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Die vorliegende Dissertation befasst sich mit dem Umstieg von papierbasiertem (PBA) auf computerbasiertes Assessment (CBA), insbesondere in Large-Scale-Studien. In der Bildungsforschung war Papier lange Zeit das Medium für Assessments, im Zuge des digitalen Zeitalters erhält der Computer aber auch hier Einzug. So sind die großen Bildungsvergleichsstudien, wie PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) oder PIAAC (Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies), und nationalen Studien über Bildungsverläufe und -entwicklungen im Rahmen des NEPS (Nationales Bildungspanel) bereits umgestiegen oder befinden sich im Prozesses des Umstiegs von PBA auf CBA. Findet innerhalb dieser Studien ein Moduswechsel statt, dann muss die Vergleichbarkeit zwischen den Ergebnissen der unterschiedlichen Administrationsmodi gewährleistet werden. Unterschiede in den Eigenschaften der Modi, wie beispielsweise im Antwortformat, können sich dabei auf die psychometrischen Eigenschaften der Tests auswirken und zu sogenannten Modus Effekten führen. Diese Effekte wiederum können sich in Unterschieden zwischen den Testscores widerspiegeln, sodass diese nicht mehr direkt miteinander vergleichbar sind. Die zentrale Frage dabei ist, ob es durch den Moduswechsel zu einer Veränderung des gemessenen Konstruktes kommt. Ist dies der Fall, so können Testergebnisse aus unterschiedlichen Administrationsmodi nicht miteinander verglichen und die Ergebnisse aus dem computerbasierten Test nicht analog zu den Ergebnissen aus dem papierbasierten Test interpretiert werden. Auch Veränderungen, die aus Messungen zu verschiedenen Zeitpunkten und mit unterschiedlichen Modi resultieren, lassen sich dann nicht mehr beschreiben. Es kann jedoch auch Modus Effekte geben, die zwar nicht das gemessene Konstrukt betreffen, aber sich beispielsweise in der Schwierigkeit der Items niederschlagen. Solange aber das erfasste Konstrukt bei einem Moduswechsel unverändert bleibt, können diese Modus Effekte bei der Berechnung der Testscores berücksichtigt und die Vergleichbarkeit gewährleistet werden. Somit ist, nicht nur im Hinblick auf gültige Trendschätzungen, der Analyse von Modus-Effekten ein hoher Stellenwert beizumessen. Da die bisherige Befundlage in der Literatur zu Modus-Effekten sowohl hinsichtlich der Stärke der gefundenen Effekte, als auch in Bezug auf die verwendeten Methoden sehr heterogen ist, ist das Ziel des ersten Beitrags dieser publikationsbasierten Dissertation, eine Anleitung für eine systematische Durchführung einer Äquivalenzuntersuchung, speziell für Large-Scale Assessments, zu geben. Dabei wird die exemplarisch dargelegte Modus-Effekt-Analyse anhand von zuvor definierten und in ihrer Bedeutsamkeit belegten Kriterien auf der Test- und Item-Ebene illustriert. Zudem wird die Möglichkeit beschrieben, auftretende Effekte anhand von Eigenschaften des Administrationsmodus’, beispielsweise des Antwortformats oder der Navigationsmöglichkeiten innerhalb des Tests, zu erklären. Im zweiten und dritten Beitrag findet sich jeweils eine empirische Anwendung der im ersten Beitrag beschriebenen schematischen Modus-Effekt-Analyse mit unterschiedlicher Schwerpunktsetzung. Dazu wurden die Daten eines Leseverständnistests aus der Nationalen Begleitforschung von PISA 2012 sowie zweier Leseverständnistests im NEPS, die jeweils sowohl papier- als auch computerbasiert administriert wurden, analysiert. Das Kriterium der Konstrukt-Äquivalenz steht dabei als wichtigstes Äquivalenz-Kriterium im Fokus. Zusätzlich wurde Äquivalenz in Bezug auf die Reliabilität und die Item-Parameter (Schwierigkeit und Diskrimination) untersucht. Im zweiten Beitrag wurden darüber hinaus interindividuelle Unterschiede im Modus-Effekt in Bezug zu basalen Computerfähigkeiten und zum Geschlecht gesetzt. Der dritte Beitrag fokussiert die Item-Eigenschaften, die als mögliche Quellen von Modus-Effekten herangezogen werden können und bezieht diese zur Erklärung von Modusunterschieden in die Analyse mit ein. In beiden Studien wurde keine Evidenz gefunden, dass sich das Konstrukt bei einem Wechsel des Administrationsmodus ändert. Lediglich einzelne Items wiesen am Computer im Vergleich zum PBA eine erhöhte Schwierigkeit auf, wobei sich der größte Teil der Items als invariant zwischen den Modi erwies. Für zwei Item-Eigenschaften wurde ein Effekt auf die erhöhte Schwierigkeit der Items am Computer gefunden. Interindividuelle Unterschiede im Modus-Effekt konnten nicht durch basale Computerfähigkeiten oder das Geschlecht erklärt werden.
Diese Dissertation leistet einen wesentlichen Beitrag zur Systematisierung von Äquivalenzuntersuchungen, insbesondere solchen in Large-Scale Assessments, indem sie die wesentlichen Kriterien für die Beurteilung von Äquivalenz herausstellt und diskutiert sowie deren Analyse methodisch aufbereitet. Die Relevanz von Modus-Effekt Studien wird dabei nicht zuletzt durch die Ergebnisse der beiden empirischen Beiträge hervorgehoben. Schließlich wird der Bedeutung des Einbezugs von Item-Eigenschaften hinsichtlich der Beurteilung der Äquivalenz Ausdruck verliehen.
Bindung bildet in der Erforschung langfristiger psychosozialer Entwicklung ein zentrales Konstrukt. In Bezug auf die Phase der mittleren Kindheit liegt dabei jedoch oft eine eingeschränkte Forschungsperspektive vor: dem Konzept der Monotropie folgend, wird trotz des wachsenden sozialen Umfelds allein Eltern eine besondere Aufmerksamkeit in ihrer Rolle als Bindungsfiguren zugeordnet. Zudem fehlen Studien jenseits westlich-europäischer Entwicklungsverläufe. Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit ist die explorative Erforschung der transkulturellen Spannbreite und der kontextspezifischen Adaptivität in der Auswahl und Funktionalität von Bindungsfiguren der mittleren Kindheit. Dazu werden Daten in zwei ökokulturell gegensätzlichen Settings erhoben, um kontextspezifische und globale Trends betrachten zu können.
Zunächst erfolgt eine ethnologische Annäherung an die frühste Kindheit im kamerunischen Setting der Nseh entlang des Tragetuchs als zentralem Care-Objekt. Diese offenbart eine symbiotische Beziehungsgestaltung, aber auch strenge Regeln des Aufbaus und der Abgrenzung im geteilten Care-System.
Anschließend wird eine methodische Strategie zur Erforschung der mittleren Kindheit entwickelt, die eine Netzwerkperspektive beinhaltet und der kindlichen Wahrnehmung folgt. Dabei werden teilnehmende Beobachtungen mit Photo Elicitation Interviews verbunden, um das vollständige Kollektiv der Bindungsfiguren zu identifizieren und in ihren soziostrukturellen und funktionellen Eigenschaften zu charakterisieren. Indem das Setting zum inhärenten Teil der Datenerhebung wird, werden dabei adaptive Prozesse zugänglich.
In Umsetzungen dieser kontextualisierend explorativen Strategie bei den kamerunischen Nseh und im deutschen Bad Nauheim werden die Bindungsnetzwerke der mittleren Kindheit erfasst und in ihrer Adaptivität diskutiert. Der Kontrastvergleich offenbart, dass die Kinder der Nseh im Vergleich zu den Kindern aus Bad Nauheim in der Altersstruktur vielfältigere, räumlich enger begrenzte und zeitlich stabilere Netzwerke beschreiben. In beiden Settings identifizieren die Kinder eine Aufteilung der inhaltlich-funktionelle Verantwortlichkeiten, die bei den Nseh gemäß den Altersgruppen verläuft.
Insgesamt zeichnet sich für die mittlere Kindheit ein komplexes Bindungsumfeld ab. Dabei verbinden sich settingspezifische Kindheitsbedingungen mit globalen Entwicklungsthemen. Das mehrdimensionale kindliche Sicherheitsgefühl kann auf die Wirkung eines Kollektivs an Bindungsfiguren zurückgeführt werden, zu dem kontextunabhängig in einem bedeutsamen Ausmaß auch Peers gehören.
Die vorliegende Dissertation beschäftigt sich mit der moderierenden Rolle der Elaboriertheit des sportbezogenen Selbstaspekts auf die Verarbeitung selbstrelevanter Informationen im Sport.
Im ersten Kapitel werden aus einer übergeordneten Perspektive heraus zunächst die beiden im Mittelpunkt der Dissertation stehenden Konstrukte Selbst und Identität in einen historischen Kontext gesetzt und begrifflich umrissen. Im Anschluss werden verschiedene Modelle des Selbst vorgestellt. Dabei wird aufgezeigt, dass insbesondere in der sportpsychologischen Forschung bislang eher Inhalte und weniger Strukturen und Prozesse des Selbstkonzepts im Mittelpunkt standen. In der vorliegenden Dissertation wird das Selbst bzw. die Identität als komplexes, dynamisches System aufgefasst, das sowohl die Informationsverarbeitung beeinflusst als auch durch Prozesse der Informationsverarbeitung beeinflusst wird. Im Anschluss stehen Theorien der Selbstwerterhöhung und der Selbstkonsistenz im Mittelpunkt, deren Vertreter unterschiedliche Vorhersagen für die Verarbeitung konsistenter und von der eigenen Selbsteinschätzung positiv abweichender Rückmeldungen postulieren: Während Selbstwerterhöhungstheorien eine Präferenz für positives Feedback vorhersagen, bevorzugen Personen laut Selbstkonsistenztheorien solches Feedback, das mit ihrer eigenen Selbsteinschätzung übereinstimmt. Anschließend werden mit der Art der Reaktion (affektiv vs. kognitiv) und der Elaboriertheit des betroffenen Selbstaspekts zwei Variablen vorgestellt, die moderieren, ob die Informationsverarbeitung eher konsistenztheoretischen (kognitive Reaktion, hohe Elaboriertheit) oder selbstwerterhöhenden (affektive Reaktion, geringe Elaboriertheit) Vorhersagen folgt.
Ausführlicher werden dann mit dem Exercise Self-Schema und der Exercise Identity zwei sportbezogene Konstrukte vorgestellt, die zur Operationalisierung der Elaboriertheit des entsprechenden Selbstaspekts genutzt werden können. Hierbei wird sowohl auf die Messung als auch auf den empirischen Forschungsstand eingegangen und es wird dargestellt, dass die beiden Konstrukte zwar unterschiedlichen theoretischen Denklinien entstammen, auf operationaler Ebene aber weitgehend austauschbar sind.
Das zweite Kapitel enthält einen Überblick über die drei durchgeführten quantitativen empirischen Studien. Studie 1 (N = 530) beschreibt die Übersetzung und Validierung der Exercise Identity Scale ins Deutsche. Dabei wird neben den beiden in der Literatur diskutierten Ein- und Zwei-Faktor-Modellen auch ein Bifaktor-Modell als mögliche Alternative geprüft. Zusätzlich wird die Invarianz der Skala über die Zeit (Abstand: 14 Tage) mit einer Teilstichprobe, die Invarianz zwischen Männern und Frauen mit der Gesamtstichprobe sowie die konvergente Validität über Korrelationen mit verwandten Konstrukten getestet.
Die Studien 2 und 3 widmen sich der eigentlichen Forschungsfrage nach der moderierenden Wirkung der Elaboriertheit auf die Verarbeitung von sportbezogenem selbstrelevantem Feedback. In Studie 2 (Onlinestudie) wird die Elaboriertheit über das Exercise Self-Schema operationalisiert (N = 472). In dieser Studie zeigt sich, dass Personen – unabhängig davon, ob sie ein Selbstschema im Bereich sportlichen Trainings aufweisen oder nicht – Feedback, das von ihrer eigenen Selbsteinschätzung positiv abweicht, gegenüber mit ihrer Selbsteinschätzung übereinstimmendem (konsistentem) Feedback vorziehen. In Studie 3 (Laborstudie, N = 215) werden einige Limitationen der Onlinestudie adressiert, indem u. a. das fingierte Feedback nach einem objektiveren (physiologischen) Test gegeben und die Elaboriertheit mithilfe der kontinuierlichen Exercise Identity Scale gemessen wird. Auch hier zeigt sich die vermutete moderierende Wirkung der Exercise Identity nicht: Bei der affektiven Reaktion dominiert das Selbstwerterhöhungsmotiv; bei der kognitiven zeigt sich zwar ein kleiner Effekt, der allerdings erwartungswidrig ausfällt (Personen mit geringerer Exercise Identity bevorzugten konsistentes gegenüber positivem Feedback). In beiden Studien zeigt sich darüber hinaus ein moderierender Effekt der Elaboriertheit des sportbezogenen Selbstaspekts hinsichtlich des zur Kontrolle mit in das Versuchsdesign einbezogenen negativen Feedbacks.
Im dritten Kapitel wird eine Gesamtdiskussion der Ergebnisse aus einer übergeordneten Perspektive vorgenommen. Die Befunde werden in den bisherigen empirischen Forschungsstand eingeordnet und es werden Grenzen der durchgeführten Studien diskutiert. Implikationen für zukünftige Forschung werden u. a. im Hinblick auf eine Verbindung zwischen der grundlagenorientierten kognitiv-motivationalen Perspektive der vorliegenden Arbeit und einer eher anwendungsorientierten Perspektive im Sinne der Förderung einer Bindung an sportliche Aktivität diskutiert.
This dissertation discusses the mutual influence between leaders and followers on perception, emotion and behavior, using an attachment theory perspective. Some individuals are more likely to be seen as leaders than others. On the one hand this is determined by the characteristics or attributes as well as skills of the person in question. However, on the other hand, followers’ perception and expectations play a big role as well, in particular which expectations of an ideal leader can be fulfilled by followers’ current leader. Although attachment theory and – styles have only recently entered the organizational psychology literature, this dissertation advances that literature by looking at the role of attachment orientations between leaders and followers. In doing so, this dissertation answers several recent research calls on this topic. The three main subsequent chapters discuss the predictive role of attachment orientations with regard to leader preferences, the transference of behavioural expectations from one leader to another, and the perception of leader prototypicality in groups. The first chapter discusses the connection between implicit leader preferences and attachment orientations as predictors. Results show that avoidant attached individuals prefer a more autonomous and independent leadership style, whereas anxious attached individuals prefer a supportive and team-oriented leadership style. In the second chapter I study the transference of behavioural expectations from one leader to another. Results show that avoidant attached individuals are more likely to engage in this transference process. In addition, I discuss and empirically test the influence of culture with regard to leader transference. In the final chapter, I examine the behavioural influence of attachment orientations on how likely someone is perceived to be a leader in groups. Based on 57 project groups, I find that team members actually perceive avoidant attached individuals to be the most leader-like. Put differently, given certain environmental conditions, insecure attachment orientations can be perceived as leaders. These results show that it is even more important that leaders somewhat adapt to their followers’ preferences and not commit to merely one particular leadership style.
Background: Dialectical behaviour therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder (DBT-PTSD), which is tailored to treat adults with PTSD and co-occurring emotion regulation difficulties, has already demonstrated its efficacy, acceptance and safety in an inpatient treatment setting. It combines elements of DBT with trauma-focused cognitive behavioural interventions.
Objective: To investigate the feasibility, acceptance and safety of DBT-PTSD in an outpatient treatment setting by therapists who were novice to the treatment, we treated 21 female patients suffering from PTSD following childhood sexual abuse (CSA) plus difficulties in emotion regulation in an uncontrolled clinical trial.
Method: The Clinician Administered PTSD Symptom Scale (CAPS), the Davidson Trauma Scale (DTS), the Borderline Section of the International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE) and the Borderline Symptom List (BSL-23) were used as primary outcomes. For secondary outcomes, depression and dissociation were assessed. Assessments were administered at pretreatment, post-treatment and six-week follow-up.
Results: Improvement was significant for PTSD as well as for borderline personality symptomatology, with large pretreatment to follow-up effect sizes for completers based on the CAPS (Cohens d = 1.30), DTS (d = 1.50), IPDE (d = 1.60) and BSL-23 (d = 1.20).
Conclusion: The outcome suggests that outpatient DBT-PTSD can safely be used to reduce PTSD symptoms and comorbid psychopathology in adults who have experienced CSA.
Hintergrund: Ein Großteil der Rupturen des vorderen Kreuzbandes (VKB) ereignet sich ohne Gegnerkontakt. Misslungene Landungen zählen zu den häufigsten kontaktlosen Verletzungsursachen, insbesondere bei Spielsportler/-innen. Im Vergleich zu vorgeplanten/antizipierten Landungen reduzieren unvorhersehbare/nicht-antizipierte Landeanforderungen, bei denen die Entscheidung für das Landebein erst in der Luft getroffen wird, die biomechanische Landestabilität. Die veränderte Landecharakteristik wird mit einem gesteigerten VKB-Ruptur-Risiko in Verbindung gebracht.
Ziele: Diese Dissertation überprüft, ob VKB-rekonstruierte (VKBR) im Vergleich zu verletzungsfreien Testpersonen (KG) eine stärkere Abnahme der Lande- und Entscheidungsqualität unter nicht-antizipierten gegenüber antizipierten Landeanforderungen (höhere nicht-antizipierte Landekosten) aufweisen. Zudem wird innerhalb beider Gruppen untersucht, inwiefern die potenziell vorhandenen nicht-antizipierten Landekosten mit spezifischen niedrigeren und höheren kognitiven Funktionen assoziiert sind. Darüber hinaus werden die erfassten kognitiven Messgrößen auf Gruppenunterschiede überprüft.
Methode: Zehn VKBR-Testpersonen (28 ± 4 Jahre, alle männlich) und 20 Kontrolltestpersonen ohne VKB-Verletzungshistorie (27 ± 4 Jahre, alle männlich) führten jeweils 70 Counter-Movement-Jumps mit einbeinigen Landungen auf eine Druckmessplatte durch. Alle Probanden absolvierten in randomisierter Reihenfolge eine antizipierte (Landung auf links oder rechts bereits vor Absprung bekannt) und eine nicht-antizipierte/-vorplanbare (visuelle Landeinformation erst nach Absprung angezeigt; etwa 360 ms vor Bodenkontakt) Landebedingung (n = 35 jeweils). Die Operationalisierung der biomechanischen Landestabilität erfolgte anhand der maximalen vertikalen Bodenreaktionskraft (peak ground reaction force, pVGRF), Stabilisationszeit (time to stabilisation, TTS), posturalen Schwankung (center of pressure, COP) sowie der Standsicherheit (Anzahl an Standfehler; Bodenberührung mit Spielbein). Die Entscheidungsqualität wurde anhand der Landefehlerzahl (Landung mit falschem Fuß oder beidfüßig) bewertet. Zur Erfassung niedrigerer (z. B. Reaktionsgeschwindigkeit, visuelle Wahrnehmung) und höherer kognitiver Funktionen (z. B. kognitive Flexibilität, Arbeitsgedächtnis, Inhibitionskontrolle) kamen Computer- sowie Papier-und-Stiftbasierte Tests zum Einsatz.
Ergebnisse: Innerhalb beider Gruppen führte die nicht-antizipierte im Vergleich zur antizipierten Landebedingung zu höheren COP-Werten (KG: p < 0,01; d=1,1; VKBR: p < 0,01; d = 1,1) sowie zu mehr Stand- (KG: p < 0,001; d = 0,9; VKBR: p < 0,05; d = 0,6) und Lande-fehlern (KG: p < 0.01; d = 1,3; VKBR: p < 0,001; d = 1,9). Keine Unterschiede zeigten sich im Hinblick auf TTS und pVGRF (p > 0,05). Weder innerhalb noch zwischen den Bedingungen differierten die beiden Gruppen in einem der erfassten Lande-/Entscheidungsparameter systematisch (p > 0,05). Innerhalb der KG war die Zunahme der COP-Schwankungen mit einer geringeren Interferenzkontrolle assoziiert (r = 0,48; p < 0,05). Eine höhere Anzahl nicht-antizipierter Landefehler (geringere Entscheidungsqualität) stand in einem signifikanten Zusammenhang (Kovariate: Flugzeit/Sprungdauer) mit einer geringeren kognitiven Flexibilitäts-/Arbeitsgedächtnis- (r = 0,54; p < 0,05) und Kurzzeitgedächtnisleistung (r = -0,55; p < 0,05). Ähnlich verhielt es sich in der VKBR-Gruppe. Allerdings erreichten die Zusammenhänge hier keine statistische Signifikanz (p > 0,05). Innerhalb der VKBR-Gruppe war jedoch eine geringere Entscheidungsqualität mit einer verminderten Interferenz- (r = 0.67, p < 0,05) und Aufmerksamkeitskontrolle (r = 0.66, p < 0,05) korreliert. Im Gegensatz zu den nicht-antizipierten Landefehlern, ergab sich für KG im Hinblick auf die Zunahme der Standfehlerzahl (nicht-antizipierte Landekosten) ein umgekehrt proportionaler Zusammenhang mit einer höheren kognitiven Flexibilität-/ Arbeitsgedächtnis- (r = -0,48; p < 0,05) und Kurzzeitgedächtnisleistung (r = 0,50; p < 0,05). Im Vergleich zur KG, wiesen die VKBR-Testpersonen eine schnellere visuell-motorische Reaktionsgeschwindigkeit auf (p < 0,05). Ansonsten unterschieden sich die Gruppen in keiner der getesteten kognitiven Dimensionen signifikant.
Schlussfolgerungen: Den Ergebnissen dieser Dissertation zufolge, scheinen VKBR- im Vergleich zu Kontrolltestpersonen keine größeren Schwierigkeiten im Umgang mit den nicht-antizipierten Landeanforderungen aufzuweisen. Zudem liefern die Resultate erstmals Hinweise für die Relevanz der höheren kognitiven Funktionen für die Landesicherheit unter nicht-antizipierten Anforderungen. Diese Zusammenhänge sind insofern von besonderer Relevanz, als dass die in beiden Gruppen detektierten nicht-antizipierten Landekosten, Spielsporttreibende einem erhöhten Verletzungsrisiko aussetzen können. Die Verifizierung dieser Befunde durch zukünftige Studien bietet daher wertvolle primär- und sekundärpräventive Potenziale durch eine stärkere inhaltliche Ausrichtung der Trainings- und Therapiepraxis auf die komplexen kognitiv-motorischen Spielanforderungen.
Die vorliegende Arbeit verfolgt das Ziel, zu einem vertieften und zusammenhängenden Verständnis von Taijiquan beizutragen, in der praktischen Rezeption in der westlichen Moderne. Ausgehend von der zunehmenden Popularität ostasiatischer Formen der Leibesübungen lässt sich die Frage formulieren, was allgemein von diesen Praktiken zu erwarten sein kann, welche Potentiale und Grenzen mit diesen verbunden sein können, für die individuelle Lebensführung, die soziale Praxis sowie spezifische Anwendungsfelder wie z.B. Schule, Sport oder Arbeit.
Im Zentrum der Arbeit steht eine qualitative empirische Studie, für die folgende forschungsleitende Fragen formuliert wurden:
1. Effekte und Erfahrungen: Welche Wirkungen bzw. Effekte verbinden Langzeitpraktizierende mit Taijiquan auf Basis ihrer Erfahrungen?
2. Hermeneutik: Welche Bedeutung, welchen Sinn schreiben Langzeitpraktizierende im Taijiquan ihrer Taijiquan-Praxis zu?
In zwei Erhebungsregionen wurden insgesamt 20 qualitative Interviews mit einer Dauer von je ca. 50 bis 100 Minuten geführt. Zentrales Rekrutierungskriterium war die individuelle Dauer der Taijiquan-Praxis (mindestens 3 Jahre).
Das Datenmaterial wurde in einem dreistufigen Verfahren analysiert:
1. zusammenfassende strukturierende inhaltsanalytische Auswertung mit Kategorienbildung,
2. hermeneutisch orientierte Analyse auf Basis einer multi-disziplinären Heuristik aus anthropologisch-philosophischen Konzepten, Ansätzen der Selbstkultivierung / Lebenskunst, leibphänomenologischen und körpersoziologischen Konzepten sowie Positionen der Sport- / Bewegungspädagogik,
3. phänomenologisch orientierte Analyse spezifischer Erfahrungsbereiche.
Die Befunde weisen darauf hin, dass Taijiquan vor allem in langjährigen Übungsbiographien (≥ 10 Jahre) als eine „leibhafte Lebenskunst“ verstanden werden kann: Die leiblich-transformatorischen Effekte und die Inkorporierung philosophischer Vorstellungen durchdringen Selbst und Lebenspraxis. Die Befragten erfahren in der Regel leibliche Zustandsveränderungen, die mit einem Wandel von Haltungs-, Wahrnehmungs- und Verhaltensmustern in Lebensvollzügen einhergehen.
Aus der Perspektive der westlichen Moderne erscheinen vor allem die empirischen Hinweise auf die Ausbildung eines selbstbewahrenden bzw. selbstökologischen Verhaltens, einer leiblichen Intelligenz sowie veränderter sozialer Interaktionsweisen relevant, weil hierin Potentiale zu sehen sind, die Aufgabe des Leibseins in modernen Gesellschaften zu unterstützen.
Gleichwohl bedürfen die Befunde einer vertieften kritischen Reflexion aus soziologischer, pädagogischer und ethischer Perspektive.
Zudem besteht weiterer Forschungsbedarf, u.a. um (a) die Ergebnisse kurzfristiger bzw. weniger intensiver Praxen zu evaluieren, (b) weiterführende Vergleiche mit anderen Leibespraktiken sowie zum Sport bzw. westlich orientierten Bewegungskonzepten zu ermöglichen und (c) geeignete Programme zu identifizieren, die die Ausbildung von Selbstökologie und leiblicher Intelligenz in unterschiedlichen Handlungsfeldern unterstützen.
Die Fähigkeit, negative und belastende Ereignisse in Worte zu fassen und sich mit den damit verbundenen Emotionen und Gedanken auseinanderzusetzen, ist eine wichtige Entwicklungsaufgabe des Kindesalters, die entscheidend von den Eltern geprägt wird (Nelson & Fivush, 2004). Mit Hilfe von Emotionsworten, mentalen Verben (kognitiv, perzeptiv und volitional) und globalen Evaluationen, zusammengefasst unter dem Begriff internal state language (ISL), kann das innere Befinden während eines Ereignisses ausgedrückt werden. Neben der Verwendung von ISL wird auch die Entwicklung der Emotionsregulation im Kindesalter insbesondere durch die Eltern geprägt (Morris, Silk, Steinberg, Myers & Robinson, 2007). Während sowohl die Verwendung von ISL als auch die die mütterliche Unterstützung bei der Emotionsregulation im Kindesalter bislang vielfach untersucht wurde, fehlen mitunter Studien im Jugendalter. Dabei ist diese Entwicklungsphase von besonderer Bedeutung, da hier u.a. kognitive sowie Emotionsregulationsfähigkeiten ausreifen, ebenso wie die Geschlechtsidentität (z.B. Hill & Lynch, 1983; Powers & Casey, 2015).
Die vorliegende kumulative Dissertation beschäftigte sich daher zum einen mit der Frage, ob das Alter und Geschlecht der Jugendlichen einen Einfluss darauf haben, wie sie und ihre Mütter von emotionalen Erlebnissen erzählen. Zum anderen wurde untersucht, wie Mütter ihre jugendlichen Kinder bei der Verarbeitung dieser Erlebnisse unterstützen. Zur Beantwortung dieser Frage wurden 60 Mutter-Kind Paare im Jugendalter von 12, 15 und 18 Jahren (gleichverteilt über Geschlecht und Alter) gebeten, sowohl allein als auch gemeinsam von drei emotionalen Ereignissen (Traurigkeit, Ärger, Glück) zu erzählen.
Das erste Manuskript untersuchte die Verwendung von ISL in allein erzählten Emotionserzählungen der Jugendlichen und konnte zeigen, dass ältere Jugendliche weniger Emotionsworte und mehr mentale Verben verwenden als jüngere. Während die selbstempfundene Emotionsintensität über alle Altersgruppen hinweg gleich blieb, wirkten Trauer- und Ärgererzählungen von älteren Jugendlichen auf unabhängige Beurteiler emotionaler als von jüngeren. Die Verwendung von ISL korrelierte nicht mit der selbstempfundenen Emotionsintensität, die Verwendung von kognitiven Verben allerdings mit der von Beurteilern eingeschätzten Emotionalität. Die Ergebnisse deuten darauf hin, dass im Verlauf des Jugendalters zunehmend kognitive Verben die Aufgabe übernehmen, Emotionalität zu vermitteln.
Das zweite Manuskript untersuchte die Verwendung von ISL in allein erzählten Emotionserzählungen der Jugendlichen sowie in gemeinsamen Mutter-Kind Erzählungen. Entgegen der Erwartung verwendeten Mütter Emotionsworte und globale Evaluationen gleich häufig mit Töchtern und Söhnen, jedoch mehr mentale Verben mit Jungen als mit Mädchen. Zudem benannten sie Traurigkeit gleich häufig über beide Geschlechter, Ärger aber häufiger mit Töchtern als mit Söhnen. Ebenfalls entgegen der Erwartung verwendeten weibliche und männliche Jugendliche Emotionsworte und mentale Verben gleich häufig. Lediglich globale Evaluationen wurden von Mädchen häufiger verwendet als von Jungen, jedoch nur in den allein erzählten Emotionserzählungen. Traurigkeit und Ärger wurden von beiden Geschlechtern gleich häufig benannt. Die Ergebnisse deuten an, dass sich die Geschlechtsunterschiede des Kindesalters im Jugendalter aufzulösen scheinen.
Das dritte Manuskript untersuchte, wie Mütter ihre jugendlichen Kinder bei der narrativen Emotionsregulation unterstützen. Anhand der Trauererzählung einer 12- und eines 18-Jährigen konnte exemplarisch gezeigt werden, dass Mütter die narrative Emotionsregulation durch die Identifizierung und Rechtfertigung von Emotionen, als auch durch die Neubewertung der Ereignisse unterstützen. Die Ergebnisse verdeutlichen, dass Mütter auch im Jugendalter einen wichtigen Beitrag zur Emotionsregulation ihrer Kinder leisten.
Insgesamt tragen die Ergebnisse wesentlich zum Verständnis dessen bei, wie Jugendliche emotionale Erlebnisse sprachlich verarbeiten und wie Mütter sie bei der Verarbeitung dieser Erlebnisse unterstützen.
Individual differences in general cognitive ability (i.e., intelligence) have been linked to individual variations in the modular organization of functional brain networks. However, these analyses have been limited to static (time-averaged) connectivity, and have not yet addressed whether dynamic changes in the configuration of brain networks relate to general intelligence. Here, we used multiband functional MRI resting-state data (N = 281) and estimated subject-specific time-varying functional connectivity networks. Modularity optimization was applied to determine individual time-variant module partitions and to assess fluctuations in modularity across time. We show that higher intelligence, indexed by an established composite measure, the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI), is associated with higher temporal stability (lower temporal variability) of brain network modularity. Post-hoc analyses reveal that subjects with higher intelligence scores engage in fewer periods of extremely high modularity — which are characterized by greater disconnection of task-positive from task-negative networks. Further, we show that brain regions of the dorsal attention network contribute most to the observed effect. In sum, our study suggests that investigating the temporal dynamics of functional brain network topology contributes to our understanding of the neural bases of general cognitive abilities.
Das Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit ist die Identifikation von leistungsrelevanten kognitiven Prozessen beim komplexen Problemlösen (KPL). Außerdem soll untersucht werden, ob sich Leistungsunterschiede beim KPL zwischen soziodemografischen Gruppen durch Prozessmaße erklären lassen. Dazu wurden in den drei Einzelarbeiten, auf denen diese Arbeit basiert, verschiedene Prozesse und ihr Zusammenhang mit der Leistung beim KPL untersucht. Darüber hinaus schafft die vorliegende Arbeit einen theoretischen Rahmen, in den sich die drei Einzelarbeiten einordnen lassen. Die Fähigkeit komplexe Probleme lösen zu können, ist eine grundlegende Kompetenz in Bildung und Alltag und ermöglicht eine aktive Teilhabe an der Gesellschaft.
KPL kann daher auch als Schlüsselkompetenz in der Wissensgesellschaft des 21. Jahrhunderts verstanden werden (Binkley et al., 2012; Trilling & Fadel, 2009). Komplexe Probleme begegnen jedem Menschen im beruflichen und privaten Umfeld sowie auf gesellschaftlicher Ebene. Daher ist es wichtig zu verstehen, welche Prozesse für effektives KPL relevant sind. Darüber hinaus wurden wiederholt Leistungsunterschiede beim KPL in Abhängigkeit vom Geschlecht und vom Migrationshintergrund der Personen festgestellt (OECD, 2014a; Sonnleitner, Brunner, Keller & Martin, 2014; Wüstenberg, Greiff, Molnár & Funke, 2014).
In der ersten Arbeit wird der Zusammenhang verschiedener Aspekte von Planung mit der Leistung beim KPL untersucht. Die betrachteten Planungsaspekte sind die Dauer des längsten Planungsintervalls, der Zeitpunkt zu dem Planung erfolgt und die Variation der Dauer von Planungsintervallen im Problemlöseprozess. Zudem wird untersucht, ob die Effekte bei verschiedenen Aufgaben unterschiedlich ausgeprägt sind und ob es Interaktionseffekte der drei Planungsaspekte gibt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass Planung grundsätzlich zu einem möglichst frühen Zeitpunkt stattfinden sollte. Die beiden anderen Planungsaspekte wiesen hingegen aufgabenabhängige Effekte auf. Außerdem gab es Interaktionseffekte. Insgesamt wurde bei leichten KPL-Aufgaben festgestellt, dass ähnlich wie beim analytischen Problemlösen Planung zu einem frühen Zeitpunkt einen positiven Einfluss auf die Leistung hat (Unterrainer & Owen, 2006). Auch der Einfluss der Variation der Planungsdauer hing mit der Aufgabenschwierigkeit zusammen, wobei bei leichten Aufgaben ein gleichmäßiges und bei schweren Aufgaben ein ungleichmäßigeres Vorgehen vorteilhaft war. Der Effekt der Planungsdauer war ebenfalls aufgabenabhängig, jedoch nur schwach mit der Aufgabenschwierigkeit korreliert. Somit scheinen andere Aufgabeneigenschaften für diesen Zusammenhang ursächlich zu sein.
In der zweiten Arbeit werden Leistungsunterschiede beim KPL in Abhängigkeit vom Geschlecht und vom Migrationshintergrund der Schülerinnen und Schüler untersucht.
Das Ziel dieser Arbeit ist es, Leistungsunterschiede zwischen diesen Gruppen durch Prozessmaße zu erklären. Da es Evidenz für einen Zusammenhang der Häufigkeit von Interaktion beziehungsweise Exploration mit der Leistung beim KPL gibt, werden diese als Prozessmaße verwendet (Bell & Kozlowski, 2008; Dormann & Frese, 1994; Naumann, Goldhammer, Rölke & Stelter, 2014). Erwartungskonform wurden Leistungsunterschiede beim KPL zugunsten von Jungen gegenüber Mädchen und zugunsten von Schülerinnen und Schülern ohne Migrationshintergrund gegenüber Schülerinnen und Schülern mit Migrationshintergrund festgestellt. Außerdem zeigte sich, dass beide Prozessmaße positiv mit der KPL-Leistung korrelierten. Der Leistungsunterschied zwischen Jungen und Mädchen konnte durch die Interaktionshäufigkeit teilweise und durch die Explorationshäufigkeit vollständig aufgeklärt werden. Der Leistungsunterschied in Abhängigkeit des Migrationshintergrundes konnte hingegen durch keines der beiden Maße erklärt werden.
Die dritte Arbeit hat zum einen das Ziel, die Rolle von Explorationsverhalten beim KPL genauer zu klären. Zum anderen werden mit einem explorativen Ansatz komplexe Verhaltensmuster untersucht. Dazu wurde eine weitere Differenzierung von Exploration in lösungsrelevante und lösungsunabhängige Exploration vorgenommen. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass im Gegensatz zu den Ergebnissen aus der zweiten Arbeit lösungsunabhängige Exploration vermehrt bei erfolgloser Aufgabenbearbeitung auftritt. Lediglich lösungsrelevante Exploration scheint also zu einer höheren KPL-Leistung beizutragen.
Zudem wurden verschiedene Verhaltensmuster identifiziert, die auf konkrete Stärken und Schwächen im komplexen Problemlöseprozess von Schülerinnen und Schülern hinweisen. Die vorliegende Arbeit erweitert die theoretische Basis für KPL, indem sie kognitive Prozesse ordnet und im Sinne einer Intention interpretierbar macht. Weiterhin werden durch die empirischen Arbeiten Erkenntnisse über die Relevanz der untersuchten Prozesse für die Leistung beim KPL und für die Erklärung von Leistungsunterschieden gewonnen. Damit erleichtert diese Arbeit die Erklärung der Rolle kognitiver Prozesse beim KPL, um so das Verständnis dieses Konstruktes zu verbessern. Dies ist wiederum die Basis, um Schülerinnen und Schüler beim Erwerb der Kompetenz zum Lösen komplexer Probleme zu unterstützen und sie so auf die Herausforderungen des 21. Jahrhunderts vorzubereiten.
Gegenstand der Untersuchung ist eine umfassende Analyse der zeitgenössischen Medienprominenz, hier deutschsprachige Singer-Songwriter, eingebettet in die Kontexte ‘psychische Störungen‘ (erhoben mit dem SKID-II/M.I.N.I.), ‘Kreativität‘ (TSD-Z) und ‘Perfektionismus hinsichtlich des Aussehens‘ (AAS), mit der Zielsetzung dieses heterogene Phänomen mittels einer ganzheitlichen Perspektive zu erfassen. An der Studie nahmen insgesamt 31 prominente und 31 nicht promiente deutschsprachige Singer-Songwriter teil, wobei 15 der prominenten Singer-Songwriter in Besitz von mindestens einem ‘ECHO‘, 14 in Besitz von mindestens einer ‘Goldenen Schallplatte‘ und 2 mit mehr als 200 Nennungen in der Gruner + Jahr Pressedatenbank verzeichnet sind. Zunächst geht die Arbeit der Fragestellung nach, ob sich die prominenten Singer-Songwriter in den Störungsbildern ‘affektive Störung‘, ‘narzisstische Persönlichkeitsstörung‘, ‘Borderline-Persönlichkeitsstörung‘, ‘Alkoholmissbrauch/-abhängigkeit und ‘Substanzmissbrauch/-abhängigkeit‘ von den nicht prominenten Singer-Songwritern unterscheiden. Die Ergebnisse zeigen auf, dass prominente Singer-Songwriter signifikant häufiger unter einer narzisstischen Persönlichkeitsstörung, Alkoholabhängigkeit und Substanzmissbrauchs leiden als nicht prominente Singer-Songwriter. Außerdem wird ersichtlich, dass die prominenten Singer-Songwriter vermehrt Kokain und die nicht prominenten Singer-Songwriter vermehrt Marihuana konsumieren. Die Werte der prominenten und nicht prominenten Singer-Songwriter in Bezug auf die narzisstische Persönlichkeitsstörung sowie Alkoholmissbrauch/-abhängigkeit übersteigen bei weitem die Prävalenzzahlen der deutschen Allgemeinbevölkerung. Als nächstes wurde geprüft, ob prominente Singer-Songwriter kreativer sind als nicht prominente Singer-Songwriter. Diese Annahme konnte, ebenso wie die darauffolgende Annahme, nämlich dass die Kreativität den Zusammenhang zwischen einer psychischen Störung und der Prominenz erklärt, nicht bestätigt werden. Die Kreativität stellt des Weiteren auch kein Moderatoreffekt dar und wirkt somit nicht, gemeinsam mit einer narzisstischen Persönlichkeitsstörung, verstärkend auf die Prominenz. Wiederum ergab sich hypothesenkonform, dass prominente Singer-Songwriter perfektionistischer hinsichtlich ihres Aussehens eingestellt sind als nicht prominente Singer-Songwriter. Zuletzt zeigen die Ergebnisse, dass die Prominenz den Zusammenhang zwischen einer narzisstischen Persönlichkeitsstörung und der perfektionistischen Einstellung hinsichtlich des Aussehens nicht erklärt, jedoch verstärkt die Prominenz den Einfluss einer Depression auf die soziale Isolation.
Although researchers and practitioners increasingly focus on health promotion in organizations, research has been mainly fragmented and fails to integrate different organizational levels in terms of their effects on employee health. Drawing on organizational climate and social identity research, we present a cascading model of organizational health climate and demonstrate how and when leaders' perceptions of organizational health climate are linked to employee well-being. We tested our model in two multisource studies (NStudy 1 = 65 leaders and 291 employees; NStudy 2 = 401 leader–employee dyads). Results showed that leaders' perceptions of organizational health climate were positively related to their health mindsets (i.e., their health awareness). These in turn were positively associated with their health-promoting leadership behavior, which ultimately went along with better employee well-being. Additionally, in Study 1, the relationship between perceived organizational health climate and leaders' health mindsets was moderated by their organizational identification. High leader identification strengthened the relationship between perceived organizational health climate and leaders' health mindsets. These findings have important implications for theory and practice as they show how the dynamics of an organizational health climate can unfold in organizations and how it is related to employee well-being via the novel concept of health-promoting leadership.
Background: This article reports reliability, validity, and norms for the German version of the multi-informant questionnaire Inventory of Callous–Unemotional Traits (ICU). Method: The ICU was filled in by nonreferred children aged 13 to 18 years old (n = 645), parents of children aged 6 to 18 years old (n = 1,005), and their teachers (n = 955). Results: Confirmatory factor analysis resulted in a two-factor solution giving the best fit. Still none of the models showed an adequate model-fit applying the chi-square exact fit test. The internal consistency of the parent’s, teacher’s, and self-report version were α = .830, α = .877 and α = .769, respectively. Interrater reliability was moderate. Convergent validity with the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory, the externalizing scores of the Youth Self-Report/Child Behavior Checklist, and with the German oppositional Defiant Disorder/Conduct Disorder Rating Scale “FBB-SSV” were good. German norms were calculated. Conclusions: The ICU is a reliable and valid dimensional measure to describe callous–unemotional traits.
In the course of a growing start-up market and strongly increasing investment volume, investors try to predict the success of a business as precisely as possible in advance. However, when assessing the personality of the founder or founding team, they still rely far too often on their gut feeling, thereby reducing the quality of their decisions. Our study therefore aimed at investigating whether there are any relationships between the founders' personality traits and their performance and thus justifying the need for more targeted and optimized diagnostics in the field of founder personality. With a total of 141 founders, clear correlations between personality traits (conscientiousness, emotional stability) and performance could be demonstrated in the present study. In addition, it became evident that perceived stress is also related to the founders’ personality (emotional stability negative, conscientiousness positive) and in turn has a negative effect on performance. Our findings contribute to raising awareness of the importance of personality as a predictor of founders' performance, improving decision-making, and, in the long run, replacing gut feeling as an inappropriate assessment criterion of investors.
Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare the effects of acupuncture and medical training therapy alone and in combination with those of usual care on the pain sensation of patients with frequent episodic and chronic tension-type headache.
Design: This was a prospective single-centre randomised controlled trial with four balanced treatment arms. The allocation was carried out by pre-generated randomisation lists in the ratio 1:1:1:1 with different permutation block sizes.
Setting: The study was undertaken in the outpatient clinic of Rehabilitation Medicine of the Hannover Medical School.
Participants and interventions: Ninety-six adult patients with tension-type headache were included and randomised into usual care (n = 24), acupuncture (n = 24), medical training (n = 24), and combination of acupuncture and medical training (n = 24). One patient was excluded from analysis because of withdrawing her/his consent, leaving 95 patients for intention to treat analysis. Each therapy arm consisted of 6 weeks of treatment with 12 interventions. Follow-up was at 3 and 6 months.
Main outcome measures: Pain intensity (average, maximum and minimum), frequency of headache, responder rate (50% frequency reduction), duration of headache and use of headache medication.
Clinical results: The combination of acupuncture and medical training therapy significantly reduced mean pain intensity compared to usual care (mean = −38%, standard deviation = 25%, p = 0.012). Comparable reductions were observed for maximal pain intensity (−25%, standard deviation = 20%, 0.014) and for minimal pain intensity (−35%, standard deviation = 31%, 0.03). In contrast, neither acupuncture nor medical training therapy differed significantly from usual care. No between-group differences were found in headache frequency, mean duration of headache episodes, and pain medication intake. At 3 months, the majority of all patients showed a reduction of at least 50% in headache frequency. At 6 months, significantly higher responder rates were found in all intervention groups compared to usual care.
Conclusions: In contrast to monotherapy, only the combination of acupuncture and medical training therapy was significantly superior in reduction of pain intensity compared to usual care.
The ecological validity of neuropsychological testing (NT) has been questioned in the sports environment. A frequent criticism is that NT, mostly consisting of pen and paper or digital assessments, lacks relevant bodily movement. This study aimed to identify the determinants of a newly developed testing battery integrating both cognitive and motor demands. Twenty active individuals (25 ± 3 years, 11 males) completed the new motor-cognitive testing battery (MC), traditional NT (Stroop test, Trail Making test, Digit Span test) and isolated assessments of motor function (MF; Y-balance test, 20m-sprint, counter-movement jump). Kendal’s tau and partial Spearman correlations were used to detect associations between MC and NT/MF. Except for two items (Reactive Agility A and counter-movement jump; Run-Decide and sprint time; r = 0.37, p < 0.05), MC was not related to MF. Similarly, MC and NT were mostly unrelated, even when controlling for the two significant motor covariates (p > 0.05). The only MC item with (weak to moderate) associations to NT was the Memory Span test (Digit Span backwards and composite; r = 0.43–0.54, p < 0.05). In sum, motor-cognitive function appears to be largely independent from its two assumed components NT and MF and may represent a new parameter in performance diagnostics.
Aerobic and resistance exercise acutely increase cognitive performance (CP). High-intensity functional training (HIFT) combines the characteristics of both regimes but its effect on CP is unclear. Thirty-five healthy individuals (26.7 ± 3.6 years, 18 females) were randomly allocated to three groups. The first (HIFT) performed a functional whole-body workout at maximal effort and in circuit format, while a second walked at 60% of the heart rate reserve (WALK). The third group remained physically inactive reading a book (CON). Before and after the 15-min intervention period, CP was assessed with the Stroop Test, Trail Making Test and Digit Span Test. Repeated-measures ANOVAs and post-hoc 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were used to detect time/group differences. A significant group*time interaction was found for the backwards condition of the Digit Span Test (p = 0.04) and according to the 95% CI, HIFT was superior to WALK and CON. Analysis of the sum score of the Digit Span Test and the incongruent condition of the Stroop Test, furthermore, revealed main effects for time (p < 0.05) with HIFT being the only intervention improving CP. No differences were found for the Trail Making Test (p > 0.05). In conclusion, HIFT represents an appropriate method to acutely improve working memory, potentially being superior to moderate aerobic-type exercise.
Failed jump landings represent a key mechanism of musculoskeletal trauma. It has been speculated that cognitive dual-task loading during the flight phase may moderate the injury risk. This study aimed to explore whether increased visual distraction can compromise landing biomechanics. Twenty-one healthy, physically active participants (15 females, 25.8 ± 0.4 years) completed a series of 30 counter-movement jumps (CMJ) onto a capacitive pressure platform. In addition to safely landing on one leg, they were required to memorize either one, two or three jersey numbers shown during the flight phase (randomly selected and equally balanced over all jumps). Outcomes included the number of recall errors as well as landing errors and three variables of landing kinetics (time to stabilization/TTS, peak ground reaction force/pGRF, length of the centre of pressure trace/COPT). Differences between the conditions were calculated using the Friedman test and the post hoc Bonferroni-Holm corrected Wilcoxon test. Regardless of the condition, landing errors remained unchanged (p = .46). In contrast, increased visual distraction resulted in a higher number of recall errors (chi² = 13.3, p = .001). Higher cognitive loading, furthermore, appeared to negatively impact mediolateral COPT (p < .05). Time to stabilization (p = .84) and pGRF (p = .78) were unaffected. A simple visual distraction in a controlled experimental setting is sufficient to adversely affect landing stability and task-related short-term memory during CMJ. The ability to precisely perceive the environment during movement under time constraints may, hence, represent a new injury risk factor and should be investigated in a prospective trial.
Physical exercise has been shown to alter sensory functions, such as sensory detection or perceived pain. However, most contributing studies rely on the assessment of single thresholds, and a systematic testing of the sensory system is missing. This randomised, controlled cross-over study aims to determine the sensory phenotype of healthy young participants and to assess if sub-maximal endurance exercise can impact it. We investigated the effects of a single bout of sub-maximal running exercise (30 min at 80% heart rate reserve) compared to a resting control in 20 healthy participants. The sensory profile was assessed applying quantitative sensory testing (QST) according to the protocol of the German Research Network on Neuropathic Pain. QST comprises a broad spectrum of thermal and mechanical detection and pain thresholds. It was applied to the forehead of study participants prior and immediately after the intervention. Time between cross-over sessions was one week. Sub-maximal endurance exercise did not significantly alter thermal or mechanical sensory function (time × group analysis) in terms of detection and pain thresholds. The sensory phenotypes did not indicate any clinically meaningful deviation of sensory function. The alteration of sensory thresholds needs to be carefully interpreted, and only systematic testing allows an improved understanding of mechanism. In this context, sub-maximal endurance exercise is not followed by a change of thermal and mechanical sensory function at the forehead in healthy volunteers.
Cognitive flexibility – the ability to adjust one’s behavior to changing environmental demands – is crucial for controlled behavior. However, the term ‘cognitive flexibility’ is used heterogeneously, and associations between cognitive flexibility and other facets of flexible behavior have only rarely been studied systematically. To resolve some of these conceptual uncertainties, we directly compared cognitive flexibility (cue-instructed switching between two affectively neutral tasks), affective flexibility (switching between a neutral and an affective task using emotional stimuli), and feedback-based flexibility (non-cued, feedback-dependent switching between two neutral tasks). Three experimental paradigms were established that share as many procedural features (in terms of stimuli and/or task rules) as possible and administered in a pre-registered study plan (N = 100). Correlation analyses revealed significant associations between the efficiency of cognitive and affective task switching (response time switch costs). Feedback-based flexibility (measured as mean number of errors after rule reversals) did not correlate with task switching efficiency in the other paradigms, but selectively with the effectiveness of affective switching (error rate costs when switching from neutral to emotion task). While preregistered confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) provided no clear evidence for a shared factor underlying the efficiency of switching in all three domains of flexibility, an exploratory CFA suggested commonalities regarding switching effectiveness (accuracy-based switch costs). We propose shared mechanisms controlling the efficiency of cue-dependent task switching across domains, while the relationship to feedback-based flexibility may depend on mechanisms controlling switching effectiveness. Our results call for a more stringent conceptual differentiation between different variants of psychological flexibility.
Background: This study investigated whether work ability is associated with the duration of unemployment, heart rate variability (HRV), and the level of physical activity. Methods: Thirty-four unemployed persons (mean 55.7 ± standard deviation 33.3 years, 22 female, 12 male, unemployed: range 1–22.5 years) participated in the cross-sectional study. The Work Ability Index (WAI) and International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) were applied. Short-term (five minutes) resting HRV (Low Frequency (LF), High Frequency (HF), Total Power (TP)) was collected. Results: Work ability was positively associated with the HRV: LF (r = 0.383; p = 0.025), HF (r = 0.412; p = 0.015) and TP (r = 0.361; p = 0.036). The WAI showed a positive linear correlation with the amount of total physical activity (r = 0.461; p = 0.006) as well as with the amount of moderate to vigorous physical activity (r = 0.413; p = 0.015). No association between the WAI and the duration of unemployment occurred. Conclusions: the relation between self-perceived work ability, health-associated parameters, the HRV and the level of physical activity points out the relevance of health-care exercise and the need of stress-reducing interventions to improve perceived work ability. Our results point out the need for the further and more holistic development of healthcare for the unemployed.
Um den aktuellen Bildungsstand einer Gesellschaft abbilden zu können müssen Resultate von Bildungsprozessen, wie erworbenes Wissen oder ausgebildete Fähigkeiten, modelliert und gemessen werden (Leutner, Klieme, Fleischer & Kuper, 2013). Im Rahmen sogenannter Large-Scale-Assessments (LSAs) werden Kompetenzen in bestimmten Bereichen definiert und erfasst, die generell für die gesellschaftliche Teilhabe benötigen werden (bspw. Fraillon, Schulz & Ainley, 2013). Durch die fortschreitende Digitalisierung aller Lebens- und Arbeitsbereiche ist der kompetente Umgang mit Informations- und Kommunikationstechnologien (ICT) eine wichtige Voraussetzung für die erfolgreiche Teilhabe an unserer modernen Wissensgesellschaft. Die detaillierte Beschreibung solcher, auch als ICT-Skills bezeichneter Kompetenzen, und die Entwicklung von theoriebasierten Instrumenten zu deren Erfassung ist von großer Bedeutung, um mögliche sozial bedingte Disparitäten aufzudecken.
Im Rahmen der vorliegenden Arbeit werden Annahmen, Ergebnisse und Daten aus dem Projekt CavE-ICT, in dem verhaltensnahe simulationsbasierte Items zur Erfassung von ICT-Skills entwickelt wurden, aufgegriffen und weitergenutzt mit dem Ziel eine besonders effiziente und ökonomisch Messung von ICT-Skills im LSA-Kontext und darüber hinaus zu ermöglichen. Ein vielversprechender Ansatz durch den Testzeiten verkürzt und/oder die Messpräzision erhöht werden kann ist das computerisierte adaptive Testen (CAT; bspw. Frey, 2012). Beim adaptiven Testen orientiert sich die Auswahl der Items am Antwortverhalten der untersuchten Person, so dass durch die Berücksichtigung der individuellen Fähigkeit einer Person Items mit möglichst viel diagnostischer Information administriert werden können. Damit auch bei der Vorgabe unterschiedlicher Items in unterschiedlicher Reihenfolge Testleistungen von Personen miteinander verglichen werden können, stellen Modelle der Item-Response-Theorie (IRT; bspw. Hambleton & Swaminathan, 2010) die Basis der Anwendung von CAT dar.
Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit wurde untersucht, wie ICT-Skills auf Basis der Item-Response-Theorie und unter Einsatz computerisierter Messinstrumente erfasst werden können. Dabei setzten die empirischen Studien dieser Arbeit unterschiedliche Testformen um und an unterschiedlichen Punkten im Prozess der Testentwicklung an. Studie I setzt noch vor der Entwicklung von Items zur Messung von ICT-Skills an und zielt darauf ab Hinweise zum Umfang des zu erstellenden ICT-Itempools und zur Testlänge eines adaptiven Messinstruments bereitzustellen. Studie II baut direkt auf Studie I auf und nutzt die im Rahmen des Projekts CavE-ICT entwickelten und kalibrierten Items beziehungsweise ihre ermittelten Itemeigenschaften zur weiteren Erprobung verschiedener CAT-Algorithmen. Es werden Möglichkeiten aufgezeigt, wie multidimensionales adaptives Testen zur Messung von ICT-Skills gewinnbringend eingesetzt werden kann, und zudem eine differenzierte Messung auf Ebene der verschiedenen kognitiven Prozesse von ICT-Skills erlaubt. Dabei werden explizit Möglichkeiten exploriert Items die unterschiedliche kognitive Prozesse von ICT-Skills abbilden sequentiell geordnet und trotzdem adaptiv vorzulegen. Die durch Studie II erarbeiteten Erkenntnisse können insbesondere für die Erfassung von multidimensionalen Konstrukten oder facettierten Merkmalen in LSAs genutzt werden. Durch den Vergleich der Ergebnisse von Studie I und II ergeben sich zudem Implikationen für ein angemessenes Design von Simulationsstudien die insbesondere noch vor der eigentlichen Test- beziehungsweise Itementwicklung ansetzen. In Studie III werden lineare Kurztests zur Messung von ICT-Skills zusammengestellt. Durch die gezielte Auswahl geeigneter ICT-Items soll bei möglichst geringer Testzeit zugleich eine hohe Messgenauigkeit und Zuverlässigkeit realisiert werden. Die in Studie III manuell und automatisiert computerbasiert zusammengestellten Tests werden hinsichtlich des Einsatzes sowohl auf Populationsebene, im Sinne einschlägiger LSAs, als auch darüber hinaus für gruppen- und individualdiagnostische Zwecke evaluiert und Empfehlungen für den Kurztesteinsatz abgeleitet.
Computational estimation is an important skill in everyday life as well as in educational contexts. In the last decades, research has found that children use several strategies in computational estimation and that children’s strategy use depends on different parameters. Still, little is known about the underlying cognitive processes. In the present work, we addressed this issue by investigating (1) the influence of individual differences in children’s executive functions on their strategy use and (2) the influence of varying specific task and problem characteristics that are discussed to involve different cognitive processes.
In four studies, we asked third and fourth graders to solve computational estimation tasks by rounding the summands. Study 1 addressed the influence of working memory updating. The study found that efficient updating contributed to children’s strategy use and moderated relations with problem characteristics. A deliberate feature of Study 1 was to restrict participants’ strategy choice to the rounding-down and rounding-up strategies. Study 2 in turn investigated children’s strategy use when mixed-rounding was allowed. Results indicated that children did not consider unit digits of both operands jointly. Also, no influence of executive functions could be found. Consequently, in Study 3, children’s strategy selection when they could choose between three versus only two strategies was contrasted and the role of working memory updating was investigated. Indeed, children chose the best available strategy more often when three strategies were available. Importantly, relative strategy selection performance differed with children’s updating capacities.
Finally, Study 4 addressed another task variation that is important in everyday life and educational contexts. That is, presentation duration and modality were varied. Data showed that a permanent, written format was most beneficial for children’s strategy use and that children’s updating moderated presentation effects.
In sum, the results of the present work could shed some light onto cognitive processes in children’s strategy use in computational estimation. Specifically working memory updating
seems to contribute to third and fourth graders strategy use. Interpreting interactions with different task variations, updating most likely influences associative processes, long term memory consolidation and retrieval as well as encoding and calculation processes.
'THIS ISN'T ME!': the role of age-related self- and user images for robot acceptance by elders
(2020)
Although companion-type robots are already commercially available, little interest has been taken in identifying reasons for inter-individual differences in their acceptance. Elders’ age-related perceptions of both their own self (self-image) and of the general older robot user (user image) could play a relevant role in this context. Since little is known to date about elders’ companion-type robot user image, it is one aim of this study to investigate its age-related facets, concentrating on possibly stigmatizing perceptions of elder robot users. The study also addresses the association between elders’ age-related self-image and robot acceptance: Is the association independent of the user image or not? To investigate these research questions, N = 28 adults aged 63 years and older were introduced to the companion-type robot Pleo. Afterwards, several markers of robot acceptance were assessed. Actual and ideal self- and subjective robot user image were assessed by a study-specific semantic differential on the stereotype dimensions of warmth and competence. Results show that participants tended to stigmatize elder robot users. The self-images were not directly related to robot acceptance, but affected it in the context of the user image. A higher fit between self- and user image was associated with higher perceived usefulness, social acceptance, and intention to use the robot. To conclude, elders’ subjective interpretations of new technologies play a relevant role for their acceptance. Together with elders’ individual self-images, they need to be considered in both robot development and implementation. Future research should consider that associations between user characteristics and robot acceptance by elders can be complex and easily overlooked.
This systematic review investigated how successful children/adolescents with poor literacy skills learn a foreign language compared with their peers with typical literacy skills. Moreover, we explored whether specific characteristics related to participants, foreign language instruction, and assessment moderated scores on foreign language tests in this population. Overall, 16 studies with a total of 968 participants (poor reader/spellers: n = 404; control participants: n = 564) met eligibility criteria. Only studies focusing on English as a foreign language were available. Available data allowed for meta-analyses on 10 different measures of foreign language attainment. In addition to standard mean differences (SMDs), we computed natural logarithms of the ratio of coefficients of variation (CVRs) to capture individual variability between participant groups. Significant between-study heterogeneity, which could not be explained by moderator analyses, limited the interpretation of results. Although children/adolescents with poor literacy skills on average showed lower scores on foreign language phonological awareness, letter knowledge, and reading comprehension measures, their performance varied significantly more than that of control participants. Thus, it remains unclear to what extent group differences between the foreign language scores of children/adolescents with poor and typical literacy skills are representative of individual poor readers/spellers. Taken together, our results indicate that foreign language skills in children/adolescents with poor literacy skills are highly variable. We discuss the limitations of past research that can guide future steps toward a better understanding of individual differences in foreign language attainment of children/adolescents with poor literacy skills.
Die Stichtagserhebung der Kriminologischen Zentralstelle (KrimZ) fragt jedes Jahr zum Stichtag am 31. März die Gegebenheiten in allen sozialtherapeutischen Einrichtungen deutschlandweit ab. Inzwischen liegen Daten aus 23 Erhebungsjahren vor und geben Aufschluss über die Entwicklungen der Versorgungslage (Anzahl der Einrichtungen bzw. Haftplätze), bezüglich der demografischen Daten der Gefangenen (Alter, Staatsbürgerschaft, Dauer der Haftstrafe, schwerste Straftat, Vorstrafen), über institutionelle Vorgänge (Aufnahmen, Abgänge und Nachbetreuung) sowie hinsichtlich von Daten zum Personal (Anzahl der Personalstellen und Frauenanteil). Die vorliegenden Auswertungen verdeutlichen die Entwicklungstrends in der Sozialtherapie zwischen 1997 und 2019 und legen nahe, dass nach einem starken Ausbau der sozialtherapeutischen Einrichtungen ab 1969 nun mit 71 Einrichtungen eine Sättigungsgrenze erreicht zu sein scheint. Die inhaftierten Personen werden zunehmend älter, sodass 2019 die über 50-Jährigen die größte Altersgruppe stellen. Schon seit 2003 liegt der Anteil derjenigen, die aufgrund eines Sexualdelikts inhaftiert sind, bei ca. 50 %, was gegenüber anderen Deliktgruppen eine deutliche Mehrheit darstellt. Ein Großteil der Gefangenen hat keine Haftlockerungen, wobei hier eine zunehmend restriktivere Praxis zu erkennen ist. Die Personalausstattung hat sich über die letzten 23 Jahre insofern verändert, als dass mehr Fachdienste und tendenziell weniger Stellen im allgemeinen Vollzugsdienst (AVD) eingerichtet wurden.
Never good enough: the relation between the impostor phenomenon and multidimensional perfectionism
(2020)
The Impostor Phenomenon can be described as the tendency to attribute professional success not to one’s own abilities but to excessive effort or fortunate external circumstances. Individuals strongly experiencing those tendencies fear that one day they will be exposed as “impostors” as soon as their alleged incompetence can no longer be concealed. Typical characteristics of the Impostor Phenomenon outlined by Clance (1985) show a remarkable conceptual similarity to the personality construct of perfectionism. Thus, the present study aimed at investigating how the Impostor Phenomenon is related to various facets of dispositional perfectionism with respect to predominant conceptualizations of perfectionism by Frost et al. (1990), Hewitt and Flett (1991), as well as their combination within the bifactor model of Perfectionistic Strivings and Perfectionistic Concerns (Frost et al. 1993). A total of N = 274 individuals participated in an online survey including the Impostor Phenomenon Scale (CIPS; Clance 1988), the Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (FMPS; Frost et al. 1990), and the Hewitt und Flett Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (MPS short form; Hewitt et al. 2008). Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to determine the differential contributions of perfectionism dimensions and factors in predicting the Impostor Phenomenon. The perfectionism dimensions Doubts about Actions, Concern over Mistakes and Socially prescribed Perfectionism appeared to be efficient predictors of the Impostor Phenomenon. Contrary to Perfectionistic Strivings, Perfectionistic Concerns as a maladaptive perfectionism factor strongly contributed to the prediction of the Impostor Phenomenon. Theoretical and practical implications of the associations between the Impostor Phenomenon and multidimensional perfectionism are discussed.
Culturally adapted cognitive behavioral therapy (CA-CBT) is a well-evaluated, transdiagnostic group intervention for refugees that uses psychoeducation, meditation, and stretching exercises. In the current study, we added problem-solving training to CA-CBT and evaluated this treatment (i.e., CA-CBT+) in a randomized controlled pilot trial with a sample of Farsi-speaking refugees. Participants (N = 24) were male refugees diagnosed with DSM-5 PTSD, major depressive disorder, and anxiety disorders who were randomly assigned to either a treatment or waitlist control (WLC) condition. Treatment components were adapted both to the specific cultural background and the current social problems of asylum seekers. Assessments were performed pretreatment, 12-weeks posttreatment, and 1-year follow-up. The primary treatment outcome was the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28); secondary outcome measures included the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist, Patient Health Questionnaire, Somatic Symptom Scale, World Health Organization Quality of Life, and Emotion Regulation Scale. Eleven of 12 participants were randomized to CA-CBT+ completed treatment. Based on intent-to-treat data, large between-group effect sizes were seen at posttreatment in the GHQ-28, d = 3.0, and for most secondary outcome measures. Improvements for individuals in the treatment group decreased at 1-year follow-up, but effect sizes demonstrated continued large improvements on all measures as compared to pretreatment levels. In summary, CA-CBT+ led to large improvements in general psychopathological distress and quality of life, which were maintained in the long term. In addition, the dropout rate was very low, with delivery in group format. Thus, problem-solving training appears to be a promising addition to CA-CBT.
Background: Visual exploration in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by attenuated social attention. The underlying oculomotor function during visual exploration is understudied, whereas oculomotor function during restricted viewing suggested saccade dysmetria in ASD by altered pontocerebellar motor modulation. Methods: Oculomotor function was recorded using remote eye tracking in 142 ASD participants and 142 matched neurotypical controls during free viewing of naturalistic videos with and without human content. The sample was heterogenous concerning age (6–30 years), cognitive ability (60–140 IQ), and male/female ratio (3:1). Oculomotor function was defined as saccade, fixation, and pupil-dilation features that were compared between groups in linear mixed models. Oculomotor function was investigated as ASD classifier and features were correlated with clinical measures. Results: We observed decreased saccade duration (∆M = −0.50, CI [−0.21, −0.78]) and amplitude (∆M = −0.42, CI [−0.12, −0.72]), which was independent of human video content. We observed null findings concerning fixation and pupil-dilation features (POWER = .81). Oculomotor function is a valid ASD classifier comparable to social attention concerning discriminative power. Within ASD, saccade features correlated with measures of restricted and repetitive behavior. Conclusions: We conclude saccade dysmetria as ASD oculomotor phenotype relevant to visual exploration. Decreased saccade amplitude and duration indicate spatially clustered fixations that attenuate visual exploration and emphasize endogenous over exogenous attention. We propose altered pontocerebellar motor modulation as underlying mechanism that contributes to atypical (oculo-)motor coordination and attention function in ASD.
Die vorliegende Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der außerhäuslichen Alltagsmobilität älterer Menschen, die eine zentrale Schlüsselfunktion in der Erhaltung von Lebensqualität und Gesundheit besonders im höheren Lebensalter einnimmt. Außerhäusliche Alltagsmobilität vollzieht sich stets in einem räumlichen Umweltausschnitt und kann aus ökogerontologischer Perspektive als Ergebnis eines gelungenen Person-Umwelt-Austauschs verstanden werden. Inwiefern psychologische Ressourcen im Sinne mobilitätsspezifischer Einstellungen zum Verständnis von zielgerichteter und habitualisierter Alltagsmobilität älterer Menschen beitragen können, ist Gegenstand der vorliegenden Arbeit. Altersspezifische, mobilitätsrelevante Einstellungen im außerhäuslichen Kontext werden sowohl in der sozialwissenschaftlichen Mobilitäts- und Alternsforschung als auch in der Praxis, etwa im Rahmen einer altersgerechten Stadtgestaltung, bislang noch zu wenig berücksichtigt. Die vorliegende Arbeit reagiert auf dieses Forschungsdesiderat, indem sie mobilitätsspezifische Einstellungen im höheren Lebensalter konzeptuell beschreibt, in den Kontext ökogerontologischer Theorien einbettet und ihre Bedeutung für den Erhalt eines aktiven und gelingenden Alterns untersucht. Im Rahmen der Dissertation wurde zunächst auf der Basis klassischer und neuer ökogerontologischer Modelle das Konstrukt der mobilitätsbezogenen Handlungsflexibilität und Routinen (MBFR) konzeptuell entwickelt. MBFR umfasst einerseits die individuelle Überzeugung, das eigene Mobilitätsverhalten an Herausforderungen außer Haus anpassen zu können (FLEX) und andererseits die Präferenz für mobilitätsbezogene Alltagsroutinen (ROU). Daraufhin wurde ein standardisiertes Messinstrument zur Erfassung des MBFR-Konzepts entwickelt, optimiert und hinsichtlich seiner psychometrischen Qualität untersucht. Die Formulierung der Testitems erfolgte in Anlehnung an bereits existierende Fragebögen zu verwandten Konstrukten. In der vorwiegend online durchgeführten Pilotstudie (Penger & Oswald, 2017) wurden die Items mittels explorativer Faktorenanalysen hinsichtlich ihrer dimensionalen Struktur untersucht. Die Stichprobe umfasste 265 Personen im Alter von 65 Jahren oder älter. Die Analysen des MBFR-Instruments ergaben nach Ausschluss von Items mit niedrigen und nicht eindeutigen Ladungen drei substanzielle Faktoren. Die Items der ersten Dimension bildeten die Überzeugung ab, flexibel mit personenbezogenen, altersassoziierten Herausforderungen (z. B. Schwierigkeiten im Gehen oder auf eine Gehhilfe angewiesen sein) umgehen zu können, um außerhäuslich mobil zu sein. Die Items der zweiten Dimension erfassten die Überzeugung, flexibel mit herausfordernden außerhäuslichen Umweltbedingungen (z. B. eine verlegte Haltestelle oder ein schlechter Zustand der Gehwege) umgehen zu können. Items, die auf den dritten Faktor luden, bildeten die Neigung zu Routinen im Mobilitätsalltag ab, z. B. bekannte Wege beizubehalten oder bei der Ausübung von außerhäuslichen Aktivitäten vertraute Orte aufzusuchen. Während die ersten beiden Faktoren mobilitätsbezogene Handlungsflexibilität (FLEX) messen, werden im dritten Faktor habitualisierte Verhaltensweisen (ROU) erfasst. Alle drei Faktoren wiesen eine akzeptable Reliabilität auf. Auf Basis von Rückmeldungen der Studienteilnehmer:innen wurde das MBFR-Instrument anschließend sprachlich angepasst und gekürzt. Der modifizierte Fragebogen wurde daraufhin in der empirischen Studie „MOBIL bleiben in Stuttgart“ (MBIS) eingesetzt. Dabei sollte die Frage beantwortet werden, ob das finale MBFR-Instrument die zugrundeliegenden Konstrukte valide und reliabel erfasst und die Testwerte somit ausreichende Gültigkeit hinsichtlich faktorieller, Konstrukt- und Kriteriumsvalidität bei älteren Menschen im urbanen Raum aufweisen (Penger & Conrad, eingereicht). Es wurden insgesamt 211 privatwohnende Stuttgarter:innen ab 65 Jahren in persönlichen Interviews und mithilfe eines 7-tägigen Wegetagebuchs zu verschiedenen Aspekten ihrer Mobilität im Wohnumfeld befragt. Statistische Analysen auf latenter Ebene erfolgten mittels Strukturgleichungsmodellen. Bivariate Zusammenhänge und Subgruppenanalysen wurden mittels Korrelations- und Regressionsanalysen berechnet. Die dreifaktorielle Struktur des MBFR-Fragebogens konnte im konfirmatorischen Modell empirisch bestätigt werden. Zudem fiel die interne Konsistenz aller drei Faktoren gut aus. Zusammenhänge zu konstruktverwandten Merkmalen – wie allgemeine und mobilitätsspezifische Einstellungen – deuten darauf hin, dass das MBFR-Instrument ausreichend konvergente Validität aufweist. Analysen auf latenter Ebene ergaben, dass Befragte durchschnittlich mehr außerhäusliche Wege zurückzulegten, wenn sie in stärkerem Maße überzeugt waren, flexibel auf mobilitätsbezogene Herausforderungen reagieren zu können (FLEX). Weiterhin ließen sich positive Zusammenhänge zwischen FLEX und der erlebten Selbstständigkeit sowie dem subjektiven Wohlbefinden aufzeigen. Die Befunde belegen somit hinreichende Übereinstimmungsvalidität der Testwerte. Differenzierte Analysen machten darüber hinaus deutlich, dass FLEX vor allem bei Befragten mit Mobilitätseinschränkungen bedeutsam zur Vorhersage des außerhäuslichen Mobilitätsverhaltens beitrug. ...
Motor imagery is conceptualized as an internal simulation that uses motor-related parts of the brain as its substrate. Many studies have investigated this sharing of common neural resources between the two modalities of motor imagery and motor execution. They have shown overlapping but not identical activation patterns that thereby result in a modality-specific neural signature. However, it is not clear how far this neural signature depends on whether the imagined action has previously been practiced physically or only imagined. The present study aims to disentangle whether the neural imprint of an imagined manual pointing sequence within cortical and subcortical motor areas is determined by the nature of this prior practice modality. Each participant practiced two sequences physically, practiced two other sequences mentally, and did a behavioural pre-test without any further practice on a third pair of sequences. After a two-week practice intervention, participants underwent fMRI scans while imagining all six sequences. Behavioural data demonstrated practice-related effects as well as very good compliance with instructions. Functional MRI data confirmed the previously known motor imagery network. Crucially, we found that mental and physical practice left a modality-specific footprint during mental motor imagery. In particular, activation within the right posterior cerebellum was stronger when the imagined sequence had previously been practiced physically. We conclude that cerebellar activity is shaped specifically by the nature of the prior practice modality.
Most human actions produce concomitant sounds. Action sounds can be either part of the action goal (GAS, goal-related action sounds), as for instance in tap dancing, or a mere by-product of the action (BAS, by-product action sounds), as for instance in hurdling. It is currently unclear whether these two types of action sounds—incidental or intentional—differ in their neural representation and whether the impact on the performance evaluation of an action diverges between the two. We here examined whether during the observation of tap dancing compared to hurdling, auditory information is a more important factor for positive action quality ratings. Moreover, we tested whether observation of tap dancing vs. hurdling led to stronger attenuation in primary auditory cortex, and a stronger mismatch signal when sounds do not match our expectations. We recorded individual point-light videos of newly trained participants performing tap dancing and hurdling. In the subsequent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) session, participants were presented with the videos that displayed their own actions, including corresponding action sounds, and were asked to rate the quality of their performance. Videos were either in their original form or scrambled regarding the visual modality, the auditory modality, or both. As hypothesized, behavioral results showed significantly lower rating scores in the GAS condition compared to the BAS condition when the auditory modality was scrambled. Functional MRI contrasts between BAS and GAS actions revealed higher activation of primary auditory cortex in the BAS condition, speaking in favor of stronger attenuation in GAS, as well as stronger activation of posterior superior temporal gyri and the supplementary motor area in GAS. Results suggest that the processing of self-generated action sounds depends on whether we have the intention to produce a sound with our action or not, and action sounds may be more prone to be used as sensory feedback when they are part of the explicit action goal. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of the function of action sounds for learning and controlling sound-producing actions.
Understanding effects of emotional valence and stress on children’s memory is important for educational and legal contexts. This study disentangled the effects of emotional content of to-be-remembered information (i.e., items differing in emotional valence and arousal), stress exposure, and associated cortisol secretion on children’s memory. We also examined whether girls’ memory is more affected by stress induction. A total of 143 6- and 7-year-old children were randomly allocated to the Trier Social Stress Test for Children (n = 103) or a control condition (n = 40). At 25 min after stressor onset, children incidentally encoded 75 objects varying in emotional valence (crossed with arousal) together with neutral scene backgrounds. We found that response bias corrected memory was worse for low-arousing negative items than for neutral and positive items, with the latter two categories not being different from each other. Whereas boys’ memory was largely unaffected by stress, girls in the stress condition showed worse memory for negative items, especially the low-arousing ones, than girls in the control condition. Girls, compared with boys, reported higher subjective stress increases following stress exposure and had higher cortisol stress responses. Whereas a higher cortisol stress response was associated with better emotional memory in girls in the stress condition, boys’ memory was not associated with their cortisol secretion. Taken together, our study suggests that 6- and 7-year-old children, more so girls, show memory suppression for negative information. Girls’ memory for negative information, compared with that of boys, is also more strongly modulated by stress experience and the associated cortisol response.
Recent research on the dynamics between attentional and memory processes have outlined the idea that applying control in a conflicting situation directly leads to enhanced episodic memory of the processed information. However, in spite of a small subset of studies supporting this claim, the majority of the evidence in the field seems to support the opposite pattern. In this study, we used a face–word Stroop task to enforce different control modes either from trial to trial or in an item-specific manner. Both manipulations of congruency proved to be effective in making participants’ responses to conflicting stimuli more efficient over time by applying a trial-specific control mode. However, these manipulations had no impact on memory performance on a surprise recognition memory test. To our knowledge, this is the first attempt at measuring the memory consequences of the application of specific control modes at the trial level. The results reported here call for caution and possibly reconceptualization of the relationship between cognitive control and memory.
Low-to-moderate quality meta-analytic evidence shows that motor control stabilisation exercise (MCE) is an effective treatment of non-specific low back pain. A possible approach to overcome the weaknesses of traditional meta-analyses would be that of a prospective meta-analyses. The aim of the present analysis was to generate high-quality evidence to support the view that motor control stabilisation exercises (MCE) lead to a reduction in pain intensity and disability in non-specific low back pain patients when compared to a control group. In this prospective meta-analysis and sensitivity multilevel meta-regression within the MiSpEx-Network, 18 randomized controlled study arms were included. Participants with non-specific low back pain were allocated to an intervention (individualized MCE, 12 weeks) or a control group (no additive exercise intervention). From each study site/arm, outcomes at baseline, 3 weeks, 12 weeks, and 6 months were pooled. The outcomes were current pain (NRS or VAS, 11 points scale), characteristic pain intensity, and subjective disability. A random effects meta-analysis model for continuous outcomes to display standardized mean differences between intervention and control was performed, followed by sensitivity multilevel meta-regressions. Overall, 2391 patients were randomized; 1976 (3 weeks, short-term), 1740 (12 weeks, intermediate), and 1560 (6 months, sustainability) participants were included in the meta-analyses. In the short-term, intermediate and sustainability, moderate-to-high quality evidence indicated that MCE has a larger effect on current pain (SMD = −0.15, −0.15, −0.19), pain intensity (SMD = −0.19, −0.26, −0.26) and disability (SMD = −0.15, −0.27, −0.25) compared with no exercise intervention. Low-quality evidence suggested that those patients with comparably intermediate current pain and older patients may profit the most from MCE. Motor control stabilisation exercise is an effective treatment for non-specific low back pain. Sub-clinical intermediate pain and middle-aged patients may profit the most from this intervention.
The relationship between exhaustion and work engagement has received considerable attention during the past decades. Although the theoretical proposition exists that work engagement may increase exhaustion over time, previous research has been mixed. Drawing on the transactional stress model and applying latent growth modeling, we aim to provide a more comprehensive picture of the work engagement–exhaustion relationship over time. In two longitudinal studies, with four measurement points each, we found consistent evidence that a higher initial work engagement related to increased exhaustion over time. Consistent with our hypotheses, a higher initial work engagement also related to less initial exhaustion, and increases in work engagement related to decreases in exhaustion over time. However, contrary to our expectations, a higher initial exhaustion related to elevated work engagement over time. In conclusion, our findings suggest that engaged employees are less exhausted but face a higher risk of exhaustion over time. At the same time, exhausted employees are less engaged, but they have the potential to become more so over time. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings will be discussed in this paper.
This review provides an overview of the current state of research concerning the role of mental imagery (MI) in mental disorders and evaluates treatment methods for changing MI in childhood. A systematic literature search using PubMed/Medline, Web of Science, and PsycINFO from 1872 to September 2020 was conducted. Fourteen studies were identified investigating MI, and fourteen studies were included referring to interventions for changing MI. Data from the included studies was entered into a data extraction sheet. The methodological quality was then evaluated. MI in childhood is vivid, frequent, and has a significant influence on cognitions and behavior in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), social anxiety disorder (SAD), and depression. The imagery’s perspective might mediate the effect of MI on the intensity of anxiety. Imagery rescripting, emotive imagery, imagery rehearsal therapy, and rational-emotive therapy with imagery were found to have significant effects on symptoms of anxiety disorders and nightmares. In childhood, MI seems to contribute to the maintenance of SAD, PTSD, and depression. If adapted to the developmental stages of children, interventions targeting MI are effective in the treatment of mental disorders.
In the application of range of motion (ROM) tests there is little agreement on the number of repetitions to be measured and the number of preceding warm-up protocols. In stretch training a plateau in ROM gains can be seen after four to five repetitions. With increasing number of repetitions, the gain in ROM is reduced. This study examines the question of whether such an effect occurs in common ROM tests. Twenty-two healthy sport students (10 m/12 f.) with an average age of 25.3 ± 1.94 years (average height 174.1 ± 9.8 cm; weight 66.6 ± 11.3 kg and BMI 21.9 ± 2.0 kg/cm2) volunteered in this study. Each subject performed five ROM tests in a randomized order—measured either via a tape measure or a digital inclinometer: Tape measure was used to evaluate the Fingertip-to-Floor test (FtF) and the Lateral Inclination test (LI). Retroflexion of the trunk modified after Janda (RF), Thomas test (TT) and a Shoulder test modified after Janda (ST) were evaluated with a digital inclinometer. In order to show general acute effects within 20 repetitions we performed ANOVA/Friedman-test with multiple comparisons. A non-linear regression was then performed to identify a plateau formation. Significance level was set at 5%. In seven out of eight ROM tests (five tests in total with three tests measured both left and right sides) significant flexibility gains were observed (FtF: p < 0.001; LI-left/right: p < 0.001/0.001; RF: p = 0.009; ST-left/right: p < 0.001/p = 0.003; TT-left: p < 0.001). A non-linear regression with random effects was successfully applied on FtF, RF, LI-left/right, ST-left and TT-left and thus, indicate a gradual decline in the amount of gained ROM. An acute effect was observed in most ROM tests, which is characterized by a gradual decline of ROM gain. For those tests, we can state that the acute effect described in the stretching literature also applies to the performance of typical ROM tests. Since a non-linear behavior was shown, it is the decision of the practitioner to weigh up between measurement accuracy and expenditure. Researchers and practitioners should consider this when applying ROM assessments to healthy young adults.
In recent decades, the assessment of instructional quality has grown into a popular and well-funded arm of educational research. The present study contributes to this field by exploring first impressions of untrained raters as an innovative approach of assessment. We apply the thin slice procedure to obtain ratings of instructional quality along the dimensions of cognitive activation, classroom management, and constructive support based on only 30 s of classroom observations. Ratings were compared to the longitudinal data of students taught in the videos to investigate the connections between the brief glimpses into instructional quality and student learning. In addition, we included samples of raters with different backgrounds (university students, middle school students and educational research experts) to understand the differences in thin slice ratings with respect to their predictive power regarding student learning. Results suggest that each group provides reliable ratings, as measured by a high degree of agreement between raters, as well predictive ratings with respect to students’ learning. Furthermore, we find experts’ and middle school students’ ratings of classroom management and constructive support, respectively, explain unique components of variance in student test scores. This incremental validity can be explained with the amount of implicit knowledge (experts) and an attunement to assess specific cues that is attributable to an emotional involvement (students).
High-intensity functional training (HIFT) has become a popular method in the sports and fitness sector. In contrast to unimodal approaches such as strength or endurance training, it has been hypothesized to induce concurrent adaptations in multiple markers of motor function. However, to date, the effectiveness of HIFT in this regard has not been studied. The present systematic review quantified the chronic effects of HIFT on motor function in healthy individuals. A multilevel meta-analysis with a robust random effects meta-regession model was used to pool the standardized mean differences (SMD) between (a) HIFT and (b) no-exercise (NEX) as well as conventional endurance, resistance and balance training for outcomes of muscle strength, endurance capacity and balance. The influence of possible effect modifiers such as program duration, session duration, age or sex was examined in a moderator analysis. Seventeen papers with moderate to high methodological quality (PEDro scale) were identified. Compared to NEX, HIFT had small to moderate positive effects on endurance capacity (SMD: 0.42, 95% CI 0.07–0.78, p = 0.03) and strength (0.60, 95% CI 0.02–1.18, p = 0.04) but no effect on balance (SMD: − 0.10, 95% CI − 1.13 to 0.92, p = 0.42). Regarding endurance, HIFT showed similar effectiveness as moderate-intensity endurance training (SMD: − 0.11, 95% CI − 1.17 to 0.95, p = 0.75) and high-intensity interval endurance training (SMD: − 0.15, 95% CI − 1.4 to 1.1, p = 0.66). No comparisons of HIFT vs. classical resistance or balance training were found. Moderator analyses revealed no influence of most effect modifiers. However, regarding endurance, females seemed to respond more strongly to HIFT in the comparison to NEX (p < .05). HIFT appears to represent an appropriate method to induce chronic improvements in motor function. While being superior to NEX and non-inferior to endurance training, current evidence does not allow a comparison against resistance and balance training. The impact of possible effect moderators should be further elucidated in future research.
Misconceptions about scientific concepts often prevail even if learners are confronted with conflicting evidence. This study tested the facilitative role of surprise in children’s revision of misconceptions regarding water displacement in a sample of German children (N = 94, aged 6–9 years, 46% female). Surprise was measured via the pupil dilation response. It was induced by letting children generate predictions before presenting them with outcomes that conflicted with their misconception. Compared to a control condition, generating predictions boosted children’s surprise and led to a greater revision of misconceptions (d = 0.56). Surprise further predicted successful belief revision during the learning phase. These results suggest that surprise increases the salience of a cognitive conflict, thereby facilitating the revision of misconceptions.
Positive psychological coaching (PPC) has emerged as a popular “paradigm” for practitioners interested in the professional development of people. A recent review consolidated the literature on PPC and produced a 5-phase positive psychological coaching model aimed at facilitating professional growth. However, little is known about practically operationalizing each phase of the coaching process (i.e., how to facilitate each phase and which underlying tools and techniques could be employed to do so). As such, the purpose of this systematic review was to address this limitation by (a) determining which coaching tools and techniques are proposed within the coaching literature and (b) classifying the identified tools and techniques into the respective phases of PPC model. The investigation used a two-step approach by conducting a systematic literature review (to identify various PPC tools/techniques) followed by an iterative heuristic classification process (to assign these PPC tools/techniques to a known PPC model). The systematic literature review resulted in 24 peer-reviewed publications on positive psychological coaching, providing 117 different coaching tools that could be condensed into 18 overarching coaching techniques. The iterative classification process showed that most techniques and tools are useful in at least two phases. Interestingly, experts still vary in opinion on the timing and application of these specific techniques and tools within the positive psychological coaching process. This study provides researchers and practitioners with practical guidelines to facilitate a positive psychological coaching process.
The COVID-19 lockdown has significantly disrupted the higher education environment within the Netherlands and led to changes in available study-related resources and study demands of students. These changes in study resources and study demands, the uncertainty and confusion about educational activities, the developing fear and anxiety about the disease, and the implementation of the COVID-19 lockdown measures may have a significant impact on the mental health of students. As such, this study aimed to investigate the trajectory patterns, rate of change, and longitudinal associations between study resources–demands and mental health of 141 university students from the Netherlands before and during the COVID-19 lockdown. The present study employed a longitudinal design and a piecewise latent growth modeling strategy to investigate the changes in study resources and mental health over a 3 month period. The results showed that moderate levels of student resources significantly decreased before, followed by a substantial rate of increase during, lockdown. In contrast, study demands and mental health were reported to be moderate and stable throughout the study. Finally, the growth trajectories of study resources–demands and mental health were only associated before the lockdown procedures were implemented. Despite growing concerns relating to the negative psychological impact of COVID-19 on students, our study shows that the mental health during the initial COVID-19 lockdown remained relatively unchanged.
In sports and clinical settings, roller massage (RM) interventions are used to acutely increase range of motion (ROM); however, the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Apart from changes in soft tissue properties (i.e., reduced passive stiffness), neurophysiological alterations such as decreased spinal excitability have been described. However, to date, no study has investigated both jointly. The purpose of this trial was to examine RM’s effects on neurophysiological markers and passive tissue properties of the plantar flexors in the treated (ROLL) and non-treated (NO- ROLL) leg. Fifteen healthy individuals (23 ± 3 years, eight females) performed three unilateral 60-s bouts of calf RM. This procedure was repeated four times on separate days to allow independent assessments of the following outcomes without reciprocal interactions: dorsiflexion ROM, passive torque during passive dorsiflexion, shear elastic modulus of the medial gastrocnemius muscle, and spinal excitability. Following RM, dorsiflexion ROM increased in both ROLL (+19.7%) and NO-ROLL (+13.9%). Similarly, also passive torque at dorsiflexion ROM increased in ROLL (+15.0%) and NO-ROLL (+15.2%). However, there were no significant changes in shear elastic modulus and spinal excitability (p > 0.05). Moreover, significant correlations were observed between the changes in DF ROM and passive torque at DF ROM in both ROLL and NO-ROLL. Changes in ROM after RM appear to be the result of sensory changes (e.g., passive torque at DF ROM), affecting both rolled and non-rolled body regions. Thus, therapists and exercise professionals may consider applying remote treatments if local loading is contraindicated.
Working memory capacity (WMC) and fluid intelligence (Gf) are highly correlated, but what accounts for this relationship remains elusive. Process-overlap theory (POT) proposes that the positive manifold is mainly caused by the overlap of domain-general executive processes which are involved in a battery of mental tests. Thus, executive processes are proposed to explain the relationship between WMC and Gf. The current study aims to (1) achieve a relatively purified representation of the core executive processes including shifting and inhibition by a novel approach combining experimental manipulations and fixed-links modeling, and (2) to explore whether these executive processes account for the overlap between WMC and Gf. To these ends, we reanalyzed data of 215 university students who completed measures of WMC, Gf, and executive processes. Results showed that the model with a common factor, as well as shifting and inhibition factors, provided the best fit to the data of the executive function (EF) task. These components explained around 88% of the variance shared by WMC and Gf. However, it was the common EF factor, rather than inhibition and shifting, that played a major part in explaining the common variance. These results do not support POT as underlying the relationship between WMC and Gf.
The strengths use scale: psychometric properties, longitudinal invariance and criterion validity
(2021)
Strengths use is an essential personal resource to consider when designing higher-educational programs and interventions. Strengths use is associated with positive outcomes for both the student (e.g., study engagement) and the university (e.g., academic throughput/performance). The Strengths Use Scale (SUS) has become a popular psychometric instrument to measure strengths use in educational settings, yet its use has been subjected to limited psychometric scrutiny outside of the U.S. Further, its longitudinal stability has not yet been established. Given the wide use of this instrument, the goals of this study were to investigate (a) longitudinal factorial validity and the internal consistency of the scale, (b) its equivalence over time, and (c) criterion validity through its relationship with study engagement over time. Data were gathered at two-time points, 3 months apart, from a sample of students in the Netherlands (n = 360). Longitudinal confirmatory factor analyses showed support for a two-factor model for overall strengths use, comprised of Affinity for Strengths and Strengths Use Behaviors. The SUS demonstrated high levels of internal consistency at both the lower- and upper bound limits at both time points. Further, strict longitudinal measurement invariance was established, which confirmed the instrument's temporal stability. Finally, criterion validity was established through relating strengths use to study engagement at different time stamps. These findings support the use of the SUS in practice to measure strengths use and to track the effectiveness of strengths use interventions within the higher education sector.
Specifying accurate informative prior distributions is a question of carefully selecting studies that comprise the body of comparable background knowledge. Psychological research, however, consists of studies that are being conducted under different circumstances, with different samples and varying instruments. Thus, results of previous studies are heterogeneous, and not all available results can and should contribute equally to an informative prior distribution. This implies a necessary weighting of background information based on the similarity of the previous studies to the focal study at hand. Current approaches to account for heterogeneity by weighting informative prior distributions, such as the power prior and the meta-analytic predictive prior are either not easily accessible or incomplete. To complicate matters further, in the context of Bayesian multiple regression models there are no methods available for quantifying the similarity of a given body of background knowledge to the focal study at hand. Consequently, the purpose of this study is threefold. We first present a novel method to combine the aforementioned sources of heterogeneity in the similarity measure ω. This method is based on a combination of a propensity-score approach to assess the similarity of samples with random- and mixed-effects meta-analytic models to quantify the heterogeneity in outcomes and study characteristics. Second, we show how to use the similarity measure ω as a weight for informative prior distributions for the substantial parameters (regression coefficients) in Bayesian multiple regression models. Third, we investigate the performance and the behavior of the similarity-weighted informative prior distribution in a comprehensive simulation study, where it is compared to the normalized power prior and the meta-analytic predictive prior. The similarity measure ω and the similarity-weighted informative prior distribution as the primary results of this study provide applied researchers with means to specify accurate informative prior distributions.
Empathie ist ein mehrdimensionales psychologisches Konstrukt, das aus verschiedenen Facetten besteht (Decety & Ickes, 2011). Es ist anzunehmen, dass Empathie ein wichtiger Mechanismus ist, um Menschen miteinander zu verbinden und eine Gruppenkohäsion möglich zu machen (Rameson & Lieberman, 2009). Neben der Fähigkeit die Erlebenswelt des Gegenübers mit eigenen mentalen Repräsentationen nachzuvollziehen, werden dadurch Emotionen ausgelöst, die denen des Gegenübers sehr ähnlich sind. Gleichzeitig unterscheidet sich dieses Gefühlserleben aber beispielsweise von reiner Gefühlsansteckung, da eine Selbst-Andere Differenzierung stattfindet und in einer empathischen Episode immer im Vordergrund steht, dass man sich aufgrund der Gefühle des anderen so fühlt (Altmann, 2015). Hier spielt Imitation eine wichtige Rolle, wenn es darum geht, die Erlebenswelt der anderen Person zu erfassen (Meltzoff & Decety, 2003). Besonders auch bei Lehrkräften zeigt sich eine Wichtigkeit von empathischem Handeln und Verstehen (Tausch & Tausch, 2008). In verschiedenen Studien zeigten sich positive Effekte von Empathie auf die Schülerschaft und die Unterrichtsqualität. Die SchülerInnen trauen sich mehr, es herrscht weniger Angst im Klassenzimmer und die Qualität der Unterrichtsbeiträge steigt (vgl. Tausch & Tausch, 1998). Empathie selbst besteht aus State- und Trait-Anteilen, so dass zumindest Teile davon trainierbar sind (Butters, 2010). Eine potentielle Möglichkeit um Empathie zu fördern scheint das Lehr-Lern-Format Service Learning (SL) darzustellen. Hierbei handelt es sich um ein Veranstaltungskonzept, bei dem ein meist fachlicher, akademischer Inhalt mit einem ehrenamtlichen Engagement außerhalb der Universität verknüpft wird (Reinders, 2016). Forschung aus dem angloamerikanischen Raum weist darauf hin, dass Empathie durch derartige Formate gefördert werden kann (Lundy, 2007; Wilson, 2011). Da die meisten Messverfahren von Empathie auf Selbstauskunft basieren und damit nur indirekt Anteile wie das affektive Mitschwingen abbilden können, war es Teil dieser Arbeit im ersten Schritt einen objektiven, videobasierten Test zu entwickeln, der dann mit anderen Verfahren zur Messung eingesetzt werden sollte. In zwei ExpertInnen-Befragungen wurden aus einem Pool von Videosequenzen mit Unterrichtssituationen insgesamt zehn Videoclips mit jeweils vier Items und zugehörigen Antwortoptionen extrahiert. In einer darauf folgenden Validierung mit Studierenden der Goethe-Universität (N = 112) wurden diese Vignetten mit verschiedenen Verfahren zur Messung von Empathie gemeinsam erhoben und die Zusammenhänge analysiert. Die Reliabilitäten der drei Testscores bewegten sich in den beiden gebildeten Testversionen zwischen Cronbachs α = .53 (Verhaltens-Score der Testversion 1) und α = .76 (Intensitäts-Score der Testversion 2). Es zeigten sich zu allen Fragebögen erwartungskonforme Zusammenhänge von kleinen bis mittleren Effekten. Die Itemschwierigkeiten bei den meisten Items lagen zwischen 50 und 65, die Trennschärfen zwischen .18 und .70.
Im nächsten Entwicklungsschritt wurden die Vignetten in neu zusammengestellten Testversionen nur Lehramtsstudierenden (N = 41) vorgelegt und zusätzlich Videoaufnahmen der Gesichter der ProbandInnen gemacht, um sie mit Face-Reader zu analysieren und die Facette Mitschwingen abzubilden. Die Reliabilitäten der Testversionen lagen mit einem neuen Scoring nun zwischen α = .24 (Emotionserkennungs-Score Prä-Testversion) und
α = .57 (Intensitäts-Score Prä-Testversion) sowie zwischen α = .10 (Emotionserkennungs-Score Post-Testversion) und α = .77 (Intensitäts-Score Post-Testversion). Auch die Schwierigkeiten und Trennschärfen änderten sich nach Adaptieren des Scorings und bewegten sich in beiden Testversionen nun von 30 bis 89 (Schwierigkeit) und von .0 bis .5 (Trennschärfe). Die Face-Reader Analysen zeigten nur in Teilen kongruente Emotionen mit den Selbstauskunftsdaten bzw. den eingeschätzten Intensitäten in den Videosequenzen, dann allerdings mittlere bis große Effekte, so dass in Teilen von einem affektiven Mitschwingen ausgegangen werden kann. Da sich die internen Konsistenzen im Vergleich zur Validierung verschlechterten, wurden die Zusammensetzungen der Testversionen für den Praxiseinsatz wieder auf die Validierungs-Versionen umgestellt.
Im Praxiseinsatz wurden Lehramtsstudierende in SL und Non-SL-Veranstaltungen rekrutiert und miteinander verglichen. Insgesamt nahmen N = 68 Personen an drei Messzeitpunkten teil (n = 30 in SL und n = 38 in Non-SL-Seminaren). Die Analysen zeigten, dass es zwischen den Gruppen keine signifikanten Unterschiede in den genutzten Instrumenten gab. Auch über die Zeit gab es nach der Bonferroni-Korrektur nur einen signifikanten Effekt (F (2,52) = 6.57, p = .003, η2 = .20). Es ist anzunehmen, dass diese Ergebnisse vor allem auf methodische Einschränkungen und Verbesserungsmöglichkeiten des entwickelten Testverfahrens zurückzuführen sind. Weitere Möglichkeiten werden diskutiert.
Dual-task paradigms encompass a broad range of approaches to measure cognitive load in instructional settings. As a common characteristic, an additional task is implemented alongside a learning task to capture the individual’s unengaged cognitive capacities during the learning process. Measures to determine these capacities are, for instance, reaction times and interval errors on the additional task, while the performance on the learning task is to be maintained. Opposite to retrospectively applied subjective ratings, the continuous assessment within a dual-task paradigm allows to simultaneously monitor changes in the performance related to previously defined tasks. Following the Cognitive Load Theory, these changes in performance correspond to cognitive changes related to the establishment of permanently existing knowledge structures. Yet the current state of research indicates a clear lack of standardization of dual-task paradigms over study settings and task procedures. Typically, dual-task designs are adapted uniquely for each study, albeit with some similarities across different settings and task procedures. These similarities range from the type of modality to the frequency used for the additional task. This results in a lack of validity and comparability between studies due to arbitrarily chosen patterns of frequency without a sound scientific base, potentially confounding variables, or undecided adaptation potentials for future studies. In this paper, the lack of validity and comparability between dual-task settings will be presented, the current taxonomies compared and the future steps for a better standardization and implementation discussed.
School psychologists are asked to systematically evaluate the effects of their work to ensure quality standards. Given the different types of methods applied to different users of school psychology measuring the effects of school psychological services is a complex task. Thus, the focus of our scoping review was to systematically investigate the state of past research on the measurement of the effects of school psychological services published between 1998 and 2018 in eight major school psychological journals. Of the 5,048 peer-reviewed articles published within this period, 623 were coded by two independent raters as explicitly refering to school psychology or counseling in the school context in their titles or abstracts. However, only 22 included definitions of effects of school psychological services or described outcomes used to evaluate school psychological services based on full text screening. These findings revealed that measurement of the effects of school psychological services has not been a focus of research despite its' relevance in guidelines of school psychological practice.
The role of orthographic knowledge for reading performance in German elementary school children
(2021)
Reading is crucial for successful participation in the modern world. However, 3-8% (e.g., Moll et al., 2014) of children in elementary school age show reading difficulties, which can lead to limited education and enhance risks of social and financial disadvantages (Valtin, 2017). Therefore, it is important to identify reading relevant components (Tippelt & Schmidt-Hertha, 2018). In this context, especially phonological awareness (i.e., awareness of the sound structure of the language) and naming speed (i.e., fast and automatized retrieval of information) were identified as significant components for reading skills (e.g., Georgiou et al., 2012; Landerl & Thaler, 2006; Vellutino, Fletcher, Snowling, & Scanlon, 2004). One further component, which is of growing interest to the recent research, is orthographic knowledge. It comprises the knowledge about the spelling of specific words (word-specific orthographic knowledge) and about legal letter patterns (general orthographic knowledge; Apel, 2011).
Previous research focused predominantly on examining the role of orthographic knowledge on basic reading level, including word identification and word meaning (Conrad et al., 2013; Rothe et al., 2015). The relationship between orthographic knowledge and reading comprehension as the core objective of reading, including understanding of the relationship between words within a sentence as well as building a coherence between sentences (Perfetti et al., 2005), was on the contrary scarcely the object of research. The first goal of this dissertation is, therefore, to provide a remedy by investigating the role of orthographic knowledge on higher reading processes (sentence- and text-level). The scarce body of research investigating children with reading difficulties provide a mixed result pattern (e.g., Ise et al., 2014). Therefore, this dissertation aims at clarifying the influence of orthographic knowledge on word-, sentence-, and text-level in children without and with reading difficulties.
A thorough understanding of reading relevant components is also important for conception of interventions aiming at individual reading performance improvements in order to prevent school failure. One promising approach to help children to overcome their reading difficulties is a text-fading based reading training. During this procedure, reading material is faded out letter by letter in reading direction (i.e., in German from left to right; Breznitz & Nevat, 2006). The aim of this manipulation is to prompt the individual to read faster than usual, resulting in reading rate and comprehension improvements (e.g., Nagler et al., 2015). However, the underlying mechanisms leading to improvements of reading performance are still unclear. Considering previous findings showing orthographic skills to influence training outcomes (Berninger et al., 1999), and also word reading performance after a reading intervention (Stage et al., 2003), it seems plausible to include orthographic knowledge when investigating potential training effects. Therefore, this dissertation aims at investigating the predictive value of orthographic knowledge for comprehension performance during the text-fading based reading training.
In order to answer the first research question, two empirical papers are implemented (see Appendix A: Zarić et al., 2020 and Appendix B: Zarić & Nagler, 2021), which investigate the role of orthographic knowledge for reading at word-, sentence-, and text-level in German school children without and with reading difficulties. The study by Zarić et al. (2020) examines the incremental predictive value for explained reading variance of both word-specific and general orthographic knowledge in relation to variance amount explained by general intelligence and phonological awareness. For this purpose, data from 66 German third-graders without reading difficulties were analyzed. Correlation and multiple regression analyses have shown that word-specific and general orthographic knowledge contribute a unique significant amount to the variance of reading comprehension on word-, sentence-, and text-level, over and above the explained variance by general intelligence and phonological awareness. In order to answer the question whether word-specific and general orthographic knowledge also explain variance in children with poor reading proficiency, in addition to established predictors phonological awareness and naming speed, the data from 103 German third-graders with reading difficulties were analyzed in a second study (Zarić & Nagler, 2021). The analyses revealed that word-specific and general orthographic knowledge explain a unique significant amount of the variance of reading on word- and sentence-level. On text-level, these two components did not explain a significant amount of unique variance. Here, only phonological awareness was shown to be a significant predictor. The results indicate that the knowledge about the spelling of specific words (word-specific orthographic knowledge) and the knowledge about legal letter patterns (general orthographic knowledge) contribute to reading comprehension on word-level. Following the assumptions, for instance, of the Lexical Quality Hypothesis (Perfetti & Hart, 2002) high-quality orthographic representations are considered to be important for higher reading processes, such as comprehension.
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It is increasingly recognized that neuroscience has not delivered the revolutionary clinical possibilities for psychiatry that had been promised. Explanations differ, however: some proponents emphasize the divide between biopsychosocial psychiatry and mechanistic neurology. Others rely on further basic experimental neuroscience as only the most elementary level of explanation will allow us to fully understand and treat mental disorders. From a clinical-neuropsychological perspective, I shall argue that both views are mistaken. Diagnosis and treatment of neurological diseases demands a biopsychosocial perspective similar to psychiatry. Acknowledging this might help to bring both disciplines together and improve clinical outcome.
Bisherige Forschungsergebnisse zeigen, dass auch Frauen sexuellen Kindesmissbrauch begehen und somit eine potentielle Gefahr für das Kindeswohl darstellen können. Aus Deutschland liegen bisher nur regionale oder Studien mit geringer Stichprobengröße vor. Die vorliegende Studie verfolgt das Ziel, eine umfassende Bestandserhebung des sexuellen Kindesmissbrauchs durch Frauen in Deutschland zu dokumentieren. Im Rahmen der vorliegenden Untersuchung wurden zum ersten Mal bundesweit Strafakten von 465 pädokriminellen Frauen ausgewertet, die in den letzten 30 Jahren nach §§174, 176, 180 oder 182 des StGB verurteilt wurden. Die standardisierte Analyse umfasst 185 Variablen und 54 selbst definierte Skalen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass eine pädokriminelle Frau durchschnittlich 33 Jahre alt ist, zumeist in einer Ehe in einer Kleinstadt lebt und häufig keiner beruflichen Tätigkeit nachgeht. Sie ist eine Mittäterin, handelt überwiegend aus Abhängigkeit zu ihrem männlichen Komplizen heraus, zu dem sie eine intime Beziehung pflegt und missbraucht mehrheitlich weibliche Opfer (Verhältnis fast 2:1). Beinahe die Hälfte der 614 Opfer, zu denen Informationen vorlagen, waren leibliche Kinder der Täterinnen und rund jedes sechste Kind stammte vom männlichen Mittäter.
Wörter flüssig und genau lesen zu können ist ein wichtiger Meilenstein beim Lesenlernen, den jedoch nicht alle Kinder erreichen. Schwachen Leser/innen bereitet es oft Schwierig-keiten, den Übergang vom buchstabenweisen Einlesen hin zur visuellen Worterkennung durch orthografische Vergleichsprozesse anhand größerer (sub-)lexikalischer Einheiten zu schaffen. Dabei ermöglicht die Silbe Kindern, die im Deutschen lesen lernen, den Einstieg in orthografische Vergleichsprozesse. Vor diesem Hintergrund untersuchte diese Replikations-studie in einem experimentellen Prä-Post-Design die Wirksamkeit eines silbenbasierten Le-setrainings auf die visuelle Worterkennung und das Leseverständnis von Zweitklässler/innen. Dazu wurden 101 Kinder, deren Worterkennungsleistung in einem standardisierten Lesetest im Vergleich zur Klassennorm unter dem Mittelwert lag, randomisiert der Experimental- oder Wartekontrollgruppe zugewiesen. Die Ergebnisse linearer Modelle nach Abschluss des 24 Sitzungen umfassenden Kleingruppentrainings zeigen signifikante Verbesserungen der orthografischen Vergleichsprozesse in der Experimentalgruppe. Demnach gelang es Kindern, die das Training des wiederholten Lesens und Segmentierens frequenter Silben erhalten hat-ten, Wörter schneller und genauer zu erkennen. Dieser Befund stellt einen weiteren Beleg für die Wirksamkeit des Trainings zur Förderung der Erkennung geschriebener Wörter dar.
Im Bobsport herrscht Konsens, dass die Startphase von zentraler Bedeutung für eine gute Endzeit ist. Dennoch hat sich die Sportwissenschaft mit der Frage, wie der Bobstart gelingt, bis dato kaum auseinandergesetzt. Der Beitrag holt dies in Form einer leibphänomenologischen Analyse der Startphase im Viererbob nach, indem er sein Augenmerk sowohl auf die leibliche Kommunikation der Athleten untereinander als auch zwischen ihnen und ihrem Sportgerät richtet. Theoretisches Fundament hierfür ist die Leibphänomenologie von Hermann Schmitz, empirische Grundlage sind problemzentrierte Interviews mit acht Kaderathleten des Bob- und Schlittenverbands für Deutschland (BSD). Zentrales Ergebnis der Untersuchung ist erstens, dass für das Gelingen des Viererbobstarts vor allem die antagonistisch-einseitige Einleibung der Athleten untereinander wie auch der Athleten mit dem Bob bedeutsam ist. Zweitens erweist sich die solidarische Einleibung der Athleten als wichtige Bedingung und gleichermaßen spürbarer Ausdruck eines gelungenen Viererbobstarts. Der Text präsentiert damit einen vollkommen neuen Blick auf den Bobsport. Mit seinem theoretisch-konzeptionellen Fokus auf leibliche Kommunikation im Sport liefert er darüber hinausgehend einen innovativen Beitrag zur phänomenologischen Sportforschung, wie er generell die fruchtbare Verbindung von Philosophie und empirischer Sportwissenschaft belegt.
Background: Running is a popular sport with high injury rates. Although risk factors have intensively been investigated, synthesized knowledge about the differences in injury rates of female and male runners is scarce. Objective: To systematically investigate the differences in injury rates and characteristics between female and male runners. Methods: Database searches (PubMed, Web of Science, PEDro, SPORTDiscus) were conducted according to PRISMA guidelines using the keywords “running AND injur*”. Prospective studies reporting running related injury rates for both sexes were included. A random-effects meta-analysis was used to pool the risk ratios (RR) for the occurrence of injuries in female vs. male runners. Potential moderators (effect modifiers) were analysed using meta-regression. Results: After removal of duplicates, 12,215 articles were screened. Thirty-eight studies were included and the OR of 31 could be pooled in the quantitative analysis. The overall injury rate was 20.8 (95% CI 19.9–21.7) injuries per 100 female runners and 20.4 (95% CI 19.7–21.1) injuries per 100 male runners. Meta-analysis revealed no differences between sexes for overall injuries reported per 100 runners (RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.90–1.10, n = 24) and per hours or athlete exposure (RR 0.94, 95% CI 0.69–1.27, n = 6). Female sex was associated with a more frequent occurrence of bone stress injury (RR (for males) 0.52, 95% CI 0.36–0.76, n = 5) while male runners had higher risk for Achilles tendinopathies (RR 1. 86, 95% CI 1.25–2.79, n = 2). Meta-regression showed an association between a higher injury risk and competition distances of 10 km and shorter in female runners (RR 1.08, 95% CI 1.00–1.69). Conclusion: Differences between female and male runners in specific injury diagnoses should be considered in the development of individualised and sex-specific prevention and rehabilitation strategies to manage running-related injuries.
Social pain is an emotional reaction to social exclusion which has been widely investigated in experimental settings. We developed the Social Pain Questionnaire (SPQ) and examined its factor structure, reliability, and construct validity. We constructed a 46-item pool that covered a broad range of situations related to social pain. Using three different subsamples (Online convenience sample: n = 623, Representative sample: n = 2531, Clinical sample of outpatients seeking psychotherapy: n = 270) we reduced the item pool to 10 items for the final SPQ scale, paying particular attention to content validity and factorial structure. Convergent, divergent and discriminant validity were assessed using standardized measures of related constructs and group differences. For the final 10-item version, a good factorial structure and reliability were found. Convergent validity was supported by correlations with related instruments of interpersonal sensitivity, attachment styles, depression and social anxiety. The representative and clinical sample differed significantly in social pain. The SPQ is an economic self-report measure with solid psychometric properties. Our data support the factorial, construct and convergent validity. The SPQ can be used to clarify the role of social pain in mental disorders and to incorporate interventions targeted towards social pain in psychotherapeutic settings.
Beneficial acute effects of resistance exercise on cognitive functions may be modified by exercise intensity or by habitual physical activity. Twenty-six participants (9 female and 17 male; 25.5 ± 3.4 years) completed four resistance exercise interventions in a randomized order on separate days (≥48 h washout). The intensities were set at 60%, 75%, and 90% of the one repetition maximum (1RM). Three interventions had matched workloads (equal resistance*nrepetitions). One intervention applied 75% of the 1RM and a 50% reduced workload (resistance*nrepetitions = 50%). Cognitive attention (Trail Making Test A—TMTA), task switching (Trail Making Test B—TMTB), and working memory (Digit Reading Spans Backward) were assessed before and immediately after exercise. Habitual activity was assessed as MET hours per week using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. TMTB time to completion was significantly shorter after exercise with an intensity of 60% 1RM and 75% 1RM and 100% workload. Friedman test indicated a significant effect of exercise intensity in favor of 60% 1RM. TMTA performance was significantly shorter after exercise with an intensity of 60% 1RM, 90% 1RM, and 75% 1RM (50% workload). Habitual activity with vigorous intensity correlated positively with the baseline TMTB and Digit Span Forward performance but not with pre- to post-intervention changes. Task switching, based on working memory, mental flexibility, and inhibition, was beneficially influenced by acute exercise with moderate intensity whereas attention performance was increased after exercise with moderate and vigorous intensity. The effect of regular activity had no impact on acute exercise effects.
Purpose: Physical activity is associated with altered levels of circulating microRNAs (ci-miRNAs). Changes in miRNA expression have great potential to modulate biological pathways of skeletal muscle hypertrophy and metabolism. This study was designed to determine whether the profile of ci-miRNAs is altered after different approaches of endurance exercise. Methods: Eighteen healthy volunteers (aged 24 ± 3 years) participated this three-arm, randomized-balanced crossover study. Each arm was a single bout of treadmill-based acute endurance exercise at (1) 100% of the individual anaerobic threshold (IANS), (2) at 80% of the IANS and (3) at 80% of the IANS with blood flow restriction (BFR). Load-associated outcomes (fatigue, feeling, heart rate, and exhaustion) as well as acute effects (circulating miRNA patterns and lactate) were determined. Results: All training interventions increased the lactate concentration (LC) and heart rate (HR) (p < 0.001). The high-intensity intervention (HI) resulted in a higher LC than both lower intensity protocols (p < 0.001). The low-intensity blood flow restriction (LI-BFR) protocol led to a higher HR and higher LC than the low-intensity (LI) protocol without BFR (p = 0.037 and p = 0.003). The level of miR-142-5p and miR-197-3p were up-regulated in both interventions without BFR (p < 0.05). After LI exercise, the expression of miR-342-3p was up-regulated (p = 0.038). In LI-BFR, the level of miR-342-3p and miR-424-5p was confirmed to be up-regulated (p < 0.05). Three miRNAs and LC show a significant negative correlation (miR-99a-5p, p = 0.011, r = − 0.343/miR-199a-3p, p = 0.045, r = − 0.274/miR-125b-5p, p = 0.026, r = − 0.302). Two partial correlations (intervention partialized) showed a systematic impact of the type of exercise (LI-BFR vs. HI) (miR-99a-59: r = − 0.280/miR-199a-3p: r = − 0.293). Conclusion: MiRNA expression patterns differ according to type of activity. We concluded that not only the intensity of the exercise (LC) is decisive for the release of circulating miRNAs—as essential is the type of training and the oxygen supply.
The COVID-19 pandemic led to numerous governments deciding to close schools for several weeks in spring 2020. Empirical evidence on the impact of COVID-19-related school closures on academic achievement is only just emerging. The present work aimed to provide a first systematic overview of evidence-based studies on general and differential effects of COVID-19-related school closures in spring 2020 on student achievement in primary and secondary education. Results indicate a negative effect of school closures on student achievement, specifically in younger students and students from families with low socioeconomic status. Moreover, certain measures can be identified that might mitigate these negative effects. The findings are discussed in the context of their possible consequences for national educational policies when facing future school closures.
The COVID-19 pandemic has called worldwide for strong governmental measures to contain its spread, associated with considerable psychological distress. This study aimed at screening a convenience sample in Germany during lockdown for perceived vulnerability to disease, knowledge about COVID-19, symptoms of depression and anxiety, and behavioral responses. In an online survey, 1358 participants completed the perceived vulnerability to disease scale (PVD), the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-4), and questionnaires on knowledge about COVID-19 and self-perceived change in behaviors in response to COVID-19. Lower and upper quartiles of the PVD were used to classify individuals into low and high PVD. A confirmatory factor analysis supported three factors representing risk, preventive and adaptive behavior as behavioral responses to COVID-19 lockdown. A structural equation model showed that the score of the knowledge scale significantly predicted the self-reported increase in adaptive and preventive behavior. The score in the PVD-subscale Perceived Infectability predicted a self-reported increase in preventive behavior, whereas the Germ Aversion score predicted a self-reported increase in preventive and a decrease in risk behavior. The score in PHQ-4 predicted a higher score in the perceived infectability and germ aversion subscales, and a self-reported decrease in adaptive behavior. Low-, medium- and high-PVD groups reported distinct patterns of behavior, knowledge, and mental health symptoms. This study shows that perceived vulnerability to disease is closely linked to preventive behaviors and may enhance adaptation to COVID-19 pandemic.
Background: The promotion of healthy aging is one of the major challenges for healthcare systems in current times. The present study investigates the effects of a standardized physical activity intervention for older adults on cognitive capacity, self-reported health, fear of falls, balance, leg strength and gait under consideration of movement biography, sleep duration, and current activity behavior. Methods: This single-blinded, randomized controlled trial included 49 community-dwelling older adults (36 women; 82.9 ± 4.5 years of age (Mean [M] ± SD); intervention group = 25; control group = 24). Movement biography, sleep duration, cognitive capacity, self-reported health status, and fear of falls were assessed by means of questionnaires. Leg strength, gait, and current activity levels were captured using a pressure plate, accelerometers, and conducting the functional-reach and chair-rising-test. The multicomponent intervention took place twice a week for 45 min and lasted 16 weeks. Sub-cohorts of different sleep duration were formed to distinguish between intervention effects and benefits of healthy sleep durations. Change scores were evaluated in univariate analyses of covariances (ANCOVAs) between groups and sub-cohorts of different sleep duration in both groups. Changes in cognitive capacity, self-reported health, fear of falls, balance, leg strength, and gait were investigated using the respective baseline values, movement biography, and current activity levels as covariates. Analysis was by intention-to-treat (ITT). Results: We found sub-cohort differences in cognitive capacity change scores [F(3,48) = 5.498, p = 0.003, ηp2 = 0.287]. Effects on fear of falls [F(1,48) = 12.961, p = 0.001, ηp2 = 0.240] and balance change scores F(1,48) = 4.521, p = 0.040, ηp2 = (0.099) were modified by the level of current activity. Effects on gait cadence were modified by the movement biography [F(1,48) = 4.545; p = 0.039, ηp2 = 0.100]. Conclusions: Unlike for functional outcomes, our multicomponent intervention in combination with adequate sleep duration appears to provide combinable beneficial effects for cognitive capacity in older adults. Trainability of gait, fear of falls, and flexibility seems to be affected by movement biography and current physical activity levels. Trial registration: This study was registered at the DRKS (German Clinical Trials Register) on November 11, 2020 with the corresponding trial number: DRKS00020472.
We investigated whether dichotomous data showed the same latent structure as the interval-level data from which they originated. Given constancy of dimensionality and factor loadings reflecting the latent structure of data, the focus was on the variance of the latent variable of a confirmatory factor model. This variance was shown to summarize the information provided by the factor loadings. The results of a simulation study did not reveal exact correspondence of the variances of the latent variables derived from interval-level and dichotomous data but shrinkage. Since shrinkage occurred systematically, methods for recovering the original variance were fleshed out and evaluated.
Narcissistic traits have been linked to structural and functional brain networks, including the insular cortex, however, with inconsistent findings. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that subclinical narcissism is associated with variations in regional brain volumes in insular and prefrontal areas. We studied 103 clinically healthy subjects, who were assessed for narcissistic traits using the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI, 40-item version) and received high-resolution structural magnetic resonance imaging. Voxel-based morphometry was used to analyse MRI scans and multiple regression models were used for statistical analysis, with threshold-free cluster enhancement (TFCE). We found significant (p < 0.05, family-wise error FWE corrected) positive correlations of NPI scores with grey matter in multiple prefrontal cortical areas (including the medial and ventromedial, anterior/rostral dorsolateral prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortices, subgenual and mid-anterior cingulate cortices, insula, and bilateral caudate nuclei). We did not observe reliable links to particular facets of NPI-narcissism. Our findings provide novel evidence for an association of narcissistic traits with variations in prefrontal and insular brain structure, which also overlap with previous functional studies of narcissism-related phenotypes including self-enhancement and social dominance. However, further studies are needed to clarify differential associations to entitlement vs. vulnerable facets of narcissism.
While scene context is known to facilitate object recognition, little is known about which contextual “ingredients” are at the heart of this phenomenon. Here, we address the question of whether the materials that frequently occur in scenes (e.g., tiles in a bathroom) associated with specific objects (e.g., a perfume) are relevant for the processing of that object. To this end, we presented photographs of consistent and inconsistent objects (e.g., perfume vs. pinecone) superimposed on scenes (e.g., a bathroom) and close-ups of materials (e.g., tiles). In Experiment 1, consistent objects on scenes were named more accurately than inconsistent ones, while there was only a marginal consistency effect for objects on materials. Also, we did not find any consistency effect for scrambled materials that served as color control condition. In Experiment 2, we recorded event-related potentials and found N300/N400 responses—markers of semantic violations—for objects on inconsistent relative to consistent scenes. Critically, objects on materials triggered N300/N400 responses of similar magnitudes. Our findings show that contextual materials indeed affect object processing—even in the absence of spatial scene structure and object content—suggesting that material is one of the contextual “ingredients” driving scene context effects.
Reduced social functioning in depression has been explained by different factors. Reduced social connectedness and prosocial motivation may contribute to interpersonal difficulties, particularly in chronic depression. In the present study, we tested whether social connectedness and prosocial motivation are reduced in chronic depression. Forty-seven patients with persistent depression and 49 healthy controls matched for age and gender completed the Inclusion of the Other in the Self Scale (IOS), the Compassionate Love Scale (CLS), the Beck Depression Inventory-II, and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. A Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) with IOS and CLS as dependent variables revealed a highly significant difference between both groups. The IOS and the CLS-subscale Close Others were lower in persistent depression, whereas there was no difference in the CLS-subscale Strangers/Humanity. IOS and CLS-Close Others showed significant negative correlations with depressive symptoms. Connectedness to family members as measured by the IOS was negatively correlated with childhood trauma in patients with chronic depression. The results indicate that compassion and perceived social connection are reduced in depressed patients toward close others, but not to others in general. Implications for the treatment of depression are discussed.
Point forecasts can be interpreted as functionals (i.e., point summaries) of predictive distributions. We extend methodology for the identification of the functional based on time series of point forecasts and associated realizations. Focusing on state-dependent quantiles and expectiles, we provide a generalized method of moments estimator for the functional, along with tests of optimality under general joint hypotheses of functional relationships and information bases. Our tests are more flexible, and in simulations better calibrated and more powerful than existing solutions. In empirical examples, economic growth forecasts and model output for precipitation are indicative of overstatement in anticipation of extreme events.
Strenuous and unaccustomed exercise frequently lead to what has been coined “delayed onset muscle soreness” (DOMS). As implied by this term, it has been proposed that the associated pain and stiffness stem from micro-lesions, inflammation, or metabolite accumulation within the skeletal muscle. However, recent research points towards a strong involvement of the connective tissue. First, according to anatomical studies, the deep fascia displays an intimate structural relationship with the underlying skeletal muscle and may therefore be damaged during excessive loading. Second, histological and experimental studies suggest a rich supply of algogenic nociceptors whose stimulation evokes stronger pain responses than muscle irritation. Taken together, the findings support the hypothesis that DOMS originates in the muscle-associated connective tissue rather than in the muscle itself. Sports and fitness professionals designing exercise programs should hence consider fascia-oriented methods and techniques (e.g., foam rolling, collagen supplementation) when aiming to treat or prevent DOMS.
Teacher’s self-efficacy is a relevant judgement of self-belief by teachers. Studies reveal inverse response bias of teachers’ self-assessment. Parallel item presentation can be used as a method to reduce such distortions. The major goal of this study was to develop and verify such a measure of parallel item presentation in order to compare self-efficacy of qualified and out-of-field PE teachers. Therefore out-of-field and qualified PE student teachers (N = 68) were randomised into two groups. They responded to 14 self-efficacy items related to classroom subjects and PE teaching. One group of out-of-field (n = 17) and qualified (n = 18) PE student teachers was presented with the items in parallel so that they could compare classroom and PE teaching items. For the other group of out-of-field (n = 11) and qualified (n = 22) PE student teachers, the items were presented sequentially so that no direct comparison was possible. Data was analysed using nested ANOVA. The results reveal that with a dimensional item comparison, out-of-field PE teachers have a significantly lower self-efficacy in PE than qualified PE student teachers (p = .006, ηp2 = .18). Without comparison, there is no significant difference. The method of parallel item representation can thus contribute to the reduction of inverse response bias.
Physical inactivity is discussed as one of the most detrimental influences for lifestyle-related medical complications such as obesity, heart disease, hypertension, diabetes and premature mortality in in- and outpatients with major depressive disorder (MDD). In contrast, intervention studies indicate that moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) might reduce complications and depression symptoms itself. Self-reported data on depression [Beck-Depression-Inventory-II (BDI-II)], general habitual well-being (FAHW), self-esteem and physical self-perception (FAHW, MSWS) were administrated in a cross-sectional study with 76 in- and outpatients with MDD. MVPA was documented using ActiGraph wGT3X + ® accelerometers and fitness was measured using cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET). Subgroups were built according to activity level (low PA defined as MVPA < 30 min/day, moderate PA defined as MVPA 30–45 min/day, high PA defined as MVPA > 45 min/day). Statistical analysis was performed using a Mann–Whitney U and Kruskal–Wallis test, Spearman correlation and mediation analysis. BDI-II scores and MVPA values of in- and outpatients were comparable, but fitness differed between the two groups. Analysis of the outpatient group showed a negative correlation between BDI-II and MVPA. No association of inpatient MVPA and psychopathology was found. General habitual well-being and self-esteem mediated the relationship between outpatient MVPA and BDI-II. The level of depression determined by the BDI-II score was significantly higher in the outpatient low- and moderate PA subgroups compared to outpatients with high PA. Fitness showed no association to depression symptoms or well-being. To ameliorate depressive symptoms of MDD outpatients, intervention strategies should promote habitual MVPA and exercise exceeding the duration recommended for general health (≥ 30 min/day). Further studies need to investigate sufficient MVPA strategies to impact MDD symptoms in inpatient settings. Exercise effects seem to be driven by changes of well-being rather than increased physical fitness.
Background: Diet and physical activity (PA) have a major impact on physical and mental health. However, there is a lack of effective strategies for sustaining these health-protective behaviors. A shift to a microtemporal, within-person approach is needed to capture dynamic processes underlying eating behavior and PA, as they change rapidly across minutes or hours and differ among individuals. However, a tool that captures these microtemporal, within-person processes in daily life is currently not present.
Objective: The APPetite-mobile-app is developed for the ecological momentary assessment of microtemporal, within-person processes of complex dietary intake, objectively recorded PA, and related factors. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility and usability of the APPetite-mobile-app and the validity of the incorporated APPetite-food record.
Methods: The APPetite-mobile-app captures dietary intake event-contingently through a food record, captures PA continuously through accelerometers, and captures related factors (eg, stress) signal-contingently through 8 prompts per day. Empirical data on feasibility (n=157), usability (n=84), and validity (n=44) were collected within the Eat2beNICE-APPetite-study. Feasibility and usability were examined in healthy participants and psychiatric patients. The relative validity of the APPetite-food record was assessed with a subgroup of healthy participants by using a counterbalanced crossover design. The reference method was a 24-hour recall. In addition, the energy intake was compared with the total energy expenditure estimated from accelerometry.
Results: Good feasibility, with compliance rates above 80% for prompts and the accelerometer, as well as reasonable average response and recording durations (prompt: 2.04 min; food record per day: 17.66 min) and latencies (prompts: 3.16 min; food record: 58.35 min) were found. Usability was rated as moderate, with a score of 61.9 of 100 on the System Usability Scale. The evaluation of validity identified large differences in energy and macronutrient intake between the two methods at the group and individual levels. The APPetite-food record captured higher dietary intakes, indicating a lower level of underreporting, compared with the 24-hour recall. Energy intake was assessed fairly accurately by the APPetite-food record at the group level on 2 of 3 days when compared with total energy expenditure. The comparison with mean total energy expenditure (2417.8 kcal, SD 410) showed that the 24-hour recall (1909.2 kcal, SD 478.8) underestimated habitual energy intake to a larger degree than the APPetite-food record (2146.4 kcal, SD 574.5).
Conclusions: The APPetite-mobile-app is a promising tool for capturing microtemporal, within-person processes of diet, PA, and related factors in real time or near real time and is, to the best of our knowledge, the first of its kind. First evidence supports the good feasibility and moderate usability of the APPetite-mobile-app and the validity of the APPetite-food record. Future findings in this context will build the foundation for the development of personalized lifestyle modification interventions, such as just-in-time adaptive interventions.
Taking blood via venipuncture is part of the necessary surveillance before and after liver transplantation. The spectrum of response from children and their parents is variable, ranging from a short and limited aversion to paralyzing phobia. The aim of this retrospective, cross-sectional study was to determine the level of anxiety amongst children during venipuncture, to compare the anxiety reported by children and parents, and to identify the factors affecting the children’s and parents’ anxiety in order to develop therapeutic strategies. In total, 147 children (aged 0–17 years, 78 female) and their parents completed questionnaires. Statistical analysis was performed using qualitative and quantitative methods. Results showed that the majority of children reported anxiety and pain during venipuncture. Younger children had more anxiety (self-reported or assessed by parents). Children and parental reports of anxiety were highly correlated. However, the child’s anxiety was often reported as higher by parents than by the children themselves. The child’s general anxiety as well as the parents’ perceived stress from surgical interventions (but not the number of surgical interventions) prompted parental report of child anxiety. For children, the main stressors that correlated with anxiety and pain were factors during the blood collection itself (e.g., feeling the puncture, seeing the syringe). Parental anxiety was mainly related to circumstances before the blood collection (e.g., approaching the clinic, sitting in the waiting room). The main stressors mentioned by parents were the child’s discomfort and their inability to calm the child. Results indicate that the children’s fear of factors during the blood collection, along with the parents’ perceived stress and helplessness as well as their anticipatory anxiety are important starting points for facilitating the drawing of blood from children before and after liver transplantation, thereby supporting a better disease course in the future.
We aimed to assess executive functioning in children after liver transplantation compared with healthy controls and in relation to real-life school performance using the PedsQLTM Cognitive Functioning Scale (CogPedsQL) and the Childrens’ Color Trail Test (CCTT). One hundred and fifty five children (78f, median age 10.4 (1.2–18.3) years) underwent testing with CogPedsQL and/or CCTT 4.9 (0.1–17.0) years after transplantation. Results were compared to those of 296 healthy children (165f, median age 10.0 (2.0–18.0) years). Liver transplanted children displayed significantly reduced scores for cogPedsQL and CCTT1&2 compared to healthy controls. Overall, school performance was lower in patients compared to controls. In both patients and controls, results of CCTT2 and CogPedsQL correlated strongly with school performance. In contrast to controls, school performance in patients correlated with the level of maternal but not paternal primary education degree (r = −0.21, p = 0.03). None of the patient CCTT or CogPedsQL test results correlated with parental school education. Conclusion: CogPedsQL and CCTT 1&2 were easily applicable in children after OLT and revealed reduced executive functioning compared to controls. Results reflect real life school performance. The association of parental education with school performance is reduced in transplanted children, which possibly indicates the overriding impact of transplant-associated morbidity on cognitive outcomes.
Background: It is often advised to ensure a high-protein intake during energy-restricted diets. However, it is unclear whether a high-protein intake is able to maintain muscle mass and contractility in the absence of resistance training.
Materials and Methods: After 1 week of body mass maintenance (45 kcal/kg), 28 male college students not performing resistance training were randomized to either the energy-restricted (ER, 30 kcal/kg, n = 14) or the eucaloric control group (CG, 45 kcal/kg, n = 14) for 6 weeks. Both groups had their protein intake matched at 2.8 g/kg fat-free-mass and continued their habitual training throughout the study. Body composition was assessed weekly using multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analysis. Contractile properties of the m. rectus femoris were examined with Tensiomyography and MyotonPRO at weeks 1, 3, and 5 along with sleep (PSQI) and mood (POMS).
Results: The ER group revealed greater reductions in body mass (Δ −3.22 kg vs. Δ 1.90 kg, p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.360), lean body mass (Δ −1.49 kg vs. Δ 0.68 kg, p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.152), body cell mass (Δ −0.85 kg vs. Δ 0.59 kg, p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.181), intracellular water (Δ −0.58 l vs. Δ 0.55 l, p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.445) and body fat percentage (Δ −1.74% vs. Δ 1.22%, p < 0.001, partial η2 = 433) compared to the CG. Contractile properties, sleep onset, sleep duration as well as depression, fatigue and hostility did not change (p > 0.05). The PSQI score (Δ −1.43 vs. Δ −0.64, p = 0.006, partial η2 = 0.176) and vigor (Δ −2.79 vs. Δ −4.71, p = 0.040, partial η2 = 0.116) decreased significantly in the ER group and the CG, respectively.
Discussion: The present data show that a high-protein intake alone was not able to prevent lean mass loss associated with a 6-week moderate energy restriction in college students. Notably, it is unknown whether protein intake at 2.8 g/kg fat-free-mass prevented larger decreases in lean body mass. Muscle contractility was not negatively altered by this form of energy restriction. Sleep quality improved in both groups. Whether these advantages are due to the high-protein intake cannot be clarified and warrants further study. Although vigor was negatively affected in both groups, other mood parameters did not change.
Korrektur zu: Roth C, Rettenmaier L and Behringer M (2021) High-Protein Energy-Restriction: Effects on Body Composition, Contractile Properties, Mood, and Sleep in Active Young College Students. Front. Sports Act. Living 3:683327. https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2021.683327
In the face of the worldwide COVIV-19 pandemic, refugees represent a particularly vulnerable group with respect to access to health care and information regarding preventive behavior. In an online survey the Perceived Vulnerability to Disease Scale, self-reported changes in preventive and risk behaviors, knowledge about COVID-19, and psychopathological symptoms (PHQ-4) were assessed. The convenience sample consisted of n = 76 refugees (n = 45 Arabic speaking, n = 31 Farsi speaking refugees) and n = 76 German controls matched with respect to age and sex. Refugees reported a significantly larger fear of infection, significantly less knowledge about COVID-19, and a higher frequency of maladaptive behavior, as compared to the control group. This study shows that refugees are more vulnerable to fear of infection and maladaptive behaviors than controls. Culturally adapted, easily accessible education about COVID-19 may be beneficial in improving knowledge and preventive behaviors related to COVID-19.
Gender stereotypes and self-characterizations in Germany and Nigeria: a cross-cultural comparison
(2021)
Studies on the content of gender stereotypes have been conducted primarily in the United States, while research in other, particularly non-Western, countries is scarce. In this research, we assessed and compared the content of gender stereotypes and self-characterizations in Germany—a Western European country—and Nigeria—a West African country. We asked 403 Germans and Nigerians to rate three target groups (either men in general, women in general, or themselves) on 74 agentic and communal characteristics. We found that Nigerian women were rated as more agentic and more communal than German women, while German men were rated as more communal than Nigerian men, but similarly on agency. On self-characterizations, Nigerian men rated themselves as more communal than German men, but again similarly on agency; Nigerian women rated themselves as more agentic and more communal than German women. Within-country comparisons showed that in Germany, men and women were perceived as similarly agentic and communal, while in Nigeria, men and women were perceived as similarly agentic, but women were perceived as more communal than men (by both others and when rating themselves). Further analysis on individual agentic and communal characteristics, however, showed important differences in stereotypes and self-characterizations of men and women in both countries that were obscured when looking at overall agency and communion. Our results show that gender stereotyping of oneself and others is complex and highlights the impact of culture on people's perceptions of gender.
The sudden impact of the COVID-19 pandemic challenged universities to provide students with online teaching and learning settings that were both immediately applicable and supportive of quality learning. This resulted in a broad variety of synchronous and asynchronous online settings of teaching and learning. While some courses balanced both kinds, others offered either predominantly synchronous or asynchronous teaching and learning. In a survey study with students (N=3,056) and teachers (N=396) from a large German university, we explored whether a predominance of synchronous or asynchronous teaching and learning settings in higher education was associated with certain student experiences and outcomes. Additionally, we examined how well these two types of teaching and learning settings support students’ basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness proposed by self-determination theory (SDT). Data were collected after the first online semester due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The results imply that from the students’ perspective, the teaching methods involved in the two settings of teaching and learning differ with regard to their potential to support social interaction and to support basic psychological needs as proposed by SDT. Students who studied mostly in synchronous settings reported more peer-centered activities such as feedback in comparison to students in mostly asynchronous settings. In contrast, teachers perceived fewer differences between teaching methods in synchronous and asynchronous settings, especially regarding feedback activities. Further, students in mostly synchronous settings reported greater support of their basic psychological needs for competence support and relatedness as well as a greater overall satisfaction with the online term compared to students in mostly asynchronous settings. Across all students, greater fulfillment of psychological needs and higher technology acceptance coincided with outcomes that are more favorable. Implications for the post-pandemic classroom are drawn.
Background: Handball referees play an important role during a handball match. Surprisingly, not much is known about their sports-related injuries and resulting pain, therefore the purpose of our study was to focus on injuries and sports-related pain in referees in German handball leagues. Methods: During the 2018/19 national German handball season, referees of the German Federation of Handball (DHB) were contacted and asked to complete an injury and pain questionnaire on the penultimate matchday of the first and the second round of the season. Results: Seventy referees participated in the study. One in three referees reported an injury during the last year and perceived some form of pain. Of those suffering from pain, 16.7% referees reported chronic pain disorders. During the season, 31.4% of referees incurred an injury and the majority of the 70 referees officiated despite pain (n = 43). Prospectively-enrolled data suggested an incidence of 11.6 (95% CI: 10.3 to 13.0) injuries per 1000 match hours, and 19.0 (95% CI: 16.8 to 21.3) sports-related pain events per 1000 match hours. The most common injuries were foot and knee injuries and a substantial number of the referees (n = 25) reported taking analgesics for the pain. Conclusion: German handball referees are at risk of sports-related injuries with subsequent pain. Considering the injury profile, the incidence of sports-related pain events, and the high physiological demands of refereeing, it appears that prevention programs should be developed and integrated into the routine of the referee.
We wish to make the following correction to the published paper 'Effects of Transient Loss of Vision on Head and Eye Movements during Visual Search in a Virtual Environment'. We have identified a flaw in the implementation of a latency mitigation strategy for our gaze-contingent protocol written in Unity3D. As a result, the maximum latency is now estimated to be 30 ms instead of 15 ms, which should not affect any of the results originally published but should be noted for further reference.
Um Unterricht durch digitale Medien lernwirksam gestalten zu können, sollten Lehrkräfte über die notwendigen Kompetenzen für einen didaktisch angemessenen und reflektieren Einsatz von Technologien verfügen. Neben der Verbesserung der technischen Infrastruktur an Schulen ist es daher notwendig, Lehrkräfte bei ihrer Professionalisierung zu unterstützen. Lehrkräfte an deutschen Schulen zeigen allerdings eine eher zurückhaltende Teilnahme an Fortbildungsangeboten zu digitalen Themen, was auf eine fehlende Passung zu den realen Bedarfen hinweisen kann. Der vorliegende Beitrag widmet sich daher Präferenzen von Lehrkräften zu Inhalten und Gestaltungsmerkmalen von Fortbildungen zu digitalen Medien und berichtet dazu Ergebnisse einer Befragung von Gymnasiallehrkräften (N = 238). Um möglichst zielgruppenspezifische Ergebnisse zu erhalten, wurden über eine latente Profilanalyse mit Personenmerkmalen (technologisches und technologisch-pädagogisches Wissen, Selbstwirksamkeit, Mediennutzung) drei Profile identifiziert und im Hinblick auf ihre Präferenzen verglichen. Die Ergebnisse weisen auf eine Vielfalt an thematischen Wünschen sowie auf die Notwendigkeit einer bedarfsgerechten Gestaltung von Fortbildungen hin. Abschließend werden zusammenfassende Empfehlungen zur Gestaltung von Lehrkräftefortbildungen zu digitalen Medien formuliert.
Background: Excessive unilateral joint loads may lead to overuse disorders. Bilateral training in archery is only performed as a supportive coordination training and as a variation of typical exercise. However, a series of studies demonstrated a crossover transfer of training-induced motor skills to the contralateral side, especially in case of mainly unilateral skills. We compared the cervical spine and shoulder kinematics of unilateral and bilateral training archers.
Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 25 (5 females, 48 ± 14 years) bilaterally training and 50 age-, sex- and level-matched (1:2; 47.3 ± 13.9 years) unilaterally training competitive archers were included. Cervical range of motion (RoM, all planes) and glenohumeral rotation were assessed with an ultrasound-based 3D motion analysis system. Upward rotation of the scapula during abduction and elevation of the arm were measured by means of a digital inclinometer and active shoulder mobility by means of an electronic caliper. All outcomes were compared between groups (unilaterally vs. bilaterally) and sides (pull-hand- vs. bow-hand-side).
Results: Unilateral and bilateral archers showed no between group and no side-to-side-differences in either of the movement direction of the cervical spine. The unilateral archers had higher pull-arm-side total glenohumeral rotation than the bilateral archers (mean, 95% CI), (148°, 144–152° vs. 140°, 135°-145°). In particular, internal rotation (61°, 58–65° vs. 56°, 51–61°) and more upward rotation of the scapula at 45 degrees (12°, 11–14° vs. 8°, 6–10°), 90 degrees (34°, 31–36° vs. 28°, 24–32°), 135 degrees (56°, 53–59° vs. 49°, 46–53°), and maximal (68°, 65–70° vs. 62°, 59–65°) arm abduction differed. The bow- and pull-arm of the unilateral, but not of the bilateral archers, differed in the active mobility of the shoulder (22 cm, 20–24 cm vs. 18 cm, 16–20 cm).
Conclusions: Unilaterally training archers display no unphysiologic movement behaviour of the cervical spine, but show distinct shoulder asymmetris in the bow- and pull-arm-side when compared to bilateral archers in glenohumeral rotation, scapula rotation during arm abduction, and active mobility of the shoulder. These asymmetries in may exceed physiological performance-enhancing degrees. Bilateral training may seems appropriate in archery to prevent asymmetries.
Human observers can quickly and accurately categorize scenes. This remarkable ability is related to the usage of information at different spatial frequencies (SFs) following a coarse-to-fine pattern: Low SFs, conveying coarse layout information, are thought to be used earlier than high SFs, representing more fine-grained information. Alternatives to this pattern have rarely been considered. Here, we probed all possible SF usage strategies randomly with high resolution in both the SF and time dimensions at two categorization levels. We show that correct basic-level categorizations of indoor scenes are linked to the sampling of relatively high SFs, whereas correct outdoor scene categorizations are predicted by an early use of high SFs and a later use of low SFs (fine-to-coarse pattern of SF usage). Superordinate-level categorizations (indoor vs. outdoor scenes) rely on lower SFs early on, followed by a shift to higher SFs and a subsequent shift back to lower SFs in late stages. In summary, our results show no consistent pattern of SF usage across tasks and only partially replicate the diagnostic SFs found in previous studies. We therefore propose that SF sampling strategies of observers differ with varying stimulus and task characteristics, thus favouring the notion of flexible SF usage.
Background and aims: One reason for the controversial discussion of whether the dual task (DT) walking paradigm has an added value for diagnosis in clinical conditions might be the use of different gait measurement systems. Therefore, the purpose was 1) to detect DT effects of central gait parameters obtained from five different gait analysis devices in young and old adults, 2) to assess the consistency of the measurement systems, and 3) to determine if the absolut and proportional DT costs (DTC) are greater than the system-measurement error under ST. Methods: Twelve old (72.2 ± 7.9y) and 14 young adults (28.3 ± 6.2y) walked a 14.7-m distance under ST and DT at a self-selected gait velocity. Interrater reliability, precision of the measurement and sensitivity to change were calculated under ST and DT. Results: An age effect was observed in almost all gait parameters for the ST condition. For DT only differences for stride length (p < .029, ɳ2p = .239) as well as single and double limb support (p = .036, ɳ2p = .227; p = .034, ɳ2p = .218) remained. The measurement systems showed a lower absolute agreement compared to consistency across all systems. Conclusions: When reporting DT effects, the real changes in performance and random measurement errors should always be accounted for. These findings have strong implications for interpreting DT effects.
Background: Personal treatment goals (PTG) are important means to tailor psychotherapy to the needs of the patient, leading to increased engagement and greater improvement in relevant outcomes. According to lifespan developmental research, motivational goals in old age differ from goals of younger people, with management of losses rather than growth becoming more prevalent. However, this study is the first to systematically investigate age-specific differences in PTGs. Method: We used routine data from patients with major depression assessed at the beginning of outpatient cognitive behavioural therapy. Initial high-priority PTGs were assessed using the Bern Inventory of Treatment Goals (BIT-C). Older patients (≥60 years, n = 52) were matched to younger patients (<60 years, n = 52) with regard to severity of depression, number of comorbidities, gender and level of education. Results: Using a mixed method approach, high-priority PTGs of both age groups were focused most strongly on reducing depressive symptoms and, subsequently, anxiety. At the same time, older patients focused more strongly on PTGs related to well-being and functioning, while younger patients' emphasis was on personal growth. Furthermore, better coping with the ageing process and physical losses emerged as important PTGs for some older patients. Conclusion: Initial PTG themes are specific to diagnosis, but also seem to differ in regard to age. Thus, it is important to develop age-sensitive measures that allow appropriate and efficient tailoring of psychotherapy to meet older patients' needs and preferences.
Abstract: The Children's Communication Checklist-2 (CCC-2) is often applied to assess pragmatic language impairment which is highly prevalent in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and several mental health conditions. We replicated previous findings on the limited applicability of the CCC-2 in clinical samples and the inconsistent findings concerning the factor structure. The aim of the present study was, thus, to develop a concise, simplified, and revised version of the CCC-2 in a large German-speaking sample. Four groups of children and adolescents aged 4 to 17 years were included: ASD (n = 195), intellectual disability (ID, n = 83), diverse mental health conditions (MHC, n = 144) and a typically developing control group (TD, n = 417). We reduced the original number of items from 70 to 39, based on item analysis, exploratory factor analysis and the exclusion of communication-unrelated items. The revised version, CCC-R (α = 0.96), consists of two empirically derived factors: a pragmatic-language (α = 0.96) and a grammatical-semantic-language factor (α = 0.93). All clinical groups (ASD, ID, and MHC) had significantly increased CCC-R total scores, with the highest scores being in the neurodevelopmental disorder groups (ASD and ID). In addition, we found group-specific patterns of elevated pragmatic-language scores in the ASD group and grammatical-semantic scores in the ID group. The CCC-R was comparable to the CCC-2 in distinguishing ASD from the other groups. The CCC-R is proposed as a simplified and easily applied, clinical questionnaire for caregivers, assessing pragmatic language impairments across neurodevelopmental disorders and mental health conditions. Lay Summary: The CCC-2 is a questionnaire designed to identify children who have problems in the social use of language, however, it is limited in its clinical application and exhibits inconsistent factors. We have created a shorter and simpler version of the CCC-2 that we have called the CCC-R which overcomes the previous limitations of the CCC-2. It consists of two subscales: pragmatic language and grammatical-semantic language. The CCC-R can be used as a short and clinically relevant caregiver questionnaire which assesses pragmatic language impairments in children and adolescents. Autism Res 2021, 14: 759–772. © 2021 The Authors. Autism Research published by International Society for Autism Research published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.
Childhood and adolescent sexual abuse (CSA) is a traumatic experience associated with a variety of short- and long-term negative consequences. Theoretical models assume that an abuse related and learned distorted image of sexuality might lead CSA survivors to feel obligated to provide sex or engage in unwanted sexual practices in order to gain affection or prevent abandonment. Dialectical behavioral therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder (DBT-PTSD) is tailored to people with PTSD and comorbid emotion regulation deficits. This case study presents the results of an outpatient DBT-PTSD treatment of an adult patient with posttraumatic stress disorder following sexual and physical abuse. DBT-PTSD was used to treat the patient’s complex psychopathological problems and to decrease her risky sexual behavior, which manifested itself in highly dangerous sexual practices with her partner. The treatment took place over a period of 18 months, with a total of 72 sessions. At the end of the treatment, the patient no longer met criteria for PTSD as indicated by large reductions in the assessments used. Furthermore, she managed to distance herself from risky sexual practices and to remain in a satisfying relationship.