Representing the mind: adult talk to speech-delayed preschoolers

There is evidence from a range of studies that adult input influences a young child's language development Of interest is how adult input contributes to emotional and cognitive understandings. Children with special needs in mainstream schools are expected to develop social skills which entails the understanding of a situation from the perspective of other participants. The question is whether children with a speech delay hear adult language that helps them develop a theory of mind. The study of the acquisition of a theory of mind has focused on children who have been asked to carry out tasks demonstrating their understanding of what another person might be thinking. Tager-Flusberg et al. (2001) have found that children who perform better on theory of mind tasks are children who talk about thoughts and feelings. The present study looks at mental state language input provided to children that might help them learn to talk about thoughts and feelings. Activities involving children and their mothers, and activities in a preschool program were studied for cognitive and emotional content in the adult input. The input provided to normally developing children would be more supportive of the development of their talk about thoughts and feelings.

Emotional intelligence, attachment styles and couple relationship satisfaction

This study examined links between emotional intelligence (EI), attachment styles and gender as part of a larger study into the relationship between EI and relationship satisfaction. Two hundred and forty-six participants (age range 18-79, M=36.41, SD=13.78) were recruited via media advertisements. They completed measures of EI and attachment style in addition to providing demographic information. A significant main effect was found for attachment style across all aspects of EI. For gender, a significant main effect was found only for the empathy aspect of EI. Further, significant effects were found for the interaction of gender and attachment on both the mood and empathy factors of EI. These differences are discussed in the context of attachment style theory.

Geographical dislocation and adjustment in university students: the impact of attachment, autonomy and coping behaviour on stress and well-being

The relative contribution of geographical dislocation, attachment styles, coping behaviours, and autonomy, to successful student adjustment, was examined in relation to stress and well-being. A sample of 142 on campus first year university students, across four Victorian university campuses completed self-report questionnaires. Questionnaires included demographic, social network, intrapsychic (attachment and autonomy), and coping variables. Multiple regression analysis revealed that being female, not having made a friend to confide in personal matters, lower achieved autonomy, and use of emotion-focused coping predicted higher levels of student stress. A second multiple regression analysis revealed that living away from home, and preferring others to approach oneself to initiate conversation or friendships predicted lower well-being, whilst increased frequency of phone and email contact, and greater secure parent and peer attachment, predicted greater well-being. Pearson's correlations indicated that securely attached students used more problem focused coping and social support, whereas insecurely attached students used more emotion focused coping. Qualitative data indicated student concerns about being away from family and friends, finance, course direction and structure, social opportunities on campus, and generally adjusting to the university culture. It was concluded that first year on-campus students would benefit from program initiatives targeting enhancement of on-campus social opportunities, development of autonomy, problem focused coping behaviour, interpersonal and social assertiveness.

Longitudinal changes in dietary patterns during adult life

Despite the growing interest in dietary patterns, there have been few longitudinal investigations. The objective of the present study was to extend an earlier method of dietary pattern assessment to longitudinal binary data and to assess changes in patterns over time and in relation to socio-demographic covariates. A prospective national cohort of 1265 participants completed a 5 d food diary at three time-points during their adult life (at age 36 years in 1982, 43 years in 1989 and 53 years in 1999). Factor analysis identified three dietary patterns for women (fruit, vegetables and dairy; ethnic foods and alcohol; meat, potatoes and sweet foods) and two patterns in men (ethnic foods and alcohol; mixed). Trends in dietary pattern scores were calculated using random effects models. Marked changes were found in scores for all patterns between 1989 and 1999, with only the meat, potatoes and sweet foods pattern in women recording a decline. In a multiple variable model that included the three time-points, socio-demographic variables and BMI time-dependent covariates, both non-manual social class and higher education level were also strongly associated with the consumption of more items from the ethnic foods and alcohol pattern and the mixed pattern for men (P<0[middle dot]0001) and the fruit, vegetables and dairy pattern and the ethnic foods and alcohol pattern for women (P<0[middle dot]01). In conclusion, longitudinal changes in dietary patterns and across socio-economic groups can assist with targeting public health initiatives by identifying stages during adult life when interventions to improve diet would be most beneficial to health.

Evaluation of a stress management course in adult education centres in rural Australia

Objective: To investigate whether attending a six-week stress management course in a rural adult education centre is effective in reducing participants' levels of stress, anxiety and depression.

Design: Repeated measures design using self-report measures of stress, anxiety and depression at commencement and completion of a six-week stress management course, and six months post-completion follow up.

Setting and participants: One hundred and thirty-two adults (age range 18–73 years) living in a rural community who self-enrolled in the stress management course at adult education centres.

Intervention: The course consisted of six weekly group sessions. Each two-hour session conducted by mental health professionals, included teaching cognitive behavioural strategies targeted at reducing individual symptoms of stress.

Main outcome measures: Comparative analysis of pre- and post-test and six-month follow up on measures of stress (Stress Symptom Checklist), anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale).

Results: Results indicated a significant reduction in stress symptoms (F(7,90) = 34.92, P < 0.001), anxiety and depression (F(3,95) = 87.92, P < 0.001) from course commencement to course completion. These improvements were sustained six months after course completion for stress symptoms (F(11,65) = 22.40, P < 0.001), anxiety and depression (F(5,73) = 41.78, P < 0.001).

Conclusion: Findings demonstrate the stress management course is an effective community intervention in a rural community. Challenges for future implementation of the program are discussed.