Maternal Buffering of Adolescent Dysregulation in Socially Appetitive Contexts: From Behavior to the Brain

Adolescents are more susceptible to dysregulation in positive social contexts, compared to children. We investigated whether maternal presence would buffer these effects in adolescence. Fifty‐four adolescents and children (age range = 8–17 years, M_age = 13.38 years) completed a social go‐nogo task during an fMRI scan alone and in the presence of their mother. We found age‐related patterns, such that older relative to younger youth displayed more disinhibition toward socially appetitive than socially aversive stimuli, which was buffered by maternal presence. Furthermore, with age, maternal buffering in socially appetitive contexts elicited heightened activation in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and amygdala–medial prefrontal cortex connectivity. Findings underscore the importance of caregivers in promoting the neural regulation of their offspring during adolescence.     

Differential Behavioral and Neural Profiles in Youth With Conduct Problems During Risky Decision‐Making

Neuroimaging work has examined neural processes underlying risk taking in adolescence, yet predominantly in low‐risk youth. To determine whether we can extrapolate from current neurobiological models, this functional magnetic resonance imaging study investigated risk taking and peer effects in youth with conduct problems (CP; N = 19) and typically developing youth (TD; N = 25). Results revealed higher real‐life risk taking, lower risky decisions, and no peer effects on a risk‐taking task in CP youth. CP youth showed greater ventral striatum (VS) activity during safe than risky decisions, whereas TD youth showed greater VS activation during risky decisions. Differential VS activity explained higher real‐life risk taking in CP youth. Findings provide preliminary evidence that risk‐taking behavior in youth with CD problems is characterized by differential neural patterns.     

How does discharge status impact suicide risk in military veterans?

Little is known about over 125,000 veterans who received non-honorable military discharges since 2001, even though these veterans face substantial barriers to obtaining services and are likely to be at high risk for negative mental and behavioral health outcomes including suicide. Seven-hundred twenty-two veterans living the in the San Francisco Bay Area participated in the study. The sample comprised honorably discharged (n = 508) and non-honorably discharged veterans (n = 214). T-tests were used to compare means on predictors of suicide risk including Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, alcohol use, somatic symptoms, and physical disability. A series of regression models tested relationships between predictors, discharge status, and suicide risk. Non-honorably discharged veterans demonstrated higher mean scores than honorably discharged veterans on all predictors. In regression models, somatic symptoms (β = 0.22, p < 0.001), physical disability (β = 0.16, p < 0.05), and discharge status (β = 0.33, p < 0.001) were associated with suicide risk. The final model showed an interaction effect for discharge status on the relationship between somatic symptoms and suicide risk (β = 0.16, p < 0.05). Non-honorably discharged veterans showed higher rates of mental and physical health problems and suicide risk compared to honorably discharged veterans. The magnitude of the relationship between somatic symptoms and suicide risk was significantly greater in non-honorably discharged veterans.     

The Gap Between Lifetime Fertility Intentions and Completed Fertility in Europe and the United States: A Cohort Approach

Population Research and Policy Review - We study the aggregate gap between intended and actual fertility in 19 European countries and the US based on a cohort approach. This complements prior...     

Using Link Resolver Reports for Collection Management

In 2007–2008, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Libraries conducted a large collection assessment project. The Collection Assessment Committee identified several possible ways to conduct the review, one of which was using reports from the link resolver SFX. The committee used several link resolver reports in conjunction with statistics from the Libraries' document delivery department to identify trends in journal usage among disciplines. The link resolver reports can help identify new journals for purchase and are useful for providing information on user behavior.     

Projection error term in Gower's interpolation

New points can be superimposed on a Euclidean configuration obtained as a result of a metric multidimensional scaling at coordinates given by Gower's interpolation formula. The procedure amounts to discarding a, possibly nonnull, coordinate along an additional dimension. We derive an analytical formula for this projection error term and, for real data problems, we describe a statistical method for testing its significance, as a cautionary device prior to further distance-based predictions.     

An odd and inseparable couple: Emotion and rationality in partner selection

The dichotomy between emotion and rationality has been one of the most enduring of sociological theory. This article attempts to bypass this dichotomy by examining how emotion and rationality are conjoined in the practice of the choice of a mate. We posit the fundamental role of culture in determining the nature of this intertwinement. We explore the culturally embedded intertwining of emotion and rationality through the notion of modal configuration. Modal configuration includes five key features: reflexivity, techniques, modal emphasis, modal overlap, and modal sequencing. We apply this framework to the topic of partner selection. Comparing primary and secondary sources on pre-modern partner selection and on internet dating, we show that emotion and rationality were intertwined in both periods but that what differs between them is precisely the emotion-rationality modality.

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Urbanization and fertility: An event-history analysis of Coastal Ghana

In this article, we undertake an event-history analysis of fertility in Ghana. We exploit detailed life history calendar data to conduct a more refined and definitive analysis of the relationship among personal traits, urban residence, and fertility. Although urbanization is generally associated with lower fertility in developing countries, inferences in most studies have been hampered by a lack of information about the timing of residence in relationship to childbearing. We find that the effect of urbanization itself is strong, evident, and complex, and persists after we control for the effects of age, cohort, union status, and education. Our discrete-time event-history analysis shows that urban women exhibit fertility rates that are, on average, 11% lower than those of rural women, but the effects vary by parity. Differences in urban population traits would augment the effects of urban adaptation itself. Extensions of the analysis point to the operation of a selection effect in rural-to-urban mobility but provide limited evidence for disruption effects. The possibility of further selection of urbanward migrants on unmeasured traits remains. The analysis also demonstrates the utility of an annual life history calendar for collecting such data in the field.     

Social process theory of emotion: A dynamic systems approach

In this paper we apply a dynamic systems perspective to infant emotional development. We propose that emotions are not states but self-organizing dynamic processes intimately tied to the flow of an individual's activity in a context. We review data on the relationship between emotional actions and the social context, in particular the development of smiling and laughter. These data are more adequately explained by our perspective than by other theories of emotional development. We provide a model for how emotional processes in early infancy become embedded into sociocultural systems, and suggest new avenues of research on emotional development.