Moving Beyond a Protective Approach to Stopping Sexual Violence of People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) have some of the highest rates of sexual violence of any group—at least 7 times the rate for people without disabilities. (6) Attempts to alleviate this problem have been unsuccessful and based on the Medical Model of Disability, which views people with I/DD as inherently vulnerable and in need only of protection. Viewing people with I/DD as inherently vulnerable further stigmatizes them and increases dependency on others, instead of fostering capabilities and independence. Minnesota needs to move beyond taking a protective “recognize, report, and respond” approach, to taking a comprehensive approach to sexual violence prevention. We must invest in an array of Primary Prevention and Risk Reduction strategies to address the serious and pervasive problem of sexual violence perpetrated against children, adolescents, and adults with I/DD. Primary prevention and risk reduction need to start early with children and their caregivers in the places where they live, learn, and play to teach skills for self-advocacy, healthy relationships, distinguishing harmful caregiving from respectful caregiving, where to report crimes, and where to get help. We need to provide education and support self-determination through self-advocacy of people with I/DD as equal partners in our comprehensive approach. (2) We need to create change in cultural attitudes, norms, and policies to promote opportunity, freedom to make meaningful choice, inclusion, self-determination, and increased quality of life for all people with I/DD. Every person has a right to safety and a right to live their life free of sexual violence. At the forefront of Minnesota’s comprehensive approach must be the voices of people with I/DD

Self-control, Approach/Avoidance, and Visceral States

For the first time we will analyze the correlations between and among trait self-control, BIS/BAS, approach and avoidance temperaments, and visceral states (hunger, fatigue, stress, and the common cold)

Higher Trait Self-Control Is Associated with Less Intense Visceral States

Trait self-control correlates with desirable outcomes including physical and psychological well- being and is thought to facilitate the formation of effective habits. Visceral states, including internal drives that motivate specific behaviors, have been found to undermine self-control. The current study tested the hypothesis that individuals higher in trait self-control experience less intense and a lower likelihood of visceral states and explored possible mediators. We found that trait self-control negatively correlates with responses to one-shot measures of hunger, fatigue, experiencing stress, and experiencing the common cold. Reports of recent sleeping and eating behavior mediated some of these relationships, consistent with the idea that healthful behaviors help individuals higher in trait self-control minimize visceral states. This research supports emerging perspectives on trait self-control’s contributions to positive outcomes

Electrocortical Effects of Acetaminophen during Emotional Picture Viewing, Cognitive Control, and Negative Feedback

Acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, may have psychological effects, such as reducing social and emotional pain. The current study (N = 173) used electroencephalography (EEG) to extend past research on acetaminophen. Healthy undergraduate students (64.7% women, age M = 18.15, SD = 3.33) were randomly assigned to ingest 1,000 mg of acetaminophen or placebo before completing emotional picture viewing (n = 143), a flanker task (n = 69), and a probabilistic learning task (n = 143) while EEG was recorded. (Sample sizes used for the analyses of each task differ from the total N due to data loss.) We observed standard event-related potentials (ERPs), including emotion-modulated late positive potentials during picture viewing and feedback-related negativity during feedback on the probabilistic learning task. We also observed standard error-related and conflict-related ERPs in the flanker task but could not adequately assess acetaminophen\u27s effect on flanker ERPs due to excessive data loss. Acetaminophen did not alter any of the ERPs, in contrast to predictions based on prior research. Exploratory analyses revealed that acetaminophen reduced the relationship between trait behavioral inhibition system sensitivity and emotion-modulated late positive potentials. Together these findings suggest that a standard dose of acetaminophen did not reliably alter neural indicators of emotional or feedback processing. Instead, preliminary findings from our study suggested that a more nuanced relationship may exist between acetaminophen and individual differences in emotional processing, although this latter finding calls for further replication

Self-Injury in Adolescence Is Associated with Greater Behavioral Risk Avoidance, Not Risk-Taking

Strategies to link impulsivity and self-injurious behaviors (SIBs) show highly variable results, and may differ depending on the impulsivity measure used. To better understand this lack of consistency, we investigated correlations between self-report and behavioral impulsivity, inhibitory control, SIBs, and rumination. We included participants aged 13–17 years with either current or remitted psychopathology who have (n = 31) and who do not have (n = 14) a history of SIBs. Participants completed self-report measures of impulsivity, the Rumination Responsiveness Scale (RRS), and two behavioral measures of impulsivity: the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) and Parametric Go/No-Go (PGNG). Lifetime SIBs were positively associated with self-reported impulsivity, specifically positive and negative urgency. However, individuals with greater lifetime SIBs demonstrated greater risk aversion (lower impulsivity) as measured by the BART, whereas there was no relation between lifetime SIBs and PGNG performance. There was no relation between rumination and behavioral impulsivity, although greater rumination was associated with higher negative urgency. Future research examining the role of SIBs in the context of active versus remitted psychopathology is warranted. Because most adolescents were remitted from major depressive disorder at the time of study, follow-up studies can determine if lower risk-taking may aid individuals with more prior SIBs to achieve and maintain a remitted state

Rumination-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Reduces Rumination and Targeted Cross-network Connectivity in Youth With a History of Depression: Replication in a Preregistered Randomized Clinical Trial

Background: Rumination-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (RF-CBT) is designed to reduce depressive rumination or the habitual tendency to dwell on experiences in a repetitive, negative, passive, and global manner. RF-CBT uses functional analysis, experiential exercises, and repeated practice to identify and change the ruminative habit. This preregistered randomized clinical trial (NCT03859297, R61) is a preregistered replication of initial work. We hypothesized a concurrent reduction of both self-reported rumination and cross-network connectivity between the left posterior cingulate cortex and right inferior frontal and inferior temporal gyri. Methods: Seventy-six youths with a history of depression and elevated rumination were randomized to 10 to 14 sessions of RF-CBT (n = 39; 34 completers) or treatment as usual (n = 37; 28 completers). Intent-to-treat analyses assessed pre-post change in rumination response scale and in functional connectivity assessed using two 5 minute, 12 second runs of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Results: We replicated previous findings: a significant reduction in rumination response scale and a reduction in left posterior cingulate cortex to right inferior frontal gyrus/inferior temporal gyrus connectivity in participants who received RF-CBT compared with those who received treatment as usual. Reductions were large (z change = 0.84; 0.73, respectively [ps < .05]). Conclusions: This adolescent clinical trial further demonstrates that depressive rumination is a brain-based mechanism that is modifiable via RF-CBT. Here, we replicated that RF-CBT reduces cross-network connectivity, a possible mechanism by which rumination becomes less frequent, intense, and automatic. This National Institute of Mental Health-funded fast-fail study continues to the R33 phase during which treatment-specific effects of RF-CBT will be compared with relaxation therapy

DEMYSTIFYING DATA: A Guide to Using Evidence to Improve Young People’s Sexual Health and Rights 2014 DEMYSTIFYING DATA: A Guide to Using Evidence to Improve Young People’s Sexual Health and Rights

Lori Ashford, independent consultant, edited the guide