Early Developmental Experiences Research Articles

Birth Advantages in Male Italian Soccer: How They Influence Players Youth Career and Their Future Career Status.

Soccer organizations generally adopt deterministic models within their talent pathways. In this framework, early ability and results are emphasized, leading to selection biases, such as birth advantages (i.e., relative age effects and birthplace effects), which research has shown affect both early developmental experiences and continued sporting involvement. Accordingly, this study aimed to (a) provide further test of birth advantages in Italian youth soccer by exploring the birth quarter (BQ) and birthplace (BP) distribution of 1050 male Italian players born between 1999 and 2001 who competed in the national U17 championship throughout the 2015-16 season and (b) investigate how birth advantages influenced selected players' future career status. Chi-square goodness-of-fit tests revealed early born players, and players born in North Italy were overrepresented at the youth level (p-values < 0.0001). Successive prospective analysis revealed only 18% of players developed into professional-level soccer players. Chi-square tests of independence indicated that players' BP was associated with their future career status (p < 0.0001), whereas their BQ was not (p = 0.459). Odds ratios showed players born in North Italy were five times more likely to complete the youth-to-senior transition than those born in South Italy. These findings highlighted environmental factors influence Italian players' early developmental experiences and their future career status.

Effects of childhood emotional neglect on pain empathy: Evidence from event-related potentials

Emotional neglect during childhood was associated with adverse long-term consequences for mental health and may impact neural responses by altering the trajectories of brain development. Pain empathy, a crucial social adaptive ability that recognizes and understands another person's pain, was found to be correlated with early developmental experiences. However, the impact of emotional neglect on neural responses related to pain empathy remains inadequately explored. Utilizing childhood trauma questionnaires and event-related potential (ERP), the electrical response of the brain to a specific stimulus, this study investigated the impact of emotional neglect experiences on pain empathy neural responses among 62 Chinese college students. The results of correlation analysis demonstrated a significant association between childhood emotional neglect scores and the empathic N2 responses (defined as pain minus non-pain conditions), representing the early emotional sharing process of pain empathy. The findings clarified the effects of specific forms of traumatic experiences on individuals' social functioning and laid the foundation for further exploring the impact of trauma on neural responses.

Asymmetric visual representation of sex from facial appearance

We efficiently infer others’ traits from their faces, and these inferences powerfully shape our social behaviour. Here, we investigated how sex is represented in facial appearance. Based on previous findings from sex-judgment tasks, we hypothesized that the perceptual encoding of sex is not balanced but rather polarized: for the processes that generate a sex percept, the default output is “male,” and the representation of female faces extends that of the male, engaging activity over unique detectors that are not activated by male faces. We tested this hypothesis with the logic of Treisman’s studies of visual search asymmetries, predicting that observers should more readily detect the presence of female faces amongst male distractors than vice versa. Across three experiments (N = 32 each), each using different face stimuli, we confirmed this prediction in response time and sensitivity measures. We apply GIST analyses to the face stimuli to exclude that the search asymmetry is explained by differences in image homogeneity. These findings demonstrate a property of the coding that links facial appearance with a significant social trait: the female face is coded as an extension of a male default. We offer a mechanistic description of perceptual detectors to account for our findings and posit that the origins of this polarized coding scheme are an outcome of biased early developmental experience.

The Modification of Offspring Stress-Related Behavior and the Expression of Drd1, Drd2, and Nr3c1 by a Western-Pattern Diet in Mus Musculus

The impact of early developmental experience on neurobiological pathways that may contribute to the association between diet and behavior have not yet been elucidated. The focus of the current study was to determine whether the impact of prenatal stress (PS) could be mitigated by a diet that stimulates the same neuroendocrine systems influenced by early stress, using a mouse model. Behavioral and genetic approaches were used to assess how a Western-pattern diet (WPD) interacts with PS and sex to impact the expression of anxiety-like behavior in an open-field arena, as well as the expression of the glucocorticoid receptor in the hippocampus, D1 dopamine receptors in the nucleus accumbens, and D2 dopamine receptors in the ventral tegmental area. Overall, the results demonstrated that a prenatal WPD mitigates the effects of maternal stress in dams and offspring. These results help to elucidate the relationship between pre- and post-natal nutrition, gene expression, and behaviors that lead to long-term health effects.

The Early Sport and Play Experiences of Elite New Zealand Hockey Players From Rural and Regional Communities: A qualitative descriptive study

The foundation of an athlete’s development is formed through their early developmental experiences. Thus, in this study we explored the early sport and play experiences of elite New Zealand hockey players from rural and regional communities. In our examination of how smaller communities contribute to the development of New Zealand’s top athletes, this research has a particular focus on the athletes’ early sport and play experiences and the influence of people around them during their growth and development. In this qualitative descriptive study, we employed semi-structured interviews to gather data from eight current and former elite New Zealand hockey players. The study’s findings contribute to the ongoing debate regarding whether early specialisation positively or negatively influences young athletes’ development. Furthermore, it provides evidence supporting the benefits of a developmental and delayed specialisation pathway to elite performance. Surrounded by a physical, social, and cultural environment that supported freedom and responsibility alongside unstructured, outdoor, risky play experiences, the participants of this study benefited from their early developmental experiences, which supported their pathways to elite level.

Opening Laplanche’s Window: Transference-Countertransference in Psychoanalytic Group Psychotherapy

Comparing analytic activity to a spaceship launching, Laplanche (1999, pp. 231-232) suggested that there are “windows;” opportune interpretative moments. Laplanche emphasized the enduring impact of intergenerational “enigmatic messages,” such that all individuals cope with an essential “alterity” (otherness to oneself). He did not consider the countertransference implications. I propose that the analyst must also open the self-reflective window and pass through “originary situations” to prepare for intervention. In accordance with Kaes’ (2007, p. 98) formulation that “the unconscious is structured like a group,” I illustrate how unique windows of opportunity exist in psychoanalytic group treatment. Sharing and competing in a therapeutic space with “like me’s,” group members reexperience intense “horizontal” as well as “vertical” transferences, as does its leader. Clinical examples illustrate my efforts to mediate among interacting “translations” of early developmental experience—mine as well as other group members—to understand emerging psychic material.

Sex differences in the development and expression of a preference for familiar vocal signals in songbirds.

Production and perception of birdsong critically depends on early developmental experience. In species where singing is a sexually dimorphic trait, early life song experience may affect later behavior differently between sexes. It is known that both male and female songbirds acquire a life-long memory of early song experience, though its function remains unclear. In this study, we hypothesized that male and female birds express a preference for their fathers' song, but do so differently depending on the developmental stage. We measured preference for their father's song over an unfamiliar one in both male and female Bengalese finches at multiple time points across ontogeny, using phonotaxis and vocal response as indices of preference. We found that in males, selective approach to their father's song decreased as they developed while in females, it remained stable regardless of age. This may correspond to a higher sensitivity to tutor song in young males while they are learning and a retained sensitivity in females because song is a courtship signal that is used throughout life. In addition, throughout development, males vocalized less frequently during presentation of their father's song compared to unfamiliar song, whereas females emitted more calls to their father's song. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of why songbirds acquire and maintain such a robust song memory.

Early Childhood Developmental Experiences as a Tool for Combating Future Security Challenges in Nigeria

This paper examined early childhood developmental experiences as a tool for combating future security challenges in Nigeria. Education is the foundation of civilization over space and time. Thus it is seen by nations wither developing or developed as the main instrument necessary for the achievement of national security. Many nations therefore invest in education with the hope of achieving the needs of the society. Early childhood education is an integral part of teaching children in early life. The exposure of the child to pre-school experiences equips him for the next educational level and even for life. The paper recommends that the curriculum at this stage should emphasize functionalism or worthwhileness. It should consist of a play-based programme that emphasizes a pedagogical approach to education where children will be seen as requiring to learn with manipulative materials that will enhance their learning and also be taught the importance of hard work and dignity of labour. This will help to curtail some of the future security challenges in the country. A package for the early childhood sector was also proposed.

Integrating Cognitive Restructuring Within Psychodynamic Therapy for Erectile Dysfunction

The behavior of a human being in sexual matters is often a prototype for the whole of his other modes of reaction in life. 1 Erectile dysfunction due to psychogenic cause has been a highly researched area. Psychoanalytically, it has been seen as a symptom of an underlying conflict due to early developmental experiences. The attitude of parents especially at the time of a child’s emerging sexuality is considered important in perpetuating sexual inhibition and symptom. Sexual dysfunction has been found to be closely linked to anxiety and guilt and fears of punishment. This pattern of disturbance permeates into other areas of a person’s life and may continue to perpetuate his symptoms. Negative body attitude and shame have been found closely linked to sexual dissatisfaction. In this paper, a case is discussed where a patient is undergoing psychodynamic psychotherapy for depression reported along with erectile dysfunction. Distorted cognitions related to his and the partner’s body were addressed along with both current and past conflicts related to his current symptomatology.

Creative Genius as Causal Agent in History: William James's 1880 Theory Revisited and Revitalized

Near the onset of his illustrious career, the psychologist William James proposed a theory of how individual genius can exert a unique and enduring causal impact on the history of civilization. After first attacking the prevailing view that sociocultural determinism rendered individual creators and leaders mere epiphenomena, James argued that the causal effect of the genius paralleled that of the spontaneous variation or mutation in the theory of evolution by natural selection. Although his specific arguments suffer severe problems even from the standpoint of his own theory, current psychological research on creativity and genius indicate how his basic thesis can be revised and updated with respect to creative genius. This revision and updating concentrates specifically on what is known about the behavioral productivity, thinking processes and procedures, personality characteristics, and early developmental experiences in highly creative individuals. These modern enhancements then lead to the integrated discussion of Jamesian free will and the causal agency of the creative genius. The net result is a revitalized theory of how it even becomes possible for single individuals to make creative choices that not only may cause changes in their own lives, but also alter the course of world history.

Attachment anxiety and self-ambivalence as vulnerabilities toward Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

The cognitive model of obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD) proposes that dysfunctional beliefs lead to the development and maintenance of obsessive-compulsive symptoms. However, recently there has been bourgeoning interest in the role of both early developmental experiences and a dysfunctional self-concept associated with obsessive-compulsive (OC) phenomena. The current study aims to examine the relationship between attachment insecurities and self-perceptions as vulnerabilities to OCD severity in an analogue sample. Specifically, it explores attachment theory and Guidano and Liotti's (1983) model of self-ambivalence. Results demonstrated that higher levels of attachment anxiety were significantly associated with OC severity. Moreover, this relationship was partially mediated by self-ambivalence. Results also supported the small albeit significant predictive utility of self-ambivalence with respect to OC severity after controlling for the influence of OC beliefs. The findings support the notion that insecure adult attachment, thought to manifest from early developmental experiences, an ambivalent self-concept and obsessional beliefs predispose one to OCD. They also suggest that obsessive-compulsive beliefs present within the OC phenomena may evolve as a consequence of an ambivalent self-worth. Future research possibilities and implications for treatment of OCD are discussed.

Trajectories of Early Childhood Developmental Skills and Early Adolescent Psychotic Experiences: Findings from the ALSPAC UK Birth Cohort.

Objective: The aim of this study was to use prospective data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) to examine association between trajectories of early childhood developmental skills and psychotic experiences (PEs) in early adolescence.Method: This study examined data from n = 6790 children from the ALSPAC cohort who participated in a semi-structured interview to assess PEs at age 12. Child development was measured using parental report at 6, 18, 30, and 42 months of age using a questionnaire of items adapted from the Denver Developmental Screening Test – II. Latent class growth analysis was used to generate trajectories over time for measures of fine and gross motor development, social, and communication skills. Logistic regression was used to investigate associations between developmental trajectories in each of these early developmental domains and PEs at age 12.Results: The results provided evidence that decline rather than enduringly poor social (adjusted OR = 1.28, 95% CI = 1.10–1.92, p = 0.044) and communication skills (adjusted OR 1.12, 95% CI = 1.03–1.22, p = 0.010) is predictive of suspected or definite PEs in early adolescence, than those with stable and/or improving skills. Motor skills did not display the same pattern of association; although gender specific effects provided evidence that only declining pattern of fine motor skills was associated with suspected and definite PEs in males compared to females (interaction OR = 1.47, 95% CI = 1.09–1.97, p = 0.012).Conclusion: Findings suggest that decline rather than persistent impairment in social and communication skills were most predictive of PEs in early adolescence. Findings are discussed in terms of study’s strengths, limitations, and clinical implications.

The cognitive-behavioural model of hoarding disorder: Evidence from clinical and non-clinical cohorts.

The cognitive-behavioural model of hoarding disorder incorporates information processing difficulties, maladaptive attachment to possessions, erroneous beliefs about the nature of possessions, and mood problems as etiologically significant factors, although developmental experiences such as a compromised early family environment have also been proposed in an augmented model. This study examined the specificity and relevance of variables highlighted in the augmented cognitive-behavioural model. Various clinical participants (n=89) and community controls (n=20) were assessed with structured clinical interviews to verify diagnosis. Participants completed self-report measures of hoarding severity, cognitions, meta-memory, and early developmental experiences (e.g., memories of warmth and security in one's family). Hoarding cohorts (with and without obsessive-compulsive disorder) reported poor confidence in memory, but relative to other groups (obsessive-compulsive disorder without hoarding disorder, anxiety disorders, and healthy controls), hoarding-relevant cognitions, need to keep possessions in view, and concerns about the consequences of forgetting were significantly higher. Hoarding groups reported the lowest recollections of warmth in their family, although no differences were found between hoarding and non hoarding clinical cohorts for uncertainty about self and others. Nonetheless, clinical cohorts reported generally higher scores of uncertainty than healthy controls. When predicting hoarding severity, after controlling for age and mood, recollections of lack of warmth in one's family was a significant predictor of hoarding severity, with hoarding-related cognitions and fears about decision-making being additional unique predictors. The study supports the augmented cognitive-behavioural model of hoarding, inclusive of the importance of early developmental influences in hoarding.

An Analysis of Self: The Development and Assessment of a Measure of Selfobject Needs

ABSTRACTBased on the psychoanalysis of adults with borderline and narcissistic personality disorder symptoms, Kohut (1971, 1977, 1980, 1984) formulated a theory of self psychology that emphasized the importance of early developmental experiences; most centrally, the empathic attunement of caregivers as key ingredients for fostering the capacity for healthy self-regulation and interpersonal relations. Kohut elaborated 3 critical selfobject needs (i.e., idealizing, mirroring, and twinship) that were ideally satiated by these early experiences, deeming the fulfillment of these needs as essential for developing a healthy sense of self. The research presented here sought to develop a self-report measure, titled the Arble Estimate of Selfobject Pursuits (AESOP), capable of assessing the selfobject needs identified by Kohut. Across 2 studies involving 686 and 672 respondents, participants completed the AESOP. In the first study, an exploratory factor analysis supported the theorized 3-factor structure. In the second study, a confirmatory factor analysis indicated adequate-to-strong model fit and cluster analysis with theoretically related measures supported the AESOP's discriminant and convergent validity. Further research is encouraged to elaborate the implications of these preliminary findings.

Cardio-respiratory development in bird embryos: new insights from a venerable animal model

The avian embryo is a time-honored animal model for understanding vertebrate development. A key area of extensive study using bird embryos centers on developmental phenotypic plasticity of the cardio-respiratory system and how its normal development can be affected by abiotic factors such as temperature and oxygen availability. Through the investigation of the plasticity of development, we gain a better understanding of both the regulation of the developmental process and the embryo's capacity for self-repair. Additionally, experiments with abiotic and biotic stressors during development have helped delineate not just critical windows for avian cardio-respiratory development, but the general characteristics (e.g., timing and dose-dependence) of critical windows in all developing vertebrates. Avian embryos are useful in exploring fetal programming, in which early developmental experiences have implications (usually negative) later in life. The ability to experimentally manipulate the avian embryo without the interference of maternal behavior or physiology makes it particularly useful in future studies of fetal programming. The bird embryo is also a key participant in studies of transgenerational epigenetics, whether by egg provisioning or effects on the germline that are transmitted to the F1 generation (or beyond). Finally, the avian embryo is heavily exploited in toxicology, in which both toxicological testing of potential consumer products as well as the consequences of exposure to anthropogenic pollutants are routinely carried out in the avian embryo. The avian embryo thus proves useful on numerous experimental fronts as an animal model that is concurrently both of adequate complexity and sufficient simplicity for probing vertebrate cardio-respiratory development.

Natal philopatry varies with larval condition in salamanders

An individual’s physiological condition early in ontogeny often regulates natal dispersal and philopatry decisions; however, increased condition promotes dispersal in some organisms and philopatry in others. These disparate findings likely arise from interactions among an individual’s early life stage physiological condition, its likelihood of surviving a dispersal event (i.e., dispersal capacity), and its motivation to leave its natal site (i.e., dispersal propensity). Due to the broad importance of reproductive site selection to population structure and dynamics, studies disentangling these various phenotype-dependent effects are critical. We evaluated the relationships between two aspects of larval physiological condition and natal philopatry in Arizona tiger salamanders (Ambystoma tigrinum nebulosum) in an isolated pond system. In this population, geographic distance between ponds is small, adult survivorship is very high, and thus the likelihood of a successful breeding event should mediate reproductive site selection as opposed to the likelihood of surviving the dispersal event. We found that natal philopatry increased with an estimate of long-term body condition in males, but there was no relationship in females. However, natal philopatry decreased with an estimate of short-term body condition. We also found that an individual’s natal pond had effects on philopatry that influenced both sexes and were independent of the pond’s direct effects on body condition. Together, these findings strongly support the importance of an individual’s early developmental experience in the natal environment to its reproductive behaviors across its lifespan, and further highlight the value of considering how phenotype-dependent dispersal mechanisms may vary between the sexes. Previous research has not discerned a generalizable relationship between larval physiological condition and natal philopatry, likely because of the complex interaction between an individual’s ability (dispersal capacity) and its motivation (dispersal propensity) to reproduce in its natal habitat. Using a salamander population with small inter-pond distances and high adult survival, we isolated the effects of two aspects of physiological condition on dispersal propensity. We found that increased long-term larval physiological condition was associated with natal philopatry in male, but not female, tiger salamanders, as well as differences in philopatry based on natal pond. In contrast, short-term larval physiological condition was negatively associated with philopatry. Our findings suggest an important, long-lasting role of the natal environment on reproductive site selection, and further implicate that the conditions experienced in early development can strongly affect reproductive behaviors across the life cycle.

Borderline Personality Disorder: Why 'fast and furious'?

The term ‘Borderline Personality Disorder’ (BPD) refers to a psychiatric syndrome that is characterized by emotion dysregulation, impulsivity, risk-taking behavior, irritability, feelings of emptiness, self-injury and fear of abandonment, as well as unstable interpersonal relationships. BPD is not only common in psychiatric populations but also more prevalent in the general community than previously thought, and thus represents an important public health issue. In contrast to most psychiatric disorders, some symptoms associated with BPD may improve over time, even without therapy, though impaired social functioning and interpersonal disturbances in close relationships often persist. Another counterintuitive and insufficiently resolved question is why depressive symptoms and risk-taking behaviors can occur simultaneously in the same individual. Moreover, there is an ongoing debate about the nosological position of BPD, which impacts on research regarding sex differences in clinical presentation and patterns of comorbidity.In this review, it is argued that many features of BPD may be conceptualized within an evolutionary framework, namely behavioral ecology. According to Life History Theory, BPD reflects a pathological extreme or distortion of a behavioral ‘strategy’ which unconsciously aims at immediate exploitation of resources, both interpersonal and material, based on predictions shaped by early developmental experiences. Such a view is consistent with standard medical conceptualizations of BPD, but goes beyond classic ‘deficit’-oriented models, which may have profound implications for therapeutic approaches.

Early life adversity increases foraging and information gathering in European starlings, Sturnus vulgaris.

Animals can insure themselves against the risk of starvation associated with unpredictable food availability by storing energy reserves or gathering information about alternative food sources. The former strategy carries costs in terms of mass-dependent predation risk, while the latter trades off against foraging for food; both trade-offs may be influenced by an individual's developmental history. Here, we consider a possible role of early developmental experience in inducing different mass regulation and foraging strategies in European starlings. We measured the body mass, body condition, foraging effort, food consumption and contrafreeloading (foraging for food hidden in sand when equivalent food is freely available) of adult birds (≥10 months old) that had previously undergone a subtle early life manipulation of food competition (cross-fostering into the highest or lowest ranks in the brood size hierarchy when 2–12 days of age). We found that developmentally disadvantaged birds were fatter in adulthood and differed in foraging behaviour compared with their advantaged siblings. Disadvantaged birds were hyperphagic compared with advantaged birds, but only following a period of food deprivation, and also spent more time contrafreeloading. Advantaged birds experienced a trade-off between foraging success and time spent contrafreeloading, whereas disadvantaged birds faced no such trade-off, owing to their greater foraging efficiency. Thus, developmentally disadvantaged birds appeared to retain a phenotypic memory of increased nestling food competition, employing both energy storage and information-gathering insurance strategies to a greater extent than their advantaged siblings. Our results suggest that subtle early life disadvantage in the form of psychosocial stress and/or food insecurity can leave a lasting legacy on foraging behaviour and mass regulation even in the absence of food insufficiency during development or adulthood.

An analysis of the use of the therapist's ‘vulnerable self’ and the significance of the cross-fertilization of humanistic and Jungian theory in the development of the relational approach

In this article the author examines some of the similarities and differences between Martin Buber and Carl Jung. Both men suffered abandonment by their mothers at an early age. Buber's mother left the family home; Jung's mother became mentally unstable. The author suggests that these early developmental experiences in both of the analysts’ lives influenced their theoretical and philosophical development. She introduces a case study as a method to examine both similarities and differences between Buber and Jung's approaches. The major distinction between the humanistic and Jungian approaches to therapy, she argues, is an understanding and use of the unconscious in the therapy relationship. She suggests that the relational approach in psychotherapy has benefited from a cross-fertilization of theoretical approaches, and in particular sees a fusion of Buber and Jung as offering the therapist ways of reflecting that increase the capacity for effective therapy.

Sexually dimorphic effect of in vitro fertilization (IVF) on adult mouse fat and liver metabolomes.

The preimplantation embryo is particularly vulnerable to environmental perturbation, such that nutritional and in vitro stresses restricted exclusively to this stage may alter growth and affect long-term metabolic health. This is particularly relevant to the over 5 million children conceived by in vitro fertilization (IVF). We previously reported that even optimized IVF conditions reprogram mouse postnatal growth, fat deposition, and glucose homeostasis in a sexually dimorphic fashion. To more clearly interrogate the metabolic changes associated with IVF in adulthood, we used nontargeted mass spectrometry to globally profile adult IVF- and in vivo-conceived liver and gonadal adipose tissues. There was a sex- and tissue-specific effect of IVF on adult metabolite signatures indicative of metabolic reprogramming and oxidative stress and reflective of the observed phenotypes. Additionally, we observed a striking effect of IVF on adult sexual dimorphism. Male-female differences in metabolite concentration were exaggerated in hepatic IVF tissue and significantly reduced in IVF adipose tissue, with the majority of changes affecting amino acid and lipid metabolites. We also observed female-specific changes in markers of oxidative stress and adipogenesis, including reduced glutathione, cysteine glutathione disulfide, ophthalmate, urate, and corticosterone. In summary, embryo manipulation and early developmental experiences can affect adult patterns of sexual dimorphism and metabolic physiology.