Exploring Body-Related Experiences among Individuals with Spinal Cord Injury

Using modified constructivist grounded theory, the purpose of the present study was to explore body-related experiences, specifically body image, in people with spinal cord injury. A total of nine participants (five women, four men) who had a broad range of body image experiences (from very negative to very positive) were interviewed. Most participants explained experiencing a fluctuating body image that varied from day-to-day. Negative body image experiences were represented by appearance, weight concerns, and function with all body image experiences encompassed by self-presentational concerns and tactics (an unanticipated finding). Positive body image was represented by acceptance, appreciation and gratitude of the body. Interestingly, negative body image experiences were not found to be represented by the opposite of positive body image experiences as they were each distinct. These findings have direct implications for medical professionals in hospital and rehabilitation settings to understand the importance of body image after spinal cord injury.

The Association of Energy Intake with Body Mass in Children With and Without Probable Developmental Coordination Disorder

Objective To determine if there is an association between energy intake (EI) and overweight or obesity status (OWOB) in children with and without probable developmental coordination disorder (p-DCD). Methods 1905 children were included. The Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency was used to assess p-DCD, body mass index for OWOB, and the Harvard Food Frequency Questionnaire for EI. Comparative tests and logistic regressions were performed. Results Reported EI was similar between p-DCD and non-DCD children among boys (2291 vs. 2281 kcal/day, p=0.917), but much lower in p-DCD compared to non-DCD girls (1745 vs.. 2068 kcal/day, p=0.007). EI was negatively associated with OWOB in girls only (OR: 0.82 (0.68, 0.98)). Conclusions Girls with p-DCD have a lower reported EI compared to their non-DCD peers. EI is negatively associated with OWOB in girls with p-DCD. Future research is needed to assess longitudinally the potential impact of EI on OWOB in this population.

Genetic and Electrophysiological Correlates of Self-Regulation in Adolescence

Self-regulation is considered a powerful predictor of behavioral and mental health outcomes during adolescence and emerging adulthood. In this dissertation I address some electrophysiological and genetic correlates of this important skill set in a series of four studies. Across all studies event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded as participants responded to tones presented in attended and unattended channels in an auditory selective attention task. In Study 1, examining these ERPs in relation to parental reports on the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) revealed that an early frontal positivity (EFP) elicited by to-be-ignored/unattended tones was larger in those with poorer self-regulation. As is traditionally found, N1 amplitudes were more negative for the to-be-attended rather than unattended tones. Additionally, N1 latencies to unattended tones correlated with parent-ratings on the BRIEF, where shorter latencies predicted better self-regulation. In Study 2 I tested a model of the associations between selfregulation scores and allelic variations in monoamine neurotransmitter genes, and their concurrent links to ERP markers of attentional control. Allelic variations in dopaminerelated genes predicted both my ERP markers and self-regulatory variables, and played a moderating role in the association between the two. In Study 3 I examined whether training in Integra Mindfulness Martial Arts, an intervention program which trains elements of self-regulation, would lead to improvement in ERP markers of attentional control and parent-report BRIEF scores in a group of adolescents with self-regulatory difficulties. I found that those in the treatment group amplified their processing of attended relative to unattended stimuli over time, and reduced their levels of problematic behaviour whereas those in the waitlist control group showed little to no change on both of these metrics. In Study 4 I examined potential associations between self-regulation and attentional control in a group of emerging adults. Both event-related spectral perturbations (ERSPs) and intertrial coherence (ITC) in the alpha and theta range predicted individual differences in self-regulation. Across the four studies I was able to conclude that real-world self-regulation is indeed associated with the neural markers of attentional control. Targeted interventions focusing on attentional control may improve self-regulation in those experiencing difficulties in this regard.