Event-Related Potentials: Search for Positive and Negative Child-Related Schemata in Individuals at Low and High Risk for Child Physical Abuse

Autor/inn/en	Milner, Joel S.; Rabenhorst, Mandy M.; McCanne, Thomas R.; Crouch, Julie L.; Skowronski, John J.; Fleming, Matthew T.; Hiraoka, Regina; Risser, Heather J.
Titel	Event-Related Potentials: Search for Positive and Negative Child-Related Schemata in Individuals at Low and High Risk for Child Physical Abuse
Quelle	In: Child Abuse & Neglect: The International Journal, 35 (2011) 4, S.249-266 (18 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0145-2134
DOI	10.1016/j.chiabu.2011.01.002
Schlagwörter	Priming; Evidence; Schemata (Cognition); Child Abuse; Models; Diagnostic Tests; At Risk Persons; Brain Hemisphere Functions + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Evidenz; Cognition; Schema; Kognition; Abuse of children; Abuse; Child; Children; Kindesmissbrauch; Missbrauch; Kind; Kinder; Analogiemodell; Diagnostic test; Diagnostischer Test; Risikogruppe
Abstract	Objective: The present investigation used event-related potentials (ERPs, N400 and N300) to determine the extent to which individuals at low and high risk for child physical abuse (CPA) have pre-existing positive and negative child-related schemata that can be automatically activated by ambiguous child stimuli. Methods: ERP data were obtained from individuals at low (n=13) and high risk (n=12) for CPA and used in a procedure check, from which a sub-group of low-risk (n=7) and high-risk (n=7) individuals were selected for inclusion in the main study. ERP data were collected during the presentation of a priming paradigm consisting of non-child pictures (primes) and congruent and incongruent word descriptors (targets). ERP data also were collected during a second priming paradigm consisting of ambiguous child pictures (primes) and positive and negative word descriptors (targets). Data from this second paradigm were used to test the hypothesis that low-risk and high-risk individuals' putative pre-existing child-related schemata (i.e., positive schemata in low-risk individuals and negative schemata in high-risk individuals) provide a context that influences whether targets (positive or negative word descriptors) are congruent or incongruent with ambiguous child picture primes. Results: Analyses revealed the expected larger N400 waves in response to non-child picture, incongruent word pairs. There were no N400 differences between risk groups nor were there any risk group interactions, indicating that all participants responded in a similar manner to the non-child picture, congruent/incongruent word presentations. However, when ambiguous child picture primes were used with positive and negative word descriptors, low-risk individuals showed greater N400 and N300 responses to negative, relative to positive, word descriptors; whereas high-risk individuals showed no ERP differences with respect to positive and negative word descriptors. Conclusions: ERP evidence supports the view that low-risk individuals have greater accessibility to pre-existing positive (relative to negative) child-related schemata, which may reduce the likelihood of negative child-related evaluations. In contrast, high-risk individuals have pre-existing positive and negative child-related schemata that are equally accessible. Hence, high-risk, relative to low-risk, individuals appear to have greater accessibility to negative child-related schemata that may increase the likelihood of negative child-related evaluations and attributions that have been linked to CPA risk. (Contains 1 figure.) (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10