Gray matter deficits, mismatch negativity, and outcomes in schizophrenia

Reduced mismatch negativity (MMN) in response to auditory change is a well-established finding in schizophrenia and has been shown to be correlated with impaired daily functioning, rather than with hallmark signs and symptoms of the disorder. In this study, we investigated (1) whether the relationship between reduced MMN and impaired daily functioning is mediated by cortical volume loss in temporal and frontal brain regions in schizophrenia and (2) whether this relationship varies with the type of auditory deviant generating MMN. MMN in response to duration, frequency, and intensity deviants was recorded from 18 schizophrenia subjects and 18 pairwise age- and gender-matched healthy subjects. Patients’ levels of global functioning were rated on the Social and Occupational Functioning Assessment Scale. High-resolution structural magnetic resonance scans were acquired to generate average cerebral cortex and temporal lobe models using cortical pattern matching. This technique allows accurate statistical comparison and averaging of cortical measures across subjects, despite wide variations in gyral patterns. MMN amplitude was reduced in schizophrenia patients and correlated with their impaired day-to-day function level. Only in patients, bilateral gray matter reduction in Heschl’s gyrus, as well as motor and executive regions of the frontal cortex, correlated with reduced MMN amplitude in response to frequency deviants, while reduced gray matter in right Heschl’s gyrus also correlated with reduced MMN to duration deviants. Our findings further support the importance of MMN reduction in schizophrenia by linking frontotemporal cerebral gray matter pathology to an automatically generated event-related potential index of daily functioning.

Seeing pedestrians at night : effect of driver age and visual abilities

Purpose To quantify the effects of driver age on night-time pedestrian conspicuity, and to determine whether individual differences in visual performance can predict drivers' ability to recognise pedestrians at night. Methods Participants were 32 visually normal drivers (20 younger: M = 24.4 years ± 6.4 years; 12 older: M = 72.0 years ± 5.0 years). Visual performance was measured in a laboratory-based testing session including visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, motion sensitivity and the useful field of view. Night-time pedestrian recognition distances were recorded while participants drove an instrumented vehicle along a closed road course at night; to increase the workload of drivers, auditory and visual distracter tasks were presented for some of the laps. Pedestrians walked in place, sideways to the oncoming vehicles, and wore either a standard high visibility reflective vest or reflective tape positioned on the movable joints (biological motion). Results Driver age and pedestrian clothing significantly (p < 0.05) affected the distance at which the drivers first responded to the pedestrians. Older drivers recognised pedestrians at approximately half the distance of the younger drivers and pedestrians were recognised more often and at longer distances when they wore a biological motion reflective clothing configuration than when they wore a reflective vest. Motion sensitivity was an independent predictor of pedestrian recognition distance, even when controlling for driver age. Conclusions The night-time pedestrian recognition capacity of older drivers was significantly worse than that of younger drivers. The distance at which drivers first recognised pedestrians at night was best predicted by a test of motion sensitivity.

Cerebellar grey matter deficits in first-episode schizophrenia mapped using cortical pattern matching

Cerebellar dysfunction has been proposed to lead to “cognitive dysmetria” in schizophrenia via the cortico-cerebellar-thalamic-cortical circuit, contributing to a range of cognitive and clinical symptoms of the disorder. Here we investigated total cerebellar grey and white matter volumes and cerebellar regional grey matter abnormalities in 13 remitted first-episode schizophrenia patients with less than 2 years’ duration of illness. Patient data were compared to 13 pair-wise age, gender, and handedness-matched healthy volunteers using cortical pattern averaging on high-resolution magnetic resonance images. Total cerebellar volume and total grey matter volumes in first-episode schizophrenia patients did not differ from healthy control subjects, but total cerebellar white matter was increased and total grey to white matter ratios were reduced in patients. Four clusters of cerebellar grey matter reduction were identified: (i) in superior vermis; (ii) in the left lobuli VI; (iii) in right-inferior lobule IX, extending into left lobule IX; and (iv) bilaterally in the areas of lobuli III, peduncle and left flocculus. Grey matter deficits were particularly prominent in right lobuli III and IX, left flocculus and bilateral pedunculi. These cerebellar areas have been implicated in attention control, emotional regulation, social functioning, initiation of smooth pursuit eye movements, eye-blink conditioning, language processing, verbal memory, executive function and the processing of spatial and emotional information. Consistent with common clinical, cognitive, and pathophysiological signs of established illness, our findings demonstrate cerebellar pathology as early as in first-episode schizophrenia.

Investigating the mediating effects of emotional intelligence and coping on problem behaviours in adolescents

This study explored the mediating effect of emotional intelligence (EI) and coping strategies on problem behaviours in Australian adolescents. One hundred and forty-five adolescents (60 boys and 85 girls with a mean age of 12.02 years) completed self-report instruments of EI, stress coping strategies, and problem behaviours. The relationships between Emotional Management and Control and engagement in internalising and externalising behaviours were found to be mediated by the use of non-productive coping strategies. Mediation models of the relationship between problem behaviours and the Understanding Emotions and Emotional Recognition and Expression dimensions were found to be only partially mediated by the engagement in problem-focused and non-productive coping strategies. The results are discussed in regards to how coping strategies utilised in adolescence may produce more or less adaptive patterns of coping during adulthood. The development of emotional abilities may be required to improve coping outcomes for adolescents, which in turn may produce better psychological outcomes for adolescents in the long term.

Facial identity and facial expression matching in 5 - 12-year-old children and adults

Facial identity and facial expression matching tasks were completed by 5–12-year-old children and adults using stimuli extracted from the same set of normalized faces. Configural and feature processing were examined using speed and accuracy of responding and facial feature selection, respectively. Facial identity matching was slower than face expression matching for all age groups. Large age effects were found on both speed and accuracy of responding and feature use in both identity and expression matching tasks. Eye region preference was found on the facial identity task and mouth region preference on the facial expression task. Use of mouth region information for facial expression matching increased with age, whereas use of eye region information for facial identity matching peaked early. The feature use information suggests that the specific use of primary facial features to arrive at identity and emotion matching judgments matures across middle childhood.

Comparing the effectiveness of education and technology in reducing wood smoke pollution: A field experiment

This study describes a field experiment assessing the effectiveness of education and technological innovation in reducing air pollution generated by domestic wood heaters. Two-hundred and twenty four households from a small regional center in Australia were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions: (1) Education only – households received a wood smoke reduction education pack containing information about the negative health impacts of wood smoke pollution, and advice about wood heater operation and firewood management; (2) SmartBurn only – households received a SmartBurn canister designed to improve combustion and help wood fires burn more efficiently, (3) Education and SmartBurn, and (4) neither Education nor SmartBurn (control). Analysis of covariance, controlling for pre-intervention household wood smoke emissions, wood moisture content, and wood heater age, revealed that education and SmartBurn were both associated with significant reduction in wood smoke emissions during the post-intervention period. Follow-up mediation analyses indicated that education reduced emissions by improving wood heater operation practices, but not by increasing health risk perceptions. As predicted, SmartBurn exerted a direct effect on emission levels, unmediated by wood heater operation practices or health risk perceptions.

Substance use disorders

Substance use disorders involve alcohol and a range of other legal and illicit drugs, and are characterised by a preoccupation with or craving for the substance, a greater priority to substance use than other goals, and/or a difficulty controlling consumption. Use of the substance may continue despite negative impacts on other activities, roles, relationships, and physical and mental health. Increased physical tolerance to the substance and withdrawal symptoms may also occur. Broad impacts on social and cognitive functioning and on physical and mental health emerge with increasing problem severity. Diffuse cognitive impairment may persist for up to 12 months post-detoxification in alcohol dependence. Psychological comorbidity is common, particularly mood and anxiety disorders. A quarter of all Australians will have a substance use disorder in their lifetime. One in five will consume alcohol at a level that puts them at risk of harm from an alcohol-related disease or injury over their lifetime. Australians aged 18 to 29 years are at higher risk than other age groups.

Best practice in peer-led curriculum content : informing an interactive program to improve passenger safety among high school seniors

Despite ongoing improvements in behaviour change strategies, licensing models and road law enforcement measures young drivers remain significantly over-represented in fatal and non-fatal road related crashes. This paper focuses on the safety of those approaching driving age and identifies both high priority road safety messages and relevant peer-led strategies to guide the development school programs. It summarises the review in a program logic model built around the messages and identified curriculum elements, as they may be best operationalised within the licensing and school contexts in Victoria. This paper summarises a review of common deliberate risk-taking and non-deliberate unsafe driving behaviours among novice drivers, highlighting risks associated with speeding, driving while fatigued, driving while impaired and carrying passengers. Common beliefs of young people that predict risky driving were reviewed, particularly with consideration of those beliefs that can be operationalised in a behaviour change school program. Key components of adolescent risk behaviour change programs were also reviewed, which identified a number of strategies for incorporation in a school based behaviour change program, including: a well-structured theoretical design and delivery, thoughtfully considered peer-selected processes, adequate training and supervision of peer facilitators, a process for monitoring and sustainability, and interactive delivery and participant discussions. The research base is then summarised in a program logic model with further discussion about the quality of the current state of knowledge of evaluation of behaviour change programs and the need for considerable development in program evaluation.

Burden of depressive disorders by country, sex, age, and year : findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010

Background Depressive disorders were a leading cause of burden in the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 1990 and 2000 studies. Here, we analyze the burden of depressive disorders in GBD 2010 and present severity proportions, burden by country, region, age, sex, and year, as well as burden of depressive disorders as a risk factor for suicide and ischemic heart disease. Methods and Findings Burden was calculated for major depressive disorder (MDD) and dysthymia. A systematic review of epidemiological data was conducted. The data were pooled using a Bayesian meta-regression. Disability weights from population survey data quantified the severity of health loss from depressive disorders. These weights were used to calculate years lived with disability (YLDs) and disability adjusted life years (DALYs). Separate DALYs were estimated for suicide and ischemic heart disease attributable to depressive disorders.Depressive disorders were the second leading cause of YLDs in 2010. MDD accounted for 8.2% (5.9%-10.8%) of global YLDs and dysthymia for 1.4% (0.9%-2.0%). Depressive disorders were a leading cause of DALYs even though no mortality was attributed to them as the underlying cause. MDD accounted for 2.5% (1.9%-3.2%) of global DALYs and dysthymia for 0.5% (0.3%-0.6%). There was more regional variation in burden for MDD than for dysthymia; with higher estimates in females, and adults of working age. Whilst burden increased by 37.5% between 1990 and 2010, this was due to population growth and ageing. MDD explained 16 million suicide DALYs and almost 4 million ischemic heart disease DALYs. This attributable burden would increase the overall burden of depressive disorders from 3.0% (2.2%-3.8%) to 3.8% (3.0%-4.7%) of global DALYs. Conclusions GBD 2010 identified depressive disorders as a leading cause of burden. MDD was also a contributor of burden allocated to suicide and ischemic heart disease. These findings emphasize the importance of including depressive disorders as a public-health priority and implementing cost-effective interventions to reduce its burden.Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary.

On standby? A comparison of online and offline witnesses to bullying and their bystander behaviour

Given their ubiquitous presence as witnesses to school-yard bullying, the role of the ‘bystander’ has been studied extensively. The prevalence and behaviour of bystanders to cyberbullying, however, is less understood. In an anonymous, school-based questionnaire, 716 secondary school students from South-East Queensland reported whether they had witnessed traditional and/or cyberbullying, and how they responded to each type. Overlap in bystander roles between online and offline environments was examined, as was their relationship to age and gender. Students who witnessed traditional bullying were more likely to have witnessed cyberbullying. Bystanders’ behaviour was sometimes similar in both contexts of traditional and cyberbullying, mainly if they were outsiders but half of the 256 students who reported witnessing both traditional and cyberbullying, acted in different roles across the two environments. The implications of the findings are discussed in the context of previous research on cyberbullying and traditional-bystanders. Future research should further explore the role of bystanders online, including examining whether known predictors of traditional-bystander behaviour similarly predict cyber-bystander behaviour.

The Thoughts Questionnaire (TQ) for family caregivers of people with dementia

Objectives: To develop a new measure of dysfunctional thoughts for family caregivers of people living with dementia. These thoughts can contribute to negative outcomes, but they may be modifiable. Method: A stepwise process was used to develop the Thoughts Questionnaire, commencing with item generation, concept mapping, and pilot testing in a sample of professional and nonprofessional caregivers of people with dementia (n = 18). Next, an independent sample of 35 family caregivers of people with dementia (30 female; M age = 64.30, standard deviation = 10.65) completed: (a) the Thoughts Questionnaire; (b) an existing measure of dysfunctional thoughts, the Dementia Thoughts Caregivers Questionnaire; and (c) separate validated measures of depressive symptoms, caregiver stress, and coping, respectively. Results: The level of agreement with dysfunctional thought statements from the Dementia Thoughts Caregivers Questionnaire and Thoughts Questionnaire was low. However, a small number of Thoughts Questionnaire statements were strongly endorsed by over 85% of the sample. Both dysfunctional thought measures had adequate reliability, but total scores were not significantly intercorrelated (r = .287, p = .095). Only the Thoughts Questionnaire was significantly, positively correlated with most caregiver stress measures. Thoughts Questionnaire items required a much lower reading level than the Dementia Thoughts Caregivers Questionnaire items. Discussion: This study provides preliminary data on a tool for assessing the negative role-related thoughts that family caregivers of people with dementia may experience. Given that these thoughts are implicated in depression but they may be modified, the capacity to identify dysfunctional thoughts may prove useful in caregiver support programs.

Do twins differ from single-born children on rates of behavioral difficulty in early childhood? A study of sibling relationship risk factors

The hypothesis that twinning raises risk for behavioral difficulties in childhood is persistent, yet there is limited and inconsistent empirical evidence. Simple mean comparison without control for confounders provides data on prevalence rates but cannot provide knowledge about risk or etiology. To assess the effect of twin relationship on behavior, comparison of patterns of association with single-born siblings may be informative. Analyses of data from an Australian sample of twins and single-born children (N = 305, mean age 4 years 9 months, and a follow-up 12 months later) were undertaken. The outcome measure was the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Predictor and control measures were obtained from parent report on the sibling/co-twin relationship behavior, family demographics, and obstetric history. We assessed difference between twins and single-born children in two respects: (a) mean behavioral difficulties, and (b) patterns of association between sibling relationship and behavioral difficulties, controlling for confounders. Results showed no differences in mean levels of behavioral difficulties between twins and single-born siblings identifying the importance of statistical control for family and obstetric adversity. Differences in patterns of association were found; for twin children, conflict in their co-twin relationship predicted externalizing behaviors, while for single-born children conflict predicted internalizing behaviors. The findings of mean differences between twin and single-born children in social background, but not in behavioral difficulties, underscore the necessity of statistical control to identify risk associated with twinning compared with risk associated with family and obstetric background factors.

“Do I really need a nap?”: The role of sleep science in informing sleep practices in early childhood education and care settings

A compelling body of studies identifies the importance of sleep for children’s learning, behavioral regulation, and health. These studies have primarily focused on nighttime sleep or on total sleep duration. The independent contribution of daytime sleep, or napping, in childhood is an emerging research focus. Daytime sleep is particularly pertinent to the context of early childhood education and care (ECEC) where, internationally, allocation of time for naps is commonplace through to the time of school entry. The biological value of napping varies with neurological maturity and with individual circumstance. Beyond the age of 3 years, when monophasic sleep patterns become typical, there is an increasing disjuncture between children’s normative sleep requirements and ECEC practice. At this time, research evidence consistently identifies an association between napping and decreased quality and duration of night sleep. We assess the implications of this evidence for educational practice and health policy. We identify the need to distinguish the functions of napping from those of rest, and assert the need for evidence-based guidelines on sleep–rest practices in ECEC settings to accommodate individual variation in sleep needs. Given both the evidence on the impact of children’s nighttime sleep on long-term trajectories of health and well-being and the high rates of child attendance in ECEC programs, we conclude that policy and practice regarding naptime have significant implications for child welfare and ongoing public health.

Interaction of erythrocyte eicosapentaenoic acid and physical activity predicts reduced risk of mild cognitive impairment

Objectives To evaluate relationships between self-reported physical activity, proportions of long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCn3) in erythrocyte content (percentage of total fatty acids) and risk of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in older adults. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted. Community-dwelling male and female (n = 84) participants over the age of 65 years with and without MCI were tested for erythrocyte proportions of the LCn3s eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Physical activity was measured using a validated questionnaire. Results The interaction between erythrocyte EPA, but not DHA, and increased physical activity was associated with increased odds of a non-MCI classification. Conclusion An interaction between physical activity and erythrocyte EPA content (percentage of fatty acids) significantly predicted MCI status in older adults. Randomised control trials are needed to examine the potential for supplementation with EPA in combination with increased physical activity to mitigate the risk of MCI in ageing adults.

The role of resilience and mTBI as predictors of postconcussional disorder symptomatology

Objective Resilience is 1 of several factors that are thought to contribute to outcome following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). This study explored the predictors of the postconcussional syndrome (PCS) symptoms that can occur following mTBI. We hypothesized that a reported recent mTBI and lower psychological resilience would predict worse reported PCS symptomatology. Method 233 participants completed the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI) and the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS). Three NSI scores were used to define PCS symptomatology. A total of 35 participants reported an mTBI (as operationally defined by the World Health Organization) that was sustained between 1 and 6 months prior to their participation (positive mTBI history); the remainder reported having never had an mTBI. Results Regression analyses revealed that a positive reported recent mTBI history and lower psychological resilience were significant independent predictors of reported PCS symptomatology. These results were found for the 3 PCS scores from the NSI, including using a stringent caseness criterion, p < .05. Demographic variables (age and gender) were not related to outcome, with the exception of education in some analyses. Conclusion The results demonstrate that: (a) both perceived psychological resilience and mTBI history play a role in whether or not PCS symptoms are experienced, even when demographic variables are considered, and; (b) of these 2 variables, lower perceived psychological resilience was the strongest predictor of PCS-like symptomatology.