Music CD Purchase Decisions

The increasing ease and frequency of digital music piracy and the global nature of the music industry make it important to understand why consumers in different national markets purchase music CDs. Study 1 identified 5 factors underlying CD purchasing, noting these differences between British and Japanese participants. Study 2 investigated relationships between these 5 factors and individual-difference variables. Compliance was unrelated to scores on the Friendship factor. Experience seeking and scores on the Re-Experience the Music factor were correlated negatively. Scores on the Friendship factor and innovativeness were unrelated, although innovativeness and scores on the Need to Control and Be Involved With Music factor were positively associated with product, purchase decision, and consumption involvements. Implications for marketing and future research are discussed.     

Short-term clinical risk assessment and management: Comparing the Brockville Risk Checklist and Hamilton Anatomy of Risk Management

The current article aims to examine the performance of two brief, dynamic risk measures – the Brockville Risk Checklist (BRC4) and one of two versions of the Hamilton Anatomy of Risk Management [HARM-FV and electronic HARM-FV (eHARM-FV)] – scored at regular clinical case conferences for forensic psychiatric patients in two different settings. The eHARM represents a first-in-class dynamic risk assessment tool using data analytics. Two studies are presented from two forensic psychiatric hospitals in Ontario, Canada. The first study compared the HARM-FV, scored by trained research staff, with the BRC4, scored concurrently by clinical teams, on 36 forensic inpatients. In the second study, trained research staff scored both the BRC4 and the eHARM-FV on 55 forensic inpatients. Both studies demonstrated that the BRC4 and both HARM-FV tools were moderately and positively correlated with each other, with higher agreement for similar domains and items. In both samples, the risk measures performed better at identifying individuals who engaged in repeated or more serious problematic behavior. The HARM-FV and eHARM-FV produced higher area under the curve values for subsequent behavior compared with the BRC4. All three tools were effective at detecting future aggression and adverse incidents. We did not directly compare the HARM-FV and eHARM-FV.     

Serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), BDNF gene Val66Met polymorphism, or plasma catecholamine metabolites, and response to mirtazapine in Japanese patients with major depressive disorder (MDD)

Object We investigated an association between the polymorphism of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene Val66Met and the response to mirtazapine in Japanese patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). We also examined mirtazapine's effects on the serum BDNF and plasma levels of catecholamine metabolites in these patients. METHODS: Eighty-four patients who met the DSM-IV-TR criteria for MDD were treated with only mirtazapine for 4 weeks. The BDNF Val66Met polymorphism was detected by direct sequencing in the region, and serum BDNF levels and plasma levels of catecholamine metabolites were measured by ELISA and HPLC-ECD, respectively. RESULTS: Mirtazapine treatment for 4 weeks significantly increased serum BDNF levels in the responders, whereas nonresponders showed significant decreases. No association was found between either of the two genotypes (Val/Val vs. Met-carriers) and the response to mirtazapine at T4 or the serum BDNF levels at T0. Mirtazapine did not alter the plasma levels of homovanillic acid (HVA) or 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG). Discussion The dynamics of serum BDNF levels, but not plasma levels of HVA and MHPG, reflect the response to mirtazapine treatment; the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism in patients with depression is, however, associated with neither a particular response to mirtazapine treatment nor baseline serum BDNF levels. Conclusion Serum BDNF levels, but not plasma levels of HVA or MHPG, and BDNF Val66Met polymorphism are related to the mirtazapine response in MDD.     

Memory trace stabilization leads to large-scale changes in the retrieval network: a functional MRI study on associative memory

Spaced learning with time to consolidate leads to more stabile memory traces. However, little is known about the neural correlates of trace stabilization, especially in humans. The present fMRI study contrasted retrieval activity of two well-learned sets of face-location associations, one learned in a massed style and tested on the day of learning (i.e., labile condition) and another learned in a spaced scheme over the course of one week (i.e., stabilized condition). Both sets of associations were retrieved equally well, but the retrieval of stabilized association was faster and accompanied by large-scale changes in the network supporting retrieval. Cued recall of stabilized as compared with labile associations was accompanied by increased activity in the precuneus, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, the bilateral temporal pole, and left temporo–parietal junction. Conversely, memory representational areas such as the fusiform gyrus for faces and the posterior parietal cortex for locations did not change their activity with stabilization. The changes in activation in the precuneus, which also showed increased connectivity with the fusiform area, are likely to be related to the spatial nature of our task. The activation increase in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, on the other hand, might reflect a general function in stabilized memory retrieval. This area might succeed the hippocampus in linking distributed neocortical representations.     

Psychometric Evaluation of the Japanese Version of the Elder Life Adjustment Interview Schedule for Depression

The Elder Life Adjustment Interview Schedule (ELAIS) was developed as an age- and culture-sensitive assessment device for depression and 9 environmental, behavioral, and health correlates (Schlatter et al., 1993, J. MARC Res. 1: 27–42). The psychometric adequacy of the ELAIS has been demonstrated with samples of elder Americans of Asian, Caucasian, and Native Hawaiian ancestry (Dubanoski et al., 1996, J. Clin. Gerospsychol. 2: 247–262). This study reports on the reliability and construct validity of a translated Japanese version. Participants were 55 community-dwelling elders living in the areas surrounding Maebashi, Japan. The ELAIS contains 14 scales of which 9 represent theoretical predictors of depression. The 2 Environmental Condition scales measure life events and social support. The 4 Behavioral Competency scales measure recreational activity, assertiveness, self-reinforcement, and perceived control. The 3 Health Factor scales measure perceived health, functional ability, and objective health. The 5 Other scales measure demographics, depression, life satisfaction, cognitive functioning, and response style. Results yielded acceptable internal consistency and stability reliability coefficients for all but 1 of the subscales on the ELAIS (informational social support). Construct validity support was found for the Depression scale and 6 theoretical predictors, including life events, recreational activity, assertiveness, self-reinforcement, functional ability, and objective health. Treatment and prevention implications for the cross-ethnic multivariate assessment of depression among elders are discussed.     

Understanding Women in the Role of Caregivers for Older Adults in Japan

This article provides an overview of Japanese women in the role of caregivers of older family members. Cultural influence on women's identity, significance of the caregiver's role, and the struggles and rewards of being caregivers are discussed. Finally, ideas are provided for the use of arts in counseling and implications of their use are discussed.     

Child pornography offenses are a valid diagnostic indicator of pedophilia

This study investigated whether being charged with a child pornography offense is a valid diagnostic indicator of pedophilia, as represented by an index of phallometrically assessed sexual arousal to children. The sample of 685 male patients was referred between 1995 and 2004 for a sexological assessment of their sexual interests and behavior. As a group, child pornography offenders showed greater sexual arousal to children than to adults and differed from groups of sex offenders against children, sex offenders against adults, and general sexology patients. The results suggest child pornography offending is a stronger diagnostic indicator of pedophilia than is sexually offending against child victims. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.     

The Effect of Interpersonal Touch During Childhood on Adult Attachment and Depression: A Neglected Area of Family and Developmental Psychology?

Interpersonal touch has been little studied empirically as an indicator of parent- and peer-child intimacy. Undergraduate students (n = 390) were studied using a questionnaire survey regarding the frequencies of interpersonal touch by father, mother, same-sex peers, and opposite-sex peers during preschool ages, grades 1–3, grades 4–6, and grades 7–9, as well as their current attachment style to a romantic partner and current depression. A path model indicated that current depression was influenced significantly by poorer self- and other-images as well as by fewer parental interpersonal touches throughout childhood. Other-image was influenced by early (up to grade 3) parental interpersonal touch. Our findings suggest that a lower frequency of parental touching during childhood influences the development of depression and contributes to a poorer image of an individual’s romantic partner during later adolescence and early adulthood.     

Investing in the real me: Preference for experiential to material purchases driven by the motivation to search for true self-knowledge

One mechanism underlying the hedonic benefits of experiential purchases is that one’s core self is more centrally reflected in experiential purchases. However, little is known about whether people consume experiential purchases as a means of discovering their true self. The present research explored the possibility that people value experiential purchases as a potential tool for understanding their true self. Consistent with the hypothesis, Study 1 demonstrated that experiential purchases were perceived to be a more valuable source of gaining knowledge about one’s true self compared to material purchases. Using correlational methods, Study 2 found that the motivation to search for true self-knowledge positively predicted preference for experiential purchases over material purchases. Finally, Study 3 showed a causal effect of motivation to search for true self-knowledge on a tendency to prefer experiential purchases to material purchases. Implications and future directions for well-being research and marketing are discussed.     

The association between vivid thoughts of death and authenticity

Many theoretical perspectives link death-related thoughts to authenticity; however, there is little empirical research directly examining this association. The current studies examined how recalling a vivid experience associated with mortality relates to outcomes indicative of authentic engagement. In Study 1, participants described an experience that made them think about their mortality, indicated how vivid their recollection was, and completed measures of authenticity and goal-pursuit. Results indicated that how vividly a mortality experience was recalled predicted greater authenticity and more important goal-pursuits. Study 2 replicated many of the findings and found a similar pattern when individuals vividly recalled a mortality experience of a close other. Study 3 again replicated these results after controlling for a host of death-related variables. Exploratory analyses further revealed that ruminating about death was often negatively associated with authenticity. Implications for the role of death-related thoughts in authentic and alienated becoming are discussed.