Cognitive Abilities, Monitoring Confidence, and Control Thresholds Explain Individual Differences in Heuristics and Biases.

In this paper, we investigate whether individual differences in performance on heuristic and biases tasks can be explained by cognitive abilities, monitoring confidence, and control thresholds. Current theories explain individual differences in these tasks by the ability to detect errors and override automatic but biased judgments, and deliberative cognitive abilities that help to construct the correct response. Here we retain cognitive abilities but disentangle error detection, proposing that lower monitoring confidence and higher control thresholds promote error checking. Participants (N = 250) completed tasks assessing their fluid reasoning abilities, stable monitoring confidence levels, and the control threshold they impose on their decisions. They also completed seven typical heuristic and biases tasks such as the cognitive reflection test and Resistance to Framing. Using structural equation modeling, we found that individuals with higher reasoning abilities, lower monitoring confidence, and higher control threshold performed significantly and, at times, substantially better on the heuristic and biases tasks. Individuals with higher control thresholds also showed lower preferences for risky alternatives in a gambling task. Furthermore, residual correlations among the heuristic and biases tasks were reduced to null, indicating that cognitive abilities, monitoring confidence, and control thresholds accounted for their shared variance. Implications include the proposal that the capacity to detect errors does not differ between individuals. Rather, individuals might adopt varied strategies that promote error checking to different degrees, regardless of whether they have made a mistake or not. The results support growing evidence that decision-making involves cognitive abilities that construct actions and monitoring and control processes that manage their initiation.

Children's event reports: factors affecting responses to repeated questions in vignette scenarios and event recall interviews.

When adults repeat questions, children often give inconsistent answers. This study aimed to test the claim that these inconsistencies occur because children infer that their first answer was unsatisfactory, and that the adult expects them to change their answer. Children aged 4, 6, and 8 years (N= 134) were asked about vignettes in which an adult repeated a question, with manipulation of the adult's overt dissatisfaction (high vs. low pressure) and knowledge about the information sought. On a separate occasion, the children were given an unrelated event recall interview containing repeated questions. All age groups showed sensitivity to adult dissatisfaction, interpreting question repetition as an implicit request for answer change more frequently in the high than in the low-pressure vignettes. Overall, however, these 'change-expected' interpretations were least frequent in the younger children, who were the most prone to shifting. Also there was no evidence that these interpretations were associated with more frequent shifting in the recall interview. The results do not provide clear support for a simple conversational inference account of shifting, especially in younger children.

Children's metamemorial judgments in an event recall task.

Two studies were conducted in which two different indicators of metacognitive monitoring were investigated in a complex everyday memory task. In the first phase of each experiment, 8- and 10-year-olds as well as adults were shown a short event (video) and gave judgments of learning, that is, rated their certainty that they would later be able to recall specific details correctly. In the second phase of the experiments, participants underwent a memory interview about the event and in Study 2 also gave confidence judgments, that is, rated their certainty that the provided answers to the memory questions were correct. Results revealed significant influences of memory characteristics on monitoring in that delaying judgments and monitoring judgments concerning irretrievable information affected judgments of learning. From 8 years of age onward, there were relatively appropriate metamemorial monitoring abilities in both indicators. Moderate intraindividual consistency was found across the two measures of metacognitive monitoring, with a tendency toward higher consistency in older age groups. The results are discussed in terms of the adequacy of the underlying theoretical construct.

Trauma exposure, posttraumatic stress, and psychiatric comorbidity in female juvenile offenders.

OBJECTIVE: To document the rate of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in female juvenile offenders and its relationship to trauma history, comorbid diagnoses, attributional style, and family functioning. METHOD: The psychological profiles and trauma histories of 100 incarcerated female juvenile offenders (ages 13.5-19 years) were assessed using a semistructured interview. Two self-report measures were used to assess family functioning and attributional style. RESULTS: High rates of PTSD were reported by offenders (37%), with sexual abuse the precipitant in 70% of cases. Offenders with PTSD had significantly more comorbid diagnoses than those without (PTSD = 5.4, no PTSD = 3.1, p < .001). The majority (73%) of comorbid diagnoses appeared concurrently with or after PTSD onset. The presence of four or more psychiatric diagnoses (OR = 14.48, p < .001) and a history of sexual abuse (OR = 7.91, p < .001) were independently associated with a diagnosis of PTSD among female juvenile offenders. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest a link among trauma, PTSD, and the development of further psychopathology in female juvenile offenders. This link highlights the importance of comprehensive diagnosis and treatment of this and other comorbid disorders to ensure the effectiveness of interventions designed to treat antisocial behavior.

Psychopathology in female juvenile offenders.

BACKGROUND: The aim was to document the spectrum of present and lifetime psychological disorders in female juvenile offenders, and to examine the relations between mental health status and socio-demographic, family and trauma variables. METHOD: One hundred juvenile offenders were matched with a comparison group of 100 females on age and socioeconomic status (SES). Psychological profiles and trauma histories of both groups were assessed using the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children--Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL) and family functioning was assessed with the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale II (FACES II) self-report measure. RESULTS: Rates of psychopathology were higher for offenders than non-offenders (p <.001), with particularly high levels of conduct disorder (91% v.1%, p <.001), substance abuse disorders (85% v. 5%, p <.001), depression (55% v. 25%, p <.001) and posttraumatic stress disorder (37% v. 4%, p <.001). In the offenders, 78% met the criteria for three or more diagnoses. The number of psychiatric diagnoses was the most significant factor associated with offender status (OR = 21.26, p <.001). CONCLUSIONS: There is a high prevalence of psychological disorder in females in juvenile justice custody and this has a very strong association with offender status. Because these co-morbid disorders are treatable, there is a clear opportunity to intervene to decrease psychological distress.

Prevention of postnatal distress or depression: an evaluation of an intervention at preparation for parenthood classes.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the effectiveness of a psychosocial intervention, provided to expectant couples in routine antenatal classes, on the postpartum psychosocial adjustment of women and men. DESIGN: A 3*3 between subjects randomised control design was utilised. The two factors were condition and self-esteem. Preparation for Parenthood programs were randomly allocated to one of three conditions: usual service ('control'), experimental ('empathy'), or non-specific control ('baby-play'). The latter condition controlled for the non-specific effects of the intervention, these being: the provision of an extra class; asking couples to consider the early postpartum weeks; and receiving booster information after the antenatal class, and again shortly after the birth. Women and men were categorised into three levels of self-esteem, as measured antenatally: low, medium and high. METHODS: 268 participants were recruited antenatally. Interview data and self-report information was collected from 202 of these women at 6 weeks postpartum, and 180 women at 6 months postpartum. The intervention consisted of a session focusing on psychosocial issues related to becoming first-time parents. Participants discussed possible postpartum concerns in separate gender groups for part of the session, and then discussed these issues with their partners. Hypothetical scenarios depicting stressful situations in the early postpartum weeks for women and men were discussed, with solutions that parents have found useful given to the participants. In the non-specific control condition, the session focused on the importance of play with a baby, with videotapes and discussion around how parents can play with infants. RESULTS: At 6 weeks postpartum there was a significant interaction effect between condition and self-esteem on maternal adjustment. Women with low self-esteem, who had received the intervention, were significantly better adjusted on measures of mood and sense of competence than low-self-esteem women in either of the two control conditions. There were no main or interaction effects by 6 months postpartum. The beneficial effect at 6 weeks was related to partners of these women being more aware of how the mother was feeling, and with women reporting greater satisfaction with the sharing of home and baby tasks. There were no significant main or interaction effects for men at either time point, other than men with low self-esteem reporting poorer adjustment. CONCLUSIONS: This brief and inexpensive intervention was effective in reducing postpartum distress in some first-time mothers at 6 weeks postpartum. The effectiveness of this intervention was related to an increased level of awareness in the men as to how their partners were experiencing the early postpartum weeks. That the effect was only evident for women who, antenatally, reported being low in self-esteem, is an important advance in our knowledge of the effectiveness of such prevention programs. No previous studies have investigated the differential effectiveness of such programs depending upon the woman's level of self-esteem, and this finding indicates that future work should measure this variable. These findings should be understood in the context that the population sampled were those attending preparation for parenthood classes, and thus different interventions will be needed for couples who do not attend such classes. This brief psychosocial intervention can be readily applied to antenatal classes routinely conducted in hospitals or the community.

Confidence judgments in event recall: developmental progression in the impact of question format.

Two studies were conducted to examine developmental progression in children's and adults' ability to adequately monitor their own attempts to recall event details as well as the dependence of such metamemorial competencies on question formats. Eight and 10-year-old children as well as adults (Study 1, N=116; Study 2, N=60) rated their confidence when responding to specific questions about an observed event. Confirming most recent results, children and adults gave higher confidence ratings after correct than after incorrect answers. This ability, however, was limited to an unbiased question format. When being asked misleading questions, children's ability to differentiate was undermined, as reflected in equally high confidence judgments after correct and incorrect answers, even when the interview contained a mix of misleading and unbiased questions. When the interviewer "bombarded" the children with an uninterrupted series of misleading questions, children's difficulties appeared to be even more pronounced. These findings highlight the importance of the way in which questions are asked, and point to age-related progression in the relative impact of questioning style.

Diagnosing postpartum depression in mothers and fathers: whatever happened to anxiety?

BACKGROUND: Although anxiety disorders are documented in the literature for new mothers (but less so for fathers), rates of postpartum caseness tend to include only those with depression when diagnostic interviews or self-report measures validated on such interviews are used. This methodology therefore underestimates the true percentage of women and men who experience significant psychological difficulties postpartum. This has implications for assessment, treatment and screening for postnatal mood disorders. METHOD: Two studies were conducted on a total of 408 women and 356 men expecting their first child. They were recruited antenatally, and interviewed at 6 weeks postpartum using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule. DSM-IV criteria were applied to determine the presence since birth of depression (major or minor), panic disorder, acute adjustment disorder with anxiety (meeting the criteria for generalised anxiety disorder except for the duration criterion), and phobia. RESULTS: The inclusion of diagnostic assessment for panic disorder and acute adjustment disorder with anxiety increased the rates of caseness by between 57 and 100% for mothers, and 31-130% for fathers, over the rates for major or minor depression. Inclusion of assessment for phobia further increased the rates of disorder in both samples. Couple concordance rates were between 6.6 and 11.1%, with no significant difference between rates for depressive or depressive and anxious caseness. For women, a previous history of an anxiety disorder appears to be a greater risk factor for a postnatal mood disorder (i.e. depression or anxiety) than a history of a depressive disorder. CONCLUSIONS: These results clearly show the need to assess for both depression and anxiety in new and expectant parents, and we believe the term 'postnatal mood disorder' (PMD), rather than postnatal depression, more accurately reflects significant adjustment difficulties in new parents.

Postpartum issues for expectant mothers and fathers.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the postpartum psychosocial and infant care topics that women and men who attend preparation for parenthood classes have been thinking or worrying about during the pregnancy. Furthermore, to compare the rates of endorsement of such issues for women and men so that clinicians can use this information to help plan which topics to include in preparation for parenthood classes. DESIGN: A survey of expectant parents attending preparation for parenthood classes at a local public hospital. Participants completed a 17- to 19-item postpartum issues checklist devised for the study. SETTING: Preparation for parenthood classes conducted in a public hospital in South Western Sydney, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: People attending the session were in their 2nd to 3rd trimester, of low to middle socioeconomic status, and 95% were expecting their first child. Eighty-five percent of women were accompanied by their male partner at the session. Data are reported from 201 women and 182 men. MEASURE: A 17-item issues checklist was devised initially and later expanded to 19 items. The initial checklist covered three psychosocial issues: interpersonal, intrapersonal, and parental competency. The expanded checklist also included items on infant care issues. Participants rated each item as to the extent to which they had been thinking or worrying about it over the past few weeks. RESULTS: More than half of the men and women had been thinking or worrying about their ability to cope as new parents; just less than half of both men and women endorsed the item regarding the effect having a baby would have on their relationship with their partner; approximately 40% of women had thought that they might get bored or lonely when at home with the baby, and an equal rate of men reported that their partner experiencing this sense of boredom-or loneliness was an issue for them. There were few differences between the genders in the rate of endorsement on the issues checklist. CONCLUSION: That many of the issues on the checklist are prevalent in both women and men at this time in the pregnancy would suggest that these are topics that would be pertinent for inclusion at preparation for parenthood classes. Although the checklist is not exhaustive, the data reported give empirical justification for inclusion of these topics in such classes.

Context and cue cards in young children's testimony: a comparison of brief narrative elaboration and context reinstatement.

In a comparison of interview procedures that aimed to assist retrieval strategies in children's event recall, 72 children aged 4-6 years were questioned about a witnessed event. Context reinstatement and brief narrative elaboration (an abbreviated version of K. J. Saywitz and L. Snyder's [1996] procedure) produced similar levels of correct recall, and both elicited more correct recall than did a control condition, with no increase in errors. Combining these procedures did not further improve performance. The superiority of narrative elaboration over the control group was evident in free recall and did not depend on explicit prompting with cue cards. These findings suggest that incorporating brief narrative elaboration training in investigative interviews with children may, like context reinstatement, be a valuable mnemonic aid.