Viviana Langher

Dysphonic newborn cries allow prediction of their perceived meaning

Can adults attribute different meanings to the cries produced by the newborns on the basis of physical-acoustic cues in different communication conditions? In order to test this hypothesis, 20 females were asked to evaluate (according to four scales: anguish, anger, annoyance, care-seeking) 24 cries from 12 healthy full-term newborns (4-7h old): 6 newborns previously exposed to tactile communication (Group 1); 6 newborns without communication (Group 2). Annoyance category was not reliable and it was excluded from analyses. The 20 females attributed a higher rate of anger and anguish to the cries from Group 2, and a higher rate of care-seeking to the cries from Group 1. They attributed different meanings to the cries from Group 1, and undifferentiated meanings to the cries from Group 2. Consistent with bivariate analyses, Dysphonic Cry was the strongest predictor of anger/anguish. Although the Hyperphonic Cry was quantitatively not relevant, its absence was the first predictor for care-seeking.

Career adaptability as a strategic competence for career development: An exploratory study of its key predictors

Purpose In the current labour market, the competence to adapt is becoming significantly relevant for career development and career success. The construct of career adaptability, i.e. the capability to adapt to changing career-related circumstances and predict advancement in career development, seems to provide a fruitful scientific base for successful career intervention. The purpose of the study is exploratory, with the aim of providing new findings about the key predictors of this meta-competence that are relevant for career development. Design/methodology/approach Through a web-based survey, a convenience sample of 230 working participants completed an online questionnaire, including socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender, education), professional status (role seniority, sector of employment, professional role), professional development-related features (training, new professional assignments, financial incentives) and psychological factors (work self-efficacy, search for work self-efficacy and job satisfaction). Four-step hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted to understand which of these factors account for the most career adaptability variance. Findings Results highlight that work self-efficacy, search for work self-efficacy and education play a significant role in predicting career adaptability. Surprisingly, professional development-related features and professional status do not seem to have a relevant influence. Practical implications Training and career-development professionals can improve their understanding of which career-related skills and attitudes can increase one’s capability to cope with sudden changes and instability of the current labour market. Originality/value This study supports previous research, addressing the importance of career adaptability in times of dramatic change. It also provides some insight into the factors that could predict it.

Imagining Future Internship in Professional Psychology: A Study on University Students’ Representations

The present study aims to examine the associations between quality of relationships with parents, self-esteem and depressive symptomatology in a sample of 584 Portuguese young adults, 18 to 30 aged. In addition, it intends to test the mediating role of interparental conflict in the association between quality of the relationship with parents and self-esteem. Evaluation was done through the Network Relationship Inventory, the Children’s Perception of Interparental Conflict Scale, Loyalty Conflict Scale, the Self-Esteem Scale and the Depression Scale. The results indicate that the quality of the relationship with both parents decreases the effect of interparental conflict such as colligation and triangulation in young adults. Interparental conflict plays a mediating role between the quality of mother relationship and self-esteem. The conflicts have a negative effect on depression. Regarding the father relationship, self-esteem plays a meditating role in the association between quality of father relationship and depressive symptomatology. The study emphasizes intervention need in parenting competencies to prevent psychopathology in youth development.

Validation of the Collaboration and Support for Inclusive Teaching Scale in Special Education Teachers.

This article describes the development and initial validation of the Collaboration and Support for Inclusive Teaching, a measure of perceived support in special education teachers regarding the degree of collaboration with regular teachers for inclusive practice at school. The scale was validated on a sample of 276 special education teachers coming from lower and higher secondary schools by using both exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. The resulting 12-item scale was characterized by a one-factor solution explaining 46.59% of data variance and had good internal consistency with a Cronbach’s alpha of .876. Associations with other measures supported convergent and divergent validity of the scale. The usefulness of this scale is highlighted with regard to the improvement of cooperative teaching supporting school inclusion, as well as to the prevention of the risk of burnout in special education teachers.

EMOTION DYSREGULATION IN ALCOHOL RELATED INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

This article aims to investigate the association between emotion dysregulation and alcohol related intimate partner violence. A systematic review was conducted through a literature research for relevant studies on Medline, CINAHL Plus with Full Text, Psycoinfo and PsycArticle from inception through April 11, 2015. Additional articles were retrieved manually searching in reference lists. All relevant articles were accessed in full text. Data on study type; cases; controls; country; effect estimate; adjustments for confounders and quality of publication were extracted. The quality of the publications were scored by adherence to the STROBE and CONSORT 2010 checklists. Four studies satisfied the predefined criteria for inclusion and were included in this review. Results highlighted support for future research on emotion dysregulation and alcohol related intimate partner violence.

What happened to the clinical approach to case study in psychological research? A clinical psychological analysis of scientific articles in high impact-factor journals

The paper aims at investigating the incidence of case studies in high impact factor psychological journals and at creating a paradigm model which may conceptualize and explain the different uses and purposes of case study as research method. Overall, 6,393 articles from 16 psychological journals published in the 5-year period 2007-2011 were examined. Results show the low incidence of case studies (n=16) equal to about 0.25% out of the total. In addition, grounded theory allows the detection of two main thematic area: neuroscience and psychosocial risk. In neuroscientific research, case study seems mainly to serve as critical case in testing well-formulated theories. Instead, with regard to psychosocial risk, case study is regarded as useful for psychological intervention in both exceptional events management and best practices-related innovation in atypical fields.

AIDS as social construction: text mining of AIDS-related information in the Italian press.

ABSTRACT Given the relevance of AIDS as a public health problem in the Italian context and of the role of mass media in the social construction of the phenomenon, the aim of the present study is twofold: (1) to explore the main AIDS-related themes in the Italian popular press; (2) to analyse the temporal trends of AIDS representations over the last decades. For the research, we decided to consult Italian newspaper articles produced between 1985 and 1990 and between 2005 and 2010 using the archives of the main two national newspapers (La Repubblica and Corriere della Sera), resulting in an overall sample of 446 newspaper articles. A computer-aided content analysis allowed the detection of five different thematic domains (clusters), respectively focused on: Medical care (7.47%), Family support (37.03%), Science and religion debate (27%), Social exclusion (17.6%) and Healthcare policies (10.9%). These thematic domains are conceived along two main latent dimensions (factors) which explain 72.47% of the data variance which respectively deal with: (1) Attitudes towards people with AIDS (care versus avoidance) and (2) Social mandate on AIDS (powerlessness versus control). The study results also reveal the potential evolution of representations of people with AIDS over time: from stigmatised subjects who represent a risk for the entire society within a climate of social control to people progressively symbolised as frail subjects that need to be taken care of.

Attachment relationship to teacher and intensity of emotional expression in children with Down syndrome in regular kindergarten and nursery school

ABSTRACT Background We investigated attachment behaviours of children with Down syndrome (DS) toward their preschool teacher and examined whether childrens emotional expressivity predicted the incidence of attachment behaviours. We hypothesised that children with DS will show a low level of secure attachment to their teacher and that emotional competence will be associated with secure attachment. Method Forty-one children with DS (21 males, 20 females, M mental age = 34.6 months, SD = 11.9) were matched with 51 typically developing (TD) children (24 males, 27 females, M mental age = 32.2 months, SD = 17.5). Attachment and socio-emotional development were assessed for each child. Results Children with DS presented lower scores of attachment, affiliation, anger, and emotional competence compared to TD children. Affiliation in high-stress situations was predictive of attachment behaviours. Conclusions The findings show that children with DS were less attached to the teacher and less emotionally expressive compared to TD children.

Working with Parents to Support Their Disabled Children’s Social and School Inclusion: An Exploratory Counseling Study

This article synthesizes the long-lasting counseling process of a family with a child suffering from a chronic illness. The provided intervention model draws on a series of principles from various theoretical approaches, namely systemic, psychodynamic, and resiliency. Family functioning and support is considered a catalytic parameter in assisting children with disabilities to fully develop their potential. This project is based on a family and child-centered integrative counseling model adopting the nonmedical conception of disability. Through the presentation of a case study of a couple who faced a critical situation in the life of their child, this article briefly describes the way the family dynamics were readdressed through this intervention counseling model. In addition, this work attempts to give a picture of the complex and confusing emotional states parents may go through when dealing with physical and psychological health-threatening situations and present guidelines for integrated counseling models.

Vitamin D status is associated with anxiety levels in postmenopausal women evaluated for osteoporosis

Vitamin D status has been previously associated with a wide range of acute and chronic diseases. The nervous system express vitamin D receptors and thus vitamin D may be involved in mental health. Poor data exist about the correlation between vitamin D and anxiety levels. Our aim was to investigate the association of vitamin D status with anxiety severity. A group of 177 postmenopausal women (mean age 65.5±8.22 yr.) referring to an outpatients clinic for the prevention of osteoporosis were evaluated. Severity of perceived anxiety symptoms was measured by the Hamilton Anxiety rating scale (HAMA). Depression levels were also evaluated using the Beck Depression Inventory-second edition scale (BDI-II). 25(OH)D serum levels, indicative of vitamin D status, were detected by high-performance liquid chromatography. 25(OH)D levels were significantly related HAMA-score (r=-0.15, p=0.04); particularly a deep association was observed between 25(OH)D levels and somatic symptoms (r=-0.195, p=0.009). HAMA score was associated with BDI-II score (r=0.487, p=<0.001); HAMA psychic symptom score was also related with age and time since menopause (r=0.149, p=0.039 and r=0.222, p=0.003, respectively). At a multiple regression analysis, after correcting for age and depression levels, 25(OH)D was predictive of HAMA score (β =-0,05961, p= 0.02, SE=-2.206), but the strength of association was lost further correcting for time since menopause. In conclusion, in a setting of postmenopausal women, we observed a significant association between anxiety levels and serum 25(OH)D concentrations irrespective of age and depression levels.