Sharon Christ - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Sharon Christ

Longitudinal associations between popularity, peer acceptance, and academic performance in adolescents

International Journal of Behavioral Development

Longitudinal associations between popularity, peer acceptance, and academic performance were exam... more Longitudinal associations between popularity, peer acceptance, and academic performance were examined in Chinese 7th ( n = 880; 400 girls; Mage = 13.33, SD = .64) and 10th grade ( n = 646; 342 girls; Mage = 16.76, SD = .75) adolescents across three academic years. Growth curve analysis revealed parallel changes in popularity and academic performance in both middle- and high-school students whereas a positive association between the trajectories of peer acceptance and academic performance was found only in high school. Random-intercept cross-lagged panel analysis revealed that popular students increased their academic performance 1 year later, and that improved academic performance positively predicted subsequent popularity. Changes in peer acceptance were not associated with longitudinal changes in academic performance nor did baseline aggression moderate the effect of initial popularity on the trajectory of academic performance. The positive between-person associations of academic ...

Innovation in Aging, Oct 1, 2021

Background and Objectives: Enjoyment of and satisfaction with physical activity have been propose... more Background and Objectives: Enjoyment of and satisfaction with physical activity have been proposed as two actionable mechanisms to promote sustained engagement in physical activity. An accurate understanding of how, why, and for whom these two mechanisms work (or not) in response to a particular intervention strategy is contingent on having suitable measures for the population of interest. This study aims to determine whether the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale-8 and a novel approach to the measurement of satisfaction with physical activity are suitable for use among older adults (M age = 66.25 years; range = 55 to 91 years). Research Design and Methods: Participants answered an online questionnaire twice across four weeks. Measurement invariance was assessed within a structural equation modeling framework; convergent validity was assessed by correlating the latent variables enjoyment and satisfaction with each other and with physical activity behavior. Results: Both measures were invariant between gender and across time. Enjoyment and satisfaction were related to each other (r = 0.72) and to physical activity (r = 0.48 and 0.64, respectively). Results support the suitability of these measures as tools to assess enjoyment of and satisfaction with physical activity among older adults.

Journal of General Internal Medicine, Jan 10, 2019

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research, Aug 10, 2020

Sigma Theta Tau International's 28th International Nursing Research Congress, Jul 20, 2017

Event‐related potentials evidence for long‐term audiovisual representations of phonemes in adults

European Journal of Neuroscience, Nov 25, 2021

The presence of long‐term auditory representations for phonemes has been well‐established. Howeve... more The presence of long‐term auditory representations for phonemes has been well‐established. However, since speech perception is typically audiovisual, we hypothesized that long‐term phoneme representations may also contain information on speakers' mouth shape during articulation. We used an audiovisual oddball paradigm in which, on each trial, participants saw a face and heard one of two vowels. One vowel occurred frequently (standard), while another occurred rarely (deviant). In one condition (neutral), the face had a closed, non‐articulating mouth. In the other condition (audiovisual violation), the mouth shape matched the frequent vowel. Although in both conditions stimuli were audiovisual, we hypothesized that identical auditory changes would be perceived differently by participants. Namely, in the neutral condition, deviants violated only the audiovisual pattern specific to each block. By contrast, in the audiovisual violation condition, deviants additionally violated long‐term representations for how a speaker's mouth looks during articulation. We compared the amplitude of mismatch negativity (MMN) and P3 components elicited by deviants in the two conditions. The MMN extended posteriorly over temporal and occipital sites even though deviants contained no visual changes, suggesting that deviants were perceived as interruptions in audiovisual, rather than auditory only, sequences. As predicted, deviants elicited larger MMN and P3 in the audiovisual violation compared to the neutral condition. The results suggest that long‐term representations of phonemes are indeed audiovisual.

Military behavioral health, Mar 28, 2019

In light of technological advances enabling military couples to communicate throughout deployment... more In light of technological advances enabling military couples to communicate throughout deployment, spouses of deployed service members often make decisions about what to share with service members, and how to respond to service members' concerns. In doing so, they manage an emotional boundary between service members and their families. This study focused on two behaviors military spouses may use when managing this boundary, namely their minimization of (1) their own concerns (i.e., self-directed minimization) and ( ) service members' concerns (i.e., partner-directed minimization). The purpose of the current study was to identify correlates and consequences of these behaviors. Findings from a longitudinal structural equation model utilizing three waves of data from a sample of 154 married military couples in which the husband was a male National Guard soldier indicated that spouses were more likely to minimize both their ownand service members'-concerns when they themselves reported higher levels of depressive symptomology prior to deployment. Spouses' minimization of service members' concerns during deployment, in turn, predicted higher levels of service members' depressive symptomology at reintegration, even after accounting for their initial depressive symptomology and combat exposure. Implications for intervention efforts aimed at promoting individual and couple adjustment to deployment are discussed. As of 2015, more than 2.8 million service members deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), more than half (55%) of whom were married (National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics, 2017). Due to technological advances, these couples communicated during deployment with ease and frequency not previously possible. While frequent communication may make it easier for military couples to maintain their emotional connection , it also likely

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research, Jul 12, 2023

Applied Psychology: Health and Well-being, Feb 5, 2019

Objective: Objectives were to explore subgroups of individuals with differential disability traje... more Objective: Objectives were to explore subgroups of individuals with differential disability trajectories and evaluate the protective effects of psychological well-being (i.e. hedonic and eudaimonic well-being) in the presence of multiple disease conditions and socio-demographic disadvantages. Methods: Latent trajectory mixture modeling was used to identify subgroups distinguished by different over time disability trajectories. Multinomial logistic regression was used to predict group differences as a function of psychological well-being. Results: Three groups emerged in the sample: a normative group with lower levels and slowly increasing disability and two risk groups with high stable levels of disability over time and high increasing disability over time. Risk groups differ from the normative group in their levels of hedonic well-being. Discussion: Individuals may follow one of three disability pathways mostly as a function of multimorbidity. However, high levels of hedonic well-being is associated with having an advantageous disability trajectory. Cultivating psychological well-being may improve disability outcomes in aging individuals.

Therapeutic Advances in Chronic Disease, Oct 19, 2018

Background: Using longitudinal data from the Survey of Mid-Life Development in the United States,... more Background: Using longitudinal data from the Survey of Mid-Life Development in the United States, this study examined the role of systemic inflammation in mediating the link between multimorbidity and increases in and onset of functional limitations over a 17-19 year followup period. Methods: Participants completed questionnaire assessments of chronic conditions and functional limitations. Interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, and fibrinogen were assayed in serum. Structural equation models were used to predict increases in and onset of functional limitations associated with baseline multimorbidity status; mediation by inflammation was also determined. Results: Multimorbidity (versus 0-1 conditions) predicted more functional limitations and greater odds of onset of limitations over time. Significant indirect effects showed that inflammation partially mediated the link between multimorbidity and changes in, but not onset of, limitations. Discussion: These results show that inflammation, a nonspecific marker of multiple disease conditions, explains in part the degree to which multimorbidity is disabling.

Child Abuse & Neglect, Jul 1, 2017

Adolescents receive psychological or emotional care from both parents and peers, which is crucial... more Adolescents receive psychological or emotional care from both parents and peers, which is crucial for mental health at this stage. Little research has been undertaken to evaluate the experience and consequences of caregiver psychological neglect during adolescence. Less is known about the unique and combined impacts of neglectful experiences with parents and peers. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between exposure to caregiver psychological neglect and isolation from peers with depression for a population of at-risk adolescents. A sample of 2776 adolescents who represent a cohort population of adolescents in contact with Child Protective Services in the U.S. was studied. Data come from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-being (NSCAW) and are pooled across four waves representing seven years duration. Structural equation modeling with latent variables was used to estimate within-time associations. A two-stage-least squares path model was used to determine within-time reciprocal effects between depression and neglectful experiences. Adolescents who are emotionally neglected by their primary caregivers and are isolated from peers have substantially increased depression, a combined standardized effect of 0.78-0.91. Isolation from peers is more impactful for depression compared to psychological neglect by caregivers. The effects of deficits in these two primary sources of emotional support explain 40 percent of the variation in depression. The relationships between depression and peer isolation and depression and psychological neglect are reciprocal, but the primary direction of effect is from neglectful experiences to depression.

Children and Youth Services Review, 2020

There is ample evidence that experiencing foster care in childhood often predicts grim outcomes i... more There is ample evidence that experiencing foster care in childhood often predicts grim outcomes in adulthood, including under-education and resulting poverty and dysfunction. However, little is known about the exact mechanisms through which foster care corrodes academic trajectories, specifically. The current study uses a nationally representative sample of adolescent foster youth (i.e., NSCAW II) to test a model of the influences of placement-related factors on school engagementnamely, foster youth's perceptions of security in their foster placements, their reports of education-specific involvement by foster caregivers, and the mediating potential of adolescents' expectations for their future. Results indicate that adolescents' feelings of "placement security" were linked to their future expectations of positive life outcomes and, ultimately, school engagement. Results also suggest that while educational involvement by foster caregivers was not important for future expectations or social school engagement, it may be related to the more explicitly cognitive aspects of school engagement (i.e., assignment completion, effort, etc.). These findings offer insight into relations between foster care-specific factors and school engagementa known predictor of academic achievement and eventual educational attainment. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, Jul 9, 2016

A team of 3,400 Army National Guard Soldiers who had been deployed within the past 18 months and ... more A team of 3,400 Army National Guard Soldiers who had been deployed within the past 18 months and had a spouse or cohabitating partner were recruited via mail and Family Readiness Groups. Soldiers and partners completed surveys about personal and military demographic information, resilience, social support, well-being, coping, intimate relationships, and family functioning. The effects of Service members' and partners' use of coping strategies and Service members' combat exposure on their own and each other's psychological well-being was examined.

Psychology & Health, Sep 9, 2019

Objective: The present study had three major aims: 1) To identify sub-groups of adults with diffe... more Objective: The present study had three major aims: 1) To identify sub-groups of adults with differing combinations of childhood maltreatment exposures, 2) to understand the association of childhood maltreatment sub-group membership with subjective sleep quality in midlife, and 3) to assess poor sleep quality in midlife as a mechanism between childhood maltreatment sub-group membership and physical functional limitations in late adulthood. Design: Data come from the Biomarker project of the Midlife Development in the United States study (n = 1,251). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index was used to assess sleep quality in midlife. Functional limitations in late adulthood was measured using a version of the SF-36 (Brazier et al., 1992) Results: Two vulnerable childhood maltreatment sub-groups emerged (Physical and Emotional Maltreatment Sub-group, n = 49, and Sexual Abuse Sub-group, n = 105) and a normative subgroup (n= 1,087; low exposure to childhood maltreatment). Poor sleep quality in midlife mediated the association between both maltreatment sub-groups and functional limitations in late adulthood. Results highlight the role of sleep in linking childhood maltreatment with functional impairments in adulthood and offer a potential target for interventions to improve quality of life in older adults.

Patient Education and Counseling, May 1, 2019

Objective: Our objective is to examine the relationship of patient and provider characteristics a... more Objective: Our objective is to examine the relationship of patient and provider characteristics and communication with chronic non-cancer_pain and opioid management in primary care. We conducted an observational study using audio-recorded primary care appointments (up to 3/patient) and self-reported assessments of primary care providers (PCPs) and patients. We coded visit transcripts for 1) opioid and pain management talk and 2) mental health and opioid safety talk. Results: Eight PCPs and 30 patients had complete data for 78 clinic visits. PCPs and patients engaged in more opioid and pain management talk when patients reported greater pain catastrophizing and PCPs reported higher psychosocial orientation. PCPs and patients engaged in talk about mental health and opioid safety when patients reported greater anxiety, higher working alliance with their PCP, and when PCPs reported higher burnout. PCPs' negative attitudes about opioids were associated with fewer discussions about mental health and opioid safety.

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research, Dec 18, 2019

Trajectories of depression symptoms during the process of deployment in military couples

Military Psychology, Nov 5, 2021

ABSTRACT Informed by life course theory, we estimated depression symptom trajectories for couples... more ABSTRACT Informed by life course theory, we estimated depression symptom trajectories for couples throughout a deployment cycle using data from a longitudinal study of National Guard couples (n= 339). One-third of couples served as a comparison group by participating in data collection after their deployments were canceled. We proposed that 1) service members and partners would display multiple trajectories of depression symptoms that differ as a function of role (i.e., service member or at-home partner) and exposure to deployment; 2) trajectory patterns would be associated with indicators of human capital; 3) service members’ and partners’ depression symptoms would be linked to each other. We found that depressive symptom trajectories varied by exposure to deployment and role, and that higher levels of human capital were mostly associated with lower depressive symptoms, although we did not find support for partner interdependence. Results were considered in the context of life course theory and emotional cycles of deployment.

Adolescents’ experience of parental psychological caregiving and neglect: Construct development

American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 2017

Psychological or emotional neglect is a recognized form of child maltreatment in the United State... more Psychological or emotional neglect is a recognized form of child maltreatment in the United States. However, neglect as a form of maltreatment and particularly psychological neglect as a subtype are understudied relative to other forms of maltreatment. One reason for this is that few measures of psychological (or emotional) neglect are available and there remains some uncertainty about how to define and measure it. In this article, we put forth a theoretical definition of psychological caregiving, including omission of care or psychological neglect of adolescents by their primary caregivers. We present an operationalization of psychological caregiving/neglect using adolescent self-reported survey items. A confirmatory latent variable modeling approach was used to measure and validate psychological caregiving/neglect in 2 adolescent (age 11 to 17) population cohorts involved with Child Protective Services (CPS) in the United States. The latent variable fits the samples well in both cohort populations indicating a valid construct, is mostly invariant across gender and age, is stable over time, and has good reliability. The measure also shows concurrent validity, associating strongly with all problem behavior domains. Questionnaire items similar to those used in this measure could be included along with other items in future studies of adolescent populations. We recommend further dialogue and development of this construct as a potential major contributing factor to the health and well-being of individuals and to advance research in the area of emotional care and neglect experiences in adolescence.

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, Jun 21, 2018

This study examined the associations between sleep and challenging behaviors for average and nigh... more This study examined the associations between sleep and challenging behaviors for average and night-to-night fluctuations in sleep, in 39 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) receiving intensive behavioral intervention (IBI). Child sleep was recorded (via actigraphy) for five nights in conjunction with clinician-reported observations of challenging behaviors. Results indicated that on average, poor sleep was associated with higher rates of repetitive behavior, negative affect, and a composite of overall challenging behaviors. These findings suggest that average sleep patterns are important within the context of IBI (rather than night-to-night fluctuations). Interventions aimed at improving overall patterns of sleep may have important cascading effects on challenging behaviors and developmental outcomes for children with ASD and their families.

Can Retrieval Practice Facilitate Verb Learning in Children With Developmental Language Disorder and Their Peers With Typical Language Development?

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research, Apr 12, 2023

Purpose: Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) have well-documented verb learning d... more Purpose: Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) have well-documented verb learning difficulties. In this study, we asked whether the inclusion of retrieval practice during the learning period would facilitate these children's verb learning relative to a similar procedure that provided no retrieval opportunities. Method: Eleven children with DLD ( M age = 60.09 months) and 12 children with typical language development (TD; M age = 59.92 months) learned four novel verbs in a repeated spaced retrieval (RSR) condition and four novel verbs in a repeated study (RS) condition. The words in the two conditions were heard an equal number of times, in the context of video-recorded actors performing novel actions. Results: Recall testing immediately after the learning period and 1 week later revealed greater recall for novel verbs in the RSR condition than for novel verbs in the RS condition. This was true for both groups, and for immediate as well as 1-week testing. The RSR advantage remained when children had to recall the novel verbs while watching new actors perform the novel actions. However, when tested in contexts requiring the children to inflect the novel verbs with – ing for the first time, the children with DLD were much less likely to do so than their peers with TD. Even words in the RSR condition were only inconsistently inflected. Conclusions: Retrieval practice provides benefits to verb learning—an important finding given the challenges that verbs present to children with DLD. However, these benefits do not appear to automatically translate to the process of adding inflections to newly learned verbs but rather appear to be limited to the operations of learning the verbs' phonetic forms and mapping these forms onto associated actions.