The Association of Birth Complications and Externalizing Behavior in Early Adolescents: Direct and Mediating Effects.

Prior studies have shown that birth complications interact with psychosocial risk factors in predisposing to increased externalizing behavior in childhood and criminal behavior in adulthood. However, little is known about the direct relationship between birth complications and externalizing behavior. Furthermore, the mechanism by which the birth complications predispose to externalizing behavior is not well explored.

Biosocial bases of aggressive and violent behavior--implications for nursing studies.

Although aggression and violence have been increasingly viewed as a major public health problem with a biological and health basis, it has been under-researched in the nursing and health context. This paper reviews early biological risk factors for violence. These factors include pregnancy/birth complications, fetal exposure to nicotine, alcohol, and drugs, low cholesterol, malnutrition, lead and manganese exposure, head injuries and brain dysfunction, low arousal, low serotonin, low cortisol, and high testosterone.

Factors influencing health promoting activities of mothers caring for ventilator-assisted children.

The extensive care a ventilator-assisted child (VAC) requires when cared for in the home can impact the mother's ability to participate in health promotion activities. The purpose of this study was to examine health promotion activities and the relationships among functional status of the child, impact of the illness on the family, coping, social support, and health promotion activities of mothers who care for ventilator-assisted children at home. Thirty-eight primary female caregivers, mostly mothers, participated in the study and completed the Personal Lifestyle Questionnaire (PLQ), measures of child's functional status, impact of the illness on the family, coping, social support, and demographic data.

Interpersonal control, expressed emotion, and change in symptoms in families of persons with schizophrenia.

This study examined the relationships of expressed emotion (EE), change in symptoms in schizophrenia, and interpersonal control patterns in relatives over a 2-year period. Subjects were 56 persons with schizophrenia and their relatives who participated in the NIMH Treatment Strategies in Schizophrenia (TSS) longitudinal study. The relationships among EE, interpersonal control as measured by the Relational Control Coding System (RCCS), and levels of symptoms at each assessment point were analyzed longitudinally with hierarchical linear modeling (HLM).

Age, expressed emotion, and interpersonal control patterning in families of persons with schizophrenia.

Expressed emotion (EE) is a measure of a relative's attitude toward a person with a mental disorder as reflected by comments made to an interviewer. Over the years, an impressive body of research has been generated in attempts to explain the relationship of EE and course of illness, particularly in regard to schizophrenia. Past analyses have demonstrated two common patterns of interpersonal control in families with high-EE relatives.