Digital Commons Network^™

Why Girls? The Importance Of Developing Gender-Specific Health Promotion Programs For Adolescent Girls, Amanda Birnbaum, Tracy R. Nichols

Amanda Birnbaum

Adolescence is a time when many girls begin to develop unhealthy behaviors that can affect myriad short- and long-term health outcomes across their lifespan.2There is evidence that smoking, physical activity, and diet are habituated during adolescence, and some physiologic processes of adolescence, such as peak bone mass development, have direct effects on future health.3-4 Establishing healthy practices, beliefs and knowledge among adolescent girls will decrease morbidity and mortality among adult women and potentially affect the health of men and children through women’s role as healthcare agents. This paper provides a brief review of lifestyle health behaviors among women and girls …

Semantic Priming Of Familiar Songs, Sarah K. Johnson, Andrea R. Halpern

Andrea Halpern

We explored the functional organization of semantic memory for music by comparing priming across familiar songs both within modalities (Experiment 1, tune to tune; Experiment 3, category label to lyrics) and across modalities (Experiment 2, category label to tune; Experiment 4, tune to lyrics). Participants judged whether or not the target tune or lyrics were real (akin to lexical decision tasks). We found significant priming, analogous to linguistic associative-priming effects, in reaction times for related primes as compared to unrelated primes, but primarily for within-modality comparisons. Reaction times to tunes (e.g., "Silent Night") were faster following related tunes ("Deck the …

Integrative Medicine Research At An Academic Medical Center: Patient Characteristics And Health-Related Quality-Of-Life Outcomes., Jeffrey M Greeson, Steven Rosenzweig, Steven C Halbert, Ira S Cantor, Matthew T Keener, George C Brainard

Jeffrey M. Greeson

OBJECTIVE: To characterize patients seeking care at a university-based integrative medicine practice, and to assess short-term changes in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) associated with integrative medical treatment. DESIGN: Prospective, observational study. SETTING: This study was conducted at a large U.S. academic medical center affiliated with the Consortium of Academic Health Centers for Integrative Medicine. PARTICIPANTS: Seven hundred and sixty-three (763) new patients with diverse medical conditions participated in the study. Mean age was 49 years (standard deviation = 16, range = 14-93). Two thirds of patients were women and three quarters were white. The most common International Classification of …

A Randomized Controlled Trial Of Koru: A Mindfulness Program For College Students And Other Emerging Adults., Jeffrey M Greeson, Michael K Juberg, Margaret Maytan, Kiera James, Holly Rogers

Jeffrey M. Greeson

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of Koru, a mindfulness training program for college students and other emerging adults. PARTICIPANTS: Ninety students (66% female, 62% white, 71% graduate students) participated between Fall 2012 and Spring 2013. METHODS: Randomized controlled trial. It was hypothesized that Koru, compared with a wait-list control group, would reduce perceived stress and sleep problems, and increase mindfulness, self-compassion, and gratitude. RESULTS: As hypothesized, results showed significant Group (Koru, Wait-List)×Time (Pre, Post) interactions for improvements in perceived stress (F[1, 76.40]=4.50, p=.037, d=.45), sleep problems (F [1, 79.49]=4.71, p=.033, d=.52), mindfulness (F [1, 79.09]=26.80, p CONCLUSIONS: Results support the …

Prevalence And Correlates Of Firesetting Behaviours Among Offending And Non-Offending Youth, Bruce Watt, Kerry Geritz, Tasneem Hasan, Scott Harden, Rebekah Doley

Rebekah Doley

Purpose: Adolescents represent a disproportionate number of firesetters relative to their adult counterparts. There is limited understanding, however, in the differing rates of firelighting behaviours between subgroups of youth. Method: Utilizing the recently developed Youth Fire Behaviours and Interests Scale, the differences in firesetting behaviours between adolescents adjudicated as offenders and non-offenders were evaluated. The associations for firesetting behaviours with antisocial behaviours and callous-unemotional traits (CUT) were examined utilizing items from the Antisocial Process Screening Device and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Participants were recruited across south-east Queensland; young offenders on community orders or in a youth detention centre (n …

Prevalence And Correlates Of Firesetting Behaviours Among Offending And Non-Offending Youth, Bruce Watt, Kerry Geritz, Tasneem Hasan, Scott Harden, Rebekah Doley

Bruce Watt

Purpose: Adolescents represent a disproportionate number of firesetters relative to their adult counterparts. There is limited understanding, however, in the differing rates of firelighting behaviours between subgroups of youth. Method: Utilizing the recently developed Youth Fire Behaviours and Interests Scale, the differences in firesetting behaviours between adolescents adjudicated as offenders and non-offenders were evaluated. The associations for firesetting behaviours with antisocial behaviours and callous-unemotional traits (CUT) were examined utilizing items from the Antisocial Process Screening Device and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Participants were recruited across south-east Queensland; young offenders on community orders or in a youth detention centre (n …

Are Greebles Like Faces? Using The Neuropsychological Exception To Test The Rule., Isabel Gauthier, Marlene Behrmann, Michael Tarr

Marlene Behrmann

Which image geometries count as face-like and which do not? Across multiple experiments, novel objects called Greebles have been used to argue that face-specific effects can be obtained with non-face stimuli under certain situations, in particular with expert observers. However, this claim depends on the argument that these non-face stimuli are not a priori treated by the face processing system. To address this question, CK, a neuropsychological patient well-known for exhibiting severe visual object agnosia and dyslexia but intact face processing, was tested with Greebles. CK performed poorly on Greebles, indicating that his intact face-specific abilities do not extend to …

‘‘What’’ Precedes ‘‘Which’’: Developmental Neural Tuning In Face- And Place-Related Cortex, K. Suzanne Scherf, Beatriz Luna, Galia Avidan, Marlene Behrmann

Marlene Behrmann

Although category-specific activation for faces in the ventral visual pathway appears adult-like in adolescence, recognition abilities for individual faces are still immature. We investigated how the ability to represent “individual” faces and houses develops at the neural level. Category-selective regions of interest (ROIs) for faces in the fusiform gyrus (FG) and for places in the parahippocampal place area (PPA) were identified individually in children, adolescents, and adults. Then, using an functional magnetic resonance imaging adaptation paradigm, we measured category selectivity and individual-level adaptation for faces and houses in each ROI. Only adults exhibited both category selectivity and individual-level adaptation bilaterally …

Emerging Structure–Function Relations In The Developing Face Processing System, K. Suzanne Scherf, Cibu Thomas, Jamie Doyle, Marlene Behrmann

Marlene Behrmann

To evaluate emerging structure–function relations in a neural circuit that mediates complex behavior, we investigated age-related differences among cortical regions that support face recognition behavior and the fiber tracts through which they transmit and receive signals using functional neuroimaging and diffusion tensor imaging. In a large sample of human participants (aged 6–23 years), we derived the microstructural and volumetric properties of the inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF), the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, and control tracts, using independently defined anatomical markers. We also determined the functional characteristics of core face- and place-selective regions that are distributed along the trajectory of the pathways of …

Investigation Into The Bullying Experiences Of Children And Adolescents With An Autistic Spectrum Disorder, Vicki Bitsika

Vicki Bitsika

We know that children/adolescents with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder are particularly vulnerable to bullying and harrassment from their peers. This vulnerability can be partly attributed to poor understanding of others' motives and use of atypical social responses from children/adolescents with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder.

Patterns Of Graffiti Offending Towards Recognition That Graffiti Offending Is More Than Kids Messing Around, Myra Taylor, Ida Marais, Robyn Cottman

Myra F Taylor

Graffiti is often viewed as a nuisance ‘kids’ crime, an act of youthful resistance and, as such, it is sometimes given a lower policing prioritisation level than more ‘serious’ crimes. In this study, the three-year offending histories of 798 graffitists were extracted from the Western Australian Police Information Management System database. To address the study’s aim of determining whether agedifferentiated patterns of offending exist among three age-cohorts of offenders (i.e. preteens, adolescents and adults), the number of offences, the number of contacts with police, the type of offences and the rank category of each offence for each of the three …

Explainer: Anorexia And Bulimia, Peta Stapleton

Peta B. Stapleton

Eating disorders are an increasing problem in children and adolescents. Recent Australian studies have indicated eating disorder behaviour has increased twofold in Australia in the last five years and 9% (men and women) will suffer from one at some point in their lives.

An analysis by the American Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality shows that hospitalisations for eating disorders increased most sharply (119%) for children aged 12 and younger between 1999 to 2006.

Self-Reported Adolescent Health Status Of Extremely Low Birth Weight Children Born 1992–1995, Grayson Holmbeck

Grayson Holmbeck

OBJECTIVES: To compare the self-reported health of extremely low birth weight (ELBW, <1 kg) adolescents with that of normal birth weight (NBW) controls and the children’s assessments of their general health at ages 8 versus 14 years.

METHODS: One hundred sixty-eight ELBW children and 115 NBW controls of similar gender and sociodemographic status completed the Child Health and Illness Profile–Adolescent Edition at age 14 years. It includes 6 domains: Satisfaction, Comfort, Resilience, Risk Avoidance, Achievement, and Disorders. At age 8 years, the children had completed the Child Health and Illness Profile–Child Edition. Results were compared between ELBW and NBW subjects adjusting for gender and sociodemographic status.

RESULTS: ELBW adolescents rated their health similar to that of NBW adolescents in the domains of Satisfaction, Comfort, Resilience, …

The Role Of Vision In Detecting And Correcting Fingertip Force Errors During Object Lifting, Gavin Buckingham, Nathalie Ranger, Melvyn Goodale

Gavin Buckingham

Vision provides many reliable cues about the likely weight of an object, allowing individuals to predict how heavy it will be. The forces used to lift an object for the first time reflect these predictions. This, however, leads to inevitable errors during lifts of objects that weigh unexpected amounts. Fortunately, these errors are rarely made twice in a row-lifters have the impressive ability to detect and correct large or small misapplications of fingertip forces, even while experiencing weight illusions. Although it has been assumed that we detect and correct these errors exclusively with our sense of touch, recent evidence has …