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This experimental research assessed the influence of graded levels of self-distancing--psychological distancing from one's egocentric perspective--on executive function (EF) in young children. Three- (n = 48) and 5-year-old (n = 48) children were randomly assigned to one of four manipulations of distance from the self (from proximal to distal: self-immersed, control, third person, and exemplar) on a comprehensive measure of EF. Performance increased as a function of self-distancing across age groups. Follow-up analyses indicated that 5-year-olds were driving this effect. They showed significant improvements in EF with increased distance from the self, outperforming controls both when taking a third person perspective on the self and when taking the perspective of an exemplar other (e.g., Batman) through role play. Three-year-olds, however, did not show increased EF performance as a function of greater distance from the self. Preliminary results suggest that developments in theory of mind might contribute to these age-related differences in efficacy. These findings speak to the importance of psychological distancing in the expression of conscious control over thought and action from a young age and suggest a promising new avenue for early EF intervention.

A growing body of research indicates that self-control is critical to academic success. Surprisingly little is known, however, about the diverse strategies students use to implement self-control or how well these strategies work. To address these issues, the author conducted a naturalistic investigation of self-control strategies (Study 1) and 2 field experiments (Studies 2 and 3). In Study 1, high school students described the strategies they use to manage interpersonal conflicts, get academic work done, eat healthfully, and manage other everyday self-control challenges. The majority of strategies in these self-nominated incidents as well as in 3 hypothetical academic scenarios (e.g., studying instead of texting friends) were reliably classified using the process model of self-control. As predicted by the process model, students rated strategies deployed early in the impulse-generation process (situation selection, situation modification) as being dramatically more effective than strategies deployed later (attentional deployment, cognitive change, response modulation). In Study 2, high school students randomly assigned to implement situation modification were more likely to meet their academic goals during the following week than students assigned either to implement response modulation or no strategy at all. In Study 3, college students randomly assigned to implement situation modification were also more successful in meeting their academic goals, and this effect was partially mediated by decreased feelings of temptation throughout the week. Collectively, these findings suggest that students might benefit from learning to initiate self-control when their impulses are still nascent.

It is well-established that caregiver stress is linked to increased emotional distress among children, and recent evidence highlights similar associations between caregiver and child emotional well-being during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Examining protective factors and coping mechanisms that are associated with resiliency in the face of pandemic-related stress can highlight potential strategies that may help children adapt to other unexpected hardships outside of a global pandemic. Previous research found that playing about the pandemic moderated an association between caregiver stress and children's emotional distress. However, few studies have explored "pandemic play" among children from low-income households, where pandemic-related stressors were often exacerbated. In the present study, 72 caregivers of Head Start preschoolers between 3 and 6 years of age were surveyed between late 2020 and early 2021. Results revealed that 32% of children engaged in pandemic play frequently. Caregiver stress was positively associated with child emotional distress, but only among children who did not engage in pandemic play frequently. These findings support the idea that child-directed play may be a developmentally appropriate and accessible coping mechanism to reduce the emotional burden of stressful events on children, regardless of economic context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parent-child conversations may minimize the impact of stressful situations on children's well-being. Parents were encouraged to talk with their children about the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, yet research suggests that parent stress in response to the pandemic was associated with disruptions in parenting and increased child emotional distress. In the present study, 205 parents of children aged 3-6 years (50.7% girls, 56.6% White) reported on conversations about the pandemic and responded to measures of parent stress and child emotional distress in the fall of 2020. Qualitative analysis revealed that talk about mitigation strategies was frequent; most parents offered an explanation for pandemic changes, whereas fewer parents reported communicating support. Guided by the family stress model, we then examined whether different conversation types moderated the association between parent stress and child emotional distress. Only talk about pandemic changes and explanations that COVID-19 was dangerous acted as moderators, suggesting that these conversation types strengthened the association between parent stress and child emotional distress. A main effect of self-protective explanations being associated with lower child emotional distress was also found. We discuss the implications of these findings for future research on parent-child conversations about stressful situations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Interruptions are causal factors in medication errors. Although researchers have assessed the nature and frequency of interruptions during medication administration, there has been little focus on understanding their effects during medication ordering. The goal of this research was to examine the nature, frequency, and impact of interruptions on oncologists' ordering practices. Direct observations were conducted at a Canadian cancer treatment facility to (1) document the nature, frequency, and timing of interruptions during medication ordering, and (2) quantify the use of coping mechanisms by oncologists. On average, oncologists were interrupted 17 % of their time, and were frequently interrupted during safety-critical stages of medication ordering. When confronted with interruptions, oncologists engaged/multitasked more often than resorting to deferring/blocking. While some interruptions are necessary forms of communication, efforts must be made to reduce unnecessary interruptions during safety-critical tasks, and to develop interventions that increase oncologists' resiliency to inevitable interruptions.