The development of self-recognition in mirrors and live videos

By 24-months of age most children show mirror self-recognition. When surreptitiously marked on their forehead and then presented with a mirror, they explore their own head for the unexpected mark. Here we demonstrate that self-recognition in mirrors does not generalize to other visual feedback. We tested 80 children on mirror and live video versions of the task. Whereas 90% of 24-month olds passed the mirror version, only 35% passed the video version. Seventy percent of 30-month olds showed video selfrecognition and only by age 36-months did the pass rate on the video version reach 90%. It remains to be y 24-months of age most children show mirror self-recognition. When surreptitiously marked on their forehead and then presented with a mirror, they explore their own head for the unexpected mark. Here we demonstrate that self-recognition in mirrors does not generalize to other visual feedback. We tested 80 children on mirror and live video versions of the task. Whereas 90% of 24-month olds passed the mirror version, only 35% passed the video version. Seventy percent of 30-month olds showed video selfrecognition and only by age 36-months did the pass rate on the video version reach 90%. It remains to be

The need for competence tests : Queensland judicial perspectives on non-accused child witnesses in criminal proceedings : Part 1.

To examine the question of whether Queensland judicial officers endorse the need for competence tests for non-accused child witnesses in criminal proceedings, a mail survey was sent to judicial officers - questions considered the need to distinguish between children's sworn and unsworn evidence - relevance of age to competence - desirability of competence test formalities.

The development of preferences for specific body shapes

Research with adults has shown a preference for average-weight female figures with waist-to-hip ratios (WHR) of 0.7, and average weight male figures with waist-to-hip ratios of 0.9. This study investigated the development of preferences for WHR sizes as well as preferences for specific body weights. Five-hundred eleven children ranging in age from 6 to 17 were presented with drawings of 12 male and 12 female silhouettes varying in weight and WHR and asked to select one they thought looked the nicest or most attractive. The youngest children showed preferences for the underweight figures, changing to consistent preferences for the average weight figures in the teenage years. The developmental curves for waist-to-hip ratio preferences were linear, changing gradually over time to become more adult-like. Potential developmental models for the development of preferences for specific body shapes are considered in relation to these data.

Training school personnel to implement a universal school-based prevention of depression program under real-world conditions

The present study evaluated the impact of a universal prevention of depression program [the Resourceful Adolescent Program (RAP)] when implemented under real-world conditions in a school setting. Prior research has found the RAP program to be beneficial for high-school students when the program was implemented by university staff selected, trained, and supervised by a research team. The present study evaluated the RAP program when implemented by existing school personnel. Separately, we measured the impact of a training program for facilitators, the quality of subsequent program implementation, and the student's response to the RAP Program. Results showed that, in response to the training program, facilitators believed they had acquired the knowledge and confidence to implement the program and that the quality of program implementation was acceptable. The study did not demonstrate a beneficial impact of the RAP program for the students. The results raise important questions regarding the extent of training and ongoing supervision facilitators require if the beneficial outcomes for students are to be maintained when interventions are implemented under real-world conditions in school settings. (C) 2004 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Theory-of-mind development in oral deaf children with cochlear implants or conventional hearing aids

Background: In the context of the established finding that theory-of-mind (ToM) growth is seriously delayed in late-signing deaf children, and some evidence of equivalent delays in those learning speech with conventional hearing aids, this study's novel contribution was to explore ToM development in deaf children with cochlear implants. Implants can substantially boost auditory acuity and rates of language growth. Despite the implant, there are often problems socialising with hearing peers and some language difficulties, lending special theoretical interest to the present comparative design. Methods: A total of 52 children aged 4 to 12 years took a battery of false belief tests of ToM. There were 26 oral deaf children, half with implants and half with hearing aids, evenly divided between oral-only versus sign-plus-oral schools. Comparison groups of age-matched high-functioning children with autism and younger hearing children were also included. Results: No significant ToM differences emerged between deaf children with implants and those with hearing aids, nor between those in oral-only versus sign-plus-oral schools. Nor did the deaf children perform any better on the ToM tasks than their age peers with autism. Hearing preschoolers scored significantly higher than all other groups. For the deaf and the autistic children, as well as the preschoolers, rate of language development and verbal maturity significantly predicted variability in ToM, over and above chronological age. Conclusions: The finding that deaf children with cochlear implants are as delayed in ToM development as children with autism and their deaf peers with hearing aids or late sign language highlights the likely significance of peer interaction and early fluent communication with peers and family, whether in sign or in speech, in order to optimally facilitate the growth of social cognition and language.

California older adult Stroop test (COAST): Development of a Stroop test adapted for geriatric populations

An adaptation of the traditional Stroop test, the California Older Adult Stroop Test (COAST) (Pachana, Marcopulos, Yoash-Gantz & Thompson, 1995), has been developed specifically for use with a geriatric population, utilizing larger typeface, fewer items (50) per task, and more easily distinguished colors (red, yellow and green). Test-retest reliability and validity data are reviewed for both control and clinical populations. Increased error rates on the Stroop test compared to the COAST were found for the color and color/word interference tasks. These results are discussed in terms of changes in the visual system with increasing age. The implications for better test sensitivity with the COAST for older adult populations are discussed.

Steps in theory-of-mind development for children with deafness or autism

Prior research demonstrates that understanding theory of mind (ToM) is seriously and similarly delayed in late-signing deaf children and children with autism. Are these children simply delayed in timing relative to typical children, or do they demonstrate different patterns of development? The current research addressed this question by testing 145 children (ranging from 3 to 13 years) with deafness, autism, or typical development using a ToM scale. Results indicate that all groups followed the same sequence of steps, up to a point, but that children with autism showed an importantly different sequence of understandings (in the later steps of the progression) relative to all other groups.

Do chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) understand single invisible displacement?

Previous research suggests that chimpanzees understand single invisible displacement. However, this Piagetian task may be solvable through the use of simple search strategies rather than through mentally representing the past trajectory of an object. Four control conditions were thus administered to two chimpanzees in order to separate associative search strategies from performance based on mental representation. Strategies involving experimenter cue-use, search at the last or first box visited by the displacement device, and search at boxes adjacent to the displacement device were systematically controlled for. Chimpanzees showed no indications of utilizing these simple strategies, suggesting that their capacity to mentally represent single invisible displacements is comparable to that of 18-24-month-old children.