Toddlers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often face challenges with emotion regulation, frequently displaying various dysregulation behaviors. This study examines the effects of a caregiver-mediated play intervention on child regulation outcomes. The intervention, based on the JASPER model, supports parents in learning strategies to enhance social communication, engagement, and regulation. A total of 149 toddlers with ASD (M age = 21 months) and their caregivers participated. During an initial 10-minute play session, toddler behaviors and caregiver responses were coded for type, duration, and intensity. Results showed that 82% of toddlers exhibited at least one dysregulation episode lasting over three seconds, averaging 66 seconds of total dysregulation and 2.3 distinct behavior types. Nearly half of the behaviors were rated as intense (severe distress, anger, or physical agitation) with negativity, physical venting, and idiosyncratic actions being most common. Families then participated in a play-based intervention primarily targeting social communication outcomes but also training caregivers in engagement and regulation strategies. A post-intervention 10-minute play session was recorded and similarly coded. Preliminary observations suggest reduced dysregulation following the intervention. Next steps include further analysis to assess statistical significance. These findings highlight the importance of caregiver co-regulation and the role of early intervention to improve regulation in toddlers with ASD.

Having good friends is linked to improved physical and mental wellbeing. To secure these benefits, we must prevent our friends’ defection to others. Recent work has posited that a friendship jealousy system is well-designed to help people meet this challenge. According to this work, a key input into the friendship jealousy system is Replacement Threat—indexed by cues that a friend is replacing one with another. Per other work, friendships are built on reciprocity (returning favors). On this view, non-reciprocation harms friendships and spurs negative emotions. To begin to test these ideas, we will conduct a between-subjects experiment by randomly assigning US CloudResearch participants to read one of three vignettes wherein their best friends (a) reciprocate a favor (take the participant to the airport in traffic), (b) reciprocate a favor for a new friend but not for oneself, or (c) fail to reciprocate the favor. We expect that reciprocation will evoke happiness (not jealousy or anger), circumstantial non-reciprocation (taking the new friend but not the participant) will cue Replacement Threat and evoke jealousy (also some anger, but not happiness), and simple non-reciprocation (refusing to reciprocate) will evoke anger (not jealousy or happiness). Findings would suggest the value of reciprocity in best friendships, and that the friendship jealousy system is sensitive to cues of Replacement Threat via contextual reciprocity violations, not reciprocity violations alone.

Phenomena that lead to changes in arousal or disruptions in emotional homeostasis can lead to modifications of the vocal system and thus of the emitted vocalizations across humans and non-human taxa. These modifications can be quantized through bioacoustic measurements. To understand the effects of arousal and valence on vocalization systems, we first determined the valence and arousal states of 25 vocalizations of the bearded capuchin (Sapajus libidinosus) using a published vocalization repertoire that included behavioral contexts from wild individuals and paired recordings of each call. We classified the calls as being emitted in a positive, negative, or neutral context from the publication, and the arousal level as low, medium, or high through subjective interpretation of the sound. Next, we will assess whether there is a relationship between the bioacoustic measures of arousal and valence across all of the calls. Measurements we will be looking at include frequency, duration, frequency range, and interquartile bandwidth, as papers across animals have alluded to their relationship to either valence or arousal.

Latiné individuals’ perspectives on mental health (MH) website design remain largely unexplored, despite evidence that culturally untailored online resources may disengage this community (Williams et al., 2021). This multiple case study examines Latiné college students' perspectives on MH websites, hypothesizing that bold colors, diverse images, clear cost and insurance information, and in-person marketing at cultural centers would increase satisfaction and attractiveness of the website. Using inductive coding, we found that Latiné college students (N = 7, Mage = 21, 71% female, 86% spoke Spanish) wanted MH websites to include interactive chat box features and content related to therapists’ credentials, types of therapy offered, and self-care tips, with marketing towards students on social media platforms. Contrary to our hypotheses, findings suggest that for Latiné college students, factors like psychoeducation may influence engagement more than cultural background. Results highlight the importance of tailoring websites to student identity and leveraging social media to enhance outreach.

In an era dominated by digital interactions, social media has become a powerful force in shaping self-perception and mental health. This study investigates the extent to which social comparison on social media predicts higher levels of IP and worse mental health outcomes in UCLA students. Drawing on social comparison theory and sociocognitive models of IP, we hypothesize that higher levels of social comparison on social media will be positively associated with higher levels of IP and psychological distress. Using validated survey instruments, we examine correlations across a diverse student population (N = 125). Additional analyses will explore whether experiences of IP and social comparison differ by gender, GPA, race/ethnicity, year in college, area of study, and pre-health career track—demographic variables linked in prior literature to increased psychological vulnerability. This research aims to contribute to the growing body of literature on the mental health impact of social media and contextualize IP within specific academic and sociocultural environments. Findings may inform targeted mental health interventions and support services for high-risk student populations.