Biological Signatures of Emotion Regulation in Children

Emotion regulation (ER) is a key predictor of positive adjustment throughout the lifespan. Despite decades of research on discrete ER strategy use, ER may be more appropriately measured in terms of the breadth of emotional range, or the degree to which one can flexibly modulate emotional responses. Yet little is known about ER flexibility in childhood. Also, given the crucial role of caregiver support in children’s emotional lives, ER may be most accurately measured in developmentally appropriate and ecologically valid social contexts. Further, few developmental studies have capitalized on the growing evidence base surrounding biological signatures of ER. This study harnessed two target biological signatures that highlight emotional range as an aspect of ER flexibility: the late positive potential (LPP), an index of neurocognitive flexibility, and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), an index of physiological flexibility. These metrics were examined as predictors of child behavioral ER and emotional adjustment, and evaluated in terms of their sensitivity to social context. Eighty-six (44 female; Mage = 6.94, SD = 1.13) 5-to-8-year-olds completed a Directed Reappraisal Task (DRT) in which unpleasant pictures were paired with either reappraisal or negative interpretations while EEG and ECG were recorded. Social context was systematically manipulated such that children either completed the task alone, with parent present but not interacting, or with parent scaffolding child ER. ECG was recorded while dyads completed two emotionally challenging behavioral tasks. Neurocognitive flexibility indexed by the LPP was bolstered by experimentally-manipulated parent presence or scaffolding of child ER during the DRT, and also by spontaneous patterns of behavioral parent scaffolding. In contrast, while RSA was not sensitive to social context, greater physiological flexibility indexed by RSA suppression predicted greater parent-reported ER, and fewer symptoms of psychopathology. Taken together, results highlight the importance of bio-behavioral multimethod approaches to examine biological signatures of ER in children in terms of context-sensitivity and flexibility

Radiation from advanced solid rocket motor plumes

The overall objective of this study was to develop an understanding of solid rocket motor (SRM) plumes in sufficient detail to accurately explain the majority of plume radiation test data. Improved flowfield and radiation analysis codes were developed to accurately and efficiently account for all the factors which effect radiation heating from rocket plumes. These codes were verified by comparing predicted plume behavior with measured NASA/MSFC ASRM test data. Upon conducting a thorough review of the current state-of-the-art of SRM plume flowfield and radiation prediction methodology and the pertinent data base, the following analyses were developed for future design use. The NOZZRAD code was developed for preliminary base heating design and Al2O3 particle optical property data evaluation using a generalized two-flux solution to the radiative transfer equation. The IDARAD code was developed for rapid evaluation of plume radiation effects using the spherical harmonics method of differential approximation to the radiative transfer equation. The FDNS CFD code with fully coupled Euler-Lagrange particle tracking was validated by comparison to predictions made with the industry standard RAMP code for SRM nozzle flowfield analysis. The FDNS code provides the ability to analyze not only rocket nozzle flow, but also axisymmetric and three-dimensional plume flowfields with state-of-the-art CFD methodology. Procedures for conducting meaningful thermo-vision camera studies were developed

Development and Validation of the Maternal Distraction Questionnaire

This paper describes the development of a self-report measure of mothers’ engagement in technological activities during mother-infant interactions. In Study 1, mothers (n = 332; infants: 3.8 ± 1.4 months) completed the Maternal Distraction Questionnaire (MDQ) and related questionnaires. Factor analysis revealed two distinct subscales representing engagement with technological distractors and perceived distraction. Subscales correlated with relevant measures of feeding styles, attachment, and infant eating behaviors and temperament. In Study 2, mothers (n = 24; infants: 3.8 ± 1.8 months) completed the MDQ and kept feeding activity diaries. Significant correlations between MDQ subscales and diary data were noted. In sum, the MDQ is a valid measure of maternal engagement with technological activities during mother-infant interactions

Variability in Caregiver Attention Bias to Threat: A Goldilocks Effect in Infant Emotional Development?

Attention biases to threat are considered part of the etiology of anxiety disorders. Attention bias variability (ABV) quantifies intraindividual fluctuations in attention biases, and may better capture the relation between attention biases and psychopathology risk versus mean levels of attention bias. ABV to threat has been associated with attentional control and emotion regulation, which may impact how caregivers interact with their child. In a relatively diverse sample of infants (50% white, 50.7% female), we asked how caregiver ABV to threat related to trajectories of infant negative affect across the first two years of life. Families were part of a multi-site longitudinal study, and data were collected from 4 to 24 months of age. Multilevel modeling examined the effect of average caregiver attention biases on changes in negative affect. We found a significant interaction between infant age and caregiver ABV to threat. Probing this interaction revealed that infants of caregivers with high ABV showed decreases in negative affect over time, while infants of caregivers with low-to-average ABV showed potentiated increases in negative affect. We discuss how both high and extreme patterns of ABV may relate to deviations in developmental trajectories

Online food advertisements and the role of emotions in adolescents’ food choices

Adolescence is a critical period for future health outcomes. Food habits and cognitive development are underway, and it is a period of heightened sensitivity to external influences and emotional shifts. We experimentally test the individual and combined influence of food advertisements and emotional primes (i.e., positive, negative, neutral) on adolescent food choices. Participants completed a food choice task selecting five snacks out of twenty healthy and unhealthy options in an online experiment. Prior to the food choice, we randomized whether adolescents were exposed to unhealthy food or non-food online advertisements. To induce experimental variation in adolescents’ emotions, they were assigned to watch two, two-minute film clips validated to elicit the targeted emotion. The online food advertisement did not significantly impact food choices, except that Black and Hispanic groups selected a higher share of calories from unhealthy foods. Participants in a negative emotional state selected more unhealthy sweet snacks. Finally, we find only weak evidence that a positive emotional state amplified the impact of food advertisements on the nutritional quality of food selection. Together, results suggest that while a negative emotional state drives food choices, this pattern occurs independently from food advertisement exposure