Ethnic Differences in Attributions and Treatment Expectancies for Adolescent Depression.

Studies suggest that ethnicity and socioeconomic factors may relate to differences in treatment expectancies and the attributions made for emotional or behavioral problems. We examined ethnic differences in (1) parents' attributions about the causes of adolescent behavioral and emotional problems and (2) treatment expectancies among 236 adolescent participants who enrolled in a 36-week randomized controlled trial for depression. Controlling for education and income, European American parents were more likely to endorse beliefs reflecting physical causes of depression than African American parents. There were no ethnic differences for beliefs reflecting external, familial, or community factors. Ethnic differences were observed in the treatment expectancies reported by parents, but not adolescents, with African American parents more likely than European Americans and Other minorities to endorse positive expectations for CBT. These findings may have implications for understanding discrepancies in mental health service use.

Assessment and prevention of head motion during imaging of patients with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

The present study serves to detail the specific procedures for a mock scanner protocol, report on its use in the context of a multi-site study, and make suggestions for improving such protocols based on data acquired during study scanning. Specifically, a mock scanner compliance training protocol was used in a functional imaging study with a group of adolescents and adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and a matched sample of healthy children and adults. Head motion was measured during mock and actual scanning. Participants across groups exhibited excess motion (>2 mm) on 43% of runs during the mock scanner. During actual scanning, excessive motion was limited to 10% of runs. There was a clear task-correlated head motion during a go/no-go task that occurred even after the compliance training: participants had a tendency to respond with increased head motion immediately after committing an error. This study illustrates the need to (1) report data attrition due to head motion, (2) assess task-related motion, and (3) consider mock scanner training in functional imaging protocols.