Comparison of Offender and Non-offender Young Men to Setting Goals for Life and Attributing Meaning to Life

The main goal of the present study is to compare male offenders and non-offenders in terms of how they attribute meaning to life and set life goals. The samples were chosen from among offenders (n = 50) and non-offenders (n = 50) who were between ages 19–26. Mixed method was used in this study. The scale of setting life goals and interview form were used to collect data. To analysis of the data, the content analysis technique and t test and were used. Findings of the present study show that offenders tend to have troubles setting life goals when compared to non-offenders. Furthermore, the results of this study could be used in rehabilitating offenders and preventing those at risk of committing criminal acts from doing so.     

A Generalized Speed–Accuracy Response Model for Dichotomous Items

We propose a generalization of the speed–accuracy response model (SARM) introduced by Maris and van der Maas (Psychometrika 77:615–633, 2012). In these models, the scores that result from a scoring rule that incorporates both the speed and accuracy of item responses are modeled. Our generalization is similar to that of the one-parameter logistic (or Rasch) model to the two-parameter logistic (or Birnbaum) model in item response theory. An expectation–maximization (EM) algorithm for estimating model parameters and standard errors was developed. Furthermore, methods to assess model fit are provided in the form of generalized residuals for item score functions and saddlepoint approximations to the density of the sum score. The presented methods were evaluated in a small simulation study, the results of which indicated good parameter recovery and reasonable type I error rates for the residuals. Finally, the methods were applied to two real data sets. It was found that the two-parameter SARM showed improved fit compared to the one-parameter SARM in both data sets.     

Indian Philosophy and Ethics: Dialogical Method as a Fresh Possibility

This paper discusses the positions held by two opposing camps—the traditionalists and the positivists (to use Pradeep Gokhale’s typology) regarding the presence or absence of ethics in Indian philosophy. It subsequently offers a way ahead of the impasse where I consider some inputs inherent in the method of dialogue in pre-modern Indian philosophy for imagining an ethics of and ethics for plurality. Such an ethics, I argue, cannot be imagined without involving the category of ‘Other,’ which has otherwise remained elusive in the Indian philosophical debates. The diverse nature of Indian societies demands Other-centric ethics to assess and evaluate the enduring moral crisis pervading contemporary times.     

Voluntary exercise ameliorates cognitive deficits in morphine dependent rats: the role of hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor

Chronic exposure to opiates impairs spatial learning and memory. Given the well-known beneficial effects of voluntary exercise on cognitive functions, we investigated whether voluntary exercise would ameliorate the cognitive deficits that are induced by morphine dependence. If an effect of exercise was observed, we aimed to investigate the possible role of hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the exercise-induced enhancement of learning and memory in morphine-dependent rats. The rats were injected with bi-daily doses (10mg/kg, at 12h intervals) of morphine over a period of 10 days of voluntary exercise. Following these injections, a water maze task was performed twice a day for five consecutive days, followed by a probe trial 2 days later. A specific BDNF inhibitor (TrkB-IgG chimera) was used to block the hippocampal BDNF action during the 10 days of voluntary exercise. We found that voluntary exercise blocked the ability of chronic morphine to impair spatial memory retention. A blockade of the BDNF action blunted the exercise-induced improvement of spatial memory in the dependent rats. Moreover, the voluntary exercise diminished the severity of the rats' dependency on morphine. This study demonstrates that voluntary exercise ameliorates, via a TrkB-mediated mechanism, the cognitive deficits that are induced by chronic morphine. Thus, voluntary exercise might be a potential method to ameliorate some of the deleterious behavioral consequences of the abuse of morphine and other opiates.     

Evaluating psychometric properties of Farsi version of the Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale

This study examined the psychometric properties of the Farsi version of the Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale. Two samples of 97 (56 women, 41 men) and 115 (67 women, 48 men) undergraduate students at the University of Tehran participated. Findings supported the internal consistency, test-retest reliability, concurrent validity, and factor structure of the Farsi version. Factor analysis provided evidence for two dimensions of perfectionism, Positive and Negative perfectionism. The two dimensions had significant negative and positive correlations, respectively, with measures of psychological distress and health, respectively. The Farsi version of the Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale presented good psychometric properties for use in research.     

Memory and metamemory in obsessive-compulsive disorder

Studies on the link between checking and memory problems have produced equivocal results regarding a general memory deficit in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and subclinical checkers. However, there is clear and consistent evidence that patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) show lack of confidence in their memory performance. The purpose of the present study was to investigate memory and metamemory performance (feeling-of-knowing judgments) for neutral and threat-related material in three groups: OCD patients (OCs), subclinical checkers (SCs), and normal controls (NCs). Participants studied a list of neutral and threat word pairs. After an initial cued-recall test, they provided feeling-of-knowing (FOK) judgments for unrecalled word pairs, followed by a recognition test. The results showed that OCs but not SCs were impaired in both recall and recognition compared to NCs. OCs were also less confident about their future memory performance than the other two groups, as reflected in their lower FOK ratings. Moreover, FOK judgments of the OCs were not reliable predictors of their recognition performance. Finally, neither OCs nor SCs showed any evidence of memory bias for threat-relevant information. The results support the idea of a general memory and a metamemory deficit in OCs.     

Mechanisms and the current state of deep brain stimulation in neuropsychiatry

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is established as a therapy for movement disorders, and it is an investigational treatment in other neurologic conditions. DBS precisely targets neuroanatomical targets deep within the brain that are proposed to be centrally involved in the pathophysiology of some neuropsychiatric illnesses. DBS is nonablative, offering the advantages of reversibility and adjustability. This might permit therapeutic effectiveness to be enhanced or side effects to be minimized. Preclinical and clinical studies have shown effects of DBS locally, at the stimulation target, and at a distance, via actions on fibers of passage or across synapses. Although its mechanisms of action are not fully elucidated, several effects have been proposed to underlie the therapeutic effects of DBS in movement disorders, and potentially in other conditions as well. The mechanisms of action of DBS are the focus of active investigation in a number of clinical and preclinical laboratories. As in severe movement disorders, DBS may offer a degree of hope for patients with intractable neuropsychiatric illness. It is already clear that research intended to realize this potential will require a very considerable commitment of resources, energy, and time across disciplines including psychiatry, neurosurgery neurology, neuropsychology, bioengineering, and bioethics. These investigations should proceed cautiously.     

Authoritarian and aggressive attitudes in American students

In a sample of 118 college students, scores on a measure of authoritarian attitudes were associated with scores on subscales from the Buss and Perry (1992) Aggression Questionnaire.