Post-conflict behaviour of spectacled Langurs (Trachypithecus obscurus)

Studies of post-conflict behaviour in primates have two aims, 1) to uncover the fundamental mechanisms underlying conflict resolution, 2) to integrate patterns of reconciliation within broad models of socio-ecology. Comparative studies are vital in answering questions related to both of these problems. So far, research has focused mainly on members of the cercopithecine family and the great apes. Hypotheses derived from these studies predict that the "quality" of dyadic relationships, measured according to their value in terms of reproductive fitness, is a good predictor of the tendency to reconcile; and that high conciliatory tendencies are often associated with a high degree of social tolerance. In this study, two groups of spectacled langurs (members of the colobine family) were demonstrated to reconcile at high rates (41.3% and 51.3% of conflicts) and display relatively egalitarian social structures. Highly affiliative dyadic relationships were associated with high conciliatory tendencies. Other variables such as kinship and rank had little effect. In agreement with previous studies concerning highly conciliatory species, former opponents engaged in a specific behaviour (ventro-ventro hugging) during reconciliation which make these reunions highly visible or "explicit". Victims of aggression also contacted uninvolved third parties at high rates, and here too, hugging was demonstrated to occur significantly more often in this context than during control periods. There was some evidence of consolation, the first for any monkey species, where the distribution of hugging following a conflict was examined in one of the groups, although small sample sizes precluded its confirmation

Research Institutes in the ERA: WP2 2007/S 106-12999 FORESIGHT-200702 Lot 2 WP3

This is the final report of a study looking at the past and potential future of research institutes in Europe. In contrast to the universities, which are widely studied, the institutes are barely part of the EU policy discussion and the discussion about the European Research Area. The study therefore focuses on institutes in six fields, aiming to provide a broad spread of analysis that can improve understanding of the institutes and underpin policymaking in the institute sector. The overall aim of the study is to provide a basis for informing EU- and national-level policies about the role of research institutes in the development of the European Research Area (ERA). If the ERA is to become a reality, then aspects of Europe’s institute system will need to be tuned towards effectiveness and efficiency at the European level and not only, as at present, the national level. We therefore place particular emphasis on issues related to internationalisation and the international division of labour

Consistency and Change: Becoming a Literacy Leader in an Urban School

An effective urban literacy teacher is one who can weather the storm of change. Remaining committed to one’s students despite the challenges that an urban environment brings is a key element in facilitating student literacy improvement. In this article we present a case study of one teacher who participated in our three year professional development initiative to improve literacy practices in urban schools. We discuss the qualities that she possessed that helped her to persist through the pains of change to impact student learning, and how these qualities should be fostered in urban school teachers to improve achievement

The Insider Perspective: Insights on Diversity from Award-Winning Diverse Authors

There is perhaps no better source to speak about diverse literature than the “insider” authors who have been writing it for years. We were fortunate to speak with three accomplished authors of diverse books for children who invite students into their books—Pat Mora, Kadir Nelson, and Janet Wong. Invited to participate in phone and e-mail interviews based on their reputation for publishing diverse books, each author shares his or her perspective on this timely topic

The influence of parental depression, interparental conflict and parent-child hostility on the development of psychopathology in children and adolescents

Parental depression has been highlighted as a major risk factor for the development of psychopathology in children and adolescents (Mars et al, 2012; Sellers et al, 2013). Garber & Martin (2002) suggest that the primary environmental stressor that children living with depressed parents are exposed to relates to the impact of maternal depression on marital conflict. Interparental conflict has been demonstrated to have negative effects on various aspects of family functioning and relationships. Strong associations between conflict levels in parental relationships and negative parent-child relationships support this theory (Erel & Burmann, 1995). The parent- child relationship is viewed as a central mechanism for the transmission of psychopathology across generations of a family (Rutter et al., 2010). This thesis examines the relationship between parental depression and family processes (specifically interparental and parent-child relationships) on the development of depressive and aggressive symptoms in children and adolescents. Four data sets examine these associations: a high risk sample of parents with recurrent depression and their adolescent children (Early Prediction of Adolescent Depression, EPADS), a community sample of low-risk adolescents and their families (Welsh Family Study, WFS), a sample of families who have conceived children using Artificial Reproductive Technologies (the Cardiff IVF Study, C-IVF) and a longitudinal adoption study (Early Growth and Development Study, EGDS). Findings from this thesis presents evidence that a process exists by which parental depressive symptoms contribute to the development of psychopathology in children and adolescents through disrupted interparental and parent-child relationships. Parental depression was consistently associated with interparental conflict, which in turn was associated with higher levels of parent-child hostility. For child outcomes, the most consistent finding was the association between parent-child hostility and child and adolescent symptoms of aggression. This was observed in all four data sets, in a variety of samples and across a range of developmental periods. The association was observed where adolescents were classed as being at either a high or low-risk for the development of psychopathology, and for those families where parents were rearing genetically related and genetically unrelated children

Weight Stigma in Clinical Psychology: a Critical Discursive Psychology Analysis with Trainees

Background Weight stigma is defined as negative attitudes towards and beliefs about others because of their weight (Andreyeva, Puhl, & Brownell, 2008). Biased views of fat individuals by professionals in physical healthcare and the stigmatising impact this can have on the quality of care they receive has been well documented (Phelan, et al., 2015). Mental health professionals ascribe more negative personal attributes to fat clients (Hassel, Amici, Thurston, & Gorsuch, 2001), rate fat clients as having more severe symptoms than thin clients (Hassel, Amici, Thurston, & Gorsuch, 2001; Young & Powell, 1985) and predict worse treatment prognosis and contribute less effort towards treatment of fat clients (Davis-Coelho, 2000). Although weight stigma has recently been studied in American Clinical Psychology training institutions and qualified professionals (Brochu, 2019, 2020) the topic has received little published research attention within the profession of Clinical Psychology in the UK. Method The current study used Critical Discursive Psychology (Edley & Wetherell, 2001, Wetherell, 1998) analysis to consider the way in which 12 UK trainee clinical psychologists constructed weight, bodies, and fatness during online focus groups; how they drew on and resisted existing repertoires, positioning themselves and others in relation to these; and the implications of this, clinically, professionally and in broader social and political ways. Findings Findings highlighted a disjuncture between trainees’ reflections about ‘fat-talk’ with family and friends in their personal lives compared to talk in professional settings, including training programmes, clinical work and supervision. They offered enthusiastic and detailed accounts of conversations about weight and body size in their personal lives, but reported limited and awkward talk in professional settings, and when speaking ‘as professionals’. Trainees drew on multiple repertoires to discuss weight, bodies and fatness, including weight as something that is controllable and should be managed (either by individuals or society), weight as a physical health issue, weight as a mental health issue, and weight as measure of worth. While showing some awareness of the impact of negative stereotypes, they were not immune to perpetuating, at times, powerful negative societal positionings of fat people in comparison to others, and in ways that underplayed the relevance of fat stigma. Further, their apparent awareness of how their internalisation of stereotypes was as odds with their values as trainee clinical psychologists appeared to have the paradoxical effect of closing down open discussion needed for learning and reflexive clinical work and supervision. Conclusion & Implications Trainees are in a powerful position to challenge weight bias, but to challenge it they must first be made more aware of it and the detrimental impact it can have on all people, but especially those in fat and marginalised bodies. Clinical implications are discussed to consider how trainees might be better supported to acknowledge and challenge their own biases about weight and fat individuals, including addressing weight stigma in their training and how supervisors might better support trainees to actively reflect on their own and other bodies