Jane Millichamp

Sharing is an important skill which contributes to the social, verbal, cognitive and motor development of children. In this thesis, seven experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of antecedent and training conditions on sharing of mentally retarded children. The aim of these experiments was to examine ways in which sharing and positive social behaviour could be facilitated. In Experiment 1, the effects of laboratory conditions were assessed with 62 mentally retarded boys. It was found that 56 participants did not share in this context. Experiment 2 was designed to compare the effects of laboratory versus classroom sessions on sharing and collateral behaviours. An alternating treatments design revealed no significant differences between conditions. Sharing remained at low levels for all participants. In Experiment 3, the effects of familiar versus novel play materials were compared in an alternating treatments design. Sharing and positive social responses occurred at low le...

Reviews research on the pharmacological management of self-injurious behavior (SIB), including the use of major tranquilizers, stimulants, and antimanics. Findings indicate that the evidence for the efficacy of drugs in the treatment of SIB in the mentally retarded is not convincing. While a small number of studies show that some of the major tranquilizers can control SIB to some minor degree, there is no empirical evidence to suggest that these drugs can eliminate SIB. In general, the caliber of the drug studies dealing with SIB is poor. Most studies have failed to include even the basic requirements of drug research (e.g., double-blind, cross-over designs; placebo control; random assignment to drug groups). (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)

To investigate the prevalence, nature, and context of physical punishment and other forms of parental discipline, as reported by study members (SMs) of the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study. 962 26-year-old adults (born in Dunedin, New Zealand) were interviewed about their experiences of discipline in childhood. Study members were asked about the usual forms of punishment received in primary and secondary school years, as well as the worst punishment they ever received. Details regarding the study members' reactions to different punishments were collected. Variables related to the person administering the punishment were also investigated. Of the study members providing data, 80% reported receiving physical punishment at some time during childhood: 29% identifying smacking; 45% reporting being hit with an object; and 6% reporting extreme physical punishment as the most severe form. Physical punishment on a regular basis was reported by 71% of study members. ...

Sixty-seven third-year dental students in Dunedin, New Zealand, participated in a communication skills course, using simulated patients, case-based scenarios, videotaped interviews, and class roleplays. The course introduced active listening techniques, taking a medical history, and emotion-handling skills. This course was adapted from an existing course for medical students run by the Department of Psychological Medicine, Dunedin School of Medicine. The results of the student evaluation questionnaire (n = 59) indicated that students rated the course very highly. Retrospective ratings indicated that the students considered communication skills to be significantly more important as a component of their undergraduate training after completion of the course than prior to it. As might be expected, students whose ratings were higher after the course also reported that the course helped them to develop new communication skills and techniques; increased their interest in the subject and th...

A double-blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted to assess the effects of intermittent drug therapy on stereotyped and collateral behaviors of six profoundly mentally retarded, institutionalized, adult males. The subjects, all of whom had received antipsychotic medication for more than three years, had their maintenance dosages gradually reduced by almost half during the eight-month study. A multiple baseline across subjects design was utilized to assess drug effects on object and body stereotypy and a range of collateral behaviors. While there was individual variation across behaviors and subjects, the main finding was that despite the marked reduction in medication, there were no general changes of clinical significance in any of the behaviors. This finding is of considerable therapeutic importance since a very large number of institutionalized mentally retarded persons receive similar long-term medication for behavior problems and there is some concern regarding the adverse...

This study reports on domestic violence in New Zealand families witnessed by members of the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study. Questions on the witnessing of father to mother and mother to father physical violence and threats of harm up to the age of 18 were included in a retrospective family violence interview carried out when the cohort was interviewed at age 26. Study members who reported violence between parents were asked about the nature, context, and consequences of this violence. One-quarter (24%) of the sample reported violence or threats of violence directed from one parent to the other. Nine percent reported infrequent assaults while one in 10 reported more than five acts of physical violence. In violent families, 55% reported violence by fathers only, 28% by both partners, and 16% by mothers only. Almost 90% of the exposed group witnessed violence between natural parents, and 80% were exposed to violence before the age of 11. The gender of the study ...

To investigate the prevalence, nature, and context of physical punishment and other forms of parental discipline, as reported by study members (SMs) of the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study. 962 26-year-old adults (born in Dunedin, New Zealand) were interviewed about their experiences of discipline in childhood. Study members were asked about the usual forms of punishment received in primary and secondary school years, as well as the worst punishment they ever received. Details regarding the study members' reactions to different punishments were collected. Variables related to the person administering the punishment were also investigated. Of the study members providing data, 80% reported receiving physical punishment at some time during childhood: 29% identifying smacking; 45% reporting being hit with an object; and 6% reporting extreme physical punishment as the most severe form. Physical punishment on a regular basis was reported by 71% of study members. ...

Self-injury is a severe behavioral problem commonly observed in institutionalized mentally retarded individuals. While several forms of therapy are available, pharmacological treatment is most often used in institutions to control this behavior. This paper evaluated the clinical and experimental literature on the effects of pharmacotherapy for self-injury. Few general conclusions could be drawn mainly due to the small number of studies and the general lack of methodological rigor of these studies. However, there was some indication that antipsychotics and antimanics may prove to be useful in the treatment of self-injury and warrant further investigation. Several areas of future research were discussed.

Page 1. SPECIAL ISSUE - EDITORIAL Richie Poulton Æ Gavin Andrews Æ Jane Millichamp ... Am J Psychiatry 164:119–125 49. Vollebergh WA, Iedema J, Bijl RV, de Graaf R, Smit F, Ormel J (2001) The structure and stability of common mental disorders: the NEMESIS study. ...