Debora J. Bell

Posttrauma Numbing of Fear, Detachment, and Arousal Predict Delinquent Behaviors in Early Adolescence

This study elaborated on associations between youths trauma-related emotional numbing across multiple affective domains (e.g., fear, sadness, happiness, anger) and delinquent behaviors. The study also examined whether the effects of posttrauma emotional numbing varied by the occurrence of posttrauma arousal symptoms. Participants were 123 middle school boys and girls from working-class, urban communities. Emotional numbing, particularly diminished fear, was related to both home and community violence exposure. Numbing of fearful emotions was associated with all types of delinquent behaviors examined. In addition, numbing of sadness was associated with aggression. Interactions between numbing of fear and hyperarousal suggested a complex pattern of emotional processing following exposure to traumatic events in which numbing related to delinquent behavior only in the context of high posttrauma arousal. These patterns may coalesce to place youth at risk for early involvement in delinquent behaviors.

The Relationship between PTSD Symptoms and Attention Problems in Children Exposed to the Bosnian War.

The authors examined the mediating role of posttraumatic stress symptoms in the relationship between traumatic event exposure and attention problems in a sample of 791 Sarajevan children exposed to the Bosnian war. They hypothesized that because of similarities in the arousal symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the hyperactive—inattentive symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), PTSD symptoms would mediate the relationship between trauma exposure and attention problems. The findings support the hypothesis. The findings also show evidence of a reporter effect, whereby the relationship between trauma symptoms and attention problems was strongest when both types of symptoms were reported by school officials. Given the potentially spurious relationship between trauma exposure and attention problems, careful consideration must be given to the diagnosis of traumatized youth who present with ADHD symptoms. In accordance with practice guidelines, a multi-informant, multi-measure approach in the assessment of attention problems is strongly recommended.

Social Information Processing in Children: Specific Relations to Anxiety, Depression, and Affect.

Two studies examined shared and unique relations of social information processing (SIP) to youths anxious and depressive symptoms. Whether SIP added unique variance over and above trait affect in predicting internalizing symptoms was also examined. In Study 1, 215 youth (ages 8–13) completed symptom measures of anxiety and depression and a vignette-based interview measure of SIP. Anxiety and depression were each related to a more negative information-processing style. Only depression was uniquely related to a less positive information processing style. In Study 2, 127 youth (ages 10–13) completed measures of anxiety, depression, SIP, and trait affect. SIPs relations to internalizing symptoms were replicated. Over and above negative affect, negative SIP predicted both anxiety and depression. Low positive SIP added variance over and above positive affect in predicting only depression. Finally, SIP functioning partially mediated the relations of affect to internalizing symptoms.

Peer Difficulties in Children with Epilepsy: Association with Seizure, Neuropsychological, Academic, and Behavioral Variables

Purpose/Objective: A developmental psychopathology framework was used to examine variables associated with peer problems in children with epilepsy (CWE). Variables commonly associated with peer difficulties in typically developing children, such as inattentive behavior, anxious behavior, and academic achievement were investigated. Neuropsychological functioning, age at epilepsy onset, and seizure status were also examined. Research Method/Design: Participants were 173 CWE, ages 8–15. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to determine which variables predicted peer problems in CWE and to test hypothesized interrelations among variables. Results: The SEM revealed that anxious behavior mediated relations between neuropsychological functioning and peer difficulties and seizure status and peer difficulties. Inattentive behavior mediated the association between neuropsychological functioning and peer difficulties. Neuropsychological functioning mediated the relation between age at epilepsy onset and inattentive behavior, anxious behavior, and academic achievement. Conclusions/Implications: As seen with typically developing children, inattentive and anxious behaviors are related to peer difficulties in CWE. Neuropsychological functioning, age at epilepsy onset, and seizure status are indirectly associated with peer difficulties; therefore, these variables are important to examine in CWE who are experiencing peer problems.

Relation of Childhood Worry to Information-Processing Factors in an Ethnically Diverse Community Sample

This study examined information-processing variables in relation to worry in a sample of 292 fifth-grade children from Caucasian, African American, and Hispanic backgrounds. Results revealed that worry was related to threat interpretations for hypothetical situations and, when stress level was not controlled, to higher estimates of future occurrence for perceived threatening situations and ineffective solution choices. In addition, environmental and individual factors such as stress, gender, and socioeconomic status (SES) were found to be important predictors of information-processing variables. Ethnicity did not predict childrens information processing when stress level and SES were controlled; however, it interacted with worry to predict problem-solving confidence. The findings support the information-processing model for childhood anxiety in a nonreferred and ethnically diverse sample.

Understanding Behavioral and Emotional Problems in Girls

Historically, girls have evoked images of sweetness and light, purity and beauty. In this fairytale land of youth, girls are angels and princesses, characterized by positive adjustment and certainly not by behavioral or emotional problems. However, as Mae West observed, in reality female children and adolescents are much more complex, with both positive and negative aspects to their development and adjustment. Unfortunately, the complexity has been understudied in the developmental psychopathology literature. Compared to the amount of research attention given to boys’ development and adjustment, girls have been relatively neglected. This lack of attention has obvious negative implications for our ability to understand girls’ development and our efforts to promote optimal development and to remediate problematic development. Recent research on disorders of childhood and adolescence such as conduct disorders (Moffitt, Caspi, Rutter, & Silva, 2001), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; Hinshaw, 2002), anxiety disorders

Depressive Symptoms, Including Lack of Future Orientation, as Mediators in the Relationship between Adverse Life Events and Delinquent Behaviors

The present study provided a cross-sectional examination of associations among adverse life events, depressive symptoms, and delinquency in a community sample of 123 early adolescent boys and girls. We also examined whether depressive cognitions, including hopelessness, differentially mediated the relations between exposure to adverse events and delinquent behaviors. Depressive cognitions, especially lack of future orientation, were associated with delinquent behaviors and partially mediated the relationship between adverse events and delinquent behaviors. Findings highlight the importance of future orientation among adversity-exposed youth, and suggest that interventions for trauma should focus on instilling optimism and hope as a means of reducing risk for negative outcomes, including delinquency.

The internship match: Understanding the problem-seeking solutions.

When 25% (842) of the 3,430 students participating in the 2007 APPIC Match were not placed, the Editorial Team of Training and Education in Professional Psychology (TEPP) expressed considerable concern about the significant barrier that exists for a sizable number of students seeking internships. The numbers of unplaced applicants has increased significantly during the last few APPIC Matches (Keilin et al., this issue). Unfortunately, the TEPP Board does not anticipate that this anxiety-provoking trend will reverse or end. We believe that the profession of psychology should be more than concerned. We believe that they should take action. In an effort to provide a framework for discussion, the TEPP Board decided to offer those involved in this problematic situation an opportunity to (a) describe their view of the problem, (b) discuss the effect of the problem on students and the profession, and (c) provide suggestions to improve our internship system to deal with this crisis point in the sequence of psychology education. The TEPP Board invited the leadership from the following associations: Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC), American Psychological Association of Graduate Students (APAGS), Council of Counseling Psychology Training Programs (CCPTP), Council of University Departments of Clinical Psychology (CUDCP), and National Council of Schools and Programs in Psychology (NCSPP) to provide a statement of their view of the problem and potential solutions. In addition, Dr. Greg Keilin, the APPIC Match Coordinator since its inception, was invited to provide an overview of the APPIC Match data and Drs. Ron Rozensky and Cynthia Belar were asked to provide an overview article based on the American Psychological Association’s Center for Workforce Analysis. The TEPP Editorial Board would like to thank these authors for contributing to this special issue and hopes that this issue of TEPP contributes to the national dialogue and the eventual solution of the internship logjam. After extensive discussion, the TEPP Editorial Board decided to provide their view of this supply and demand problem and some possible solutions. This editorial statement was a collaborative effort by the members of this board, who expressed a wide range of opinion about both the problem and the solutions. We hope that our view transcends our individual specialties and will serve as a model of communication that needs to occur in our profession to assist in the development of a consensus view of this match problem and its creative solutions.

Anxiety- and depression-related thoughts in children: development and evaluation of a cognition measure.

This study examined anxiety- and depression-related cognitive content in children. We developed the Childrens Thought Questionnaire (CTQ) to include anxious thoughts characterized by threat and uncertainty; depressive thoughts by loss, self-deprecation, and certainty/hopelessness; and positive thoughts by interest, pleasure, and positive self-reference. The CTQ and measures of anxious and depressive symptoms were completed by 193 5th- and 6th-grade children. Exploratory factor analysis of the CTQ revealed that items loaded on 2 factors according to negative and positive valence. However, use of conceptually derived subscales demonstrated specificity, with higher levels of anxious thoughts uniquely predicting greater anxious symptoms and higher depressive thoughts uniquely predicting greater depressive symptoms. Furthermore, positive thoughts were negatively related to depressive symptoms but either unrelated or positively related to anxious symptoms, thus providing support for cognitive specificity.

Dynamics of Positive Emotion Regulation: Associations with Youth Depressive Symptoms

Depression is frequently considered a disorder of impaired affect regulation with deficits across both positive and negative affective systems. However, where deficits in emotion regulation occur in youth, specifically regarding regulation of positive emotions, is relatively unknown. The current study tested whether deficits in broad (felt and expressed) and specific (up-regulation and maintenance) positive emotion processes are associated with youth depressive symptoms. Adolescents (n = 134; 65 girls) in grades 7 to 9 completed a self-report measure of depressive symptoms prior to participating in two parent–child interactions tasks, a rewarding trivia task and a problem-solving conflict task. During the interaction tasks, adolescent’s overall self-reported experience and observed expression of positive affect (PA) was examined. Following the reward task, youth’s ability to up-regulate PA (PA response) and maintain PA while buffering against NA (PA persistence) was explored observationally. Results suggested that reduced experience and expression of PA was associated with depression symptoms, but only in a context that elicited negative emotions. No association was found between PA response and depression symptoms; however, shorter PA persistence was associated with elevated depressive symptoms. Youth higher in depressive symptoms appear able to respond similarly to rewarding events, but fail to maintain PA and ward off NA when transitioning from a positive to negative task.