Showing papers by "Mark Shevlin published in 2008"
TL;DR: This article examined the structure of the statistics anxiety rating scale and concluded that the original six factor model was the best explanation of the data and that all six subscales were intercorrelated and internally consistent.
94 citations
TL;DR: The study showed no major ill effects from PGD on the child health, and PGD families showed no evidence of excess stress in their relationship with their child.
Abstract: A preliminary study was conducted on health of children conceived after preimplantation genetic screening and diagnosis (PGD). Forty-nine children were assessed with 66 matched naturally conceived (NC) controls. Primary outcome was neurodevelopmental screening, and secondary outcomes were evidence of other health problems and assessment of parent-child relationships. Study and control children were well matched across relevant socio-demographic variables. Growth parameters at mean age 18 months were normal. The mean Griffiths quotient was 102.7 (+/-13.1) (PGD) and 103.3 (+/-12.8) (NC), both of which were within the normal range, and did not differ significantly. PGD cases were more likely to be lighter, at <2500 g (12 children, 24.5% versus one child 1.5%, P < 0.0001) and born earlier than controls (38.2 +/- 2.6 versus 40.0 +/- 1.4 weeks; P < 0.0001), consistent with other similar studies. PGD families showed no evidence of excess stress in their relationship with their child. The PGD group had significantly higher scores on the warmth-affection sub-scale (P = 0.042), and significantly lower scores on the aggression-hostility and rejection sub-scales (P = 0.030) of the questionnaire. The study showed no major ill effects from PGD on the child health. A larger study is needed to confirm the validity of this conclusion.
61 citations
TL;DR: This paper demonstrated how trauma research can focus on the individual as the unit of analysis rather than traumatic events.
Abstract: The aim of this study was to determine if there are meaningful clusters of individuals with similar experiences of adverse life events in a nationally representative sample of Danish adolescents. Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to identify such clusters or latent classes. In addition, the relationships between the latent classes and living arrangements and diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were estimated. A four-class solution was found to be the best description of multiple adverse life events, and the classes were labelled "Low Risk", "Intermediate Risk", "Pregnancy" and "High Risk". Compared with the Low Risk class, the other classes were found to be significantly more likely to have a diagnosis PTSD and live with only one parent. This paper demonstrated how trauma research can focus on the individual as the unit of analysis rather than traumatic events.
50 citations
TL;DR: Alcohol use in Great Britain can be hypothesized as reflecting six distinct classes, four of which follow a continuum of increased consumption leading to increased dependence and related problems and two that do not.
Abstract: Aims: Attempts have been made to develop typologies to classify different types of alcoholism. However, limited research has focused on classifications to describe general patterns of alcohol use in general population samples. Methods: Latent class analysis was used to create empirically derived behaviour clusters of alcohol consumption and related problems from the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) based on data from a large stratified multi-stage random sample of the population of Great Britain. Multinomial logistic regression was performed to describe these resultant classes using both demographic variables and mental health outcomes. Results: Six classes best described responses in the sample data. Three were heavy consumption groups, one with multiple negative consequences, one experiencing alcohol-related injury and social pressures to cut down and an additional class with memory loss. There was one moderate class with few negative consequences, and finally two mild consumption groups, one with alcohol-related injury and social pressure to cut down and one with no associated problems. Conclusions: Alcohol use in Great Britain can be hypothesized as reflecting six distinct classes, four of which follow a continuum of increased consumption leading to increased dependence and related problems and two that do not. Differences between alcohol use classes are apparent with reduced risk of depressive episode in moderate classes and an increased risk of anxiety disorders for the highest consumers of alcohol.
44 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors test theoretical alternative models to explain the role of defense styles play in mediating the relationship between traumatic experiences and posttraumatic stress severity, and the fit for the combined direct and mediated model was acceptable, and was superior in explanatory power compared to the direct effect and fully mediated models.
Abstract: This study aimed to test theoretical alternative models to explain the role of defense styles play in mediating the relationship between traumatic experiences and posttraumatic stress severity. The data were collected from a survey based on a national representative probability sample of 390 Danish school children age 13 to 15. The survey included questions about demographic variables, traumatic events and life events, the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire, and the Defense Style Questionnaire. Based on these variables, three models were proposed that specified the relationship between trauma exposure and posttraumatic stress severity to be either (1) direct with no effect for defense styles, (2) fully mediated by defense styles, or (3) both direct and mediated. Structural equation modelling was used to fit each of the models and assess model fit. The fit for the combined direct and mediated model was acceptable, and was superior in explanatory power compared to the direct effect and the fully mediated models. ...
8 citations