Does Parental Mind‐Mindedness Account for Cross‐Cultural Differences in Preschoolers’ Theory of Mind?

This study of 241 parent–child dyads from the United Kingdom (N = 120, M_age = 3.92, SD = 0.53) and Hong Kong (N = 121, M_age = 3.99, SD = 0.50) breaks new ground by adopting a cross‐cultural approach to investigate children's theory of mind and parental mind‐mindedness. Relative to the Hong Kong sample, U.K. children showed superior theory‐of‐mind performance and U.K. parents showed greater levels of mind‐mindedness. Within both cultures parental mind‐mindedness was correlated with theory of mind. Mind‐mindedness also accounted for cultural differences in preschoolers’ theory of mind. We argue that children's family environments might shed light on how culture shapes children's theory of mind.     

Vocabulary does not complicate the simple view of reading

Gough and Tunmer’s (1986) simple view of reading (SVR) proposed that reading comprehension (RC) is a function of language comprehension (LC) and word recognition/decoding. Braze et al. (2007) presented data suggesting an extension of the SVR in which knowledge of vocabulary (V) affected RC over and above the effects of LC. Tunmer and Chapman (2012) found a similar independent contribution of V to RC when the data were analyzed by hierarchical regression. However, additional analysis by factor analysis and structural equation modeling indicated that the effect of V on RC was, in fact, completely captured by LC itself and there was no need to posit a separate direct effect of V on RC. In the present study, we present new data from young adults with sub-optimal reading skill (N = 286). Latent variable and regression analyses support Gough and Tunmer’s original proposal and the conclusions of Tunmer and Chapman that V can be considered a component of LC and not an independent contributor to RC.     

Adolescent sexual offender recidivism: success of specialized treatment and implications for risk prediction

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the success of specialized community-based treatment for reducing adolescent sexual reoffending and explore the predictive utility of variables assessed regarding sexual and nonsexual recidivism. METHOD: Recidivism data (criminal charges) were collected for 58 offenders participating in at least 12 months of specialized treatment at the SAFE-T Program. Data were also collected for a comparison group of 90 adolescents who received only an assessment (n = 46), refused treatment (n = 17), or dropped out before 12 months (n = 27). Follow-up interval ranged from 2 to 10 years (M = 6.23, SD = 2.02). Offenders completed a battery of psychological tests to provide standardized data regarding social, sexual, and family functioning. RESULTS: Recidivism rates for sexual, violent nonsexual, and nonviolent offenses for treated adolescents were 5.17%, 18.9%, and 20.7%, respectively. The Comparison group had significantly higher rates of sexual (17.8%), violent nonsexual (32.2%), and nonviolent (50%) recidivism. Sexual recidivism was predicted by sexual interest in children. Nonsexual recidivism was related to factors commonly predictive of general delinquency such as history of previous offenses, low self-esteem, and antisocial personality. CONCLUSIONS: Results support the efficacy of treatment for adolescent sexual offenders and are consistent with the notion that sexual recidivism is predicted by unique factors unrelated to general (nonsexual) reoffending.     

Medical evaluation referral patterns for sexual abuse victims.

It has been recommended that all children suspected of being sexually abused should have medical evaluations. To better understand practices and perceptions of child sexual abuse medical evaluations, a survey was conducted of 579 professionals attending educational programs on child sexual abuse; 85.8% (N = 497) responded. Half (50%) of the respondents reported no previous training in child sexual abuse. Of the 336 nonphysician professionals, 194 (57.7%) were in positions where they make referrals of the victims, and 69% of these did not refer all of the children they saw for medical evaluations. The first referral choice for medical evaluation was most often to the victim's primary physician (57%). For those professionals who did not refer all alleged victims for medical evaluation, neither the victims' age, gender, nor accessibility to care were generally considered relevant in determining the decision to refer. However, the type of abuse and presence of physical and psychological symptoms were considered relevant in making the decision. The majority indicated that the findings of the medical exam were very useful in substantiating or refuting the allegation of abuse. Further training for both medical and nonmedical professionals is needed to increase awareness of the need for and implications of the medical evaluation if children are to receive comprehensive assessments. Physicians may play an active role in this process through education of professionals and provision of care.     

The ability to understand and use conceptual change pedagogy as a function of prior content learning experience

This research examined the relationship between content instruction and the development of elementary teacher candidates' understanding of conceptual change pedagogy. Undergraduate students (n = 27) enrolled in two sections of a science methods course received content instruction through either traditional or conceptual change methods, followed by instruction about conceptual change pedagogy. Candidates were interviewed pre- and postinstruction about their content and pedagogical knowledge and also wrote conceptual change lessons. Twelve of the 27 subjects were videotaped teaching in the field. Results indicate that prior to instruction, most candidates had weak content knowledge and held traditional pedagogical conceptions. After instruction, students in the conceptual change group had significantly larger gains in their content knowledge than those in the traditional group, gave qualitatively stronger pedagogical responses, and used conceptual change strategies more consistently in practice. These results indicate that personal experience of learning science content through conceptual change methods facilitated the development of understanding and use of conceptual change pedagogy in teaching practice. Thus if conceptual change methods are to be incorporated into teacher candidates' repertoire, science content courses that students take prior to teacher education should be taught using conceptual change pedagogy. In addition, courses in science education should use pedagogy more in line with that taught in methods courses.     

Toward a developmental model of child compliance: the role of emotion regulation in infancy

The present study examined the relation between early emotion regulation and later compliance. When infants were 5, 10, and 18 months of age, they participated in a frustration task. The degree to which they reacted negatively to the stimuli and the behaviors they used to regulate that response were coded. Baseline heart rate also was recorded and a measure of cardiac vagal tone (VNA) was derived. Several tasks (electrode placement, toy clean-up, and test situation) were administered to elicit compliance/noncompliance when the participants were 30 months of age. Results revealed that infants who demonstrated low levels of regulatory behavior were more likely to be noncompliant as toddlers. Several interaction effects suggested that the prediction to later noncompliance was also dependent upon the infants' level of reactivity. Cardiac vagal tone also was related to compliance but in a contradictory fashion. High VNA was related to noncompliance to toy clean-up, whereas low VNA was related to noncompliance to electrode placement. The data provide support for a developmental model of compliance that includes the ability to regulate emotional arousal.     

Fractals and the large-scale structure in the Universe

In Part 1 of this article, we had introduced the reader to some basic concepts of fractals and some operational algorithms to characterize them. We had also pointed out and clarified some common misconceptions about fractals. In this part we apply the fractal concepts to large-scale structures in the Universe. In particular we discuss the claim by some investigators that the distribution of galaxies in the Universe is a fractal. This is contrary to the standard view that the Universe is homogeneous and isotropic on large scales. Also discussed is the controversy as to whether the matter distribution in the Universe is a fractal on large-scales.     

Enhancing law enforcement identification and investigation of child maltreatment

OBJECTIVE: Data from two independent studies is presented, representing the investigators' ongoing work with faculty from a state criminal justice academy to analyze existing knowledge and skill levels among veteran law enforcement officers and recruits, as well as to enhance future training. METHOD: Through an anonymous questionnaire, the first of these studies examined officers' perceptions of maltreatment, including those factors that do and do not influence a determination of whether a particular act constitutes child maltreatment and assessments of whether particular acts constitute abuse or neglect. The second study also utilized an anonymous questionnaire to examine officers' knowledge of the developmental strengths and limitations of children relative to their ability to provide accurate information in suspected cases of child maltreatment. RESULTS: As hypothesized, several gaps both in law enforcement officers' knowledge of certain characteristics that can serve to denote a case of maltreatment and their knowledge of fundamental developmental issues and interview techniques that could assist them in the performance of their professional duties are identified. CONCLUSIONS: Suggestions for enhanced law enforcement training programs are presented and discussed.     

Relative Importance of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Core Competencies—A Case Study Survey

ABSTRACT: Nearly 90% of graduating seniors from the Food Science program at Purdue University gain employment in the food industry. Ensuring the program is meeting employers' needs is one mission of our curriculum committee with input from an Industrial Advisory Board (IAB). In light of the recent outcomes-based assessment requirements outlined by IFT, feedback from our IAB members regarding the relative importance of the core competencies was needed. The objective of this study was to survey the IAB members regarding relative importance of each of the 46 core competencies. Each competency was ranked using a Likert scale from 1 = not important to 5 = very important. Statistical analysis was conducted using the Mann-Whitney nonparametric test. Significant differences (P = 0.05) were found between several of the five content categories with Success Skills scoring highest (4.35 out of 5) on relative importance followed by Applied Food Science Knowledge (4.02 out of 5). Also, significant differences (P = 0.05) were found between competencies within each content category. Overall, the results suggest that the 46 core competencies should not be given the same instructional weight within a curriculum. One option for addressing the variation in importance could be to include some planned redundancy within the curriculum for those core competencies that were ranked the highest. In addition, part of the outcomes-based assessment process should include measures of the level of competency being achieved by graduates. By considering relative importance and competency achieved by graduates, important areas for improvement can be identified.