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How unspecified are disorders of children with a pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified? A study of social problems in children with PDD-NOS and ADHD.

This study examines possible differences and similarities between social behaviour problems in children with problems classified as pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) and a group of children with problems classified as ADHD, as measured by parent questionnaires. The instruments involved were the CBCL (Child Behaviour Checklist), the ABC (Autism Behaviour Checklist) and a new instrument: the CSBQ (Children's Social Behaviour Questionnaire). In comparing the PDD-NOS group and the ADHD group, the results show that, according to parent reports, both groups have severe problems in executing appropriate social behaviour, but the PDD-NOS group can be distinguished from the ADHD group by the nature and the extent of these problems. The PDD-NOS group had significantly more social problems (as measured by the CBCL Social scale), withdrawn problems (as measured by the CBCL Withdrawn scale) and PDD-specific problems (as measured on the ABC Relating scale, the ABC Language scale, the CSBQ total score, the CSBQ Social Interaction scale and CBSQ Communication scale). In addition, although the descriptions of the social problems are global, i.e. on scale level, the results also show that the social problems of PDD-NOS children can be positively formulated and described as at least including severe social interaction problems, withdrawn behaviours and communication problems.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗

Attention and social problem solving as correlates of aggression in preschool males.

This study examined the relationship between two cognitive processing variables--attention and social problem solving--and aggression in preschool-age boys. The 43 participants were administered two selective attention tasks that assess children's tendency to focus on aggressive versus cooperative social situations, the Preschool Interpersonal Problem Solving Test developed by Shure and Spivack, and the information and block design subtests of the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence. Aggressive behavior was measured by teacher ratings and observational data. Results indicated that, in contrast to their nonaggressive peers, aggressive preschool boys tend to focus their attention on aggressive social interactions in their environment. They also provide aggressive solutions to hypothetical interpersonal conflict situations more often than their less aggressive peers. Intelligence does not appear to play a mediating role in these relationships. Implications of these results for understanding and remediating aggressive behavior in young boys are discussed.

Aggression↗

Social problem solving in schizophrenia.

The recent literature on social skills training has placed an increasing emphasis on the role of cognitive factors in social failure, as opposed to deficits in motoric skills. It has been hypothesized that schizophrenic patients are markedly deficient in social problem-solving abilities, and several programs have been developed to teach problem-solving skills. Despite high face validity, there is little empirical support for these training programs or the problem-solving model on which they are based. Research on information processing and problem solving in nonpatient populations is discussed, and it is concluded that the model used in these treatment programs is not a good representation of the problem-solving process. In particular, means-ends analysis is not an appropriate strategy for dealing with most interpersonal problems and conflicts. The difficulties experienced by schizophrenic patients in social situations might be due to a number of factors other than deficits in problem-solving skill, including sensitivity to negative affect and disordered communication. It is concluded that further research on problem-solving training programs is clearly warranted but that the validity of the problem-solving model and the utility of the training is uncertain.

Humans↗

Social problems of adolescent and adult epileptics in a developing country, as seen in Lagos, Nigeria.

Adolescent and adult epileptics attending the Neurology Clinic were interviewed about their social problems. Forty-nine percent were attending normal school; a third of these believed that seizure disorder affected their school performance. Of 40% who had attended school but left, about half withdrew from school prematurely because of the frequency of their seizures. Ninety percent of those who could be employed had jobs. About a third of these had lost income because of the illness. Self-employed patients were most affected. Very few patients lost their jobs despite most employers' knowledge of their employees' epilepsy. About one-sixth had lost friends or spouses because of epilepsy and a few had withdrawn from social activities for fear of having a seizure in public. Others had no problems interacting with other members of the society. Most of the patients claimed they took antiepileptic drugs regularly. One third had difficulty paying for these drugs. One quarter denied being epileptics. In conclusion, the social difficulties of adolescent and adult epileptics in Nigeria are similar to those of epileptics elsewhere. Educational problems are most common and these are related to poor seizure control. This is partly due to financial difficulties in obtaining drugs regularly.

Adolescent↗

Social support from a friend, perceived support, and social problem solving.

This research combined experimental and correlational methods to investigate the effects of social support on social problem-solving effectiveness and perceived stress. During a wait period, college students were given the opportunity to work on practice items from a mildly stressful social problem-solving task, either alone or in the company of a close friend. Participants and friends were allowed to talk about the practice items but were not required to do so, and supportive transactions were tape recorded and content analyzed. All students then completed social problem-solving and perceived stress items alone. Participants who waited with friends did not show superior problem-solving effectiveness unless companions provided particular supportive behaviors. Participants with high perceived support scores rated the experiment as less stressful than those with low scores, but perceived support was not related to companions' actual supportive behaviors. The results were discussed in terms of implications for understanding the mechanisms of social support.

Depression↗

Neuropsychological correlates of the YAQ-S and YAQ-I self- and informant-reported ADHD symptomatology, emotional and social problems and delinquent behaviour.

OBJECTIVES: The objective was to evaluate the relationship between self- and informant-rated symptoms of ADHD and performance on neuropsychological tests of attention and impulsivity (Letter Cancellation Test [LCT], Continuous Performance Test [CPT] and Matching Familiar Figures test [MFF]). DESIGN: Participants were clinical referrals for assessment of ADHD in adulthood and healthy controls. METHOD: ADHD adults were compared with individuals with mild psychiatric disorders (including attention problems), a healthy control group on neuropsychological measures of attention (CPT and LCT) and on impulsivity (MFF). Secondly, the scores obtained on these measures were correlated with the Young ADHD Questionnaire-S (YAQ-S) and Young ADHD Questionnaire-I (YAQ-I) self- and informant-reported scales of ADHD symptomatology, emotional problems, delinquency, and social functioning. RESULTS: The ADHD group were more impaired than the healthy controls on neuropsychological measures, but only the MFF differentiated them from the psychiatric controls. Tests of attentional control positively correlated with the selfreported functioning of the ADHD group but not among the psychiatric or normal controls. There was a positive correlation between tests of attention (but not impulsivity) and self-ratings of ADHD symptomatology for the ADHD group, suggesting that ADHD adults are better at recognizing attentional problems than impulse control. A positive correlation was found between the Delinquency scale and a test of impulsivity for the ADHD group only. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that there are neuropsychological underpinnings of the ADHD syndrome but neuropsychological tests may discriminate poorly between ADHD and mild psychiatric disorders. ADHD adults may be more reliable informants of adult functioning than their parents, although they may underreport impulsive behaviour.

Adult↗

Psycho-social problems of HIV carriers.

HIV carrier state and AIDS generate multiple medical, psychological, social and legal problems. The aim of the work was to evaluate selected psycho-social problems among HIV carriers. The examination method was a questionnaire. We interviewed 60 HIV carriers. The results obtained confirmed the existence of the problems affecting the carriers and their families. It creates need for social education in this field.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Social goals: relationship to adolescent adjustment and to social problem solving.

Examined the relations between adolescent boys' social goals of dominance, revenge, avoidance, and affiliation and (1) self-reported negative adolescent outcomes; (2) subjective sense of self-esteem; and (3) externalizing, internalizing, and prosocial behaviors, as rated by peers and teachers. Results indicated that social goal values were related to diverse aspects of self-, teacher-, and peer-reported social and behavioral functioning, with a consistent association found between a range of delinquent, substance-using, and behavioral difficulties, and endorsement of high goal values for dominance and revenge and low goal values for affiliation. Results also indicated that teacher-identified aggressive boys differed from nonaggressive boys in the value they placed on social goals, with aggressive boys placing a higher value on goals of dominance and revenge, and lower value on goals for affiliation. Finally social goal choice had a clear relation to the social problem-solving differences of aggressive and nonaggressive boys.

Adolescent↗

Gender differences in the dual-task effects on autobiographical memory retrieval during social problem solving.

A dual-task paradigm was used to explore the effects of cognitive load on social problem solving and autobiographical memory retrieval. The role that gender may play in mediating the relationship was also examined. Participants performed a secondary task concurrently with two primary tasks: (a) a cueing task, and (b) the Means-End Problem-Solving (MEPS) Task, during which they were required to attend to the memories retrieved during solution generation. Two dual-task conditions were employed in order that two levels of secondary task difficulty could be explored. Level of difficulty proved to be an important factor in the effects of resource reduction on the two primary tasks. Retrieval during the MEPS was effected by both the easy and difficult secondary task whereas retrieval on the cueing task was affected by the difficult task only. The results also showed that females (in contrast to males) favoured a more detailed SPS style using a specific memory database. Consequently, under central executive pressure, females' performance was significantly affected while males' performance remained largely unchanged.

Adult↗

Narratives of aging and social problems in medical encounters with older persons.

This study asks: How do older patients and their doctors deal with social problems in the discourse of routine medical encounters? Our research has been influenced by a growing recognition of narratives as an important analytic focus in the study of patient-doctor communication. We attempted to advance theoretical knowledge by emphasizing elements of sociocultural context, ideology, social control, underlying structure, and features of discourse that appear marginal to medicine's technical tasks. Based on a critical review of both quantitative and qualitative techniques in research on patient-doctor communication, we tried to move methodologically beyond prior work by developing a new interpretive method with systematic criteria to guide the sampling of encounters, transcription of recordings, interpretation of transcripts, and presentation of findings. We applied the interpretive method to 50 encounters selected randomly from a stratified random sample of 336 audiotaped encounters involving patients and primary care internists. As shown by illustrative encounters, a characteristic narrative structure and sequencing emerge, which tend to marginalize contextual problems, to leave them incompletely expressed, and to reinforce ideologies of stoicism and individualism.

Aged↗

Nitrate contamination of domestic potable water supplies: a social problem?

Nitrate contamination of potable water supplies is a recognized health hazard. Potentially, the contamination of private drinking water supplies could be a problem in the rural Palouse area of Idaho and Washington. Studies have shown that 12 percent of the rural population of Whitman County, Washington, may be drinking water containing nitrates in excess of the national standard. Yet there is no organized concern about this potential health hazard among local citizens. After reviewing the literature on nitrate contamination of ground water and discussing nitrate contamination of private potable water supplies in the Palouse, we use a social movement theory of social problems to explain why this situation has not been defined as a public health problem.

Humans↗

Social problem solving in unsafe situations: implications for sexual abuse education programs.

Examined the impact of two subject variables (age and gender) and two contextual factors (antagonist age and nature of the social dilemma) on children's social problem solving (SPS). Preschoolers (N = 62) were individually presented with four stories that varied the antagonist age (peer vs. adult) and social dilemma (nonsexual vs. sexual). Responses were coded for three SPS variables: number of alternative solutions, solution content, and planfulness. Younger preschoolers were less competent problem solvers in all types of unsafe situations, and, compared to girls, some aspects of boys' problem solving were compromised in sexual encounters. Results also suggest that the nature of the social dilemma, but not the age of the antagonist, affects preschoolers' SPS. Children generated fewer alternative solutions and fewer effective strategies to the sexual encounters compared to the nonsexual dilemmas. Findings are discussed in relation to research on children's SPS and child sexual abuse prevention efforts.

Assertiveness↗

Dealing with drugs: heroin abuse as a social problem.

Reported here are attitudes and perceptions regarding heroin control, prevention, and treatment obtained in a survey of community leaders in four high drug traffic and drug use neighborhoods in New York City. Studies in the past have focused on the causes and consequences of heroin use primarily from the standpoint of the drug user. Operationalizing the tenet that heroin abuse is a social problem, this study develops an ecological paradigm for analyzing the effects on neighborhoods of illicit drugs and of prevention, intervention, and treatment policies. The research was undertaken in 1981 for the New York State Heroin and Alcohol Study Commission. It demonstrates the importance of including community perspectives in policy decisions and the usefulness of a study group of community leaders as a reliable source of this information.

Community Participation↗

Born in the USA. The medicalization of social problems.

As the debate over health care reform intensified a few years ago, Americans questioned their delivery system and pointed to Canada, Great Britain, and other countries as potential models for reform. NHA conducted its own examination of these models and concluded: the United States, and Michigan in particular, will have difficulty improving the health status of its citizens and controlling health care expenditures unless we more effectively deal with a uniquely American phenomenon--the medicalization of social problems.

Adolescent↗