When it helps to be misled: Facilitative effects of increasing the frequency of conflicting stimuli in a Stroop-like task

Three experiments are reported that involve responding to the meaning or position of a word (Above or Below) presented above or below a fixation point. Position and word meaning conflicted (Above/below or Below/above) or were compatible (Above/above or Below/below), and the relative frequency of conflicting trials was varied. Experiment 1 required responses to the word and its position. Compatibility and frequency had no effect in the spatial task, but interacted strongly in the word task: Compatible stimuli were processed faster when conflicting trials were rare (20% conflicting), but conflicting stimuli were processed faster when they were frequent (80% conflicting). Experiments 2 and 3 used the word task only and extended these findings to intermediate (20%, 40%, 60%, and 80% conflicting) and more extreme (10%, 20%, 80%, and 90% conflicting) frequencies, respectively. The advantage for conflicting stimuli when they were frequent was taken as evidence for a strategy involving dividing attention between reported and unreported dimensions.     

What makes labour and birth traumatic? A survey of intrapartum 'hotspots'

Evidence suggests between 1% and 6% of women develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after childbirth. 'Hotspots' are moments of extreme distress during traumatising events that are implicated in symptoms of PTSD. This cross-sectional internet survey of hotspots examined (1) the content of intrapartum hotspots and (2) whether particular events, cognitions or emotions during hotspots are related to PTSD. Women (N?=?675) who experienced a difficult or traumatic birth completed a questionnaire composed of a validated measure of PTSD, questions concerning the existence of hotspots, and a newly developed measure of emotions and cognitions during hotspots. The majority of women (67.4%) reported at least one hotspot during birth and 52.9% had re-experiencing symptoms of these hotspots. Women were more likely to have PTSD if hotspots involved fear and lack of control (odds ratio (OR) 1.30, 95% CI 1.17-1.43) or intrapartum dissociation (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.05-1.19). Risk of PTSD was higher if hotspots concerned interpersonal difficulties (OR 4.34, 95% CI 2.15-8.77) or obstetric complications (OR 3.35, 95% CI 1.64-6.87) compared to complications with the baby.     

The Scope of Inclusion of Academic Conflict of Interest Policies

We analyzed whether institutions training physicians and advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) have conflict of interest policies (COIP) specific to pharmaceutical relationships and if present do such policies extend to students, other clinicians, personnel, sites, and curriculum. The 2014 Association of Academic Health Centers list of US members (n=92) identified 65 eligible universities. A 10-item web-based survey was distributed to potential participants. Initial contact was to institutional Directors of Nursing Research, with sequential contacts if no response to Nursing Deans or Department Chairs, Clinical Placement Coordinators, Institutional Research Board Directors, Bioethics Departments, and Legal Counsel. Contacts received 2 email reminders before initiating the next level of contact. Reminder postcards were sent to Dean or Department Chair non-responders. 20 institutions fully completed the survey, a 30% response. Most (90%) reported COIP for continuing education or industry funded speaking but 40.5% were "unsure" or "unclear" whether this included curriculum. 55.6% were "unsure" or "did not know" if preceptors were included. Website confirmation noted COIP most frequently covered research funding or trials (95%) or gifts and meals (90%). Policies least frequently covered curriculum (10%). 25% included all clinicians in their COIP. No institution covered clinical preceptors unless they were employees. Gaps exist in knowledge of COIP and their scope related to the education of nurse prescribers. While most policies cover research funding or trials in accordance with federal law, they are not explicit or known regarding their extension to nonphysician clinicians, curriculum, or preceptors.     

Systematic Monitoring of the Implementation of a Case Management Model

A systematic approach for monitoring case management service provision and the results obtained when this approach was applied to a program for community-dwelling elders with severe mental illness are presented. A detailed, closed-ended, daily service log was used to collect data on 713 client-contact days. Participants (N = 24) were predominantly female (71%), were White (63%) or African American (37%), and tended to have diagnoses of either schizophrenia (42%) or major depression (21%). Services were delivered most frequently in the client's home (47%), the program office (35%), or by phone (27%); most frequent activities were monitoring psychiatric symptoms/medications (62 %), and monitoring physical symptoms or medications or both (54%). Service characteristics did not differ with regard to demographics but did vary with living situation and psychiatric diagnosis. The findings point to the need for flexible programs capable of meeting diverse service needs as well as the utility of a daily service log in studying case management.     

Roles of dopamine D1 and D2 receptors in the acquisition and expression of fat-conditioned flavor preferences in rats

Sugars and fats elicit innate and learned flavor preferences with the latter mediated by flavor-flavor (orosensory) and flavor-nutrient (post-ingestive) processes. Systemic dopamine (DA) D1 (SCH23390: SCH) and D2 (raclopride: RAC), but not opioid antagonists blocked the acquisition and expression of flavor-flavor preferences conditioned by sugars. In addition, systemic D1, but not D2 or opioid antagonists blocked the acquisition of flavor-nutrient preferences conditioned by intragastric (IG) sugar infusions. Given that DA antagonists reduce fat intake, the present study examined whether systemic D1 or D2 antagonists altered the acquisition and/or expression of conditioned flavor preferences (CFP) produced by pairing one novel flavor (CS+, e.g., cherry) with a 3.5% corn oil (CO: fat) solution relative to another flavor (CS-, e.g., grape) paired with a 0.9% CO solution. In an expression study, food-restricted rats were trained to drink either flavored 3.5% or 0.9% CO solutions on alternate days. Subsequent two-bottle tests with the CS+ and CS- flavors mixed in 0.9% CO solutions occurred 0.5h after systemic administration of vehicle (VEH), SCH (50-800 nmol/kg) or RAC (50-800 nmol/kg). The rats displayed a robust CS+ preference following VEH treatment (87-88%) the expression of which was attenuated by treatment with moderate doses of RAC, and to a lesser degree, SCH. In an acquisition study, six groups of rats received VEH, SCH (25, 50, 200 nmol/kg) or RAC (50, 200 nmol/kg) 0.5 h prior to 1-bottle training trials with CS+ flavored 3.5% and CS- flavored 0.9% (CS-) CO solutions. A seventh Limited VEH group was trained with its training intakes limited to that of the SCH and RAC groups. Subsequent two-bottle tests were conducted with the CS+ and CS- flavors presented in 0.9% CO without injections. Significant and persistent CS+ preferences were observed in VEH (75-82%), Limited VEH (70-88%), SCH25 (75-84%), SCH50 (64-87%), SCH200 (78-91%) and RAC200 (74-91%) groups. In contrast, the group trained with RAC50 displayed a significant initial CS+ preference (76%) which declined over testing to 61%. These data indicate limited DA D1 and D2 receptor signaling involvement in the expression and acquisition of a fat-CFP relative to previous robust effects for sugar-CFP.     

What makes labour and birth traumatic? A survey of intrapartum ‘hotspots’

Evidence suggests between 1% and 6% of women develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after childbirth. ‘Hotspots’ are moments of extreme distress during traumatising events that are implicated in symptoms of PTSD. This cross-sectional internet survey of hotspots examined (1) the content of intrapartum hotspots and (2) whether particular events, cognitions or emotions during hotspots are related to PTSD. Women (N?=?675) who experienced a difficult or traumatic birth completed a questionnaire composed of a validated measure of PTSD, questions concerning the existence of hotspots, and a newly developed measure of emotions and cognitions during hotspots. The majority of women (67.4%) reported at least one hotspot during birth and 52.9% had re-experiencing symptoms of these hotspots. Women were more likely to have PTSD if hotspots involved fear and lack of control (odds ratio (OR) 1.30, 95% CI 1.17–1.43) or intrapartum dissociation (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.05–1.19). Risk of PTSD was higher if hotspots concerned interpersonal difficulties (OR 4.34, 95% CI 2.15–8.77) or obstetric complications (OR 3.35, 95% CI 1.64–6.87) compared to complications with the baby.     

The relationship between guardian certification requirements and guardian sanctioning: a research issue in elder law and policy

This study investigated the relationship between guardian certification requirements and guardian sanctioning in the state of Washington. A total of 377 files were examined. Findings show that 52.4% of guardians with an undergraduate degree or higher education are likely to be sanctioned compared with 42.2% with an Associate of Arts (AA) or Technical (Tech) degree, and 36.9% with a high school diploma (HS) or equivalency (GED). Guardians with an undergraduate or higher education are 1.88 times more likely to be sanctioned compared with GED or HS graduates (p < 0.05). However, 83.3% of GED or HS graduates are likely to have more severe sanctions compared with 76.4% undergraduate or higher education, and 47.7% with an AA or Tech degree, respectively. Guardians with an AA or Tech degree are 0.28 times less likely to have more severe sanctions than guardians with an undergraduate degree or higher education (p < 0.01). The results are discussed with respect to guardian registration, licensing, certification and quality; licensing and regulation of other professions; the limitations of the study; and the need for further research.     

Screening for Muir-Torre Syndrome Using Mismatch Repair Protein Immunohistochemistry of Sebaceous Neoplasms

Screening for the Muir-Torre variant of Lynch Syndrome (LS) using Mismatch Repair (MMR) gene immunohistochemistry (IHC) on sebaceous neoplasms (SNs) is technically feasible. To date, research into the clinical utility of MMR IHC for this indication is limited. We conducted a retrospective chart review of 90 patients with MMR IHC completed on at least one SN from January 2005 to May 2010. SNs included were adenomas, epitheliomas, carcinomas and basal and squamous cell carcinomas with sebaceous differentiation. Of the 90 patients, 13 (14 %) had genetically confirmed or fulfilled clinical criteria for a diagnosis of MTS and 51 patients (57 %) presented with an abnormal MMR IHC result (loss of one or more MMR proteins) on at least one SN. Abnormal IHC had a sensitivity of 85 %, specificity of 48 %, positive predictive value (PPV) of 22 % and negative predictive value (NPV) of 95 % when evaluating for MTS. When personal or family history of colorectal cancer (≥2 family members with a history of colorectal cancer) was taken into consideration, ignoring IHC results, sensitivity was 92 %, specificity was 99 %, PPV was 92 % and NPV was 99 %. MMR IHC on SNs when used to screen for MTS has poor diagnostic utility. We recommend that MMR IHC not be performed routinely on SNs when the patient does not have either personal or family history of colorectal cancer.     

Postdeployment Psychological Health and Interpersonal Problems Among Air Force Mental Health Personnel

This study is one of the first to use validated screening measures to examine the rates of self-reported mental health and interpersonal problems following deployment of military mental health personnel (MMHP). Research has examined the impact of deployment on military personnel finding 10.2% to 29.0% screen positive for at least one mental health problem. However, little is known about impacts of deployment among MMHP. Utilizing health data collected three to twelve months post-deployment from a sample of 759 Air Force MMHP, this study examined rates of positive screens for psychological health or interpersonal problems, subsequent confirmation of positive screens by a medical provider upon examination, and the demographic characteristics associated with psychological health or interpersonal problems. The study found 13.9% screened positive for “possible or probable PTSD,” 4.6% for depressive symptoms, 3.9% for alcohol problems, and 12.6% for interpersonal problems. In total, nearly 26% screened positive for one or more psychological or interpersonal problem. Of those who screened positive, 48.5% of depressive problems, 36.0% of PTSD, 20.0% of alcohol problems and 29.7% of interpersonal problems were confirmed upon subsequent examination by a medical provider. Those who screened positive were more likely to be (a) female, (b) separated, widowed, or divorced, (c) a mental health nurse or psychiatric nurse practitioner, and (d) deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan. The significance, limitations, and implications of the results, along with recommendations for future research are discussed.     

Posttraumatic stress symptoms in a population of rural children in South Africa

The purpose of the study was to identify exposure to experiences such as violence and the consequences for health in children in a rural South African community. The stratified random sample included 148 children below 17 yr., which comprised 68 (46%) boys and 80 (54%) girls in the age range of 6 to 16 years (M = 12.1 yr., SD = 3.1). Their ethnicity was Northern Sotho. The interviews included the Children's Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Inventory and the Reporting Questionnaire for Children. The experiences could be grouped into either traumatic or other events. 99 (67%) had directly or vicariously experienced a traumatic event which included witnessing someone killed or seriously injured, serious accident, violent or very unexpected death or suicide of loved one, sexual abuse or rape of relative or friend, violent crime, child abuse, and other life-threatening situations. Scores on the Children's Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Inventory of 17 (8.4%) fulfilled the criterion for posttraumatic stress disorder. 71% had more than one score and 53% had more than four scores on the Reporting Questionnaire for Children. Posttraumatic stress symptoms were significantly related to age and experiences such as those mentioned above.     

THE FUNCTIONS OF SELF-INJURIOUS BEHAVIOR: AN EXPERIMENTAL-EPIDEMIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

Data are summarized from 152 single-subject analyses of the reinforcing functions of self-injurious behavior (SIB). Individuals with developmental disabilities referred for assessment and/or treatment over an 11-year period were exposed to a series of conditions in which the effects of antecedent and consequent events on SIB were examined systematically by way of multielement, reversal, or combined designs. Data were collected during approximately 4,000 experimental sessions (1,000 hr), with the length of assessment for individuals ranging from 8 to 66 sessions (M = 26.2) conducted over 2 to 16.5 hr (M = 6.5). Differential or uniformly high responding was observed in 145 (95.4%) of the cases. Social-negative reinforcement (escape from task demands or other sources of aversive stimulation) accounted for 58 cases, which was the largest proportion of the sample (38.1%). Social-positive reinforcement (either attention or access to food or materials) accounted for 40 (26.3%) of the cases, automatic (sensory) reinforcement accounted for 39 (25.7%), and multiple controlling variables accounted for 8 (5.3%). Seven sets of data (4.6%) showed either cyclical or inconsistent patterns of responding that were uninterpretable. Overall results indicated that functional analysis methodologies are extremely effective in identifying the environmental determinants of SIB on an individual basis and, subsequently, in guiding the process of treatment selection. Furthermore, an accumulation of assessment data from such analyses across a large number of individuals provides perhaps the most rigorous approach to an epidemiological study of behavioral function.     

Children of homosexual parents report childhood difficulties

Referenced as both supporting and weakening the case for parenting by homosexuals, 57 life-story narratives of children with homosexual parents published by Rafkin in 1990 and Saffron in 1996 were subjected to content analysis. Children mentioned one or more problems or concerns in 48 (92%) of 52 families. Of the 213 scored problems, 201 (94%) were attributed to the homosexual parent(s). Older daughters in at least 8 (27%) of 30 families and older sons in at least 2 (20%) of 10 families described themselves as homosexual or bisexual. These findings are inconsistent with propositions that children of homosexuals do not differ appreciably from those who live with married parents or that children of homosexuals are not more apt to engage in homosexuality.     

How teachers use the group I.Q. test scores

Ninety elementary school teachers, grades 2–6, in two school districts in Ohio were interviewed to obtain information on how they used the results of group IQ tests. Twenty-seven of 90 teachers (30%) reported making “little or no use” of the test scores. Most of these teachers presumably had more faith in their own tools and observations than in the IQ test scores. However, 76 of 90 teachers (84%, including the ones who made little use of the test scores) stated that they used the test scores for one or more purposes. The four most frequently mentioned uses were: (a) “for discussion in parent conferences” (51%); (b) “to know a student's potential and/or determine ability-motivation discrepancy” (42%); (c) “to plan instruction” (39.5%) and (d) “for referral purposes” (29%). The instructional strategies mentioned by the teachers varied and were categorized into 21 categories.     

Community-based Norms About Intimate Partner Violence: Putting Attributions of Fault and Responsibility into Context

Fault and responsibility are key concepts in understanding how victims and assailants are, or are not, held accountable by society. We used a fractional factorial vignette design with a community-residing sample of 3,679 adults to examine judgments about intimate partner violence (IPV). Although fault, or causal responsibility, was assigned most often to assailants (69%), respondents assigned solution responsibility most often to both persons (52%) or to the victim alone (31%): interpersonal communication for couples (38%) and self-protective actions for victims (i.e., engaging formal authorities [12%] and/or leaving the assailant [11%]) were the most frequent suggestions. Potential injury to the victim and gender/relationship-based norms had the greatest impact on judgments. Findings may inform strategies to alter social norms regarding IPV. An erratum to this article is available at .     

Factors associated with intentions for colorectal cancer screenings in a Chinese sample

This study investigated factors associated with intention to screen for colorectal cancer among Chinese people age 40 yr. and older. In-depth individual interviews were conducted. Participants were recruited from urban middle-class communities in Taichung, Taiwan through homogeneous, criterion, and snowball sampling strategies (N=32). Immersion and crystallization techniques were used in data analysis. Member check was used to ensure data quality. Analysis showed that factors related to intentions to have fecal occult blood tests were influenced by the inconvenience (61%) and the unpleasant screening procedure (29%), while participants' gastrointestinal symptoms or family history (32%) and physicians' recommendation or patients' self-health conditions (25%) were more important to intentions for a flexible sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy screening. This study suggests tailoring strategies and messages to encourage use of various screening. Unique cultural issues, such as avoidance of facing problems (28%), embarrassment (23%), or lack of acceptance of preventive behaviors (16%), were also discussed with recommendations provided.     

Comprehension of "absence" by an African Grey parrot: Learning with respect to questions of same/different

An African Grey parrot, Alex, learned to report on the absence or presence of similarity and difference between two objects. Alex was shown pairs of objects that were (a) totally dissimilar, (b) identical, or (c) similar or different with respect to one of three attributes (color, shape, or material). In the first two cases, he responded to the respective queries of “What's same?” or “What's different?” with the vocalization “none,” and in the third case he responded with the appropriate category label (“color,” “shape,” or “mah-mah” [matter]). His accuracy was 80.9% to 83.9% for pairs of familiar objects not used in training and 72.5% to 78.4% for pairs whose colors, shapes, and materials were unfamiliar. The data provide evidence that this parrot's abilities are comparable to those of mammals that have been trained to report on the presence or absence of objects or features of objects.     

Emotional effect of physical aggression among adults in the general population in a Canadian province

The emotional effect of personal involvement in physical aggression was examined in a random sample of 1,753 adults from Ontario, Canada, using Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing (response rate of 67%). Respondents reported a range of emotional responses from feeling good or justified to feeling angry, upset, terrified, disgusted, hurt, and embarrassed. Open-ended responses regarding emotional response were rated by the authors for 149 incidents of aggression, which yielded five categories: (1) positive impact 4%, (2) no feeling or no effect 31%, (3) mildly negative 20%, (4) moderately negative 28%, and (5) severely negative 17% (Kappa statistic of interrater agreement=.77). The substantial proportion of incidents involving positive or no emotional response suggests that a greater understanding of aggression among individuals can be gained by the development and application of a quantitative measure of emotional response that reflects the full range of emotions (positive and negative), using dimensions identified in this study such as feeling upset, fear, and anger.     

Close online relationships in a national sample of adolescents

This paper uses data from a national survey of adolescent Internet users (N = 1,501) to describe online relationships. Fourteen percent of the youths interviewed reported close online friendships during the past year, 7% reported face-to-face meetings with online friends, and 2% reported online romances. Two hundred forty-six youths provided details about one close online relationship. Most of these relationships were with same-age peers (70%) and crossed gender lines (71%). Many intersected with face-to-face social networks because they were initiated by introductions from friends or family (32%), involved people who lived in the vicinity (26%), were known to parents (74%), included offline contact by mail or telephone (70%), or involved face-to-face meetings (41%). Few youths reported bad experiences with online friends.     

Child molestations by homosexual foster parents: Illinois, 1997--2002

Do those who engage in homosexuality disproportionately sexually abuse foster or adoptive children as reported by child protective services? Illinois child services reported sexual abuse for 1997 through 2002. 270 parents committed "substantiated" sexual offenses against foster or subsidized adoptive children: 67 (69%) of 97 of these mother and 148 (86%) of 173 of these father perpetrators sexually abused girls; 30 (31%) of the mothers and 25 (14%) of the father perpetrators sexually abused boys, i.e., 92 (34%) of the perpetrators homosexually abused their charges. Of these parents 15 both physically and sexually abused charges: daughters by 8 of the mothers and 4 of the fathers, sons by 3 of the mothers, i.e., same-sex perpetrators were involved in 53%. Thus, homosexual practitioners were proportionately more apt to abuse foster or adoptive children sexually.