Community‐based early intervention for children with behavioural,emotional and social problems: evaluation of the Scallywags Scheme

Scallywags is a community‐based, early intervention programme for young children (aged 3–7) with behavioural, emotional and social problems, which integrates work in the home and school with a parenting curriculum and direct work with children. A pre‐post intervention study across multi‐sites of 340 participants is reported. Using standardised measures, the study found statistically significant reductions in problems at home and school experienced by children who completed the programme, and in parental stress levels. Participation was found to be high and the project acceptable to parents, many of whom would be described as hard to reach. The rigorous evaluation of this real‐life service and its positive outcomes highlight the potential of such programmes to tackle the needs of these children and families, and help prevent longer‐term problems associated with early onset behavioural problems, including social exclusion, antisocial behaviour and educational failure.     

鞍山市3所幼儿园4~6岁幼儿饮食行为调查

为了解鞍山市不同幼儿园4-6岁幼儿饮食行为状况,本研究运用整群抽样的方法选取鞍山市3所不同层次幼儿园的256名幼儿,采用问卷调查和观察法对饮食行为进行调查。调查发现幼儿早餐状况参差不齐,存在过度零食、挑食、偏食现象。幼儿园需要有效开展营养教育,加强家园合作关系,共同培养幼儿健康饮食行为习惯。     

肺动脉高压发病机制及有氧运动干预对其改善的分子机制研究进展

肺动脉高压(pulmonary arterial hypertension,PAH)是一类以肺动脉渐进性闭塞导致肺血管阻力逐渐升高继而诱发右心室衰竭的一种恶性肺血管疾病。PAH病理发生、发展的机制包括炎症反应诱发的内质网应激(endoplasmic reticulum stress,ERS),继而促使血管平滑肌细胞过度增殖和迁移;以及线粒体自噬相关蛋白PINK1和Parkin以及LC3的表达增加,使血管平滑肌呈现抗凋亡表型,并伴随有氧氧化功能损伤,无氧酵解依赖性增加等问题。PAH进一步发展会诱发多种并发症,包括低氧血症、肺纤维化以及右心肥大,可直接引起肺动脉压增加,继而增加心脏压力导致心力衰竭,这是病理发展的主要方向。作为可能治疗PAH的手段之一,有氧运动可从调控ERS、线粒体自噬、改善机体代谢3个方面抑制PAH病理进程。研究综述了近年来关于PAH发生、发展的分子机制的研究进展,进一步论述了有氧运动对PAH改善的分子机制。     

The effects of function-based communication intervention for a student with emotional disturbance in a general education setting

Research has shown that most children with emotional disturbance (ED) are struggling to use communication skills and they may tend to use inappropriate behaviours as a form of communication to disclose their needs. A function-based communication intervention might be an effective approach to decrease inappropriate behaviours of children with ED. The purpose of this single-case multiple baseline reversal design (ABAB) study was to examine the effectiveness of the function-based communication intervention for on-task and disruptive behaviours of an 8-year-old student with ED. Functional behavioural assessment (FBA) was conducted and based on the findings of FBA, a colour-coded communication system, was implemented during reading and math classes. The findings indicated that function-based communication intervention was effective in increasing on-task as well as decreasing disruptive behaviours. Furthermore, the function-based communication intervention improved communication between the teacher and the student that resulted in decreasing disruptive behaviours in a general classroom setting. The generalisability of the findings due to the limited number of participants was an important limitation for this study. Future directions, as well as implications for practices, are discussed.     

Latent Variable Modeling and Adaptive Testing for Experimental Cognitive Psychopathology Research

The adaptation of experimental cognitive tasks into measures that can be used to quantify neurocognitive outcomes in translational studies and clinical trials has become a key component of the strategy to address psychiatric and neurological disorders. Unfortunately, while most experimental cognitive tests have strong theoretical bases, they can have poor psychometric properties, leaving them vulnerable to measurement challenges that undermine their use in applied settings. Item response theory–based computerized adaptive testing has been proposed as a solution but has been limited in experimental and translational research due to its large sample requirements. We present a generalized latent variable model that, when combined with strong parametric assumptions based on mathematical cognitive models, permits the use of adaptive testing without large samples or the need to precalibrate item parameters. The approach is demonstrated using data from a common measure of working memory—the N-back task—collected across a diverse sample of participants. After evaluating dimensionality and model fit, we conducted a simulation study to compare adaptive versus nonadaptive testing. Computerized adaptive testing either made the task 36% more efficient or score estimates 23% more precise, when compared to nonadaptive testing. This proof-of-concept study demonstrates that latent variable modeling and adaptive testing can be used in experimental cognitive testing even with relatively small samples. Adaptive testing has the potential to improve the impact and replicability of findings from translational studies and clinical trials that use experimental cognitive tasks as outcome measures.     

Effects of single‐case reading interventions for students with and at‐risk of emotional and behavioral disorders in grades K–12: A quantitative synthesis

This study examined the effects of reading interventions from single‐case design studies for students with and at‐risk of emotional and behavioral disorders in grades K–12 using a quantitative synthesis. Seventeen studies met the selection criteria of having one more dependent variables meeting what works clearinghouse (WWC) design standards with or without reservations. Although students’ reading performance significantly improved from baseline to intervention phases (p < 0.001), the overall weighted average effect size was weak (Tau‐U = 0.58, 95% confidence interval = [0.54, 0.63]; d = 0.29); smaller effects were found on reading comprehension. Interventions were less effective for students in secondary grades, students with a comorbid disability, and students in substantially separate settings. While no studies meeting the selection criteria were conducted in inclusive settings, the teacher provided interventions were more effective than those provided by researchers suggesting the importance of the student–teacher relationship for reading instruction. Study limitations, areas for future research, and implications for school practices are discussed.     

图书流通管理系统中的失误与对策

在图书流通管理系统中发生的借书和还书的失误,是长期以来困扰图书馆界的一大难题。如果处理不当,一方面造成图书馆的图书丢失;另一方面可能造成对读者的伤害和误解;还可能造成图书管理人员的责任不清。文章对于引起这些失误的原因和解决的对策进行了研究和探讨。     

从心理学视角探讨进食障碍的成因

以神经性厌食和神经性贪食为主要症状的进食障碍已成为一个严重的社会问题,它直接威胁到人们的身心健康。文章通过对影响进食障碍的两大因素——心理因素和社会因素的介绍和分析,帮助人们对进食障碍的病因有更深的认识,从而促进对其进行预防和临床的诊断治疗。     

The ‘collateral impact’ of pupil behaviour and geographically concentrated socio‐economic disadvantage

Schools in areas of concentrated disadvantage tend to have below‐average attainment, but there is no consensus on why. Mental and behavioural disorders in children are correlated with socio‐economic disadvantage. This paper puts forward the hypothesis that the first phenomenon can at least partly be accounted for by the second phenomenon through the concept of ‘collateral impact’ – collateral impact refers to the effect of externalising or internalising behaviour by a pupil on other pupils' learning and attainment. The argument developing the hypothesis is presented. An analysis of where evidence to support the hypothesis is most likely to be found identifies primary schools in areas of concentrated disadvantage, although testing of the proposed hypothesis would best be conducted by independent researchers to pre‐empt questions of confirmability. Potential implications for policy and practice are discussed, particularly managing difficult group behaviour in primary schools.