Menopausal Symptoms: Is Spirituality Associated with the Severity of Symptoms?

The aim of this study was to explore whether spirituality was associated with menopausal symptoms. Menopausal symptoms, spirituality, health and menopausal status, and socio-demographic variables were assessed in a community sample of 710 peri- and postmenopausal women. A structural model was explored using structural equation modeling. The results evidence spirituality as a significant contributor regarding the severity of most menopausal symptoms. Among others, spirituality had a significant weight in depressive mood (β = ?.414; p < .001), anxiety (β = ?.308; p < .001), cognitive impairment (β = ?.287; p < .001), aches/pain (β = ?.148; p < .001), vasomotor (β = ?.125; p = .005) and sexual symptoms (β = ?.211; p < .001). Some socio-demographic variables, as well as perceived health, also predicted the menopausal symptoms’ severity. Therefore, spirituality can have a positive impact on the menopausal symptoms’ reporting.     

Two Types of Refutation in Philosophical Argumentation

In this paper, I highlight the significance of practices of refutation in philosophical inquiry, that is, practices of showing that a claim, person or theory is wrong. I present and contrast two prominent approaches to philosophical refutation: refutation in ancient Greek dialectic (elenchus), in its Socratic variant as described in Plato’s dialogues, and as described in Aristotle’s logical texts; and the practice of providing counterexamples to putative definitions familiar from twentieth century analytic philosophy, focusing on the so-called Gettier problem. Moreover, I discuss Lakatos’ method of proofs and refutations, as it offers insightful observations on the dynamics between arguments, refutations, and counterexamples. Overall, I argue that dialectic, in particular in its Socratic variant, is especially suitable for the philosophical purpose of questioning the obvious, as it invites reflection on one’s own doxastic commitments and on the tensions and inconsistencies within one’s set of beliefs. By contrast, the counterexample-based approach to philosophical refutation can give rise to philosophical theorizing that is overly focused on hairsplitting disputes, thus becoming alienated from the relevant human experiences. Insofar as philosophical inquiry treads the fine line between questioning the obvious while still seeking to say something significant about human experiences, perhaps a certain amount of what Lakatos describes as ‘monster-barring’—a rejection of overly fanciful, artificial putative counterexamples—has its place in philosophical argumentation.

     

Integrative review on career interventions with unemployed people: Nature,outcomes, and recommendations

The study of career development among unemployed people is vital for effective institutional responses. This integrative review based on Torraco's protocol fills a literature gap by synthesizing research on interventions for this population. Seven keywords, five databases, and six eligibility criteria were defined. Among 324 articles, 36 were reviewed. Findings highlight diverse counseling modalities, emphasizing group interventions and remote delivery. Tailored approaches, including length, frequency, and social-emotional and career dimensions, are crucial. Practical recommendations emphasize comprehensive, psychological support, goal-oriented counseling, and postintervention assistance. These insights underscore vocational psychology's importance in addressing unemployment, impacting government policies, career services, and psychologists.     

PARADOXES AND STRUCTURAL RULES FROM A DIALOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

In recent years, substructural approaches to paradoxes have become quite popular. But whatever restrictions on structural rules we may want to enforce, it is highly desirable that such restrictions be accompanied by independent philosophical motivation, not directly related to paradoxes. Indeed, while these recent developments have shed new light on a number of issues pertaining to paradoxes, it seems that we now have even more open questions than before, in particular two very pressing ones: what (independent) motivations do we have (if any) for restrictions on structural rules, and what to make of the plurality of new logics emerging from these restrictions, i.e. how to ‘choose’ among the different options. In this paper, we address these two questions from the perspective of a dialogical conception of logic that we've been advocating in recent years. We will argue that dialogical interpretations of structural rules, that is, as rules determining specific properties of the dialogues in question, provide a conveniently neutral framework to adjudicate between the different substructural proposals that have been made in the literature on paradoxes.     

Developmental dissociation of visual dorsal stream parvo and magnocellular representations and the functional impact of negative retinotopic BOLD responses

Localized neurodevelopmental defects provide an opportunity to study structure–function correlations in the human nervous system. This unique multimodal case report of epileptogenic dysplasia in the visual cortex allowed exploring visual function across distinct pathways in retinotopic regions and the dorsal stream, in relation to fMRI retinotopic mapping and spike triggered BOLD responses.     

The assessment of fitness to drive after a stroke: the Nordic Stroke Driver Screening Assessment

The British Stroke Driver Screening Assessment (SDSA) is a set of four simple cognitive tests to evaluate driving fitness in stroke patients. To evaluate its usefulness in a Scandinavian context, we adapted the tests and assessed a group of 97 stroke patients from Sweden and Norway, using a driving test as the criterion. When results were calculated according to the original method, based on a discriminant function, less than 70% of the participants were correctly classified. To improve the predictive potential, a new discriminant analysis was performed, using the scores of a subsample of 49 patients, and validated on the remaining 48 participants. In total, 78% of the patients were correctly classified, but specificity was superior to sensitivity. We conclude that the Nordic version of the SDSA is a useful instrument, provided that test scores are interpreted in a balanced manner, taking into account the possibility of compensatory traffic behavior.     

Development and Psychometric Properties of the Self-Representation Questionnaire for Adolescents (SRQA)

Given the lack of validated measures of adolescents’ self-representation, in this paper we present the development process and psychometric properties of a new self-representation questionnaire for adolescents (SRQA), aged 12–16 year old. We examined SRQA factor structure through two studies. In the first study, 32 attributes (16 positive and 16 negative), previously validated in three studies, were administered to 239 adolescents (M = 13.8; SD = 1.28). An exploratory factor analysis showed that 21 attributes (13 positive and 8 negative) were organized in five factors: instrumental, social, emotional, intelligence, and physical appearance. In the second study, these 21 attributes were administered to 232 adolescents (M = 13.8; SD = 1.23). A confirmatory factor analysis supported the SRQA five factor model (Model fit: χ ²/df ratio = 2.392; CFI = .90; RMSEA = .08). Internal consistency was acceptable, ranging between .60 and .85. Girls displayed higher scores in the instrumental and social factors, whereas boys presented higher scores on the physical appearance factor. In line with previous research, results regarding age differences were inconsistent: while in Study 1 results suggested that as, age increases, adolescents’ intelligence self-representation becomes more negative, in Study 2 no age differences were found. Concurrent validity of the SRQA was explored through correlations with the Teacher Report Form, filled out by the adolescents’ homeroom teachers. Results revealed significant negative correlations between two dimensions of self-representation (i.e., instrumental and intelligence) and several dimensions of adolescents’ internalizing and externalizing problems, providing evidence of concurrent validity for the SRQA.     

Factor Structure,Internal Consistency and Criterion Validity of the Full‐form and Short‐form Versions of the Centrality of Events Scale in Young People

The perceived centrality of a traumatic event has been hypothesized to impact subsequent responses to that event and shown to be positively associated to a number of psychological problems. In order to understand the role of this construct in adjustment to stress and trauma, reliable and valid measures are needed. The objective of this study was to evaluate the factor structure, internal consistency and convergent validity of the full‐form and short‐forms of the Centrality of Event Scale when used with young people. A sample of 262 undergraduate students completed this study. Confirmatory factor analyses, Cronbach alpha coefficients and Pearson correlation coefficients were performed. The findings support a one‐factor structure of the full 20‐item and the short 7‐item versions. We also found that both versions provide reliable and valid scores when used with young people. We recommend the use of the 7‐item version to minimize assessment burden. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.