Self-evaluative and emotion processes linked with brooding rumination among adolescents.

Rumination has been linked with a number of deleterious outcomes, though relatively little is known about self-evaluative and emotion processes by which it develops. The current investigation uses a prospective, longitudinal design and self-report measures to examine the role of contingent self-worth, perfectionism, negative emotion beliefs, and suppression of negative emotion in predicting the development of brooding and reflective forms of rumination among 168 adolescents (98 girls, 79.6% European-American) undergoing the transition to high school (Mage = 13.58). Results of structural equation modeling indicate that self-evaluative vulnerability (i.e., self-worth contingencies, perfectionism) and negative emotion beliefs, but not the suppression of negative emotion, predict brooding (but not reflective) rumination. The current study demonstrates how brooding is intertwined with views of self and core assumptions about emotion.

Children's responses to cognitive challenge and links to self-reported rumination.

We tested the hypothesis that less effective responses during a cognitive challenge would relate to higher levels of self-reported rumination in children. The sample was 100 children (55 boys, 45 girls), aged 7 to 14 years. A portion (n=65) was at high risk for depression due to having a parent with a childhood-onset mood disorder, and 35 were a low-risk comparison group. Using an impossible puzzle task, we assessed children's responses following failure across several domains: emotions (expressed anger, sadness, and negative self-statements), performance (being off-task, the time to solve subsequent puzzles, and the number solved), and physiology (heart rate, respiratory sinus arrhythmia). Results indicated that making negative self-blaming statements during the solvable puzzles and taking more time to solve the puzzles were associated with higher levels of self-reported rumination. Our findings advance the understanding of potential correlates of children's tendency to ruminate and may have implications for children's performance on cognitive tasks.

Transactional processes in child disruptive behavior and maternal depression: a longitudinal study from early childhood to adolescence.

Although much has been written about the utility of applying Sameroff and Chandler's transactional perspective to the study of child psychopathology, relatively few researchers have used such an approach to trace the emergence of child problem behavior from infancy to adolescence. Using a sample of 289 male toddlers from predominantly low-income families, the current study examined associations between various forms of early child disruptive behavior, subsequent trajectories of maternal depressive symptoms over the course of 8 years, and adolescent problem behavior. Results indicated that early child noncompliance was the most robust predictor of more chronic and elevated trajectories of maternal depression, which in turn discriminated teacher and youth reports of adolescent antisocial behavior but not internalizing symptoms. The findings were consistent with transactional perspectives of developmental psychopathology that have emphasized the dynamic interplay between child and parent characteristics.

Forgiving the September 11th terrorists: associations with coping, psychological distress, and religiosity.

Two studies examined how non-interpersonal forgiveness (when there is no social relationship between the transgressor and forgiver) related to coping and involuntary responses to stress, psychological distress, and religiosity. Three to six weeks after September 11th, 2001, forgiveness had non-linear associations with other responses to the terrorist attacks. Among college students (N=488), those who were trying or had forgiven (pro-forgiveness) the terrorists reported less involuntary engagement, more primary and secondary control coping, and more meaning finding than those who were unsure about forgiveness (ambivalent) and those who did not believe the perpetrators should be forgiven (anti-forgiveness). Ambivalent students reported the most distress, even after controlling for religion. Anti-forgiveness students reported less religiosity than ambivalent and pro-forgiveness students. Most findings were consistent among middle schoolers (N=154), particularly regarding psychological distress and responses to stress. Also, forgiveness of strangers for acts against one's community functioned separately from religion.

Subtypes of rumination in adolescence: associations between brooding, reflection, depressive symptoms, and coping.

Prior research has indicated that rumination contributes to the maintenance or intensification of depressive symptoms among adults. This study examined associations between rumination and depressive symptoms in early adolescence. Using a short-term longitudinal design, we evaluated relations between subtypes of rumination and both depressive symptoms and coping among a community sample of 168 adolescents (70 boys, 98 girls, age M= 13.58). Results provided support for brooding and self-reflective subtypes of rumination. Brooding, but not reflection, predicted the development of depressive symptoms over time, particularly for girls. Brooding was related to maladaptive disengagement coping strategies, whereas reflection was related to adaptive primary and secondary coping strategies. These results suggest that not all types of self-focus on emotion contribute to the maintenance or intensification of depressive symptoms.

Changes in prevalence of overweight and in body image among Fijian women between 1989 and 1998.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate changes in prevalence of overweight and obesity and in body image among ethnic Fijian women in Fiji during a period of rapid social change and the relationship between changes in body image and BMI. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: The study design was a multiwave cohort study of BMI in a traditional Fijian village over a 9.5-year period from 1989 to 1998. Cohorts were identified in 1989 (n=53) and in 1998 (n=50). Selection criteria included Fijian ethnicity, female gender, age of at least 18 years, and residence in a specific coastal Fijian village in 1989 and 1998, respectively. Assessments consisted of measurement of height and weight, collection of demographic data by written survey, and administration of the Nadroga Language Body Image Questionnaire. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight and obesity was significantly different between the cohorts, increasing from 60% in 1989 to 84% in 1998 (p=0.014). In addition, the age-adjusted mean BMI was significantly higher in 1998 compared with 1989 (p=0.011). Finally, there were significant between-cohort differences in multiple measures of body image, which were mostly independent of BMI. DISCUSSION: At 84%, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in this community sample of Fijian women is among the highest in the world. The dramatically increased prevalence over the 9.5-year period studied corresponds with rapid social change in Fiji and significant shifts in prevailing traditional attitudes toward body shape.

Links among attachment-related cognitions and adolescent depressive symptoms.

We assessed the role of self-evaluative and support-seeking processes as mediators of the relation between maternal representations and depressive symptoms in a sample of 168 young adolescents. Representations of mother as unavailable, unresponsive, and unsupportive were associated with depressive symptoms measured by semistructured interview and self-report. Moderation tests revealed that the association between maternal representations and depressive symptoms varied as a function of stress level for self-reported symptoms only. Subsequent mediation analyses for higher and lower stress groups showed that support seeking functioned as a mediator in the higher, but not lower, stress group. When depressive symptoms were assessed via interview, results with the full sample indicated that self-worth contingencies mediated the association between maternal representations and symptoms. Findings are discussed in terms of the identification of proximal targets for intervention.

Binge eating and binge eating disorder in a small-scale, indigenous society: the view from Fiji.

OBJECTIVE: Although the cross-cultural prevalence of anorexia and bulimia nervosa has been investigated in multiple studies, little is known about the prevalence and correlates of binge eating and binge eating disorder (BED) cross-culturally. No published studies to date have explored BED in small-scale, indigenous, or developing societies. The current study investigated the prevalence and correlates of binge eating in a community sample of Fijian women living in rural Fiji. METHODS: Fifty ethnic Fijian women completed a self-report measure developed for this study on dieting and attitudes toward body shape and change, a Nadroga-language questionnaire on body image, and the Questionnaire on Eating and Weight Patterns-Revised (QEWP-R). Their height and weight were also measured. Patterns of dieting, high body mass index (BMI), and attitudes toward eating and body image were compared between women with and without a history of binge eating. RESULTS: Ten percent of respondents reported at least weekly episodes of binge eating during the past 6 months and 4% endorsed symptoms consistent with BED. Binge eating in this sample was associated significantly with a BMI value above 35, a history of dieting, and a high concern with body shape. Binge eating was not associated with several markers of acculturation in this sample, although it was associated with a key, nontraditionally Fijian (i.e., acculturated) attitude toward the body. DISCUSSION: Binge eating occurred in a social context with traditions concerning weight and diet widely disparate from Western populations. However, correlates of binge eating in this sample suggest that nontraditional Fijian attitudes toward weight and body shape play a contributory role.

Eating behaviours and attitudes following prolonged exposure to television among ethnic Fijian adolescent girls.

BACKGROUND: There are no published studies evaluating the impact of introduction of television on disordered eating in media-naïve populations. AIMS: To assess the impact of novel, prolonged exposure to television on disordered eating attitudes and behaviours among ethnic Fijian adolescent girls. METHOD: A prospective, multi-wave cross-sectional design was used to compare two samples of Fijian schoolgirls before and after prolonged regional television exposure with a modified 26-item eating attitudes test, supplemented with a semi-structured interview to confirm self-reported symptoms. Narrative data from a subset of respondents from the exposed sample were analysed for content relating television exposure to body image concerns. RESULTS: Key indicators of disordered eating were significantly more prevalent following exposure. Narrative data revealed subjects' interest in weight loss as a means of modelling themselves after television characters. CONCLUSIONS: This naturalistic experiment suggests a negative impact of television upon disordered eating attitudes and behaviours in a media-naïve population.

Sibling conflict in middle childhood predicts children's adjustment in early adolescence.

Associations between sibling conflict in middle childhood and psychological adjustment in early adolescence were studied in a sample of 80 boys and 56 girls. Parents and children provided self-report data about family relationships and children's adjustment. Parents' hostility to children was assessed from videotaped interactions. Results showed that sibling conflict at Time 1 predicted increases in children's anxiety, depressed mood, and delinquent behavior 2 years later. Moreover, earlier sibling conflict at Time 1 accounted for unique variance in young adolescents' Time 2 anxiety, depressed mood, and delinquent behavior above and beyond the variance explained by earlier maternal hostility and marital conflict. Children's adjustment at Time 1 did not predict sibling conflict at Time 2. Results highlight the unique significance of the earlier sibling relationship for young adolescents' psychological adjustment.