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Biomedical subjects

J E Bates

Publications and source records attributed to J E Bates.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Patterns of change in early childhood aggressive-disruptive behavior: gender differences in predictions from early coercive and affectionate mother-child interactions.

The present study focused on mother-child interaction predictors of initial levels and change in child aggressive and disruptive behavior at school from kindergarten to third grade. Aggression-disruption was measured via annual reports from teachers and peers. Ordinary least-squares regression was used to identify 8 separate child aggression trajectories, 4 for each gender: high initial levels with increases in aggression, high initial levels with decrease in aggression, low initial levels with increases in aggression, and low initial levels with decreases in aggression. Mother-child interaction measures of coercion and nonaffection collected prior to kindergarten were predictive of initial levels of aggression-disruption in kindergarten in both boys and girls. However, boys and girls differed in how coercion and nonaffection predicted change in aggression-disruption across elementary school years. For boys, high coercion and nonaffection were particularly associated with the high-increasing-aggression trajectory, but for girls, high levels of coercion and nonaffection were associated with the high-decreasing-aggression trajectory. This difference is discussed in the context of Patterson et al.'s coercion training theory, and the need for gender-specific theories of aggressive development is noted.

Affect↗

Social information-processing patterns partially mediate the effect of early physical abuse on later conduct problems.

The authors tested the hypothesis that early physical abuse is associated with later externalizing behavior outcomes and that this relation is mediated by the intervening development of biased social information-processing patterns. They assessed 584 randomly selected boys and girls from European American and African American backgrounds for the lifetime experience of physical abuse through clinical interviews with mothers prior to the child's matriculation in kindergarten. Early abuse increased the risk of teacher-rated externalizing outcomes in Grades 3 and 4 by fourfold, and this effect could not be accounted for by confounded ecological or child factors. Abuse was associated with later processing patterns (encoding errors, hostile attributional biases, accessing of aggressive responses, and positive evaluations of aggression), which, in turn, predicted later externalizing outcomes.

Age of Onset↗

Socialization mediators of the relation between socioeconomic status and child conduct problems.

The goal was to examine processes in socialization that might account for an observed relation between early socioeconomic status and later child behavior problems. A representative sample of 585 children (n = 51 from the lowest socioeconomic class) was followed from preschool to grade 3. Socioeconomic status assessed in preschool significantly predicted teacher-rated externalizing problems and peer-rated aggressive behavior in kindergarten and grades 1, 2, and 3. Socioeconomic status was significantly negatively correlated with 8 factors in the child's socialization and social context, including harsh discipline, lack of maternal warmth, exposure to aggressive adult models, maternal aggressive values, family life stressors, mother's lack of social support, peer group instability, and lack of cognitive stimulation. These factors, in turn, significantly predicted teacher-rated externalizing problems and peer-nominated aggression and accounted for over half of the total effect of socioeconomic status on these outcomes. These findings suggest that part of the effect of socioeconomic status on children's aggressive development may be mediated by status-related socializing experiences.

Aggression↗

Some consequences of early harsh discipline: child aggression and a maladaptive social information processing style.

Although a number of studies have reported a relation between abusive parental behavior and later aggressive behavior in the victim, many of these investigations have had methodological limitations that make precise interpretation of their results problematic. In the present study, we attempted to determine whether harsh parental discipline occurring early in life was associated with later aggression and internalizing behavior in children, using a prospective design with randomly selected samples to avoid some of these methodological difficulties. Structural equation modeling indicated a consistent relation between harsh discipline and aggression in 2 separate cohorts of children. This relation did not appear to be due to possible confounding factors such as child temperament, SES, and marital violence, although there was some indication in our data that the latter variables were related to child aggression. In addition, our analyses suggested that the effect of harsh discipline on child aggression may be mediated at least in part by maladaptive social information processing patterns that develop in response to the harsh discipline.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

The future of podiatric medical education. Cautious optimism.

The leadership of the Pennsylvania College of Podiatric Medicine sets forth the following treatise on the outlook for podiatric medical education into the 21st century. Despite the seemingly impossible challenges facing the profession and its students, it is their opinion that the future is bright and with dedicated effort the profession will become stronger in the years ahead.

Education, Medical↗

Mechanisms in the cycle of violence.

Two questions concerning the effect of physical abuse in early childhood on the child's development of aggressive behavior are the focus of this article. The first is whether abuse per se has deleterious effects. In earlier studies, in which samples were nonrepresentative and family ecological factors (such as poverty, marital violence, and family instability) and child biological variables (such as early health problems and temperament) were ignored, findings have been ambiguous. Results from a prospective study of a representative sample of 309 children indicated that physical abuse is indeed a risk factor for later aggressive behavior even when the other ecological and biological factors are known. The second question concerns the processes by which antisocial development occurs in abused children. Abused children tended to acquire deviant patterns of processing social information, and these may mediate the development of aggressive behavior.

Aggression↗

Early antecedents of childhood impulsivity: the role of parent-child interaction, cognitive competence, and temperament.

This prospective longitudinal investigation examined early mother-child interaction as a predictor of children's later self-control capabilities. Multimethod assessments of mother-child relationships, primarily focused on observed relationship qualities in the home, were conducted during the first 2 years and related to children's later impulse control capabilities. Child cognitive competence and temperament assessed during the 2nd year were also related to later impulsivity. Follow-up assessments of children's impulsivity were conducted at age 6 (N = 79), using a variety of laboratory measures. Findings indicated that responsive, cognitively stimulating parent-toddler interactions in the 2nd year modestly predicted later measures of cognitive nonimpulsivity and ability to delay gratification. Security of mother-infant attachment predicted the same outcomes, but only for boys and not for girls. Child cognitive competence in the 2nd year also consistently predicted children's later impulse control capabilities, although this was not true for measures of child temperament. Overall, the findings support a multidimensional and developmental conceptualization of the early antecedents of childhood impulsivity.

Child↗

Mother-toddler problem solving: antecedents in attachment, home behavior, and temperament.

In a widely cited study, Matas, Arend, and Sroufe showed that mother-toddler interaction during problem solving at age 2 years was related to the child's prior attachment security. The current study asked (1) whether an independent laboratory could replicate this attachment finding, and (2) whether problem-solving interactions relate to mother-child interactions observed at home and to child temperament measured at 6, 13, and 24 months. Replicating Matas et al., secure dyads worked more competently, and mothers showed better quality of assistance and supportive presence. Mother-child home interaction also predicted problem solving: positive involvement at home predicted effective, unconflicted problem solving. Negative control at home did not predict problem-solving interaction. Unadaptable temperament was generally related to dependency in problem solving. Several patterns of correlations appeared to be mediated by sex of child, e.g., difficult temperament in boys predicted more effective, unconflicted problem solving, while for girls it predicted more conflict.

Affect↗

The "diff-if". Use of microcomputer analysis to triage blood specimens for microscopic examination.

Increasingly, all automated blood counts are not accompanied by a microscopic white blood cell differential. A popular strategy is to obtain a manual differential if any part of the automated blood count and differential is outside specified limits (the "diff-if" strategy). The authors compared two sets of criteria to triage blood counts for manual differentials: previously recommended numeric values, and the analysis of a microcomputer program. In a population of subjects with a high percentage of hematologic disorders, the microcomputer program and the numeric criteria were equally specific (excluding normal blood smears); the program was more sensitive for bands, immature granulocytes, monocytes, nucleated red blood cells, reticulocytosis, teardrops, red blood cell fragments, and hypersegmented neutrophils. The numeric criteria were more sensitive for eosinophilia (less than 1.0 X 10(9)/L) and mandated fewer manual differentials. In a population of predominantly normal subjects, the program was more sensitive for increased bands and equally sensitive for eosinophilia, the only abnormalities observed on the smear. In a population of subjects with predominantly abnormal blood counts, but excluding most primary hematologic disorders, there were few blood smears with abnormalities beyond eosinophilia or increased bands. In both of these groups, the computer program mandated more manual differentials than did the numeric criteria. The authors conclude that microcomputer analysis by the program tested was more sensitive than numeric criteria to identify specimens with abnormal blood smears. Specificity depended on the patient population. The choice of a triage strategy should be based on the individual laboratory's patient population.

Blood↗

Evaluation of BCDE, a microcomputer program to analyze automated blood counts and differentials.

A microcomputer program (BCDE) has been developed to analyze automated blood cell counts and differentials' similarity to normal values or to 36 disease categories. In 50 normal subjects, the analytic program listed the correct diagnosis as the first diagnosis in 49 cases (the only diagnosis in 44) and second of two diagnoses in one case. In 182 subjects with known hematologic disorders, the correct diagnosis was listed first in 134 and second or third in an additional 40. Subjects with iron deficiency, heterozygous thalassemia, immune thrombocytopenia, anemia of chronic disease, reactive thrombocytosis, acute infection, and chronic leukemia had the disorder identified as the most likely one by the analytic program with both sensitivity greater than 80% and specificity greater than 98%. Subjects with acute leukemia, folate deficiency, sickle cell anemia, cytotoxic chemotherapy, and chronic liver disease had the disorder identified as most likely by the program with a sensitivity less than 80%. In a different 11 cases with known hematologic status, a panel of 37 physicians identified the disorder(s) or normality only 72% of the time, whereas the analytic program listed the correct diagnosis first in 10 of 11 (91%). The analytic program appears useful for both triage of normal from abnormal data and for the initial differential analysis of abnormal data.

Blood Cell Count↗

Mother-child interaction at age two years and perceived difficult temperament.

The current study investigated a hypothesized link between early child temperament and later problem behavior. Early temperament was assessed at ages 6, 13, and 24 months via mother ratings on age-appropriate versions of the Infant Characteristics Questionnaire. The 24-month form was developed in this study. Factor analyses of the questionnaire indicated a clear difficultness factor that was similar in content across all 3 ages. The 6-, 13-, and 24-month difficultness factors were correlated with home observation measures of mother-toddler interaction at age 24 months. Home observation indexes focused on situations where the mother tried to control the toddler's "trouble" behavior. Children rated by their mothers as difficult at 24 months were found to approach "mild trouble" more frequently than children perceived as easy or average. Furthermore, their mothers used intrusive control tactics more frequently than mothers of easy or average children. Analysis of behavior sequence variables showed that difficult children resisted their mothers' control attempts significantly more often than easy or average children, that is, had more conflict with the mothers. The 6- and 13-month difficultness scores predicted both the 2-year-old difficultness rating and the observed conflict indexes. It is suggested that the conflict observed in the interaction between the difficult 2-year-olds and their mothers is conceptually similar to the conflictual behavior characteristic of older, clinically referred, socially aggressive children and their mothers. Thus, the conflicted interactions found at age 2 years may represent an empirically based link between difficult infant temperament and the development of childhood problem behavior.

Aggression↗

Continuity of individual differences in the mother-infant relationship from six to thirteen months.

The current study searched for continuities in mother-infant interaction observed at home, maternally perceived infant difficultness, and infant developmental competency. Also assessed were the possible moderator variables of maternal report of satisfaction with adjustment to the infant and background characteristics, for example, SES, presence of other young children, and infant gender. 128 dyads were assessed at ages 6 and 13 months. Many of the variables used to evaluate continuity were composites based on factor analysis. Bivariate correlations between 6- and 13-month variables produced a complex picture. In broad overview, as predicted by the prior literature, they indicated some degree of stability for mother variables and markedly less for the infant variables. Canonical correlation analysis yielded 3 significant canonical variates, producing a more integrated picture. The dimensions of continuity revealed by these variates were (1) Affectionate, Intellectually Stimulating Mothering, which had modest-to-moderate links to the indexes of infant competence; (2) Infant Temperamental Difficultness, which was determined mainly by consistency in mother report on 2 age-adjusted versions of the Infant Characteristics Questionnaire but which also contained loadings for objectively observed infant fussing, crying, and social demandingness; and (3) an unnamed dimension which resembles a pattern of intense involvement, both positive and negative, seen in older, clinically referred families.

Adult↗

Dimensions of individuality in the mother-infant relationship at six months of age.

Prior studies on mothers and infants have explored a great many individual variations. To date, however, the empirically based meaningfulness of these variations is quite limited. The current study attempts to achieve a relatively comprehensive empirical description of the mother-infant relationship at the age of 6 months, with special focus on possible correlates of infant developmental competence. 168 mother-infant pairs contributed data on a wide variety of measures, including the following categories: (a) observed interactions, at home and in the laboratory; (b) mother perception of the infant's temperament, mother personality, social support, and family adjustment to the new baby; (c) infant performance on the Bayley test; and (d) background variables such as birth order and economic status. Relationships among the various measures were modeled with factor analytic methods and interpreted in connection with current research issues. The most important findings are the following: (1) The main factor is widely generalizable dimension in maternal behavior of warm, responsive interaction with the infant. (2) Some elements of this main factor overlap with another factor indexing the extent to which mother impresses observer as educationally stimulating. Social class was associated with this teaching factor, but not with the first, more affection- and play-oriented, dimension. (3) Mother perceptions of difficult temperament in the infant were associated with objectively observed crying and fussing but were essentially independent of the major dimensions of maternal behavior. (4) Observed active and happy behaviors of the infant were somewhat related to normative status on the Bayley test, but neither active and happy behavior nor Bayley score correlated with the important dimensions of maternal behavior.

Child Development↗

The cries of infants of differing levels of perceived temperamental difficultness: acoustic properties and effects on listeners.

The meaning of mother perceptions of their infants' temperamental difficultness was explored in 3 ways. (1) Subjective ratings were elicited from unrelated mothers of infants (N = 45) who listened to the cries of 4-6-month-old infants perceived by their own mothers as having difficult, average, or easy temperament (N = 4 per category). Subjects rated the difficult- and average-group cries as more irritating and spoiled sounding than the easy-group cries, and more likely to be due to emotional or psychological causes. However, there were no differences in the subjects' hypothetical interventions. (2) The meaning of the difficultness designations was also tested by measuring the acoustic properties of the cries of the 12 infants using sound spectrographs. The clearest difference was that the more difficult groups showed increased amounts of pausing within and between cry sounds, which is interpreted as adding a sense of urgent demand to the cry communication. (3) The study also considered the effects of a variety of listener background, personality, and attitude variables. The listener's perception of the difficultness of her own 4-6-month, firstborn infant was not related to ratings of the cries, but her prior experience with infants and level of self-described empathy were related to the ratings. For example, the more experienced the listener, the less the easy and average infants' cries were rated as spoiled, and the more the difficult infants' cries were seen as spoiled.

Attitude↗

Adult individual differences as moderators of child effects.

Experimentally varying child behavior stimuli and then assessing the extent to which adult individual differences (especially in cognitions) moderate the effect of the child on the adult is a variation on the usual methods in child effects research. This method allows description of the role of child effects in more complex adult-child systems. Existing literature incorporating this approach is reviewed, with emphasis on the moderating effects of sex, personality, and perceptions. A previously unreported study is described as an example of a multivariate approach to exploring the relationships between adult individual differences and the effects of infant stimuli. The study suggests that experienced caregivers who do not have much liking for infants see themselves as likely to provide appropriate, but minimally social care for an infant. Conversely, the study suggests that inexperienced adults who like infants very much see themselves as providing more extensive and social caregiving, although it would not always be appropriate to the infant's state.

Adult↗