Parent-, teacher-, and self-rated motivational styles in ADHD subtypes

The motivational styles of 25 children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, combined type (ADHD/C), 13 children with ADHD, inattentive type (ADHD/IA), and 25 nondiagnosed controls (NC) were compared using parent, teacher, and self-ratings. Both ADHD subtypes demonstrated motivational impairment characterized by a preference for easy work, less enjoyment of learning, less persistence, and a greater reliance on external than on internal standards to judge their performance relative to NC. Some motivational style differences between ADHD subtypes were also revealed, with the ADHD/C group more motivated by competitiveness and a desire to be perceived as superior to others and the ADHD/IA group less uncooperative and possibly more passive in their learning styles. When IQ was statistically controlled, these results were generally unchanged. The contributing role of motivational deficits to the generally poor academic functioning of children with ADHD is discussed, along with potential intervention implications of the divergent motivational styles of different ADHD subtypes.     

Prosocial and Aggressive Behavior: A Longitudinal Study

Developmental theorists have made strong claims about the fundamental prosocial or aggressive nature of the human infant. However, only rarely have prosocial behavior and aggression been studied together in the same sample. We charted the parallel development of both behaviors from infancy to childhood in a British community sample, using a two-construct, multimethod longitudinal design. Data were drawn from the Cardiff Child Development Study (CCDS), a prospective longitudinal study of a volunteer sample of parents and their firstborn children. A sample of 332 mothers was recruited from National Health Service (NHS) prenatal clinics and general practice clinics in Wales, UK, between Fall of 2005 and Summer of 2007. Potential participants represented the full range of sociodemographic classifications of neighborhoods. Participating families were divided about equally between middle- and working-class families, were somewhat more likely to have sons than daughters, and the majority (90%) were in a stable partnership. In response to standard categories recommended for use in Wales at the time, the majority (93%) of mothers reported themselves as Welsh, Scottish, English, or Irish; most others named a European or South Asian nationality. Of the 332 families agreeing to participate, 321 mothers (M_age = 28 years) and 285 partners (M_age = 31 years) were interviewed during the pregnancy and 321 of the families contributed data at least once after the child's birth. After an initial home visit at 6 months, data collection occurred in four additional waves of testing when children's mean ages were approximately 1, 1.5, 2.5, and 7 years. Data collection alternated between family homes and Cardiff University. Of those families seen after the child's birth, 89% were assessed at the final wave of testing. Data collection ended in 2015. Methods included direct observation, experimental tasks, and collection of reports from mothers, fathers, other relatives or family friends, and classroom teachers. Interactions with a familiar peer were observed at 1.5 years. Interactions with unfamiliar peers took place during experimental birthday parties at 1 and 2.5 years. At 7 years, parents were interviewed, parents and teachers completed questionnaires, and the children engaged in cognitive and social decision-making tasks. Based on reports from parents and other informants who knew the children well, individual differences in both prosocial behavior and aggression were evident in children. Both types of behavior showed stability across the second and third years. The association between prosocial behavior and aggression changed over time: at 1.5 years, they were not significantly related (the association approached zero), but they became negatively correlated by 3 years. Different patterns were seen when children played with familiar versus unfamiliar peers. At 1.5 years, when children were observed at home with a familiar peer, prosocial behavior and aggression were unrelated, thus showing a pattern of results like that seen in the analysis of informants' reports. However, a different pattern emerged during the experimental birthday parties with unfamiliar peers: prosocial behavior and aggression were positively correlated at both 1 and 2.5 years, contributing to a general sociability factor at both ages. Gender differences in prosocial behavior were evident in informants' reports and were also evident at the 1-year (though not the 2.5-year) birthday parties. In contrast, gender differences in both prosocial behavior and aggression were evident by 7 years, both in children's aggressive decision-making and in their parents' and teachers' reports of children's aggressive behavior at home and school. By age 7, children's aggressive decision-making and behavior were inversely associated with their verbal skills, working memory, and emotional understanding. Some children had developed aggressive behavioral problems and callous-unemotional traits. A few (12%) met diagnostic criteria for conduct disorder or oppositional-defiant disorders, which had been predicted by early angry aggressiveness and lack of empathy for other people. Taken together, the findings revealed a gradual disaggregation of two ways in which children interact with other people. Individual differences in both prosocial behavior and aggression revealed continuity over time, with gender differences emerging first in prosocial behavior, then in aggression. Restrictions in the participant sample and the catchment area (e.g., all were first-time parents; all were drawn from a single region in the United Kingdom) mean that it is not possible to generalize findings broadly. It will be important to expand the study of prosocial behavior and aggression in other family and environmental contexts in future work. Learning more about early appearing individual differences in children's approaches to the social world may be useful for both educational and clinical practice.     

When rewards go wrong: A tale of five motivational misdirects

At the heart of most performance management systems is a reward program. However, even when we are doing everything else right, rewards can go wrong. Here, we explore five ways that external incentives can damage performance, from destroying altruistic behavior to distracting people from the task. Fortunately, most of these downfalls are avoidable. While not every behavior is suitable for pay‐for‐performance, we can provide rewards that are rewarding, helping to encourage the behavior we value.     

Beyond Stimulus Deprivation: Iron Deficiency and Cognitive Deficits in Postinstitutionalized Children

Children adopted from institutions have been studied as models of the impact of stimulus deprivation on cognitive development (Nelson, Bos, Gunnar, & Sonuga‐Barke, 2011), but these children may also suffer from micronutrient deficiencies (Fuglestad et al., 2008). The contributions of iron deficiency (ID) and duration of deprivation on cognitive functioning in children adopted from institutions between 17 and 36 months of age were examined. ID was assessed in 55 children soon after adoption, and cognitive functioning was evaluated 11–14.6 months postadoption when the children averaged 37.4 months old (SD = 4.9). ID at adoption and longer duration of institutional care independently predicted lower IQ scores and executive function (EF) performance. IQ did not mediate the association between ID and EF.     

Integration in Early Childhood Programs in Three Countries

Programs which integrate young children with special needs in the year before compulsory school were studied in three countries using grounded theory. The core variable which emerged through constant comparative analysis was the role of the assistant teacher. Across all programs, the assistant assumed a primary caregiver relationship with the child with special needs, engaged in teaming with other teachers, and interacted in mutually supportive ways with parents. The differences in roles revealed the complex multidimensional‐ity of the assistant role and raised questions for further study in each country as well as across countries.     

Constructing a Sense of Purpose and a Professional Teaching Identity: Experiences of Teacher Candidates with Disabilities

Abstract

Using grounded theory, we examined the ways in which undergraduate teacher candidates with disabilities developed a sense of purpose and constructed professional identities. Our findings suggest K-12 experiences with advocacy as well as exclusionary school experiences influenced their emerging professional identities. Resistance to a deficit view of disability was central to teachers’ professional identities and influenced their desire to become “change agents” in their future professions. We describe collegiate experiences that affirmed or presented roadblocks to their career path.     

Infant perception of the invariant shape of objects varying in slant.

In a previous study employing habituation-recovery techniques, partial confirmation for shape constancy in 12-week-old infants was found. The infants may have been responding to changes in slant or slant-related cues, leaving unresolved the question of whether shape perception should be considered proximal (retinal) or distal (objective). In the present experiment 12-week-old infants were desensitized to changes in slant prior to test. Following habituation to a shape exposed at varying slants, magnitude of recovery was overwhelmingly greater for a different shape than for the same shape, indicating that the constant real shape of the habituated figure had been perceived across rotational transformations.     

Learning style and program design in interactive multimedia

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of variations in the design and delivery of interactive multimedia (IMM) on the learning and attitudes of elementary education majors. A multivariate analysis of variance was conducted with three independent variables—small group or individualized format, inductive or deductive design of instruction, and match of learner style to instruction—and four dependent variables—content scores, observation skill scores, overall satisfaction, and attitude toward learner control of instruction. Scores on the observation skills evaluation were significantly higher when the student's learning style was matched with the design of instruction. Satisfaction and attitude outcomes were significantly different for format: students in the small group were more satisfied, while those using the individual learning station were more strongly agreed that they controlled the pace and sequence of their own instruction. Content scores were not significantly different. In the future, the use of interactive multimedia with various formats and designs may serve to meet the needs of students with differing learning styles and at different developmental levels.     

The “Batman Effect”: Improving Perseverance in Young Children

This study investigated the benefits of self‐distancing (i.e., taking an outsider's view of one's own situation) on young children's perseverance. Four‐ and 6‐year‐old children (N = 180) were asked to complete a repetitive task for 10 min while having the option to take breaks by playing an extremely attractive video game. Six‐year‐olds persevered longer than 4‐year‐olds. Nonetheless, across both ages, children who impersonated an exemplar other—in this case a character, such as Batman—spent the most time working, followed by children who took a third‐person perspective on the self, or finally, a first‐person perspective. Alternative explanations, implications, and future research directions are discussed.