Rumination Mediates the Relationship between Infant Temperament and Adolescent Depressive Symptoms

This study examined prospective associations between negative emotionality, rumination, and depressive symptoms in a community sample of 301 youths (158 females) followed longitudinally from birth to adolescence. Mothers reported on youths' negative emotionality (NE) at age 1, and youths self-reported rumination at age 13 and depressive symptoms at ages 13 and 15. Linear regression analyses indicated that greater NE in infancy was associated with more depressive symptoms at age 15, even after controlling for child gender and depressive symptoms at age 13. Moreover, analyses indicated that rumination significantly mediated the association between infancy NE and age 15 depressive symptoms in the full sample. When analyzed separately by gender, however, rumination mediated the relationship between NE and depressive symptoms for girls but not for boys. The results confirm and extend previous findings on the association between affective and cognitive vulnerability factors in predicting depressive symptoms and the gender difference in depression in adolescence, and suggest that clinical interventions designed to reduce negative emotionality may be useful supplements to traditional cognitive interventions for reducing cognitive vulnerability to depression

Positive affective functioning in anhedonic individuals' daily life:Anything but Flat and Blunted

Background Anhedonia, the decreased interest and pleasure, is often described as 'flat' or 'blunted' positive affect (PA). Yet, little is known about PA functioning in anhedonic individuals' daily lives. The current study investigates PA reactivity to pleasurable experiences in anhedonia together with its relevant temporal dynamics (i.e., variability, instability, and inertia), and expands current knowledge by exploring the role of arousal therein. Methods: Using the Experience Sampling Method (ESM), we collected 90 assessments of real-life PA experiences across 30 days in 18-24 year old individuals with anhedonia (N = 69) and without anhedonia (N = 69). Results: Multilevel analyses showed that anhedonia was associated with less intense pleasure experience, and lower levels of PA. Contrary to predictions from laboratory research and depression theory, individuals with anhedonia showed more variability and less stability in PA, and no signs of blunted PA reactivity. In fact, when exploring high and low arousal PA, individuals with anhedonia showed a slightly stronger reactivity to pleasurable experiences in high-arousal PA but not low-arousal PA. Limitations: We did not control for previous pleasure experiences and, instead of the last positive event, accumulation of positive events may have determined the change in high-arousal PA. Conclusions: Individuals with anhedonia are likely less 'flat' or 'blunted' than generally thought. Although replication is warranted, impairments in high-arousal positive emotions may be of particular interest in the clinical treatment of anhedonia

Climate negotiators’ and scientists’ assessments of the climate negotiations

Climate negotiation outcomes are difficult to evaluate objectively because there are no clear reference scenarios. Subjective assessments from those directly involved in the negotiations are particularly important, as this may influence strategy and future negotiation participation. Here we analyze the perceived success of the climate negotiations in a sample of more than 600 experts involved in international climate policy. Respondents were pessimistic when asked for specific assessments of the current approach centered on voluntary pledges, but were more optimistic when asked for general assessments of the outcomes and usefulness of the climate negotiations. Individuals who are more involved in the negotiation process tended to be more optimistic, especially in terms of general assessments. Our results indicate that two reinforcing effects are at work: a high degree of involvement changes individuals’ perceptions and more optimistic individuals are more inclined to remain involved in the negotiations

Self-prioritization and perceptual matching: The effects of temporal construal.

Recent research has revealed that self-referential processing enhances perceptual judgments - the so-called self-prioritization effect. The extent and origin of this effect remains unknown, however. Noting the multifaceted nature of the self, here we hypothesized that temporal influences on self-construal (i.e., past/future-self continuity) may serve as an important determinant of stimulus prioritization. Specifically, as representations of the self increase in abstraction as a function of temporal distance (i.e., distance from now), self-prioritization may only emerge when stimuli are associated with the current self. The results of three experiments supported this prediction. Self-relevance only enhanced performance in a standard perceptual-matching task when stimuli (i.e., geometric shapes) were connected with the current self; representations of the self in the future (Expts. 1 & 2) and past (Expt. 3) failed to facilitate decision making. To identify the processes underlying task performance, data were interrogated using a hierarchical drift diffusion model (HDDM) approach. Results of these analyses revealed that self-prioritization was underpinned by a stimulus bias (i.e., rate of information uptake). Collectively, these findings elucidate when and how self-relevance influences decisional processing

Run Away or Stick Together? The Impact of Organization-Specific Adverse Events on Alliance Partner Defection

Alliances are inter-organizational relationships wherein partners agree to engage in joint action and share benefits and burdens. But when might an adverse event that strikes one partner become too burdensome for another partner? Extant theories of alliance instability provide incomplete answers, which is problematic: for stricken organizations, anticipating whether their non-stricken partners will remain in the alliance can be essential for survival. Integrating insights from alliance dynamics and organizational stigma literatures, we theorize how an organization-specific adverse event affects a non-stricken partner's decision to continue with or defect from an alliance by considering factors that shift the balance between cohesive and disruptive forces. We propose that high stigmatization risk will increase the probability of partner defection through two disruptive mechanisms: relational uncertainty and stigma anxiety. Building on the idea that the same factors contributing to alliance formation may also condition partner defection, we theorize about the roles of partner resource interdependencies, relational embeddedness, and perceived partner similarity in amplifying or attenuating disruptive mechanisms triggered by an adverse event. We extend the research on partner defection and alliance instability by advancing an event-based view of alliance instability and specifying the conditions under which an alliance partner might defect

Mine or mother’s? Exploring the self-ownership effect across cultures

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Sex differences in depressive symptoms among college students

The sex differences in depression is a well-established, replicated clinical finding, with previous literature indicating that females report more depression than males. However, recent research suggests a narrowing sex gap in depressive symptoms. The current study examined depressive symptoms among 1377 undergraduates (18-29 years; M=19.80) using the 20-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. We hypothesized that the current sex difference in depression symptoms would be small or nonsignificant. Results indicated that although males reported more anhedonia and suicidal ideation, there were no significant sex differences in total depression scores, nor did females report more symptoms on any other subscales