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Papers by Rebecca Houston

Aggressive Behavior, 2006

Recent work has suggested that the success of pharmacological treatment for chronic aggressive be... more Recent work has suggested that the success of pharmacological treatment for chronic aggressive behavior may depend, in part, on the subtype of aggressive behavior displayed (e.g. reactive, impulsive aggression vs. predatory, premeditated aggression). The present study examined the usefulness of characterizing aggressive behavior during a 16-week double-blind crossover study of phenytoin (PHT) treatment in 41 aggressive adult males. The Impulsive/Premeditated Aggression Scales (IPAS) were used to characterize aggressive behavior as predominantly impulsive or predominantly premeditated in nature. Analyses indicated that participants who did not respond to PHT treatment endorsed significantly more premeditated characteristics on the IPAS than those who responded to PHT treatment. Non-responders also exhibited fewer aggressive outbursts during placebo treatment, suggesting a greater level of behavior control. Participants who did not complete the study were younger, endorsed significantly more premeditated aggression characteristics and reported more lifetime antisocial behaviors than those who completed the study. Taken together, these data emphasize several factors that may influence the success of pharmacological treatment in aggressive individuals, namely the importance of characterizing the predominant type of problem aggressive behavior. Aggr. Behav. 00:1–6, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 2008

A sample of 679 (341 women) emerging adults (M = 18.90 years; SD = 1.11; range = 18.00–22.92) par... more A sample of 679 (341 women) emerging adults (M = 18.90 years; SD = 1.11; range = 18.00–22.92) participated in a study on the utility of forms (i.e., physical and relational) and functions (i.e., proactive and reactive) of aggression. We examined the link between these four subtypes of aggression and personality pathology (i.e., psychopathic features, borderline personality disorder features, and antisocial personality disorder features). The study supports the psychometric properties (i.e., test–retest reliability, internal consistency, discriminant validity) of a recently introduced measure of forms and functions of aggression during emerging adulthood. Aggression subtypes were uniquely associated with indices of personality pathology. For example, proactive (i.e., planned, instrumental or goal-oriented) and reactive (i.e., impulsive, hostile or retaliatory) functions of relational aggression were uniquely associated with borderline personality disorder features even after controlling for functions of physical aggression and gender. The results highlight the differential associations between forms and functions of aggression and indices of personality pathology in typically developing emerging adults.

Progress in Neuro-psychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry, 2004

Studies utilizing the P300 event-related potential (ERP) to document potential neurophysiological... more Studies utilizing the P300 event-related potential (ERP) to document potential neurophysiological deficits related to depression have produced variable findings. The present investigation examined the effects of two tasks to determine whether one task would be more sensitive to a history of depression. We examined 124 female subjects, aged 14 -20 years. Each subject was assigned to either a history of depression (DEP-Hx) or control group based on the presence versus absence of a DSM-III-R Major Depressive Episode. ERPs were recorded during two auditory oddball tasks. The first task was a simple two-pitch auditory discrimination and the second task was a three-stimulus auditory discrimination. In both tasks, subjects responded to the same rare target tone. Analysis of P300 amplitudes indicated a significant group by task interaction. Simple effects indicated that control subjects exhibited smaller target P300 amplitudes during the three-stimulus task as compared to the two-stimulus task. In contrast, subjects with a history of depression did not show a significant difference in P300 target amplitude between the two tasks. These results suggest that depression history as well as task difficulty/modality may influence the utility of the P300 in documenting the neurophysiological aspects of depression. D

Brain Injury, 2002

Background: St. Louis encephalitis (SLE) is a relatively common cause of neurological illness, ye... more Background: St. Louis encephalitis (SLE) is a relatively common cause of neurological illness, yet little is known about its cognitive and psychosocial consequences. Purpose: To describe the cognitive, emotional, psychophysiological, and psychosocial consequences of SLE infection. Method: A comprehensive neuropsychological and psychophysiological evaluation of a high functioning woman 6 weeks and 1 year after acute SLE infection is presented. The focus and course of rehabilitation is also examined. Results: The primary cognitive consequences of SLE infection involved attention, working memory, speed of processing, and cognitive efficiency. Depression was also observed. Psychometric testing suggested that these deficits largely resolved after 1 year. Conclusions: SLE produces neurocognitive deficits which are reflected in both psychometric and psychophysiologic measures and functional status. Psychometric and vocational improvement were observed over 1 year. However, the normal vocational return came at a significant psychosocial cost. This case emphasizes the importance of a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation and illustrates the importance of an integrated rehabilitation programme.

Progress in Neuro-psychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry, 2005

Previous investigations attempting to examine impulsiveness as a personality construct are likely... more Previous investigations attempting to examine impulsiveness as a personality construct are likely confounded with a high incidence of aggressive and antisocial behavior. The present study assessed electroencephalographic activity at rest and during photic stimulation in two groups: (1) an impulsive group (n=10) scoring high on the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) and reporting no indication of impulsive aggressive behavior; and (2) a non-aggressive control group (n=14) scoring within the normal range on the BIS-11. All subjects completed a brief battery of personality measures related to impulsivity and aggression. Resting EEG was recorded at 9 electrode sites. Photic stimulation was administered at three frequency levels. The primary findings were consistently lower frontal delta and theta activity in the impulsive group as well as a different topographical pattern of beta activity between the groups. These differences appeared to be independent of photic stimulation. Personality analyses indicated significantly greater hostility and lifetime history of aggression in the impulsive group. Taken together, the personality and EEG results suggest some similarity between the present impulsive group and research on groups regularly exhibiting premeditated aggression. These results provide unique insight into the construct of impulsivity and its role in the expression of specific subtypes of aggressive behavior. D

Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 2003

This study assesses the effectiveness of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) performance... more This study assesses the effectiveness of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) performance validity markers devised by Mittenberg et al. [Prof. Psychol.: Res. Pract. 26 (1995) 491] in the detection of malingered neurocognitive dysfunction (MND). Subjects were 65 traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients referred for neuropsychological evaluation. Twenty-eight met the Slick et al. [Clin. Neuropsychol. 13 (1999) 545] criteria for at least probable MND. The control group was comprised of 37 patients without external incentive and who thus did not meet the Slick et al. criteria. All subjects completed the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R or WAIS-III). The discriminant function score (DFS) and the vocabulary-digit span (VDS) difference score were calculated and sensitivity, specificity, and predictive power were examined for several cut-offs for each marker individually and the two combined. Classification accuracy for the DFS was acceptable and better than for VDS. The use of the two markers in combination resulted in no incremental increase in classification accuracy. Issues related to the clinical application of these techniques are discussed.

Clinical Neuropsychologist, 2002

The present study examined the classification accuracy of four potential Wisconsin Card Sorting T... more The present study examined the classification accuracy of four potential Wisconsin Card Sorting Test malingering indicators (Bernard and Suhr formulas and two types of Unique responses). Participants were 89 traumatic brain-injury (TBI) patients assigned to malingering and nonmalingering groups on the basis of the Slick, Sherman, and Iversion (1999) criteria. Individual Sensitivities were greater than .33 with acceptable Specificity. Combined Sensitivity for two of the indicators was greater than.60. Overall, this study demonstrated three distinct approaches to the WCST used by probable malingerers. The clinical relevance of these findings and directions for future research are discussed.

Personality and Individual Differences, 2003

Aggressive behavior has traditionally been classified into two distinct subtypes: an affective, i... more Aggressive behavior has traditionally been classified into two distinct subtypes: an affective, impulsive aggressive display or a planned, predatory aggressive act. While a number of investigations have examined the clinical and physiological correlates in impulsive aggressive individuals, very little research has been conducted on those individuals engaging in predominantly premeditated aggressive acts. The present study compared a group of premeditated aggressive psychiatric outpatients with a group of normal, nonaggressive control subjects on personality, neuropsychological and cognitive psychophysiological measures. Consistent with previous work, premeditated aggressors did not differ significantly from controls on most measures of neuropsychological and psychophysiological function. Premeditated aggressors did show significant personality pathology scoring higher on measures of impulsivity, verbal and physical aggression, anger, hostility, psychoticism and neuroticism. Overall, these results suggest a distinctive personality style that is associated with aggressive behavior. With respect to this and previous work, it is suggested that the physiological aspects of behavioral control play a key role in the type of aggressive behavior displayed. #

Psychiatry Research-neuroimaging, 2003

The present study evaluated the effects of depression and a family history of alcohol or substanc... more The present study evaluated the effects of depression and a family history of alcohol or substance dependence on P300 event-related potentials in young women aged 14 to 20 years. Of the 130 female subjects, 29 met DSM-III-R diagnostic criteria for a lifetime history of a Major Depressive Episode. Event-related electroencephalographic potentials were recorded from each subject while she performed a complex visual oddball task. Analyses indicated a decrement in P300 amplitude in the depressed group as compared to girls with no history of depression. No effects of family history of alcoholism or drug dependence were detected. Current source density analyses, utilizing a realistic head-shape boundary element model, indicated that the difference between the depressed and non-depressed groups was maximal in the right prefrontal region. These results provide further support for the notion that the cognitive difficulties associated with depression are subtle and best detected with sensitive neurophysiological indices, such as P300.

Clinical Neuropsychologist, 2001

This study examined the classification accuracy of the Portland Digit Recognition Test (PDRT) in ... more This study examined the classification accuracy of the Portland Digit Recognition Test (PDRT) in traumatic brain injury (TBI). It differs from past studies in assigning patients to malingering and control groups on the basis of compensation-seeking status and the presence of external markers for malingering. Sensitivity and Specificity were.77 and 1.00, respectively. Past research comparing compensation-seekers to noncompensation-seekers reported Sensitivities of.33 or lower (Specificity is always high). This study demonstrates that past research has seriously underestimated the Sensitivity of the PDRT and raises questions about the true Sensitivity of other malingering techniques as well.

Personality and Individual Differences, 2002