How we compensate for memory loss in old age: adapting and validating the Memory Compensation Questionnaire (MCQ) for Spanish populations.
Compensating entails using external strategies and mechanisms that help overcome or alleviate the decreasing memory function that comes with age. This study aims to adapt and validate the MCQ in the elderly Spanish population. A total of 403 elderly people aged between 65 and 92 in the city of Valencia (Spain) completed the questionnaire for the validation process. The factorial validity of the scale was tested using confirmatory factor analysis. The result showed a first order five-factor model with 23 items that met the criteria for model fit according to multiple fit indices. As a general conclusion, the adaptation into Spanish provided a reliable and valid measure of compensation in the…
The Relationship between Fatigue in Mothers and the Age of Their Less-Than-24-Month-Old Newborns
The birth of a child marks the beginning of a new developmental period for the parents. These changes have positive but also negative aspects, such as the increase in fatigue experienced by mothers during this period of time, which can be very limiting and lead them to postpone other life or work goals. However, despite the widespread nature of this problem, there is a lack of information about the duration of this fatigue, with estimates ranging from three months to six years
Creativity in Middle Childhood: Influence of Perceived Maternal Sensitivity, Self-esteem, and Shyness
This study aimed to examine the relationship between maternal sensitivity and affect, as perceived by the child, and childhood creativity. Self-esteem and shyness were considered mediating factors. A total of 151 elementary school pupils were tested on verbal and pictorial creativity, self-esteem, and perceived maternal affect and sensitivity. Their teachers assessed each child’s shyness in their relations at school. A Multiple Indicators and Multiple Causes (MIMIC) model of the causal relationships among the study’s variables was tested. Results supported this theoretical model of causality. Maternal sensitivity had a significant, direct, positive effect on self-esteem, and a direct negati…
Demographic and Parental Factors Associated With Developmental Outcomes in Children With Intellectual Disabilities
The aim of the study was to examine the relation between demographic variables, parental characteristics, and cognitive, language and motor skills development in children with intellectual disabilities (ID). A sample of 89 children with ID, aged 20 to 47 months, completed the Bayley Scales of Infant Development to measure cognitive, motor and linguistic development. Parents were administered questionnaires about demographic information and parental anxiety, depression, parental stress, conjugality and familial functioning. Parenting behaviors (affection, responsiveness, encouragement, and teaching) were observed using the Spanish version of PICCOLO (Parenting Interactions with Children: Che…
Infant-Mother Attachment Can Be Improved through Group Intervention: A Preliminary Evaluation in Spain in a Non-Randomized Controlled Trial
The quality of infant-mother attachment has been linked to competence in different domains of child development. Research indicates that early intervention can enhance the quality of infant-mother attachment, though its efficacy in a group format has yet to be evaluated. The current study is aimed at examining the usefulness of a group intervention in enhancing infant-mother attachment. An intervention aimed at addressing aspects such as maternal responsivity, sensitivity and childrearing behaviour was developed by the researchers and experienced psychologists. The intervention spanned a period of 14 months starting from the third quarter of pregnancy. The intervention was evaluated among 2…
Autobiographical Memory Impairment in Adolescents in Out-of-Home Care.
Childhood maltreatment is a major risk factor for emotional problems in adolescence and adulthood and has deleterious effects on cognitive functions such as working memory. A key aspect in the study of the cognitive and affective consequences of maltreatment is autobiographical memory, especially regarding the difficulty retrieving specific memories, known as overgeneral memory. In this study, autobiographical memory tests, working memory, and a depressive symptom assessment were administered to 48 adolescents in care with a history of maltreatment (22 abused and 26 neglected) without mental disorder, who had been removed from their family and were living in residential child care, and to …
Enhancing emotional intelligence at school: Evaluation of the effectiveness of a two-year intervention program in Spanish pre-adolescents
Abstract The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a two-year intervention program to promote emotional intelligence (EI) at school. Participants were 228 primary school pupils between 10 and 11 years old. This study evaluated the effects of the intervention using a pre- and post-experimental design with a control group and four evaluation moments. EI was assessed with the EQ-i:YV questionnaire by Bar-On and Parker (2000), adapted to Spanish by Ferrandiz, Hernandez, Bermejo, Ferrando, and Sainz (2012). The results showed the effectiveness of the intervention, highlighting an increase in all the EI dimensions of the Bar-On model: intrapersonal, interpersonal, st…
Validación del Cuestionario de Apego Adulto-Revisado (CAA-r)
Resumen Se presenta el Cuestionario de Apego Adulto-Revisado y sus caracteristicas psicometricas para la evaluacion dimensional y categorial del estilo de apego adulto. Se anadieron 8 items al cuestionario original (CAA; Melero y Cantero, 2008) que ampliaban la evaluacion de la dimension evitacion y la valoracion de la sensibilidad. El analisis factorial exploratorio (AFE) dio lugar a un cuestionario de 35 items agrupados en 4 dimensiones afectivas. 1) Ansiedad: necesidad de aprobacion, autoconcepto negativo, miedo al rechazo/abandono y ansiedad por las relaciones; 2) Competencia socioemocional: apertura emocional, sensibilidad y confianza; 3) Evitacion: autosuficiencia emocional e incomodi…
Spanish validation of the PICCOLO (Parenting Interactions With Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes)
Background/Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the psychometric properties of the Spanish version of the Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO; Roggman et al., 2013a). This observational measure is composed of 29 items that assess the quality of four domains of parenting interactions that promote child development: affection, responsiveness, encouragement, and teaching. Methods: The sample included 203 mother-child dyads who had been video-recorded playing together. Fifty-six percent of the children were male, and 44% were female, aged from 10 to 47 months. Video-recorded observations were rated using PICCOLO items. Results: …
The Relationship Between a Baby's Age and Sleepiness in a Sample of Mothers
One question of great practical importance for the parents, and especially the mother, after the birth of a baby, refers to how long the time during which they have to go with less and more fragmented sleep actually lasts. Most of the studies only explore this issue up to 6 months of the newborn's life, and less is known about the sleep problems the mothers may have after this initial period. The objective of this study is to examine the relationship between the sleep disruption and daytime sleepiness of mothers with infants until 2 years old compared to a group of women currently not at care of babies. To this end, a sample of 113 women, 67 currently bringing up a baby of under 2 years old…
Effectiveness of an Emotional Intelligence Intervention and Its Impact on Academic Performance in Spanish Pre-Adolescent Elementary Students: Results from the EDI Program
There is clear agreement about the importance of promoting emotional intelligence in school through programs integrated in the academic curriculum. The objective of this study is to analyze the impact of the EDI program on the emotional intelligence trait and on general academic performance, as well as mathematics and language performance. The participants were 5th grade elementary school students between 10 and 11 years old. A quasi-experimental repeated-measures design was used, with a comparison group and four assessment points. The results showed, on the one hand, the effectiveness of a two-year intervention in improving emotional intelligence and, on the other hand, its positive influe…