Development and validation of a brief screening version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to develop and validate a short form of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (the CTQ-SF) as a screening measure for maltreatment histories in both clinical and nonreferred groups. METHOD: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of the 70 original CTQ items were used to create a 28-item version of the scale (25 clinical items and three validity items) and test the measurement invariance of the 25 clinical items across four samples: 378 adult substance abusing patients from New York City, 396 adolescent psychiatric inpatients, 625 substance abusing individuals from southwest Texas, and 579 individuals from a normative community sample (combined N=1978). RESULTS: Results showed that the CTQ-SF's items held essentially the same meaning across all four samples (i.e., measurement invariance). Moreover, the scale demonstrated good criterion-related validity in a subsample of adolescents on whom corroborative data were available. CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the viability of the CTQ-SF across diverse clinical and nonreferred populations.     

Mathematics professional development for elementary teachers: Building trust within a school-based mathematics education community

Despite increased attention in professional development to building communities of teachers, few studies have investigated the development of trust in these communities. This paper presents issues related to trust in a professional development project at an elementary school. The project aimed for school-based elementary teachers and university-based mathematics educators to work together to improve mathematics instruction at the school by developing a mathematics education community of learners, where learners were conceived of as both the teachers and the mathematics educators. This paper addresses the following question: What factors in the project supported the development of trust among mathematics educators and teachers as the community was formed? More specifically, the paper is about one aspect of trust, namely, building school-based elementary teachers’ trust in the university-based mathematics educators. We point to three factors that helped the development of trust and we use care theory to further understand and discuss these factors in the context of in-service teacher education initiatives.     

Reversal from blocking in humans as a result of posttraining extinction of the blocking stimulus

In a blocking procedure, conditioned stimulus (CS) A is paired with the unconditioned stimulus (US) in Phase 1, and a compound of CSs A and X is then paired with the US in Phase 2. The usual result of such a treatment is that X elicits less conditioned responding than if the A-US pairings of Phase 1 had not occurred. Obtaining blocking with human participants has proven difficult, especially if a behavioral task is used or if the control group experiences reinforcement of a CS different from the blocking CS in Phase 1. In the present series, in which human participants and a behavioral measure of learning were used, we provide evidence of blocking, using the above described control condition. Most important, we demonstrate that extinction of the blocking CS (A) following blocking treatment reverses the blocking deficit (i.e., increases responding to X). These results are at odds with traditional associative theories of learning, but they support current associative theories that predict that posttraining manipulations of the competing stimulus can result in a reversal of stimulus competition phenomena.     

Effect of circadian phase on context and cued fear conditioning in C57BL/6J mice

We examined context-dependent and tone-cued fear conditioning during the activity and rest periods of C57BL/6J mice. Wheel-running activity was measured continuously as a marker of circadian phase. To control the effects of light on the response, the animals were kept in a skeleton photoperiod (two 15-min light pulses per day, indicating the beginning and the end of the day). Half the animals were trained and tested for context-dependent fear conditioning 2 h after the morning light pulse; the other half were trained and tested 2 h after the evening light pulse. Animals were tested every 24 h for 5 days to analyze the conditioned response and the rate of extinction. They were then trained for tonecued fear conditioning at the same time and tested for 5 consecutive days. A significant difference between the morning and the evening groups was observed in the conditioning level and extinction rate of context-dependent fear conditioning, but not in tone-cued fear conditioning. These results suggest a modulating effect of the biological clock on the context fear-conditioning pathway.     

Considering research paradigms in environmental education

The benefits of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed research methodologies are often emphasized in undergraduate and graduate training about producing and analysing data. Less often discussed are the philosophies of research that can be used to explore environmental education. To help introduce students to the ways such paradigms lead to different insights and lines of inquiry, we offer a supplementary reading of a natural resource management program seen through the lenses of four different research philosophies. The program engages biological and social scientists as they work to increase native biodiversity in Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand and share successes with other regions. We argue that the benefits of training students to appreciate research possibilities via multiple research paradigms could improve the way we work together and collaborate with colleagues in other disciplines. Students are better equipped to select, develop, and defend appropriate research questions and paradigms. Also, the potential for environmental education research activity that complements project-specific data collection is great, as with most natural resource projects. In sum, improving our collective awareness of paradigmatic perspectives will help improve communication and understanding as we all work in the transformation of education, ecosystems and human communities.     

Vagal Regulation in Breastfeeding Infants and Their Mothers

Consistent with the gustatory–vagal hypothesis, vagal stimulation during breastfeeding may contribute to infants' physiological regulatory development independent of caregiving effects. This study examined whether breastfeeding predicted 6‐month‐old infants' (N = 151) and their mothers' vagal regulation during the face‐to‐face still‐face (FFSF). Although breastfed and nonbreastfed infants showed expected vagal withdrawal during the Still‐Face episode, only breastfed infants showed continued withdrawal during the reunion episode, suggesting greater physiological mobilization to repair the interaction. Breastfeeding mothers showed higher vagal tone than nonbreastfeeding mothers at baseline, suggesting greater capacity for regulation, and throughout the FFSF, suggesting calmer states. Breastfeeding effects were independent of maternal sensitivity. Findings suggest that infants' and mothers' physiological regulation may be shaped by breastfeeding independently of associated social factors.     

Teacher-Rated Family Involvement and Children's Social and Academic Outcomes in Kindergarten

This study examines the relation between teachers' report of family involvement in school and children's social and academic competencies during kindergarten, after accounting for the contribution of socioeconomic status and early maternal sensitivity. Teachers reported on the family involvement for 223 children. Two dimensions of family involvement with school were measured: families' attitudes toward schools and families' activities with schools. Children's social and academic competence was assessed through classroom observations and teachers' reports. Results describe the contribution of socioeconomic status and maternal sensitivity in predicting some aspects of kindergarten competence, and the association of family involvement and child competence after accounting for these covariates. Findings suggest that teachers' reports of family attitudes are a more consistent predictor of outcomes than teachers' reports of family involvement activities. These findings support the position that families and schools can collaborate and provide a social resource to children in kindergarten.     

The Development of Spatial Skills in Elementary School Students

Through five waves of data collection, this longitudinal study investigated the development of spatial skills in 304 elementary school children (M_age = 7.64 years) as they progressed from the second to fourth grade. The study focused on whether multiple latent classes with different developmental profiles best explain development. Spatial skills were measured by tests featuring two‐dimensional figures. Mathematics achievement was measured by the statewide end‐of‐year test and was included as a distal outcome variable. The role of covariates, including socioeconomic status, verbal working memory, and gender, was also explored. The results indicate a need to view two‐dimensional spatial skills development as multidimensional with two developmental profiles predicted by socioeconomic status, verbal working memory, and gender. The developmental profiles predicted differences in mathematics achievement.     

Mother–Child Interaction: Links Between Mother and Child Frontal Electroencephalograph Asymmetry and Negative Behavior

It is well accepted that parent–child interactions are bidirectional by nature, yet not much is known about the psychophysiological activity underlying these interactions. This study examined, during a parent–child interaction, how a child's negativity statistically predicted maternal frontal electroencephalograph (EEG) asymmetry and how a mother's negativity statistically predicted child frontal EEG asymmetry. Thirty‐four mother–child dyads participated in the study. Maternal and child behaviors and physiology were measured during a puzzle task. Results indicated that mothers whose children exhibited more challenging behaviors during the dyadic interaction displayed more right (relative to left) asymmetry, as did children whose mothers were high in negativity during the interaction. These findings suggest that mothers and children react to each other's signals not only behaviorally but also physiologically.