Böcker av Kelda Earleen

Prevalence rates for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) suggest rates continue to increase, withrecent data indicating 1 in 68 children diagnosed with the disorder. Interventions may provebeneficial for both the core symptoms of the disorder and related deficits, although data indicatethat effects are stronger with early intervention (e.g., prior to four years old). Unfortunately, many children are undiagnosed until they are school age. Additionally, a number of findingsindicate that in comparison to Caucasian children, African American children receive an ASDdiagnosis later and less often. The current study examined the role of race/ethnicity on 119mothers' knowledge about autism spectrum disorder, interpretation of symptomology consistentwith ASD (e.g., labeling the child, level of concern, helpful services), attitudes towards mentalhealth services, and trust in providers. Participants were exposed to a vignette of a childdisplaying typical developmental behavior, mild ASD symptomology, or moderate-to-severeASD symptomology. Participants indicated their perception of the child's behaviors either asindicative of normal development, a medical disorder, a developmental disorder, an intellectualdisorder, or an emotional disorder. Participants then completed measures of ASD knowledge, help seeking attitudes, and provider stigma. In comparison to Caucasians, African Americansdisplayed less ASD knowledge, were less able to identify a child with ASD symptoms as havingthe disorder, and held more biases toward medical clinicians. Inconsistent with previous studies, racial/ethnic differences were not found for attitudes of mental health stigma and help seekingintentions. Implications of findings are discussed

Muscle dysmorphia (MD) is observed as a strong drive to increase muscularity anddecrease body fat, and appears to be based on beliefs regarding one's muscularity, regardlessof actual muscle size and definition. The current scientific literature on MD is inconclusiveon several vital questions regarding the characteristics, categorisation, and prevalence of MD.The overall purpose of the research was to investigate whether MD should be included as anew disorder in a classification system for mental disorders, and to improve the understandingand awareness of the rates and symptoms of MD, BDD, and eating disorders. Two studieswere designed in this project to address five of these questions.The first study aimed to: (a) examine inter-rater reliability of the proposed MD criteria, (b)investigate if MD represented a syndrome of co-occurring symptoms, and (c) investigate thecorrelation between the proposed MD criteria and the Muscle Appearance Satisfaction Scale(MASS) in a non-clinical population of adult male weight lifters in Australia. Adult males (N= 48) who were currently participating in weight lifting were assessed using the MASS and aone-on-one interview. Results of the assessments by two registered psychologists indicatedlow inter-rater reliability (¿ = .39; p ¿ .05). A Binomial test revealed that MD represented asyndrome of frequently co-occurring symptoms: there was a significant probability (> .70) ofa participant with one diagnostic symptom of MD (criteria B1 or C) to exhibit anothersymptom (criterion A) of the disorder. Point-biserial correlation indicated that the proposedMD criteria, excluding criterion B2, were significantly correlated with the total score of theMASS and its subscales, excluding Muscle Satisfaction.The second study aimed to: (a) determine the prevalence of, and factors contributing to,MD symptoms, body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) symptoms, and eating disorders symptoms;and (b) provide a comprehensive comparison of symptoms of MD, BDD, and eating disordersin a non-clinical population of adult male weight lifters in Australia. Adult males (N = 648,Mage = 29.5, SD = 10.1) who were currently participating in weight lifting completed an onlinesurvey consisting of the background questionnaire, the MASS, the Body DysmorphicDisorder Questionnaire, and the 26-item Eating Attitudes Test.