STAKEHOLDER FEEDBACK ON A NOVEL EMOTION REGULATION INTERVENTION FOR PRESCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN WITH DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS: A THEMATIC ANALYSIS

Disruptive behavior disorders are among the most prevalent psychological disorders in preschoolers. There are evidence-based treatments for these disorders, but clinically significant behavior problems persist in approximately one-fourth to one-third of children after treatment. These treatments consist of behavioral parenting interventions and are not designed to directly address children’s affective dysregulation, which is a core component of behavior problems. To address this limitation, a manualized intervention was developed to treat disruptive behavior in preschool-age children by specifically targeting their emotion regulation abilities as the mechanism of change by coaching the caregiver to scaffold the child’s emotion regulation strategy use. The purpose of the present study was to further the development of this intervention by obtaining feedback from key stakeholders (i.e., caregivers and therapists) on the intervention’s focus, content, and procedures. Obtaining this feedback is an essential component of developing a novel psychosocial intervention. A qualitative thematic analysis of in-depth focus group discussions was conducted. Data were organized into the following broad themes: Intervention approach (support for targeting emotion regulation but ensuring the approach is an appropriate fit and considering the important role of behavioral strategies; additional focus on facilitating a positive caregiver-child relationship; developing some independent regulation skills in the child), Intervention structure and session content (making the intervention structure more flexible or modular; retaining the main intervention components with modifications to enhance acceptability, relevance, and developmental appropriateness), The caregiver’s role (the caregiver’s role is of primary importance and should be active throughout all sessions; ensuring adequate caregiver preparation and skill development; additional primary focus on facilitating the caregiver’s own emotion regulation; attention to the caregiver’s own therapeutic needs), Individualized approach (individualizing the content and timing of all sessions to account for individual needs), Generalizability (ensuring generalization of skills to home and other settings through effective at-home practice and including other primary caregivers and family members in sessions), and Learning and skill development (considering individual differences in how children and caregivers learn and modifying activities accordingly). These themes and stakeholders’ specific feedback will guide revisions to the intervention manual prior to pilot testing and further examination of efficacy and effectiveness

STATISTICAL LEARNING IN SOCIAL INTERACTIONS: ANTICIPATION OF CAREGIVER FEEDBACK TO COMMUNICATIVE BEHAVIOR IN PRELINGUISTIC INFANTS

A growing body of literature has demonstrated that infants are able to detect patterns in structured external environmental stimuli through a statistical learning mechanism. The present study examines whether statistical learning operates as a learning mechanism in social interactions as well. Prior research using an ABA experimental design demonstrated that infants modified their communicative behavior when the level of contingent caregiver feedback to infant gestures was altered (Miller & Lossia, 2013). These findings are extended in the present study by examining whether the infants developed modified expectations for caregiver feedback when the pattern of contingent feedback was altered, which might function as a possible mechanism for the changes seen in infant communicative behavior. Anticipatory looking to the caregiver was used as a measure of infants’ expectations for caregiver responsiveness. Results showed differences in anticipatory looking to the caregiver across periods. The pattern of anticipatory looking did not fully explain the changes seen in infant communicative behavior. However, the findings do suggest that infants detected the change in caregiver feedback and modified their expectations, providing support for the presence of a statistical learning mechanism in social interactions.M.S. in Psychology, May 201

PAMAM Dendrimers Cross the Blood–Brain Barrier When Administered through the Carotid Artery in C57BL/6J Mice

Drug delivery into the central nervous system (CNS) is challenging due to the blood–brain barrier (BBB) and drug delivery into the brain overcoming the BBB can be achieved using nanoparticles such as dendrimers. The conventional cationic dendrimers used are highly toxic. Therefore, the present study investigates the role of novel mixed surface dendrimers, which have potentially less toxicity and can cross the BBB when administered through the carotid artery in mice. In vitro experiments investigated the uptake of amine dendrimers (G1-NH2 and G4-NH2) and novel dendrimers (G1-90/10 and G4-90/10) by primary cortical cultures. In vivo experiments involved transplantation of G4-90/10 into mice through (1) invasive intracranial injections into the striatum; and (2) less invasive carotid injections. The animals were sacrificed 24-h and 1-week post-transplantations and their brains were analyzed. In vivo experiments proved that the G4-90/10 can cross the BBB when injected through the carotid artery and localize within neurons and glial cells. The dendrimers were found to migrate through the corpus callosum 1-week post intracranial injection. Immunohistochemistry showed that the migrating cells are the dendrimer-infected glial cells. Overall, our results suggest that poly-amidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers may be used as a minimally invasive means to deliver biomolecules for treating neurological diseases or disorder