Victim, perpetrator, family, and incident characteristics of infant and child homicide in the United States Air Force

Objective: The present study describes factors related to fatal abuse in three age groups in the United States Air Force (USAF). Method: Records from 32 substantiated cases of fatal child abuse in the USAF were independently reviewed for 60 predefined factors. Results: Males were over-represented in young child victims (between 1 year and 4 years of age) and child victims (between 4 years and 15 years of age) but not in infant victims (between 24 hours and 1 year of age). African-American infant victims and perpetrators were over-represented. Younger victims were more likely to have been previously physically abused by the perpetrator. Perpetrators were predominantly male and the biological fathers of the victims. Infant and young child perpetrators reported childhood abuse histories, while child perpetrators reported the highest frequency of mental health contact. Victims’ families reported significant life stressors. Families of young child victims were more likely divorced, separated, or single. Incidents with infants and young children tended to occur without witnesses; incidents with child victims tended to have the victim’s sibling(s) and/or mother present. Fatal incidents were more frequent on the weekend, in the home, and initiated by some family disturbance. Conclusions: Differences among groups in factors related to infant and child homicide across age groups may assist in the development of more tailored abuse prevention efforts and may also guide future investigations

Embodied Emotion Modulates Neural Signature of Performance Monitoring

BACKGROUND:Recent research on the "embodiment of emotion" implies that experiencing an emotion may involve perceptual, somatovisceral, and motor feedback aspects. For example, manipulations of facial expression and posture appear to induce emotional states and influence how affective information is processed. The present study investigates whether performance monitoring, a cognitive process known to be under heavy control of the dopaminergic system, is modulated by induced facial expressions. In particular, we focused on the error-related negativity, an electrophysiological correlate of performance monitoring. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:During a choice reaction task, participants held a Chinese chop stick either horizontally between the teeth ("smile" condition) or, in different runs, vertically ("no smile") with the upper lip. In a third control condition, no chop stick was used ("no stick"). It could be shown on a separate sample that the facial feedback procedure is feasible to induce mild changes in positive affect. In the ERP sample, the smile condition, hypothesized to lead to an increase in dopaminergic activity, was associated with a decrease of ERN amplitude relative to "no smile" and "no stick" conditions. CONCLUSION:Embodying emotions by induced facial expressions leads to a changes in the neural correlates of error detection. We suggest that this is due to the joint influence of the dopaminergic system on positive affect and performance monitoring

The effects of daily stressors on physical health in women with and without a childhood history of sexual abuse

Objective: The primary purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between daily stressors and physical symptoms in college-age women with a childhood history of sexual abuse and women without a history of childhood sexual abuse. It was hypothesized that women with a history of childhood sexual abuse would be particularly susceptible to the effects of daily stressors on physical symptoms, and would show more covariation between daily stressors and physical symptoms, compared to women without a history of childhood sexual abuse. Method: Female college students ( n = 491) were screened for histories of childhood (before age 15) and adulthood (after age 15) contact sexual abuse. Of these participants, 18 women with only a history of childhood sexual abuse were assigned to the SA group, and 27 women with no history of childhood or adulthood sexual abuse were assigned to the NA group. These women filled out self-report measures of daily hassles and physical symptoms for 28 consecutive days. Results: During the 5 days preceding a highly stressful day, women in the SA group reported significantly more physical symptoms than during the 5 days preceding a day of low stress. For the NA group, there were no significant differences in reported physical symptoms between high- and low-stress days. Conclusions: The pattern of results for physical symptoms suggests that women with a history of childhood sexual abuse may be particularly susceptible to the effects of heightened daily stress, and may display this susceptibility in the report of physical symptoms. Possible explanations for these findings are discussed

History of physical and/or sexual abuse and current suicidality in college women

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between a history of physical and/or sexual abuse and current suicidality in college-age women. It was hypothesized that abuse history would significantly predict level of suicidality. A secondary hypothesis was that abuse status would predict attitudes about life and death. Method: Female college students ( n = 707) were screened for histories of childhood (before age 15) and adulthood (after age 15) contact sexual abuse and physical abuse sequelae. Ninety-five women reported a history of childhood sexual abuse, 116 adult sexual abuse, 104 child physical abuse, and 55 adult physical abuse. Participants completed measures of attitudes about life and death and current suicidal ideation. Results: Child physical abuse and child sexual abuse accounted for variance in current suicidal ideation. Adult sexual abuse explained variance in positive attitudes about life. Adult physical abuse, adult sexual abuse, and child sexual abuse accounted for variance in negative attitudes about life. Finally, child sexual abuse and adult sexual abuse accounted for variance in fear of death. Conclusions: Detailed assessment of female college students’ abuse histories should facilitate understanding of their level of suicide risk. Patterns of attitudes about life and death may also be informative