Long-term interparental conflict behavior and knowledge change after a brief family intervention.

To address a gap in the translational research on marital and family conflict intervention, we used a series of multilevel models to examine how interparental constructive conflict behavior, conflict resolution, and conflict knowledge improved up to 3 years postintervention in the Family Communication Project (FCP). The FCP was an experimental, longitudinal intervention focused on family conflict, communication, and adolescent adjustment. Participants consisted of adolescents and their two primary caregivers (N = 225 families). Each family was randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups (parent-adolescent or parent only) or two control groups (self-study or no treatment). Relative to controls, who showed no statistically significant improvement in conflict behavior, resolution, or knowledge, parents in the two-treatment conditions showed improvement in a nonlinear fashion. Modeled with piece-wise slopes, average change trajectories showed statistically significant increases from pretest to posttest, followed by declines but overall significant sustained growth by 3 years. Baseline marital hostility moderated this change, whereby couples who had higher levels of baseline marital hostility responded more favorably to treatment, but also declined more rapidly. Fathers in the study were shown to have stronger long-term treatment effects for conflict knowledge relative to mothers, and higher marital adjustment among fathers at baseline predicted less decline in dyadic conflict resolution after the intervention. The results highlight how examining within-family changes over time and between-family differences in change trajectories can contribute to practical insights about when and for whom interventions are most effective. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Radiant heat and thermal comfort in vehicles.

Infrared-reflective (IRR) treatment of automotive glass has been shown to reduce air temperature in vehicle cabins, thereby increasing fuel economy and occupant comfort. Its effect on radiant heat, however, may augment these benefits. In this study, the hypothesis that radiant heat affects subjective comfort ratings in a vehicle was tested. IRR films were systematically applied to the driver-side window of an outdoor stationary vehicle. In Phase 1, cabin air temperature was controlled while participants rated their thermal comfort. In Phase 2, air temperature was adjusted according to participants' responses. Results in Phase 1 showed that the IRR treatment improved thermal comfort on the left forearm, which was exposed to direct solar irradiance, but not whole-body thermal comfort. In Phase 2, participants indicated that they were comfortable at a higher air temperature (mean of 2.5 degrees F [1.4 degrees C]) with the IRR treatment than in the untreated condition. The results indicate that reducing radiant heat via IRR treatment affects subjective assessments of thermal comfort and allows occupants to maintain the same level of comfort in a warmer vehicle cabin. Applications of this research include future implementations of IRR treatment on automotive glass that may lead to greater fuel economy savings and occupant comfort than have previously been estimated.