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This study examines the effect of the Family Check Up (FCU) intervention on the probability of arrests from age 12 to 17 years for youth following heterogeneous developmental trajectories of antisocial behavior. Latent Growth Mixture Modeling results supported the presence of three developmental trajectories of arrests, including a large group of youth with few police contacts, a smaller group of youth showing early-onset and chronic arrests, and a group with Adolescent-Onset arrests. In line with hypotheses, effects of intervention were seen within the Adolescent-Onset group, but not in the early-onset chronic arrest trajectory group, or in those youth with little police contact. The trajectory groups were differentiated by peer, family, behavioral, and academic risk variables at age 11. (Contains 5 tables and 1 figure.)

Overgeneral autobiographical memory (AM), the tendency to recall categories of events when asked to provide specific instances from one's life, is purported to be a marker of depression vulnerability that develops in childhood. Although early adolescence is a period of risk for depression onset especially among girls, prospective examination of this putative risk factor is lacking. The current study examined the prospective associations between AM recall and depressive symptomatology in an enriched community sample of predominantly African American girls. Girls (n = 195) were interviewed about depressive symptoms at ages 11 and 12 years, and AM recall was assessed at age 11. The findings showed that overgeneral retrieval to positive, but not negative, cue words predicted subsequent depressive symptoms after controlling for age 11 symptoms, race, poverty, and Verbal IQ. A moderating effect of race was also shown, whereby overgeneral AM bias predicted depressive symptoms more strongly among European American girls. (Contains 3 tables and 1 figure.)

The assessment of intervention competence possesses an obvious relevance for practitioners and clinical scientists alike. It is often assessed as part of the evaluation of treatment integrity in clinical research in general, and in randomized clinical trials (RCTs) in particular. The authors first attempt to add clarity to the concept and better differentiate intervention competence from closely related constructs. Next, the authors review and evaluate the main measures of therapist competence used in RCTs, relying on this conceptual foundation to provide suggestions for future measures. The empirical literature on the relation between therapist competence and clinical outcome is then reviewed. The relation, while positive, is weaker than expected, and factors having a potential bearing on this are discussed. The authors then recommend that new measures be created and that the assessment of limited-domain competence be supplemented by explorations of global competence. Due to the potential ramifications for the field, the authors also recommend that caution be exercised in the task of operationally defining competence. Keywords: therapist competence, competency, therapy outcome, treatment integrity, process of change

Objective: Little is known about how family factors impacting treatment adherence in type 1 diabetes are directly associated with unplanned healthcare utilization (e.g., emergency room visits and hospital admissions). Given the substantial financial burden of diabetes, understanding predictors of healthcare utilization in particular is important to inform behavioral interventions aimed toward improving adherence. Research Design and Methods: The current study examined the relationship between family‐level variables and healthcare utilization in a sample of 239 youth with type 1 diabetes and their parents. Healthcare utilization was determined via parent report and chart review. Parent‐ and youth‐reports regarding levels of family conflict, youth autonomy, and parent support related to diabetes management were obtained via questionnaire, and negative reciprocity was obtained by coding observations of parent and youth interactions. Generalized Estimating Equations were used to examine the longitudinal association between healthcare utilization and family‐level factors. Results: Higher levels of observed negative reciprocity were associated with more frequent hospital admissions, while higher levels of youth‐reported parent involvement in diabetes management were associated with fewer hospital admissions and ED visits. Conclusions: These findings highlight how family‐level factors are directly related to healthcare utilization and point to the continued importance of integrating family‐focused behavioral interventions in routine medical care for improving type 1 diabetes outcomes and reducing healthcare costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mother–child interactions can be emotionally charged, particularly when mothers experience difficulties with depression. Further, variation in the tone of such interactions has been linked to variation in youth functioning. Yet, little is known about the role of emotion regulatory processes during mother–child interactions. This study examined negative affective transactions between mothers and youth across 5-min conflict and fun-activity planning discussions, in relation to depressive symptoms and maternal and youth respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). Maternal depressive symptoms predicted more negative affect. Maternal and youth RSA interacted with maternal depressive symptoms to predict both overall affect and the stability of affect across time. The beneficial effects of youth RSA were stronger, but maternal RSA weaker, in the face of elevated maternal depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]