Beliefs about mothering and fathering, in non-parents and parents : themes, structure and well-being.

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Profound inhibition of chronic itch induced by stimulation of thin cutaneous nerve fibres.

Background Despite the fact that severe itch is common in many dermatological diseases, the therapeutic arsenal against itching is limited. From neurophysiological experiments, using a new technique termed cutaneous field stimulation, it is known that acute itch can be effectively relieved by stimulation of cutaneous nociceptors. Methods We tested the effects of cutaneous field stimulation (25 min, 16 electrodes, 4 Hz per electrode, up to 0.8 mA) on chronic itch due to atopic dermatitis. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (100 Hz, up to 26 mA) was used for comparison. In 27 patients, itch was measured just prior to, during and at regular intervals up to 12 h after either type of treatment. Results Both treatments augmented the itch sensation during ongoing stimulation, presumably reflecting an altered sensory processing in the somatosensory pathways of chronic itch patients. However, after cessation of cutaneous field stimulation, but not transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, the itch sensation was significantly depressed for up to 7 h. The peak inhibitory effect (about 25% of control) was reached between 1 and 5 h poststimulation. Neither treatment had any significant effect on alloknesis, as measured before and 10 min after stimulation. Conclusion It is concluded that cutaneous field stimulation strongly depresses chronic itch, and is a potentially useful symptomatic treatment of itch

Flexibility in Problem Solving: Analogical Transfer of Tool Use in Toddlers Is Immune to Delay

Solving problems that are perceptually dissimilar but require similar solutions is a key skill in everyday life. In adults, this ability, termed analogical transfer, draws on memories of relevant past experiences that partially overlap with the present task at hand. Thanks to this support from long-term memory, analogical transfer allows remarkable behavioral flexibility beyond immediate situations. However, little is known about the interaction between long-term memory and analogical transfer in development as, to date, they have been studied separately. Here, for the first time, effects of age and memory on analogical transfer were investigated in 2-to-4.5-olds in a simple tool-use setup. Children attempted to solve a puzzle box after training the correct solution on a different looking box, either right before the test or 24 hours earlier. We found that children (N = 105) could transfer thesolution regardless of the delay and a perceptual conflict introduced in the tool set. For children who failed to transfer (N = 54) and repeated the test without a perceptual conflict, the odds of success did not improve. Our findings suggest that training promoted the detection of functional similarities between boxes and, thereby, flexible transfer both in the short and the long term

Generalizing Solutions Across Functionally Similar Problems Correlates with World Knowledge and Working Memory in 2.5- to 4.5-Year-Olds

Analogical transfer, denoting the ability to use an action that solved a given problem in order to successfully handle a seemingly different but functionally similar problem, requires well-developed self-regulation, as it draws on previous knowledge and demands selecting and shifting between relevant features while ignoring irrelevant ones. Thus, analogical transfer involves executive functions (EFs), yet the contribution of specific EFs is unclear, particularly during the development of the capacity before the age of 5. Here, for the first time, we investigated the contribution of world knowledge, working memory and set-shifting in 2.5- to 4.5-year-olds’ (N = 86) capacity to single-event analogical transfer in a simple, non-verbal, tool-use task. Analogical transfer was independent of age but was predicted by a measure of world knowledge and a measure of working memory across the age-span tested. Our results suggest that world knowledge and working memory underscore analogical transfer early in development

Impact of Carnivory on Human Development and Evolution Revealed by a New Unifying Model of Weaning in Mammals

Our large brain, long life span and high fertility are key elements of human evolutionary success and are often thought to have evolved in interplay with tool use, carnivory and hunting. However, the specific impact of carnivory on human evolution, life history and development remains controversial. Here we show in quantitative terms that dietary profile is a key factor influencing time to weaning across a wide taxonomic range of mammals, including humans. In a model encompassing a total of 67 species and genera from 12 mammalian orders, adult brain mass and two dichotomous variables reflecting species differences regarding limb biomechanics and dietary profile, accounted for 75.5%, 10.3% and 3.4% of variance in time to weaning, respectively, together capturing 89.2% of total variance. Crucially, carnivory predicted the time point of early weaning in humans with remarkable precision, yielding a prediction error of less than 5% with a sample of forty-six human natural fertility societies as reference. Hence, carnivory appears to provide both a necessary and sufficient explanation as to why humans wean so much earlier than the great apes. While early weaning is regarded as essentially differentiating the genus Homo from the great apes, its timing seems to be determined by the same limited set of factors in humans as in mammals in general, despite some 90 million years of evolution. Our analysis emphasizes the high degree of similarity of relative time scales in mammalian development and life history across 67 genera from 12 mammalian orders and shows that the impact of carnivory on time to weaning in humans is quantifiable, and critical. Since early weaning yields shorter interbirth intervals and higher rates of reproduction, with profound effects on population dynamics, our findings highlight the emergence of carnivory as a process fundamentally determining human evolution

L'attaccamento va in tribunale: protezione e affidamento dei minori

In molti contesti professionali, compreso quello del Tribunale per i minorenni, si fa riferimento alla teoria dell’attaccamento e alla relativa ricerca, con fraintendimenti ampiamente diffusi che spesso si traducono in applicazioni scorrette. La finalità di questa dichiarazione di consenso è, pertanto, quella di migliorarne la comprensione, contrastare la disinformazione a riguardo e guidarne l’uso nel contesto del tribunale per i minorenni secondo una modalità basata sulle evidenze, considerando in particolare i processi decisionali circa la protezione e l’affidamento dei minori. L’articolo è diviso in due parti. Nella prima ci occupiamo dei problemi relativi all’utilizzo di teoria e ricerca sull’attaccamento nel contesto del Tribunale per i minorenni e ne discutiamo le ragioni. A questo proposito, esaminiamo le applicazioni della teoria che si ispirano al principio elettivo del superiore interesse del minore, discutiamo i fraintendimenti a riguardo e identifichiamo i fattori che ne hanno ostacolato un’accurata implementazione. Nella seconda parte, forniamo indicazioni per una sua adeguata e corretta applicazione. A tal fine, siamo partiti da tre principi di riferimento: il bisogno del bambino di caregiver familiari e non abusanti, il valore della continuità di cure sufficientemente buone e i benefici delle reti di relazioni di attaccamento. Discutiamo, inoltre, di quanto le valutazioni sulla qualità dell’attaccamento e sul comportamento di cura siano adeguate a ispirare i processi decisionali forensi rivolti ai minori. Concludiamo che la valutazione dei comportamenti di cura dovrebbe ricoprire un ruolo centrale. Nonostante non ci sia fra noi completo consenso riguardo all’utilizzo delle valutazioni sulla qualità dell’attaccamento nelle decisioni attinenti all’affidamento e alla protezione del minore, tali valutazioni si rivelano, al momento, le più adatte a individuare obiettivi e modalità degli interventi di sostegno. Infine, offriamo indicazioni per organizzare le future collaborazioni di ricerca interdisciplinare

Attachment goes to court: child protection and custody issues

Attachment theory and research are drawn upon in many applied settings, including family courts, but misunderstandings are widespread and sometimes result in misapplications. The aim of this consensus statement is, therefore, to enhance understanding, counter misinformation, and steer family-court utilisation of attachment theory in a supportive, evidence-based direction, especially with regard to child protection and child custody decision-making. The article is divided into two parts. In the first, we address problems related to the use of attachment theory and research in family courts, and discuss reasons for these problems. To this end, we examine family court applications of attachment theory in the current context of the best-interest-of-the-child standard, discuss misunderstandings regarding attachment theory, and identify factors that have hindered accurate implementation. In the second part, we provide recommendations for the application of attachment theory and research. To this end, we set out three attachment principles: the child’s need for familiar, non-abusive caregivers; the value of continuity of good-enough care; and the benefits of networks of attachment relationships. We also discuss the suitability of assessments of attachment quality and caregiving behaviour to inform family court decision-making. We conclude that assessments of caregiver behaviour should take center stage. Although there is dissensus among us regarding the use of assessments of attachment quality to inform child custody and child-protection decisions, such assessments are currently most suitable for targeting and directing supportive interventions. Finally, we provide directions to guide future interdisciplinary research collaboration

The influence of attachment representations and co-parents’ scripted knowledge of attachment on fathers’ and mothers’ caregiving representations

Despite increased engagement of men in parenting, paternal caregiving representations have not been investigated, and potential gender differences in the links between parents’ attachment representations and their caregiving representations are unexplored. The present study investigated fathers’ and mothers’ (N = 77) representations of caregiving, and links to their own and their co-parents’ current mental representations of attachment. Parents were interviewed with the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) and the Parental-Caregiving Attachment Interview (P-CAI), and co-parents’ attachment scripts were measured with the Attachment Script Assessment (ASA). Our results demonstrate several similarities between mothers’ and fathers’ caregiving representations, but gender differences emerged in probable rejecting and neglecting parental behaviors. For both fathers and mothers, we found systematic differences in caregiving-specific state of mind dimensions on the P-CAI, depending on the parent’s attachment classification on the AAI. Importantly, co-parent attachment security, but not parent gender was associated with the likelihood of being classified as autonomous with respect to caregiving