Exploring the Role of Working Memory in Dynamic Social Cue Decoding Using Dual Task Methodology

Decoding nonverbal social cues involves skills such as understanding emotions and discerning kin relationships. Social cue decoding has been described as an automatic process which does not tax cognitive resources. However, clinical deficits in social decoding are often interpreted in terms of deficits in attention and working memory. Two experiments are described which used dual task methodology to investigate the role of working memory in dynamic social cue decoding tasks: the Interpersonal Perception Task (IPT, Experiment 1) and the Profile of Nonverbal Sensitivity (PONS, Experiment 2). Results revealed that decoding social cues from the IPT did not require working memory resources, while social perception in the PONS made heavy demands on working memory. Implications for theoretical interpretation of these tasks and their use in clinical populations are discussed.

Eating disorders and body image of undergraduate men

Eating disorders and body dissatisfaction among undergraduate men are less documented and researched than are eating disorders and body dissatisfaction among undergraduate women. OBJECTIVE AND PARTICIPANTS: In this study, the authors examined these issues in undergraduate men to identify similarities and differences between this population and undergraduate women. METHODS: In a random sample of undergraduates, the authors categorized respondents by gender and by presence or absence of an eating disorder. The authors compared undergraduate men with an eating disorder with (1) undergraduate women with an eating disorder and (2) undergraduate men without an eating disorder. RESULTS: The patterns of responses suggest that undergraduate men with an eating disorder are preoccupied with body shape and tone but not necessarily with losing weight. CONCLUSIONS: The authors discuss implications for future prevention as well as clinical and research efforts based on male symptoms within the diagnostic category of bulimia nervosa and eating disorder, not otherwise specified.     

Impact of a multidimensional intervention programme applied to families at risk for child neglect

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of an intervention programme applied to families at risk for child neglect. Twenty‐nine families were recruited through a Local Community Services Centre (LCSC) and were assigned to two groups: (1) the first group participated in a multidimensional eco‐systemic intervention programme called the Personal, Family and Community Help Program (PFCHP); and (2) the second group underwent psychosocial intervention that was provided as part of regular LCSC services and focused mainly on the social worker–family relationship. Pre‐test measures were obtained at the beginning of intervention for both groups and a follow‐up was held 24 months later. Quantitative and qualitative analyses indicated that both forms of intervention were associated with improved parent–child relationship and the reduction of parental stress, depression and the potential for child abuse and neglect. However, PFCHP participants showed multiple indications of improvement in their social and marital relationships, which was not the case for LCSC participants. The conclusion outlines the need for a long‐term intervention process for families at high risk for child neglect and the necessity of addressing multiple dimensions of family life if lasting changes are to be expected. Copyright 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A concise history of school-based smoking prevention research: a pendulum effect case study

School-based cigarette smoking prevention was initiated shortly after the first Surgeon General's Report in 1964. This article highlights a sequence of events by which school-based tobacco use prevention research developed as a science, and illustrates a pendulum effect, with confidence in tobacco use prevention increasing and decreasing at/different points in time. Suggestions are offered to advance school-based smoking prevention research.     

The disconnection between policy practices and women's lived experiences: combining work and life in the UK and the Netherlands

Combining work and family life is central to women's participation in the labour market. Work–life balance has been a key objective of UK and Dutch policy since the 1990s, but policies created at the national level do not always connect with the day to day experiences of women juggling caring and domestic responsibilities with paid work. Using qualitative data from a European Social Fund Objective 3 project the paper explores women's lived realities of combining work and family life in the UK in comparison to the Netherlands as a possible ‘best practices’ model. We argue that women in both countries experience work–life balance as an ongoing process, continually negotiating the boundaries of work and family, and that there needs to be a more sophisticated appreciation of the differing needs of working parents. Whilst policy initiatives can be effective in helping women to reconcile dual roles, many women in both the UK and the Netherlands still resolve these issues at the individual or personal level and feel that policy has not impacted on their lives in any tangible way.     

Can study tours help promote evidence-based practice in children's services?

Interest in evidence-based programmes and the science underpinning them has mushroomed in the UK and Ireland in recent years as policy-makers and senior managers seek tried-and-tested methods of improving child well-being. This article examines whether study tours, a form of experiential learning, can help to promote evidence-based policy and practice in children's services. Participants on two study tours to the United States in 2005 to visit evidence-based programmes and their developers were interviewed by telephone 30–36 months later. Results are presented in terms of: (1) what participants felt they were exposed to on the study tours; (2) how the tours had changed their thinking; (3) what impact the tours had in terms of actions; (4) the factors that affected the impact of the study tours; and (5) the value added by the study tours over and above other means of learning about evidence and evidence-based services.     

Being counted? Examining the prevalence of looked‐after disabled children and young people across the UK

Since the 1970s, there has been growing academic interest in children and young people living in state care and, more recently, in the lives of disabled children. However, there has been little attention on the lives of disabled children who are looked after by the state. This paper compares and critiques what is known about the numbers of disabled children who are looked after in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We discuss the conceptual and methodological limitations of systematically collecting data on disabled children in state care across the UK. We argue that to ensure that the rights of disabled children in state care are identified, acknowledged and upheld, ‘being counted’ is a fundamental first step.