Temporal Sequencing Research Articles

Narrative Skills in Primary School Children with Autism in Relation to Language and Nonverbal Temporal Sequencing

Recent research has suggested that temporal sequencing of narrative events might be a domain-general ability that underlies oral narrative capacities. The current study investigated this issue in a group of children with known pragmatic and narrative difficulties, namely Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). We hypothesized (1) that children with ASD (n = 45) would retell narratives of poorer quality than both chronological age-matched (CAM) children and younger children matched on sentence-level language skills (LM), and (2) that nonverbal temporal sequencing skills would uniquely predict individual differences in oral narrative performance in children with ASD. The results show that children with ASD performed poorer on all measures of oral narrative quality compared with the CAM group, and on eight of ten measures compared with the LM group. Thus, our first hypothesis was confirmed, suggesting that narrative difficulties in ASD cannot be fully explained by impaired language. The second hypothesis was only partly confirmed: nonverbal temporal sequencing explained significant or marginally significant variance in some, but not all, aspects of oral narrative performance of children with ASD. These results are discussed from theoretical and clinical/educational perspectives, in relation to the heterogeneity of language skills in ASD and to domain-general features of narrative processing.

Prevalence and psychiatric comorbidities of intermittent explosive disorders in Metropolitan São Paulo, Brazil.

To estimate the prevalence of intermittent explosive disorder (IED) in comorbidity with other psychiatric disorders and to describe the temporal sequencing of disorders in the São Paulo Metropolitan Area, Brazil. Data from the São Paulo Megacity Mental Health Survey, a population-based study of 5037 adult individuals, were analyzed. The World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CID 3.0) was used to assess lifetime DSM-IV disorders, including IED, with a response rate of 81.3%. The majority (76.8%) of respondents with IED meet the criteria for at least one other psychiatric disorder, with a prevalence almost twice as high as that observed in individuals without IED. The prevalence of any anxiety, mood, impulse control or substance use disorders in respondents with IED was more than two times higher compared to those without IED, with prevalence ratios ranging from 2.1 (95% CI 1.74-2.48) to 2.9 (95% CI 2.12-4.06). The diagnosis of IED occurred earlier than most of the other mental disorders, except for those with usual onset in early childhood, as Specific and Social Phobias and Attention Deficit Disorder. Considering that IED is a highly comorbid disorder and has an earlier onset than most other mental comorbidities in the Brazilian general population, these results may be useful in guiding governmental mental health actions.

Comparing middle grade students’ oral and written arguments

ABSTRACT Previous research making claims about students’ proving capabilities usually only explored one modality (e.g. oral or written arguments). This study compares the written and oral representations of eighth-grade students’ mathematical arguments to determine whether the two modalities portray similar understandings. We replicate Stylianides’ (2019) analysis using a different temporal sequencing of oral and written arguments and a larger sample size. Using an existing proof scoring scheme, we found a statistically significant difference between students’ written and oral representations of proof. Students often struggled to write arguments they could otherwise represent orally, and we found no evidence that students’ written arguments were more sophisticated than their oral arguments. We also share two illustrative cases representing the disparity between students’ written and oral arguments. The findings of this study suggest that students’ proving capabilities might not be as dire as previous research implies.

Generate, maintain, manipulate? Exploring the multidimensional nature of motor imagery

Motor imagery (MI), the mental rehearsal of a motor task, is thought to be a synergistic interaction between processes that allow for the generation, maintenance, and manipulation, of motor images. While our understanding of the multidimensional nature of MI stems from research examining various methods to assess MI ability, limited research has been conducted employing multiple assessments across participants to probe the underlying dimensions of MI. Accordingly, the current study sought to explore the multidimensional nature of MI using an exploratory approach that would allow for the dimensions of imagery to be examined and linked to each assessment measure. Specifically, participants (N = 81) underwent a battery of MI-assessments (including questionnaires, mental chronometry, a hand laterality judgment task, and a MI-based learning task), and data was analyzed via principal component analysis (PCA). Three components resulted, which were named based on which outcome measures loaded on to the component: generation, maintenance, and manipulation of motor images. We further discuss a fourth component, named ‘temporal sequencing’ of motor images, identified via the initial component solution. Concordant with previous research, we highlight the importance of employing multiple measures when assessing imagery ability prior to its use in training. Notably, this work allowed us to link assessments of MI to the different dimensions of MI, informing on the nature of MI.

Initially Negative Affect Predicts Lower Satisfaction With Future Social Contact: A Time-Lagged Analysis Using Ecological Momentary Assessment.

Prior research has linked subjective features of social situations with short-term changes in affect (e.g., across days, hours), but little is known about the directionality of such links. Our study examined the concurrent and lead-lag relationships between social contact satisfaction and affect in the flow of daily life. Using ecological momentary assessment (EMA), wherein 78 late-middle-aged and older adults reported on 2,739 social contacts (average 5.02 per day, SD = 2.95) across seven consecutive days, we examined how the level of social contact satisfaction was concurrently and prospectively associated with affect (high-arousal and low-arousal positive affect [PA], high-arousal and low-arousal negative affect [NA]). Higher contact satisfaction was concurrently associated with more high- and low-arousal PA and less high- and low-arousal NA. The influence of contact satisfaction remains for predicting greater low-arousal PA (quietness, calmness) during the next social contact. NA (either high- or low-arousal) predicted lower satisfaction during the next social contact, but such sustainable influence was not observed for PA. The study reveals a cycle in which elevated NA may trigger unsatisfactory social contact, which subsequently predicted less low-arousal PA such as quietness and calmness. Our study provided a more nuanced and differentiated picture of the temporal sequencing of everyday social contact and momentary affect. Practitioners may gain insights from our study into the development of just-in-time adaptive interventions that aim for the betterment of affective well-being in old age.

Disorganized attachment and emotion dysregulation as mediators of the association between sexual abuse and dissociation in preschoolers

BackgroundChild sexual abuse (CSA) is a prevalent social problem associated with a plethora of difficulties in preschool children. Young victims are likely to show dissociation symptoms that may significantly impede their adaptation. Yet, mechanisms linking CSA with later dissociative symptoms remain unclear. The aim of the present study was to explore whether disorganized attachment and emotion dysregulation could act as mediators of the association between CSA and dissociation. MethodsA sample of 424 preschool children (274 CSA victims, 150 comparison group children; 3.5–6 years old) and their parents were recruited. Parents reported on children's emotion dysregulation at initial assessment while attachment representations were assessed through children's narratives using the Attachment Story Completion Task (Bretherton et al., 1990) coded with the Q-Sort (Miljkovitch et al., 2004). Parents reported on children's dissociative symptoms one year later. ResultsMediation analysis showed that disorganized attachment and emotion dysregulation mediated the association between CSA and dissociation. CSA was linked to greater disorganization scores that were associated with higher scores of emotion dysregulation. Emotion dysregulation was in turn associated with increased severity of dissociation symptoms in preschool children one year later. LimitationsGiven that attachment and emotion dysregulation were both assessed at T1, the temporal sequencing of mediators remains to be validated in a longitudinal design. ConclusionsFindings highlight the relevance of fostering healthy parent-child relationships, as well as the development of optimal emotion regulation skills in young CSA victims to prevent the emergence of dissociation symptoms in this vulnerable population.

The Magnifying GLASS: Longitudinal Analysis of Adult Diffuse Gliomas

Diffuse gliomas inevitably progress, but our understanding of the molecular events associated with recurrence is limited. Recent work from the Glioma Longitudinal Analysis (GLASS) consortium (Barthel etal., 2019) reports temporal DNA sequencing on a large cohort of primary and recurrent glioma pairs, establishing the evolutionary molecular characteristics of adult diffuse gliomas.

The role of depression and suicidal cognitions as contributors to suicide risk among active duty soldiers reporting symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder

BackgroundMilitary suicide rates have risen across all service branches, with the overall rate surpassing that of the general population for the first time in history in 2008. Service members with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are at a substantially higher risk for suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and death by suicide than their peers without PTSD. While the link between PTSD and suicide is well established in the literature, less is known about the precise nature of that connection. Several constructs have been implicated as potential mediators of this relation, such as depression, alcohol use, suicidal cognitions, and sleep disturbance. Yet, to our knowledge, these constructs have never been examined simultaneously in a single model to determine mediational influence for suicide risk among soldiers with PTSD. MethodsA sample of 172 active duty Army soldiers completed a series of measures targeting the aforementioned constructs. Data were analyzed using mediation model analyses. ResultsSuicidal cognitions fully mediated the relation between PTSD symptoms and current suicide risk severity. The indirect effect for suicidal cognitions was significantly larger than indirect effects for alcohol use, depression, and sleep disturbance. Exploratory analyses suggest serial mediation of the relation between PTSD and current suicide risk by depression and suicidal cognitions. LimitationsThese results should be interpreted within the context of study limitations, to include use of self-report data and inability to firmly establish temporal sequencing assumed in mediation. ConclusionsImplications of this study include the improvement of suicide risk assessment and individualized treatment planning for suicidal military personnel with PTSD.

The social withdrawal and social anxiety feedback loop and the role of peer victimization and acceptance in the pathways.

Social withdrawal and social anxiety are believed to have a bidirectional influence on one another, but it is unknown if their relationship is bidirectional, especially within person, and if peer experiences influence this relationship. We investigated temporal sequencing and the strength of effects between social withdrawal and social anxiety, and the roles of peer victimization and acceptance in the pathways. Participants were 2,772 adolescents from the population-based and clinically referred cohorts of the Tracking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey. Self- and parent-reported withdrawal, and self-reported social anxiety, peer victimization, and perceived peer acceptance were assessed at 11, 13, and 16 years. Random-intercept cross-lagged panel models were used to investigate within-person associations between these variables. There was no feedback loop between withdrawal and social anxiety. Social withdrawal did not predict social anxiety at any age. Social anxiety at 11 years predicted increased self-reported withdrawal at 13 years. Negative peer experiences predicted increased self- and parent-reported withdrawal at 13 years and increased parent-reported withdrawal at 16 years. In turn, self-reported withdrawal at 13 years predicted negative peer experiences at 16 years. In conclusion, adolescents became more withdrawn when they became more socially anxious or experienced greater peer problems, and increasing withdrawal predicted greater victimization and lower acceptance.

Correlation of Pliocene and Pleistocene fossil assemblages from the central and eastern United States: toward a continental rodent biochronology

ABSTRACT The ubiquitous presence and rapid evolution of rodents lend this group to the development of a correlational scheme for United States Cenozoic continental fossil deposits, equivalent to the later Cenozoic section of European MN zones. Expanding on earlier work in the Meade Basin of southwestern Kansas and Florida, Pliocene and Pleistocene mammal assemblages from the northern and southern Great Plains and the eastern United States are correlated based on rodent biostratigraphy. Eleven rodent zones (RZs) are constructed for the last 5 million years based on a new database including all rodent species assemblages during the study period. In addition to the 11 refined RZs that aid in temporal sequencing of unknown rodent assemblages, three broader biozones are recognised, including an early period characterised by the Promimomys immigration event and Hemphillian holdovers, a longer, relatively warm Pliocene to early Pleistocene period dominated by primitive cricetids and archaic arvicolids, and a final zone spanning the last two million years defined by the immigration and radiation of hypselodont Microtus and large, dentally advanced species of the cotton rat, Sigmodon. Modern rodent communities are established in the later part of Biozone 3, between about 0.6–0.3 Ma.

The temporal sequence of depressive symptoms, peer victimization, and self-esteem across adolescence: Evidence for an integrated self-perception driven model.

Depression is associated with a multiplicity of adverse outcomes in adolescence, including peer victimization and low self-esteem. Depressive symptoms, peer victimization, and self-esteem are linked in cross-sectional studies, but no longitudinal study has been conducted assessing their developmental pathways in one integrated model across adolescence. We explored their temporal sequencing in a normative sample of 612 Canadian adolescents (54% girls) assessed annually over 5 years (Grade 7 to Grade 11). Potential confounders such as biological sex, ethnicity/race, and parent income and education were statistically controlled. We found evidence for the vulnerability model (self-esteem predicting depression) and the symptoms-driven model (depression predicting peer victimization). Our findings also supported the integration of these pathways into a self-perception driven model characterized by the indirect effect of self-esteem on later peer victimization via depressive symptoms. Specifically, poor self-esteem initiated a developmental cascade that led to poor mood and poor peer relations. These results highlight the importance of helping youth form a healthy identity that promotes positive mental health and peer relations, and the need to intervene with depressed, victimized, and at-risk adolescents to instill positive self-regard. Our results also emphasize the central role that self-perceptions play in the onset and maintenance of poor outcomes.

Intimate Partner Femicide: Using Foucauldian Analysis to Track an Eight Stage Progression to Homicide.

The killing of women by their intimate, or former intimate, partners is a serious social, criminal justice, and public health issue. There are significant pressures on public services in the United Kingdom and other places to reduce the number of deaths, and a need for more information to aid in assessing risk. The aim of this article is to develop understanding of nonclinical risk assessment by organizing the perpetrator journey to homicide using temporal sequencing and drawing from coercive control discourse.

Suicidality and the Onset of Homelessness: Evidence for a Temporal Association From VHA Treatment Records.

This study examined the temporal sequencing of a first-recorded episode of homelessness and treatment for suicidal ideation or attempt. Data were from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Corporate Data Warehouse and contained medical records of service use dates and associated ICD codes for care provided by the Veterans Health Administration. The analysis examined treatment for suicidality before and after a first record of homelessness ("onset") among 152,519 veterans. The second analysis examined the rate of treatment for suicidality among 156,288 veterans with any indication of homelessness. The third analysis examined the rate of homelessness among 145,770 veterans with indication of suicidality. Among newly homeless veterans, treatment for suicidality peaked just before onset of homelessness. Thirteen percent of homeless veterans had evidence of suicidality. Twenty-nine percent of veterans with evidence of suicidality appeared to have concurrent homelessness. Homelessness should be considered a primary risk factor for suicidality.

Temporal sequencing of physical activity change constructs within the transtheoretical model

ObjectiveStudies support the Transtheoretical Model’s (TTM) ability to describe behavior change processes and guide interventions; however, the temporal sequencing of constructs is less understood. This cohort study tested five sequences to identify TTM construct changes related to physical activity. MethodsA random sample provided baseline data (n = 689; 63% female; Mage (SD) = 47(17); 37% white), with 401 participants providing 24-month data, at six-month intervals. ResultsStructural equation models revealed processes to cognitions to stage (AIC = 29313.093, BIC = 29514.883, CFI = 0.999, RMSEA = 0.006, SRMR = 0.026); processes to stage to cognitions (AIC = 27788.651, BIC = 27973.268, CFI = 0.978, RMSEA = 0.024, SRMR = 0.038), self-efficacy/temptations to processes to decisional balance to stage (AIC = 13914.771, BIC = 14031.169, CFI = 0.981, RMSEA = 0.018, SRMR = 0.034), and stage to processes to cognitions (AIC = 22048.324, BIC = 22212.986, CFI = 0.976, RMSEA = 0.026, SRMR = 0.029) all fit well. However, cognitions to processes to stage did not fit the data well (AIC = 10353.555, BIC = 10444.179, CFI = 0.937, RMSEA = 0.038, SRMR = 0.035). ConclusionsIntegrating results revealed a cyclical model so that intervention efforts should focus on processes to change cognitions related to barrier self-efficacy and decisional balance, which then lead to change in stage and then renew focus on the processes.

From Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) to Ecological Momentary Intervention (EMI): Past and Future Directions for Ambulatory Assessment and Interventions in Eating Disorders.

Ambulatory assessment methods, including ecological momentary assessment (EMA), have often been used in eating disorders (EDs) to assess the type, frequency, and temporal sequencing of ED symptoms occurring in naturalistic environments. Relatedly, growing research in EDs has explored the utility of ecological momentary interventions (EMIs) to target ED symptoms. The aims of the present review were to (1) synthesize recent literature pertaining to ambulatory assessment/EMA and EMI in EDs, and (2) identify relevant limitations and future directions in these domains. With respect to ambulatory assessment and EMA, there has been substantial growth in the expansion of constructs assessed with EMA, the exploration of state- vs. trait-level processes, integration of objective and passive assessment approaches, and consideration of methodological issues. The EMI literature in EDs also continues to grow, though most of the recent research focuses on mobile health (mHealth) technologies with relatively minimal EMI components that adapt to momentary contextual information. Despite these encouraging advances, there remain several promising areas of ambulatory assessment research and clinical applications in EDs going forward. These include integration of passive data collection, use of EMA in treatment evaluation and design, evaluation of dynamic system processes, inclusion of diverse samples, and development and evaluation of adaptive, tailored EMIs such as just-in-time adaptive interventions. While much remains to be learned in each of these domains, the continual growth in mobile technology has potential to facilitate and refine our understanding of the nature of ED psychopathology and ultimately improve intervention approaches.

Problem Gambling and Psychiatric Comorbidity\u2014Risk and Temporal Sequencing Among Women and Men: Results from the Swelogs Case\u2013Control Study

It is well known that many problem gamblers also suffer from other psychiatric conditions. However, knowledge regarding the temporal sequencing of the conditions is lacking, as well as insight in possible gender specific patterns. The aim of this study was to examine the risk for psychiatric comorbidity among problem gamblers compared to non-problem gamblers in the general Swedish population, as well as the age of onset and the temporal sequencing of problem gambling and the comorbid psychiatric conditions among lifetime problem gamblers. A case–control study nested in the Swelogs cohort was used. For both the female and the male problem gamblers, the risk for having had a lifetime psychiatric condition was double or more than double compared to the controls. Having experienced anxiety or depression before gambling onset, constituted a risk for developing problem gambling for the women but not for the men. Further, the female cases initiated gambling after their first period of anxiety, depression and problems with substances, and problem gambling was the last condition to evolve. Opposite this, the male cases initiated gambling before any condition evolved, and depression and suicidal events emerged after problem gambling onset. There were large differences in mean age of onset between the female cases and their controls, this was not the case for the males. Gender specific patterns in the association between problem gambling and psychiatric comorbidity, as well as in the development of problem gambling needs to be considered in treatment planning as well as by the industry in their advertising.

An Algorithm to Characterize a Dementia Population by Disease Subtype.

Identification of Alzheimer disease and related dementias (ADRD) subtypes is important for pharmacologic treatment and care planning, yet inaccuracies in dementia diagnoses make ADRD subtypes hard to identify and characterize. The objectives of this study were to (1) develop a method to categorize ADRD cases by subtype and (2) characterize and compare the ADRD subtype populations by demographic and other characteristics. We identified cases of ADRD occurring during 2008 to 2014 from the OptumLabs Database using diagnosis codes and antidementia medication fills. We developed a categorization algorithm that made use of temporal sequencing of diagnoses and provider type. We identified 36,838 individuals with ADRD. After application of our algorithm, the largest proportion of cases were nonspecific dementia (41.2%), followed by individuals with antidementia medication but no ADRD diagnosis (15.6%). Individuals with Alzheimer disease formed 10.2% of cases. Individuals with vascular dementia had the greatest burden of comorbid disease. Initial documentation of dementia occurred primarily in the office setting (35.1%). Our algorithm identified 6 dementia subtypes and three additional categories representing unique diagnostic patterns in the data. Differences and similarities between groups provided support for the approach and offered unique insight into ADRD subtype characteristics.

Understanding the long-term connections between posttraumatic stress, subjective age, and successful aging among midlife and older adults

ABSTRACT Background: The nature of the reciprocal relationships between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, proportional subjective age, and their effects on successful aging are important issues that have been so far under-studied. Clarifying the relationships between these variables has many theoretical and practical implications for the understanding of how individuals age in the shadow of traumatic exposure. Objective: The present study examined the reciprocal relationships between PTSD symptoms and proportional subjective age in a longitudinal design, and how these variables predict successful aging. Method: Using in-region random digit dialling, we collected a stratified sample of community-dwelling older adults residing in the south of Israel. Of that sample, 132 midlife and older adults (T1 age range = 50–87, mean age = 65.84, SD = 9.12) were interviewed three times across a period of two years and four months (2014–2016). Participants completed measures of PTSD symptoms and proportional subjective age in the first two interviews (T1 and T2) and successful aging indices in the third interview (T3). PTSD symptoms and proportional subjective age measured at both T1 and T2 served as predictors and outcomes in a cross-lagged model and as predictors of successful aging at T3. Results: T1 PTSD symptoms predicted an older proportional subjective age at T2, whereas the reverse relationship (i.e. T1 proportional subjective age to T2 PTSD symptoms) was non-significant. Moreover, higher PTSD symptoms and an older proportional subjective age at T2 predicted lower successful aging at T3. Conclusions: In addition to clarifying the temporal sequencing of PTSD and proportional subjective age, the study further suggests that PTSD and proportional subjective age identity could each render midlife and older adults more susceptible to less successful aging. Accordingly, we advocate to further explore the mechanisms underlining these complicated relationships.

Defying chronology: Crosslinguistic variation in reverse order reports

AbstractMuch of how we sequence events in speech mirrors the order of their natural occurrence. While event chains that conform to chronology may be easier to process, languages offer substantial freedom to manipulate temporal order. This article explores to what extent digressions from chronology are attributable to differences in grammatical aspect systems. We compared reverse order reports (RORs) in event descriptions elicited from native speakers of four languages, two with (Spanish, Modern Standard Arabic [MSA]) and two without grammatical aspect (German, Hungarian). In the Arabic group, all participants were highly competent MSA speakers from Palestine and Jordan. Standardized frequency counts showed significantly more RORs expressed by non-aspect groups than by aspect groups. Adherence to chronology changing as a function of contrast in grammatical aspect signal that languages without obligatory marking of ongoingness may provide more flexibility for event reordering. These findings bring novel insights about the dynamic interplay between language structure and temporal sequencing in the discourse stream.

Predictive model of spread of Parkinson's pathology using network diffusion

Growing evidence suggests that a “prion-like” mechanism underlies the pathogenesis of many neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson's disease (PD). We extend and tailor previously developed quantitative and predictive network diffusion model (NDM) to PD, by specifically modeling the trans-neuronal spread of alpha-synuclein outward from the substantia nigra (SN). The model demonstrated the spatial and temporal patterns of PD from neuropathological and neuroimaging studies and was statistically validated using MRI deformation of 232 Parkinson's patients. After repeated seeding simulations, the SN was found to be the most likely seed region, supporting its unique lynchpin role in Parkinson's pathology spread. Other alternative spread models were also evaluated for comparison, specifically, random spread and distance-based spread; the latter tests for Braak's original caudorostral transmission theory. We showed that the distance-based spread model is not as well supported as the connectivity-based model. Intriguingly, the temporal sequencing of affected regions predicted by the model was in close agreement with Braak stages III-VI, providing what we consider a “computational Braak” staging system. Finally, we investigated whether the regional expression patterns of implicated genes contribute to regional atrophy. Despite robust evidence for genetic factors in PD pathogenesis, NDM outperformed regional genetic expression predictors, suggesting that network processes are far stronger mediators of regional vulnerability than innate or cell-autonomous factors. This is the first finding yet of the ramification of prion-like pathology propagation in Parkinson's, as gleaned from in vivo human imaging data. The NDM is potentially a promising robust and clinically useful tool for diagnosis, prognosis and staging of PD.