology, 52, 1-10 1979), Empathy Quotient (Baron-Cohen and Wheelwright Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 34, 163-175 2004), and Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis JSAS Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology, 10, 85 1980). Paternal care and overprotection influenced affective empathy in men, whilst maternal overprotection predicted affective empathy in women. Further, maternal care related to cognitive empathy in men, whilst none of the parental care variables related to cognitive empathy in women. Findings are discussed in relation to sex differences in childhood parenting experiences on adult cognitive and affective empathy.

  19. Parenting and socialization of only children in urban China: an example of authoritative parenting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Hui Jing; Chang, Lei

    2013-01-01

    The authors report a semistructured interview of 328 urban Chinese parents regarding their parenting beliefs and practices with respect to their only children. Statistical analyses of the coded parental interviews and peer nomination data from the children show none of the traditional Chinese parenting or child behaviors that have been widely reported in the literature. The parenting of only children in urban China was predominantly authoritative rather than authoritarian. The parenting strategies and beliefs were child-centered, egalitarian, and warmth-oriented rather than control-oriented. Chinese parents encouraged prosocial assertiveness and discouraged behavioral constraint and modesty. The parenting of only children was also gender egalitarian in that there were few gender differences in child social behaviors and little gender differential parenting and socialization of these only children. Together with other recent studies, these findings and conclusions challenge the traditionalist view of Chinese parenting and beliefs and behaviors about child socialization.

  20. Social isolation and cognitive function in Appalachian older adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    DiNapoli, Elizabeth A; Wu, Bei; Scogin, Forrest

    2014-03-01

    Investigating the relation between social isolation and cognitive function will allow us to identify components to incorporate into cognitive interventions. Data were collected from 267 Appalachian older adults (M = 78.5, range 70-94 years). Overall cognitive functioning and specific cognitive domains were assessed from data of a self-assembled neuropsychological battery of frequently used tasks. Social isolation, social disconnectedness, and perceived isolation were measured from the Lubben Social Network scale-6. Results indicated a significant positive association between all predictor variables (e.g., social isolation, social disconnectedness, and perceived isolation) and outcome variables (e.g., overall cognitive function, memory, executive functioning, attention, and language abilities). Perceived isolation accounted for nearly double the amount of variance in overall cognitive functioning than social disconnectedness (10.2% vs. 5.7%). Findings suggest that social isolation is associated with poorer overall cognitive functioning and this remains true across varied cognitive domains. © The Author(s) 2012.

  1. THE CORRELATION OF PARENTING STYLE WITH COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN WITH ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fitri Genisti

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Background: Child development is a very important phase, which children learn various skills as future generations in the future. Disorders that can impede child development process of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD. Children with ADHD have problems with cognitive abilities, of which about 20-60% of them have learning disorders. The efforts to support cognitive development in ADHD children is to approach the child's environment through parenting parents. Objective: This study aimed to determine the correlation of parenting style with cognitive development in the children with ADHD in SLB Negeri 1 Denpasar. Methods: This study used correlational design with cross sectional approach. The sample size of 30 respondents were taken by purposive sampling technique. Data were collected using parenting style questionnaire (PSQ and the average value of odd semester report of 2016/2017 academic year. Results: The result of this research was found that most parents with democratic parenting type were 19 people (63.3%, authoritarian parenting type were 7 people (23.3% and permissive parenting were 4 people (13.3%. The result of contingency coefficient test with p-value = 0.039 (p <0.05 and correlation value of 0.501, which mean there was high correlation between parenting style with cognitive development in children with ADHD. Conclusion: It is suggested for parents with ADHD children to be able to provide good parenting for the child's development, especially for the child's cognitive development.

  2. The effect of telephone-based cognitive-behavioural therapy on parenting stress: A randomised controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ngai, Fei Wan; Wong, Paul Wai-Ching; Chung, Ka Fai; Leung, Kwok Yin

    2016-07-01

    Objective Stress related to parenting has detrimental effects on the well-being of children, parents and the family system as a whole. There are limited studies about the efficacy of cognitive-behavioural therapy delivered by telephone in reducing parenting stress. The present study investigates the effect of telephone-based cognitive-behavioural therapy on parenting stress at six weeks and six months postpartum. This is a multi-site randomised controlled trial. A total of 397 Chinese mothers at risk of postnatal depression were randomly assigned to receive either telephone-based cognitive-behavioural therapy or routine postpartum care. Parental stress was assessed by the Parenting Stress Index Short Form at six weeks and six months postpartum. The findings revealed that mothers who had received telephone-based cognitive-behavioural therapy showed significantly lower levels of parenting stress than women only receiving routine postpartum care at six weeks (mean difference=9.42, 95% confidence interval 5.85-12.99, pparenting and reducing stress during the transition period. Integration of telephone-based cognitive-behavioural therapy into routine postpartum care might facilitate positive adaptation in particular for mothers at risk of postnatal depression. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  3. Factor Structure of Social Cognition in Schizophrenia: Is Empathy Preserved?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Silvia Corbera

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Social cognitive impairments are core features of schizophrenia and are closely associated with poor functional outcome. This study sought to identify specific aspects of social cognition and their relationships to measures of social function, quality of life, and neurocognition. Principal component analysis was performed using social cognitive measures in patients with schizophrenia and healthy matched controls and revealed three factors: Interpersonal Discomfort, Basic Social Cognition, and Empathy. Patients had higher scores on Interpersonal Discomfort and lower scores on Basic Social Cognition than controls, but the two groups were the same on Empathy. Lower social performance was significantly correlated with poor Basic Social Cognition in patients and with high Interpersonal Discomfort in controls. While neurocognition was significantly associated with Basic Social Cognition in both groups, it was not associated with Empathy. Social cognitive interventions should emphasize improving basic social cognitive processing deficits, managing Interpersonal Discomfort, and utilizing preserved capacity for empathy as a potential strength in social interactions.

  4. The Long-Term Effects of Early Parent Involvement and Parent Expectation in the USA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Froiland, John Mark; Peterson, Aubrey; Davison, Mark L.

    2013-01-01

    Building on social-cognitive theory and the expectancy-value theory, this study indicated that early parent expectations for children’s post-secondary educational attainment have a stronger effect on 8th-grade achievement than home-based parental involvement. With a nationally representative sample of kindergarten students and their parents in the…

  5. Neural activity during emotion recognition after combined cognitive plus social cognitive training in schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hooker, Christine I; Bruce, Lori; Fisher, Melissa; Verosky, Sara C; Miyakawa, Asako; Vinogradov, Sophia

    2012-08-01

    Cognitive remediation training has been shown to improve both cognitive and social cognitive deficits in people with schizophrenia, but the mechanisms that support this behavioral improvement are largely unknown. One hypothesis is that intensive behavioral training in cognition and/or social cognition restores the underlying neural mechanisms that support targeted skills. However, there is little research on the neural effects of cognitive remediation training. This study investigated whether a 50 h (10-week) remediation intervention which included both cognitive and social cognitive training would influence neural function in regions that support social cognition. Twenty-two stable, outpatient schizophrenia participants were randomized to a treatment condition consisting of auditory-based cognitive training (AT) [Brain Fitness Program/auditory module ~60 min/day] plus social cognition training (SCT) which was focused on emotion recognition [~5-15 min per day] or a placebo condition of non-specific computer games (CG) for an equal amount of time. Pre and post intervention assessments included an fMRI task of positive and negative facial emotion recognition, and standard behavioral assessments of cognition, emotion processing, and functional outcome. There were no significant intervention-related improvements in general cognition or functional outcome. fMRI results showed the predicted group-by-time interaction. Specifically, in comparison to CG, AT+SCT participants had a greater pre-to-post intervention increase in postcentral gyrus activity during emotion recognition of both positive and negative emotions. Furthermore, among all participants, the increase in postcentral gyrus activity predicted behavioral improvement on a standardized test of emotion processing (MSCEIT: Perceiving Emotions). Results indicate that combined cognition and social cognition training impacts neural mechanisms that support social cognition skills. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All

  6. Social inclusion and its interrelationships with social cognition and social functioning in first-episode psychosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gardner, Andrew; Cotton, Sue M; Allott, Kelly; Filia, Kate M; Hester, Robert; Killackey, Eóin

    2017-10-27

    People with psychosis are at risk of social exclusion. Research is needed in this area due to the lack of direct measurement of social inclusion, which becomes salient in adolescence and is relevant to first-episode psychosis (FEP; the onset of which typically occurs during or shortly after adolescence). Social inclusion may be impacted by impaired social cognition and social functioning, which are related features observed in psychosis. The aim of this study was to explore interrelationship(s) between social cognition, social functioning and social inclusion in FEP while controlling for symptomatology (positive, negative and depressive symptoms) and demographic characteristics. A series of cross-sectional hierarchical multiple regressions were conducted to examine whether: social cognition (theory of mind, emotion recognition) predicted social functioning; social functioning predicted social inclusion, and whether social functioning mediated the relationship between social cognition and social inclusion in people aged 15 to 25 (M = 20.49, SD = 2.41) with FEP (N = 146). Age, sex, premorbid IQ, positive and negative psychotic symptoms and depression were control variables. Poor facial emotion recognition (β = -.22, P social functioning. Role-specific social functioning (ie, current employment) predicted greater social inclusion (β = .17, P social inclusion (β = -.43, P Social functioning did not mediate the relationship between social cognition and inclusion. Psychotic symptoms were unrelated to social inclusion. Employment and depression may influence social inclusion somewhat independently of psychotic symptomatology in FEP. Inferences should be viewed with caution given this study did not involve longitudinal data. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  7. Social cognition and neurocognitive deficits in first-episode schizophrenia

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bliksted, Vibeke Fuglsang; Fagerlund, Birgitte; Weed, Ethan

    2014-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Recent research has shown a significant impact of social cognitive domains on real world functioning and prognosis in schizophrenia. However, the correlations between specific aspects of social cognition, neurocognition, IQ and clinical symptoms remain unclear in first-episode schizop...... are comparable to the implicit and explicit mentalising discussed in the developmental literature. The two forms of social cognitive deficits are likely to require quite different social cognitive interventions.......BACKGROUND: Recent research has shown a significant impact of social cognitive domains on real world functioning and prognosis in schizophrenia. However, the correlations between specific aspects of social cognition, neurocognition, IQ and clinical symptoms remain unclear in first...

  8. Cognitive Overgeneralization, Parental Authority, and Self-Esteem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buri, John R.; And Others

    This study examined the relationship of adolescents' self-esteem (SE) to the familial variables of parental permissiveness, authoritarianism, and authoritativeness and to the cognitive variables of high standards, self-criticism, and overgeneralization. Participants (N=99) were college students from a coeducational, liberal arts university.…

  9. The Relationship between Social and Motor Cognition in Primary School Age-Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kenny, Lorcan; Hill, Elisabeth; Hamilton, Antonia F. de C.

    2016-01-01

    There is increased interest in the relationship between motor skills and social skills in child development, with evidence that the mechanisms underlying these behaviors may be linked. We took a cognitive approach to this problem, and examined the relationship between four specific cognitive domains: theory of mind, motor skill, action understanding, and imitation. Neuroimaging and adult research suggest that action understanding and imitation are closely linked, but are somewhat independent of theory of mind and low-level motor control. Here, we test if a similar pattern is shown in child development. A sample of 101 primary school aged children with a wide ability range completed tests of IQ (Raven’s matrices), theory of mind, motor skill, action understanding, and imitation. Parents reported on their children’s social, motor and attention performance as well as developmental concerns. The results showed that action understanding and imitation correlate, with the latter having a weak link to motor control. Theory of mind was independent of the other tasks. These results imply that independent cognitive processes for social interaction (theory of mind) and for motor control can be identified in primary school age children, and challenge approaches that link all these domains together. PMID:26941685

  10. RC2S: a cognitive remediation program to improve social cognition in schizophrenia and related disorders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elodie ePEYROUX

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available In people with psychiatric disorders, particularly those suffering from schizophrenia and related illnesses, pronounced difficulties in social interactions are a key manifestation. These difficulties can be partly explained by impairments in social cognition, defined as the ability to understand oneself and others in the social world, which includes abilities such as emotion recognition, theory of mind, attributional style, and social perception and knowledge. The impact of several kinds of interventions on social cognition has been studied recently. The best outcomes in the area of social cognition in schizophrenia are those obtained by way of cognitive remediation programs. New strategies and programs in this line are currently being developed, such as RC2S (Cognitive Remediation of Social Cognition in Lyon, France. Considering that the social cognitive deficits experienced by patients with schizophrenia are very diverse, and that the main objective of social cognitive remediation programs is to improve patients’ functioning in their daily social life, RC2S was developed as an individualized and flexible program that allows patients to practice social interaction in a realistic environment through the use of virtual-reality techniques. In the RC2S program, the patient’s goal is to assist a character named Tom in various social situations. The underlying idea for the patient is to acquire cognitive strategies for analyzing social context and emotional information in order to understand other characters’ mental states and to help Tom manage his social interactions. In this paper, we begin by presenting some data regarding the social cognitive impairments found in schizophrenia and related disorders, and we describe how these deficits are targeted by social cognitive remediation. Then we present the RC2S program and discuss the advantages of computer-based simulation to improve social cognition and social functioning in people with

  11. RC2S: A Cognitive Remediation Program to Improve Social Cognition in Schizophrenia and Related Disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peyroux, Elodie; Franck, Nicolas

    2014-01-01

    In people with psychiatric disorders, particularly those suffering from schizophrenia and related illnesses, pronounced difficulties in social interactions are a key manifestation. These difficulties can be partly explained by impairments in social cognition, defined as the ability to understand oneself and others in the social world, which includes abilities such as emotion recognition, theory of mind (ToM), attributional style, and social perception and knowledge. The impact of several kinds of interventions on social cognition has been studied recently. The best outcomes in the area of social cognition in schizophrenia are those obtained by way of cognitive remediation programs. New strategies and programs in this line are currently being developed, such as RC2S (cognitive remediation of social cognition) in Lyon, France. Considering that the social cognitive deficits experienced by patients with schizophrenia are very diverse, and that the main objective of social cognitive remediation programs is to improve patients' functioning in their daily social life, RC2S was developed as an individualized and flexible program that allows patients to practice social interaction in a realistic environment through the use of virtual reality techniques. In the RC2S program, the patient's goal is to assist a character named Tom in various social situations. The underlying idea for the patient is to acquire cognitive strategies for analyzing social context and emotional information in order to understand other characters' mental states and to help Tom manage his social interactions. In this paper, we begin by presenting some data regarding the social cognitive impairments found in schizophrenia and related disorders, and we describe how these deficits are targeted by social cognitive remediation. Then we present the RC2S program and discuss the advantages of computer-based simulation to improve social cognition and social functioning in people with psychiatric disorders.

  12. RC2S: A Cognitive Remediation Program to Improve Social Cognition in Schizophrenia and Related Disorders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peyroux, Elodie; Franck, Nicolas

    2014-01-01

    In people with psychiatric disorders, particularly those suffering from schizophrenia and related illnesses, pronounced difficulties in social interactions are a key manifestation. These difficulties can be partly explained by impairments in social cognition, defined as the ability to understand oneself and others in the social world, which includes abilities such as emotion recognition, theory of mind (ToM), attributional style, and social perception and knowledge. The impact of several kinds of interventions on social cognition has been studied recently. The best outcomes in the area of social cognition in schizophrenia are those obtained by way of cognitive remediation programs. New strategies and programs in this line are currently being developed, such as RC2S (cognitive remediation of social cognition) in Lyon, France. Considering that the social cognitive deficits experienced by patients with schizophrenia are very diverse, and that the main objective of social cognitive remediation programs is to improve patients’ functioning in their daily social life, RC2S was developed as an individualized and flexible program that allows patients to practice social interaction in a realistic environment through the use of virtual reality techniques. In the RC2S program, the patient’s goal is to assist a character named Tom in various social situations. The underlying idea for the patient is to acquire cognitive strategies for analyzing social context and emotional information in order to understand other characters’ mental states and to help Tom manage his social interactions. In this paper, we begin by presenting some data regarding the social cognitive impairments found in schizophrenia and related disorders, and we describe how these deficits are targeted by social cognitive remediation. Then we present the RC2S program and discuss the advantages of computer-based simulation to improve social cognition and social functioning in people with psychiatric disorders

  13. Cognition, behavior and social competence of preterm low birth weight children at school age

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rachel Gick Fan

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the cognitive and behavioral development of preterm and low birth weight newborns living in a disadvantageous socioeconomic environment at school age. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included children aged 6-7 from a historical birth cohort of preterm (gestational age <37 weeks and low birth weight (<2,500 g infants. The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children III (WISC-III was administered by a psychologist while the parents completed the Child Behavior Checklist. The results were compared to the test's reference. The perinatal information and follow-up data were collected from the hospital files. The demographic data were collected from the parents. The current performance was compared with the results from the Denver II and Bayley II tests, which were administered during the first years of life. RESULTS: The total intelligence quotient varied from 70 to 140 (mean 98.7±15.8. The borderline intelligence quotient was observed in 9.3% of the children. The Child Behavior Checklist indicated a predominance of social competence problems (27.8%, CI 19.2 to 37.9 compared with behavioral problems (15.5%, CI 8.9 to 24.2. Both the Child Behavior Checklist domains, such as schooling, social and attention problems, and the cognitive scores were significantly associated with maternal education and family income. The results of the Denver and Bayley tests were associated with the cognitive performance (p<0.001 and the Child Behavior Checklist social profile, including aggressive and externalizing behavior (p<0.001. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that even low-risk preterm newborns are at risk for developing disturbances in early school age, such as mild cognitive deficits and behavioral disorders. This risk might increase under unfavorable socioeconomic conditions.

  14. Development of the Supported Employment, Comprehensive Cognitive Enhancement, and Social Skills program for adults on the autism spectrum: Results of initial study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baker-Ericzén, Mary J; Fitch, Meghan A; Kinnear, Mikaela; Jenkins, Melissa M; Twamley, Elizabeth W; Smith, Linda; Montano, Gabriel; Feder, Joshua; Crooke, Pamela J; Winner, Michelle G; Leon, Juan

    2018-01-01

    The population of adults on the autism spectrum continues to increase, and vocational outcomes are particularly poor. Longitudinal studies of adults with autism spectrum and without intellectual disability have shown consistent and persistent deficits across cognitive, social, and vocational domains, indicating a need for effective treatments of functional disabilities as each impact employment. This initial pilot study is an open trial investigation of the feasibility, acceptability, and initial estimates of outcomes for the newly developed Supported Employment, Comprehensive Cognitive Enhancement, and Social Skills intervention, a manualized "soft skills" curriculum, to enhance both cognitive and social development in adults with autism spectrum. A total of eight adults with autism spectrum, without intellectual disability (78% males), participated in the study. Results support the original hypothesis that adults with autism spectrum can improve both cognitive (i.e. executive functioning) and social cognitive (i.e. social thinking and social communication) abilities. Further Supported Employment, Comprehensive Cognitive Enhancement, and Social Skills was found to be feasible, acceptable, and highly satisfactory for participants and parents. Employment rates more than doubled post-intervention, with an increase from 22% to 56% of participants employed. Conclusion is that Supported Employment, Comprehensive Cognitive Enhancement, and Social Skills has promise as an intervention that can be easily embedded into exiting supported employment vocational training programs to improve cognitive, social, and vocational outcomes.

  15. Parents' self-reported attachment styles: a review of links with parenting behaviors, emotions, and cognitions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Jason D; Cassidy, Jude; Shaver, Phillip R

    2015-02-01

    For decades, attachment scholars have been investigating how parents' adult attachment orientations relate to the ways in which they parent. Traditionally, this research has been conducted by developmental and clinical psychologists who typically employ the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) to measure adult attachment. However, dating back to the mid-1990s, social and personality psychologists have been investigating how self-reported adult attachment styles relate to various facets of parenting. The literature on self-reported attachment and parenting has received less attention than AAI research on the same topic and, to date, there is no comprehensive review of this literature. In this article, we review more than 60 studies of the links between self-reported attachment styles and parenting, integrate the findings to reach general conclusions, discuss unresolved questions, and suggest future directions. Finally, we discuss the potential benefits to the study of parenting of collaborations among researchers from the developmental and social attachment research traditions. © 2014 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

  16. Social cognition and neurocognition as independent domains in psychosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Hooren, S; Versmissen, D; Janssen, I; Myin-Germeys, I; à Campo, J; Mengelers, R; van Os, J; Krabbendam, L

    2008-08-01

    Patients with psychosis display alterations in social cognition as well as in the realm of neurocognition. It is unclear, however, to what degree these cognitive domains represent two separate dimensions of liability or the pleiotropic expression of a single deficit. The purpose of the present study was to investigate (i) to what extent alterations in social cognition represent an independent area of vulnerability to psychosis, separate from neurocognitive deficits and (ii) whether social cognition is one construct or can be divided into several subcomponents. Five social cognition and three neurocognitive tasks were completed by 186 participants with different levels of vulnerability for psychosis: 44 patients with psychotic disorder; 47 subjects at familial risk; 41 subjects at psychometric risk and 54 control subjects. The social cognition tasks covered important basic subcomponents of social cognition, i.e. mentalisation (or theory of mind), data gathering bias (jumping to conclusions), source monitoring and attribution style. Neurocognitive tasks assessed speed of information processing, inhibition, cognitive shifting and strategy-driven retrieval from semantic memory. The results of factor analysis suggested that neurocognition and social cognition are two separate areas of vulnerability in psychosis. Furthermore, the social cognition measures lacked significant overlap, suggesting a multidimensional construct. Cognitive liabilities to psychosis are manifold, and include key processes underlying basic person-environment interactions in daily life, independent of cognition quantified by neuropsychological tests.

  17. Motivation and Social Cognition in Patients with Schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fervaha, Gagan; Siddiqui, Ishraq; Foussias, George; Agid, Ofer; Remington, Gary

    2015-07-01

    Social cognition, referring to one's ability to perceive and process social cues, is an important domain in schizophrenia. Numerous studies have demonstrated that patients with schizophrenia have poorer performance on tests assessing social cognition relative to healthy comparison participants. However, whether variables such as motivation are related to performance on these tests in patients with schizophrenia is unclear. One thousand three-hundred and seventy-eight patients with schizophrenia completed the Facial Emotion Discrimination Task as a measure of emotional processing, a key facet of social cognition. Level of motivation was also evaluated in these patients using a derived measure from the Quality of Life Scale. The relationship between motivation and task performance was examined using bivariate correlations and logistic regression modeling, controlling for the impact of age and overall severity of psychopathology, the latter evaluated using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. Motivation was positively related to performance on the social cognition test, and this relationship remained significant after controlling for potential confounding variables such as age and illness severity. Social cognition was also related to functioning, and the relationship was mediated by level of motivation. The present study found a significant relationship between motivation and performance on a test of social cognition in a large sample of patients with schizophrenia. These findings suggest that amotivation undermines task performance, or alternatively that poor social cognitive ability impedes motivation. Future studies evaluating social cognition in patients with schizophrenia should concurrently assess for variables such as effort and motivation.

  18. Social resources and cognitive ageing across 30 years

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gow, Alan J.; Mortensen, Erik Lykke

    2016-01-01

    Background: to examine associations between social resources and cognitive ageing over 30 years. Methods: participants in the Glostrup 1914 Cohort, a year of birth sample, completed a standardarised battery of cognitive ability tests every 10 years from age 50 to 80, summarised as general cognitive...... a negative association. Marital status (at ages 50 and 60) and loneliness at age 70 were the only social resources associated with cognitive change; married individuals and those not feeling lonely experienced less cognitive decline. When the social resources showing significant associations were considered...... ability. Participants also provided information concerning a range of social resources, including marital status and living arrangements from age 50, and from age 70, details regarding social support, social contact and loneliness. Results: across the follow-up, participants were less likely to be married...

  19. Children With Cochlear Implants and Their Parents: Relations Between Parenting Style and Children's Social-Emotional Functioning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ketelaar, Lizet; Wiefferink, Carin H; Frijns, Johan H M; Rieffe, Carolien

    Parenting a child who has a severe or profound hearing loss can be challenging and at times stressful, and might cause parents to use more adverse parenting styles compared with parents of hearing children. Parenting styles are known to impact children's social-emotional development. Children with a severe to profound hearing loss may be more reliant on their parents in terms of their social-emotional development when compared with their hearing peers who typically have greater opportunities to interact with and learn from others outside their family environment. Identifying the impact which parenting styles pertain on the social-emotional development of children who have cochlear implants (CIs) could help advance these children's well-being. Therefore, the authors compared parenting styles of parents with hearing children and of parents with children who have a CI, and examined the relations between parenting styles and two key aspects of children's social-emotional functioning: emotion regulation and empathy. Ninety-two hearing parents and their children (aged 1 to 5 years old), who were either hearing (n = 46) or had a CI (n = 46), participated in this cross-sectional study. Parents completed questionnaires concerning their parenting styles (i.e., positive, negative and uninvolved), and regarding the extent to which their children expressed negative emotions (i.e., anger and sadness) and empathy. Furthermore, an emotion-regulation task measuring negative emotionality was administered to the children. No differences in reported parenting styles were observed between parents of hearing children and parents of children with a CI. In addition, negative and uninvolved parenting styles were related to higher levels of negative emotionality in both groups of children. No relation was found between positive parenting and children's social-emotional functioning. Hearing status did not moderate these relationships. Language mediated the relationship between parenting

  20. Parents of children with dyslexia: cognitive, emotional and behavioural profile.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bonifacci, Paola; Montuschi, Martina; Lami, Laura; Snowling, Margaret J

    2014-05-01

    Within a dimensional view of reading disorders, it is important to understand the role of environmental factors in determining individual differences in literacy outcome. In the present study, we compared a group of 40 parents of children with dyslexia (PDys) with a group of 40 parents of typically developing children. The two parent groups did not differ in socioeconomic status or nonverbal IQ. Participants were assessed on cognitive (IQ, digit span) and literacy (reading fluency and accuracy) tasks, phonological awareness and verbal fluency measures. Questionnaires addressed reading history, parental distress, family functioning, anxiety and depression. The PDys group performed worse in all literacy measures and more frequently reported a history of poor reading; they also showed more parental distress. There were no differences between the two groups in depression or family functioning and no differences between mothers and fathers. Findings indicate that PDys show a cognitive profile consistent with the broader phenotype of dyslexia (i.e. reading impairment and poor phonological awareness), whereas, considering the emotional profile, the impact of dyslexia on the family system is limited to parental distress associated with the perception of having a child with specific needs. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  1. Agreement between clients with schizophrenia and mental health workers on clients' social quality of life: The role of social cognition and symptoms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ofir-Eyal, Shani; Hasson-Ohayon, Ilanit; Bar-Kalifa, Eran; Kravetz, Shlomo; Lysaker, Paul H

    2017-06-01

    Studies have showed that therapists and mental health workers of persons with schizophrenia tend to estimate their patients' social quality of life (SQoL) as poorer than the clients' own estimation. This study explores the hypothesis that this discrepancy is related to clients' social cognition and symptomatology. Cross-sectional assessment of both clients and their mental health workers. Ninety persons with schizophrenia and 12 persons who were formal care providers participated in the study. All responded to a parallel version (client and clinician) of social quality-of-life scales. Clients' emotion identification, theory of mind and symptoms were also assessed. Low social cognitive abilities of persons with schizophrenia, as well as negative symptomatology and having children, may be related to the negative bias of mental health workers, with regard to their client's SQoL. While more severe levels of negative symptoms and more deficits of social cognition were related to reduced levels of agreement, paradoxically, a relatively normative family life that includes parenting was also related to lower levels of agreement. Attention should be given to low agreement between clients with schizophrenia and clinicians with regard to the client's quality of life, as it is central to alliance and outcome. Clinicians tend to estimate clients' social quality of life as poorer than the clients' own estimation when those clients have low social cognition, high negative symptomatology and children. There is a need to identify additional factors that contribute to agreement and alliance in therapy. Longitudinal assessment during therapy can trace the process of construction of agreement. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

  2. Group Cognitive Behavioral Treatment for Parents and Children At-Risk for Physical Abuse: An Initial Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Runyon, Melissa K.; Deblinger, Esther; Steer, Robert A.

    2010-01-01

    To compare the relative efficacy of two types of group cognitive-behavioral therapy for treating the traumatized child and at-risk or offending parent in cases of child physical abuse (CPA), 24 parents and their children were treated with Combined Parent-Child Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CPC-CBT) and 20 parents were treated with Parent-Only CBT.…

  3. Pathways to childhood depressive symptoms: the role of social, cognitive, and genetic risk factors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lau, Jennifer Y F; Rijsdijk, Frühling; Gregory, Alice M; McGuffin, Peter; Eley, Thalia C

    2007-11-01

    Childhood depressive conditions have been explored from multiple theoretical approaches but with few empirical attempts to address the interrelationships among these different domains and their combined effects. In the present study, the authors examined different pathways through which social, cognitive, and genetic risk factors may be expressed to influence depressive symptoms in 300 pairs of child twins from a longitudinal study. Path analysis supported several indirect routes. First, risks associated with living in a step- or single-parent family and punitive parenting did not directly influence depressive outcome but were instead mediated through maternal depressive symptoms and child negative attributional style. Second, the effects of negative attributional style on depressive outcome were greatly exacerbated in the presence of precipitating negative life events. Third, independent of these social and cognitive risk mechanisms, modest genetic effects were also implicated in symptoms, with some indication that these risks are expressed through exposure to negative stressors. Together, these routes accounted for approximately 13% of total phenotypic variance in depressive symptoms. Theoretical and analytical implications of these results are discussed in the context of several design-related caveats. (c) 2007 APA.

  4. Social class and parental investment in children

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gauthier, A.H.; Scott, Robert A.; Kosslyn, Stephen M.

    2015-01-01

    This essay critically reviews the literature on social class differences in parental investment in children including differences in (i) parenting practices or behavior; (ii) parenting styles, logics, and strategies; and (iii) parenting values and ideologies. The essay reveals how structural and

  5. Parental attitudes and social competence in adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drózdz, E; Pokorski, M

    2007-11-01

    The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationships among perceived parental attitudes and domains of social competence in late adolescents. Forty boys and 40 girls, all aged 18, representing a population sample of high school second graders were examined. Self-report data were collected using questionnaires of parent-child relations and of social competence. Analyses detected a significant association between the maternal loving or protective attitude and competence in interpersonal relations in the combined sample of adolescents. However, gender was a moderator of this general relationship. Maternal control fostered their sons' interpersonal relations, and no such relationship was observed toward daughters. Adolescents' behavior was somehow less influenced by fatherly control. The findings are in line with the concept of familism as a dominant form of family organization, but implicate constraints in parental sentiments whose overly expression may backfire and do more harm than good in other domains of social competence of adolescents, such as assertiveness and performance during social exposure. The study may contribute to future research on how parenting style shapes adolescent social outcomes.

  6. Influence of Parenting Factors on Childhood Social Anxiety: Direct Observation of Parental Warmth and Control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rork, Kristine E.; Morris, Tracy L.

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of the present study is to determine the association of parenting behaviors and social anxiety in children. Three parental factors--including parental socialization, control, and warmth--were investigated in a sample of 31 two-parent families. Rather than solely relying upon retrospective questionnaires, this study incorporated direct…

  7. Explicit versus implicit social cognition testing in autism spectrum disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Callenmark, Björn; Kjellin, Lars; Rönnqvist, Louise; Bölte, Sven

    2014-08-01

    Although autism spectrum disorder is defined by reciprocal social-communication impairments, several studies have found no evidence for altered social cognition test performance. This study examined explicit (i.e. prompted) and implicit (i.e. spontaneous) variants of social cognition testing in autism spectrum disorder. A sample of 19 adolescents with autism spectrum disorder and 19 carefully matched typically developing controls completed the Dewey Story Test. 'Explicit' (multiple-choice answering format) and 'implicit' (free interview) measures of social cognition were obtained. Autism spectrum disorder participants did not differ from controls regarding explicit social cognition performance. However, the autism spectrum disorder group performed more poorly than controls on implicit social cognition performance in terms of spontaneous perspective taking and social awareness. Findings suggest that social cognition alterations in autism spectrum disorder are primarily implicit in nature and that an apparent absence of social cognition difficulties on certain tests using rather explicit testing formats does not necessarily mean social cognition typicality in autism spectrum disorder. © The Author(s) 2013.

  8. Parents' and children's perception of parent-led Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salloum, Alison; Dorsey, Crystal S; Swaidan, Victoria R; Storch, Eric A

    2015-02-01

    This study explored parent and child experiences of a parent-led, therapist-assisted treatment during Step One of Stepped Care Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT). Seventeen parents/guardians and 16 children who were between the ages of 8 and 12 years were interviewed after Step One and six weeks after the completion of a maintenance phase about their perceptions of the parent-led, therapist-assisted treatment. Participants were asked what they liked and disliked about the treatment as well as what they found to be most and least helpful. Generally, parents and children liked the treatment and found it helpful. In terms of treatment components, children indicated that the relaxation exercises were the most liked/helpful component (62.5%) followed by trauma narrative activities (56.3%). A few children (18.8%) did not like or found least helpful the trauma narrative component as they wanted to avoid talking or thinking about the trauma. Parents indicated that the parent-child meetings were the most liked/helpful (82.4%) followed by the Stepping Together workbook (58.8%) and relaxation exercises (52.9%). Some parents (23.5%) noted that the workbook seemed too repetitive and some parents (17.6%) at times were uncertain if they were leading the parent-child meetings the best way. Parent-led, therapist-assisted TF-CBT may be an acceptable type of service delivery for both parents and children, although more research is needed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Executive functions and cognitive deficits in schizophrenia: Comparisons between probands, parents and controls in India

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bhatia T

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: Cognitive impairment is said to be a core feature of schizophrenia. Executive function is an important cognitive domain. Aim: This study was undertaken to assess cognitive impairment among Indian patients with schizophrenia (Sz or schizoaffective disorder (SzA, compared with their parents and unaffected individuals (controls. Settings and Design: Executive functions as measured by Trail-making Test (TMT, of patients and their parents were compared with controls. The patients were recruited from the Outpatients′ Department (OPD of a government hospital. Materials and Methods: Patients diagnosed as Sz or SzA (n=172 and their parents (n=196: families n=132, 119 fathers and 77 mothers participated. We also included 120 persons with no history of psychiatric illness. Cognitive function was assessed with the TMT. The Information Score of the Post Graduate Institute Battery of Brain Dysfunction test, developed in India for Indian subjects was used as a proxy for general fixed knowledge. Statistical Analysis: Logistic and linear regression was used to compare cognitive deficits of cases, parents and controls. Results: Cases and their parents took significantly more time than controls on Part B of the TMT. There were no statistically significant differences between cases and parents on any of the TMT parameters. Using regression analysis, the most significant correlates of all TMT parameters among cases were with occurrence of auditory hallucinations and current age. Conclusion: Cases, as well as their parents showed more cognitive impairment than controls on the TMT.

  10. Cognitive functioning and social problem-solving skills in schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hatashita-Wong, Michi; Smith, Thomas E; Silverstein, Steven M; Hull, James W; Willson, Deborah F

    2002-05-01

    This study examined the relationships between symptoms, cognitive functioning, and social skill deficits in schizophrenia. Few studies have incorporated measures of cognitive functioning and symptoms in predictive models for social problem solving. For our study, 44 participants were recruited from consecutive outpatient admissions. Neuropsychological tests were given to assess cognitive function, and social problem solving was assessed using structured vignettes designed to evoke the participant's ability to generate, evaluate, and apply solutions to social problems. A sequential model-fitting method of analysis was used to incorporate social problem solving, symptom presentation, and cognitive impairment into linear regression models. Predictor variables were drawn from demographic, cognitive, and symptom domains. Because this method of analysis was exploratory and not intended as hierarchical modelling, no a priori hypotheses were proposed. Participants with higher scores on tests of cognitive flexibility were better able to generate accurate, appropriate, and relevant responses to the social problem-solving vignettes. The results suggest that cognitive flexibility is a potentially important mediating factor in social problem-solving competence. While other factors are related to social problem-solving skill, this study supports the importance of cognition and understanding how it relates to the complex and multifaceted nature of social functioning.

  11. From social cognition to social epistemology (in memory of G.M. Andreeva

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dmitry A. Khoroshilov

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available This paper is dedicated to scientific and literary heritage of Galina M. Andreeva. The methodology of social cognition, for more than half a century developed by Galina M. Andreeva as a tool of social analysis, is discussed. The problem of social cognition, first indicated by V. Turner, Z. Bauman and M. Mamardashvili, is analysed in terms of mentalization, interpersonal interaction and mass consciousness. Based on G. Andreeva’s theoretical research, the correlation between micro-processes of individual cognition construction and macro-processes of society in communication, dialogue and discourse is proved. The issue of finding the correct definition of a group, mass or public consciousness epistemological status is taken as a result of an old trend toward anthropomorphizing the collective cognition subject. This impedes the correlation between personality and society in psychology, meaning “agency” and “structure” in sociology. G.Andreeva discusses the last one, connecting cognitive psychology, social constructionism and activity theory. Theoretical assumptions of social cognition as the process of world image construction are formulated as follows: 1 presumption of general knowledge; 2 active constructive nature; 3 categorization and classification as the basic process; 4 the relationship between discourse and cognition; 5 emotionality; 6 critical orientation; 7 prospective for the clinical analysis of sociocultural realities. With respect to the abovementioned facts, it can be said that the ideas of scientific school founded by Galina М. Andreeva allow to innovatively define social psychology as a modern social and cultural epistemology.

  12. Parental and Peer Predictors of Social Anxiety in Youth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Festa, Candice C.; Ginsburg, Golda S.

    2011-01-01

    The aim of the current study was to extend etiological models of social anxiety in youth by examining the relative importance of parental (i.e., parental anxiety, rejection, and overcontrol) and peer factors (i.e., social acceptance, social support, and friendship quality). Sixty-three youth (ages 7-12; 52% male) and their parents participated in…

  13. Parental Depression and Child Cognitive Vulnerability Predict Children’s Cortisol Reactivity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hayden, Elizabeth P.; Hankin, Benjamin L.; Mackrell, Sarah V.M.; Sheikh, Haroon I.; Jordan, Patricia L.; Dozois, David J.A.; Singh, Shiva M.; Olino, Thomas M.; Badanes, Lisa S.

    2015-01-01

    Risk for depression is expressed across multiple levels of analysis. For example, parental depression and cognitive vulnerability are known markers of depression risk, but no study has examined their interactive effects on children’s cortisol reactivity, a likely mediator of early depression risk. We examined relations across these different levels of vulnerability using cross-sectional and longitudinal methods in two community samples of children. Children were assessed for cognitive vulnerability using self-reports (Study 1; n = 244) and tasks tapping memory and attentional bias (Study 2; n = 205), and their parents were assessed for depression history using structured clinical interviews. In both samples, children participated in standardized stress tasks and cortisol reactivity was assessed. Cross-sectionally and longitudinally, parental depression history and child cognitive vulnerability interacted to predict children’s cortisol reactivity; specifically, associations between parent depression and elevated child cortisol activity were found when children also showed elevated depressotypic attributions, as well as attentional and memory biases. Findings indicate that models of children’s emerging depression risk may benefit from the examination of the interactive effects of multiple sources of vulnerability across levels of analysis. PMID:25422972

  14. Neural and cognitive correlates of social cognition. Findings from neuropsychological and neuroimaging studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kobayakawa, Mutsutaka; Kawamura, Mitsuru

    2011-01-01

    Social cognition includes various components of information processing related to communication with other individuals. In this review, we have discussed 3 components of social cognitive function: face recognition, empathy, and decision making. Our social behavior involves recognition based on facial features and also involves empathizing with others; while making decisions, it is important to consider the social consequences of the course of action followed. Face recognition is divided into 2 routes for information processing: a route responsible for overt recognition of the face's identity and a route for emotional and orienting responses based on the face's personal affective significance. Two systems are possibly involved in empathy: a basic emotional contagion 'mirroring' system and a more advanced 'theory of mind' system that considers the cognitive perspective. Decision making is mediated by a widespread system that includes several cortical and subcortical components. Numerous lesion and neuroimaging studies have contributed to clarifying the neural correlates of social cognitive function, and greater information can be obtained on social cognitive function by combining these 2 approaches. (author)

  15. [Neural and cognitive correlates of social cognition: findings on neuropsychological and neuroimaging studies].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kobayakawa, Mutsutaka; Kawamura, Mitsuru

    2011-12-01

    Social cognition includes various components of information processing related to communication with other individuals. In this review, we have discussed 3 components of social cognitive function: face recognition, empathy, and decision making. Our social behavior involves recognition based on facial features and also involves empathizing with others; while making decisions, it is important to consider the social consequences of the course of action followed. Face recognition is divided into 2 routes for information processing: a route responsible for overt recognition of the face's identity and a route for emotional and orienting responses based on the face's personal affective significance. Two systems are possibly involved in empathy: a basic emotional contagion "mirroring" system and a more advanced "theory of mind" system that considers the cognitive perspective. Decision making is mediated by a widespread system that includes several cortical and subcortical components. Numerous lesion and neuroimaging studies have contributed to clarifying the neural correlates of social cognitive function, and greater information can be obtained on social cognitive function by combining these 2 approaches.

  16. Peer victimization (and harsh parenting) as developmental correlates of cognitive reactivity, a diathesis for depression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cole, David A; Martin, Nina C; Sterba, Sonya K; Sinclair-McBride, Keneisha; Roeder, Kathryn M; Zelkowitz, Rachel; Bilsky, Sarah A

    2014-05-01

    Prior research has shown cognitive reactivity to be a diathesis for depression. Seeking evidence for the developmental origins of such diatheses, the current study examined peer victimization and harsh parenting as developmental correlates of cognitive reactivity in 571 children and adolescents (ages 8-13 years). Four major findings emerged. First, a new method for assessing cognitive reactivity in children and adolescents showed significant reliability and demonstrated construct validity vis-à-vis its relation to depression. Second, history of more severe peer victimization was significantly related to cognitive reactivity, with verbal victimization being more strongly tied to cognitive reactivity than other subtypes of peer victimization. Third, harsh parenting was also significantly related to cognitive reactivity. Fourth, both peer victimization and harsh parenting made unique statistical contributions to cognitive reactivity, after controlling for the effects of the other. Taken together, these findings provide preliminary support for a developmental model pertaining to origins of cognitive reactivity in children and adolescents.

  17. Personal Contextual Characteristics and Cognitions: Predicting Child Abuse Potential and Disciplinary Style

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodriguez, Christina M.

    2010-01-01

    According to Social Information Processing theory, parents' cognitive processes influence their decisions to engage in physical maltreatment, although cognitions occur in the context of other aspects of the parents' life. The present study investigated whether cognitive processes (external locus of control, inappropriate developmental…

  18. The association between social phobia, social anxiety cognitions and paranoid symptoms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schutters, S I J; Dominguez, M-d-G; Knappe, S; Lieb, R; van Os, J; Schruers, K R J; Wittchen, H-U

    2012-03-01

    Previous research suggests high levels of comorbidity between social phobia and paranoid symptoms, although the nature of this association remains unclear. Data were derived from the Early Developmental Stages of Psychopathology study, a 10-year longitudinal study in a representative German community sample of 3021 participants aged 14-24 years at baseline. The Munich-Composite International Diagnostic Interview was used to assess social phobia and paranoid symptoms, along with data on social phobia features. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses were conducted. Differential associations with environmental risk factors and temperamental traits were investigated. Lifetime social phobia and paranoid symptoms were associated with each other cross-sectionally (OR = 1.80, 95% CI = 1.31-2.47). Lifetime paranoid symptoms were associated specifically with social anxiety cognitions. Lifetime cognitions of negative evaluation predicted later onset of paranoid symptoms, whereas onset of social phobia was predicted by cognitions of loss of control and fear/avoidance of social situations. Lifetime social phobia and paranoid symptoms shared temperamental traits of behavioural inhibition, but differed in environmental risks. The present study showed that paranoid symptoms and social phobia share similarities in cognitive profile and inhibited temperament. Avoidance appears to be important in the development of social phobia, whereas cannabis use and traumatic experiences may drive paranoid thinking in vulnerable individuals. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

  19. Social Variations in Perceived Parenting Styles among Norwegian Adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elstad, Jon Ivar; Stefansen, Kari

    2014-01-01

    Previous research has documented the associations between parenting and parenting styles and child and adolescent outcomes. Little is known, however, about the social structuring of parenting in contemporary Nordic welfare states. A possible hypothesis is that socioeconomic variations in parenting styles in present-day Norway will be small because of material affluence, limited income inequality, and an active welfare state. This study examines social variations in parenting as perceived by Norwegian adolescents ( N  = 1362), with a focus on four parenting style dimensions: responsiveness, demandingness, neglecting, and intrusive. Responsiveness seems to capture major divisions in parenting. Adolescents in families with fewer economic resources experienced their parents as somewhat less responsive, but responsiveness was not related to parents' education. Low parental education was on the other hand associated with perceptions of parents as neglecting and intrusive. Viewing parents as demanding did neither vary with parental education nor with family economy. Substantial variations in parenting styles persist in present-day Norway, and these variations correspond moderately with the families' placement in the social structure. Indicators of parenting and parenting styles may be useful indicators of some aspects of child and adolescent well-being.

  20. Parental social anxiety disorder prospectively predicts toddlers' fear/avoidance in a social referencing paradigm

    OpenAIRE

    Aktar, E.; Majdandžić, M.; De, Vente W.; Bögels, S.M.

    2014-01-01

    Background: Anxiety runs in families. Observational learning of anxious behavior from parents with anxiety disorders plays an important role in the intergenerational transmission of anxiety. We investigated the link between parental anxiety (parental lifetime anxiety disorders and expressed parental anxiety) and toddler fear/avoidance during social referencing (SR) situations. Method: Toddlers (N = 117) participated with both parents (with lifetime social anxiety disorder, other nonsocial anx...

  1. Creative Cognition in Social Innovation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Mingming; Thagard, Paul

    2014-01-01

    Social innovations are creative products and changes that are motivated by social needs and bring value to society by meeting those needs. This article uses case studies to investigate the cognitive and social processes that contribute to creativity in social innovation. The cases are: Wendy Kopp with Teach For America in education, Cicely…

  2. Predictive Power of Parenting Styles on Children’s Social Skills

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniel Bartholomeu

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between parenting styles and children’s social skills, establishing significant correlations between those two constructs. A total of 202 children, 7 to 10 years old, male and female, attending second to fourth year of government schools in São Paulo, Brazil, were participants of this research. They collectively completed Children’s Social Skills Test (THAS-C and Parental Styles Inventory (IEP. Results suggest that positive parental styles are predictors of altruism, while negative parental styles are predictors of assertiveness, conversation, and social confidence. Regarding general social skills, variables that offered the best probable model were positive monitoring, lax discipline, moral behavior, and physical abuse (the higher the general social skill, the lesser the abusive parenting styles. As a conclusion, it seems that different social skills are related to positive and negative parenting styles, reinforcing the idea of a social skill as an attribute of behavior.

  3. Embodied artificial agents for understanding human social cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wykowska, Agnieszka; Chaminade, Thierry; Cheng, Gordon

    2016-05-05

    In this paper, we propose that experimental protocols involving artificial agents, in particular the embodied humanoid robots, provide insightful information regarding social cognitive mechanisms in the human brain. Using artificial agents allows for manipulation and control of various parameters of behaviour, appearance and expressiveness in one of the interaction partners (the artificial agent), and for examining effect of these parameters on the other interaction partner (the human). At the same time, using artificial agents means introducing the presence of artificial, yet human-like, systems into the human social sphere. This allows for testing in a controlled, but ecologically valid, manner human fundamental mechanisms of social cognition both at the behavioural and at the neural level. This paper will review existing literature that reports studies in which artificial embodied agents have been used to study social cognition and will address the question of whether various mechanisms of social cognition (ranging from lower- to higher-order cognitive processes) are evoked by artificial agents to the same extent as by natural agents, humans in particular. Increasing the understanding of how behavioural and neural mechanisms of social cognition respond to artificial anthropomorphic agents provides empirical answers to the conundrum 'What is a social agent?' © 2016 The Authors.

  4. Emotion recognition and social skills in child and adolescent offspring of parents with schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horton, Leslie E; Bridgwater, Miranda A; Haas, Gretchen L

    2017-05-01

    Emotion recognition, a social cognition domain, is impaired in people with schizophrenia and contributes to social dysfunction. Whether impaired emotion recognition emerges as a manifestation of illness or predates symptoms is unclear. Findings from studies of emotion recognition impairments in first-degree relatives of people with schizophrenia are mixed and, to our knowledge, no studies have investigated the link between emotion recognition and social functioning in that population. This study examined facial affect recognition and social skills in 16 offspring of parents with schizophrenia (familial high-risk/FHR) compared to 34 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HC), ages 7-19. As hypothesised, FHR children exhibited impaired overall accuracy, accuracy in identifying fearful faces, and overall recognition speed relative to controls. Age-adjusted facial affect recognition accuracy scores predicted parent's overall rating of their child's social skills for both groups. This study supports the presence of facial affect recognition deficits in FHR children. Importantly, as the first known study to suggest the presence of these deficits in young, asymptomatic FHR children, it extends findings to a developmental stage predating symptoms. Further, findings point to a relationship between early emotion recognition and social skills. Improved characterisation of deficits in FHR children could inform early intervention.

  5. Social inequalities in adolescent depression: the role of parental social support and optimism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piko, Bettina F; Luszczynska, Aleksandra; Fitzpatrick, Kevin M

    2013-08-01

    Interpersonal theory suggests relationships between socio-economic status (SES) and adolescent psychopathology mediated by negative parenting. This study examines the role of perceived parental social support and optimism in understanding adolescents' depression and self-rated health among a sample of Hungarian youth. Using a self-administered questionnaire, data (N = 881) were collected from high-school students (14-20 years old) in Szeged, Hungary (a regional centre in the southeastern region, near to the Serbian border, with a population of 170,000 inhabitants). To analyse the overall structure of the relationship between objective/subjective SES, parental support, optimism and health outcomes (depression, self-perceived health), structural equation modelling (SEM) was employed. Findings suggest the following: (1) SES variables generate social inequalities in adolescent depression through parental social support, particularly maternal support; and (2) parents provide youths with different levels of social support that in turn may strengthen or weaken optimism during the socialization process. In addressing depression prevention and treatment, we may want to take into account socio-economic differences in social networks and levels of optimism, which may influence youths' psychosocial adjustment and development of psychopathology.

  6. Family Learning Programmes: an investigation of parental perceptions, social capital and social inclusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Viv Moriarty

    2006-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract: This paper reports on interview data collected as part of an evaluation of a Family Learning Programme operating in an inner London Borough that is determined to be multiply deprived (DETR, 2000. The programme aims to build social inclusion and break cycles of disadvantage by developing the way nursery and primary schools engage in partnerships with parents, by developing parents’ mathematics and literacy skills and encouraging parents to be more involved in their children’s education. The study was therefore concerned to investigate the effects of this on parents in order to understand more about how social inclusion might be promoted. Through particular consideration of this programme, the study begins to explore the relationship between social capital and the promotion of social inclusion. A general theoretical framework for this is presented, with an analysis of the interviews conducted with parents who participated in the programme. Post-programme interviews indicated that parents had an increased sense of efficacy in their parenting abilities and felt more competent in participating in learning activities with their children. There was also more familiarity with the school and parents felt more confident about being in school and talking to teachers about their children. Whilst it is difficult to conclude whether or not the programme achieved their over-arching aim of facilitating social inclusion, parents interviewed for this study did feel more able to support their children and some considered the possibility of further education for themselves.

  7. Relations of Parenting and Negative Life Events to Cognitive Diatheses for Depression in Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruce, Alanna E.; Cole, David A.; Dallaire, Danielle H.; Jacquez, Farrah M.; Pineda, Ashley Q.; LaGrange, Beth

    2006-01-01

    In a sample of 299 children (grades 2, 4, and 6), we examined parenting and negative life events as predictors of depressive cognitions, specifically low self-perceived competence, depressive cognitive schemas, and depressogenic attributional style. We also examined developmental trends in these relations. Children completed measures of parenting,…

  8. Examination on Validity of Mothers' Parenting Skills Scale: The Relationship among Scale for Mother's Cognitive and Affective Attitudes on Adolescent and Mother's parenting Attitude toward Adolescent Child

    OpenAIRE

    渡邉, 賢二; 平石, 賢二; WATANABE, Kenji; HIRAISHI, Kenji

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the validity of parenting skills scale, and the relationship among the parenting skills scale and scale for mother's cognitive and affective attitudes on adolescent and mother's parenting attitude toward adolescent child. 3 subscales of the parenting skills were positively related to "positive cognition and affection" and negatively related to "negative cognition and affection." They were negatively related to "sense of uncertainly" and positively rela...

  9. Social intelligence of parents with autism spectrum disorders impacts their emotional behaviour: A new proposed model for stabilising emotionality of these parents impacting their social intelligence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vidya Bhagat

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Autism spectrum disorder (ASD may affect all spheres of a child's life. Indeed, parents and siblings also live with emotional instabilities in the family. The experience of parents with ASD child can be distressing since they need to make more adjustments to the demanding need to cope with their life situations. Perhaps, their life is drastically exaggerated with their complexities of life. Particularly, their social life is radically affected. The presence of pervasive and severe deficits in children with ASD isolates these parents from their social life; demanding adjustments to their social environment of parents in their life situations shove them into distress and unstable emotions. Finally, they culminate being shattered in their interpersonal relationship, their family and social life. Indeed, these aspects of distress mask social intelligence of these parents, thus narrow down their focus more on the treatment rather than holistic management of their child. Thus, the management of ASD with these parents of the deficit children to reach their fullest abilities remains doubtful. Therefore, the objectives of this study are as follows: (a to examine the impact of emotionality on social intelligence of parents blessed with autistic child, (b to develop awareness regarding social intelligence and its significance among these parents, (c to propose a new model stabilising emotionality of these parents through developing social adaption skills and (d to suggest a new model as a guide in the current intervention regimens to ensure the emotional well-being and better social adoption. This study is made based on the keenly examined past evidence with the correlation of emotionality and its impact on social intelligence of the parents with ASD children. The results reveal that the social intelligence is perceived as lowered evidenced by poor social adjustment reflected in social isolation observed in the parents of children with ASD. A new model

  10. Factor Structure of Social Cognition in Schizophrenia: Is Empathy Preserved?

    OpenAIRE

    Corbera, Silvia; Wexler, Bruce E.; Ikezawa, Satoru; Bell, Morris D.

    2013-01-01

    Social cognitive impairments are core features of schizophrenia and are closely associated with poor functional outcome. This study sought to identify specific aspects of social cognition and their relationships to measures of social function, quality of life, and neurocognition. Principal component analysis was performed using social cognitive measures in patients with schizophrenia and healthy matched controls and revealed three factors: Interpersonal Discomfort, Basic Social Cognition, and...

  11. Parental involvement and educational achievement

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Driessen, G.; Smit, F.; Sleegers, P.

    2005-01-01

    Parental involvement is seen as an important strategy for the advancement of the quality of education. The ultimate objective of this is to expand the social and cognitive capacities of pupils. In addition, special attention is paid to the children of low-educated and ethnic minority parents.

  12. Cognitive coping strategies and stress in parents of children with Down syndrome: a prospective study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van der Veek, Shelley M. C.; Kraaij, Vivian; Garnefski, Nadia

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to explore the cross-sectional and prospective relationships between cognitive coping strategies and parental stress in parents of children with Down syndrome. A total of 621 participants filled out questionnaires, including the Cognitive Emotion Regulation

  13. A social-cognitive framework of multidisciplinary team innovation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paletz, Susannah B F; Schunn, Christian D

    2010-01-01

    The psychology of science typically lacks integration between cognitive and social variables. We present a new framework of team innovation in multidisciplinary science and engineering groups that ties factors from both literatures together. We focus on the effects of a particularly challenging social factor, knowledge diversity, which has a history of mixed effects on creativity, most likely because those effects are mediated and moderated by cognitive and additional social variables. In addition, we highlight the distinction between team innovative processes that are primarily divergent versus convergent; we propose that the social and cognitive implications are different for each, providing a possible explanation for knowledge diversity's mixed results on team outcomes. Social variables mapped out include formal roles, communication norms, sufficient participation and information sharing, and task conflict; cognitive variables include analogy, information search, and evaluation. This framework provides a roadmap for research that aims to harness the power of multidisciplinary teams. Copyright © 2009 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

  14. Cognitive mediators of treatment outcomes in pediatric functional abdominal pain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levy, Rona L; Langer, Shelby L; Romano, Joan M; Labus, Jennifer; Walker, Lynn S; Murphy, Tasha B; Tilburg, Miranda A L van; Feld, Lauren D; Christie, Dennis L; Whitehead, William E

    2014-12-01

    Cognitive-behavioral (CB) interventions improve outcomes for many pediatric health conditions, but little is known about which mechanisms mediate these outcomes. The goal of this study was to identify whether changes in targeted process variables from baseline to 1 week posttreatment mediate improvement in outcomes in a randomized controlled trial of a brief CB intervention for idiopathic childhood abdominal pain. Two hundred children with persistent functional abdominal pain and their parents were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 conditions: a 3-session social learning and CB treatment (N=100), or a 3-session educational intervention controlling for time and attention (N=100). Outcomes were assessed at 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-ups. The intervention focused on altering parental responses to pain and on increasing adaptive cognitions and coping strategies related to pain in both parents and children. Multiple mediation analyses were applied to examine the extent to which the effects of the social learning and CB treatment condition on child gastrointestinal (GI) symptom severity and pain as reported by children and their parents were mediated by changes in targeted cognitive process variables and parents' solicitous responses to their child's pain symptoms. Reductions in parents' perceived threat regarding their child's pain mediated reductions in both parent-reported and child-reported GI symptom severity and pain. Reductions in children's catastrophic cognitions mediated reductions in child-reported GI symptom severity but no other outcomes. Reductions in parental solicitousness did not mediate outcomes. Results suggest that reductions in reports of children's pain and GI symptoms after a social learning and CB intervention were mediated at least in part by decreasing maladaptive parent and child cognitions.

  15. Evaluating a brief parental-education program for parents of young children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nicholson, B C; Janz, P C; Fox, R A

    1998-06-01

    The effectiveness of a brief parental-education program for 40 families with very young children was studied. Families were assigned to either a parental-education or waiting-list control group. The parental-education program included information and strategies drawn from developmental and cognitive psychology and social learning theory. Analysis showed that participating parents significantly reduced their use of corporal and verbal punishment, changed their parenting attitudes, and improved their perceptions of their children's behavior in comparison to the control group. Effects were maintained at six weeks follow-up. Results supported tailoring parental-education programs to the unique needs of participants.

  16. Cognitive indicators of social anxiety in youth: a structural equation analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rudy, Brittany M; Davis, Thompson E; Matthews, Russell A

    2014-01-01

    Previous studies have demonstrated significant relationships among various cognitive variables such as negative cognition, self-efficacy, and social anxiety. Unfortunately, few studies focus on the role of cognition among youth, and researchers often fail to use domain-specific measures when examining cognitive variables. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to examine domain-specific cognitive variables (i.e., socially oriented negative self-referent cognition and social self-efficacy) and their relationships to social anxiety in children and adolescents using structural equation modeling techniques. A community sample of children and adolescents (n=245; 55.9% female; 83.3% Caucasian, 9.4% African American, 2% Asian, 2% Hispanic, 2% "other," and 1.2% not reported) completed questionnaires assessing social cognition and social anxiety symptomology. Three latent variables were created to examine the constructs of socially oriented negative self-referent cognition (as measured by the SONAS scale), social self-efficacy (as measured by the SEQSS-C), and social anxiety (as measured by the SPAI-C and the Brief SA). The resulting measurement model of latent variables fit the data well. Additionally, consistent with the study hypothesis, results indicated that social self-efficacy likely mediates the relationship between socially oriented negative self-referent cognition and social anxiety, and socially oriented negative self-referent cognition yields significant direct and indirect effects on social anxiety. These findings indicate that socially oriented negative cognitions are associated with youth's beliefs about social abilities and the experience of social anxiety. Future directions for research and study limitations, including use of cross-sectional data, are discussed. © 2013.

  17. Through the Eyes of Parents: A Singaporean Perspective of the Importance of Cognitive and Non-Cognitive Skills for Six-Year-Old Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carter, Margaret Anne; Frewen, Amie; Chunn, Jennifer

    2014-01-01

    This study reports the importance 244 parents of six-year-old children living in Singapore placed on cognitive (problem-solving and creativity) and non-cognitive (practical school skills and conforming) behaviours. Our research team hypothesised that, as the age of the parent increased, the importance placed on each covariant skill (problem…

  18. The Role of Cognitive Factors in Childhood Social Anxiety: Social Threat Thoughts and Social Skills Perception.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Niekerk, Rianne E; Klein, Anke M; Allart-van Dam, Esther; Hudson, Jennifer L; Rinck, Mike; Hutschemaekers, Giel J M; Becker, Eni S

    2017-01-01

    Models of cognitive processing in anxiety disorders state that socially anxious children display several distorted cognitive processes that maintain their anxiety. The present study investigated the role of social threat thoughts and social skills perception in relation to childhood trait and state social anxiety. In total, 141 children varying in their levels of social anxiety performed a short speech task in front of a camera and filled out self-reports about their trait social anxiety, state anxiety, social skills perception and social threat thoughts. Results showed that social threat thoughts mediated the relationship between trait social anxiety and state anxiety after the speech task, even when controlling for baseline state anxiety. Furthermore, we found that children with higher trait anxiety and more social threat thoughts had a lower perception of their social skills, but did not display a social skills deficit. These results provide evidence for the applicability of the cognitive social anxiety model to children.

  19. The effect of adult children living in the United States on the likelihood of cognitive impairment for older parents living in Mexico.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Downer, Brian; González-González, Cesar; Goldman, Noreen; Pebley, Anne R; Wong, Rebeca

    2018-01-01

    The increased risk for poor physical and mental health outcomes for older parents in Mexico who have an adult child living in the United States may contribute to an increased risk for cognitive impairment in this population. The objective of this study was to examine if older adults in Mexico who have one or more adult children living in the United States are more or less likely to develop cognitive impairment over an 11-year period compared to older adults who do not have any adult children living in the United States. Data for this study came from Wave I (2001) and Wave III (2012) of the Mexican Health and Aging Study. The final sample included 2609 participants aged 60 and over who were not cognitively impaired in 2001 and had one or more adult children (age ≥15). Participants were matched using a propensity score that was estimated with a multivariable logistic regression model that included sociodemographic characteristics and migration history of the older parents. Having one or more adult children living in the United States is associated with lower socioeconomic status and higher number of depressive symptoms, but greater social engagement for older parents living in Mexico. No significant differences in the odds for developing cognitive impairment according to having one or more adult children living in the United States were detected. In summary, having one or more adult children living in the United States was associated with characteristics that may increase and decrease the risk for cognitive impairment. This may contribute to the non-significant relationship between migration status of adult children and likelihood for cognitive impairment for older parents living in Mexico.

  20. A Social Model of Loneliness: The Roles of Disability, Social Resources, and Cognitive Impairment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burholt, Vanessa; Windle, Gill; Morgan, Deborah J

    2017-11-10

    We consider the points at which cognitive impairment may impact on the pathway to loneliness for older people, through impeding social interaction with family and friends, or by interfering with judgments concerning satisfaction with relationships. We conceptualize a mediation model anticipating that social resources (LSNS-6) will mediate the pathway between disability (Townsend Disability Scale) and loneliness (De Jong Gierveld 6-item scale) and a moderated-mediation model in which we hypothesize that cognitive impairment (MMSE) will moderate the association between disability and social resources and between social resources and loneliness. To validate the hypothesized pathways, we draw on the CFAS Wales data set (N = 3,593) which is a nationally representative study of community-dwelling people aged 65 and older in Wales. Disability had a significant indirect effect on loneliness through the mediating variable social resources. Cognitive impairment was significantly associated with social resources, but did not moderate the relationship between disability and social resources. Cognitive impairment had a significant impact on loneliness, and moderated the effect of social resources on loneliness. Social structures can (dis)empower people with cognitive impairment and lead to exclusion from social resources or impact on the social construction of aging, cognitive impairment, and dementia. The sense of self for an older person with cognitive impairment may be influenced by social norms and stereotypes, or through a temporal social comparison with an "earlier" sense of self. We conclude that loneliness interventions should be theoretically informed to identify key areas for modification. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America.

  1. White Matter Pathways and Social Cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yin; Metoki, Athanasia; Alm, Kylie H; Olson, Ingrid R

    2018-04-20

    There is a growing consensus that social cognition and behavior emerge from interactions across distributed regions of the "social brain". Researchers have traditionally focused their attention on functional response properties of these gray matter networks and neglected the vital role of white matter connections in establishing such networks and their functions. In this article, we conduct a comprehensive review of prior research on structural connectivity in social neuroscience and highlight the importance of this literature in clarifying brain mechanisms of social cognition. We pay particular attention to three key social processes: face processing, embodied cognition, and theory of mind, and their respective underlying neural networks. To fully identify and characterize the anatomical architecture of these networks, we further implement probabilistic tractography on a large sample of diffusion-weighted imaging data. The combination of an in-depth literature review and the empirical investigation gives us an unprecedented, well-defined landscape of white matter pathways underlying major social brain networks. Finally, we discuss current problems in the field, outline suggestions for best practice in diffusion-imaging data collection and analysis, and offer new directions for future research. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Relationships between Social Cognition and Sibling Constellations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goebel, Barbara L.

    1985-01-01

    First and second born college students (N=178) responded to measures of four social cognition factors. Multivariate analysis of variance identified relationships of social cognition factors with five sibling constellation components: subject's sex, subject's birth order (first or second), adjacent first or second born sibling's sex, spacing…

  3. Prefrontal Cortex and Social Cognition in Mouse and Man

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bicks, Lucy K.; Koike, Hiroyuki; Akbarian, Schahram; Morishita, Hirofumi

    2015-01-01

    Social cognition is a complex process that requires the integration of a wide variety of behaviors, including salience, reward-seeking, motivation, knowledge of self and others, and flexibly adjusting behavior in social groups. Not surprisingly, social cognition represents a sensitive domain commonly disrupted in the pathology of a variety of psychiatric disorders including Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Schizophrenia (SCZ). Here, we discuss convergent research from animal models to human disease that implicates the prefrontal cortex (PFC) as a key regulator in social cognition, suggesting that disruptions in prefrontal microcircuitry play an essential role in the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders with shared social deficits. We take a translational perspective of social cognition, and review three key behaviors that are essential to normal social processing in rodents and humans, including social motivation, social recognition, and dominance hierarchy. A shared prefrontal circuitry may underlie these behaviors. Social cognition deficits in animal models of neurodevelopmental disorders like ASD and SCZ have been linked to an altered balance of excitation and inhibition (E/I ratio) within the cortex generally, and PFC specifically. A clear picture of the mechanisms by which altered E/I ratio in the PFC might lead to disruptions of social cognition across a variety of behaviors is not well understood. Future studies should explore how disrupted developmental trajectory of prefrontal microcircuitry could lead to altered E/I balance and subsequent deficits in the social domain. PMID:26635701

  4. Cognitive-behavioral therapy for children with anxiety disorders in a clinical setting : No additional effect of a cognitive parent training

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Nauta, MH; Scholing, A; Emmelkamp, PMG; Minderaa, RB

    2003-01-01

    To evaluate a 12-week cognitive-behavioral treatment program for children with anxiety disorders and the additional value of a seven-session cognitive parent training program. Method: Seventy-nine children with an anxiety disorder (aged 7-18 years) were randomly assigned to a cognitive behavioral

  5. Insight of patients and their parents into schizophrenia: Exploring agreement and the influence of parental factors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macgregor, Alexandra; Norton, Joanna; Bortolon, Catherine; Robichon, Melissa; Rolland, Camille; Boulenger, Jean-Philippe; Raffard, Stéphane; Capdevielle, Delphine

    2015-08-30

    Poor insight is found in up to 80% of schizophrenia patients and has been associated with multiple factors of which cognitive functioning, social and environmental factors. Few studies have explored associations between patient insight and that of their biological parents', and the influence of parental factors. Insight was assessed in 41 patients and their biological parents with Amador's Scale for the assessment of Unawareness of Mental Disorder (SUMD). Parents' knowledge about schizophrenia and critical attitudes were assessed with validated self-report questionnaires. Both groups underwent cognitive assessments for working memory and executive functioning. Insight in patients and their parents was not associated for any of the SUMD dimensions but a significant correlation was found between patient and parent awareness of treatment effect for patient-parent dyads with frequent daily contact. Low parental critical attitude was associated with higher patient awareness of symptoms and a high parental memory task score with high patient insight. Our study is the first to suggest a possible influence of parental factors such as critical attitudes and cognitive performance on patient insight. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Social cognition and the brain: a meta-analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Overwalle, Frank

    2009-03-01

    This meta-analysis explores the location and function of brain areas involved in social cognition, or the capacity to understand people's behavioral intentions, social beliefs, and personality traits. On the basis of over 200 fMRI studies, it tests alternative theoretical proposals that attempt to explain how several brain areas process information relevant for social cognition. The results suggest that inferring temporary states such as goals, intentions, and desires of other people-even when they are false and unjust from our own perspective--strongly engages the temporo-parietal junction (TPJ). Inferring more enduring dispositions of others and the self, or interpersonal norms and scripts, engages the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), although temporal states can also activate the mPFC. Other candidate tasks reflecting general-purpose brain processes that may potentially subserve social cognition are briefly reviewed, such as sequence learning, causality detection, emotion processing, and executive functioning (action monitoring, attention, dual task monitoring, episodic memory retrieval), but none of them overlaps uniquely with the regions activated during social cognition. Hence, it appears that social cognition particularly engages the TPJ and mPFC regions. The available evidence is consistent with the role of a TPJ-related mirror system for inferring temporary goals and intentions at a relatively perceptual level of representation, and the mPFC as a module that integrates social information across time and allows reflection and representation of traits and norms, and presumably also of intentionality, at a more abstract cognitive level.

  7. Peer Status in Boys With and Without Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Predictions from Overt and Covert Antisocial Behavior, Social Isolation, and Authoritative Parenting Beliefs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hinshaw, Stephen P; Zupan, Brian A; Simmel, Cassandra; Nigg, Joel T; Melnick, Sharon

    1997-10-01

    Because of the centrality of peer relationship difficulties for children with attentiondeficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), we investigated behavioral (overt and covert antisocial activity), internalizing (self-reports and observed social isolation), and familial (authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive parenting beliefs) predictors of peer sociometric nominations among previously unfamiliar, ethnically diverse ADHD (N=73) and comparison (N=60) boys, aged 6-12 years. Authoritative maternal parenting beliefs and negatively weighted social isolation explained significant variance in positive peer regard; aggression, covert behavior, and authoritative parenting beliefs were the independent predictors of both negative peer status and peer social preference. We extended such predictions with statistical control of (1) child cognitive variables, (2) maternal psychopathology, and (3) ADHD boys, but authoritative parenting beliefs were stronger predictors in ADHD than in comparison youth. We discuss family-peer linkages regarding peer competence.

  8. Differential susceptibility to parenting and quality child care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pluess, Michael; Belsky, Jay

    2010-03-01

    Research on differential susceptibility to rearing suggests that infants with difficult temperaments are disproportionately affected by parenting and child care quality, but a major U.S. child care study raises questions as to whether quality of care influences social adjustment. One thousand three hundred sixty-four American children from reasonably diverse backgrounds were followed from 1 month to 11 years with repeated observational assessments of parenting and child care quality, as well as teacher report and standardized assessments of children's cognitive-academic and social functioning, to determine whether those with histories of difficult temperament proved more susceptible to early rearing effects at ages 10 and 11. Evidence for such differential susceptibility emerges in the case of both parenting and child care quality and with respect to both cognitive-academic and social functioning. Differential susceptibility to parenting and child care quality extends to late middle childhood. J. Belsky, D. L. Vandell, et al.'s (2007) failure to consider such temperament-moderated rearing effects in their evaluation of long-term child care effects misestimates effects of child care quality on social adjustment.

  9. The Longitudinal Effects of Network Characteristics on the Mental Health of Mothers of Children with ASD: The Mediating Role of Parent Cognitions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benson, Paul R.

    2016-01-01

    Employing a cohort sequential design, the effects of network characteristics on maternal cognitions (perceived social support and parenting self-efficacy) and mental health (depression and well-being) were assessed over 7 years when children with ASD of mothers in the study were age 7-14. Findings indicated that network size, network emotional…

  10. Social Competence among Low-Income Preschoolers: Emotion Socialization Practices and Social Cognitive Correlates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garner, Pamela W.; And Others

    1994-01-01

    Two studies investigated the relationship between emotion socialization variables, social cognitive knowledge, and children's social competence in preschoolers from low-income families. Found that mothers' self-reported emotion socialization practices were related to children's emotional knowledge and sibling caregiving behavior. (MDM)

  11. Social cognition in borderline personality disorder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stefan eRoepke

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Many typical symptoms of borderline personality disorder (BPD occur within interpersonal contexts, suggesting that BPD is characterized by aberrant social cognition. While research consistently shows that BPD patients have biases in mental state attribution (e.g., evaluate others as malevolent, the research focusing on accuracy in inferring mental states (i.e., cognitive empathy is less consistent. For complex and ecologically valid tasks in particular, emerging evidence suggests that individuals with BPD have impairments in the attribution of emotions, thoughts, and intentions of others (e.g., Preißler et al., 2010. A history of childhood trauma and co-morbid PTSD seem to be strong additional predictors for cognitive empathy deficits. Together with reduced emotional empathy and aberrant sending of social signals (e.g., expression of mixed and hard-to-read emotions, the deficits in attribution might contribute to behavioral problems in BPD. Given the importance of social cognition on the part of both the sender and the recipient in maintaining interpersonal relationships and therapeutic alliance, these impairments deserve more attention.

  12. Chinese Parents' Expectations and Child Preacademic Skills: The Indirect Role of Parenting and Social Competence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ren, Lixin; Edwards, Carolyn Pope

    2017-01-01

    Research Findings: This study examined how parenting styles and child social-emotional functioning may help explain the indirect relations between Chinese parents' expectations for their preschool-age children's social-emotional development and their children's preacademic skills. A total of 154 parents with preschool-age children were recruited…

  13. The influence of combined cognitive plus social-cognitive training on amygdala response during face emotion recognition in schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hooker, Christine I; Bruce, Lori; Fisher, Melissa; Verosky, Sara C; Miyakawa, Asako; D'Esposito, Mark; Vinogradov, Sophia

    2013-08-30

    Both cognitive and social-cognitive deficits impact functional outcome in schizophrenia. Cognitive remediation studies indicate that targeted cognitive and/or social-cognitive training improves behavioral performance on trained skills. However, the neural effects of training in schizophrenia and their relation to behavioral gains are largely unknown. This study tested whether a 50-h intervention which included both cognitive and social-cognitive training would influence neural mechanisms that support social ccognition. Schizophrenia participants completed a computer-based intervention of either auditory-based cognitive training (AT) plus social-cognition training (SCT) (N=11) or non-specific computer games (CG) (N=11). Assessments included a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) task of facial emotion recognition, and behavioral measures of cognition, social cognition, and functional outcome. The fMRI results showed the predicted group-by-time interaction. Results were strongest for emotion recognition of happy, surprise and fear: relative to CG participants, AT+SCT participants showed a neural activity increase in bilateral amygdala, right putamen and right medial prefrontal cortex. Across all participants, pre-to-post intervention neural activity increase in these regions predicted behavioral improvement on an independent emotion perception measure (MSCEIT: Perceiving Emotions). Among AT+SCT participants alone, neural activity increase in right amygdala predicted behavioral improvement in emotion perception. The findings indicate that combined cognition and social-cognition training improves neural systems that support social-cognition skills. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Example-based learning: Integrating cognitive and social-cognitive research perspectives

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    T.A.J.M. van Gog (Tamara); N. Rummel (Nikol)

    2010-01-01

    textabstractExample-based learning has been studied from different perspectives. Cognitive research has mainly focused on worked examples, which typically provide students with a written worked-out didactical solution to a problem to study. Social-cognitive research has mostly focused on modeling

  15. Naturally-occurring changes in social-cognitive factors modify change in physical activity during early adolescence.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rod K Dishman

    Full Text Available To determine whether naturally-occurring changes in children's motives and beliefs are associated with the steep decline in physical activity observed from childhood to early adolescence.Latent growth modeling was applied in longitudinal tests of social-cognitive influences, and their interactions, on physical activity in a large cohort of boys and girls evaluated annually between 5th and 7th grades.Measurement equivalence of motives and beliefs was confirmed between boys and girls. After adjustment for gender and maturity differences, physical activity declined less in children who reported the least decreases in self-efficacy for overcoming barriers to activity and perceived parental support. Physical activity also declined less in students who persistently felt they had more parental and friend support for activity compared to those who reported the largest decrease in support from friends. After further adjustment for race, the decline in physical activity was less in those who had the largest decrease in perceived barriers and maintained a favorable perception of their neighborhood environment. Changes in enjoyment and social motives were unrelated to change in physical activity.Using an objective measure of physical activity, we confirm that naturally-occurring changes in children's beliefs about barriers to physical activity and their ability to overcome them, as well as perceptions of their neighborhood environment and social support, are concurrent with age-related declines in children's physical activity. The longitudinal findings confirm these putative social-cognitive mediators as plausible, interacting targets of interventions designed to mitigate the marked decline in physical activity that occurs during the transition between elementary and middle schools.

  16. The role of social cognition in parasite and pathogen avoidance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kavaliers, Martin; Choleris, Elena

    2018-07-19

    The acquisition and use of social information are integral to social behaviour and parasite/pathogen avoidance. This involves social cognition which encompasses mechanisms for acquiring, processing, retaining and acting on social information. Social cognition entails the acquisition of social information about others (i.e. social recognition) and from others (i.e. social learning). Social cognition involves assessing other individuals and their infection status and the pathogen and parasite threat they pose and deciding about when and how to interact with them. Social cognition provides a framework for examining pathogen and parasite avoidance behaviours and their associated neurobiological mechanisms. Here, we briefly consider the relationships between social cognition and olfactory-mediated pathogen and parasite avoidance behaviours. We briefly discuss aspects of (i) social recognition of actual and potentially infected individuals and the impact of parasite/pathogen threat on mate and social partner choice; (ii) the roles of 'out-groups' (strangers, unfamiliar individuals) and 'in-groups' (familiar individuals) in the expression of parasite/pathogen avoidance behaviours; (iii) individual and social learning, i.e. the utilization of the pathogen recognition and avoidance responses of others; and (iv) the neurobiological mechanisms, in particular the roles of the nonapeptide, oxytocin and steroid hormones (oestrogens) associated with social cognition and parasite/pathogen avoidance.This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Evolution of pathogen and parasite avoidance behaviours'. © 2018 The Author(s).

  17. The impact of social activities, social networks, social support and social relationships on the cognitive functioning of healthy older adults: a systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelly, Michelle E; Duff, Hollie; Kelly, Sara; McHugh Power, Joanna E; Brennan, Sabina; Lawlor, Brian A; Loughrey, David G

    2017-12-19

    Social relationships, which are contingent on access to social networks, promote engagement in social activities and provide access to social support. These social factors have been shown to positively impact health outcomes. In the current systematic review, we offer a comprehensive overview of the impact of social activities, social networks and social support on the cognitive functioning of healthy older adults (50+) and examine the differential effects of aspects of social relationships on various cognitive domains. We followed PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis) guidelines, and collated data from randomised controlled trials (RCTs), genetic and observational studies. Independent variables of interest included subjective measures of social activities, social networks, and social support, and composite measures of social relationships (CMSR). The primary outcome of interest was cognitive function divided into domains of episodic memory, semantic memory, overall memory ability, working memory, verbal fluency, reasoning, attention, processing speed, visuospatial abilities, overall executive functioning and global cognition. Thirty-nine studies were included in the review; three RCTs, 34 observational studies, and two genetic studies. Evidence suggests a relationship between (1) social activity and global cognition and overall executive functioning, working memory, visuospatial abilities and processing speed but not episodic memory, verbal fluency, reasoning or attention; (2) social networks and global cognition but not episodic memory, attention or processing speed; (3) social support and global cognition and episodic memory but not attention or processing speed; and (4) CMSR and episodic memory and verbal fluency but not global cognition. The results support prior conclusions that there is an association between social relationships and cognitive function but the exact nature of this association remains unclear

  18. Parenting styles and conceptions of parental authority during adolescence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smetana, J G

    1995-04-01

    Reports of parenting styles were assessed in 110 primarily white, middle-class sixth, eighth, and tenth graders (M = 11.98, 13.84, and 16.18 years of age) and their parents (108 mothers and 92 fathers). Parents judged the legitimacy of parental authority and rated family conflict and rules regarding 24 hypothetical moral, conventional, personal, multifaceted (containing conventional and personal components), prudential, and friendship issues. Adolescents viewed their parents as more permissive and more authoritarian than parents viewed themselves, whereas parents viewed themselves as more authoritative than did adolescents. Parents' parenting styles differentiated their conceptions of parental authority, but adolescents' perceptions did not. Differences were primarily over the boundaries of adolescents' personal jurisdiction. Furthermore, conceptions of parental authority and parenting styles both contributed significantly to emotional autonomy and adolescent-parent conflict. The implications of the findings for typological models of parenting and distinct domain views of social-cognitive development are discussed.

  19. Marital relationship, parenting practices, and social skills development in preschool children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hosokawa, Rikuya; Katsura, Toshiki

    2017-01-01

    This study examined the pathways by which destructive and constructive marital conflict leading to social skills development in preschool children, are mediated through negative and positive parenting practices. Mothers of 2931 Japanese children, aged 5-6 years, completed self-report questionnaires regarding their marital relationship (the Quality of co-parental communication scale) and parental practices (the Alabama parenting questionnaire). The children's teachers evaluated their social skills using the Social skills scale. Path analyses revealed significant direct paths from destructive marital conflict to negative parenting practices and lower scores on the self-control component of social skills. In addition, negative parenting practices mediated the relationship between destructive marital conflict and lower scores on cooperation, self-control, and assertion. Our analyses also revealed significant direct paths from constructive marital conflict to positive parenting practices, and higher scores on cooperation and assertion. Positive parenting practices mediated the relationship between constructive marital conflict and higher scores on self-control and assertion. These findings suggest that destructive and constructive marital conflict may directly and indirectly influence children's social skills development through the mediation of parenting practices.

  20. Continuous formation of liturgy through social cognition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ferdi Kruger

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available This article researches two focal points, namely liturgical formation and the influence that social cognition has on liturgical formation. Within a South African context it is evident that Western liturgical traditions encounter African traditions and vice versa. This encounter is challenging because it creates new questions. The process of enculturation is prominent in recent research. The article refers to the process of social cognition as the manner in which people observe each other and try to make sense of other cultures and the people of those cultures. People’s cognition can be wrong, leading to distortions. The main research question for this investigation emanates from this possibility, namely: How does social cognition influence the process of liturgical formation? The authors first of all offer a descriptive– empirical vantage point to investigate this matter. Two local congregations were visited. The authors reflect on their own cognition, but also examine the cognition of the leaders through interviews. Based on the findings of this endeavour, normative perspectives are formulated from Acts 17:16–35 to highlight the role of cognition in liturgical formation. Throughout, the article includes consideration of the hermeneutic interaction between the various elements of this research and provides hermeneutic guidelines.

  1. Behavioral and social cognitive processes in preschool children's social dominance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pellegrini, Anthony D; Van Ryzin, Mark J; Roseth, Cary; Bohn-Gettler, Catherine; Dupuis, Danielle; Hickey, Meghan; Peshkam, Annie

    2011-01-01

    This longitudinal, naturalistic study addressed behavioral and social cognitive processes implicated in preschool children's social dominance. In the first objective, we examined the degree to which peer aggression, affiliation, and postaggression reconciliation predicted social dominance across a school year. Consistent with predictions, all three predicted dominance early in the year while only affiliation predicted dominance later in the year, suggesting that aggression, affiliation, and reconciliation were used to establish social dominance where affiliation was used to maintain it. In the second, exploratory, objective we tested the relative importance of social dominance and reconciliation (the Machiavellian and Vygotskian intelligence hypotheses, respectively) in predicting theory of mind/false belief. Results indicated that social dominance accounted for significant variance, beyond that related to reconciliation and affiliation, in predicting theory of mind/false belief status. Results are discussed in terms of specific behavioral and social cognitive processes employed in establishing and maintaining social dominance. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  2. Parental Employment and Child Cognitive Development

    OpenAIRE

    Christopher J. Ruhm

    2000-01-01

    This study investigates the relationship between parental employment and child cognitive development using data from multiple years of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Maternal labor supply during the first three years of the child's life is predicted to have a small negative effect on the verbal ability of 3 and 4 year olds and a substantial detrimental impact on the reading and math achievement of 5 and 6 year olds. Working during the second and third years appears to have less fa...

  3. Social cognitive interventions for people with schizophrenia: A systematic review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tan, Bhing-Leet; Lee, Sara-Ann; Lee, Jimmy

    2016-07-27

    Social cognition is the mental process which underpins social interactions. Increasingly, it has been recognized to be impaired in people with schizophrenia, resulting in functional problems. Correspondingly, the past ten years have seen huge developments in the study of interventions to ameliorate social cognitive deficits among people with schizophrenia. In the present review, we systematically reviewed published studies on social cognitive interventions from 2005 to 2015. Of the 61 studies included in this review, 20 were on broad-based social cognitive interventions, which incorporated neurocognitive training, specialized learning technique or virtual reality social skills training. On the other hand, 31 studies on targeted interventions either focused on specific social cognitive domains, or a range of domains. Improvements in emotion processing and theory of mind were often reported, while social perception and attributional style were less frequently measured. Both broad-based and targeted interventions achieved gains in social functioning, albeit inconsistently. Lastly, nine studies on the use of oxytocin and one study on transcranial direct current stimulation reported positive preliminary results in higher-order cognition and facial affect recognition respectively. This review revealed that a wide range of social cognitive interventions is currently available and most have shown some promise in improving social cognition outcomes. However, there is a need to use a common battery of measurements for better comparisons across interventions. Future research should examine combination therapies and the sustainability of gains beyond the intervention period. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Social cognition and individual effectiveness in interpersonal scenarios: A conceptual review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nilamadhab Kar

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Social cognition, the ability to act wisely in social interaction, is being actively researched in various fields besides the clinical, behavioral, and psychological sciences. The objectives of this paper are to review the conceptual basis of social cognition and its applicability in the areas of social competence and effectiveness in interpersonal environments. Social cognitive skills enable understanding of social situations. The relationship between social cognitive skills and ability of emotional decoding of self and others has been explored. The paper discusses various processes that are operative in the interactional scenarios and have relevance in individual effectiveness. Concepts such as emotional intelligence, trait transference, person-perception, categorical thinking, and knowledge construction have been discussed in relation to social cognition and effectiveness. The role of thoughts, feelings, expectations, and relational schemas in interpersonal situations has been linked to performances. In addition, effectiveness is influenced by motivated social cognitions, ego-tasks, global, and context-specific goals. Various strategies such as cognitive and social problem-solving and proactive-coping have been elaborated which lead to better outcomes in interpersonal environments.

  5. The Importance of Social Cognition in Improving Functional Outcomes in Schizophrenia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Javed, Afzal; Charles, Asha

    2018-01-01

    Social cognition has become recognized as an important driver of functional outcomes and overall recovery in patients with schizophrenia, mediating the relationship between neurocognition and social functioning. Since antipsychotic therapy targeting remission of clinical symptoms has been shown to have a limited impact on social cognition, there has been an increasing drive to develop therapeutic strategies to specifically improve social cognition in schizophrenia. We sought to review current evidence relating to social cognition in schizophrenia and its clinical implications, including interventions designed to target the core domains of social cognition (emotion processing, theory of mind, attributional bias, and social perception) as a means of improving functional outcomes and thereby increasing the likelihood of recovery. Relevant articles were identified by conducting a literature search in PubMed using the search terms “schizophrenia” AND “cognition” AND “social functioning,” limited to Title/Abstract, over a time period of the past 10 years. Current evidence demonstrates that schizophrenia is associated with impairments in all four core domains of social cognition, during the pre-first-episode, first-episode, early, and chronic phases of the disease, and that such impairments are important determinants of functional outcome. Interventions targeting the four core domains of social cognition comprise psychosocial approaches (social cognition training programs) and pharmacological therapies. Social cognition training programs targeting multiple and specific core domains of social cognition have shown promise in improving social cognition skills, which, in some cases, has translated into improvements in functional outcomes. Use of some psychosocial interventions has additionally resulted in improvements in clinical symptoms and/or quality of life. Pharmacological therapies, including oxytocin and certain antipsychotics, have yielded more mixed

  6. The Importance of Social Cognition in Improving Functional Outcomes in Schizophrenia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Afzal Javed

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Social cognition has become recognized as an important driver of functional outcomes and overall recovery in patients with schizophrenia, mediating the relationship between neurocognition and social functioning. Since antipsychotic therapy targeting remission of clinical symptoms has been shown to have a limited impact on social cognition, there has been an increasing drive to develop therapeutic strategies to specifically improve social cognition in schizophrenia. We sought to review current evidence relating to social cognition in schizophrenia and its clinical implications, including interventions designed to target the core domains of social cognition (emotion processing, theory of mind, attributional bias, and social perception as a means of improving functional outcomes and thereby increasing the likelihood of recovery. Relevant articles were identified by conducting a literature search in PubMed using the search terms “schizophrenia” AND “cognition” AND “social functioning,” limited to Title/Abstract, over a time period of the past 10 years. Current evidence demonstrates that schizophrenia is associated with impairments in all four core domains of social cognition, during the pre-first-episode, first-episode, early, and chronic phases of the disease, and that such impairments are important determinants of functional outcome. Interventions targeting the four core domains of social cognition comprise psychosocial approaches (social cognition training programs and pharmacological therapies. Social cognition training programs targeting multiple and specific core domains of social cognition have shown promise in improving social cognition skills, which, in some cases, has translated into improvements in functional outcomes. Use of some psychosocial interventions has additionally resulted in improvements in clinical symptoms and/or quality of life. Pharmacological therapies, including oxytocin and certain antipsychotics, have

  7. Contributions of cognitive inflexibility to eating disorder and social anxiety symptoms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arlt, Jean; Yiu, Angelina; Eneva, Kalina; Taylor Dryman, M; Heimberg, Richard G; Chen, Eunice Y

    2016-04-01

    Eating disorders and social anxiety are highly co-occurring. These disorders share fears of social evaluation, possibly maintained by similar cognitive content and styles, including an inability to adapt or flexibly respond to unexpected conditions. However, the role of cognitive inflexibility in eating disorders in relation to social anxiety has not been explored. In this study, the link between eating disorder symptoms and cognitive inflexibility, while accounting for social anxiety, is examined. Participants (N=461) were undergraduates who completed the Detail and Flexibility Questionnaire 12-item Cognitive Rigidity subscale, the Eating Disorders Diagnostic Scale, and the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale. Eating disorder symptoms and social anxiety were both positively correlated with cognitive inflexibility. After controlling for social anxiety, the relationship between eating disorder symptoms and cognitive inflexibility remained robust. Further examination of cognitive inflexibility in eating disorders and comorbid social anxiety in clinical samples is warranted. We suggest future directions for examining cognitive inflexibility as a trans-diagnostic construct important to eating disorders and frequently comorbid disorders, consistent with NIMH Research Domain Criteria. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  8. Cognitive bias modification of interpretation in children with social anxiety disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orchard, Faith; Apetroaia, Adela; Clarke, Kiri; Creswell, Cathy

    2017-01-01

    Negative (or a lack of positive) interpretation of ambiguous social situations has been hypothesised to maintain social anxiety disorder in children, yet there is currently limited evidence to support this. Cognitive Bias Modification of Interpretation (CBM-I) provides a means to explore the causal influence of interpretation bias on social anxiety disorder, and has been associated with a reduction in social anxiety symptoms in adults. Seven to twelve year old children with a diagnosis of social anxiety disorder completed CBM-I training, adapted from materials designed for socially anxious children in the community, or no training. Effects on interpretation bias and social anxiety were assessed. The adapted CBM-I training was not associated with significant changes in benign or negative interpretation. Unsurprisingly given the lack of successful interpretation training, there were no significant changes in child or parent reported social anxiety symptoms, clinician-rated severity or diagnoses and change in interpretation was not significantly associated with change in social anxiety. These findings contrast with some studies with community populations although it is possible that more intensive CBM-I training is required to fully test this hypothesis among clinical groups. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  9. Variations in Latino Parenting Practices and Their Effects on Child Cognitive Developmental Outcomes

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Von Figueroa-Moseley, Colmar; Ramey, Craig T.; Keltner, Bette; Lanzi, Robin G.

    2006-01-01

    This research examines variations in parenting and its effects on child cognitive outcomes across Latino subgroups from a national sampling that utilized a subset of 995 former Head Start Latino parents and children. Comparisons of the Parenting Dimension Inventory scaled scores revealed Latino subgroup differences on nurturance and consistency.…

  10. Psychometrics of social cognitive measures for psychosis treatment research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davidson, Charlie A; Lesser, Rebecca; Parente, Lori T; Fiszdon, Joanna M

    2018-03-01

    Social cognition represents an important treatment target, closely linked to everyday social function. While a number of social cognitive interventions have recently been developed, measures used to evaluate these treatments are only beginning to receive psychometric scrutiny. Study goals were to replicate recently-published psychometrics for several social cognitive measures, and to provide information for additional social cognitive measures not included in recent reports. Forty-eight outpatients with psychotic-spectrum disorders completed measures of emotion perception, theory of mind, and attributional bias on two occasions, one month apart. Measures were tested for distributional characteristics, test-retest reliability, utility as a repeated measure, and relationship to symptoms and functioning. For a subgroup of participants, information about sensitivity to social cognitive treatment was also available. We replicated aspects of prior work, including largely favorable psychometric characteristics for the Bell-Lysaker Emotion Recognition Task, and promising but weaker characteristics for The Awareness of Social Inferences Test subscales and Reading the Mind in the Eyes Task. The Hinting Task had adequate test-retest statistics but a more pronounced ceiling effect. Ambiguous Intentions and Hostility Questionnaire data showed evidence of validity but were limited by inconsistency over time. Our results strongly support the Davos Assessment of Cognitive Biases Scale for future evaluation as a social cognitive treatment outcome measure. Its scores were adequately distributed, consistent over time, related to symptoms and functioning, and sensitive to treatment effects. Other relatively novel assessments of attributional bias and theory of mind showed some promise, although more work is needed. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  11. Is parenting style a context for smoking-specific parenting practices?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huver, Rose M E; Engels, Rutger C M E; Vermulst, Ad A; de Vries, Hein

    2007-07-10

    This study examined whether global parenting style can be regarded as a context in which smoking-specific parenting practices relate to adolescent smoking cognitions and behaviors. Data were gathered through self-administered questionnaires from 482 adolescents aged 12-19 years, who participated in the Study of Medical Information and Lifestyles in Eindhoven (SMILE). We assessed parenting style dimensions (support, strict control, psychological control), smoking-specific parenting practices (parent-child communication about smoking, anti-smoking house rules, availability of tobacco products, non-smoking agreement), smoking-related cognitions according to the I-Change Model (attitude, social norm, self-efficacy, intention), and smoking behavior. Structural equation models were computed and compared for adolescents in different parenting climates. Results showed that communication and availability were related to adolescents' attitude towards smoking. Availability was additionally associated with reduced self-efficacy to refrain from smoking. Attitude and self-efficacy were subsequently related to intention to smoke, which in turn was related to smoking behavior. No direct relations were found between anti-smoking parenting practices and adolescent smoking behavior. These results were not dependent on the parenting climate. Parenting style thus did not serve as a context for smoking-specific parenting practices, indicating that these facets of parenting operate independently, and that anti-smoking parenting practices may be effective regardless of parenting climate.

  12. [Advances in research on cognitive function related to temporal lobe epilepsy: focus on social cognitive function].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamano, Mitsuhiko; Akamatsu, Naoki; Tsuji, Sadatoshi

    2012-09-01

    Research on cognitive function related to temporal lobe epilepsy has thus far focused on memory, language, and general intelligence. Recently, however, the concept of social cognitive function has been proposed in the field of neuropsychology. Social cognitive function refers collectively to the higher cognitive functions that are essential in our social lives, and its representative aspects are facial expression recognition and decision-making. Emotional processing centered around the amygdala is thought to play a key role in the neural mechanism of this function. We conducted a study on the social cognitive function (decision-making) of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy, and found that this function is reduced in these patients, and that the right amygdalo-hippocampal complexes play an important role. In order to ensure the best possible treatment for epilepsy patients, it is necessary not only to make an accurate diagnosis and provide appropriate treatment, but also to provide support for enabling a smoother social life from the perspective of social cognitive function. Future research developments in this field are expected to contribute to total management in medical care for epilepsy patients.

  13. Transmission of Cognitive Bias and Fear From Parents to Children: An Experimental Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Remmerswaal, Danielle; Muris, Peter; Huijding, Jorg

    2016-01-01

    This study explored the role of parents in the development of a cognitive bias and subsequent fear levels in children. In Experiment 1, nonclinical children ages 8-13 (N = 122) underwent a training during which they worked together with their mothers on an information search task. Mothers received instructions to induce either a positive or negative information search bias in their children. Experiment 2 investigated to what extent mothers own cognitive bias predicted children's information search bias. Mothers of 49 nonclinical children ages 9-12 received no explicit training instructions before working together with their child on an information search task. Experiment 1 demonstrated that mothers had a significant impact on children's cognitive bias and fear. More precisely, children who had received a negative parental training displayed an increase in negative information search bias and fear, whereas children who had received a positive parental training showed an increase in positive information search bias and a decrease in fear. In Experiment 2, it was found that children's information search biases after working together with their mothers were predicted by their mothers' initial cognitive bias scores. These findings can be taken as support for the intergenerational transmission of cognitive biases from mothers to children.

  14. The association of parent?s outcome expectations for child TV viewing with parenting practices and child TV viewing: an examination using path analysis

    OpenAIRE

    Johnson, Lauren; Chen, Tzu-An; Hughes, Sheryl O; O?Connor, Teresia M

    2015-01-01

    Background Television (TV) viewing has been associated with many undesirable outcomes for children, such as increased risk of obesity, but TV viewing can also have benefits. Although restrictive parenting practices are effective in reducing children?s TV viewing, not all parents use them and it is currently unclear why. The current study examined parenting practices related to TV viewing in the context of social- cognitive theory. Specifically, we hypothesized that positive and negative Paren...

  15. Brief telephone-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy targeted to parents of children with functional abdominal pain: a randomized controlled trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levy, Rona L; Langer, Shelby L; van Tilburg, Miranda A L; Romano, Joan M; Murphy, Tasha B; Walker, Lynn S; Mancl, Lloyd A; Claar, Robyn L; DuPen, Melissa M; Whitehead, William E; Abdullah, Bisher; Swanson, Kimberly S; Baker, Melissa D; Stoner, Susan A; Christie, Dennis L; Feld, Andrew D

    2017-04-01

    Pediatric functional abdominal pain disorders (FAPDs) are associated with increased health care utilization, school absences, and poor quality of life (QoL). Cost-effective and accessible interventions are needed. This multisite study tested the effects of a 3-session cognitive behavioral intervention delivered to parents, in-person or remotely, on the primary outcome of pain severity and secondary outcomes (process measures) of parental solicitousness, pain beliefs, catastrophizing, and child-reported coping. Additional outcomes hypothesized a priori and assessed included functional disability, QoL, pain behavior, school absences, health care utilization, and gastrointestinal symptoms. The study was prospective and longitudinal (baseline and 3 and 6 months' follow-up) with 3 randomized conditions: social learning and cognitive behavioral therapy in-person (SLCBT) or by phone (SLCBT-R) and education and support condition by phone (ES-R). Participants were children aged 7 to 12 years with FAPD and their parents (N = 316 dyads). Although no significant treatment effect for pain severity was found, the SLCBT groups showed significantly greater improvements compared with controls on process measures of parental solicitousness, pain beliefs, and catastrophizing, and additional outcomes of parent-reported functional disability, pain behaviors, child health care visits for abdominal pain, and (remote condition only) QoL and missed school days. No effects were found for parent and child-reported gastrointestinal symptoms, or child-reported QoL or coping. These findings suggest that for children with FAPD, a brief phone SLCBT for parents can be similarly effective as in-person SLCBT in changing parent responses and improving outcomes, if not reported pain and symptom report, compared with a control condition.

  16. Brief telephone-delivered cognitive-behavioral therapy targeted to parents of children with functional abdominal pain: a randomized controlled trial

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levy, Rona L.; Langer, Shelby L.; van Tilburg, Miranda A.L.; Romano, Joan M.; Murphy, Tasha B.; Walker, Lynn S.; Mancl, Lloyd A.; Claar, Robyn L.; DuPen, Melissa M.; Whitehead, William E.; Abdullah, Bisher; Swanson, Kimberly S.; Baker, Melissa D.; Stoner, Susan A.; Christie, Dennis L.; Feld, Andrew D.

    2017-01-01

    Pediatric functional abdominal pain disorders (FAPD) are associated with increased healthcare utilization, school absences, and poor quality of life (QoL). Cost-effective and accessible interventions are needed. This multi-site study tested the effects of a 3-session cognitive-behavioral intervention delivered to parents, in person or remotely, on the primary outcome of pain severity and secondary outcomes (process measures) of parental solicitousness, pain beliefs, catastrophizing, and child-reported coping. Additional outcomes hypothesized a priori and assessed included functional disability, quality of life, pain behavior, school absences, healthcare utilization, and gastrointestinal symptoms. The study was prospective and longitudinal (baseline, 3 and 6 months follow-up) with three randomized conditions: social learning and cognitive-behavioral therapy in-person (SLCBT) or by phone (SLCBT-R) and education/support condition by phone (ES-R). Participants were children aged 7–12 with FAPD and their parents (N = 316 dyads). While no significant treatment effect for pain severity was found, the SLCBT groups showed significantly greater improvements compared to controls on process measures of parental solicitousness, pain beliefs and catastrophizing, and additional outcomes of parent-reported functional disability, pain behaviors, child healthcare visits for abdominal pain, and (remote condition only) quality of life and missed school days. No effects were found for parent and child-reported gastrointestinal symptoms, or child-reported quality of life or coping. These findings suggest that for children with FAPD, a brief phone SLCBT for parents can be similarly effective as in-person SLCBT in changing parent responses and improving outcomes, if not reported pain and symptom report, compared to a control condition. PMID:28301859

  17. Parenting influences on Latino children's social competence in the first grade: parental depression and parent involvement at home and school.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valdez, Carmen R; Shewakramani, Vansa; Goldberg, Simon; Padilla, Brian

    2013-10-01

    Although it is widely accepted that parental depression is associated with problems with children's socioemotional adjustment, the pathways by which parental depression influences children's adjustment, particularly in low-income Latino children are not fully understood. In our investigation of 1,462 low-income Latino children in the first grade and their Spanish- and English-dominant parents, a factor analysis revealed three main pathways of possible influence of parent involvement in children's social development: emotional involvement and educational involvement at home and at school. The findings from multigroup structural equation modeling revealed that whereas the first two pathways mediated the effect of parental depression on child social competence for Spanish-dominant parents, only emotional involvement explained parental depression effects for English-dominant parents. Parent educational involvement at school did not mediate parental depression effects for either Spanish- or English-dominant Latino parents. Discussion and implications of findings with respect to research, practice, and policy with Latinos follow.

  18. Social Cognition in Child and Adolescents with Anorexia Nervosa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    ipek Percinel

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Social cognition represents the mental processes of social interaction between oneself and others. In recent years, the interest in social cognition skills has increased in cases with eating disorders. Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that is associated with the multiple factors in etiology. Treatment of anorexia nervosa is still controversial. The youths diagnosed with anorexia nervosa are known to be as the most difficult group in eating disorders for building therapeutic relations. Studies, mostly suggests that there are difficulties in social cognitive functions in patients with anorexia nervosa. However, there are studies that reported different results. It seems that, the majority of studies which evaluate the social cognitive functions in patients with anorexia nervosa, are carried out with the adult age group. There are limited number of studies in child and adolescent age group. The purpose of this paper was to examinate the studies of social cognitive skills in children and adolescents diagnosed with anorexia nervosa and present the general characteristics. [Psikiyatride Guncel Yaklasimlar - Current Approaches in Psychiatry 2015; 7(2: 178-189

  19. Incubation environment impacts the social cognition of adult lizards.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siviter, Harry; Deeming, D Charles; van Giezen, M F T; Wilkinson, Anna

    2017-11-01

    Recent work exploring the relationship between early environmental conditions and cognition has shown that incubation environment can influence both brain anatomy and performance in simple operant tasks in young lizards. It is currently unknown how it impacts other, potentially more sophisticated, cognitive processes. Social-cognitive abilities, such as gaze following and social learning, are thought to be highly adaptive as they provide a short-cut to acquiring new information. Here, we investigated whether egg incubation temperature influenced two aspects of social cognition, gaze following and social learning in adult reptiles ( Pogona vitticeps ). Incubation temperature did not influence the gaze following ability of the bearded dragons; however, lizards incubated at colder temperatures were quicker at learning a social task and faster at completing that task. These results are the first to show that egg incubation temperature influences the social cognitive abilities of an oviparous reptile species and that it does so differentially depending on the task. Further, the results show that the effect of incubation environment was not ephemeral but lasted long into adulthood. It could thus have potential long-term effects on fitness.

  20. Parent and Friend Social Support and Adolescent Hope.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mahon, Noreen E; Yarcheski, Adela

    2017-04-01

    The purpose of this study was to conduct two meta-analyses. The first examined social support from parents in relation to adolescent hope, and the second examined social support from friends in relation to adolescent hope. Using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines for the literature reviewed, nine published studies or doctoral dissertations completed between 1990 and 2014 met the inclusion criteria. Using meta-analytic techniques and the mean weighted r statistic, the results indicated that social support from friends had a stronger mean effect size (ES = .31) than social support from parents (ES = .21); there was a statistically significant difference between the two ESs. Two of the four moderators for the parent social support-adolescent hope relationship were statistically significant. They were quality score and health status. Implications for school nurses and nurses in all settings are addressed, and conclusions are drawn based on the findings.

  1. Theory of mind and verbal working memory deficits in parents of autistic children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gokcen, Sezen; Bora, Emre; Erermis, Serpil; Kesikci, Hande; Aydin, Cahide

    2009-03-31

    The objective of this study was to investigate the potential values of executive function and social cognition deficits as endophenotypes of autism. While theory of mind (ToM) is generally accepted as a unitary concept, some have suggested that ToM may be separated into two components (mental state reasoning and decoding). In this study, both aspects of ToM and verbal working memory abilities were investigated with relatively demanding tasks. The authors used a neurocognitive battery to compare the executive function and social cognition skills of 76 parents of autistic probands with 41 parents of healthy children. Both groups were matched for IQ, age and gender. Index parents had verbal working memory deficits. They had also low performance on a mental state reasoning task. Index parents had difficulties in reasoning about others' emotions. In contrast to findings in the control group, low performance of mental state reasoning ability was not associated with working memory deficit in index parents. Social cognition and working memory impairments may represent potential endophenotypes, related to an underlying vulnerability for autistic spectrum disorders.

  2. Parent emotion socialization and pre-adolescent's social and emotional adjustment: Moderating effects of autonomic nervous system reactivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McQuade, Julia D; Breaux, Rosanna P

    2017-12-01

    This study examined whether measures of children's autonomic nervous system (ANS) reactivity to social stress moderated the effect of parent emotion socialization on children's social and emotional adjustment. Sixty-one children (9-13 years) completed a peer rejection task while their respiratory sinus arrhythmia reactivity (RSA-R) and skin conductance level reactivity (SCL-R) were assessed. Parents' report of supportive and non-supportive reactions to their child's negative emotions served as measures of emotion socialization. Measures of children's social and emotional adjustment included: teacher-rated peer rejection, aggression, and prosocial behavior and parent-rated aggressive/dysregulated behavior and emotion regulation skills. Measures of children's ANS reactivity moderated the effect of parent emotion socialization on children's adjustment. Supportive responses were more protective for children evidencing RSA augmentation whereas non-supportive responses were more detrimental for children evidencing low SCL-R. Thus children's ANS reactivity during social stress may represent a biological vulnerability that influences sensitivity to parent emotion socialization. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Differential effects of MDMA and methylphenidate on social cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmid, Yasmin; Hysek, Cédric M; Simmler, Linda D; Crockett, Molly J; Quednow, Boris B; Liechti, Matthias E

    2014-09-01

    Social cognition is important in everyday-life social interactions. The social cognitive effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, 'ecstasy') and methylphenidate (both used for neuroenhancement and as party drugs) are largely unknown. We investigated the acute effects of MDMA (75 mg), methylphenidate (40 mg) and placebo using the Facial Emotion Recognition Task, Multifaceted Empathy Test, Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition, Social Value Orientation Test and the Moral Judgment Task in a cross-over study in 30 healthy subjects. Additionally, subjective, autonomic, pharmacokinetic, endocrine and adverse drug effects were measured. MDMA enhanced emotional empathy for positive emotionally charged situations in the MET and tended to reduce the recognition of sad faces in the Facial Emotion Recognition Task. MDMA had no effects on cognitive empathy in the Multifaceted Empathy Test or social cognitive inferences in the Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition. MDMA produced subjective 'empathogenic' effects, such as drug liking, closeness to others, openness and trust. In contrast, methylphenidate lacked such subjective effects and did not alter emotional processing, empathy or mental perspective-taking. MDMA but not methylphenidate increased the plasma levels of oxytocin and prolactin. None of the drugs influenced moral judgment. Effects on emotion recognition and emotional empathy were evident at a low dose of MDMA and likely contribute to the popularity of the drug. © The Author(s) 2014.

  4. Social context modulates cognitive markers in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Santamaría-García, Hernando; Soriano-Mas, Carles; Burgaleta, Miguel; Ayneto, Alba; Alonso, Pino; Menchón, José M; Cardoner, Narcis; Sebastián-Gallés, Nuria

    2017-08-03

    Error monitoring, cognitive control and motor inhibition control are proposed as cognitive alterations disrupted in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). OCD has also been associated with an increased sensitivity to social evaluations. The effect of a social simulation over electrophysiological indices of cognitive alterations in OCD was examined. A case-control cross-sectional study measuring event-related potentials (ERP) for error monitoring (Error-Related Negativity), cognitive control (N2) and motor control (LRP) was conducted. We analyzed twenty OCD patients and twenty control participants. ERP were recorded during a social game consisting of a visual discrimination task, which was performed in the presence of a simulated superior or an inferior player. Significant social effects (different ERP amplitudes in Superior vs. Inferior player conditions) were found for OCD patients, but not for controls, in all ERP components. Performing the task against a simulated inferior player reduced abnormal ERP responses in OCD to levels observed in controls. The hierarchy-induced ERP effects were accompanied effects over reaction times in OCD patients. Social context modulates signatures of abnormal cognitive functioning in OCD, therefore experiencing a social superiority position impacts over cognitive processes in OCD such as error monitoring mechanisms. These results open the door for the research of new therapeutic choices.

  5. Parenting Style as a Context for Emotion Socialization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, Siu Mui; Bowes, Jennifer; Wyver, Shirley

    2009-01-01

    Research Findings: The purpose of this study was to examine parenting style in the domain of emotion socialization through studying the relationships among parenting styles, emotion-related parental practices, and parental goals of Hong Kong-Chinese mothers. Data were collected from 189 Hong Kong-Chinese mothers of 6- to 8-year-old children. Hong…

  6. Parents and the media: causes and consequences of parental media socialization

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Notten, N.J.W.R.

    2011-01-01

    Media literacy is an important part of socialization and with media use becoming ever more essential in modern society, research on parental media socialization is vital. This study proposes the intergenerational transmission of parent’s media competencies, as a specific kind of cultural

  7. Parental history of moderate to severe infantile malnutrition is associated with cognitive deficits in their adult offspring.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Waber, Deborah P; Bryce, Cyralene P; Girard, Jonathan M; Fischer, Laura K; Fitzmaurice, Garrett M; Galler, Janina R

    2018-04-01

    We compared the IQ and academic achievement of the young adult offspring of parents malnourished in infancy and those of a healthy control group in order to test the hypothesis that the offspring of previously malnourished individuals would show IQ and academic deficits that could be related to reduced parental socioeconomic status. We conducted a group comparison study based on a community sample in Barbados (Barbados Nutrition Study). Participants were adult children ≥16 years of age whose parents had been malnourished during the first year of life (n = 64; Mean age 19.3 years; 42% male) or whose parents were healthy community controls (n = 50; Mean age 19.7 years; 48% male). The primary outcome was estimated IQ (Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence); a secondary outcome was academic achievement (Wide Range Achievement Test - Third Edition). Data were analyzed using PROC MIXED with and without adjusting for parental socioeconomic status (Hollingshead Index of Social Position). IQ was reduced in the offspring of previously malnourished parents relative to the offspring of controls (9.8 point deficit; P malnutrition on cognitive function may be transmitted to the next generation; however, this intergenerational effect does not appear to be explained by the reduced socioeconomic status or IQ of the parent generation.

  8. Cochrane review: behavioural and cognitive-behavioural group-based parenting programmes for early-onset conduct problems in children aged 3 to 12 years (Review).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Furlong, Mairead; McGilloway, Sinead; Bywater, Tracey; Hutchings, Judy; Smith, Susan M; Donnelly, Michael

    2013-03-07

    Early-onset child conduct problems are common and costly. A large number of studies and some previous reviews have focused on behavioural and cognitive-behavioural group-based parenting interventions, but methodological limitations are commonplace and evidence for the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of these programmes has been unclear. To assess the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of behavioural and cognitive-behavioural group-based parenting programmes for improving child conduct problems, parental mental health and parenting skills. We searched the following databases between 23 and 31 January 2011: CENTRAL (2011, Issue 1), MEDLINE (1950 to current), EMBASE (1980 to current), CINAHL (1982 to current), PsycINFO (1872 to current), Social Science Citation Index (1956 to current), ASSIA (1987 to current), ERIC (1966 to current), Sociological Abstracts (1963 to current), Academic Search Premier (1970 to current), Econlit (1969 to current), PEDE (1980 to current), Dissertations and Theses Abstracts (1980 to present), NHS EED (searched 31 January 2011), HEED (searched 31 January 2011), DARE (searched 31 January 2011), HTA (searched 31 January 2011), mRCT (searched 29 January 2011). We searched the following parent training websites on 31 January 2011: Triple P Library, Incredible Years Library and Parent Management Training. We also searched the reference lists of studies and reviews. We included studies if: (1) they involved randomised controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-randomised controlled trials of behavioural and cognitive-behavioural group-based parenting interventions for parents of children aged 3 to 12 years with conduct problems, and (2) incorporated an intervention group versus a waiting list, no treatment or standard treatment control group. We only included studies that used at least one standardised instrument to measure child conduct problems. Two authors independently assessed the risk of bias in the trials and the methodological quality of

  9. Review of Pütz et al., eds: Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Kim Ebensgaard

    2015-01-01

    Positive review of Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use (2014)......Positive review of Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use (2014)...

  10. How do relationships support parenting? Effects of attachment style and social support on parenting behavior in an at-risk population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Green, Beth L; Furrer, Carrie; McAllister, Carol

    2007-09-01

    The importance of supportive relationships for new parents has been the focus of both research and parenting interventions. Attachment style, typically viewed as a relatively stable trait reflecting one's comfort in social relationships, as well as social support, or one's perception of the social context, have both been found to be important for fostering engaged, involved parenting. Less is known, however, about how these variables work together to influence parenting behavior, especially in families at higher risk for negative child outcomes. Data were collected from 152 urban, predominantly African American, low-income parents when their children were 14 and 36 months of age. Results suggest that parents with more social support show greater increases in the frequency of positive parent-child activities over time, but that this effect is mediated by mothers' attachment style, specifically, their level of anxious/ambivalent attachment. Mothers with more social support tended to be less anxious/ambivalent about close relationships, and this in turn led to increases over time in the frequency of parent-child interactions. Mothers' tendency to avoid close relationships, however, while correlated with social support, was unrelated to changes in parenting behavior. Implications of these findings for program development, parenting, and the malleability of attachment style based on social context are discussed.

  11. The relationship between parenting factors and trait anxiety: mediating role of cognitive errors and metacognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gallagher, Bridie; Cartwright-Hatton, Sam

    2008-05-01

    Research examining parenting factors in the development of anxiety has focused largely on the concepts of parental warmth and overcontrolling or intrusive parenting, This study investigated the relationship between these factors, and also parental discipline style and anxiety using self-report methodology with a sample of 16-18 year olds. In order to try to explain the relationship between parenting and anxiety, measures of cognition were also included. A multiple regression was conducted including all parenting factors as predictors of trait anxiety. The regression was a modest fit (R(2)=22%) and the model was significant (F(4, 141)=9.90, pdiscipline was significantly associated with increased cognitive distortions (r=0.361 pdiscipline style and trait anxiety. The implications of these findings and areas for future research are discussed.

  12. Effects of child health on parents' social capital.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schultz, Jennifer; Corman, Hope; Noonan, Kelly; Reichman, Nancy E

    2009-07-01

    This paper adds to the literature on social capital and health by testing whether an exogenous shock in the health of a family member (a new baby) affects the family's investment in social capital. It also contributes to a small but growing literature on the effects of children's health on family resources and provides information about associations between health and social capital in a socioeconomically disadvantaged population. We use data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study, a longitudinal survey of about 5000 births to mostly unwed parents in 20 U.S. cities during the years 1998-2000. Both parents were interviewed at the time of the birth and then again one and three years later. The infants' medical records from the birth hospitalization were reviewed, and poor infant health was characterized to reflect serious and random health problems that were present at birth. Social interactions, reported at three years, include the parents' participation in church groups, service clubs, political organizations, community groups, and organizations working with children; regular religious attendance; and visiting relatives with the child. Education, employment, wages, and sociodemographic characteristics are included in the analyses. The results suggest that infant health shocks do not affect the parents' social interactions.

  13. Meta-analysis of social cognition in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bora, Emre

    2017-03-01

    Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is associated with executive dysfunction and behavioural impairment. Recent studies suggested that social cognitive deficits might also be a prominent feature of ALS. Current meta-analysis aimed to summarize available evidence for deficits in social cognition including theory of mind (ToM) and emotion recognition in ALS. In this meta-analysis of 15 studies, facial emotion recognition and ToM performances of 389 patients with ALS and 471 healthy controls were compared. ALS was associated with significant impairments with medium effect sizes in ToM (d = .65) and facial emotion recognition (d = .69). Among individual emotions recognition of disgust and surprise were particularly impaired. Deficits in perspective taking (d = .73) aspects of ToM (ToM-PT) was more pronounced in comparison to decoding (d = .28) aspects of ToM (ToM-decoding). The severity of social cognitive impairment was similar to level of executive dysfunction and there was a significant relationship between social cognition and executive dysfunction. Deficits in social cognition are part of the cognitive phenotype of ALS. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Impact of Perceived Stress, Anxiety-Depression and Social Support on Coping Strategies of Parents Having A Child With Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goussé, Véronique; Czernecki, Virginie; Denis, Pierre; Stilgenbauer, Jean-Louis; Deniau, Emmanuelle; Hartmann, Andreas

    2016-02-01

    Previous reports have indicated that raising a child with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS) could be considered a stressful experience. Thus our study aimed to assess the impact of perceived stress (i.e. parental cognitive perception of their child's disorder) and social support (number of people surrounding the subject providing support) on coping strategies-defined as processes of restoring balance between excessive demands and inadequate resources-of parents having a child with GTS. Twenty-eight parents of 21 patients with GTS (aged 6 to 16years) completed questionnaires on perceived stress (ALE Scale), social support (SSQ6), coping strategies (WCC-R) and anxiety-depression (HAD). Principal component analysis showed a negative correlation between social support on one side and perceived stress and anxiety/depression on the other. Problem- and emotion-focused coping both correlated with social support, all of them being independent from perceived stress and anxiety/depression. Hierarchical ascendant classification showed three clusters of individuals in our parents' groups: i) those having high scores in perceived stress and anxiety-depression; ii) those having high scores in social support associated with low scores in perceived stress; iii) parents having lower than average scores on both problem- and emotion- focused coping and social support. Our results reinforce the need for developing training programs for parents with GTS children to better understand and tolerate the disorder to decrease their stress. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Parenting behavior is associated with the early neurobehavioral development of very preterm children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Treyvaud, Karli; Anderson, Vicki A; Howard, Kelly; Bear, Merilyn; Hunt, Rod W; Doyle, Lex W; Inder, Terrie E; Woodward, Lianne; Anderson, Peter J

    2009-02-01

    There is an increasing focus on social and environmental factors that promote and support the early development of highly vulnerable children such as those born very preterm. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between parenting behavior, parent-child synchrony, and neurobehavioral development in very preterm children at 24 months of age. Participants were 152 very preterm children (Cognitive and motor development was assessed by using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development II, and the Infant Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment was used to assess socioemotional development (social-emotional competence and internalizing and externalizing behavior). fter controlling for social risk, most parenting domains were associated with cognitive development, with parent-child synchrony emerging as the most predictive. Greater parent-child synchrony was also associated with greater social-emotional competence, as was parenting that was positive, warm, and sensitive. Parents who displayed higher levels of negative affect were more likely to rate their children as withdrawn, anxious, and inhibited, but, unexpectedly, higher negative affect was also associated with more optimal psychomotor development. Parenting was not associated with externalizing behaviors at this age. Specific parenting behaviors, particularly parent-child synchrony, were associated with neurobehavioral development. These findings have implications for the development of targeted parent-based interventions to promote positive outcomes across different developmental domains during the first 2 years of life for very preterm children.

  16. Parental Identification by the Adolescent: A Social Power Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDonald, Gerald W.

    1977-01-01

    A social power theory of parental identification is presented, in contrast to sex-role theories of identification, which argues that the more parental power each parent is perceived to have, the higher the degree of adolescent identification with that parent. (Author)

  17. Social Support, Social Strain, and Cognitive Function Among Community-Dwelling U.S. Chinese Older Adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ge, Shaoqing; Wu, Bei; Bailey, Donald E; Dong, XinQi

    2017-07-01

    Limited research is available on the relationship between social support, social strain, and cognitive function among community-dwelling U.S. Chinese older adults. This study aims to examine the associations between social support/strain and cognitive outcomes. Data were drawn from the Population-Based Study of Chinese Elderly (N = 3,159). Cognitive function was measured by a battery of tests including the East Boston Memory Test, the Digit Span Backwards assessment, and the Symbol Digit Modalities Test. Social support and strain were measured by the scales drawn from the Health and Retirement study. Multiple regression analyses were conducted. Social support was significantly associated with global cognitive function (β = .11, SE = .02, p function (β = 1.44, SE = .37, p cognitive function (β = .23, SE = .05, p function (β = 2.75, SE = .85, p cognitive function (β = .04, SE = .02, p function (β = .71, SE = .29, p cognitive function (β = .10, SE = .03, p function (β = 1.28, SE = .49, p function (β = 3.59, SE = 1.17, p cognitive outcomes. Future longitudinal studies should be conducted. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  18. Parental management of peer relationships and early adolescents' social skills.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mounts, Nina S

    2011-04-01

    Despite a growing body of research on parental management of peer relationships, little is known about the relationship between parental management of peers and early adolescents' social skills or the precursors to parental management of peer relationships. The goals of this short-term longitudinal investigation were to examine the relationship between parental management of peers (consulting and guiding), conflict about peers, and adolescents' social skills (cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, and self-control) and to examine potential precursors (goals of improving peer relationships and beliefs about authority over peer relationships) to parental management of peer relationships. A predominantly White sample (71%) of 75 seventh-graders (57% female) and their primary caregivers participated in the 9-month investigation. Caregivers completed questionnaires regarding goals of improving their adolescents' peer relationships, beliefs about parental authority over peer relationships, parental management of peers, and adolescents' social skills. Adolescents completed questionnaires regarding their social skills. Path analyses suggest that a greater number of caregivers' goals of improving peer relationships and higher beliefs about parental authority over peers were related to higher levels of consulting, guiding, and conflict about peers. Higher levels of conflict about peers in conjunction with higher levels of consulting were related to lower levels of assertion and responsibility in peer relationships over time. When parents reported having a greater number of goals of improving peer relationships, adolescents reported higher levels of cooperation, assertion, empathy, and self control over time. Findings suggest that caregivers' goals and beliefs are important in predicting parental management of peer relationships and adolescents' social skills over time, and that conflict about peers undermines caregivers' efforts to be positively involved in

  19. Parenting Influences on Latino Children’s Social Competence in the First Grade: Parental Depression and Parent Involvement at Home and School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valdez, Carmen R.; Shewakramani, Vansa; Goldberg, Simon; Padilla, Brian

    2013-01-01

    Although it is widely accepted that parental depression is associated with problems with children’s socioemotional adjustment, the pathways by which parental depression influences children’s adjustment, particularly in low-income Latino children are not fully understood. In our investigation of 1,462 low-income Latino children in the first grade and their Spanish- and English-dominant parents, a factor analysis revealed three main pathways of possible influence of parent involvement in children’s social development: emotional involvement and educational involvement at home and at school. The findings from multigroup structural equation modeling revealed that whereas the first two pathways mediated the effect of parental depression on child social competence for Spanish-dominant parents, only emotional involvement explained parental depression effects for English-dominant parents. Parent educational involvement at school did not mediate parental depression effects for either Spanish- or English-dominant Latino parents. Discussion and implications of findings with respect to research, practice, and policy with Latinos follow. PMID:23325021

  20. Benefits of educational attainment on adult fluid cognition: international evidence from three birth cohorts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clouston, Sean AP; Kuh, Diana; Herd, Pamela; Elliott, Jane; Richards, Marcus; Hofer, Scott M

    2012-01-01

    Background Educational attainment is highly correlated with social inequalities in adult cognitive health; however, the nature of this correlation is in dispute. Recently, researchers have argued that educational inequalities are an artefact of selection by individual differences in prior cognitive ability, which both drives educational attainment and tracks across the rest of the life course. Although few would deny that educational attainment is at least partly determined by prior cognitive ability, a complementary, yet controversial, view is that education has a direct causal and lasting benefit on cognitive development. Methods We use observational data from three birth cohorts, with cognition measured in adolescence and adulthood. Ordinary least squares regression was used to model the relationship between adolescent cognition and adult fluid cognition and to test the sensitivity of our analyses to sample selection, projection and backdoor biases using propensity score matching. Results We find that having a university education is correlated with higher fluid cognition in adulthood, after adjustment for adolescent cognition. We do not find that adolescent cognition, gender or parental social class consistently modify this effect; however, women benefited more in the 1946 sample from Great Britain. Conclusions In all three birth cohorts, substantial educational benefit remained after adjustment for adolescent cognition and parental social class, offsetting an effect equivalent of 0.5 to 1.5 standard deviations lower adolescent cognition. We also find that the likelihood of earning a university degree depends in part on adolescent cognition, gender and parental social class. We conclude that inequalities in adult cognition derive in part from educational experiences after adolescence. PMID:23108707

  1. Benefits of educational attainment on adult fluid cognition: international evidence from three birth cohorts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clouston, Sean A P; Kuh, Diana; Herd, Pamela; Elliott, Jane; Richards, Marcus; Hofer, Scott M

    2012-12-01

    Educational attainment is highly correlated with social inequalities in adult cognitive health; however, the nature of this correlation is in dispute. Recently, researchers have argued that educational inequalities are an artefact of selection by individual differences in prior cognitive ability, which both drives educational attainment and tracks across the rest of the life course. Although few would deny that educational attainment is at least partly determined by prior cognitive ability, a complementary, yet controversial, view is that education has a direct causal and lasting benefit on cognitive development. We use observational data from three birth cohorts, with cognition measured in adolescence and adulthood. Ordinary least squares regression was used to model the relationship between adolescent cognition and adult fluid cognition and to test the sensitivity of our analyses to sample selection, projection and backdoor biases using propensity score matching. We find that having a university education is correlated with higher fluid cognition in adulthood, after adjustment for adolescent cognition. We do not find that adolescent cognition, gender or parental social class consistently modify this effect; however, women benefited more in the 1946 sample from Great Britain. In all three birth cohorts, substantial educational benefit remained after adjustment for adolescent cognition and parental social class, offsetting an effect equivalent of 0.5 to 1.5 standard deviations lower adolescent cognition. We also find that the likelihood of earning a university degree depends in part on adolescent cognition, gender and parental social class. We conclude that inequalities in adult cognition derive in part from educational experiences after adolescence.

  2. Involving parents in cognitive-behavioral therapy for child anxiety problems: a case study

    OpenAIRE

    Siddaway, Andy P; Wood, Alex M; Cartwright-Hatton, Sam

    2014-01-01

    This case study examines how parents can be incorporated into all aspects of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for child anxiety problems. This is an important issue, because although there are strong theoretical and empirical reasons for incorporating parents into treatment, evidence from randomized controlled trials has so far been inconclusive about whether outcomes are improved by involving parents. This case study describes the clinical benefits of a balanced focus on parent and child f...

  3. Parent cognitive-behavioral intervention for the treatment of childhood anxiety disorders: a pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Allison M; Flannery-Schroeder, Ellen C; Gorman, Kathleen S; Cook, Nathan

    2014-10-01

    Strong evidence supports cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for the treatment of childhood anxiety. Many studies suggest that parents play an etiological role in the development and maintenance of child anxiety. This pilot study examined the efficacy of a cognitive-behavioral intervention delivered to the parents of 31 anxious children (ages 7-13). Parents were randomly assigned to an individual parent-only CBT intervention (PCBT, n = 18) or wait-list control (WL, n = 13). PCBT demonstrated significant reductions in children's number of anxiety disorder diagnoses, parent-rated interference and clinician-rated severity of anxiety, and maternal protective behaviors at post-treatment, which were maintained at 3-months. WL did not demonstrate significant changes. There were no significant differences between conditions in child self-reported or parent-report of child anxiety symptoms. Findings were replicated in a combined sample of treated participants, as well as in an intent-to-treat sample. Parent-only CBT may be an effective treatment modality for child anxiety, though future research is warranted. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Prospects for direct social perception: a multi-theoretical integration to further the science of social cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wiltshire, Travis J; Lobato, Emilio J C; McConnell, Daniel S; Fiore, Stephen M

    2014-01-01

    In this paper we suggest that differing approaches to the science of social cognition mirror the arguments between radical embodied and traditional approaches to cognition. We contrast the use in social cognition of theoretical inference and mental simulation mechanisms with approaches emphasizing a direct perception of others' mental states. We build from a recent integrative framework unifying these divergent perspectives through the use of dual-process theory and supporting social neuroscience research. Our elaboration considers two complementary notions of direct perception: one primarily stemming from ecological psychology and the other from enactive cognition theory. We use this as the foundation from which to offer an account of the informational basis for social information and assert a set of research propositions to further the science of social cognition. In doing so, we point out how perception of the minds of others can be supported in some cases by lawful information, supporting direct perception of social affordances and perhaps, mental states, and in other cases by cues that support indirect perceptual inference. Our goal is to extend accounts of social cognition by integrating advances across disciplines to provide a multi-level and multi-theoretic description that can advance this field and offer a means through which to reconcile radical embodied and traditional approaches to cognitive neuroscience.

  5. Parent-Adolescent Informant Discrepancies of Social Skill Importance and Social Skill Engagement for Higher-Functioning Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

    OpenAIRE

    McMahon, Camilla M.; Solomon, Marjorie

    2015-01-01

    Parent- and adolescent-report of social skill importance and social skill engagement on the Social Skills Rating System (Gresham & Elliott, 1990) were assessed in higher-functioning adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Compared to parents, adolescents reported that social skills were less important. Additionally, adolescents reported that they engaged in social skills more frequently than parents reported them to be engaging in social skills. Parents, but not adolescents, reported...

  6. The Conditional Effect of Parental Drug Use on Parental Attachment and Adolescent Drug Use: Social Control and Social Development Model Perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Drapela, Laurie A.; Mosher, Clayton

    2007-01-01

    The effect of parental deviance on adolescent deviance has been a source of considerable debate in the criminological literature. Classic theoretical explanations of the relationships between parental and adolescent deviance posit additive effects of parental deviance on youth behavior. Proponents of the Social Development Model have hypothesized…

  7. Experimental Study of Middle-Term Training in Social Cognition in Preschoolers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Houssa, Marine; Nader-Grosbois, Nathalie

    2016-01-01

    In an experimental design, we examined the effects of middle-term training in social information processing (SIP) and in Theory of Mind (ToM) on preschoolers' social cognition and social adjustment. 48 preschoolers took part in a pre-test and post-test session involving cognitive, socio-cognitive and social adjustment (direct and indirect)…

  8. Social functioning in youth with anxiety disorders: association with anxiety severity and outcomes from cognitive-behavioral therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Settipani, Cara A; Kendall, Philip C

    2013-02-01

    Social functioning was assessed using the Child Behavior Checklist and Teacher Report Form for children with anxiety disorders who participated in a randomized clinical trial (N = 161, aged 7-14). Significant relationships were found between severity of children's principal anxiety disorder and most measures of social functioning, such that poorer social functioning was associated with more severe anxiety. Among youth who received cognitive-behavioral therapy (n = 111), significant associations were found between parent-reported social competence and both absence of principal anxiety disorder and lower anxiety severity at posttreatment and 1-year follow-up, controlling for the severity of the child's principal anxiety disorder at pretreatment. Findings support a relationship between anxiety severity and social difficulties, and suggest the importance of social competence for a favorable treatment response.

  9. Review of Pütz et al., eds: Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use (2014)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Kim Ebensgaard

    2015-01-01

    Positive review of 'Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use'.......Positive review of 'Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use'....

  10. The effects of oxytocin on social cognition in borderline personality disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Servan, A; Brunelin, J; Poulet, E

    2018-02-01

    Deficits in social cognition and interpersonal difficulties are key features in borderline personality disorder. Social cognition refers to the function of perceiving and adequately dealing with social signals, leading to the establishment and maintenance of healthy and positive social relationships. Evidence suggests that oxytocin (OT) may improve social cognition and human social behavior. Recently, several studies have highlighted the beneficial effects of oxytocin in several psychiatric conditions involving social cognition deficits such as schizophrenia, autism or social phobia. However, despite growing interest, the effects of oxytocin in patients with borderline personality disorder are far from being clearly demonstrated. The objective of this work was to review and discuss studies investigating the interest of oxytocin in alleviating social cognition deficits in patients with borderline personality disorder (recognition of emotion, trust and cooperation, affective and cognitive empathy, emotional expression and social problem-solving). A systematic review of the literature was conducted up to September 31, 2016 on the Pubmed, Science direct, Medline and Scopus databases using "borderline personality disorder" and "oxytocin" as keywords. To be included, studies were to include patients with borderline personality disorder; to investigate social cognition and to investigate the effect of oxytocin on social cognition in patients with TPB. The initial search yielded 52 articles. Among them, 11 studies were selected according to the PRISMA criteria. The effect of oxytocin on social cognition in patients with borderline personality disorder was mainly investigated in relation to recognition of emotions and trust and cooperation. We did not find any studies investigating the effect of oxytocin on affective and cognitive empathy, emotional expression or social problem-solving abilities. In patients with borderline personality disorder, oxytocin had a beneficial

  11. Adolescents' media-related cognitions and substance use in the context of parental and peer influences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scull, Tracy M; Kupersmidt, Janis B; Parker, Alison E; Elmore, Kristen C; Benson, Jessica W

    2010-09-01

    Two cross-sectional studies investigated media influences on adolescents' substance use and intentions to use substances in the context of exposure to parental and peer risk and protective factors. A total of 729 middle school students (n = 351, 59% female in Study 1; n = 378, 43% female in Study 2) completed self-report questionnaires. The sample in Study 1 was primarily African-American (52%) and the sample in Study 2 was primarily Caucasian (63%). Across the two studies, blocks of media-related cognitions made unique contributions to the prediction of adolescents' current substance use and intentions to use substances in the future above and beyond self-reported peer and parental influences. Specifically, identification with and perceived similarity to media messages were positively associated with adolescents' current substance use and intentions to use substances in the future, and critical thinking about media messages and media message deconstruction skills were negatively associated with adolescents' intention to use substances in the future. Further, peer influence variables (e.g., peer pressure, social norms, peer substance use) acted as risk factors, and for the most part, parental influence variables (e.g., parental pressure to not use, perceived parental reaction) acted as protective factors. These findings highlight the importance of developing an increased understanding of the role of media messages and media literacy education in the prevention of substance use behaviors in adolescence.

  12. [Social cognition of schizophrenia: bridging gap between brain science and psychosocial intervention].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ikebuchi, Emi; Nakagome, Kazuyuki; Ikezawa, Satoru; Miura, Sachie; Yamasaki, Syudo; Nemoto, Takahiro; Hidai, Shin-Ichi; Mogami, Tamiko

    2012-01-01

    The concept and assessment tools for social cognition of schizophrenia were reviewed in order to bridge the gap between brain cognitive science and psycho-social intervention. Social cognition as well as neuro-cognition strongly influences social functioning, and the impact of neuro-cognition is mediated by social cognition. Neuronal networks of personal identification, facial perception, emotional identification, eye contact, "theory of mind", mutual communication, and the decision-making process have been clarified recently. The results of face discrimination and emotion recognition tasks show impairment in persons with schizophrenia as compared with healthy controls, especially fear, dislike, and sad recognition tasks. It might be difficult for them to link ambiguous stimuli with specific emotions, and they have a tendency to recognize uncomfortable emotions easily. "Jumping to conclusions" tendency (JTC) was identified in previous research on delusion. JTC develops from information uptake bias and confidence bias, and they might be thought to be trait and state. Social problem-solving is the skill to use social cognition to comprehensively adjust to specific social situations, and processing skills of social problem-solving are related to divergent thinking. Rating scales and the results of previous studies on emotion recognition, social perception, attribution style, and "theory of mind" were summarized. Furthermore, psycho-social interventions to improve emotion recognition directly, JTC, and divergent thinking were reported. Interventions aiming at improving social cognition or meta-cognition directly have been recently developed, which might improve some components of social functioning that used to be difficult to improve. These concepts of social cognition and researches on brain science, assessment tools, and intervention methods would clarify the mechanisms of the effects of psycho-social interventions, improve their methodology, and help to develop new

  13. Socialization Values and Parenting Practices as Predictors of Parental Involvement in Their Children's Educational Process

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kikas, Eve; Tulviste, Tiia; Peets, Kätlin

    2014-01-01

    Research Findings: The purpose of this study was to examine associations between parental socialization values (including inconsistency in values), parenting practices, and parental involvement in their children's education. Altogether 242 Estonian mothers and fathers of first-grade children

  14. An early social engagement intervention for young children with autism and their parents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vernon, Ty W; Koegel, Robert L; Dauterman, Hayley; Stolen, Kathryn

    2012-12-01

    The social vulnerabilities associated with young children with autism are recognized as important intervention targets due to their influence on subsequent development. Current research suggests that interventions that combine motivational and social components can create meaningful changes in social functioning. Simultaneously, it is hypothesized that parent delivery of such strategies can invoke increases in these core social behaviors and parent engagement. This study examined the effects of teaching parents to implement a social engagement intervention with their children. The results indicated that the use of this parent-delivered social intervention led to (a) increases in their children's use of eye contact, directed positive affect, and verbal initiations, (b) increases in parent positive affect and synchronous engagement, and (c) generalized increases in parent and child behaviors.

  15. Parental Socialization of Emotion: How Mothers Respond to Their Children's Emotions in Turkey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ersay, Ebru

    2014-01-01

    Several research studies suggest a link between parents' emotion socialization and children's social competence and behavior problems. Parents contribute to their children's emotion socialization, more directly, through responses to their children's emotions. Early emotion socialization experiences with parents establish patterns of emotion…

  16. Social cognition in patients at ultra-high risk for psychosis: What is the relation to social skills and functioning?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Louise B. Glenthøj

    2016-09-01

    Conclusion: Significant impairments in social cognition and social skills were found in UHR patients. The patients' social cognitive function was associated with overall functioning and social skills. Negative symptoms appear to play an important role for functioning. Research is needed to investigate how the relations between social cognition, social skills and functioning develop from the UHR state to the stage of manifest illness. Research into how deficits in social cognition and social skills can be ameliorated in UHR patients is warranted.

  17. Development and validation of a parent-report measure for detection of cognitive delay in infancy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schafer, Graham; Genesoni, Lucia; Boden, Greg; Doll, Helen; Jones, Rosamond A K; Gray, Ron; Adams, Eleri; Jefferson, Ros

    2014-12-01

    To develop a brief, parent-completed instrument (ERIC - Early Report by Infant Caregivers) for detection of cognitive delay in 10- to 24-month-olds born preterm, or of low birthweight, or with perinatal complications, and to establish ERIC's diagnostic properties. Scores for ERIC were collected from the parents of 317 children meeting ≥inclusion criterion (birthweight Toddler Development-III cognitive scale. Items were retained according to their individual associations with delay. Sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values were estimated and a truncated ERIC was developed for use in children cognitive delay in 10- to 24-month-old preterm infants and as a screen for cognitive delay. © 2014 Mac Keith Press.

  18. Honing in on the Social Difficulties Associated With Sluggish Cognitive Tempo in Children: Withdrawal, Peer Ignoring, and Low Engagement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Becker, Stephen P; Garner, Annie A; Tamm, Leanne; Antonini, Tanya N; Epstein, Jeffery N

    2017-03-13

    Sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) symptoms are associated with social difficulties in children, though findings are mixed and many studies have used global measures of social impairment. The present study tested the hypothesis that SCT would be uniquely associated with aspects of social functioning characterized by withdrawal and isolation, whereas attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms would be uniquely associated with aspects of social functioning characterized by inappropriate responding in social situations and active peer exclusion. Participants were 158 children (70% boys) between 7-12 years of age being evaluated for possible ADHD. Both parents and teachers completed measures of SCT, ADHD, ODD, and internalizing (anxiety/depression) symptoms. Parents also completed ratings of social engagement and self-control. Teachers also completed measures assessing asociality and exclusion, as well as peer ignoring and dislike. In regression analyses controlling for demographic characteristics and other psychopathology symptoms, parent-reported SCT symptoms were significantly associated with lower social engagement (e.g., starting conversations, joining activities). Teacher-reported SCT symptoms were significantly associated with greater asociality/withdrawal and ratings of more frequent ignoring by peers, as well as greater exclusion. ODD symptoms and ADHD hyperactive-impulsive symptoms were more consistently associated with other aspects of social behavior, including peer exclusion, being disliked by peers, and poorer self-control during social situations. Findings provide the clearest evidence to date that the social difficulties associated with SCT are primarily due to withdrawal, isolation, and low initiative in social situations. Social skills training interventions may be effective for children displaying elevated SCT symptomatology.

  19. Pathways of Intergenerational Transmission of Advantages during Adolescence: Social Background, Cognitive Ability, and Educational Attainment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schulz, Wiebke; Schunck, Reinhard; Diewald, Martin; Johnson, Wendy

    2017-10-01

    Educational attainment in adolescence is of paramount importance for attaining higher education and for shaping subsequent life chances. Sociological accounts focus on the role of differences in socioeconomic resources in intergenerational reproduction of educational inequalities. These often disregard the intergenerational transmission of cognitive ability and the importance of children's cognitive ability to educational attainment. Psychological perspectives stress the importance of cognitive ability for educational attainment but underemphasize potentially different roles of specific socioeconomic resources in shaping educational outcomes, as well as individual differences in cognitive ability. By integrating two strands of research, a clearer picture of the pathways linking the family of origin, cognitive ability, and early educational outcomes can be reached. Using the population-based TwinLife study in Germany, we investigated multidimensional pathways linking parental socioeconomic position to their children's cognitive ability and academic track attendance in the secondary school. The sample included twins (N = 4008), respectively ages 11 and 17, and siblings (N = 801). We observed strong genetic influences on cognitive ability, whereas shared environmental influences were much more important for academic tracking. In multilevel analyses, separate dimensions of socioeconomic resources influenced child cognitive ability, controlling parental cognitive ability. Controlling adolescent cognitive ability and parental cognitive ability, parental socioeconomic resources also directly affected track attendance. This indicated that it is crucial to investigate the intertwined influences on educational outcomes in adolescence of both cognitive ability and the characteristics of the family of origin.

  20. Prospects for direct social perception: A multi-theoretical integration to further the science of social cognition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Travis J. Wiltshire

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we suggest that differing approaches to the science of social cognition mirror the arguments between radical embodied and traditional approaches to cognition. We contrast the use in social cognition of theoretical inference and mental simulation mechanisms with approaches emphasizing a direct perception of others’ mental states. We build from a recent integrative framework unifying these divergent perspectives through the use of dual-process theory and supporting social neuroscience research. Our elaboration considers two complementary notions of direct perception: one primarily stemming from ecological psychology and the other from enactive cognition theory. We use this as the foundation from which to offer an account of the informational basis for social information and assert a set of research propositions to further the science of social cognition. In doing so, we point out how perception of the minds of others can be supported in some cases by lawful information, supporting direct perception of social affordances and perhaps, mental states, and in other cases by cues that support indirect perceptual inference. Our goal is to extend accounts of social cognition by integrating advances across disciplines to provide a multi-level and multi-theoretic description that can advance this field and offer a means through which to reconcile radical embodied and traditional approaches to cognitive neuroscience.

  1. Prospects for direct social perception: a multi-theoretical integration to further the science of social cognition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wiltshire, Travis J.; Lobato, Emilio J. C.; McConnell, Daniel S.; Fiore, Stephen M.

    2015-01-01

    In this paper we suggest that differing approaches to the science of social cognition mirror the arguments between radical embodied and traditional approaches to cognition. We contrast the use in social cognition of theoretical inference and mental simulation mechanisms with approaches emphasizing a direct perception of others’ mental states. We build from a recent integrative framework unifying these divergent perspectives through the use of dual-process theory and supporting social neuroscience research. Our elaboration considers two complementary notions of direct perception: one primarily stemming from ecological psychology and the other from enactive cognition theory. We use this as the foundation from which to offer an account of the informational basis for social information and assert a set of research propositions to further the science of social cognition. In doing so, we point out how perception of the minds of others can be supported in some cases by lawful information, supporting direct perception of social affordances and perhaps, mental states, and in other cases by cues that support indirect perceptual inference. Our goal is to extend accounts of social cognition by integrating advances across disciplines to provide a multi-level and multi-theoretic description that can advance this field and offer a means through which to reconcile radical embodied and traditional approaches to cognitive neuroscience. PMID:25709572

  2. Parent Participation in Early Childhood Education in Madagascar

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    chifaou.amzat

    2012-12-17

    Dec 17, 2012 ... Key Words: Early childhood education; school-parents relations; parent ... Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa, 2012 .... employed in positions with higher pay and power than those who do not ..... on Cognitive Development among East-African Pre-School Children A Flexibly.

  3. Cognitive-emotional hyperarousal in the offspring of parents vulnerable to insomnia: a nuclear family study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fernandez-Mendoza, Julio; Shaffer, Michele L; Olavarrieta-Bernardino, Sara; Vgontzas, Alexandros N; Calhoun, Susan L; Bixler, Edward O; Vela-Bueno, Antonio

    2014-10-01

    Cognitive-emotional hyperarousal is believed to be a predisposing factor for insomnia; however, there is limited information on the association of familial vulnerability to insomnia and cognitive-emotional hyperarousal. The aim of this study was to estimate the heritability of stress-related insomnia and examine whether parental vulnerability to stress-related insomnia is associated with cognitive-emotional hyperarousal in their offspring. We studied a volunteer sample of 135 nuclear families comprised of 270 middle-aged (51.5 ± 5.4 years) fathers and mothers and one of their biological offspring (n = 135, 20.2 ± 1.1 years). We measured vulnerability to stress-related insomnia (i.e. Ford Insomnia Response to Stress Test: FIRST), perceived stress, depression and anxiety in all participants, and arousability, presleep cognitive and somatic arousal, coping and personality in the offspring. We found a heritability estimate of 29% for FIRST scores. High FIRST parents had three to seven times the odds of having offspring highly vulnerable to stress-related insomnia. Offspring of high FIRST parents showed higher arousability, presleep cognitive arousal and emotion-oriented coping. Furthermore, high FIRST mothers contributed to offspring's higher anxiety and lower task-oriented coping, while high FIRST fathers contributed to offspring's higher presleep somatic arousal and conscientiousness. Vulnerability to stress-related insomnia is significantly heritable. Parents vulnerable to stress-related insomnia have offspring with cognitive-emotional hyperarousal who rely upon emotion-oriented coping. These data give support to the notion that arousability and maladaptive coping are key factors in the aetiology of insomnia. © 2014 European Sleep Research Society.

  4. THE CORRELATION OF PARENTING STYLE WITH COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN WITH ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER

    OpenAIRE

    Fitri Genisti; Ni Komang Sukra Andini; Ni Luh Gede Puspita Yanti

    2018-01-01

    Background: Child development is a very important phase, which children learn various skills as future generations in the future. Disorders that can impede child development process of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Children with ADHD have problems with cognitive abilities, of which about 20-60% of them have learning disorders. The efforts to support cognitive development in ADHD children is to approach the child's environment through parenting parents. Objective: This s...

  5. Parental attachment as a mediator between parental social support and self-esteem as perceived by Korean sports middle and high school athletes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kang, Sangwook; Jeon, Hyunsoo; Kwon, Sungho; Park, Seungha

    2015-02-01

    This study examined whether parental attachment mediates the relationship between parental social support and self-esteem in Korean middle and high school athletes. 591 sports athletes attending middle and high schools that specialize in sport volunteered. Parental social support and parental attachment had a significant positive effect on self-esteem; parental attachment had a greater effect on self-esteem. In the structural relationship, direct effects of parental social support on self-esteem were weak, but indirect effects through parental attachment were strong. Therefore, parental attachment complementally mediated the relationship between parental social support and self-esteem. Metric invariance was supported for groups categorized by sex, region, and school level, confirming that the model could be applied to various groups.

  6. Somatic Complaints in Early Adolescence: The Role of Parents' Emotion Socialization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kehoe, Christiane E.; Havighurst, Sophie S.; Harley, Ann E.

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated the relationship between parent emotion socialization and youth somatic complaints (SC) in an early adolescent sample using a longitudinal experimental design. An emotion-focused parenting intervention, which taught parent's skills to improve their emotional competence and emotion socialization, was used to examine whether…

  7. Parenting begets parenting: A neurobiological perspective on early adversity and the transmission of parenting styles across generations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lomanowska, A M; Boivin, M; Hertzman, C; Fleming, A S

    2017-02-07

    The developing brains of young children are highly sensitive to input from their social environment. Nurturing social experience during this time promotes the acquisition of social and cognitive skills and emotional competencies. However, many young children are confronted with obstacles to healthy development, including poverty, inappropriate care, and violence, and their enhanced sensitivity to the social environment means that they are highly susceptible to these adverse childhood experiences. One source of social adversity in early life can stem from parenting that is harsh, inconsistent, non-sensitive or hostile. Parenting is considered to be the cornerstone of early socio-emotional development and an adverse parenting style is associated with adjustment problems and a higher risk of developing mood and behavioral disorders. Importantly, there is a growing literature showing that an important predictor of parenting behavior is how parents, especially mothers, were parented themselves. In this review, we examine how adversity in early-life affects mothering behavior in later-life and how these effects may be perpetuated inter-generationally. Relying on studies in humans and animal models, we consider evidence for the intergenerational transmission of mothering styles. We then describe the psychological underpinnings of mothering, including responsiveness to young, executive function and affect, as well as the physiological mediators of mothering behavior, including hormones, brain regions and neurotransmitters, and we consider how development in these relevant domains may be affected by adversity experienced in early life. Finally, we explore how genes and early experience interact to predict mothering behavior, including the involvement of epigenetic mechanisms. Understanding how adverse parenting begets adverse parenting in the next generation is critical for designing interventions aimed at preventing this intergenerational cycle of early adversity

  8. Gifted Students' Perceptions of Parenting Styles: Associations with Cognitive Ability, Sex, Race, and Age

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rudasill, Kathleen Moritz; Adelson, Jill L.; Callahan, Carolyn M.; Houlihan, Deanna Vogt; Keizer, Benjamin M.

    2013-01-01

    Children whose parents are warm and responsive yet also set limits and have reasonable expectations for their children tend to have better outcomes than their peers whose parents show less warmth and responsiveness, have low expectations, or both. Parenting behavior is related to family race and children's sex, age, and cognitive ability. However,…

  9. A Test of Cognitive Dissonance Theory to Explain Parents' Reactions to Youths' Alcohol Intoxication

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glatz, Terese; Stattin, Hakan; Kerr, Margaret

    2012-01-01

    Studies have shown that parents reduce control and support in response to youths' drinking. Why they react this way, however, is still unknown. From cognitive dissonance theory, we derived hypotheses about parents' reactions. We used a longitudinal, school-based sample of 494 youths (13 and 14 years, 56% boys) and their parents. General Linear…

  10. Sanctification of Parenting, Moral Socialization, and Young Children's Conscience Development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Volling, Brenda L; Mahoney, Annette; Rauer, Amy J

    2009-02-01

    Religion is important to most U.S. families, but is often overlooked in research on children's development. This study examined parental religious beliefs about the sanctification of parenting, parental disciplinary strategies, and the development of young children's conscience in a sample of 58 two-parent families with a preschool child. Fathers were more punitive and used less induction when disciplining their children than did mothers. Maternal and paternal reports of the sanctification of parenting were positively related to positive socialization/praise and the use of induction. When mothers and fathers in the family were both using induction, children had higher scores on moral conduct. Parents' use of positive socialization combined with a belief in the sanctification of parenting predicted children's conscience development.

  11. Intercorporeality as a theory of social cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tanaka, Shogo

    2015-08-01

    The main aim of this article is to revisit Merleau-Ponty's notion of intercorporeality (intercorporéité) and elaborate it as a new theory of social cognition. As is well known, theory of mind has been the central issue in the field of social cognition for more than two decades. In reviewing the basic concepts involved in two major theories (theory theory and simulation theory), I make clear that both theories have been missing the embodied dimension because of their mind-body dualistic supposition. The notion of intercorporeality, in accordance with the recent interaction theory, stresses the role of embodied interactions between the self and the other in the process of social understanding. I develop this notion into two directions and describe the related process of social cognition: one is behavior matching and primordial empathy, the other is interactional synchrony and the sense of mutual understanding. Through these embodied interactions, intersubjective meanings are created and directly shared between the self and the other, without being mediated by mental representations.

  12. Reducing Bullying: Application of Social Cognitive Theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Swearer, Susan M.; Wang, Cixin; Berry, Brandi; Myers, Zachary R.

    2014-01-01

    Social cognitive theory (SCT) is an important heuristic for understanding the complexity of bullying behaviors and the social nature of involvement in bullying. Bullying has been heralded as a social relationship problem, and the interplay between the individual and his or her social environment supports this conceptualization. SCT has been used…

  13. Parent-Child Co-Viewing of Television and Cognitive Development of the Chinese Child

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jinqiu, Zhao; Xiaoming, Hao

    2004-01-01

    This study examined the relationship between parent-child co-viewing of television and the cognitive development of the child. Both survey and experiment methods were employed to determine the participants' television viewing habits and their cognitive achievements after watching a pre-recorded programme under different conditions. The…

  14. How social cognition deficits affect psychopathology: A neuroscientific approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrić Sanja

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Humans are substantially a social species. Effective mental treatment cannot be obtained without addressing social behavior. Social cognition refers to the mental processes underlying social interactions, which allow individuals to make sense of the other peoples' behavior, to decipher emotions on their faces, and to draw conclusions about their intentions. The core domains of this multifaceted concept are theory of mind, social cue perception, attributional style and emotion perception/ processing. The amygdala, orbital frontal cortex and temporal cortex areas are typically activated during the processing of information within social-emotional context. The aforementioned brain areas are recognized as the major components of the so-called 'social brain'- specialized for the social interactions in humans. Adequate perceiving and processing of the social information is essential for an effective social functioning, which becomes obvious when it goes awry. Various psychiatric disorders are characterized by social cognitive deficits, among which schizophrenias, depression-anxiety and autism spectrum disorders were most broadly studied to date. Growing evidence suggest that these deficits underlie poor functional outcomes in patients with mental health impairments and have an important role in the initiation and maintenance of the disorders' symptoms. One of the most important goals of social neuroscience research is to provide a treatment intervention that will improve patients' social cognitive skills and the functional outcome. All together, the present review aims to provide a contemporary overview of the concept of social cognition, to outline its relation to psychopathology, and to discuss the implications for clinical practice and treatment.

  15. Reliability of two social cognition tests: The combined stories test and the social knowledge test.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thibaudeau, Élisabeth; Cellard, Caroline; Legendre, Maxime; Villeneuve, Karèle; Achim, Amélie M

    2018-04-01

    Deficits in social cognition are common in psychiatric disorders. Validated social cognition measures with good psychometric properties are necessary to assess and target social cognitive deficits. Two recent social cognition tests, the Combined Stories Test (COST) and the Social Knowledge Test (SKT), respectively assess theory of mind and social knowledge. Previous studies have shown good psychometric properties for these tests, but the test-retest reliability has never been documented. The aim of this study was to evaluate the test-retest reliability and the inter-rater reliability of the COST and the SKT. The COST and the SKT were administered twice to a group of forty-two healthy adults, with a delay of approximately four weeks between the assessments. Excellent test-retest reliability was observed for the COST, and a good test-retest reliability was observed for the SKT. There was no evidence of practice effect. Furthermore, an excellent inter-rater reliability was observed for both tests. This study shows a good reliability of the COST and the SKT that adds to the good validity previously reported for these two tests. These good psychometrics properties thus support that the COST and the SKT are adequate measures for the assessment of social cognition. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  16. Does the heritability of cognitive abilities vary as a function of parental education? Evidence from a German twin sample.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spengler, Marion; Gottschling, Juliana; Hahn, Elisabeth; Tucker-Drob, Elliot M; Harzer, Claudia; Spinath, Frank M

    2018-01-01

    A well-known hypothesis in the behavioral genetic literature predicts that the heritability of cognitive abilities is higher in the presence of higher socioeconomic contexts. However, studies suggest that the effect of socioeconomic status (SES) on the heritability of cognitive ability may not be universal, as it has mostly been demonstrated in the United States, but not in other Western nations. In the present study we tested whether the importance of genetic and environmental effects on cognitive abilities varies as a function of parental education in a German twin sample. Cognitive ability scores (general, verbal, and nonverbal) were obtained on 531 German twin pairs (192 monozygotic, 339 dizygotic, ranging from 7 to 14 years of age; Mage = 10.25, SD = 1.83). Data on parental education were available from mothers and fathers. Results for general cognitive ability and nonverbal ability indicated no significant gene x parental education interaction effect. For verbal ability, a significant nonshared environment (E) x parental education interaction was found in the direction of greater nonshared environmental influences on verbal abilities among children raised by more educated parents.

  17. Overview of Social Cognitive Dysfunctions in Rare Developmental Syndromes With Psychiatric Phenotype

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aurore Morel

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Rare neurodevelopmental syndromes often present social cognitive deficits that may underlie difficulties in social interactions and increase the risk of psychosis or autism spectrum disorders. However, little is known regarding the specificities of social cognitive impairment across syndromes while it remains a major challenge for the care. Our review provides an overview of social cognitive dysfunctions in rare diseases associated with psychiatric symptoms (with a prevalence estimated between 1 in 1,200 and 1 in 25,000 live births: 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, Angelman syndrome, Fragile X syndrome, Klinefelter syndrome, Prader–Willi syndrome, Rett syndrome, Smith–Magenis syndrome, Turner syndrome, and Williams syndrome and shed some light on the specific mechanisms that may underlie these skills in each clinical presentation. We first detail the different processes included in the generic expression “social cognition” before summarizing the genotype, psychiatric phenotype, and non-social cognitive profile in each syndrome. Then, we offer a systematic review of the social cognitive abilities and the disturbed mechanisms they are likely associated with. We followed the PRISMA process, including the definition of the relevant search terms, the selection of studies based on clear inclusion, and exclusion criteria and the quality appraisal of papers. We finally provide insights that may have considerable influence on the development of adapted therapeutic interventions such as social cognitive training (SCT therapies specifically designed to target the psychiatric phenotype. The results of this review suggest that social cognition impairments share some similarities across syndromes. We propose that social cognitive impairments are strongly involved in behavioral symptoms regardless of the overall cognitive level measured by intelligence quotient. Better understanding the mechanisms underlying impaired social cognition may lead to adapt

  18. Integrating intention and context: assessing social cognition in adults with Asperger syndrome

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandra eBaez

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Deficits in social cognition are an evident clinical feature of the Asperger syndrome (AS. Although many daily life problems of adults with AS are related to social cognition impairments, few studies have conducted comprehensive research in this area. The current study examined multiple domains of social cognition in adults with AS assessing the executive functions (EF and exploring the intra and inter-individual variability. Fifteen adults diagnosed with AS and 15 matched healthy controls completed a battery of social cognition tasks. This battery included measures of emotion recognition, theory of mind, empathy, moral judgment, social norms knowledge and self-monitoring behavior in social settings. We controlled for the effect of EF and explored the individual variability. The results indicated that adults with AS had a fundamental deficit in several domains of social cognition. We also found high variability in the social cognition tasks. In these tasks, AS participants obtained mostly subnormal performance. Executive functions did not seem to play a major role in the social cognition impairments. Our results suggest that adults with AS present a pattern of social cognition deficits characterized by the decreased ability to implicitly encode and integrate contextual information in order to access to the social meaning. Nevertheless, when social information is explicitly presented or the situation can be navigated with abstract rules, performance is improved. Our findings have implications for the diagnosis and treatment of individuals with AS as well as for the neurocognitive models of this syndrome.

  19. Integrating intention and context: assessing social cognition in adults with Asperger syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baez, Sandra; Rattazzi, Alexia; Gonzalez-Gadea, María L.; Torralva, Teresa; Vigliecca, Nora Silvana; Decety, Jean; Manes, Facundo; Ibanez, Agustin

    2012-01-01

    Deficits in social cognition are an evident clinical feature of the Asperger syndrome (AS). Although many daily life problems of adults with AS are related to social cognition impairments, few studies have conducted comprehensive research in this area. The current study examined multiple domains of social cognition in adults with AS assessing the executive functions (EF) and exploring the intra and inter-individual variability. Fifteen adult's diagnosed with AS and 15 matched healthy controls completed a battery of social cognition tasks. This battery included measures of emotion recognition, theory of mind (ToM), empathy, moral judgment, social norms knowledge, and self-monitoring behavior in social settings. We controlled for the effect of EF and explored the individual variability. The results indicated that adults with AS had a fundamental deficit in several domains of social cognition. We also found high variability in the social cognition tasks. In these tasks, AS participants obtained mostly subnormal performance. EF did not seem to play a major role in the social cognition impairments. Our results suggest that adults with AS present a pattern of social cognition deficits characterized by the decreased ability to implicitly encode and integrate contextual information in order to access to the social meaning. Nevertheless, when social information is explicitly presented or the situation can be navigated with abstract rules, performance is improved. Our findings have implications for the diagnosis and treatment of individuals with AS as well as for the neurocognitive models of this syndrome. PMID:23162450

  20. Parental Disciplinary Patterns and Social Competence in Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baumrind, Diana

    1978-01-01

    A number of philosophical points of view that have guided parents' attempts to socialize their children are presented. Research findings and conclusions that explore the impact on children of parental disciplinary practices are discussed. (Author/AM)

  1. Parental Personality and Its Relationship to Socialization of Sadness in Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Race, Eleanor; Brand, Ann E.

    The relationship between parental personality traits and how parents socialize their children's emotions is largely unexplored. This study examined the association of personality traits such as Neuroticism and Agreeableness, and emotion traits such as Anxiety and Trait Depression to the strategies parents use to socialize their children's sadness,…

  2. Examination of the Social Emotional Assessment Measure (SEAM) Parent-Toddler Interval

    Science.gov (United States)

    Magee, Aoife Rose

    2012-01-01

    Parent-child relationships serve as the foundation for social emotional competence in young children. To support the healthy social emotional development of their children, parents may need to acquire information, resources, and skills through interventions that are based upon assessment of parent competence. This manuscript presents results from…

  3. Baby Bonds: Parenting, Attachment and a Secure Base for Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moullin, Sophie; Waldfogel, Jane; Washbrook, Elizabeth

    2014-01-01

    The idea that parenting matters for early child development is now firmly recognised by policymakers. It is well established that parents' investments influence young children's development, and their chances in life. Parenting is one of the most important drivers of social inequalities in cognitive development before school. We also know that…

  4. Neuropsychological and social cognitive function in young people at genetic risk of bipolar disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCormack, C; Green, M J; Rowland, J E; Roberts, G; Frankland, A; Hadzi-Pavlovic, D; Joslyn, C; Lau, P; Wright, A; Levy, F; Lenroot, R K; Mitchell, P B

    2016-03-01

    Impairments in key neuropsychological domains (e.g. working memory, attention) and social cognitive deficits have been implicated as intermediate (endo) phenotypes for bipolar disorder (BD), and should therefore be evident in unaffected relatives. Neurocognitive and social cognitive ability was examined in 99 young people (age range 16-30 years) with a biological parent or sibling diagnosed with the disorder [thus deemed to be at risk (AR) of developing BD], compared with 78 healthy control (HC) subjects, and 52 people with a confirmed diagnosis of BD. Only verbal intelligence and affective response inhibition were significantly impaired in AR relative to HC participants; the BD participants showed significant deficits in attention tasks compared with HCs. Neither AR nor BD patients showed impairments in general intellectual ability, working memory, visuospatial or language ability, relative to HC participants. Analysis of BD-I and BD-II cases separately revealed deficits in attention and immediate memory in BD-I patients (only), relative to HCs. Only the BD (but not AR) participants showed impaired emotion recognition, relative to HCs. Selective cognitive deficits in the capacity to inhibit negative affective information, and general verbal ability may be intermediate markers of risk for BD; however, the extent and severity of impairment in this sample was less pronounced than has been reported in previous studies of older family members and BD cases. These findings highlight distinctions in the cognitive profiles of AR and BD participants, and provide limited support for progressive cognitive decline in association with illness development in BD.

  5. Maternal Prenatal Psychological Distress and Preschool Cognitive Functioning: the Protective Role of Positive Parental Engagement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schechter, Julia C; Brennan, Patricia A; Smith, Alicia K; Stowe, Zachary N; Newport, D Jeffrey; Johnson, Katrina C

    2017-02-01

    Considerable animal research and available human studies suggest that psychological distress experienced by mothers during gestation is associated with later neurodevelopmental deficits in offspring; however, little research has examined potential protective factors that might mitigate this risk. The current study examined the impact of maternal prenatal psychological distress during pregnancy on cognitive outcomes in preschoolers (ages 2.5-5 years) and positive parenting as a potential protective factor. Mother-child dyads (N = 162, mean child age = 44 months, 49 % female) were recruited from a longitudinal cohort of women who had previously participated in a study of maternal mood disorders during pregnancy. Maternal prenatal distress was assessed with multiple measures collected throughout pregnancy. During a follow-up visit, mothers were interviewed about their psychological symptoms since the birth of the child, parenting behaviors were recorded during a parent-child interaction, and children's cognitive abilities were measured using the Differential Ability Scales, 2nd Edition. Maternal prenatal distress significantly predicted lower general cognitive abilities; however, this relationship was strongest for children whose mothers exhibited low levels of positive engagement and not significant when mothers exhibited high levels of positive engagement. Results suggest that positive parental engagement can protect against the detrimental effects of maternal prenatal distress on preschoolers' cognitive abilities.

  6. Appraisal of social concerns: A cognitive assessment instrument for social phobia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Telch, M.J.; Lucas, R.A.; Smits, J.A.J.; Powers, M.B.; Heimberg, R.G.; Hart, T.

    2004-01-01

    The current study describes the validation of a new cognitive assessment measure for social phobia, entitled the Appraisal of Social Concerns (ASC). Item content is relevant to a range of social situations. The ASC can be used to tailor interventions to patients' idiosyncratic concerns. Data are

  7. A conceptual linkage between cognitive architectures and social interaction

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zoethout, K.; Jager, W.

    Cognitive representations are being shaped and determined by interaction with the environment. The social environment constitutes an important part of this environment. Yet in formal models of cognition, there is little attention for processes resulting from social interaction. On the other hand, in

  8. Interparental Conflict, Parenting, and Childhood Depression in a Diverse Urban Population: The Role of General Cognitive Style

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Donnell, Ellen H.; Moreau, Melissa; Cardemil, Esteban V.; Pollastri, Alisha

    2010-01-01

    Research on the mechanisms by which interparental conflict (IPC) affects child depression suggests that both parenting and children's conflict appraisals play important roles, but few studies have explored the role of general cognitive style or included both parenting and cognitions in the same design. Moreover, the effects of IPC on minority…

  9. Chronic Neglect and Services without Borders: A Guiding Model for Social Service Enhancement to Address the Needs of Parents with Intellectual Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Azar, Sandra T.; Robinson, Lara R.; Proctor, Stephon N.

    2012-01-01

    Child neglect has negative effects throughout the life span. Although an argument for a link between intellectual disabilities and neglectful parenting can be made, this article argues for a more fine-grained view of the cognitive problems that underlie child neglect perpetration and provides evidence for a social information processing model of…

  10. Parental Influences and Adolescent Career Behaviours in a Collectivist Cultural Setting

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sawitri, Dian R.; Creed, Peter A.; Zimmer-Gembeck, Melanie J.

    2014-01-01

    Using social cognitive career theory, we examined the relationships between parental variables (parental career expectations, adolescent-parent career congruence) and adolescent career aspirations and career actions (planning, exploration) in a sample of Grade 10 Indonesian high school students. We found good support for a model that revealed…

  11. Direct and Indirect Psychosocial Outcomes for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and their Parents Following a Parent-involved Social Skills Group Intervention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weiss, Jonathan A; Viecili, Michelle A; Sloman, Leon; Lunsky, Yona

    2013-11-01

    This study examined the direct and indirect outcomes of a social skills group intervention for children with high functioning autism spectrum disorders and their parents. Thirty-five children and their parents participated in the program evaluation. Children and parents completed measures of child social skills and problem behaviors. Children reported on their self-concept, and parents reported on their psychological acceptance and empowerment. Results indicate significant increases in overall child social skills according to parent and child report, in child general self-worth, and in parent service empowerment and psychological acceptance. While past program evaluations of social skills groups highlight changes in social competence, taking a broader perspective on the types of positive outcomes suggests potential benefits for both child and parent.

  12. Do parents' social skills influence their chidren's sociability?

    OpenAIRE

    Okumura, Tsunao; Usui, Emiko

    2010-01-01

    This paper examines the effect of parents' social skills on children's sociability, using the U.S. National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79). This survey, like some other national surveys, lacks detailed information on parents; to remedy this deficiency, we construct a measure of parents' sociability skills based on their occupational characteristics from the Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT). The sociability relationship varies across parents and children by gender, but remai...

  13. Do Parents' Social Skills Influence Their Children's Sociability?

    OpenAIRE

    Okumura, Tsunao; Usui, Emiko

    2010-01-01

    This paper examines the effect of parents' social skills on children's sociability, using the U.S. National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79). This survey, like some other national surveys, lacks detailed information on parents; to remedy this deficiency, we construct a measure of parents' "sociability" skills based on their occupational characteristics from the Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT). The sociability relationship varies across parents and children by gender, but rem...

  14. Symptoms of social anxiety, depression, and stress in parents of children with social anxiety disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Halldorsson, Brynjar; Draisey, Jenny; Cooper, Peter; Creswell, Cathy

    2018-06-01

    It has been suggested that elevated maternal social anxiety may play a disorder-specific role in maintaining childhood social anxiety disorder (SAD), but few studies have examined whether mothers of children with SAD are more socially anxious than mothers of children with other anxiety disorders (ANX). This study set out to examine whether symptoms of social anxiety were more severe amongst mothers of 7-12 year old children presenting for treatment with SAD (n = 260) compared to those presenting with ANX (n = 138). In addition, we examined whether there were differences between these two groups in terms of maternal and paternal general anxiety, depression, and stress. Parents of 7-12 year old children referred for treatment of SAD or ANX completed self-report questionnaire measures of emotional symptoms. Compared to mothers of children with ANX, mothers of children with SAD reported significantly higher levels of social anxiety, general anxiety, and depression. In addition, fathers of children with SAD reported significantly higher levels of anxiety, stress, and depression than fathers of children with ANX. This study is one of the few existing studies that have examined mothers' and fathers' psychopathology across different childhood anxiety disorders. Compared to parents of children with ANX, parents of children with SAD may have poorer mental health which may inhibit optimum child treatment outcomes for children with SAD. Thus, targeting parental psychopathology may be particularly important in the treatment of childhood SAD. Consideration of parental psychopathology may be particularly important in the treatment of childhood social anxiety disorder. Mothers of children with social anxiety disorder are more socially anxious than mothers of children with other anxiety disorders Fathers of children with social anxiety disorder are more anxious and depressed than fathers of children with other anxiety disorders Participants were predominantly of high

  15. Parental Outcomes Following Participation in Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maughan, Andrea L; Weiss, Jonathan A

    2017-10-01

    Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) benefit from parent involvement in their therapy, and there is evidence that this involvement may improve parent functioning as well. We examined changes in parent mental health, parenting, and expressed emotion, following participation in a randomized controlled trial of cognitive behavior therapy for 57 children with ASD. Post-intervention, improvements occurred in the treatment group in parent depression and emotion regulation, compared to waitlisted parents. Treatment effects also occurred across all parents in depression, emotion regulation, perceptions of their children and mindful parenting. Though preliminary, these results have implications for intervention development and evaluation by focusing on parent outcomes in child treatment.

  16. A Parent's Guide to the Social Studies. Revised.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roselle, Daniel; Singleton, Laurel R.

    This guide for parents seeks to answer seven questions concerning the social studies: (1) What is social studies? (2) Why is social studies important at every grade level? (3) What kinds of materials are used to teach social studies? (4) What teaching strategies are used in social studies classes? (5) What have the national reports on education…

  17. Parent-Adolescent Informant Discrepancies of Social Skill Importance and Social Skill Engagement for Higher-Functioning Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    McMahon, Camilla M.; Solomon, Marjorie

    2015-01-01

    Parent- and adolescent-report of social skill importance and social skill engagement on the Social Skills Rating System (Gresham & Elliott, 1990) were assessed in higher-functioning adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Compared to parents, adolescents reported that social skills were less important. Additionally, adolescents reported that they engaged in social skills more frequently than parents reported them to be engaging in social skills. Parents, but not adolescents, reported a discrepancy between importance and engagement, such that the importance of social skills was rated higher than the frequency of adolescent engagement in social skills. These results suggest that social skills interventions for individuals with ASD may need to target awareness of social skill importance and accurate monitoring of social skill engagement. PMID:26077952

  18. Cognitive and social cognitive predictors of change in objective versus subjective quality-of-life in rehabilitation for schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kurtz, Matthew M; Bronfeld, Melanie; Rose, Jennifer

    2012-12-30

    A small but growing body of work has studied the role of cognitive skills in predicting response to integrated programs of rehabilitation in schizophrenia. No studies however, have directly compared the roles and interrelationships of cognition, social cognition and other disease factors in predicting improvements in the separate domains of objective quality-of-life (QOL) and subjective satisfaction with life (SWL) in response to rehabilitation in schizophrenia. Forty-four outpatients with schizophrenia were administered measures of cognition, social cognition, and symptoms at entry to a psychosocial and cognitive rehabilitation program. Change in objective QOL and subjective SWL before and after treatment were measured as outcome variables. Cognitive measures of verbal memory and social cognitive measures of facial affect recognition were linked to improvements in objective QOL, while verbal memory and crystallized verbal skill was linked to improvements in SWL. Facial affect recognition partially mediated the relationship between verbal memory and improvements in objective QOL. The implications of these findings for understanding interrelationships between cognition and social cognition and their role in predicting change in different domains of outcome as a function of behavioral treatment are discussed. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. A comparison of the effectiveness of problem solving training and of cognitive-emotional rehabilitation on neurocognition, social cognition and social functioning in people with schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Veltro, Franco; Mazza, Monica; Vendittelli, Nicola; Alberti, Mirella; Casacchia, Massimo; Roncone, Rita

    2011-01-01

    Social cognition and Problem Solving (PS) impairments are common characteristics in patients with schizophrenia. Experimental neuropsychological findings support the hypothesis that schizophrenia is characterized by a broad range of heterogeneous cognitive impairments. Since that time Problem Solving Training has been employed as a core strategy in a wide variety of therapeutic settings. Renewed interest in cognitive functioning, including social Problem Solving skills and social cognition in schizophrenia, has led us to reconsider the potential value of metacognitive strategy as a rehabilitation strategy. The present study reports the results obtained by 24 persons with schizophrenia who were randomly assigned to one of two training session groups: Cognitive-Emotional Rehabilitation (REC) vs Problem Solving Training (PST). Both treatments were administered to small groups composed of subjects suffering from schizophrenic disorders over a 12 months period: primary measures of clinical, social outcomes and secondary measures of cognitive and Problem Solving functions were conducted at 0, and 12 months. Results showed that both training methods were found to be effective in psychopathological measures and in social functioning. On cognitive function improvements were specific to the rehabilitative approach. PST are mainly improved capacities for planning and memory, while the REC improved measures such as social cognition Theory of mind and emotion recognition. The results confirmed that it is no necessary to divide the rehabilitation training in treatments directed to specific domains. The conceptualization and applicability of PST and REC its implications for persons with schizophrenia, and future studies in this research area have also been discussed.

  20. Parent insights into atypicalities of social approach behaviour in Williams syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lough, E; Rodgers, J; Janes, E; Little, K; Riby, D M

    2016-11-01

    Individuals with Williams syndrome have been reported to show high levels of social interest and a desire to interact with others irrespective of their familiarity. This high social motivation, when combined with reduced intellectual capacity and a profile of atypical social behaviour, is important in terms of social vulnerability of individuals with the disorder. Therefore, social approach to unfamiliar people and the role of this behaviour within the Williams syndrome (WS) social phenotype warrant further research to inform social skills' intervention design. The current study used parent interviews (n = 21) to probe aspects of social behaviour and interactions with strangers, as well as the impact of such behaviour on the family. Using thematic analysis, it was possible to explore themes that emerged from the interviews, offering qualitatively rich insight into the variability of social approach behaviour in WS. Thematic analysis confirmed a significant desire to interact with strangers as well as a lack of awareness of appropriate social boundaries. However, parental reports about their child's social approach behaviour varied considerably. The within-syndrome variability of the sample was emphasised in parental reports of their child's personality characteristics (e.g. levels of impulsiveness), as well as the level of parental supervision employed. These in-depth parent insights can help target the needs of individuals with WS and emphasise that an individual approach to intervention will be essential because of the heterogeneity of the WS social profile. © 2016 MENCAP and International Association of the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  1. The influence of social support on cognitive impairment in the elderly

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abdul Rashid

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available To determine the influence of social support on cognitive impairment among elderly Malaysians. Methods This cross sectional study was conducted using a representative sample for Penang, Malaysia. The Elderly Cognitive Assessment Questionnaire (ECAQ was used to screen for cognitive impairment and Oslo-3 Social Support Scale (OSS-3 was used to measure social support.

  2. A review of the role of social cognition in major depressive disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weightman, Michael James; Air, Tracy Michele; Baune, Bernhard Theodor

    2014-01-01

    Social cognition - the ability to identify, perceive, and interpret socially relevant information - is an important skill that plays a significant role in successful interpersonal functioning. Social cognitive performance is recognized to be impaired in several psychiatric conditions, but the relationship with major depressive disorder is less well understood. The aim of this review is to characterize the current understanding of: (i) the different domains of social cognition and a possible relationship with major depressive disorder, (ii) the clinical presentation of social cognition in acute and remitted depressive states, and (iii) the effect of severity of depression on social cognitive performance. Electronic databases were searched to identify clinical studies investigating social cognition in a major depressive disorder population, yielding 31 studies for this review. Patients with major depressive disorder appear to interpret social cognitive stimuli differently to healthy controls: depressed individuals may interpret emotion through a mood-congruent bias and have difficulty with cognitive theory of mind tasks requiring interpretation of complex mental states. Social cognitive performance appears to be inversely associated with severity of depression, whilst the bias toward negative emotions persists even in remission. Some deficits may normalize following effective pharmacotherapy. The difficulties with social interaction observed in major depressive disorder may, at least in part, be due to an altered ability to correctly interpret emotional stimuli and mental states. These features seem to persist even in remission, although some may respond to intervention. Further research is required in this area to better understand the functional impact of these findings and the way in which targeted therapy could aid depressed individuals with social interactions.

  3. A Review of the Role of Social Cognition in Major Depressive Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weightman, Michael James; Air, Tracy Michele; Baune, Bernhard Theodor

    2014-01-01

    Background: Social cognition – the ability to identify, perceive, and interpret socially relevant information – is an important skill that plays a significant role in successful interpersonal functioning. Social cognitive performance is recognized to be impaired in several psychiatric conditions, but the relationship with major depressive disorder is less well understood. The aim of this review is to characterize the current understanding of: (i) the different domains of social cognition and a possible relationship with major depressive disorder, (ii) the clinical presentation of social cognition in acute and remitted depressive states, and (iii) the effect of severity of depression on social cognitive performance. Methods: Electronic databases were searched to identify clinical studies investigating social cognition in a major depressive disorder population, yielding 31 studies for this review. Results: Patients with major depressive disorder appear to interpret social cognitive stimuli differently to healthy controls: depressed individuals may interpret emotion through a mood-congruent bias and have difficulty with cognitive theory of mind tasks requiring interpretation of complex mental states. Social cognitive performance appears to be inversely associated with severity of depression, whilst the bias toward negative emotions persists even in remission. Some deficits may normalize following effective pharmacotherapy. Conclusions: The difficulties with social interaction observed in major depressive disorder may, at least in part, be due to an altered ability to correctly interpret emotional stimuli and mental states. These features seem to persist even in remission, although some may respond to intervention. Further research is required in this area to better understand the functional impact of these findings and the way in which targeted therapy could aid depressed individuals with social interactions. PMID:25566100

  4. A review of the role of social cognition in major depressive disorder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael James Weightman

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Background: Social cognition – the ability to identify, perceive and interpret socially-relevant information – is an important skill that plays a significant role in successful interpersonal functioning. Social cognitive performance is recognised to be impaired in several psychiatric conditions, but the relationship with major depressive disorder is less well understood. The aim of this review is to characterise the current understanding of (i the different domains of social cognition and a possible relationship with major depressive disorder, (ii the clinical presentation of social cognition in acute and remitted depressive states, and (iii the effect of severity of depression on social cognitive performance.Methods: Electronic databases were searched to identify clinical studies investigating social cognition in a major depressive disorder population, yielding 31 studies for this review.Results: Patients with major depressive disorder appear to interpret social cognitive stimuli differently to healthy controls: depressed individuals may interpret emotion through a mood-congruent bias and have difficulty with cognitive theory of mind tasks requiring interpretation of complex mental states. Social cognitive performance appears to be inversely associated with severity of depression, whilst the bias toward negative emotions persists even in remission. Some deficits may normalise following effective pharmacotherapy.Conclusions: The difficulties with social interaction observed in major depressive disorder may, at least in part, be due to an altered ability to correctly interpret emotional stimuli and mental states. These features seem to persist even in the remitted state, although some may respond to intervention. Further research is required in this area to better understand the functional impact of these findings and the way in which targeted therapy could aid depressed individuals with social interactions.

  5. Explicit versus Implicit Social Cognition Testing in Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Callenmark, Björn; Kjellin, Lars; Rönnqvist, Louise; Bölte, Sven

    2014-01-01

    Although autism spectrum disorder is defined by reciprocal social-communication impairments, several studies have found no evidence for altered social cognition test performance. This study examined explicit (i.e. prompted) and implicit (i.e. spontaneous) variants of social cognition testing in autism spectrum disorder. A sample of 19 adolescents…

  6. Effects of social support and conflict on parenting among homeless mothers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marra, Jaime V; McCarthy, Elissa; Lin, Hsiu-Ju; Ford, Julian; Rodis, Eleni; Frisman, Linda K

    2009-07-01

    Research has shown that having a supportive social network is generally beneficial for individuals, particularly those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. However, conflict within these networks may diminish the positive effects of social support on well-being, and these effects may be felt acutely within a vulnerable population with multiple needs. This study examined the impact of conflict and social support on parenting behaviors in a sample of mothers who are homeless and were involved in a study of case management interventions of varying intensity. We found that women who reported high emotional and instrumental social support self-reported greater improvements in parenting consistency over time than those who reported lower levels of support. However, three-way interactions showed that conflict in support networks was a risk factor for harsh parenting practices among participants who reported lower levels of instrumental social support. Results suggest that social support may enhance homeless mothers' ability to provide consistent parenting, but that these benefits may be undermined if conflict occurs in combination with limited levels of instrumental social support.

  7. Relationships between parental sleep quality, fatigue, cognitions about infant sleep, and parental depression pre and post-intervention for infant behavioral sleep problems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Wendy A; Moynihan, Melissa; Bhagat, Radhika; Wooldridge, Joanne

    2017-04-04

    Maternal and paternal depression has been associated with infants' behavioral sleep problems. Behavioral sleep interventions, which alter parental cognitions about infant sleep, have improved infant sleep problems. This study reports relationships between parental depression, fatigue, sleep quality, and cognitions about infant sleep pre and post-intervention for a behavioral sleep problem. This secondary analysis of data from Canadian parents (n = 455), with healthy infants aged 6-to-8-months exposed to a behavioral sleep intervention, examined baseline data and follow-up data from 18 or 24 weeks post intervention (group teaching or printed material) exposure. Parents reported on sleep quality, fatigue, depression, and cognitions about infant sleep. Data were analyzed using Pearson's r and stepwise regression analysis. Parents' fatigue, sleep quality, sleep cognitions, and depression scores were correlated at baseline and follow-up. At baseline, sleep quality (b = .52, 95% CI .19-.85), fatigue (b = .48, 95% CI .33-.63), doubt about managing infant sleep (b = .44, 95% CI .19-.69), and anger about infant sleep (b = .69, 95% CI .44-.94) were associated with mothers' depression. At baseline, fathers' depression related to sleep quality (b = .42, 95% CI .01-.83), fatigue (b = .47, 95% CI .32-.63), and doubt about managing infant sleep (b = .50, 95% CI .24-.76). At follow-up, mothers' depression was associated with sleep quality (b = .76, 95% CI .41-1.12), fatigue (b = .25, 95% CI .14-.37), doubt about managing infant sleep (b = .44, 95% CI .16-.73), sleep anger (b = .31, 95% CI .02-.59), and setting sleep limits (b = -.22, 95% CI -.41-[-.03]). At follow-up, fathers' depression related to sleep quality (b = .84, 95% CI .46-1.22), fatigue (b = .31, 95% CI .17-.45), sleep doubt (b = .34, 95% CI .05-.62), and setting sleep limits (b = .25, 95% CI .01-.49). Mothers' and fathers' cognitions about infant

  8. How Effectively Do Parents Discern Their Children's Cognitive Deficits at a Preschool Age?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I-Chun Chen

    2007-10-01

    Conclusion: The results indicate that parents' initial concerns about their children's multiple or speech developmental problems were relatively highly correlated with cognitive deficits. It is recommended that clinicians should guide parents to voice and organize their concerns regarding the perception of their children's developmental progress, and further precisely analyze and utilize significant information.

  9. Social Constructivism: Does It Succeed in Reconciling Individual Cognition with Social Teaching and Learning Practices in Mathematics?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bozkurt, Gulay

    2017-01-01

    This article examines the literature associated with social constructivism. It discusses whether social constructivism succeeds in reconciling individual cognition with social teaching and learning practices. After reviewing the meaning of individual cognition and social constructivism, two views--Piaget and Vygotsky's--accounting for learning…

  10. Metacognitive Aspects of Executive Function Are Highly Associated with Social Functioning on Parent-Rated Measures in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tonje Torske

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD is characterized by social dysfunction. Even though executive dysfunction has been recognized as important in understanding ASD, the findings are inconsistent. This might be due to different definitions of executive function (EF, which part of EF that has been studied, structured vs. unstructured tasks, inclusion of different moderators (age, IQ, sex and different diagnostic categories within the spectrum. The main finding is that people with ASD have more EF difficulties than normal controls and more difficulties on open-end tasks than on structured cognitive tasks. Since some EF difficulties may not be observable in a laboratory setting, informant measures might have higher ecological validity than neuropsychological tests. Evidence suggests that executive dysfunctions are associated with social impairments, but few studies have investigated the details of this relationship, and it remains unclear what types of EF deficits are relevant for the social problems of individuals with ASD. Here we investigated which EF domains were associated with various domains of social function on parent-rated measures. A total of 86 children and adolescents with a diagnosis of ASD were included and tested for general cognitive abilities. Parents completed the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF and the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS. Multiple regression analysis revealed significant associations between SRS scores and age, sex, total IQ and the BRIEF indexes. The Metacognition Index from the BRIEF added significantly to the prediction of the SRS total score and the subscales Social Communication, Social Motivation and Autistic Mannerisms. The findings suggest that metacognitive aspects of EF are of particular importance for social abilities in children and adolescents with ASD. Earlier research has shown that typically developing (TD children have a different relationship between EF and social function than

  11. Cognitive vulnerability to bipolar disorder in offspring of parents with bipolar disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pavlickova, Hana; Turnbull, Oliver; Bentall, Richard P

    2014-11-01

    Bipolar disorder is a highly heritable illness, with a positive family history robustly predictive of its onset. It follows that studying biological children of parents with bipolar disorder may provide information about developmental pathways to the disorder. Moreover, such studies may serve as a useful test of theories that attribute a causal role in the development of mood disorders to psychological processes. Psychological style (including self-esteem, coping style with depression, domain-specific risk-taking, sensation-seeking, sensitivity to reward and punishment, and hypomanic personality and cognition) was assessed in 30 offspring of bipolar parents and 30 children of well parents. Parents of both child groups completed identical assessments. Although expected differences between parents with bipolar disorder and well parents were detected (such as low self-esteem, increased rumination, high sensitivity to reward and punishment), offspring of bipolar parents were, as a group, not significantly different from well offspring, apart from a modest trend towards lower adaptive coping. When divided into affected and non-affected subgroups, both groups of index children showed lower novelty-seeking. Only affected index children showed lower self-esteem, increased rumination, sensitivity to punishment, and hypomanic cognitions. Notably, these processes were associated with symptoms of depression. Psychological abnormalities in index offspring were associated with having met diagnostic criteria for psychiatric illnesses and the presence of mood symptoms, rather than preceding them. Implications of the present findings for our understanding of the development of bipolar disorder, as well as for informing early interventions, are discussed. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

  12. Parental social status and intrasexual competitiveness among adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buunk, Abraham P; Stulp, Gert; Ormel, Johan

    2014-11-17

    A study among 1,881 adolescents (52.3% girls) with a mean age of 19.1 years examined the effects of parental social status upon intrasexual competitiveness. Whereas females were consistently more intrasexually competitive the higher the socio-economic status of their parents, males with parents of the lowest socio-economic status tended to be more intrasexually competitive than those with parents of medium socio-economic status, and nearly as intrasexually competitive as those with parents of high socio-economic status. Only among adolescents with parents of low socio-economic status were males more intrasexually competitive than females. Among males and females, higher levels of intrasexual competitiveness were related to a higher family income, to a higher occupational status of the father as well as of the mother, and to a higher educational level of the mother. Only among females were higher levels of intrasexual competitiveness associated with a higher educational level of the father. Males whose fathers had only elementary education had a relatively high level of intrasexual competitiveness. The results are discussed in the context of the multifaceted nature of human status, and the potential relevance of intrasexual competitiveness for individuals of high versus low social status.

  13. Personal contextual characteristics and cognitions: predicting child abuse potential and disciplinary style.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodriguez, Christina M

    2010-02-01

    According to Social Information Processing theory, parents' cognitive processes influence their decisions to engage in physical maltreatment, although cognitions occur in the context of other aspects of the parents' life. The present study investigated whether cognitive processes (external locus of control, inappropriate developmental expectations) predicted child abuse potential and overreactive disciplinary style beyond personal contextual factors characteristic of the parent (hostility, stress, and coping). 363 parents were recruited online. Results highlight the relative importance of the contextual characteristics (particularly stress, avoidant coping, and irritability) relative to cognitive processes in predicting abuse potential and overreactive discipline strategies, although an external locus of control also significantly contributed. Findings do not support that parents' developmental expectations uniquely predict elevated abuse risk. Results indicate stressed parents who utilize avoidance coping strategies are more likely to use overreactive discipline and report increased abuse potential. Findings are discussed with regard to implications for prevention/intervention efforts.

  14. Cognitive-behavioral therapy for children with functional abdominal pain and their parents decreases pain and other symptoms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Levy, Rona L; Langer, Shelby L; Walker, Lynn S; Romano, Joan M; Christie, Dennis L; Youssef, Nader; DuPen, Melissa M; Feld, Andrew D; Ballard, Sheri A; Welsh, Ericka M; Jeffery, Robert W; Young, Melissa; Coffey, Melissa J; Whitehead, William E

    2010-04-01

    Unexplained abdominal pain in children has been shown to be related to parental responses to symptoms. This randomized controlled trial tested the efficacy of an intervention designed to improve outcomes in idiopathic childhood abdominal pain by altering parental responses to pain and children's ways of coping and thinking about their symptoms. Two hundred children with persistent functional abdominal pain and their parents were randomly assigned to one of two conditions-a three-session intervention of cognitive-behavioral treatment targeting parents' responses to their children's pain complaints and children's coping responses, or a three-session educational intervention that controlled for time and attention. Parents and children were assessed at pretreatment, and 1 week, 3 months, and 6 months post-treatment. Outcome measures were child and parent reports of child pain levels, function, and adjustment. Process measures included parental protective responses to children's symptom reports and child coping methods. Children in the cognitive-behavioral condition showed greater baseline to follow-up decreases in pain and gastrointestinal symptom severity (as reported by parents) than children in the comparison condition (time x treatment interaction, Pparents in the cognitive-behavioral condition reported greater decreases in solicitous responses to their child's symptoms compared with parents in the comparison condition (time x treatment interaction, Pparental responses and increasing child coping skills is effective in reducing children's pain and symptom levels compared with an educational control condition.

  15. Parents, Peer Groups, and Other Socializing Influences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vandell, Deborah Lowe

    2000-01-01

    Critically examines three propositions of Harris' group socialization theory (1995, 1998) related to parents' long-term effects on children's psychological characteristics, peer groups' influences, and the nature of dyadic relationships. Maintains that available evidence is more consistent with a model of multiple socialization agents. Proposes a…

  16. Neighborhood Risk, Parental Socialization Styles, and Adolescent Conduct Problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Enrique Gracia

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available This article aims to analyze the influence of parental socialization styles (authoritarian, authoritative, indulgent and neglectful, and perceived neighborhood risk on three indicators of conduct problems in adolescence (school misconduct, delinquency, and drug use. The sample consists of 1,017 adolescents, aged between 12 and 17. Results from four multivariate factorial designs yielded only main effects of parenting styles and neighborhood risk. Adolescents from authoritative and indulgent families showed lower conduct problems than those with authoritarian and neglectful parents. Also, higher levels of perceived neighborhood risk were significantly associated with more conduct problems. There were no significant interaction effects between parenting styles and perceived neighborhood risk, but results yielded a significant interaction effect between neighborhood risk and sex. Overall, results do not support the idea that parenting styles are more effective under certain neighborhood risk conditions, and suggest that neighbourhood risk influences adolescents’ psychosocial adjustment beyond the influence of parental socialization styles.

  17. General parenting, anti-smoking socialization and smoking onset

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Otten, R.; Engels, R.C.M.E.; Eijnden, R.J.J.M. van den

    2008-01-01

    A theoretical model was tested in which general parenting and parental smoking predicted anti-smoking socialization, which in turn predicted adolescent smoking onset. Participants were 4351 Dutch adolescents between 13 and 15 years of age. In the model, strictness and psychological autonomy granting

  18. Reward Learning, Neurocognition, Social Cognition, and Symptomatology in Psychosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lewandowski, Kathryn E; Whitton, Alexis E; Pizzagalli, Diego A; Norris, Lesley A; Ongur, Dost; Hall, Mei-Hua

    2016-01-01

    Patients with psychosis spectrum disorders exhibit deficits in social and neurocognition, as well as hallmark abnormalities in motivation and reward processing. Aspects of reward processing may overlap behaviorally and neurobiologically with some elements of cognitive functioning, and abnormalities in these processes may share partially overlapping etiologies in patients. However, whether reward processing and cognition are associated across the psychoses and linked to state and trait clinical symptomatology is unclear. The present study examined associations between cognitive functioning, reward learning, and clinical symptomatology in a cross-diagnostic sample. Patients with schizophrenia (SZ; n = 37), bipolar I disorder with psychosis (BD; n = 42), and healthy controls (n = 29) were assessed for clinical symptoms (patients only), neurocognitive functioning using the MATRICS Battery (MCCB) and reward learning using the probabilistic reward task (PRT). Groups were compared on neurocognition and PRT response bias, and associations between PRT response bias and neurocognition or clinical symptoms were examined controlling for demographic variables and PRT task difficulty (discriminability). Patients with SZ performed worse than controls on most measures of neurocognition; patients with BD exhibited deficits in some domains between the level of patients with SZ and controls. The SZ - but not BD - group exhibited deficits in social cognition compared to controls. Patients and controls did not differ on PRT response bias, but did differ on PRT discriminability. Better response bias across the sample was associated with poorer social cognition, but not neurocognition; conversely, discriminability was associated with neurocognition but not social cognition. Symptoms of psychosis, particularly negative symptoms, were associated with poorer response bias across patient groups. Reward learning was associated with symptoms of psychosis - in particular negative

  19. Social cognitive markers of short-term clinical outcome in first-episode psychosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Montreuil, Tina; Bodnar, Michael; Bertrand, Marie-Claude; Malla, Ashok K; Joober, Ridha; Lepage, Martin

    2010-07-01

    In psychotic disorders, impairments in cognition have been associated with both clinical and functional outcome, while deficits in social cognition have been associated with functional outcome. As an extension to a recent report on neurocognition and short-term clinical outcome in first-episode psychosis (FEP), the current study explored whether social cognitive deficits could also identify poor short-term clinical outcome among FEP patients. We defined the social-cognition domain based on the scores from the Hinting Task and the Four Factor Tests of Social Intelligence. Data were collected in 45 FEP patients and 26 healthy controls. The patients were divided into good- and poor-outcome groups based on clinical data at six months following initiation of treatment. Social cognition was compared among 27 poor-outcome, 18 good-outcome, and 26 healthy-control participants. Outcome groups significantly differed in the social cognition domain (z-scores: poor outcome=-2.0 [SD=1.4]; good outcome=-1.0 [SD=1.0]; p=0.005), with both groups scoring significantly lower than the control group (psocial cognition appears to be compromised in all FEP patients compared to healthy controls. More interestingly, significant differences in social cognitive impairments exist between good and poor short-term clinical outcome groups, with the largest effect found in the Cartoon Predictions subtest.

  20. Social Support as Mediator and Moderator of the Relationship Between Parenting Stress and Life Satisfaction Among the Chinese Parents of Children with ASD.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Ming-Hui; Wang, Guang-Hai; Lei, Hao; Shi, Meng-Liang; Zhu, Rui; Jiang, Fan

    2018-04-01

    Although numerous studies have demonstrated that social support affects a range of life experiences, few have examined its moderating and mediating effects. In the current study, 479 Chinese parents of children with ASD (aged 3-18 years) completed the surveys assessing parenting stress, social support and life satisfaction. Results indicated that parenting stress, social support and life satisfaction were significantly related. Moreover, social support both mediated and moderated the influence of parenting stress on life satisfaction. These findings imply that parenting stress and social support are critical indicators of life satisfaction and can serve as basic intervention strategies that promote life satisfaction among Chinese parents of children with ASD.

  1. Social media and gamification: Engaging vulnerable parents in an online evidence-based parenting program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Love, Susan M; Sanders, Matthew R; Turner, Karen M T; Maurange, Marianne; Knott, Theresa; Prinz, Ronald; Metzler, Carol; Ainsworth, Andrew T

    2016-03-01

    The aim of this study was to examine the feasibility (accessibility, engagement and impact) of adding social media and gaming features (e.g., social sharing with anonymity, badges to incentivize skills practice, an accredited facilitator for support) and access via smartphones to an evidenced-based parenting program, Triple P Online. The highly vulnerable population included 155 disadvantaged, high-risk parents (e.g., 76% had a family annual income of less than $15,000; 41% had been incarcerated; 38% were in drug/alcohol treatment; and 24% had had a child removed due to maltreatment). The ethnic groups most commonly identified were African American (24%) and Hispanic (66%). Respondents were primarily mothers (86%) from five community programs in Los Angeles. The study used a single group repeated measures design (pre, post, 6-month follow-up). Data collected included standardized self-report measures, post-intervention focus groups and interviews, website usage reports, and Google Analytics. Significant multivariate ANOVA time effects were found, demonstrating reductions in child behavioral problems, reduced lax/permissive and over-reactive parenting, and decreased parental stress. No effects were found for parental confidence, attributions, or depression and anxiety (which were in the normal range at baseline). Positive effects were maintained or improved at 6-month follow-up. The participants engaged in the online community and valued its flexibility, anonymity, and shared learning. This foundational implementation trial provides support for future rigorous evaluation of social media and gaming features as a medium for increasing parental engagement in evidence-based parenting programs online--a public health approach to protect and improve the development of vulnerable children. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Parental coping with children's negative emotions: relations with children's emotional and social responding.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fabes, R A; Leonard, S A; Kupanoff, K; Martin, C L

    2001-01-01

    This study examined the relation between parents' reactions to children's negative emotions and social competence. Additionally, the role of parental emotional distress in children's emotional socialization was examined. The emotional reactions of 57 preschoolers (33 girls, 24 boys; M age = 59.2 months) were observed during their free-play interactions. Parents (mostly mothers) completed questionnaires about their reactions to children's negative emotions. An index of children's social competence was obtained from teachers. Results indicated that the relation between harsh parental coping strategies and children's emotional responding was moderated by parental distress. In addition, the relation of the interaction of parental coping and distress to children's social competence was mediated by children's level of emotional intensity. It was concluded that distressed parents who use harsh coping strategies in response to children's negative emotions have children who express emotion in relatively intense ways. In turn, these children find it relatively difficult to behave in a socially competent manner.

  3. The relationship between mother's parenting style and social adaptability of adolescent girls in Isfahan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kazemi, Ashraf; Solokian, Soheila; Ashouri, Elaheh; Marofi, Maryam

    2012-02-01

    Social adaptability is an important requirement of the social life of adolescents, which can be affected by their mother's parenting style (PS). The purpose of this study is to compare the social adaptability in four parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and neglectful) through which mothers interact with their adolescent girls. This survey is a cross-sectional and analytical study on 737 adolescents that study in the all girls junior high schools in Isfahan. Data collection was done with a questionnaire. The questionnaires were completed by the adolescents. After data collection, the parenting styles were determined and the social adaptability of the four groups was compared. The mean social adaptability in adolescents who their mothers have the authoritative parenting style was 49.6 ± 6.1, in the permissive parenting style 50.1 ± 5.8, the authoritarian parenting style 44.2 ± 6.5 and in the neglectful parenting style was 42.2 ± 7.5. The social adaptability of the four groups was significantly different (p parenting style and after that authoritative parenting style were followed by higher social adaptability in adolescent girls.

  4. Effective Parenting and Socialization for Value Re-Orientation in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The paper discusses the meaning/concept and nature of parenting, effective parenting, some problems of parenting in Nigeria, socialization as a medium of value inculcation and value reorientation. The paper believes that value reorientation in Nigeria is a feasible project that can only be attained through the enforcement ...

  5. Antecedents of Chinese parents' autonomy support and psychological control: the interplay between parents' self-development socialization goals and adolescents' school performance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Qian; Chan, Hoi-Wing; Lin, Li

    2012-11-01

    Despite ample evidence for the benefits of parental autonomy support and the harms of parental psychological control to Chinese adolescents' well-being, little is known about what foreshadows these parenting behaviors among Chinese parents. The current research addressed this gap in the literature. It tested the hypothesis that parents' endorsement of self-development socialization goals (i.e., regarding a positive sense of self in terms of holding optimistic attitudes toward oneself, feeling autonomous in one's actions, and establishing one's independence from others, as important for adolescents to develop) and adolescents' school performance may interact to predict parental autonomy support and psychological control in urban China. Three hundred and forty-one Chinese seventh graders (mean age = 13.30 years, 58 % female) and their parents (186 mothers and 155 fathers) participated. Parents reported on their own and their spouses' endorsement of self-development socialization goals; adolescents reported on parental autonomy support and psychological control; and adolescents' grades were obtained from school records. Significant interactions were found between parents' socialization goals and adolescents' grades in predicting parenting behaviors. When adolescents were doing well at school, the stronger parents' endorsement of self-development socialization goals, the greater their autonomy support and the lesser their psychological control; when adolescents were doing poorly at school, regardless of parents' socialization goals, their autonomy support was relatively low and their psychological control was relatively high. These findings highlight a tension between parental concerns over adolescents' self-development and academic success, which needs to be resolved to promote autonomy support and prevent psychological control among urban Chinese parents.

  6. Social cognition and metacognition in obsessive-compulsive disorder: an explorative pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mavrogiorgou, Paraskevi; Bethge, Mareike; Luksnat, Stefanie; Nalato, Fabio; Juckel, Georg; Brüne, Martin

    2016-04-01

    Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a severe psychiatric condition that is, among other features, characterized by marked impairment in social functioning. Although theoretically plausible with regard to neurobiological underpinnings of OCD, there is little research about possible impairments in social cognitive and meta-cognitive abilities and their connections with social functioning in patients with OCD. Accordingly, we sought to examine social cognitive skills and metacognition in OCD. Twenty OCD patients and age-, sex-, and education-matched 20 healthy controls were assessed using neurocognitive and diverse social cognitive skills including the Ekman 60 Faces test, the Hinting Task, the faux pas test, and a proverb test. In addition, the Metacognition Questionnaire-30 was administered to both the OCD and the control groups. Social functioning was measured using the Personal and Social Performance Scale. Symptom severity in patients was determined by the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale and the Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory. No group differences emerged in basic social cognitive abilities. In contrast, compared to controls, OCD patients scored higher on all MCQ dimensions, particularly negative beliefs about worry, uncontrollability, and danger; beliefs about need to control thoughts; and cognitive self-consciousness. There were no significant correlations between social or metacognitive parameters and OCD symptom severity. However, in the patient group, depression and metacognition predicted social functioning. OCD patients show normal basal social cognitive abilities, but dysfunctional metacognitive profiles, which may contribute to their psychosocial impairment.

  7. Parenting Styles and Practices of Latino Parents and Latino Fifth Graders' Academic, Cognitive, Social, and Behavioral Outcomes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jabagchourian, John J.; Sorkhabi, Nadia; Quach, Wendy; Strage, Amy

    2014-01-01

    A vast literature documents a host of advantages conferred upon middle class European American children whose parents employ an authoritative style of parenting, including enhanced academic achievement and positive behavioral outcomes. The literature is much less clear about the relationship between parental authority style and child outcomes in…

  8. Fit in the Body: Matching Embodied Cognition with Social-Ecological Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Janne I. Hukkinen

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Analysis of fit has focused on the macrolevel fit between social institutions and ecosystems, and bypassed the microlevel fit between individual cognition and its socio-material environment. I argue that the conceptualizations we develop about social-ecological systems and our position in them should be understood as ways for a fundamentally cognitive organism to adapt to particular social and ecological situations. Since at issue is our survival as a species, we need to better understand the structure and dynamics of fit between human cognition and its social-ecological environment. I suggest that the embodied cognition perspective opens up possibilities for "nudging" evolution through the conceptual integration of the cognitively attractive but ecologically unrealistic neoclassical economics, and the cognitively less attractive but ecologically more realistic adaptive cycle theory (panarchy. The result is a conceptually integrated model, the Roller Coaster Blend, which expresses in metaphorical terms why competitive individuals are better off cooperating than competing with each other in the face of absolute resource limits. The blend enables the reframing of messages about the limits of the social-ecological system in terms of growth rather than degrowth. This is cognitively appealing, as upward growth fires in our minds the neural connections of "more," "control", and "happy." The blend's potential for nudging behavior arises from its autopoietic characteristic: it can be both an account of the social-ecological system as an emergent structure that is capable of renewing itself, and a cognitive attractor of individuals whose recruitment reinforces the integrity of the social-ecological system.

  9. Parent- and Self-Reported Social Skills Importance in Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rankin, James A.; Weber, Rebecca J.; Kang, Erin; Lerner, Matthew D.

    2016-01-01

    While social skills are commonly assessed in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), little is known about individuals' and families' beliefs regarding importance of these skills. Seventy-four parents and their children with ASD rated social skills importance and severity, as well as ASD-specific deficit severity. Parents and youth rated social skills as…

  10. Analysis of Online Social Networks to Understand Information Sharing Behaviors Through Social Cognitive Theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoon, Hong-Jun; Tourassi, Georgia

    2014-05-01

    Analyzing the contents of online social networks is an effective process for monitoring and understanding peoples' behaviors. Since the nature of conversation and information propagation is similar to traditional conversation and learning, one of the popular socio-cognitive methods, social cognitive theory was applied to online social networks to. Two major news topics about colon cancer were chosen to monitor traffic of Twitter messages. The activity of "leaders" on the issue (i.e., news companies or people will prior Twitter activity on topics related to colon cancer) was monitored. In addition, the activity of "followers", people who never discussed the topics before, but replied to the discussions was also monitored. Topics that produce tangible benefits such as positive outcomes from appropriate preventive actions received dramatically more attention and online social media traffic. Such characteristics can be explained with social cognitive theory and thus present opportunities for effective health campaigns.

  11. Universal dimensions of social cognition: warmth and competence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fiske, Susan T; Cuddy, Amy J C; Glick, Peter

    2007-02-01

    Like all perception, social perception reflects evolutionary pressures. In encounters with conspecifics, social animals must determine, immediately, whether the "other" is friend or foe (i.e. intends good or ill) and, then, whether the "other" has the ability to enact those intentions. New data confirm these two universal dimensions of social cognition: warmth and competence. Promoting survival, these dimensions provide fundamental social structural answers about competition and status. People perceived as warm and competent elicit uniformly positive emotions and behavior, whereas those perceived as lacking warmth and competence elicit uniform negativity. People classified as high on one dimension and low on the other elicit predictable, ambivalent affective and behavioral reactions. These universal dimensions explain both interpersonal and intergroup social cognition.

  12. Functional Status, Cognition, and Social Relationships in Dyadic Perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, Jaclyn S; Hsieh, Ning

    2017-03-28

    Health limitations can change older adults' social relationships and social engagement. Yet, researchers rarely examine how the disability of one's spouse might affect one's social relationships, even though such life strains are often experienced as a couple. This study investigates the association between functional and cognitive limitations and social experience in a dyadic context. We use actor-partner interdependence models to analyze the partner data from 953 heterosexual couples in Wave II (2010-2011) of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project. One spouse's functional and cognitive health is associated with the other's relationship quality, but the pattern varies by gender. Husbands' functional limitations are associated with lower marital support and higher marital strain in wives, but wives' functional limitations are related to lower family and friendship strain in husbands. Husbands' cognitive impairment also predicts higher family and friend support in wives. Findings support a gendered dyadic relationship between health and social life and highlight women's caregiver role and better connection with family and friends. There are also differences between experiencing cognitive and physical limitations in couples. Finally, mild health impairment sometimes shows stronger effects on social relationships than severe impairment, suggesting adaptation to health transition. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  13. Bidirectional Associations among Sensitive Parenting, Language Development, and Social Competence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barnett, Melissa A.; Gustafsson, Hanna; Deng, Min; Mills-Koonce, W. Roger; Cox, Martha

    2012-01-01

    Rapid changes in language skills and social competence, both of which are linked to sensitive parenting, characterize early childhood. The present study examines bidirectional associations among mothers' sensitive parenting and children's language skills and social competence from 24 to 36?months in a community sample of 174 families. In addition,…

  14. [Human interaction, social cognition, and the superior temporal sulcus].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brunelle, Francis; Saitovitch, Anna; Boddaert, Nathalie; Grevent, David; Cambier, Jean; Lelord, Gilbert; Samson, Yves; Zilbovicius, Monica

    2013-01-01

    Human beings are social animals. This ability to live together is ensured by cognitive functions, the neuroanatomical bases of which are starting to be unraveled by MRI-based studies. The regions and network engaged in this process are known as the "social brain ". The core of this network is the superior temporal sulcus (STS), which integrates sensory and emotional inputs. Modeling studies of healthy volunteers have shown the role of the STS.in recognizing others as biological beings, as well as facial and eye-gaze recognition, intentionality and emotions. This cognitive capacity has been described as the "theory of mind ". Pathological models such as autism, in which the main clinical abnormality is altered social abilities and communication, have confirmed the role of the STS in the social brain. Conceptualisation of this empathic capacity has been described as "meta cognition ", which forms the basis of human social organizationand culture.

  15. Effects of social isolation and re-socialization on cognition and ADAR1 (p110) expression in mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Wei; An, Dong; Xu, Hong; Cheng, Xiaoxin; Wang, Shiwei; Yu, Weizhi; Yu, Deqin; Zhao, Dan; Sun, Yiping; Deng, Wuguo; Tang, Yiyuan; Yin, Shengming

    2016-01-01

    It has been reported that social isolation stress could be a key factor that leads to cognitive deficit for both humans and rodent models. However, detailed mechanisms are not yet clear. ADAR1 (Adenosine deaminase acting on RNA) is an enzyme involved in RNA editing that has a close relation to cognitive function. We have hypothesized that social isolation stress may impact the expression of ADAR1 in the brain of mice with cognitive deficit. To test our hypothesis, we evaluated the cognition ability of mice isolated for different durations (2, 4, and 8 weeks) using object recognition and object location tests; we also measured ADAR1 expression in hippocampus and cortex using immunohistochemistry and western blot. Our study showed that social isolation stress induced spatial and non-spatial cognition deficits of the tested mice. In addition, social isolation significantly increased both the immunoreactivity and protein expression of ADAR1 (p110) in the hippocampus and frontal cortex. Furthermore, re-socialization could not only recover the cognition deficits, but also bring ADAR1 (p110) immunoreactivity of hippocampus and frontal cortex, as well as ADAR1 (p110) protein expression of hippocampus back to the normal level for the isolated mice in adolescence. In conclusion, social isolation stress significantly increases ADAR1 (p110) expression in the hippocampus and frontal cortex of the mice with cognitive deficit. This finding may open a window to better understand the reasons (e.g., epigenetic change) that are responsible for social isolation-induced cognitive deficit and help the development of novel therapies for the resulted diseases.

  16. Cognitive Benefits of Online Social Networking for Healthy Older Adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myhre, Janelle W; Mehl, Matthias R; Glisky, Elizabeth L

    2017-09-01

    Research suggests that older adults who remain socially active and cognitively engaged have better cognitive function than those who are isolated and disengaged. This study examined the efficacy of learning and using an online social networking website, Facebook.com, as an intervention to maintain or enhance cognitive function in older adults. Forty-one older adults were assigned to learn and use Facebook (n = 14) or an online diary website (active control, n = 13) for 8 weeks or placed on a waitlist (n = 14). Outcome measures included neuropsychological tests of executive functions, memory, and processing speed and self-report questionnaires about social engagement. The Facebook group showed a significant increase in a composite measure of updating, an executive function factor associated with complex working memory tasks, compared to no significant change in the control groups. Other measures of cognitive function and social support showed no differential improvement in the Facebook group. Learning and using an online social networking site may provide specific benefits for complex working memory in a group of healthy older adults. This may reflect the particular cognitive demands associated with online social networking and/or the benefits of social engagement more generally. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  17. Parental Control of the Time Preadolescents Spend on Social Media: Links with Preadolescents' Social Media Appearance Comparisons and Mental Health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fardouly, Jasmine; Magson, Natasha R; Johnco, Carly J; Oar, Ella L; Rapee, Ronald M

    2018-07-01

    Time spent on social media and making online comparisons with others may influence users' mental health. This study examined links between parental control over the time their child spends on social media, preadolescents' time spent browsing social media, preadolescents' appearance comparisons on social media, and preadolescents' appearance satisfaction, depressive symptoms, and life satisfaction. Preadolescent social media users (N = 284, 49.1% female; aged 10-12) and one of their parents completed online surveys. Preadolescents, whose parents reported greater control over their child's time on social media, reported better mental health. This relationship was mediated by preadolescents spending less time browsing and making fewer appearance comparisons on social media. Parental control over time spent on social media may be associated with benefits for mental health among preadolescents.

  18. Maternal socialization goals, parenting styles, and social-emotional adjustment among Chinese and European American young adults: testing a mediation model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yan; Costanzo, Philip R; Putallaz, Martha

    2010-01-01

    The authors compared the associations among perceived maternal socialization goals (self-development, filial piety, and collectivism), perceived maternal parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian, and training), and the social-emotional adjustment (self-esteem, academic self-efficacy, and depression) between Chinese and European American young adults. The mediation processes in which socialization goals relate to young adults' adjustment outcomes through parenting styles were examined. Results showed that European American participants perceived higher maternal self-development socialization goals, whereas Chinese participants perceived higher maternal collectivism socialization goals as well as more authoritarian parenting. Cross-cultural similarities were found in the associations between perceived maternal authoritative parenting and socioemotional adjustment (e.g., higher self-esteem and higher academic self-efficacy) across the two cultural groups. However, perceived maternal authoritarian and training parenting styles were found only to be related to Chinese participants' adjustment (e.g., higher academic self-efficacy and lower depression). The mediation analyses showed that authoritative parenting significantly mediated the positive associations between the self-development and collectivism goal and socioemotional adjustment for both cultural groups. Additionally, training parenting significantly mediated the positive association between the filial piety goal and young adults' academic self-efficacy for the Chinese group only. Findings of this study highlight the importance of examining parental socialization goals in cross-cultural parenting research.

  19. A psychosocial analysis of parents' decisions for limiting their young child's screen time: An examination of attitudes, social norms and roles, and control perceptions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamilton, Kyra; Spinks, Teagan; White, Katherine M; Kavanagh, David J; Walsh, Anne M

    2016-05-01

    Preschool-aged children spend substantial amounts of time engaged in screen-based activities. As parents have considerable control over their child's health behaviours during the younger years, it is important to understand those influences that guide parents' decisions about their child's screen time behaviours. A prospective design with two waves of data collection, 1 week apart, was adopted. Parents (n = 207) completed a Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB)-based questionnaire, with the addition of parental role construction (i.e., parents' expectations and beliefs of responsibility for their child's behaviour) and past behaviour. A number of underlying beliefs identified in a prior pilot study were also assessed. The model explained 77% (with past behaviour accounting for 5%) of the variance in intention and 50% (with past behaviour accounting for 3%) of the variance in parental decisions to limit child screen time. Attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, parental role construction, and past behaviour predicted intentions, and intentions and past behaviour predicted follow-up behaviour. Underlying screen time beliefs (e.g., increased parental distress, pressure from friends, inconvenience) were also identified as guiding parents' decisions. Results support the TPB and highlight the importance of beliefs for understanding parental decisions for children's screen time behaviours, as well as the addition of parental role construction. This formative research provides necessary depth of understanding of sedentary lifestyle behaviours in young children which can be adopted in future interventions to test the efficacy of the TPB mechanisms in changing parental behaviour for their child's health. What is already known on this subject? Identifying determinants of child screen time behaviour is vital to the health of young people. Social-cognitive and parental role constructions are key influences of parental decision-making. Little is known about the

  20. Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Have Merited Concerns about Their Later-Born Infants

    Science.gov (United States)

    McMahon, Caitlin R.; Malesa, Elizabeth E.; Yoder, Paul J.; Stone, Wendy L.

    2007-01-01

    Infant siblings of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are at elevated risk for social, cognitive, and language delays which may cause parents to become hypervigilant (i.e., excessively worried) about their infant's development. The extent to which parental concern is related to actual cognitive or language impairment in these infants is…

  1. Cognitive, emotional and social markers of serial murdering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Angrilli, Alessandro; Sartori, Giuseppe; Donzella, Giovanna

    2013-01-01

    Although criminal psychopathy is starting to be relatively well described, our knowledge of the characteristics and scientific markers of serial murdering is still very poor. A serial killer who murdered more than five people, KT, was administered a battery of standardized tests aimed at measuring neuropsychological impairment and social/emotional cognition deficits. KT exhibited a striking dissociation between a high level of emotional detachment and a low score on the antisocial behavior scale on the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R). The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 showed a normal pattern with the psychotic triad at borderline level. KT had a high intelligence score and showed almost no impairment in cognitive tests sensitive to frontal lobe dysfunction (Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Theory of Mind, Tower of London, this latter evidenced a mild impairment in planning performance). In the tests on moral, emotional and social cognition, his patterns of response differed from matched controls and from past reports on criminal psychopaths as, unlike these individuals, KT exhibited normal recognition of fear and a relatively intact knowledge of moral rules but he was impaired in the recognition of anger, embarrassment and conventional social rules. The overall picture of KT suggests that serial killing may be closer to normality than psychopathy defined according to either the DSM IV or the PCL-R, and it would be characterized by a relatively spared moral cognition and selective deficits in social and emotional cognition domains.

  2. PARANOID INDIVIDUALS WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA SHOW GREATER SOCIAL COGNITIVE BIAS AND WORSE SOCIAL FUNCTIONING THAN NON-PARANOID INDIVIDUALS WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pinkham, Amy E; Harvey, Philip D; Penn, David L

    2016-03-01

    Paranoia is a common symptom of schizophrenia that may be related to how individuals process and respond to social stimuli. Previous investigations support a link between increased paranoia and greater social cognitive impairments, but these studies have been limited to single domains of social cognition, and no studies have examined how paranoia may influence functional outcome. Data from 147 individuals with schizophrenia were used to examine whether actively paranoid and non-paranoid individuals with schizophrenia differ in social cognition and functional outcomes. On measures assessing social cognitive bias, paranoid individuals endorsed more hostile and blaming attributions and identified more faces as untrustworthy; however, paranoid and non-paranoid individuals did not differ on emotion recognition and theory of mind tasks assessing social cognitive ability. Likewise, paranoid individuals showed greater impairments in real-world interpersonal relationships and social acceptability as compared to non-paranoid patients, but these differences did not extend to performance based tasks assessing functional capacity and social competence. These findings isolate specific social cognitive disparities between paranoid and non-paranoid subgroups and suggest that paranoia may exacerbate the social dysfunction that is commonly experienced by individuals with schizophrenia.

  3. Quality of both parents' cognitive guidance and quantity of early childhood education: Influences on pre-mathematical development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sorariutta, Anne; Silvén, Maarit

    2018-06-01

    Only a handful of longitudinal studies have explored the effects of both parents in early parenthood on children's cognitive development, and no study has controlled for simultaneous early childhood education and care (ECEC) experiences. To examine the similarity of each parent's cognitive guidance and contribution to children's pre-mathematical outcomes across parent gender while controlling for amount of ECEC. A longitudinal study on 66 Finnish two-parent families and their children. Both parents' autonomy support and scaffolding behaviour were observed during play interactions with the child at 2;0. Children's numerical and spatial skills were tested at 3;0 and 4;0. Parental reports on amount of ECEC in months were collected at 2;0, 3;0, and 4;0. The two parenting constructs were conceptually similar across parent gender as demonstrated by fairly strong measurement equivalence. While mothers on average showed more scaffolding and equal amounts of autonomy support compared to fathers during play interaction, they displayed less variability in the former and more variability in the latter behaviour. The contribution of mothers' and fathers' cognitive guidance was more similar for children's numerical than spatial development. Both parents' education positively predicted autonomy support but not amount of ECEC exposure, which was positively related to numerical development. As expected, parents' education did not predict ECEC exposure, and child gender was not related to child outcomes. The findings are discussed in relation to measurement invariance and gender-neutral parenting in the context of early childhood. © 2018 The British Psychological Society.

  4. Emotional engagements predict and enhance social cognition in young chimpanzees.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bard, Kim A; Bakeman, Roger; Boysen, Sarah T; Leavens, David A

    2014-09-01

    Social cognition in infancy is evident in coordinated triadic engagements, that is, infants attending jointly with social partners and objects. Current evolutionary theories of primate social cognition tend to highlight species differences in cognition based on human-unique cooperative motives. We consider a developmental model in which engagement experiences produce differential outcomes. We conducted a 10-year-long study in which two groups of laboratory-raised chimpanzee infants were given quantifiably different engagement experiences. Joint attention, cooperativeness, affect, and different levels of cognition were measured in 5- to 12-month-old chimpanzees, and compared to outcomes derived from a normative human database. We found that joint attention skills significantly improved across development for all infants, but by 12 months, the humans significantly surpassed the chimpanzees. We found that cooperativeness was stable in the humans, but by 12 months, the chimpanzee group given enriched engagement experiences significantly surpassed the humans. Past engagement experiences and concurrent affect were significant unique predictors of both joint attention and cooperativeness in 5- to 12-month-old chimpanzees. When engagement experiences and concurrent affect were statistically controlled, joint attention and cooperation were not associated. We explain differential social cognition outcomes in terms of the significant influences of previous engagement experiences and affect, in addition to cognition. Our study highlights developmental processes that underpin the emergence of social cognition in support of evolutionary continuity. © 2014 The Authors. Developmental Science Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  5. The relationship between parenting attitudes, negative cognition, and the depressive symptoms according to gender in Korean adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Subin; Kim, Bung-Nyun; Park, Min-Hyeon

    2016-01-01

    Parenting style is one potential contributor to the development of adolescents' cognitions, self-esteem and emotional problems. This study examined the relationship between maternal parenting attitudes and adolescents' negative cognitions, and depressive symptoms according to gender. A total of 401 middle and high school students were recruited (i.e. 221 males and 180 females; mean age, 13.92 ± 1.31 years). The Maternal Behavior Research Instrument assessed maternal parenting attitudes. Analyses examined the relationship between parenting attitudes and affective symptoms, with self-esteem and negative automatic thoughts as mediators of these relations. Maternal rejecting attitudes were positively associated with depressive symptoms via increasing negative autonomic thoughts and decreasing self-esteem among female adolescents. Among male adolescents, maternal rejecting attitudes were associated with low self-esteem, but they were not associated with depressive symptoms. Maternal parenting has a larger impact on the emotional adjustment of females compared to males. Interventions to increase self-esteem and correct negative cognitions may be helpful for depressed female adolescents, specifically for those whose mothers are rejecting.

  6. Dynamical Cognitive Models of Social Issues in Russia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitina, Olga; Abraham, Fred; Petrenko, Victor

    We examine and model dynamics in three areas of social cognition: (1) political transformations within Russia, (2) evaluation of political trends in other countries by Russians, and (3) evaluation of Russian stereotypes concerning women. We try to represent consciousness as vectorfields and trajectories in a cognitive state space. We use psychosemantic techniques that allow definition of the state space and the systematic construction of these vectorfields and trajectories and their portrait from research data. Then we construct models to fit them, using multiple regression methods to obtain linear differential equations. These dynamical models of social cognition fit the data quite well. (1) The political transformations were modeled by a spiral repellor in a two-dimensional space of a democratic-totalitarian factor and social depression-optimism factor. (2) The evaluation of alien political trends included a flow away from a saddle toward more stable and moderate political regimes in a 2D space, of democratic-totalitarian and unstable-stable cognitive dimensions. (3) The gender study showed expectations (attractors) for more liberated, emancipated roles for women in the future.

  7. Parent Emotion Representations and the Socialization of Emotion Regulation in the Family

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meyer, Sara; Raikes, H. Abigail; Virmani, Elita A.; Waters, Sara; Thompson, Ross A.

    2014-01-01

    There is considerable knowledge of parental socialization processes that directly and indirectly influence the development of children's emotion self-regulation, but little understanding of the specific beliefs and values that underlie parents' socialization approaches. This study examined multiple aspects of parents' self-reported…

  8. Predictors of race, adoption, and sexual orientation related socialization of adoptive parents of young children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goldberg, Abbie E; Smith, JuliAnna Z

    2016-04-01

    Using a sample of 125 lesbian, gay, and heterosexual adoptive parent couples with young children (M = 6.32 years), this study examined predictors of direct socialization (preparation for adoptism, racism, and heterosexism) and indirect socialization (modeling interactions by responding to outsiders' inquiries about their child's adoptive status, racial background, or family structure). In terms of direct socialization, parents of older children tended to engage in more socialization around adoptism and heterosexism, and parents of daughters tended to engage in more socialization around racism and heterosexism. Greater perceived child interest in adoption was related to more direct socialization around adoptism. Parents of color reported more direct socialization around racism. Having a child of color was related to more direct socialization around heterosexism. Regarding indirect socialization, sexual minority parents reported more socialization around adoption and race. Greater perceived child interest in adoption was related to more indirect adoption socialization. Being more "out" was related to more indirect socialization around parent sexual orientation. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  9. Emplotting Hikikomori: Japanese Parents' Narratives of Social Withdrawal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rubinstein, Ellen

    2016-12-01

    Hikikomori, often glossed as "social withdrawal," emerged as a sociomedical condition among Japanese youth at the end of the twentieth century, and it continues to fascinate and concern the public. Explanatory frameworks for hikikomori abound, with different stakeholders attributing it to individual psychopathology, poor parenting, and/or a lack of social support structures. This article takes an interpretive approach to hikikomori by exploring parents' narrative constructions of hikikomori children in support group meetings and in-depth interviews. I argue that some parents were able to find hope in hikikomori by 'emplotting' their children's experiences into a larger narrative about onset, withdrawal, and recovery, which helped them remain invested in the present by maintaining a sense of possibility about the future. Contrary to literature that examines hikikomori as an epidemic of isolated individuals, I demonstrate how parents play a key role in hikikomori through meaning-making activities that have the potential to shape their children's experiences of withdrawal.

  10. A Commentary on Parent-Child Cognitive Interaction Research: What Have we Learned From Two Decades of Research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yvette Renee Harris

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available The role of family influences on preschool and school age cognitive development has received considerable empirical attention from cognitive developmental psychology researchers in the last few decades. As a result of the interest, investigators have focused their attention on developing coding/observational systems to capture the interactions occurring between mothers and their young children. This paper reviews a select body of research on parent child cognitive learning interactions with the goal of determining how the researchers have operationalized the behaviors that occur within learning interactions. The paper concludes with a discussion of the suggestions on next steps for conducting parent child cognitive learning interaction research in the future.

  11. Mind the fish: zebrafish as a model in cognitive social neuroscience

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rui F Oliveira

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available Understanding how the brain implements social behavior on one hand, and how social processes feedback on the brain to promote fine-tuning of behavioural output according to changes in the social environment is a major challenge in contemporary neuroscience. A critical step to take this challenge successfully is finding the appropriate level of analysis when relating social to biological phenomena. Given the enormous complexity of both the neural networks of the brain and social systems, the use of a cognitive level of analysis (in an information processing perspective is proposed here as an explanatory interface between brain and behavior. A conceptual framework for a cognitive approach to comparative social neuroscience is proposed, consisting of the following steps to be taken across different species with varying social systems: (1 identification of the functional building blocks of social skills; (2 identification of the cognitive mechanisms underlying the previously identified social skills; and (3 mapping these information processing mechanisms onto the brain. Teleost fish are presented here as a group of choice to develop this approach, given the diversity of social systems present in closely related species that allows for planned phylogenetic comparisons, and the availability of neurogenetic tools that allows the visualization and manipulation of selected neural circuits in model species such as the zebrafish. Finally, the state-of-the art of zebrafish social cognition and of the tools available to map social cognitive abilities to neural circuits in zebrafish are reviewed.

  12. Terapia cognitivo-comportamental da fobia social Cognitive-behavioral therapy in social phobia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lígia M Ito

    2008-10-01

    Full Text Available OBJETIVO: Este artigo revisa aspectos relevantes da fobia social e os estágios de tratamento através da terapia cognitivo-comportamental em crianças, adolescentes e adultos. MÉTODO: A partir do banco de dados Medline, realizou-se revisão da literatura publicada a respeito do tratamento da fobia social por meio da terapia cognitivo-comportamental. RESULTADOS: Revisão da literatura sugere que a fobia social é uma condição prevalente e crônica, caracterizada por inibição social e timidez excessiva. Tanto o diagnóstico como o tratamento desse transtorno são comumente determinados pelo nível de incômodo e pelo prejuízo funcional. Estudos populacionais indicam taxas de prevalência ao longo da vida para a fobia social entre 2,5 e 13,3%. As principais técnicas utilizadas na terapia cognitivo-comportamental para a fobia social são descritas e exemplificadas em um relato de caso. CONCLUSÕES: Há consenso geral na literatura de que a terapia cognitivo-comportamental é eficaz tanto para o tratamento de jovens como de adultos com fobia social. Uma vez que a fobia social com freqüência tem início precoce, a identificação de crianças com risco acentuado para o desenvolvimento de fobia social deve ser priorizada em investigações futuras.OBJECTIVE: This article reviews relevant aspects of social phobia and the stages of treatment within cognitive-behavioral therapy in children and adolescents, as well as in adults. METHOD: A review of the literature published on the treatment of social phobia using cognitive-behavioral treatments was performed using the Medline database. RESULTS: A review of the literature suggests that social phobia is a chronic and prevalent condition, characterized by social inhibition and excessive shyness. Diagnosis and treatment of the disorder are usually determined by distress level and functional impairment. Population studies indicate that lifetime prevalence rates for social phobia range from 2.5 to 13

  13. Ethnic variations in parental ethnic socialization and adolescent ethnic identity: a longitudinal study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Else-Quest, Nicole M; Morse, Emily

    2015-01-01

    Achievement of a positive ethnic identity has been linked to positive outcomes for ethnic minority youth and is fostered by parental ethnic socialization practices. In light of findings of variability in developmental trajectories and outcomes, we examined ethnic group variations in parents' ethnic socialization practices and adolescents' ethnic identity. Within a sample of 370 adolescents who self-identified as White, African American, Latino/a, or Asian American, and their parents, parental ethnic socialization practices (including preparation for bias, promotion of mistrust, and cultural socialization) and adolescent ethnic identity development (including identity exploration and commitment) were assessed at 10th and 11th grades. Consistent with predictions, African American youth reported higher levels of ethnic identity exploration and commitment than youth from other ethnic groups, and parents of African American youth tended to report higher levels of ethnic socialization than other parents. Parental cultural socialization significantly predicted adolescent ethnic identity exploration and commitment 1 year later; ethnicity did not moderate this link. Findings are discussed in the context of the schools and urban community from which the sample was recruited, highlighting the importance of sociocultural context in development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  14. Parental social networks during childhood and offspring depression in early adulthood: a lifecourse approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allchin, Adelyn; Melchior, Maria; Fombonne, Eric; Surkan, Pamela J

    2016-07-04

    Little is known on how parental social relationships may affect their children's mental health. We sought to examine the relation between parental social relationship characteristics and subsequent offspring depression in young adulthood. We used 2009 Trajectoires Épidémiologiques en Population (TEMPO) study data from 1087 French young adults ages 22 to 35 and parental data from the corresponding Gaz et Eléctricité (GAZEL) study in 1991. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine parental social networks, quality of parental relationships, and reciprocity of parental social support measured in 1991 in relation to offspring depression in young adulthood measured using the Adult Self Report in 2009. Analyses were stratified by participant sex. In adjusted models, daughters of parents who reported giving more support to others than they received had 1.72 higher odds (95% CI, 1.09-2.70) of depression in young adulthood. Daughters of parents who were unsatisfied with their social relationships had 2.14 (95% CI, 1.22-3.76) higher odds of depression. Among male participants, there was no statistically significant association between parental relationship satisfaction, reciprocity of parental exchanges, and depression. Parental relationships during mid-childhood have long-term associations with offspring depression. Results suggest that enhancing social support for parents may have positive implications for their children's mental health. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  15. Emotion Socialization by Mothers and Fathers: Coherence among Behaviors and Associations with Parent Attitudes and Children's Social Competence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baker, Jason K.; Fenning, Rachel M.; Crnic, Keith A.

    2011-01-01

    This study examined inter-relations among different types of parental emotion socialization behaviors in 88 mothers and 76 fathers (co-residing with participating mothers) of eight-year-old children. Parents completed questionnaires assessing emotion socialization behaviors, emotion-related attitudes, and their children's social functioning. An…

  16. [Formula: see text]Associations among parent-child relationships and cognitive and language outcomes in a clinical sample of preschool children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leiser, Kara; Heffelfinger, Amy; Kaugars, Astrida

    2017-02-01

    To examine associations among parent-child relationship characteristics and child cognitive and language outcomes. Preschool children (n = 72) with early neurological insult completed assessments of cognitive and language functioning and participated in a parent-child semi-structured interaction. Quality of the parent-child relationship accounted for a significant amount of unique variance (12%) in predicting children's overall cognitive and language functioning. Impact of neurological insult was a significant predictor. Caregiver-child interactions that are harmonious and reciprocal as evidenced by affective and/or verbal exchanges support children's cognitive and language development. Observations of interactions can guide providers in facilitating child- and family-centered interventions.

  17. Pattern of social cognition deficits in individuals with borderline personality disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anupama V; Bhola, Poornima; Thirthalli, Jagadisha; Mehta, Urvakhsh Meherwan

    2018-03-01

    Social cognition deficits have been implicated in the affect regulation and interpersonal difficulties seen in borderline personality disorder (BPD). The study examined patterns of social cognition abilities, using self-report and task-based measures, among individuals diagnosed with BPD. The sample included a clinical group of 20 patients diagnosed with BPD and 20 age and gender-matched control group participants from the community with no psychiatric diagnosis. The measures included the Mentalization Questionnaire, the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test and the Social Cognition Rating Tool in Indian Setting. Results indicated that the clinical group had lower self-reported mentalizing ability. Facial emotion recognition ability was significantly lower for the clinical group, particularly for photographs of the eye region with positive and neutral valences. The clinical group had significantly higher personalizing bias, and greater difficulties in social perception. The two groups did not differ on first and second order theory of mind, recognition of faux pas and externalizing bias. The results point to the links between social cognition deficits and interpersonal difficulties among persons with BPD. Implications include the need for pre-therapy assessment of the magnitude and patterns of social cognition difficulties in BPD, the development of culturally and ecologically valid assessments and the evaluation of interventions for social cognition vulnerabilities among individuals with BPD. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. [Social cognition disorders in Klinefelter syndrome: A specific phenotype? (KS)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babinet, M-N; Rigard, C; Peyroux, É; Dragomir, A-R; Plotton, I; Lejeune, H; Demily, C

    2017-10-01

    The Klinefelter syndrome (KS) is a genetic condition characterized by an X supernumerary sex chromosome in males. The syndrome is frequently associated with cognitive impairment. Indeed, the different areas of the executive sphere can be affected such as inhibition, cognitive flexibility but also attentional and visual-spatial domain. Social cognition disorders, predominantly on emotional recognition processes, have also been documented. In addition, the syndrome may be associated with psychiatric symptoms. Our study aims to characterize of the various components of social cognition in the SK: facial emotional recognition, theory of mind and attributional style. For this two groups (SK group versus control group) of participants (n=16) matched for age and sociocultural level were recruited. Participants with intellectual disabilities, psychiatric or neurological disorders were excluded. Three social cognition tests were available: the TREF, the MASC, the AIHQ. Neurocognitive functions were assessed by the fNart, the subtest "logical memory" of the MEM-III, the subtests of the two VOSP battery, the d2, the TMT and the Stroop test. The SK group had specific social cognition disorders in comparison to the control group. Two emotions in particular were less well recognized: fear and contempt. In addition, the SK group had significantly lower results in theory of mind. Regarding the hostile attribution bias, no significant difference was found. Finally, the results showed correlations between specific attentional disorders and facial emotional recognition. Our study emphasizes social cognition disorders in SK. These disorders could be considered as a phenotypic trait in the syndrome. The interest of better characterizing the cognitive phenotype of genetic disorders that can affect the neurodevelopment is to offer specific cognitive remediation strategies. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.

  19. Understanding Knowledge Sharing between IT Professionals--An Integration of Social Cognitive and Social Exchange Theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsai, Ming-Tien; Cheng, Nai-Chang

    2012-01-01

    The research includes various constructs based on social exchange theory and social cognitive theory. This study mainly explored the relationships among organisational justice, trust, commitment and knowledge-sharing cognition and verified their mediating effects through two variables of trust and commitment. A survey utilising a questionnaire was…

  20. Intact social cognitive processes in outpatients with anorexia nervosa: a pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kucharska, Katarzyna; Jeschke, Julia; Mafi, Reza

    2016-01-01

    The aim of the study was to assess social cognition in community patients suffering from anorexia nervosa (AN) compared to healthy controls. 25 women diagnosed with AN and 25 women matched for education level and age were involved in the study. Both subject groups were assessed using a set of validated experimental tasks, such as the facial expression recognition test, short recognition memory test for faces, 'Reading the mind in the eyes' test. Patients were assessed for symptoms of: eating disorder (the eating attitudes test-EAT-26), OCD (the Yale-Brown obsessive compulsive scale-Y-BOCS) and depression (Beck depression inventory-BDI). The research hypothesis indicated that patients suffering from anorexia represent no significant difference in social cognitive functioning in comparison to the healthy controls. These assessment scales were used to identify whether there are any problems according to social cognitive functioning especially emotion recognition and theory of mind (ToM). The primary outcome assessment was to identify social cognitive deficits in anorexic outpatients and secondary outcome was to verify whether these problems in emotional functioning found in women in acute phase of AN are state or trait effects. Anorexic patients showed significantly higher scores on EAT-26, BDI and Y-BOCS. No significant differences were found in performance of social cognitive tests and facial perception test. No marked alterations were found in social cognitive functioning in community patients with average body mass index (BMI) of 17.6. This may indicate that social cognition is a very complex construct to be reliably measured in anorexia nervosa considering relatively limited psychometric data for many social cognitive tasks. Further longitudinal studies are needed to untangle ongoing controversy whether social cognitive deficits in AN could be state or trait related.

  1. Maintenance of cultural diversity: social roles, social networks, and cognitive networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abrams, Marshall

    2014-06-01

    Smaldino suggests that patterns that give rise to group-level cultural traits can also increase individual-level cultural diversity. I distinguish social roles and related social network structures and discuss ways in which each might maintain diversity. I suggest that cognitive analogs of "cohesion," a property of networks that helps maintenance of diversity, might mediate the effects of social roles on diversity.

  2. Reactivity to Social Stress in Subclinical Social Anxiety: Emotional Experience, Cognitive Appraisals, Behavior, and Physiology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crişan, Liviu G.; Vulturar, Romana; Miclea, Mircea; Miu, Andrei C.

    2016-01-01

    Recent research indicates that subclinical social anxiety is associated with dysfunctions at multiple psychological and biological levels, in a manner that seems reminiscent of social anxiety disorder (SAD). This study aimed to describe multidimensional responses to laboratory-induced social stress in an analog sample selected for social anxiety symptoms. State anxiety, cognitive biases related to negative social evaluation, speech anxiety behaviors, and cortisol reactivity were assessed in the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Results showed that social anxiety symptoms were associated with increased state anxiety, biased appraisals related to the probability and cost of negative social evaluations, behavioral changes in facial expression that were consistent with speech anxiety, and lower cortisol reactivity. In addition, multiple interrelations between responses in the TSST were found, with positive associations between subjective experience, cognitive appraisals, and observable behavior, as well as negative associations between each of the former two types of response and cortisol reactivity. These results show that in response to social stressors, subclinical social anxiety is associated with significant changes in emotional experience, cognitive appraisals, behaviors, and physiology that could parallel those previously found in SAD samples. PMID:26858658

  3. Are Parents' Gender Schemas Related to Their Children's Gender-Related Cognitions? A Meta-Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tenenbaum, Harriet R.; Leaper, Campbell

    2002-01-01

    Used meta-analysis to examine relationship of parents' gender schemas and their offspring's gender-related cognitions, with samples ranging in age from infancy through early adulthood. Found a small but meaningful effect size (r=.16) indicating a positive correlation between parent gender schema and offspring measures. Effect sizes were influenced…

  4. Negative symptoms and social cognition: identifying targets for psychological interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lincoln, Tania M; Mehl, Stephanie; Kesting, Marie-Luise; Rief, Winfried

    2011-09-01

    How to improve treatment for negative symptoms is a continuing topic of debate. Suggestions have been made to advance psychological understanding of negative symptoms by focusing on the social cognitive processes involved in symptom formation and maintenance. Following the recommendations by the National Institute of Mental Health workshop on social cognition in schizophrenia, this study investigated associations between negative symptoms and various aspects of social cognition including Theory of Mind (ToM), attribution, empathy, self-esteem, and interpersonal self-concepts in 75 patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders and 75 healthy controls. Negative symptoms were significantly associated with difficulties in ToM, less readiness to be empathic, lower self-esteem, less self-serving bias, negative self-concepts related to interpersonal abilities, and dysfunctional acceptance beliefs. Different aspects of social cognition were mildly to moderately correlated and interacted in their impact on negative symptoms: Difficulties in ToM were associated with negative symptoms in persons with low but not in persons with medium or high levels of self-esteem. Taken together, the social cognition variables and their hypothesized interaction explained 39% of the variance in negative symptoms after controlling for neurocognition and depression. The results highlight the relevance of self-concepts related to social abilities, dysfunctional beliefs, and global self-worth alone and in interaction with ToM deficits for negative symptoms and thereby provide a helpful basis for advancing psychosocial interventions.

  5. A friend request from dear old dad: associations between parent-child social networking and adolescent outcomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coyne, Sarah M; Padilla-Walker, Laura M; Day, Randal D; Harper, James; Stockdale, Laura

    2014-01-01

    This study examined the relationship between parent-child social networking, connection, and outcomes for adolescents. Participants (491 adolescents and their parents) completed a number of questionnaires on social networking use, feelings of connection, and behavioral outcomes. Social networking with parents was associated with increased connection between parents and adolescents. Feelings of connection then mediated the relationship between social networking with parents and behavioral outcomes, including higher prosocial behavior and lower relational aggression and internalizing behavior. Conversely, adolescent social networking use without parents was associated with negative outcomes, such as increased relational aggression, internalizing behaviors, delinquency, and decreased feelings of connection. These results indicate that although high levels of social networking use may be problematic for some individuals, social networking with parents may potentially strengthen parent-child relationships and then lead to positive outcomes for adolescents.

  6. Fundamental Visual Representations of Social Cognition in ASD

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-12-01

    AWARD NUMBER: W81XWH-14-1-0565 TITLE: Fundamental Visual Representations of Social Cognition in ASD PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: John Foxe, Ph.D...Visual Representations of Social Cognition in ASD 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER W81XWH-14-1-0565 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S... vertical line) adaptation trials are started. This involves moving the target in by 3 degrees of visual angle while the participants eyes are “in

  7. Joint Attention, Social-Cognition, and Recognition Memory in Adults

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Kwanguk; Mundy, Peter

    2012-01-01

    The early emerging capacity for Joint Attention (JA), or socially coordinated visual attention, is thought to be integral to the development of social-cognition in childhood. Recent studies have also begun to suggest that JA affects adult cognition as well, but methodological limitations hamper research on this topic. To address this issue we developed a novel virtual reality paradigm that integrates eye-tracking and virtual avatar technology to measure two types of JA in adults, Initiating Joint Attention (IJA) and Responding to Joint Attention (RJA). Distinguishing these types of JA in research is important because they are thought to reflect unique, as well as common constellations of processes involved in human social-cognition and social learning. We tested the validity of the differentiation of IJA and RJA in our paradigm in two studies of picture recognition memory in undergraduate students. Study 1 indicated that young adults correctly identified more pictures they had previously viewed in an IJA condition (67%) than in a RJA (58%) condition, η2 = 0.57. Study 2 controlled for IJA and RJA stimulus viewing time differences, and replicated the findings of Study 1. The implications of these results for the validity of the paradigm and research on the affects of JA on adult social-cognition are discussed. PMID:22712011

  8. Social anxiety and parental overprotection in young adults with and without intellectual disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hemm, Cahley; Dagnan, Dave; Meyer, Thomas D

    2018-05-01

    Developmental literature highlights peer relationships and parental overprotection as factors implicated in the development of social anxiety. These factors are highly prevalent in the lives of people with intellectual disabilities; however research has not examined whether these factors are associated with social anxiety for this population. Twenty-one individuals without intellectual disabilities and 21 individuals with intellectual disabilities (aged 16-24 years) completed the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents with follow-up questions, the Glasgow Anxiety Scale-Intellectual disabilities and the parental overprotection subscale of the Parental Bonding Instrument with follow-up questions. Aspects of general and social anxiety were significantly greater in the intellectual disabilities group. There were no significant differences in parental overprotection between groups, however, qualitative analyses revealed differences in experiences of social anxiety and parental overprotection. Further research into factors associated with social anxiety in people with intellectual disabilities may inform adaptations to therapies and early intervention. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  9. Aspects of alcohol use disorder affecting social cognition as assessed using the Mini Social and Emotional Assessment (mini-SEA).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cox, Sharon; Bertoux, Maxime; Turner, John J D; Moss, Antony; Locker, Kirsty; Riggs, Kevin

    2018-04-10

    Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is associated with problems with processing complex social scenarios. Little is known about the relationship between distinct AUD-related factors (e.g., years of problematic drinking), aspects of cognitive function and dysfunction in individuals diagnosed with AUD, and the relative impact these may have on social cognition. To explore differences in social cognition between a group of participants diagnosed with AUD and controls, using a clinical measure, the Mini Social and Emotional Assessment (mini-SEA). The mini-SEA was used to evaluate social and emotional understanding through a facial emotional recognition task and by utilising a series of social scenes some of which contain a faux pas (social error). Eighty-five participants (individuals with AUD and controls) completed demographic questions and a general cognitive and social cognitive test battery over three consecutive days. Between group analyses revealed that the participants with AUD performed less well on the faux pas test, and differences were also revealed in the emotional facial recognition task. Years of problematic alcohol consumption was the strongest predictor of poor ToM reasoning. These results suggest a strong link between AUD chronicity and social cognition, though the direction of this relationship needs further elucidation. This may be of clinical relevance to abstinence and relapse management, as basic social cognition skills and ability to maintain interpersonal relationships are likely to be crucial to recovery. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Social Activity and Cognitive Functioning Over Time: A Coordinated Analysis of Four Longitudinal Studies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cassandra L. Brown

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Social activity is typically viewed as part of an engaged lifestyle that may help mitigate the deleterious effects of advanced age on cognitive function. As such, social activity has been examined in relation to cognitive abilities later in life. However, longitudinal evidence for this hypothesis thus far remains inconclusive. The current study sought to clarify the relationship between social activity and cognitive function over time using a coordinated data analysis approach across four longitudinal studies. A series of multilevel growth models with social activity included as a covariate is presented. Four domains of cognitive function were assessed: reasoning, memory, fluency, and semantic knowledge. Results suggest that baseline social activity is related to some, but not all, cognitive functions. Baseline social activity levels failed to predict rate of decline in most cognitive abilities. Changes in social activity were not consistently associated with cognitive functioning. Our findings do not provide consistent evidence that changes in social activity correspond to immediate benefits in cognitive functioning, except perhaps for verbal fluency.

  11. Donation to disaster relief campaigns: underlying social cognitive factors exposed

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Oosterhof, Liesbeth; Heuvelman, A.; Peters, O.

    2009-01-01

    number of very serious natural disasters have put an enormous pressure on relief organizations in the last few years. The present study exposes underlying social cognitive factors for donation to relief campaigns. A causal model was constructed, based on social cognitive theory, research on

  12. Interactions with parents and friends among chronically ill children: examining social networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herzer, Michele; Umfress, Kris; Aljadeff, Gabriel; Ghai, Kanika; Zakowski, Sandra G

    2009-12-01

    Children with medical conditions often experience a combination of positive and negative social interactions with parents and friends. Adult research examining cross-domain buffering effects has documented that supportive social ties can make up for shortcomings in other social relationships. This study examined whether negative effects of strained relationships with loved ones can be buffered when children feel supported by individuals in different support networks (i.e., cross-domain buffering effects). Children with Type I diabetes (n = 56), chronic asthma (n = 54), and cystic fibrosis (n = 17) completed questionnaires during an outpatient hospital visit that assessed perceptions of support and strain from parents and friends, quality of life, self-concept, and emotional/behavioral difficulties. Parental strain was conceptualized as parental overprotection and parental rejection. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that friend support buffered the adverse effects of parental strain on child quality of life, self-concept, and emotional/behavioral difficulties. Interestingly, parental support did not buffer the negative effects of experiencing strained relationships with friends; only main effects on outcome were found. These findings partially support our hypotheses of cross-domain buffering. In this study, friendships were a protective factor for children who experienced strained relationships with parents. In contrast, although parent support had a direct impact on child outcome, it did not make up for feeling rejected by friends. Because close relationships are often strained during medical stressors, findings underscore the importance of promoting social connectedness in chronically ill children to maximize opportunities for experiencing positive social relationships.

  13. Social cognition and functional capacity in bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thaler, Nicholas S; Sutton, Griffin P; Allen, Daniel N

    2014-12-15

    Social cognition is a functionally relevant predictor of capacity in schizophrenia (SZ), though research concerning its value for bipolar disorder (BD) is limited. The current investigation examined the relationship between two social cognitive factors and functional capacity in bipolar disorder. This study included 48 individuals with bipolar disorder (24 with psychotic features) and 30 patients with schizophrenia. Multiple regression controlling for estimated IQ scores was used to assess the predictive value of social cognitive factors on the UCSD Performance-Based Functional Skills Assessment (UPSA). Results found that for the bipolar with psychosis and schizophrenia groups, the social/emotion processing factor predicted the UPSA. The theory of mind factor only predicted the UPSA for the schizophrenia group.. Findings support the clinical utility of evaluating emotion processing in individuals with a history of psychosis. For BD, theory of mind may be better explained by a generalized cognitive deficit. In contrast, social/emotion processing may be linked to distinct neurobiological processes associated with psychosis. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. The face and person perception: insights from social cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Quinn, Kimberly A; Macrae, C Neil

    2011-11-01

    Social-cognitive investigations of face perception have tended to be motivated by different goals than cognitive and neuropsychological studies-namely, to understand the dynamics of social categorization rather than identity recognition-and the result has been a lack of cross-pollination of insights and ideas between the disciplines. We review the evidence from social cognition, with an eye to discussing how this work aligns with the Bruce and Young (1986) model of face recognition. Acknowledging the invaluable impact the model has exerted on our understanding of face recognition, we suggest that considering the bottom-up constraints of visual processing and the top-down influences of semantic knowledge will contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of face perception. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

  15. Co-Producing Children's Sociality in Parent-Teacher Conferences

    Science.gov (United States)

    Närvänen, Anna-Liisa; Markström, Ann-Marie

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this article is to describe how parents and preschool teachers talk about children's interactional skills in parent-teacher conferences in the Swedish preschool and how this can be related to socialization processes. The analyses show that children's communicative skills, such as turn-taking in conversation and co-operation, are…

  16. Old cortex, new contexts: Re-purposing spatial perception for social cognition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carolyn eParkinson

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available Much of everyday mental life involves information that we cannot currently perceive directly, from contemplating the strengths of friendships to reasoning about the contents of other minds. Despite their primacy to everyday human functioning, and in particular, to human sociality, the mechanisms that support abstract thought are poorly understood. An explanatory framework that has gained traction recently in cognitive neuroscience is exaptation, or the re-purposing of evolutionarily old circuitry to carry out new functions. We argue for the utility of applying this concept to social cognition. Convergent behavioral and neuroscientific evidence suggests that humans co-opt mechanisms originally devoted to spatial perception for more abstract domains of cognition (e.g., temporal reasoning. Preliminary evidence suggests that some aspects of social cognition also involve the exaptation of substrates originally evolved for processing physical space. We discuss the potential for future work to test more directly if cortical substrates for spatial processing were exapted for social cognition, and in so doing, to improve our understanding of how humans evolved mechanisms for navigating an exceptionally complex social world.

  17. Cognitive Reappraisal Self-Efficacy Mediates the Effects of Individual Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Social Anxiety Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goldin, Philippe R.; Ziv, Michal; Jazaieri, Hooria; Werner, Kelly; Kraemer, Helena; Heimberg, Richard G.; Gross, James J.

    2012-01-01

    Objective: To examine whether changes in cognitive reappraisal self-efficacy (CR-SE) mediate the effects of individually administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (I-CBT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) on severity of social anxiety symptoms. Method: A randomized controlled trial in which 75 adult patients (21-55 years of age; 53% male; 57%…

  18. Early social-communicative and cognitive development of younger siblings of children with autism spectrum disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stone, Wendy L; McMahon, Caitlin R; Yoder, Paul J; Walden, Tedra A

    2007-04-01

    To compare the early social-communicative development of younger siblings of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) with that of younger siblings of children with typical development, using parental report and child-based measures. Group comparison. Vanderbilt University, between July 1, 2003, and July 31, 2006. Younger siblings of children with ASD (n = 64) and younger siblings of children with typical development (n = 42) between the ages of 12 and 23 months (mean, 16 months). Main Exposure Having a sibling with an ASD. Child-based measures included a cognitive assessment; an interactive screening tool assessing play, imitation, and communication; and a rating of autism symptoms. Parental report measures were an interview of social-communicative interactions and a questionnaire assessing language and communication skills. Younger siblings of children with ASD demonstrated weaker performance in nonverbal problem solving (mean difference [MD], 5.91; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.48-9.34), directing attention (MD, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.07-0.97), understanding words (MD, 33.30; 95% CI, 3.11-63.48), understanding phrases (MD, 4.56; 95% CI, 1.85-7.27), gesture use (MD, 1.49; 95% CI, 0.51-2.47), and social-communicative interactions with parents (MD, 1.32; 95% CI, 0.27-2.37), and had increased autism symptoms (MD, 2.54; 95% CI, 1.05-4.03), relative to control siblings. A substantial minority of the ASD sibling group exhibited lower performance relative to controls. Significant correlations between child-based measures and parental reports assessing similar constructs were found (r = -0.74 to 0.53; P range, .000-.002). The weaker performance found for children in the ASD sibling group may represent early-emerging features of the broader autism phenotype, thus highlighting the importance of developmental surveillance for younger siblings.

  19. Parents, television and children’s weight status: on lasting effects of parental television socialization in the Netherlands

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Notten, N.; Kraaykamp, G.; Tolsma, J.

    2013-01-01

    This study scrutinizes the long-term effects of parental television socialization activities on their children's weight status measured through body mass index (BMI-score). We address the question how parental television habits and parental television mediation in childhood relate to a person's

  20. Adolescent-Parent Attachment and Externalizing Behavior: The Mediating Role of Individual and Social Factors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Vries, Sanne L A; Hoeve, Machteld; Stams, Geert Jan J M; Asscher, Jessica J

    2016-02-01

    The aim of this study was to test whether the associations between adolescent-parent attachment and externalizing problem behavior of adolescents were mediated by adolescent cognitive distortions, self-esteem, parental monitoring and association with deviant peers. A total of 102 adolescents (71 % male; aged 12-19 years) at risk for developing delinquent behaviors reported on attachment, parental monitoring, aggressive and delinquent behavior and peers. Mediation effects were tested by using structural equation modeling. Different pathways were found depending on the type of externalizing behavior. The association between attachment and direct and indirect aggressive behavior was mediated by cognitive distortions. The relation between attachment and delinquency was mediated by deviant peers and parental monitoring. We argue that clinical practice should focus on the attachment relationship between adolescent and parents in order to positively affect risk and protective factors for adolescents' aggressive and delinquent behavior.

  1. Reported parental characteristics of agoraphobics and social phobics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parker, G

    1979-12-01

    The clinical impression that phobic patients perceive their parents as being uncaring and overprotective was investigated in a controlled study of eighty-one phobic patients. Those assigned to a social phobic group scored both parents as less caring and as overprotected, while those assigned to an agoraphobic group differed from controls only in reporting less maternal care. Intensity of phobic symptoms in the pooled sample was examined in a separate analysis. Higher agoraphobic scores were associated with less maternal care and less maternal overprotection, while higher social phobic scores were associated with greater maternal care and greater maternal overprotection.

  2. Social theory and the cognitive-emotional brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verweij, Marco; Senior, Timothy J

    2015-01-01

    Pessoa's (2013) arguments imply that various leading approaches in the social sciences have not adequately conceptualized how emotion and cognition influence human decision making and social behavior. This is particularly unfortunate, as these approaches have been central to the efforts to build bridges between neuroscience and the social sciences. We argue that it would be better to base these efforts on other social theories that appear more compatible with Pessoa's analysis of the brain.

  3. Effortful Control and Parents' Emotion Socialization Patterns Predict Children's Positive Social Behavior: A Person-Centered Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Rachel L.; Dunsmore, Julie C.; Smith, Cynthia L.

    2015-01-01

    Research Findings: We examined relations of effortful control with parent emotion socialization practices and child social behavior using a person-centered approach in children ages 18 months to 5 years. A total of 76 parents (66 mothers, 10 fathers) completed questionnaires at screening and 6-month follow-up. There were no age differences in…

  4. A single dose of oxytocin nasal spray improves higher-order social cognition in schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guastella, Adam J; Ward, Philip B; Hickie, Ian B; Shahrestani, Sara; Hodge, Marie Antoinette Redoblado; Scott, Elizabeth M; Langdon, Robyn

    2015-11-01

    Schizophrenia is associated with significant impairments in both higher and lower order social cognitive performance and these impairments contribute to poor social functioning. People with schizophrenia report poor social functioning to be one of their greatest unmet treatment needs. Recent studies have suggested the potential of oxytocin as such a treatment, but mixed results render it uncertain what aspects of social cognition are improved by oxytocin and, subsequently, how oxytocin might best be applied as a therapeutic. The aim of this study was to determine whether a single dose of oxytocin improved higher-order and lower-order social cognition performance for patients with schizophrenia across a well-established battery of social cognition tests. Twenty-one male patients received both a single dose of oxytocin nasal spray (24IU) and a placebo, two weeks apart in a randomized within-subjects placebo controlled design. Following each administration, participants completed the social cognition tasks, as well as a test of general neurocognition. Results revealed that oxytocin particularly enhanced performance on higher order social cognition tasks, with no effects on general neurocognition. Results for individual tasks showed most improvement on tests measuring appreciation of indirect hints and recognition of social faux pas. These results suggest that oxytocin, if combined to enhance social cognition learning, may be beneficial when targeted at higher order social cognition domains. This study also suggests that these higher order tasks, which assess social cognitive processing in a social communication context, may provide useful markers of response to oxytocin in schizophrenia. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. The relationship between parenting attitudes, negative cognition, and the depressive symptoms according to gender in Korean adolescents

    OpenAIRE

    Park, Subin; Kim, Bung-Nyun; Park, Min-Hyeon

    2016-01-01

    Background Parenting style is one potential contributor to the development of adolescents? cognitions, self-esteem and emotional problems. This study examined the relationship between maternal parenting attitudes and adolescents? negative cognitions, and depressive symptoms according to gender. Methods A total of 401 middle and high school students were recruited (i.e. 221 males and 180 females; mean age, 13.92???1.31?years). The Maternal Behavior Research Instrument assessed maternal parenti...

  6. Personal Maturity of Adopting Parents as a Condition for Preventing Social Orphanage

    Science.gov (United States)

    Markova, Svetlana V.; Emelyanova, Irina D.

    2016-01-01

    The research conducted deals with the problem of development of personal maturity in adopting parents. The objectives of the research are to describe the content foundation of the adopting parents' personal maturity represented by motivational and value-related, emotional, cognitive and activity-related components, to prove the influence of…

  7. Socialization, Social Cognitive Factors and the Sibling Relationship.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howe, Nina

    Two separate studies suggest that the development of positive sibling relations may be related to siblings' social-cognitive skills (Stewart & Marvin, 1984) and the nature of mothers' conversations with their children (Dunn & Kendrick, 1982). The purpose of the present study was to provide a synthesis of these two studies and to demonstrate the…

  8. Discourse in Action: Parents' use of medical and social models to resist disability stigma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manago, Bianca; Davis, Jenny L; Goar, Carla

    2017-07-01

    For parents of children with disabilities, stigmatization is part of everyday life. To resist the negative social and emotional consequences of stigma, parents both challenge and deflect social devaluations. Challenges work to upend the stigmatizing structure, while deflections maintain the interaction order. We examine how parents of children with disabilities deploy deflections and challenges, and how their stigma resistance strategies combine with available models of disability discourse. Disability discourse falls into two broad categories: medical and social. The medical model emphasizes diagnostic labels and treats impairment as an individual deficit, while the social model centralizes unaccommodating social structures. The social model's activist underpinnings make it a logical frame for parents to use as they challenge disability stigma. In turn, the medical model's focus on individual "improvement" seems to most closely align with stigma deflections. However, the relationship between stigma resistance strategies and models of disability is an empirical question not yet addressed in the literature. In this study, we examine 117 instances of stigmatization from 40 interviews with 43 parents, and document how parents respond. We find that challenges and deflections do not map cleanly onto the social or medical models. Rather, parents invoke medical and social meanings in ways that serve diverse ends, sometimes centralizing a medical label to challenge stigma, and sometimes recognizing disabling social structures, but deflecting stigma nonetheless. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Social cognition in pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (MS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Charvet, L E; Cleary, R E; Vazquez, K; Belman, A L; Krupp, L B

    2014-10-01

    Pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (MS) patients represent a subpopulation who are diagnosed during the course of development. Social cognitive deficits have recently been recognized in adults with MS. It is critical to identify whether these youngest patients with the disorder are also at risk. To determine whether pediatric-onset MS is associated with social cognitive deficits. Consecutively-recruited participants with pediatric-onset MS were compared to a group of age- and gender-matched healthy controls on Theory of Mind (ToM) task performance. Tasks measured facial affect recognition (Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test), detecting social faux pas (Faux Pas Test), and understanding the perspective of another (False Beliefs Task). Twenty-eight (28) pediatric-onset MS participants (median age 17 years) and 32 healthy controls (median age 16 years) completed the study. The MS participants performed worse than controls on all three ToM tasks: Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (p = 0.008), the Faux Pas Test (p = 0.009), and the False Beliefs Task (p = 0.06). While more MS than control participants were impaired on a measure of information processing speed (the Symbol Digit Modalities Test; 38% versus 6%), it did not account for the differences in ToM performance. Social cognition may represent an area of cognitive functioning affected by MS in the pediatric-onset population. These processes are especially important to study in younger patients as they may have long range implications for social adjustment, employment, and well-being. © The Author(s) 2014.

  10. Cognitive behavioral therapy of socially phobic children focusing on cognition: a randomised wait-list control study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stadler Christina

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Although literature provides support for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT as an efficacious intervention for social phobia, more research is needed to improve treatments for children. Methods Forty four Caucasian children (ages 8-14 meeting diagnostic criteria of social phobia according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; APA, 1994 were randomly allocated to either a newly developed CBT program focusing on cognition according to the model of Clark and Wells (n = 21 or a wait-list control group (n = 23. The primary outcome measure was clinical improvement. Secondary outcomes included improvements in anxiety coping, dysfunctional cognitions, interaction frequency and comorbid symptoms. Outcome measures included child report and clinican completed measures as well as a diagnostic interview. Results Significant differences between treatment participants (4 dropouts and controls (2 dropouts were observed at post test on the German version of the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Children. Furthermore, in the treatment group, significantly more children were free of diagnosis than in wait-list group at post-test. Additional child completed and clinician completed measures support the results. Discussion The study is a first step towards investigating whether CBT focusing on cognition is efficacious in treating children with social phobia. Future research will need to compare this treatment to an active treatment group. There remain the questions of whether the effect of the treatment is specific to the disorder and whether the underlying theoretical model is adequate. Conclusion Preliminary support is provided for the efficacy of the cognitive behavioral treatment focusing on cognition in socially phobic children. Active comparators should be established with other evidence-based CBT programs for anxiety disorders, which differ significantly in their dosage and type of cognitive

  11. iGeneration: The Social Cognitive Effects of Digital Technology on Teenagers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ives, Eugenia A.

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine and better understand the social cognitive effects of digital technology on teenagers' brains and their socialization processes, as well as to learn best practices with regard to digital technology consumption. An extensive literature review was conducted on the social cognitive effects of digital…

  12. Social-cognitive functioning and social skills in patients with early treated phenylketonuria: a PKU-COBESO study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Jahja, Rianne; van Spronsen, Francjan J.; de Sonneville, Leo M. J.; van der Meere, Jaap J.; Bosch, Annet M.; Hollak, Carla E. M.; Rubio-Gozalbo, M. Estela; Brouwers, Martijn C. G. J.; Hofstede, Floris C.; de Vries, Maaike C.; Janssen, Mirian C. H.; van der Ploeg, Ans T.; Langendonk, Janneke G.; Huijbregts, Stephan C. J.

    2016-01-01

    Early treatment of phenylketonuria (ET-PKU) prevents mental retardation, but many patients still show cognitive and mood problems. In this study, it was investigated whether ET-PKU-patients have specific phenylalanine (Phe-)related problems with respect to social-cognitive functioning and social

  13. Parenting style and adolescent fruit consumption.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kremers, Stef P J; Brug, Johannes; de Vries, Hein; Engels, Rutger C M E

    2003-08-01

    The importance of the social environment for dietary behaviour has been highlighted in the past decade. A type of environmental influence that has received increasing research attention in recent years is the influence that parents can have on their children's dietary behaviour through food-related parenting practices. Much of the work done so far, however, has reported inconsistent findings and poorly understood mechanisms of influence. The present study aimed to explore the possible environmental influence of general parenting style on adolescent food choice patterns. Data were collected at schools (N=643; mean age 16.5 years), using self-administered questionnaires on parenting style, fruit intake behaviour and fruit-specific cognitions. Consistent and theoretically predictable differences were found between adolescents who described their parents as authoritative, authoritarian, indulgent or neglectful. Fruit consumption and fruit-specific cognitions were most favourable among adolescents who were being raised with an authoritative parenting style. Children of parents with indulgent parenting styles consumed more fruit than adolescents from authoritarian or neglectful homes. Consequences of these results for the interpretation of earlier studies on the influence of parenting practices are discussed, and a research model is proposed for future studies of parental influences on adolescent dietary behaviours.

  14. Virtual Reality Social Cognition Training for Young Adults with High-Functioning Autism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kandalaft, Michelle R.; Didehbani, Nyaz; Krawczyk, Daniel C.; Allen, Tandra T.; Chapman, Sandra B.

    2013-01-01

    Few evidence-based social interventions exist for young adults with high-functioning autism, many of whom encounter significant challenges during the transition into adulthood. The current study investigated the feasibility of an engaging Virtual Reality Social Cognition Training intervention focused on enhancing social skills, social cognition,…

  15. Social support and parenting self-efficacy among Chinese women in the perinatal period.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Ling-Ling; Sun, Ke; Chan, Sally Wai-Chi

    2014-05-01

    to examine the changes in and relationship between perceived social support and parenting self-efficacy in the perinatal period among pregnant women in mainland China. this was a secondary analysis with data from part of an experimental study of the effects of an interpersonal-psychotherapy-oriented childbirth psychoeducation programme on maternal adaptation. A longitudinal design was employed in the present study. The study was carried out from July 2008 to May 2009 in one general hospital in Guangzhou, China. a convenience sample of 68 first-time mothers in mainland China completed measurement of social support and parenting self-efficacy during pregnancy and at six weeks and three months post partum. perceived social support and parenting self-efficacy declined during early motherhood. Parenting self-efficacy increased from six weeks post partum to three months post partum. Perceived social support positively correlated with parenting self-efficacy. culturally competent health-care intervention should be developed during early motherhood to promote perceived social support and parenting self-efficacy for the new mothers. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Implications of antisocial parents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torry, Zachary D; Billick, Stephen B

    2011-12-01

    Antisocial behavior is a socially maladaptive and harmful trait to possess. This can be especially injurious for a child who is raised by a parent with this personality structure. The pathology of antisocial behavior implies traits such as deceitfulness, irresponsibility, unreliability, and an incapability to feel guilt, remorse, or even love. This is damaging to a child's emotional, cognitive, and social development. Parents with this personality makeup can leave a child traumatized, empty, and incapable of forming meaningful personal relationships. Both genetic and environmental factors influence the development of antisocial behavior. Moreover, the child with a genetic predisposition to antisocial behavior who is raised with a parental style that triggers the genetic liability is at high risk for developing the same personality structure. Antisocial individuals are impulsive, irritable, and often have no concerns over their purported responsibilities. As a parent, this can lead to erratic discipline, neglectful parenting, and can undermine effective care giving. This paper will focus on the implications of parents with antisocial behavior and the impact that this behavior has on attachment as well as on the development of antisocial traits in children.

  17. Strategic Cognition of Social Media in Business-Customer Interaction

    OpenAIRE

    Rydén, Pernille

    2015-01-01

    This dissertation contributes to the strategic cognition research by exploring how managers’ cognitive representations of an emerging, but potentially disruptive technology, influence their identification of strategic options. Managers tend to talk of social media as technology that changes customer behavior and disrupts industries, however, this attitude is not reflected in their strategic framing and implementation of social media. As behavioral theory seems inadequate to acc...

  18. Impact of social support on cognitive symptom burden in HIV/AIDS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Atkins, Jana H; Rubenstein, Sarah L; Sota, Teresa L; Rueda, Sergio; Fenta, Haile; Bacon, Jean; Rourke, Sean B

    2010-07-01

    As many as 50% of people living with HIV/AIDS report cognitive difficulties, which can be associated with objective neuropsychological impairments and depression. A number of studies have demonstrated an association between higher social support and lower rates of depression. Using a cross-sectional design, we examined the role social support may play in attenuating the effects of both neuropsychological status and depression on cognitive difficulties. A total of 357 participants completed a battery of neuropsychological tests, questionnaires about cognitive difficulties and depression, and an interview that included an assessment of perceived level of social support. A multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that higher levels of cognitive symptom burden were significantly associated with depression (Psocial support (Pinteraction between neuropsychological status and depression (Pinteraction between social support and depression (Psocial support was also associated with a lower cognitive symptom burden for non-depressed individuals living with HIV/AIDS. These findings have important clinical implications for promoting psychological well-being in persons living with HIV/AIDS. To improve quality of life, it is important to screen for and identify individuals with HIV/AIDS who may be depressed and to intervene appropriately. Further research should examine the potential role of social support interventions in modifying the effects of both depression and neuropsychological status on cognitive symptom burden.

  19. Parental Book Reading and Social-Emotional Outcomes for Head Start Children in Foster Care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kyunghee; Lee, Jung-Sook

    2016-01-01

    This study examines the associations between parental book reading and social-emotional outcomes for Head Start children in foster care. Despite no main Head Start impact on parental book reading, subgroup effects were found. Foster parents in Head Start provided more book reading for children with disabilities but less for children with low preacademic scores. Head Start enhanced social-emotional outcomes for children in foster care. The positive impacts of Head Start on children's social-emotional outcomes were greater when parents read books frequently. Head Start should include more foster families and provided parenting skills to enhance social-emotional outcomes for children in foster care.

  20. Social cognition in patients at ultra-high risk for psychosis: What is the relation to social skills and functioning?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glenthøj, Louise B; Fagerlund, Birgitte; Hjorthøj, Carsten; Jepsen, Jens R M; Bak, Nikolaj; Kristensen, Tina D; Wenneberg, Christina; Krakauer, Kristine; Roberts, David L; Nordentoft, Merete

    2016-09-01

    Patients at ultra-high risk (UHR) for psychosis show significant impairments in functioning. It is essential to determine which factors influence functioning, as it may have implications for intervention strategies. This study examined whether social cognitive abilities and clinical symptoms are associated with functioning and social skills. The study included 65 UHR patients and 30 healthy controls. Social cognitive function, social skills, and a broad range of functioning measures were assessed. The UHR patients demonstrated significant decrements on The Awareness of Social Inferences Task total score (p = .046, d  = .51), and on the CANTAB emotion recognition task total percent correct (p = .023, d  = .54) displaying particular difficulties in negative affect recognition. The patients exhibited significant impairments in social skills measured with the High Risk Social Challenge (p˂.001, d  = 1.05). Aspects of emotion recognition were associated with role functioning and social skill performance. The level of attributional bias was associated with overall functioning, and theory of mind ability was associated with self-reported functioning. Negative symptoms were associated with all measures of functioning (p ≤ .05). Significant impairments in social cognition and social skills were found in UHR patients. The patients' social cognitive function was associated with overall functioning and social skills. Negative symptoms appear to play an important role for functioning. Research is needed to investigate how the relations between social cognition, social skills and functioning develop from the UHR state to the stage of manifest illness. Research into how deficits in social cognition and social skills can be ameliorated in UHR patients is warranted.

  1. Emotional Intelligence deficits in schizophrenia: The impact of non-social cognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frajo-Apor, Beatrice; Pardeller, Silvia; Kemmler, Georg; Welte, Anna-Sophia; Hofer, Alex

    2016-04-01

    Previous studies using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) revealed significant performance deficits across all areas of Emotional Intelligence (EI) in schizophrenia patients compared to healthy controls. However, none of these studies has investigated a potential influence of non-social cognition on these findings. 56 schizophrenia outpatients and 84 control subjects were investigated using the MSCEIT and the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS). Analyses of covariance were performed with adjustment for the BACS composite score and education. To investigate this issue in more detail, a mediation analysis was conducted. Patients showed significantly lower EI and non-social cognition levels compared to healthy controls. After adjustment for BACS composite score and education, only the group difference in the "managing emotions" branch and thus in the "strategic" EI part of the MSCEIT remained statistically significant, whereas for all other MSCEIT branches (perceiving, using, understanding emotions) statistical significance was lost. The mediation analysis revealed that the difference between schizophrenia patients and controls regarding the MSCEIT total score was almost fully attributable to the mediating effect of non-social cognition. Our findings suggest that in schizophrenia patients EI is largely influenced by non-social cognitive functioning. Only the "managing emotions" branch was found to be independent of non-social cognition. Consequently, non-social cognitive performance was mainly responsible for the observed differences in EI between schizophrenia patients and controls. This has to be taken into account when interpreting MSCEIT data in this population. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. #Cleft: The use of Social Media Amongst Parents of Infants with Clefts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khouri, Joseph S; McCheyne, Melisande J; Morrison, Clinton S

    2018-01-01

    Introduction Many societies and organizations are using social media to reach their target audience. The extent to which parents of patients with craniofacial anomalies use social media has yet to be determined. The goal of this study is to characterize and describe the use of social media by the parents of children with cleft lip and palate as it pertains to the care of their child. Materials and Methods Parents or guardian of all patients presenting for initial consultation regarding a child's congenital cleft anomaly were contacted by phone or mail to complete a survey regarding their use of social media vis-à-vis their child's cleft anomaly. Participants were asked to answer a 19-question survey. Results Thirty-two families were contacted and 25 surveys were completed. Ninety-two percent of respondents used social media to learn about their child's diagnosis. Facebook (76%) and blogs (24%) were the most commonly accessed social media outlets, followed by Instagram (8%). Education about the diagnosis and treatment of cleft pathology (87%) was the most common reason for accessing social media, followed by companionship and support (56%), and advice about perioperative care (52%). Almost half (43%) of parents used social media to obtain information on their caregiver and treatment team, and 26% of parents used information gained on social media to guide their decision on where to seek care. Conclusion Social media is a readily available resource, one that will certainly shape the experiences of our patients and families for years to come.

  3. Social Cognition Deficits: Current Position and Future Directions for Neuropsychological Interventions in Cerebrovascular Disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Progress Njomboro

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Neuropsychological assessments of cognitive dysfunction in cerebrovascular illness commonly target basic cognitive functions involving aspects of memory, attention, language, praxis, and number processing. Here, I highlight the clinical importance of often-neglected social cognition functions. These functions recruit a widely distributed neural network, making them vulnerable in most cerebrovascular diseases. Sociocognitive deficits underlie most of the problematic social conduct observed in patients and are associated with more negative clinical outcomes (compared to nonsocial cognitive deficits. In clinical settings, social cognition deficits are normally gleaned from collateral information from caregivers or from indirect inferences made from patients’ performance on standard nonsocial cognitive tests. Information from these sources is however inadequate. I discuss key social cognition functions, focusing initially on deficits in emotion perception and theory of mind, two areas that have gained sizeable attention in neuroscientific research, and then extend the discussion into relatively new, less covered but crucial functions involving empathic behaviour, social awareness, social judgements, and social decision making. These functions are frequently impaired following neurological change. At present, a wide range of psychometrically robust social cognition tests is available, and this review also makes the case for their inclusion in neuropsychological assessments.

  4. Parent-implemented social intervention for toddlers with autism: an RCT.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wetherby, Amy M; Guthrie, Whitney; Woods, Juliann; Schatschneider, Christopher; Holland, Renee D; Morgan, Lindee; Lord, Catherine

    2014-12-01

    To compare the effects of two 9-month parent-implemented interventions within the Early Social Interaction (ESI) Project. Both individual-ESI, offered 2 or 3 times per week at home or in the community, and group-ESI, offered once per week in a clinic, taught parents how to embed strategies to support social communication throughout everyday activities. Participants in the randomized controlled trial included 82 children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at 16 to 20 months. Children were matched on pretreatment nonverbal developmental level and pairs were randomly assigned to treatment condition. Child outcomes included measures of social communication, autism symptoms, adaptive behavior, and developmental level. Child outcomes are reported from baseline to the end of the 9-month interventions. Children in individual-ESI showed differential change on a standardized examiner-administered observational measure of social communication, as they improved at a faster rate than children in group-ESI. Individual-ESI also showed differential efficacy on a parent report measure of communication, daily living, and social skills, as they showed improvement or stability, whereas group-ESI led to worsening or no significant change on these skills. Finally, individual-ESI showed differential change on examiner-administered measures of receptive language skills, as children in individual-ESI improved significantly, whereas group-ESI showed no change. These findings support the efficacy of individual-ESI compared with group-ESI on child outcomes, suggesting the importance of individualized parent coaching in natural environments. The efficacy of a parent-implemented intervention using little professional time has potential for community viability, which is particularly important in light of the lack of main effects on child outcomes of most other parent-implemented interventions. Copyright © 2014 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  5. Parental Factors that Detract from the Effectiveness of Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment for Childhood Anxiety: Recommendations for Practitioners

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Jerry V., III

    2012-01-01

    This article reviews the recent empirical literature on the various parental factors that detract from the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral treatment for children with anxiety. Interventions such as treating parental anxiety and increasing parental involvement in the therapeutic process may combat these factors. Newer strategies such as…

  6. Mothers' and Fathers' Well-being, Parenting Styles, and their Children's Cognitive and Behavioural Strategies at Primary School.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Onatsu-Arvilommi, Tiina; Nurmi, Jari-Erik; Aunola, Kaisa

    1998-01-01

    Investigates the extent to which parents' well-being and parenting styles provide a basis of the development of their children's cognitive and behavioral strategies in primary school. Reveals that maternal depressive symptomatology was associated with their children's use of maladaptive strategies, whereas maternal authoritative parenting styles…

  7. Joint attention, social cognition and recognition memory in adults

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kwanguk eKim

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available The early emerging capacity for Joint Attention, or socially coordinated visual attention, is thought to be integral to the development of social-cognition in childhood. Recent studies have also begun to suggest that joint attention affects adult cognition as well, but methodological limitations hamper research on this topic. To address this issue we developed a novel virtual reality (VR paradigm that integrates eye-tracking and virtual avatar technology to measure two types of joint attention in adults, Initiating Joint Attention (IJA and Responding to Joint Attention (RJA. Distinguishing these types of joint attention in research is important because they are thought to reflect unique, as well as common constellations of processes involved in human social-cognition and social learning. We tested the validity of the differentiation of IJA and RJA in our paradigm in two studies of picture recognition memory in undergraduate students. Study 1 indicated that young adults correctly identified more pictures they had previously viewed in an IJA condition (67% than in a RJA (58% condition, η2 = .57. Study 2 controlled for IJA and RJA stimulus viewing time differences, and replicated the findings of Study 1. The implications of these results for the validity of the paradigm and research on the affects of joint attention on adult social-cognition are discussed.

  8. Parental Stress and Social Support of Caregivers of Children With Cerebral Palsy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mayara Barbosa Sindeaux Lima

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Stress and social support are relevant variables for understanding the impact of disability on the care relationship. Thus, this study investigates the association between the parental stress index, social support indicators, and the sociodemographic variables of caregivers of children with cerebral palsy in a capital city of the Eastern Amazon. The following instruments were applied to 100 caregivers: the Sociodemographic Inventory, the Gross Motor Function Classification System, the Parenting Stress Index, and the Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey. For data analysis, descriptive statistics were used, in addition to techniques of multivariate analysis. It was found that most participants had high parental stress and a high perception of social support. Specific aspects of the perception of social support and sociodemographic indicators were associated with stress. This knowledge favors the design of more assertive interventions because it outlines the aspects of these variables that appear to have a more effective impact on parental stress.

  9. On the relationship of online and offline social cognition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leonhard eSchilbach

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Social neuroscience studies the neurobiological underpinnings of people making sense of people. Due to both conceptual and methodological constraints, the majority of studies in this field of research, however, has employed experimental paradigms that focus on social cognition from an observer's rather than from an interactor's point of view (offline vs. online social cognition. This calls for an increased effort to systematically investigate the neural bases of participation in real-time social interaction. In light of the ontogenetic primacy of social interaction over observation and the idea that neural networks established during social interaction may be ‘re-used’ during observation, other important objectives of the field will be to relate new findings into the neural bases of social interaction to previous work investigating the neural bases of social observation as well as to find ways to directly compare the two.

  10. Cognitive poetics and biocultural (configurations of life, cognition and language. Towards a theory of socially integrated science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Juani Guerra

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Based on the biocultural dynamics of Greek poiesis and autopoiesis as evolutionary processes of meaning evaluative (configuration, Cognitive Poetics proposes key methodological adjustments, mainly at the philological, ontological and cultural levels. The aim is to improve our understanding of cognitive and conceptual activity and the social foundations of individual language. From its new status as a fundamental metacognitive theory, it searches for a theory of socially integrated sciences from a new alliance as that discerned in current Cognitive Sciences: from Linguistics or Psychology, through Anthropology, Neurophilosophy or Literary Studies, to Neurobiology or Artificial Life Sciences. From a realist turn to a view of cognition as (social action, it provides new unforeseen accounts of the complex dynamics of human understanding processes studying and analyzing all form of texts as active data

  11. English Validation of the Parental Socialization Scale—ESPA29

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martínez, Isabel; Cruise, Edie; García, Óscar F.; Murgui, Sergio

    2017-01-01

    Parenting styles have traditionally been studied following the classical two-dimensional orthogonal model of parental socialization. The Parental Socialization Scale ESPA29 is used to measure the four styles of parental socialization through the acceptance/involvement and strictness/imposition dimensions. The ESPA29 scale is a developmentally appropriate measure of parenting styles, which has been validated in several languages including Spanish, Italian, and Brazilian Portuguese. In this study, the English translation of the ESPA29 was evaluated. The objective of the work is to test the ESPA29’s structure of parenting practices with a United States sample measuring parenting practices using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The scores of fathers’ and mothers’ behavioral practices toward their children were obtained for a sample of 911 United States adolescents between 14 and 18 years of age. First, the total sample was split and a principal components analysis with varimax rotation was carried out with one of the two halves. EFA showed a two-factor structure fully congruent with the theoretical model for mothers’ and fathers’ scores. Next, a CFA was calculated on the second half by using the factor structure obtained in the previous EFA. The CFA replicated the two-factor structure with appropriate fit index. The seven parenting practices that were measured loaded appropriately on the acceptance/involvement and strictness/imposition dimensions. Then, the multigroup analysis between girls and boys showed equal loading in the factors and equal covariation between the acceptance/involvement and the strictness/imposition dimensions. Additionally, the two dimensions of the ESPA29 scale were related to self-esteem in order to obtain an external validity index. The findings confirm the invariant structure of the ESPA29 was in the United States and their equivalence in both fathers’ and mothers’ scores. These findings

  12. English Validation of the Parental Socialization Scale—ESPA29

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Isabel Martínez

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Parenting styles have traditionally been studied following the classical two-dimensional orthogonal model of parental socialization. The Parental Socialization Scale ESPA29 is used to measure the four styles of parental socialization through the acceptance/involvement and strictness/imposition dimensions. The ESPA29 scale is a developmentally appropriate measure of parenting styles, which has been validated in several languages including Spanish, Italian, and Brazilian Portuguese. In this study, the English translation of the ESPA29 was evaluated. The objective of the work is to test the ESPA29’s structure of parenting practices with a United States sample measuring parenting practices using exploratory factor analysis (EFA and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA. The scores of fathers’ and mothers’ behavioral practices toward their children were obtained for a sample of 911 United States adolescents between 14 and 18 years of age. First, the total sample was split and a principal components analysis with varimax rotation was carried out with one of the two halves. EFA showed a two-factor structure fully congruent with the theoretical model for mothers’ and fathers’ scores. Next, a CFA was calculated on the second half by using the factor structure obtained in the previous EFA. The CFA replicated the two-factor structure with appropriate fit index. The seven parenting practices that were measured loaded appropriately on the acceptance/involvement and strictness/imposition dimensions. Then, the multigroup analysis between girls and boys showed equal loading in the factors and equal covariation between the acceptance/involvement and the strictness/imposition dimensions. Additionally, the two dimensions of the ESPA29 scale were related to self-esteem in order to obtain an external validity index. The findings confirm the invariant structure of the ESPA29 was in the United States and their equivalence in both fathers’ and mothers’ scores

  13. English Validation of the Parental Socialization Scale-ESPA29.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martínez, Isabel; Cruise, Edie; García, Óscar F; Murgui, Sergio

    2017-01-01

    Parenting styles have traditionally been studied following the classical two-dimensional orthogonal model of parental socialization. The Parental Socialization Scale ESPA29 is used to measure the four styles of parental socialization through the acceptance/involvement and strictness/imposition dimensions. The ESPA29 scale is a developmentally appropriate measure of parenting styles, which has been validated in several languages including Spanish, Italian, and Brazilian Portuguese. In this study, the English translation of the ESPA29 was evaluated. The objective of the work is to test the ESPA29's structure of parenting practices with a United States sample measuring parenting practices using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The scores of fathers' and mothers' behavioral practices toward their children were obtained for a sample of 911 United States adolescents between 14 and 18 years of age. First, the total sample was split and a principal components analysis with varimax rotation was carried out with one of the two halves. EFA showed a two-factor structure fully congruent with the theoretical model for mothers' and fathers' scores. Next, a CFA was calculated on the second half by using the factor structure obtained in the previous EFA. The CFA replicated the two-factor structure with appropriate fit index. The seven parenting practices that were measured loaded appropriately on the acceptance/involvement and strictness/imposition dimensions. Then, the multigroup analysis between girls and boys showed equal loading in the factors and equal covariation between the acceptance/involvement and the strictness/imposition dimensions. Additionally, the two dimensions of the ESPA29 scale were related to self-esteem in order to obtain an external validity index. The findings confirm the invariant structure of the ESPA29 was in the United States and their equivalence in both fathers' and mothers' scores. These findings validate the

  14. High-risk diagnosis, social stress, and parent-child relationships: A moderation model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bentley, Eryn; Millman, Zachary B; Thompson, Elizabeth; Demro, Caroline; Kline, Emily; Pitts, Steven C; DeVylder, Jordan E; Smith, Melissa Edmondson; Reeves, Gloria; Schiffman, Jason

    2016-07-01

    Stress is related to symptom severity among youth at clinical high-risk (CHR) for psychosis, although this relation may be influenced by protective factors. We explored whether the association of CHR diagnosis with social stress is moderated by the quality of parent-child relationships in a sample of 96 (36 CHR; 60 help-seeking controls) adolescents and young adults receiving mental health services. We examined self-reported social stress and parent-child relationships as measured by the Behavior Assessment System for Children, Second Edition (BASC-2), and determined CHR status from the clinician-administered Structured Interview for Psychosis-Risk Syndrome (SIPS). The social stress subscale, part of the clinical domain of the BASC-2, assesses feelings of stress and tension in personal relationships and the relations with parents subscale, part of the adaptive domain of the BASC-2, assesses perceptions of importance in family and quality of parent-child relationship. There was a modest direct relation between risk diagnosis and social stress. Among those at CHR, however, there was a significant relation between parent-child relationships and social stress (b=-0.73, t[92]=-3.77, psocial stress for those at risk for psychosis. Findings provide additional evidence to suggest that interventions that simultaneously target both social stress and parent-child relationships might be relevant for adolescents and young adults at clinical high-risk for psychosis. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Embodied social interaction constitutes social cognition in pairs of humans: a minimalist virtual reality experiment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Froese, Tom; Iizuka, Hiroyuki; Ikegami, Takashi

    2014-01-14

    Scientists have traditionally limited the mechanisms of social cognition to one brain, but recent approaches claim that interaction also realizes cognitive work. Experiments under constrained virtual settings revealed that interaction dynamics implicitly guide social cognition. Here we show that embodied social interaction can be constitutive of agency detection and of experiencing another's presence. Pairs of participants moved their "avatars" along an invisible virtual line and could make haptic contact with three identical objects, two of which embodied the other's motions, but only one, the other's avatar, also embodied the other's contact sensor and thereby enabled responsive interaction. Co-regulated interactions were significantly correlated with identifications of the other's avatar and reports of the clearest awareness of the other's presence. These results challenge folk psychological notions about the boundaries of mind, but make sense from evolutionary and developmental perspectives: an extendible mind can offload cognitive work into its environment.

  16. Metacognitive and social cognition training (MSCT) in schizophrenia: a preliminary efficacy study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rocha, Nuno B F; Queirós, Cristina

    2013-10-01

    Psychosocial interventions have proven to be effective in treating social cognition in people with psychotic disorders. The current study aimed to determine the effects of a metacognitive and social cognition training (MSCT) program, designed to both remediate deficits and correct biases in social cognition. Thirty-five clinically stable outpatients were recruited and assigned to the MSCT program (n=19) for 10 weeks (18 sessions) or to the TAU group (n=16), and they all completed pre- and post-treatment assessments of social cognition, cognitive biases, functioning and symptoms. The MSCT group demonstrated a significant improvement in theory of mind, social perception, emotion recognition and social functioning. Additionally, the tendency to jump to conclusions was significantly reduced among the MSCT group after training. There were no differential benefits regarding clinical symptoms except for one trend group effect for general psychopathology. The results support the efficacy of the MSCT format, but further development of the training program is required to increase the benefits related to attributional style. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition (MASC): Spanish Validation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lahera, G.; Boada, L.; Pousa, E.; Mirapeix, I.; Morón-Nozaleda, G.; Marinas, L.; Gisbert, L.; Pamiàs, M.; Parellada, M.

    2014-01-01

    We present the Spanish validation of the "Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition" instrument (MASC-SP). We recruited 22 adolescents and young adults with Asperger syndrome and 26 participants with typical development. The MASC-SP and three other social cognition instruments (Ekman Pictures of Facial Affect test, Reading the Mind in…

  18. Conjugated equine estrogen enhances rats' cognitive, anxiety, and social behavior

    OpenAIRE

    Walf, Alicia A.; Frye, Cheryl A.

    2008-01-01

    The ovarian hormone, 17β-estradiol (E2), has numerous targets in the body and brain, and can influence cognitive, affective, and social behavior. However, functional effects of commonly prescribed E2-based hormone therapies are less known. The effects of conjugated equine estrogen (CEE) on middle-aged female rats for cognitive (object recognition), anxiety (open field, plus maze), and social (social interaction, lordosis) behavior were compared-with vehicle. Our hypothesis that CEE would enha...

  19. Beliefs regarding child anxiety and parenting competence in parents of children with separation anxiety disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herren, Chantal; In-Albon, Tina; Schneider, Silvia

    2013-03-01

    Despite the fact that numerous developmental models have highlighted the role of parental cognitive processes in connection with anxiety disorders in children and adolescents, the role of parents' beliefs about their children and parenting remains largely unexplored. This study investigated the specific association between parental beliefs and child separation anxiety. Parents of children with a diagnosis of Separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD) reported on beliefs and expectations related to their child's fears and own parenting competence. To study the potential specificity of relationships, a clinical control group of mothers of children with social phobia (SoP) and a group of mothers of children without a mental disorder (healthy controls, HC) were included. Results indicated that parents of anxious children had significantly higher levels of dysfunctional beliefs than the parents in the HC group. Mothers of children with SAD showed lower levels of parenting self-efficacy than mothers of children with SoP. They also demonstrated lower parenting self-efficacy and satisfaction compared to mothers of healthy children. Parental dysfunctional beliefs about child anxiety and paternal parenting self-efficacy were significantly positively associated with child anxiety. The effects remained significant after controlling for parental anxiety and depression. Due to the cross-sectional design of the study, causality of the found effects cannot be inferred. Data suggest that children's anxiety and parents' beliefs about their child's anxiety, coping skills and parenting are strongly associated. Further research is needed to investigate whether addressing parental cognitions in addition to parents' anxiety may improve prevention and intervention of child anxiety. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Parental Management of Peer Relationships and Early Adolescents' Social Skills

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mounts, Nina S.

    2011-01-01

    Despite a growing body of research on parental management of peer relationships, little is known about the relationship between parental management of peers and early adolescents' social skills or the precursors to parental management of peer relationships. The goals of this short-term longitudinal investigation were to examine the relationship…

  1. Parents' perceptions of pharmacological and cognitive-behavioral treatments for childhood anxiety disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Amy M; Deacon, Brett J; Abramowitz, Jonathan S; Dammann, Julie; Whiteside, Stephen P

    2007-04-01

    Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and pharmacotherapy are the most well-established treatments for childhood anxiety disorders. This study examined how parents (N=71) seeking treatment for their child's anxiety disorder perceive the acceptability, believability, and effectiveness of these treatments. While both treatments were perceived favorably, CBT was rated as more acceptable, believable, and effective in the short- and long-term. Children's treatment history influenced parents' perceptions of pharmacotherapy, with parents of children with no treatment history perceiving medication treatment as less acceptable and believable than parents of children with a history of medication alone or in combination with behavior therapy. No effect of treatment history was found for perceptions of CBT. Significant positive correlations emerged between parents' perceived acceptance and believability for pharmacotherapy and child age and level of dysfunction due to their child's anxiety, respectively. The level of the child's anxiety was not significantly correlated with parents' perceptions of either CBT or pharmacotherapy. Our results suggest that parents of anxious children prefer CBT to medication for the treatment of their child's anxiety disorder. Directions for future research are discussed.

  2. The Impact of Social Pressure and Monetary Incentive on Cognitive Control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ličen, Mina; Hartmann, Frank; Repovš, Grega; Slapničar, Sergeja

    2016-01-01

    We compare the effects of two prominent organizational control mechanisms-social pressure and monetary incentive-on cognitive control. Cognitive control underlies the human ability to regulate thoughts and actions in the pursuit of behavioral goals. Previous studies show that monetary incentives can contribute to goal-oriented behavior by activating proactive control. There is, however, much less evidence of how social pressure affects cognitive control and task performance. In a within-subject experimental design, we tested 47 subjects performing the AX-CPT task to compare the activation of cognitive control modes under social pressure and monetary incentive beyond mere instructions to perform better. Our results indicate that instructing participants to improve their performance on its own leads to a significant shift from a reactive to a proactive control mode and that both social pressure and monetary incentive further enhance performance.

  3. Using social media to communicate child health information to low-income parents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stroever, Stephanie J; Mackert, Michael S; McAlister, Alfred L; Hoelscher, Deanna M

    2011-11-01

    The objective of this study was to determine the value of using social media to communicate child health information to low-income parents. We evaluated qualitative data obtained through focus groups with low-income, predominantly Hispanic parents. Results were mixed; lack of time and credibility were the primary objections parents cited in using social media to obtain information about their children's health. Social media has value as part of an overall communication strategy, but more work is needed to determine the most effective way to use this channel in low-income populations.

  4. Stereotype confirmation concerns predict dropout from cognitive behavioral therapy for social anxiety disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Suzanne; Price, Matthew; Mehta, Natasha; Anderson, Page L

    2014-08-19

    There are high attrition rates observed in efficacy studies for social anxiety disorder, and research has not identified consistent nor theoretically meaningful predictors of dropout. Pre-treatment symptom severity and demographic factors, such as age and gender, are sometimes predictive of dropout. The current study examines a theoretically meaningful predictor of attrition based on experiences associated with social group membership rather than differences between social group categories--fear of confirming stereotypes. This is a secondary data analysis of a randomized controlled trial comparing two cognitive behavioral treatments for social anxiety disorder: virtual reality exposure therapy and exposure group therapy. Participants (N = 74) with a primary diagnosis of social anxiety disorder who were eligible to participate in the parent study and who self-identified as either "African American" (n = 31) or "Caucasian" (n = 43) completed standardized self-report measures of stereotype confirmation concerns (SCC) and social anxiety symptoms as part of a pre-treatment assessment battery. Hierarchical logistic regression showed that greater stereotype confirmation concerns were associated with higher dropout from therapy--race, age, gender, and pre-treatment symptom severity were not. Group treatment also was associated with higher dropout. These findings urge further research on theoretically meaningful predictors of attrition and highlight the importance of addressing cultural variables, such as the experience of stereotype confirmation concerns, during treatment of social anxiety to minimize dropout from therapy.

  5. Integrating Moral and Social Development within Middle School Social Studies: A Social Cognitive Domain Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nucci, Larry; Creane, Michael W.; Powers, Deborah W.

    2015-01-01

    Eleven teachers and 254 urban middle-school students comprised the sample of this study examining the social and moral development outcomes of the integration of social cognitive domain theory within regular classroom instruction. Participating teachers were trained to construct and implement history lessons that stimulated students' moral…

  6. The relationship of parental overprotection, perceived vulnerability, and parenting stress to behavioral, emotional, and social adjustment in children with cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colletti, Christina J M; Wolfe-Christensen, Cortney; Carpentier, Melissa Y; Page, Melanie C; McNall-Knapp, René Y; Meyer, William H; Chaney, John M; Mullins, Larry L

    2008-08-01

    To examine the relationship of self-reported parental overprotection, perceived child vulnerability, and parenting stress to parent-reported behavioral, emotional, and social adjustment of children currently on treatment for cancer. Parents of 62 children (34 boys, 28 girls) currently on treatment for cancer were recruited from an outpatient pediatric cancer clinic. Children ranged in age from 2 to 12 years; age at diagnosis ranged from 1.33 to 11.83 years. Higher levels of parenting stress, but not parental overprotection or perceived child vulnerability, were associated with poorer behavioral and social adjustment. Higher levels of perceived child vulnerability and parenting stress, but not parental overprotection, were independently associated with poorer emotional adjustment. Specific parenting variables appear to be related to specific adjustment outcomes in children with cancer. Longitudinal follow-up of these children is necessary to determine the developmental trajectory of parent variables and long-term child outcomes.

  7. Concepts in modern parenting

    OpenAIRE

    Dolenc, Anja

    2011-01-01

    The main focus of my dissertation represents changes in parenthood, which are a consequence of a wider specter of social changes. Besides, I am interested in modern trends of educational strategies and how parents deal with the demands of society and those of professional public for nothing less than a perfect parenthood. Theoretical cognitions are divided into three parts: in the first one, new forms of family and social changes which affected the development of the modern family are describ...

  8. Parental control of children using the internet and social networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zuković Slađana

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper starts from the standpoint that the expansion of the Internet imposes a need for instructing the parents to adequately guide children to use safely this virtual space. That is why we present the results of an empirical research, aimed at establishing how parents control the behaviour of their children on the Internet and social networks. The research was conducted on a sample of 105 parents of the sixth grade elementary school pupils, and the applied questionnaire was construed for this occasion. The obtained results show that the majority of parents think that they know about their children's activities on the Internet, and that a significant number of parents recognize potentional dangers of using the Internet and social networks. When it comes to mediation, i.e. the ways of guiding/regulating the child's behaviour on the Internet, it turned out that the parents most commonly use mediation based on facts or restrictive mediation, while value-based, i.e. active mediation is used by a considerably smaller number of parents. Especially important finding is that the majority of parents show interest for organized instruction on protection of children on the Internet. This interest of parents should be a starting point for creating a systemic support of the society, and especially the support of educational institutions for strengthening parental competencies for providing a safe Internet space for their children.

  9. Parental socialization of emotion : how mothers respond to their children's emotions in turkey

    OpenAIRE

    Ersay, Ebru

    2014-01-01

    Several research studies suggest a link between parents’ emotion socialization and children’s social competence and behavior problems. Parents contribute to their children’s emotion socialization, more directly, through responses to their children’s emotions. Early emotion socialization experiences with parents establish patterns of emotion experience, expression, and regulation that children carry into their broader social circles. Few scales exist to document parents’ responses to childr...

  10. Bridging Social Circles: Need for Cognition, Prejudicial Judgments, and Personal Social Network Characteristics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Petru L. Curşeu

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Various factors pertaining to the social context (availability of plausible social contacts as well as personality traits influence the emergence of social ties that ultimately compose one’s personal social network. We build on a situational selection model to argue that personality traits influence the cognitive processing of social cues that in turn influences the preference for particular social ties. More specifically, we use a cross-lagged design to test a mediation model explaining the effects of need for cognition (NFC on egocentric network characteristics. We used the data available in the LISS panel, in which a probabilistic sample of Dutch participants were asked to fill in surveys annually. We tested our model on data collected in three successive years and our results show that people scoring high in NFC tend to revolve in information-rich egocentric networks, characterized by high demographic diversity, high interpersonal dissimilarity, and high average education. The results also show that the effect of NFC on social network characteristics is mediated by non-prejudicial judgments.

  11. Social cognition in schizophrenia and healthy aging: differences and similarities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silver, Henry; Bilker, Warren B

    2014-12-01

    Social cognition is impaired in schizophrenia but it is not clear whether this is specific for the illness and whether emotion perception is selectively affected. To study this we examined the perception of emotional and non-emotional clues in facial expressions, a key social cognitive skill, in schizophrenia patients and old healthy individuals using young healthy individuals as reference. Tests of object recognition, visual orientation, psychomotor speed, and working memory were included to allow multivariate analysis taking into account other cognitive functions Schizophrenia patients showed impairments in recognition of identity and emotional facial clues compared to young and old healthy groups. Severity was similar to that for object recognition and visuospatial processing. Older and younger healthy groups did not differ from each other on these tests. Schizophrenia patients and old healthy individuals were similarly impaired in the ability to automatically learn new faces during the testing procedure (measured by the CSTFAC index) compared to young healthy individuals. Social cognition is distinctly impaired in schizophrenia compared to healthy aging. Further study is needed to identify the mechanisms of automatic social cognitive learning impairment in schizophrenia patients and healthy aging individuals and determine whether similar neural systems are affected. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Television, Parents, and the Political Socialization of Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liebes, Tamar

    1992-01-01

    Discusses the role of television in constructing social reality and teaching children to participate in society, examining Israeli research on the role of television fiction and news in parent-child interactions. The article notes how family cultures affect the way television is incorporated into the socialization process in all households. (SM)

  13. Joint Attention, Social-Cognition, and Recognition Memory in Adults

    OpenAIRE

    Kim, Kwanguk; Mundy, Peter

    2012-01-01

    The early emerging capacity for Joint Attention, or socially coordinated visual attention, is thought to be integral to the development of social-cognition in childhood. Recent studies have also begun to suggest that joint attention affects adult cognition as well, but methodological limitations hamper research on this topic. To address this issue we developed a novel virtual reality (VR) paradigm that integrates eye-tracking and virtual avatar technology to measure two types of joint attenti...

  14. Collective Dynamics of Belief Evolution under Cognitive Coherence and Social Conformity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodriguez, Nathaniel; Bollen, Johan; Ahn, Yong-Yeol

    2016-01-01

    Human history has been marked by social instability and conflict, often driven by the irreconcilability of opposing sets of beliefs, ideologies, and religious dogmas. The dynamics of belief systems has been studied mainly from two distinct perspectives, namely how cognitive biases lead to individual belief rigidity and how social influence leads to social conformity. Here we propose a unifying framework that connects cognitive and social forces together in order to study the dynamics of societal belief evolution. Each individual is endowed with a network of interacting beliefs that evolves through interaction with other individuals in a social network. The adoption of beliefs is affected by both internal coherence and social conformity. Our framework may offer explanations for how social transitions can arise in otherwise homogeneous populations, how small numbers of zealots with highly coherent beliefs can overturn societal consensus, and how belief rigidity protects fringe groups and cults against invasion from mainstream beliefs, allowing them to persist and even thrive in larger societies. Our results suggest that strong consensus may be insufficient to guarantee social stability, that the cognitive coherence of belief-systems is vital in determining their ability to spread, and that coherent belief-systems may pose a serious problem for resolving social polarization, due to their ability to prevent consensus even under high levels of social exposure. We argue that the inclusion of cognitive factors into a social model could provide a more complete picture of collective human dynamics.

  15. Developing Cognitive Models for Social Simulation from Survey Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alt, Jonathan K.; Lieberman, Stephen

    The representation of human behavior and cognition continues to challenge the modeling and simulation community. The use of survey and polling instruments to inform belief states, issue stances and action choice models provides a compelling means of developing models and simulations with empirical data. Using these types of data to population social simulations can greatly enhance the feasibility of validation efforts, the reusability of social and behavioral modeling frameworks, and the testable reliability of simulations. We provide a case study demonstrating these effects, document the use of survey data to develop cognitive models, and suggest future paths forward for social and behavioral modeling.

  16. Trending Longitudinal Agreement between Parent and Child Perceptions of Quality of Life for Pediatric Palliative Care Patients

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Meaghann S. Weaver

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Pediatric palliative care studies often rely on proxy-reported instead of direct child-reported quality of life metrics. The purpose of this study was to longitudinally evaluate quality of life for pediatric patients receiving palliative care consultations and to compare patient-reported quality of life with parent perception of the child’s quality of life across wellness domains. The 23-item PedsQL™ V4.0 Measurement Model was utilized for ten child and parent dyads at time of initial palliative care consultation, Month 6, and Month 12 to assess for physical, emotional, social, and cognitive dimensions of quality of life as reported independently by the child and by the parent for the child. Findings were analyzed using Bland–Altman plots to compare observed differences to limits of agreement. This study revealed overall consistency between parent- and child-reported quality of life across domains. Physical health was noted to be in closest agreement. At the time of initial palliative care consult, children collectively scored their social quality of life higher than parental perception of the child’s social quality of life; whereas, emotional and cognitive quality of life domains were scored lower by children than by the parental report. At the one year survey time point, the physical, emotional, and social domains trended toward more positive patient perception than proxy perception with congruence between quality of life scores for the cognitive domain. Findings reveal the importance of eliciting a child report in addition to a parent report when measuring and longitudinally trending perceptions on quality of life.

  17. Cognition about Cognition: Metacognitive Therapy and Change in Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Social Phobia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wells, Adrian

    2007-01-01

    Metacognitive theory and therapy views the persistence of negative beliefs and thoughts as a result of metacognitions controlling cognition. This paper describes, with reference to the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and social phobia, how metacognition contributes to cognitive stability and to change. Metacognitive therapy offers…

  18. The relationship between mother’s parenting style and social adaptability of adolescent girls in Isfahan

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kazemi, Ashraf; Solokian, Soheila; Ashouri, Elaheh; Marofi, Maryam

    2012-01-01

    Background: Social adaptability is an important requirement of the social life of adolescents, which can be affected by their mother’s parenting style (PS). The purpose of this study is to compare the social adaptability in four parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and neglectful) through which mothers interact with their adolescent girls. Materials and Methods: This survey is a cross-sectional and analytical study on 737 adolescents that study in the all girls junior high schools in Isfahan. Data collection was done with a questionnaire. The questionnaires were completed by the adolescents. After data collection, the parenting styles were determined and the social adaptability of the four groups was compared. Findings: The mean social adaptability in adolescents who their mothers have the authoritative parenting style was 49.6 ± 6.1, in the permissive parenting style 50.1 ± 5.8, the authoritarian parenting style 44.2 ± 6.5 and in the neglectful parenting style was 42.2 ± 7.5. The social adaptability of the four groups was significantly different (p adaptability in adolescent girls. PMID:23833590

  19. Social Cognition in Schizophrenia: An NIMH Workshop on Definitions, Assessment, and Research Opportunities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Green, Michael F.; Penn, David L.; Bentall, Richard; Carpenter, William T.; Gaebel, Wolfgang; Gur, Ruben C.; Kring, Ann M.; Park, Sohee; Silverstein, Steven M.; Heinssen, Robert

    2008-01-01

    Social cognition has become a high priority area for the study of schizophrenia. However, despite developments in this area, progress remains limited by inconsistent terminology and differences in the way social cognition is measured. To address these obstacles, a consensus-building meeting on social cognition in schizophrenia was held at the National Institute of Mental Health in March 2006. Agreement was reached on several points, including definitions of terms, the significance of social cognition for schizophrenia research, and suggestions for future research directions. The importance of translational interdisciplinary research teams was emphasized. The current article presents a summary of these discussions. PMID:18184635

  20. Parental Rearing, Attachment, and Social Anxiety in Chinese Adolescents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mothander, Pia Risholm; Wang, Mo

    2014-01-01

    This cross-sectional study investigated associations between perceived parental rearing, attachment, and social anxiety. 510 Chinese middle school students, aged 12 to 20 years, completed a set of questionnaires including "Egna Minnen Beträffande Uppfostran" for Children (EMBU-C), Inventory for Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA) and…

  1. Patterns of rationality recurring inferences in science, social cognition and religious thinking

    CERN Document Server

    Bertolotti, Tommaso

    2015-01-01

    This book proposes an applied epistemological framework for investigating science, social cognition and religious thinking based on inferential patterns that recur in the different domains. It presents human rationality as a tool that allows us to make sense of our (physical or social) surroundings. It shows that the resulting cognitive activity produces a broad spectrum of outputs, such as scientific models and experimentation, gossip and social networks, but also ancient and contemporary deities. The book consists of three parts, the first of which addresses scientific modeling and experimentation, and their application to the analysis of scientific rationality. Thus, this part continues the tradition of eco-cognitive epistemology and abduction studies. The second part deals with the relationship between social cognition and cognitive niche construction, i.e. the evolutionarily relevant externalization of knowledge onto the environment, while the third part focuses on what is commonly defined as "irrational...

  2. Adolescent social media use and mental health from adolescent and parent perspectives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barry, Christopher T; Sidoti, Chloe L; Briggs, Shanelle M; Reiter, Shari R; Lindsey, Rebecca A

    2017-12-01

    This study investigated adolescent and parent reports of adolescent social media use and its relation to adolescent psychosocial adjustment. The sample consisted of 226 participants (113 parent-adolescent dyads) from throughout the United States, with adolescents (55 males, 51 females, 7 unreported) ranging from ages 14 to 17. Parent and adolescent reports of the number of adolescents' social media accounts were moderately correlated with parent-reported DSM-5 symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, ODD, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, as well as adolescent-reported fear of missing out (FoMO) and loneliness. Lastly, anxiety and depressive symptoms were highest among adolescents with a relatively high number of parent-reported social media accounts and relatively high FoMO. The implications of these findings and need for related longitudinal studies are discussed. Copyright © 2017 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Social cognition and work performance of persons with schizophrenia in a Chinese population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lo, Panmi; Siu, Andrew M H

    2015-01-01

    Social-cognitive deficits have a significant impact on the community and vocational functioning of persons with schizophrenia. This study aimed to explore the relationship between social-cognitive abilities and vocational functioning in a Chinese population. We recruited 30 outpatients with schizophrenia to participate. We administered the Chinese Social Cognition and Screening Questionnaire (C-SCSQ) to assess Theory of Mind (ToM), attributional bias, and neurocognition; the Facial Expression Identification Test (FEIT) to assess emotion perception (EP) ability, and the Chinese Work Personality Profile (CWPP) to assess work performance in a simulated work setting. ToM showed a significant negative correlation with attributional bias. The neurocognitive measure displayed a significant positive correlation with ToM and EP. The structural equation model was a good fit to the data (CFI=0.91, RMSEA=0.12), and showed that social-cognitive abilities had a significant impact (-0.41) on work performance. Of the four social-cognitive domains, ToM and paranoid attributional style (PAS) contributed significantly to variations in work performance. These results support the theory that social-cognitive abilities have an impact on work performance. ToM has a positive impact whereas PAS has an adverse effect. Persons with schizophrenia present specific deficits in their social-cognitive abilities, which have significant impact on their work performance and employability.

  4. Early adolescents' relationships with parents, teachers, and peers and increases in social anxiety symptoms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weymouth, Bridget B; Buehler, Cheryl

    2018-04-05

    Previous research on social anxiety has clearly identified interpersonal relationships as important for social anxiety symptoms. Few studies, however, have utilized longitudinal designs and have examined mechanisms that might explain links between negative interpersonal relationships and changes in youths' social anxiety over time. Recent models of social anxiety suggest that negative interpersonal relationships are linked to social anxiety through effects on social skills and behaviors. Using an autoregressive design and a sample of 416 two-parent families (51% female, 91% White), this study examined whether connections among parent-adolescent hostility, teacher support (6th grade), and changes in early adolescent social anxiety symptoms (6th to 8th grades) are mediated by youths' compliance with peers (7th grade). Results indicated that youths who experienced greater parent-adolescent hostility and lower teacher support engaged in greater compliance with peers. In turn, those who engaged in greater compliance with peers experienced increases in social anxiety symptoms. Significant indirect effects were substantiated for only parent-adolescent hostility. Associations were unique to adolescent social anxiety after accounting for depressive symptoms. Associations did not differ for early adolescent girls and boys. The results reveal that nuanced social processes involving social behaviors and relationships with parents and teachers have important and potentially unique implications for changes in early adolescent social anxiety symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

  5. [Social-emotional and cognitive markers in children of divorce and in children from 2-parent families--a cross sectional study].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kardas, J; Langenmayr, A

    1999-04-01

    Related to the research of the effects of separation and divorce on children there is a lack of empirical studies in Germany. The following cross-sectional field-study directly investigate 48 children from divorced and 32 children from two-parent-families regarding socio-emotional and some cognitive characteristics (nonclinical samples). Projective and semi-projective tests were the preferred instruments. One of the main questions was related to frustration behavior, measured by the Rosenzweig-Picture-Frustration Test (childrens form). This test was used for the first time by a population of German children of divorce. Children of divorce showed a special frustration behavior, a so called M-profile showing many impunitive reactions. They avoid direct conflicts or struggle and try to deny the frustration. Also the subtests of the Hamburg-Wechsler-Intelligence test for children (HAWIK) show clearly that children from divorced families obtain much poorer test values in contrast to children from two-parent homes.

  6. Parent-school relationships and children's academic and social outcomes in public school pre-kindergarten.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Powell, Douglas R; Son, Seung-Hee; File, Nancy; San Juan, Robert R

    2010-08-01

    Two dimensions of parent-school relationships, parental school involvement and parents' perceptions of teacher responsiveness to child/parent, were examined in state-funded pre-kindergarten classrooms in a large urban school district. Children's social and academic outcomes were individually assessed in the fall and spring. Hierarchical Linear Modeling analyses revealed that parental school involvement positively predicted children's social skills (d=.55) and mathematics skills (d=.36), and negatively predicted problem behaviors (d=.47). Perceived teacher responsiveness to child/parent was positively related to children's early reading (d=.43), and social skills (d=.43), and negatively to problem behaviors (d=.61). All analyses controlled for quality of teacher interaction with children in the classroom, parental home involvement, parental education level, and child race/ethnicity. Copyright 2010 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Social cognition and underlying cognitive mechanisms in children with an extra X chromosome: a comparison with autism spectrum disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Rijn, S; Stockmann, L; van Buggenhout, G; van Ravenswaaij-Arts, C; Swaab, H

    2014-06-01

    Individuals with an extra X chromosome are at increased risk for autism symptoms. This study is the first to assess theory of mind and facial affect labeling in children with an extra X chromosome. Forty-six children with an extra X chromosome (29 boys with Klinefelter syndrome and 17 girls with Trisomy X), 56 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 88 non-clinical controls, aged 9-18 years, were included. Similar to children with ASD, children with an extra X chromosome showed significant impairments in social cognition. Regression analyses showed that different cognitive functions predicted social cognitive skills in the extra X and ASD groups. The social cognitive deficits were similar for boys and girls with an extra X chromosome, and not specific for a subgroup with high Autism Diagnostic Interview Revised autism scores. Thus, children with an extra X chromosome show social cognitive deficits, which may contribute to social dysfunction, not only in children showing a developmental pattern that is 'typical' for autism but also in those showing mild or late presenting autism symptoms. Our findings may also help explain variance in type of social deficit: children may show similar social difficulties, but these may arise as a consequence of different underlying information processing deficits. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and International Behavioural and Neural Genetics Society.

  8. Grateful parents raising grateful children: Niche selection and the socialization of child gratitude.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rothenberg, William A; Hussong, Andrea M; Langley, Hillary A; Egerton, Gregory A; Halberstadt, Amy G; Coffman, Jennifer L; Mokrova, Irina; Costanzo, Philip R

    2017-01-01

    Given that children's exposure to gratitude-related activities may be one way that parents can socialize gratitude in their children, we examined whether parents' niche selection (i.e., tendency to choose perceived gratitude-inducing activities for their children) mediates the association between parents' reports of their own and their children's gratitude. Parent-child dyads ( N =101; children aged 6-9; 52% girls; 80% Caucasian; 85% mothers) participated in a laboratory visit and parents also completed a seven-day online diary regarding children's gratitude. Decomposing specific indirect effects within a structural equation model, we found that parents high in gratitude were more likely to set goals to use niche selection as a gratitude socialization strategy, and thereby more likely to place their children in gratitude-related activities. Placement in these activities, in turn, was associated with more frequent expression of gratitude in children. We describe future directions for research on parents' role in socializing gratitude in their children.

  9. Harsh Parenting and Adolescent Depression: Mediation by Negative Self-Cognition and Moderation by Peer Acceptance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Ai-Min; Deng, Xue-Li; Du, Xiu-Xiu; Wang, Ming-Zhong

    2018-01-01

    Guided by Beck's cognitive model of depression, this study examined the mediating role of negative self-cognition in the association between harsh parenting and adolescent depression and whether peer acceptance moderated this indirect relationship. Eight hundred and fifty-nine seventh to ninth graders (379 girls and 480 boys, mean age = 13.58…

  10. Social Cognition, Executive Functions and Self-Report of Psychological Distress in Huntington's Disease

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Ida Unmack; Vinther-Jensen, Tua; Nielsen, Jørgen Erik

    2016-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: Huntington's disease (HD) is characterized by motor symptoms, psychiatric symptoms and cognitive impairment in, inter alia, executive functions and social cognition. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between subjective feeling of psychological distress using...... a self-report questionnaire and performances on tests of executive functions and social cognition in a large consecutive cohort of HD patients. METHOD: 50 manifest HD patients were tested in social cognition and executive functions and each answered a self-report questionnaire about current status...... psychological distress was significantly associated with worse performances on social cognitive tests (mean absolute correlation .34) and that there were no significant correlations between perceived psychological distress and performance on tests of executive functions. The correlations between perceived...

  11. Parental socialization of sadness regulation in middle childhood: the role of expectations and gender.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cassano, Michael C; Zeman, Janice L

    2010-09-01

    The authors of this study investigated mothers' and fathers' socialization of their children's sadness. The particular focus was an examination of how socialization practices changed when parents' expectancies concerning their child's sadness management abilities were violated. Methods included an experimental manipulation and direct observation of parent-child interactions in 62 families of White, middle-class children in 3rd and 4th grades. Families were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 conditions. After parents were provided with a description of normative child behavior on a sadness-induction task, feedback was manipulated such that parents in the control condition were told their child had demonstrated typical regulation while parents in the violated-expectancy condition were informed their child did not manage sadness as well as peers. The hypothesis that violated expectancies influence socialization processes was supported, with greater evidence emerging for fathers than mothers. In certain circumstances within the violated-expectancy condition, there was more parental similarity in socialization practices than in the control condition. Further, mother-father comparisons indicated differences in socialization as a function of parent and child gender that were generally consistent with gender stereotypes.

  12. Longitudinal change in parent and child functioning after internet-delivered cognitive-behavioral therapy for chronic pain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Law, Emily F; Fisher, Emma; Howard, Waylon J; Levy, Rona; Ritterband, Lee; Palermo, Tonya M

    2017-10-01

    Theoretical models of pediatric chronic pain propose longitudinal associations between children's pain experiences and parent and family factors. A large body of cross-sectional research supports these models, demonstrating that greater parent distress and maladaptive parenting behaviors are associated with greater child disability. Family-based cognitive-behavioral therapy interventions have been developed for youth with chronic pain which aim to improve child disability and reduce maladaptive parenting behaviors. However, little is known about temporal, longitudinal associations between parent and child functioning in this population. In the present study, we conducted a secondary analysis of data from 138 families of youth with chronic pain aged 11 to 17 years old who received family-based cognitive-behavioral therapy delivered through the Internet as part of a randomized controlled trial. Measures of child disability, parent protective behavior, and parent distress were obtained at pretreatment, immediate posttreatment, 6-month follow-up, and 12-month follow-up. Latent growth modeling indicated that child disability, parent protective behavior, and parent distress improved with treatment over the 12-month study period. Latent growth modeling for parallel processes indicated that higher parent distress at pretreatment predicted less improvement in child disability over 12 months. No other predictive paths between parent and child functioning were significant. These findings indicate that parent distress may increase the risk of poor response to psychological pain treatment among youth with chronic pain. At present, parent distress is not routinely targeted in psychological interventions for pediatric chronic pain. Research is needed to determine optimal strategies for targeting parent and family factors in the treatment of pediatric chronic pain.

  13. Social Cognitive Training for Schizophrenia: A Meta-Analytic Investigation of Controlled Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kurtz, Matthew M.; Richardson, Christi L.

    2012-01-01

    A wealth of evidence has revealed that deficits in social cognitive skills (including facial affect recognition (FAR), social cue perception, Theory of Mind (ToM), and attributional style) are evident in schizophrenia and are linked to a variety of domains of functional outcome. In light of these associations, a growing number of studies have attempted to ameliorate these deficits as a means of improving outcome in the disorder through the use of structured behavioral training. This study used quantitative methods of meta-analysis to assess the efficacy of behavioral training programs designed to improve social cognitive function. A total of 19 studies consisting of 692 clients were aggregated from relevant databases. Outcome measures were organized according to whether they were social cognitive tests proximal to the intervention or whether they represented measures of treatment generalization (symptoms, observer-rated community, and institutional function). With respect to social cognitive measures, weighted effect-size analysis revealed that there were moderate-large effects of social cognitive training procedures on FAR (identification, d = 0.71 and discrimination, d = 1.01) and small-moderate effects of training on ToM (d = 0.46), while effects on social cue perception and attributional style were not significant. For measures of generalization, weighted effect-size analysis revealed that there were moderate-large effect on total symptoms (d = 0.68) and observer-rated community and institutional function (d = 0.78). Effects of social cognitive training programs on positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia were nonsignificant. Moderating variables and implications for future research and treatment development are discussed. PMID:21525166

  14. Longitudinal Test of a Social Cognitive Model of Academic and Life Satisfaction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singley, Daniel B.; Lent, Robert W.; Sheu, Hung-Bin

    2010-01-01

    The authors tested a social cognitive model of academic and overall life satisfaction in a sample of 769 university students. The predictors, drawn from Lent's unifying perspective on well-being and psychosocial adjustment, included social cognitive (academic self-efficacy, goal progress, social support) and personality (trait positive affect)…

  15. Filipino students' reported parental socialization of academic achievement by socioeconomic group.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bernardo, Allan B I

    2009-10-01

    Academic achievement of students differs by socioeconomic group. Parents' socialization of academic achievement in their children was explored in self-reports of 241 students from two socioeconomic status (SES) groups in the Philippines, using a scale developed by Bempechat, et al. Students in the upper SES group had higher achievement than their peers in the middle SES group, but had lower scores on most dimensions of parental socialization of academic achievement. Regression analyses indicate that reported parental attempts to encourage more effort to achieve was associated with lower achievement in students with upper SES.

  16. Transactions Between Child Social Wariness and Observed Structured Parenting: Evidence From a Prospective Adoption Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Natsuaki, Misaki N.; Leve, Leslie D.; Harold, Gordon T.; Neiderhiser, Jenae M.; Shaw, Daniel S.; Ganiban, Jody; Scaramella, Laura V.; Reiss, David

    2013-01-01

    This investigation examined the mutual influences between structured parenting and child social wariness during toddlerhood using a longitudinal adoption design. The sample consisted of 361 adoption-linked families, each including an adopted child, adoptive parents, and a birth mother. Heightened social wariness in children at age 18 months predicted reduced levels of observed structured parenting (i.e., less directive parenting with fewer commands and requests) in adoptive mothers at age 27 months. Adoptive fathers’ lower structured parenting at age 18 months predicted subsequent elevation in child social wariness. Birth mothers’ history of fear-related anxiety disorders was not associated with child social wariness. Findings highlight the role of dynamic family transactions in the development of social wariness during toddlerhood. PMID:23448430

  17. The relationship of parenting styles and social competency to Type A behavior in children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harralson, T L; Lawler, K A

    1992-10-01

    This study examined parenting styles, Type A behavior in parents and children, and social competence in children. Fifty 1st-6th grade children, parents, and their teachers participated. Type A behavior in parents was associated with a controlling style of parenting, but not with pressuring the child to achieve. Parenting styles of achievement pressure and high control were related to impatient and aggressive behaviors in children, as measured by the MYTH, a teacher-scored Type A behavior instrument. In addition, impatience and aggressiveness in the children were negatively correlated with the child's social competency and ability to function in school. Parenting practices, Type A behavior, and social competency in children may play important roles in the origins of detrimental components of Type A behavior, such as impatience and aggression.

  18. A new computerized cognitive and social cognition training specifically designed for patients with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder in early stages of illness: A pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fernandez-Gonzalo, Sol; Turon, Marc; Jodar, Merce; Pousa, Esther; Hernandez Rambla, Carla; García, Rebeca; Palao, Diego

    2015-08-30

    People with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorders at early stages of the illness present cognitive and social cognition deficits that have a great impact in functional outcomes. Cognitive Remediation Therapy (CRT) has demonstrated consistent effect in cognitive performance, symptoms and psychosocial functioning. However, any CRT intervention or social cognition training have been specifically designed for patients in the early stages of psychosis. The aim of this pilot study is to assess the efficacy of a new computerized cognitive and social cognition program for patients with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder with recent diagnosis. A comprehensive assessment of clinical, social and non-social cognitive and functional measures was carried out in 53 randomized participants before and after the 4-months treatment. Significant results were observed in Spatial Span Forwards, Immediate Logical Memory and Pictures of Facial Affect (POFA) total score. None of these results were explained by medication, premorbid social functioning or psychopathological symptoms. No impact of the intervention was observed in other cognitive and social cognition outcome neither in clinical and functional outcomes. This new computerized intervention may result effective ameliorating visual attention, logical memory and emotional processing in patients in the early stages of schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Emotional intelligence and non-social cognition in schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frajo-Apor, B; Kemmler, G; Pardeller, S; Plass, T; Mühlbacher, M; Welte, A-S; Fleischhacker, W W; Hofer, A

    2017-01-01

    The different patterns of Emotional Intelligence (EI) deficits in schizophrenia and bipolar I disorder are are not yet well understood. This study compares EI levels among these groups and highlights the potential impact of non-social cognition on EI. Fifty-eight schizophrenia and 60 bipolar outpatients were investigated using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) and the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS). Analyses of covariance were performed with adjustment for the BACS composite score. Compared to bipolar subjects, schizophrenia patients showed significantly lower levels in both EI and non-social cognition. After adjustment for the BACS composite score, the difference in EI was lost. The mediation analysis revealed that differences between schizophrenia and bipolar patients in strategic EI are almost fully attributable to the mediating effect of non-social cognition. Our findings suggest that in both schizophrenia and bipolar patients EI is strongly influenced by non-social cognitive functioning. This has to be taken into account when interpreting MSCEIT data in comparative studies in serious mental illness and emphasizes the importance of cognitive remediation.

  20. Parental media socialization and educational attainment: Resource or disadvantage?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Notten, N.J.W.R.; Kraaykamp, G.L.M.

    2010-01-01

    This article analyzes the long-term effects of parental media socialization on children's educational attainment. Data on 8316 individuals from 3257 families in the Netherlands is used to estimate hierarchical models that distinguish between family-specific (socialization) and individual-level