Vocabulary increases as parents name visible objects

Today's post is dedicated to my second grade teacher, who sent home a report card to my mother indicating that, although I had great potential, I was a talker in the classroom.

The word filled me with dread.  I'll never forget wondering what the consequences would be if I continued to be a talker and became an abject failure in my education.  Of course, I did not know the word "abject" back then, but a new study may indicate that the reason I do know the word "abject" now is because I was a talker or — more accurately — because my parents were talkers and quite good at naming objects in the immediate environment to me when I was learning my words.

So to my beloved second grade teacher, who was very well-meaning and I'm sure just trying to manage an efficient classroom without interruptions, I would like to say that I have made two out of three careers (journalism and psychology) of being a talker, and I still enjoy being a talker very much.

But I do want to thank that teacher for being such a wonderful influence in so many other ways.

Best news yet: Mindfulness helps students

This is my favorite Psychology Matters post yet.

Mindulness was used with students without psychiatric problems and it helped them at exam time!!!

It truly speaks for itself. Please see the original item here.

Have a great weekend!

Just say no to BOTOX

BOTOX (TM) may not be your friend if you are trying to appear authentic, more attractive, highly intelligent, or sufficiently dominant.

This one speaks for itself.  The original article where I found the information was here.

So keep rockin' those crow's feet.

Exercise boosts creativity

I stumbled upon a delightful article detailing the exercise — and other — habits of creative people.  I do not want to spoil much of the fun of reading it.  You should do so, right away.

I also found this neat article suggesting that exercise enhances creativity, independently of its effects on mood.  So it is not just a mood lift that one may experience with exercise, but an increase in creative power and cognitive flexibility as well

Heart attack risk highest for those with depression

People with depression have a 55% increased risk of heart attack, according to new research available on the American Psychological Association's website.

Of more than 60,000 research hits on cardiovascular disease in PubMed research database, more than 35,000 of them cite psychosocial factors involved in the pathogenesis of the problem.  This has increased the amount of attention being paid to serious mental illness over the past several years.  Cognitive-behavioral interventions have shown promise in inoculating patients against the stresses that may arise in those predisposed to cardiovascular problems.

Research also suggests that optimism may be a preventative factor for cardiac illness. This appears to be in line with older research suggesting that cynical hostility — expecting the worst from others — was a well known risk factor.  Having great senses of meaning and hope in life is considered to be some of the best psychological protection against cardiovascular illness.

For more information, please see the article and video linked here.

Volunteerism for prevention of hypertension?

Higher levels of volunteerism were associated with a 40% reduction in the risk of hypertension, according to new research from Carnegie Mellon university that was published in an article on Science Daily.

The research followed 1,164 adults aged 51-91 from across the United States.  Results were collected in 2006 and 2010.  In 2006, the participants all had normal blood pressure levels.  The study collected data on volunteerism, various social and psychological factors, and blood pressure.

Those with more than 200 hours of volunteer work were at 40% less risk of hypertension.

The authors of the study have suggested that forming social connections through volunteer work may help ward off the stress that is believed to be one of the underlying causes of hypertension.

For more information on volunteering in your area, check out www.volunteer.gov.

ADHD: More frequently diagnosed in younger students

I stumbled upon this on a site called Clinically Psyched last night and I found it very thought-provoking.  A study looking at nearly a million students indicated that in general, it is the younger members of any given class that are more likely to be diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

It is clear that there is an overabundance of pharmacotherapy being utilized for ADHD, and not enough emphasis on exercise and nutrition.  This is especially prevalent in the United States, where incidentally, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) refuses to acknowledge the role of food dyes in exacerbating the problem, as other countries have done, and the other countries have banned the dyes as a result.  That is not true here in the USA.  Here is an article from the medical establishment supporting the FDA's position but outlining the research against food dyes.

Anyway, this article presents another hypothesis. Maybe what we are looking at is social immaturity for many students with ADHD, instead of an actual neurological impairment that needs to be addressed with medication.

ADHD can be conceptualized as an overabundance of energy and is usually paired with different learning styles.  There are many ways to treat it.  If you are curious, talk to a psychologist.

Excessive gamers sleep less

Sometimes in editing this blog, I stumble upon research that is a few years old, but seems more relevant today than it was when the research was published.

I think it is fair to say that computer gaming, specifically on mobile devices, is more ubiquitous today than it was in 2009.  I know many people who rarely played computer games in 2009 who now play games on tablets and smartphones. "Candy Crush" comes to mind as the latest widespread addiction.

I have been an "excessive" gamer (more than seven hours a week of playing, according to this study) more times in my life than I care to count.  I actually laughed when I saw this study, because I was surprised "excessive" gaming was not counted as more than 7 hours a day which has not been outside my own experience.  As a matter of fact, I would offer that if you ask most gamers who play online roleplaying games, fewer than 7 hours a day of playing represents someone who might be considered by other gamers to be a little lazy. 

As new technologies emerge, I think we will see gaming take new forms.  I believe that when Google's Project Glass becomes popular, or items like it, people will be gaming in their glasses.  Some of them will game more than seven hours per day.  Hey, you can say you saw it here first.  Let's track that prediction.

It is important to note that if you receive fewer than 8 hours of sleep per night as an adult, and fewer than 9 hours of sleep per night as an adolescent, you are considered to be sleep deprived and your performance at work/school is likely to be suffering.  But another thing that is likely to be suffering is your mood, and if you operate a motor vehicle, you can reasonably expect to be worse at that too.

Let's all make an effort to get to bed for adequate rest.

See the original Science Daily article on the study here.

Bullies & Victims: 4x Risk of Psychiatric Illness

Bullies and their victims alike are at risk for psychiatric problems into adulthood.

The following is from the National Institutes of Mental Health website, published June 11, 2013. It is public domain.

***

Bullying is a repetitive, aggressive act done to abuse or intimidate others. It can take on various forms—primarily verbal, emotional, and physical, although cyberbullying is also on the rise. Typically these scenes occur inside school or on the playground, but they can also happen at home or at work. A power imbalance usually is involved in which one child or a group of children torments another child who is considered “weaker.” Methods employed by bullies include threats, rumor-spreading, and exclusion.

Most of what experts know about the effects of bullying comes from short-term observational studies. These studies reflect general society’s view that most people overcome these events by the time they become adults.

“Initially I too was skeptical about these long-term effects,” says study author William Copeland, Ph.D., at Duke University, who as an epidemiologist knew of other traumatic events that do not linger psychologically, such as maltreatment and physical abuse. “Yet this is something that stays with people. A large number of people express lasting effects decades after their childhood experiences.”

Copeland and his colleagues tapped into a local population sample of 1,420 children from 11 Western North Carolina counties. Starting at the ages of 9, 11, and 13, the kids, along with their parents, were interviewed annually until the age of 16, fielding questions about peer relations and home and community settings. The participating children were again interviewed at 19, 21, and 24 to 26 years of age. Four groups emerged from this longitudinal study: people who were never involved in bullying, people who were victims, people who were bullies, and people who were both.

Results of the Study

More than half of the study’s youth reported being neither a bully nor a victim. Around a quarter of the study group claimed that they were victimized. About 7 percent confessed to being a bully. A similar percentage said that they were both, a group the researchers labeled as “bully-victims.”

Compared to those who went through childhood unscathed, victims had four times the prevalence of agoraphobia, generalized anxiety, and panic disorder when they became adults. Overall, bullies had four times the risk of developing antisocial personality disorder. These disorders still stood even after other factors were taken into account, such as preexisting psychiatric problems or family hardships.

Bully-victims fared the worst. Also known as “loners,” these individuals start out with less developed social skills and are seen as more impulsive and aggressive. When picked on, they respond by picking on others. Their numbers, compared to those never involved in bullying, tell the story: 14 times the risk of panic disorder, 5 times the risk of depressive disorders, and 10 times the risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior.

“Victims report the greatest anxiety problems. They might become successful people later on, but they still think about the event and hold onto it. Bullies are socially adept and may find ways in adulthood to use these skills in a pro-social manner. Folks really underestimate who are the bully-victims. These are the ones who end up having the most significant emotional problems including suicidality,” explained Copeland, who is also a father of two.

Significance

All these disorders impart a great emotional and financial cost to society. Lowering and/or preventing bullying could possibly reduce human suffering and long-term health costs—not to mention creating a safer environment for children to grow up in.

Research into resilience or why some are able to bounce back in adulthood is ongoing. Some key molecules and brain circuit pathways have been identified in animals. Other research areas under exploration include physiology, genetics, epigenetics, and cognitive therapies.

What’s Next

Studies looking into which interventions work best for bullying are underway. Once these interventions are identified, research is needed to see at what stages in life they should they be administered. Lastly, other factors that play a role in bullying and victimization, such as sexual orientation, need exploration.

“This study suggests that we should pay attention to what’s going on between peers,” said Copeland, adding that kids spend more time each day with their peers, including school and online, than with their parents. “What happens to kids when they’re with their peers is as important, or may be more important, than what happens at home,” said Copeland.

Reference

Copeland WE, Wolke D, Angold A, Costello EJ. Adult Psychiatric Outcomes of Bullying and Being Bullied by Peers in Childhood and Adolescence. JAMA Psychiatry, published April 2013.

Grant number: K23 MH080230

Dads should ask kids for feedback

Just in time for Father's Day: a developmental psychologist at San Francisco State University suggests that dads should be asking their kids for feedback on how the parenting is going.

Children have various ways to interpret parental behavior, according to the research by Dr. Jeff Cookston.  Sometimes a parent might not know how a child will understand what the parent is doing.  Especially for fathers, it is important to keep checking in with the children.

Anyway, Happy Father's Day this coming Sunday.

P.S. If you like the photo in this post, it is here, titled "I love you, Dad" by George Hodan. All the photographer asks for is a donation for a cup of coffee to use it. Pretty neat. Oh, and Happy Father's Day, George.

Girls = boys in math & science

Here is an oldie but goodie that bears repeating.

With all of the emphasis on the STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, and math) as being the pathway forward for the United States of America to remain competitive, we sometimes need reminders that we should be encouraging our girls to pursue these fields.

The March 2010 "In Brief" section of the American Psychological Association's Monitor on Psychology covered a study examining data of nearly 500,000 students from around the world.

Girls have no appreciable innate difference in ability at STEM subjects compared to their male peers.

Girls were much more likely to do well in countries where women were:

1) wealthier
2) better-educated
3) more politically active.

Yes, it is good for women to be rich, wise, and powerful.  It is good for their countries too.

And it would be really good for America.  Maybe that can be a new American value.

P.S. Great thanks and kudos to all of you empowering, forward-thinking educators, parents, and role-models out there.  You know who you are.

Yoga focuses better than cardio

The effects of exercise on brain function are well-known anecdotally, but there appears to be a myth that only cardiovascular exercise will "get the blood pumping" through the brain to increase brain function in a superior way to other forms of exercise.

Not true, says a new study.

The executive functioning effects of 20 minutes of Hatha yoga were found to be superior to 20 minutes of walking or running on a treadmill, according to a recent study by kinesiologist Neha Goethe and her colleagues.

Congratulations to the researchers, and bravo to all of you yogis and yoginis.

Please see the Science Daily article.

Have a great weekend!

Belief in science increases under duress

A recent social psychology study, covered on Science Daily, indicates that people's belief in science increases in various stressful situations.

The comforting power of belief is not something usually applied, in ordinary conversation, to secular humanism.  However, this study may serve as a guide post for the helping professions.

A scientific view of the universe is likely to be a source of comfort to many. This is something that those in the helping professions, and especially those who regard themselves as relying on scientifically validated approaches, need to bear in mind when working with people.

In the 1990s, the helping professions were encouraged to begin an exploration of faith and spirituality as part of healing.  Left out of that conversation was a thorough and competent discussion of atheism.  Perhaps the time has come for us to include it into the dialogue, as many organization with an open orientation to what-constitutes-belief (Unitarian Universalism comes to mind) have done for many years.

Meditation beats anxiety by activating certain brain structures

The evidence is in for which brain structures, specifically, are activated by mindfulness meditation to reduce anxiety.

If you are not familiar with mindfulness meditation, you might want to give try it for a few decades and see how you like it.

In short, mindfulness meditation is:

1. Focusing on the breath or the senses in some focused way

2. Allowing thoughts to arise, and noticing them non-judgmentally (this is huge: you are not to become angry at yourself for having thoughts, and when unsettling thoughts arise, you say: "How interesting/human of my mind to have a thought like that" and move on.)

3. Return your focus to the breath

The article about this study on Science Daily may be found here.

Have a mindful and minimally anxious day!

Students with ASD face fewer opportunities

The following is taken directly from the NIH website (public domain) in September 2012:

Many Youths with Autism Not Employed or In College 2 Years After High School

Young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are less likely to have a job or be enrolled in any type of postsecondary education when compared to peers with a speech/learning impairment or learning disability, according to a study partially funded by NIMH. Published in the June 2012 issue of Pediatrics, the findings emphasize the need to improve transition planning for students with ASD before they leave high school.

Background

Past studies on post-high school activities of youths with ASD were limited by having relatively few participants, lacking adequate diversity in the study population, or studying a narrow set of outcomes. As a result, it was unclear if those studies gave accurate descriptions of the ASD youth population as a whole, and if so, how broadly any findings could be applied.

Using nationally representative data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2, Paul Shattuck, Ph.D., of Washington University, and colleagues assessed the activities of about 1,900 youths identified as having autism, speech/language impairment, learning disability, or mental retardation between the years 2007-2008. Data were provided by the youths’ parents or guardians or from the youths themselves if they were able to understand and answer the survey questions.

All participants had previously received special education services and were no longer in high school.

Results of the Study

Compared to youths in other disability categories, those with ASD were less likely to have a job after high school. Youths with ASD were also less likely to be enrolled in any type of schooling than youths with speech/learning impairment or learning disability, but more likely than youths with mental retardation.

In the first 2 years after leaving high school, youths with ASD were at significant risk of being completely disengaged, meaning to not be employed or in any postsecondary education.

The participation rates, with rounded percentages, are summarized in the table below:

	Disability Category
Youth is involved in…	ASD	Speech/Learning  Impairment	Learning  Disability	Mental  Retardation
Any 2- or 4-year college*	35	51	40	18
Any paid employment	55	86	94	69
No education or  employment	35	7	3	26

*Additional data on youths’ participation in vocational or technical education showed a similar distribution.

Youths from low-income families were much more likely to become disengaged, regardless of the severity of their disability. More impaired youths were also at greater risk of disengagement.

Significance

The results indicate that young adults with ASD experience unique challenges in finding work or enrolling in appropriate educational opportunities after leaving high school. In a related paper, also partially supported by NIMH funding, Dr. Shattuck noted that “the evidence base on services for adults with ASD is inadequate for informing policy and program decisions to meet the needs of this growing population.”

In this context, the researchers emphasized the need to improve transition planning for youths with ASD or other special education needs as they prepare to leave high school.

What’s Next

According to the researchers, as more and more children are diagnosed with ASD, the demand for specialized adult services, jobs, and education will also continue to grow. Supporting targeted initiatives such as JobTIPS and further research on how to reduce or prevent disengagement will help inform efforts to better serve this population.

References

Shattuck PT, Narendorf SC, Cooper B, Sterzing PR, Wagner M, Taylor JL. Postsecondary Education and Employment Among Youth With an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Pediatrics. 2012 Jun;129(6):1042-9. Epub 2012 May 14. PubMed PMID: 22585766; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3362908. 

Shattuck PT, Roux AM, Hudson LE, Taylor JL, Maenner MJ, Trani JF. Services for adults with an autism spectrum disorder. Can J Psychiatry. 2012 May;57(5):284-91. PubMed PMID: 22546060.

Related funding: R01-MH086489

Remember your health to ... remember

This just in: Don't smoke, eat right, and exercise, and you'll probably remember to thank yourself for it.

A recent collaboration between UCLA and Gallup revealed the staggering inverse relationship between healthy self-care behaviors and reports of poor memory.  In other words, those reporting more healthy behavior had fewer complaints about their memory.

The story is fascinating, and found in its entirety on Science Daily.

Hope you remember to take care of yourself today.

Psychiatry's assumptions challenged in the UK

It is worth mentioning that earlier this month, the British Psychological Society made news by stating that an entirely different understanding of mental health issues, separate from the nosology of psychiatry, is going to be necessary given the understandings being arrived at through psychological research.

This was in response to the highly criticized release of the American Psychiatric Association's new diagnostic manual, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition (DSM 5).  Many psychiatrists themselves — some of them involved in the development of the previous manual — do not like many of the new changes.

The medical model of addressing mental health issues cannot stand on its own.  While medications may be useful, and even necessary, in helping some people, the assumption that medications or medical interventions are the answer to solving people's complex personal or social issues falls short of the current understandings of mental health and wellness.

Medications may be part of the answer, but most often are not the answer.

In fact, overwhelmingly, it is the experience of most psychologists that medications form a bridge to changing the life circumstances, but only some of the time, when nothing else has worked (developing insight, challenging problematic thoughts, developing new routines, altering relationship rules and boundaries, diet, identifying and modifying toxic habits, exercise, increased social contact, meditation, yoga, changing social networks, facing fears, etc. are just some examples of things to try before medication).  Once the circumstances are changed, in many cases, life improves and the medications are no longer needed. A taper of the medication is recommended at that point.

So why are we assuming that "mental health" requires a medical diagnosis?  Shouldn't we be assuming that "mental health" requires a complex psychosocial explanation instead, and then identify any collateral biomedical issues to address as part of the problem, rather than assuming the biomedical issues are the problem?

Food for thought. Happy weekend.

Autism research: Brain responses to words at age 2 predict severity

The latest bit of autism research by Dr. Patricia Kuhl, speech pathologist and psychologist, indicates that brain responses to words at age 2 are highly predictive of a broad range of cognitive abilities, facility with language, and adaptive behaviors.

This important bit of research adds to a growing body of research produced by Dr. Kuhl, who co-director of the University of Washington's Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, and those working with her.  The research underscores the need for early intervention for autism, when the potential to fundamentally change brain development is at its maximum.  It is also hoped that it will lead to new treatments that are introduced in the early stages

You can find the Science Daily article here.

Apologies have a financial benefit

The "prudent" advice to avoid apologizing for mistakes (to avoid an admission of guilt) may not be good counsel after all.

As a matter of fact, apologizing competently and well can avoid costs.

Yesterday, there was a segment on National Public Radio's "Talk of the Nation" program with host John Donvan on which the benefits of making good apologies, and how to do it, was explored.  

Not only can you read the transcript, but you can hear the interview in its entirety.  The interview featured a medical doctor (Dr. Manoj Jain) and two psychologists (Dr. Jennifer Robbennolt and Dr. Guy Winch), all of whom had expertise on the benefits of sincere apologies.  

This is great stuff.  Hope you will take the opportunity to check it out.

You can also view the University of Michigan's policy on disclosure of and apology for medical mistakes here.

OCD checking: Research reveals a treatment

This one is so elegant it barely needs commentary.

Research presented this month (May 2013) in Canada reveals the way cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can help with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) "checking and re-checking" behavior. 

Interestingly, many patients do not complain about their memories, yet still engage in the checking behavior. If the CBT focuses on the memory, the checking behavior is likely to reduce in frequency and intensity.

See the article here.

Suicidal youth: 20% have guns at home

Whether you are pro-gun or anti-gun, this news emerging from a recently conducted study should definitely raise some concerns about taking extra precautions for gun safety in homes with youth.

One fifth of youths at risk for suicide have guns in the home. A third of them know how to get the guns, a third know how to get the bullets, and 15 percent know how to get both.

And a frightening 40 percent of suicide completers among youth (those who actually died) had no known mental illness. So parents did not even have the notice that their children were at risk for a problem.

Whether or not you believe your adolescents or early adults are at risk for this most heartbreaking event, if you have guns in your home, please take extra precautions, because too many parents had no mental health warming signs at all.

Please see the article about the findings here.

"Boys will be boys" not true in Asia

Science Daily posted a very informative article about research done in Asia on early childhood self-regulation.  Basically, the research found that while in the U.S. it is common for boys aged 3-6 to have self-regulation problems compared to girls, in Asia there is no difference.

You may have heard that people live up, or down, to the expectations placed on them.  This appears to be true for children in Asia.  There appears to be no expectation that boys will behave any differently in terms of self-regulation from girls, at least in the home.

Maybe we need to expect more from our boys.

Social Phobia affects different areas of the brain

Social phobia is not the same as generalized anxiety, according to the National Institutes of Mental Health, citing a study in 2008.

Different areas of the brain are affected.  The NIMH has an emphasis on drug therapies, which is interesting because the majority of research suggests that the most effective treatment for nearly all forms of anxiety, including social anxiety, is Exposure and Response Prevention therapy (ERP).

Does it make you wonder who is influencing NIMH?

Don't let NIMH or anyone else tell you that drug therapies are the optimal choice especially when the research is lacking.  It is pure conjecture to say new drugs could be developed to treat it (see below). The treatment of choice, supported by all the research, is doing the work of cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy.  In fact, anti-anxiety agents are well documented as having an "elasticity effect" — meaning after the drug wears off, the anxiety is worse than it was before taking the drug.

Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), if adhered to correctly, will reduce the impact of the stimuli leading to social phobia by teaching the affected person mastery of tolerating these stimuli.

For effective treatment, based in research, talk to a psychologist.

So we published this:

From NIMH (public domain, taxpayer funded):

Social Phobia Patients Have Heightened Reactions to Negative Comments

In a study using functional brain imaging, NIMH scientists found that when people with generalized social phobia were presented with a variety of verbal comments about themselves and others ("you are ugly," or "he's a genius," for example) they had heightened brain responses only to negative comments about themselves. Knowledge of the social cues that trigger anxiety and what parts of the brain are engaged when this happens can help scientists understand and better treat this anxiety disorder.

Background

Generalized social phobia (GSP) is the most common of all anxiety disorders. It is marked by overwhelming anxiety and self-consciousness in social situations. One approach to understanding anxiety disorders is to use functional brain imaging (fMRI) to explore how the brain responds to different types of social signals. fMRI can provide information on the relative activity—and thus the engagement—of different parts of the brain by tracking the local demands made for oxygen delivered by circulating blood. Scientists using this technology have reported, for example, that people with GSP have heightened responses to a variety of positive, negative, and neutral facial expressions, not just expressions that others perceive as threatening.

Results of this Study

People with GSP had heightened responses to negative comments (relative to a comparison group without the disorder) in two brain areas: the first, the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), is involved in the sense and evaluation of self; the second, the amygdala, is central to emotional processing. The responses revealed by scanning paralleled the participants' self-report of how they felt after seeing the various positive, negative, and neutral comments presented.

Significance

This work, conducted by NIMH intramural investigators Karina Blair, Ph.D., Daniel Pine, M.D., and colleagues, provided information on the specific social cues that trigger anxiety in people with GSP. It adds to previous evidence that the amygdala is involved and, in implicating the MPFC, gives clues for further research to explore on how people with GSP interpret social cues. Functional brain scanning can thus help to define patterns of brain functioning that underlie anxiety disorders, providing information that can inform treatment.

What's Next?

A previous study by these investigators found that the reaction of the brain to facial expressions was different in people with GSP than in those with general anxiety disorder (GAD). This suggests that the two disorders do not represent mild and severe forms in a single spectrum of anxiety disorders, but two neurologically different disorders.

Continuing research will reexamine these differences to see if they occur across different tasks, providing confirmation for understanding them as different disorders, which could lead to more targeted and effective forms of treatment for each disorder. Future studies will also explore more deeply the nature of the thought process underlying the reaction of people with GSP to negative comments about themselves and the interaction of the amygdala and MPFC. Finally, brain scanning offers a means to study the effects of treatment; scanning can, for example, provide information on the effects of medications in these parts of the brain.

Left amygdala (left) and medial prefrontal cortex (circled in yellow, right) activated strongly in people with social phobia (in comparison to those without GSP) in response to criticism of themselves.

References

Blair, K. et al. American Journal of Psychiatry. 2008 Sep;165(9):1193-202. Epub 2008 May 15. PMID: 18483136

Blair, K. et al. Archives of General Psychiatry. 2008 Oct;65(10):1176-1184.

Younger soldiers may have higher risk of PTSD

The following brief was posted in the Monitor on Psychology's May 2013 edition:

***

Younger soldiers appear to be at greater risk for developing post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a study by Columbia University researchers. The scientists examined data from 260 male Vietnam veterans who had been diagnosed with PTSD. They found that men who were younger than 25 when they first went to Vietnam were seven times more likely to develop PTSD compared with men who served in Vietnam when they were in their 30s and 40s. The researchers also discovered that pre-war vulnerabilities, such as childhood physical abuse or a family history of substance abuse, were just as important as combat-related trauma in predicting whether veterans' PTSD symptoms would be long-lasting (Clinical Psychological Science, online Feb. 15).

***

This raises a lot of questions.  Recently, there was an extensive and excellently written article in the Huffington Post detailing the stresses on the remote-control pilots of the drones that the military is using to target terrorists.  

The May 5 Huffington Post article details the round-the-clock stresses of deciding when it is, in the words of Ecclesiastes 3:3, a "time to kill" falls heavily on young men and women — airmen a few years out of high school — who are looking for signs that terrorists are present and civilians are not.  Air Force Major Shauna Sperry, the psychologist assigned to these airmen, said the airmen experience a sense of helplessness, and agreed with the notion of a kind of moral injury that occurs for them with regard to the orders they must follow.

"They are so young," Major Sperry reportedly said. "They do what they have to do, but there is a toll that is taken."

So we published this:

Forgiveness and cooperation improve after prayer

An ongoing trend, gaining momentum since the late 1990s, has been the psychological study of the benefits of spiritual practices.  This is important because spiritual practices are an essential to so many people, with an estimated 5 billion of the planet's 7-billion plus people claiming some religious affiliation.

A recent study indicated that romantic partners and friends benefit when their partner/friend prays, specifically with better cooperation and a higher level of forgiveness.

The human race has achieved what it has by cooperation.  We are a profoundly pro-social species, despite a great deal of evidence to the contrary.

To read the article about the study on Science Daily, go here.

The article source is:

Nathaniel Lambert, Frank D. Fincham, Nathan C. Dewall, Richard Pond, Steven R. Beach. Shifting toward cooperative tendencies and forgiveness: How partner-focused prayer transforms motivation. Personal Relationships, 2013; 20 (1): 184 DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-6811.2012.01411.x

So we decided to post this.

ADHD? Not French kids

In France, fewer than 0.5% of kids are diagnosed and medicated for ADHD.

In the United States, that number is a staggering 9%.

In France, the assumption is that inattention and hyperactivity can be treated through psychotherapy, structure, and nutrition.

In the United States, for the most part, we prescribe.

This information was found in an article published in Psychology Today in 2012 by a psychologist named Dr. Marilyn Wedge, Ph.D.  Her ideas may not be popular among many parents.  But the state of affairs with ADHD being regarded as mainly a neurological disorder worthy of psychiatric treatment deserves questioning.  Especially with the ubiquitous availability of the medications, the private re-sale of them, and resulting rise in stimulant abuse.

So we published this:

Study: Old grumps may live longer

The following is quoted from the Monitor on Psychology's In Brief May 2013 section:

***

Grumpy old men and women may live longer, according to research from the University of Erlangen–Nuremburg in Germany. Scientists examined data on current and expected future life satisfaction collected over 10 years from 40,000 people. They found that people who have low expectations for their future happiness experience less disability and die later than those who overestimate their future happiness. The findings suggest that pessimism about the future may encourage people to take more health and safety precautions (Psychology and Aging, online Feb. 18).

***

So we decided to make this:

Study: High school friends' grades associated with individual student grades

Here is the latest from the Monitor on Psychology's "In Brief" section:

Grade point averages may be contagious in high-school social networks, finds a study conducted by scientists at Binghamton University. Researchers asked 158 11th-graders to categorize their peers as best friends, friends, acquaintances, strangers or relatives and mapped how students performed in school relative to their peer groups. The researchers found that students whose friends were performing better academically were more likely to improve their own scores. Researchers also observed the opposite: When a student's friends' GPAs declined, the student's GPA also dropped (PLoS ONE, Feb. 13).

The original article may be found here.

So we posted this.