Environmental and Genetic Variance in Children's Observed and Reported Maladaptive Behavior

The genetic and environmental contributions to children's maladaptive behavior are assessed in a sample of 154 twin pairs (77 MZ twin pairs and 77 DZ twin pairs), who range in age from 6 to 11 years. To bridge the strengths of behavioral genetic methods and environmental assessment techniques, we use a multimethod, multimeasure approach to data collection, and analyze the data using behavioral genetic modeling techniques. Results indicate that genetic variation accounts for a majority of the variance in parent-reported child maladaptive behavior (average = 62%). One parent-report measure also suggests a smaller, significant contribution of shared environmental variance. In contrast to the parental ratings, the observational coding and global impressions of parent-twin interactive behavior suggest that shared environment is the primary source of variance accounting for parent and child maladaptive behavior. This is due, in part, to the direct influence one's interactive partner has on the expression of maladaptive behavior in an interactive setting. When controlling for the co-participant's behavior, genetic variation increases and shared environmental variation decreases.     

祝贺复旦大学百年校庆

吴女士、韩市长、王校长、各位同仁、女士们、先生们：本人非常愉快和荣幸代表悉尼大学带来对复旦大学的祝贺,祝贺复旦大学在过去一百年所取得的伟大成就。我相信,在下一个百年复旦大学能取得更辉煌的成功。我也希望悉尼大学能为成就这个未来贡献一份力量。     

Reliability and validity evidence for the EARLI literacy probes

The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of scores from six early literacy probes developed for use with preschool‐age children. The literacy probes were administered to 84 preschoolers at three time points over a 6‐month period. Also, a criterion measure of early literacy skills was administered to a subset of students. Results indicated that the probes demonstrate adequate reliability for screening decisions, moderate to strong concurrent relationships with a criterion measure, and developmentally appropriate changes in children's early literacy skills over time. These results add to the growing body of evidence supporting the technical adequacy of general outcome measurement for use in monitoring the progress of preschoolers' academic skill development. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Infant Pathways to Externalizing Behavior: Evidence of Genotype × Environment Interaction

To further the understanding of the effects of early experiences, 9-month-old infants were observed during a frustration task. The analytical sample was composed of 348 linked triads of participants (adoptive parents, adopted child, and birth parent[s]) from a prospective adoption study. It was hypothesized that genetic risk for externalizing problems and affect dysregulation in the adoptive parents would independently and interactively predict a known precursor to externalizing problems: heightened infant attention to frustrating events. Results supported the moderation hypotheses involving adoptive mother affect dysregulation: Infants at genetic risk showed heightened attention to frustrating events only when the adoptive mother had higher levels of anxious and depressive symptoms. The Genotype × Environment interaction pattern held when substance use during pregnancy was considered.     

The one-week and six-month reliability and variability of three-dimensional tibial acceleration in runners*

Tibial acceleration is a surrogate measure for impact loading and lower limb fatigue injury in runners. Triaxial accelerometers may offer reliable and practical measurement of resultant peak tibial acceleration (PTA). With such potential in mind, this study examined variability and measurement reliability of tibial acceleration in 14 runners at baseline at one week, and eight of the runners again at six months. Triaxial accelerometers were attached to the distal tibiae of runners before they ran on a treadmill for two minutes each, at speeds of 2.7, 3.0, 3.3 and 3.7 m/s in standardised shoes. Resultant PTAs were calculated for each speed and session. Reliability outcomes were presented as percentage change and effect sizes. Variability outcomes included intraclass correlation coefficients and the typical error of the measurement. Smallest worthwhile change and performance/noise ratio were also calculated. While runners demonstrated marginally lower reliability and higher variability over six months, compared to one week, in all cases the measures of reliability and variability were of ‘good’ to ‘moderate’ reliability, and ‘small’ to ‘moderate’ variability using magnitude-based inferences. We can be confident that resultant PTA can be used with runners to assess and monitor their impacts throughout a six-month intervention.     

Charting the development of sport expertise: challenges and opportunities

This review poses three key issues that will progress our understanding of the sport expertise literature and its translational scientific impact. Primarily relying on research conducted in interceptive sport tasks, and to a lesser extent team sports, we review the perceptual-cognitive skills of sports experts and explore the challenge of designing a sufficiently representative task to examine expertise. We focus on the methodological challenges presented by the reciprocal relationship between players’ action capabilities and their perceptual-cognitive skill. Second, we consider the need for a paradigm shift in the experimental approach used when examining the development of sport expertise. In short, a shift from traditional expert-novice designs to more prospective longitudinal designs that cross-sectionally track the development of expertise is discussed. The final issue considers how the volume of in situ data now collected provides a rich source of information that sport expertise researchers have only begun to consider and integrate with more traditional sport psychology research. We demonstrate how statistical approaches that have described the likely trajectories of expert performers on their journey toward expertise coupled with more traditional qualitative experimental approaches can provide useful insights into the development of psychological performance skills and more broadly sport expertise.