The attractiveness-positivity link: Let’s contextualize it

The statement “what is beautiful is good” reflects a persuasive heuristic that may be supported either by a general association of attractiveness with positivity or by a specific association with the perceived credibility of an attractive source. In one study (N = 58), we approach this question using an explicit and an implicit measure (Stroop Task) to assess whether attractiveness is more likely associated with valenced words when these are related (vs. unrelated) to credibility. Results show that this effect occurs but only for the implicit measure. When the word-face associations were made at an explicit level, we found a general association between positivity and attractiveness, unrestricted to the dimension of credibility. We discuss how these results inform about attractiveness as a shortcut to judgments of validity.     

Taking Care of Each Other: How Can We Increase Compliance with Personal Protective Measures During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Chile?

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, personal protective measures (e.g., social distancing, handwashing, and mask wearing) have been adopted as a cornerstone to limit the spread of the disease. Yet, the effectiveness of these measures depends on people's levels of adherence. In this article, we apply social-psychological research to the study of compliance with personal protective measures during the COVID-19 pandemic in Chile. We consider three possible models underlying adherence: (1) sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors, (2) instrumental factors, and (3) normative factors. We draw on data from a longitudinal nonrepresentative panel study (Study 1, n = 32,304) and a cross-sectional representative survey (Study 2, n = 1,078) to explore the impact of these different factors on personal protective measures compliance. Findings show the strongest support for the role of instrumental and normative factors, in that people who comply with protective measures report to a greater extent that relatives and friends comply too and tend to perceive high risk of COVID-19. We finish by proposing policy recommendations to promote effective strategies to contain the spread of the virus.     

Parents’ Marital Status and Child Physical Abuse Potential: The Mediation of Depression Symptoms

Informed by a social interactional framework of stress and parenting, the aim of this study was to examine the mediating effect of depression symptoms on the association between parents’ marital status (married and divorced parents) and child physical abuse potential, in a Portuguese community sample. It was hypothesized that the possible observed differences between divorced and married parents in the child physical abuse potential would be explained by their depression symptoms. Parents (N?=?892) were assessed in their marital status, severity of depression symptoms and child physical abuse potential. Results showed that, when compared with married parents, divorced parents had higher child physical abuse potential. However, parents’ depression symptomatology was found as a mediator of the effect of marital status differences on child physical abuse potential. The influence of the status of divorced parents on the increase of child physical abuse potential was explained by the increase of the parents’ depression symptoms. This finding suggested that parents’ divorced status had no longer an effect on child physical abuse potential when parents’ depression symptomatology was tested as a mediator variable. The present mediation model explained 47?% of the variability in the child physical abuse potential score. Practical implications of these findings for prevention and psychological intervention are also discussed.     

Sleep disturbances in depressed pregnant women and their newborns

Pregnant women (N=253) were recruited during their second trimester of pregnancy (M=22.3 weeks gestation) and assigned to depressed (N=83) and non-depressed groups based on a SCID diagnosis of depression. They were then given self-report measures on sleep disturbance, depression, anxiety and anger, and their urine was assayed for norepinephrine and cortisol. These measures were repeated during their third trimester (M=32.4 weeks). Their newborns were then observed during sleep. During both the second and third trimesters, the depressed women had more sleep disturbances and higher depression, anxiety and anger scores. They also had higher norepinephrine and cortisol levels. The newborns of the depressed mothers also had more sleep disturbances including less time in deep sleep and more time in indeterminate (disorganized) sleep, and they were more active and cried/fussed more.     

Differential effects of post-training muscimol and AP5 infusions into different regions of the cingulate cortex on retention for inhibitory avoidance in rats.

Adult male Wistar rats were bilaterally implanted with indwelling cannulae in four different coordinates of the cingulate cortex: (1) the anterior cingulate (AC), (2) the rostral region of the posterior cingulate (RC), (3) the upper portion of the caudal region of the posterior cingulate (UC), and (4) the lower portion of the caudal region of the posterior cingulate (LC). After recovery, animals were trained in a step-down inhibitory avoidance task (3.0-s, 0.4-mA foot shock). Either immediately, or 90 or 180 min after training, animals received a 0.5-microl infusion of vehicle (phosphate buffer, pH 7.4), of muscimol (0.5 microg), or of AP5 (5.0 microg). Retention testing was carried out 24 h after training. Muscimol was amnestic when given into any of the three coordinates of the posterior cingulate cortex 90 min after training, and when given into LC immediately post-training. In addition, AP5 was amnestic when given into UC 90 min post-training, but not when given into any other region and/or at any other time. None of the treatments had any effect when given into AC. The results suggest that memory processing of the inhibitory avoidance task is regulated by the posterior but not by the anterior cingulate cortex, through muscimol-sensitive synapses, relatively late after training. AP5-sensitive synapses appear to play a very limited role in these processes, restricted to UC.     

Time-dependent modulation of inhibitory avoidance memory by spermidine in rats

The polyamines, spermine, spermidine, and putrescine, are a group of aliphatic amines that may act as physiological modulators of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors. Although the modulatory role of polyamines in NMDA receptor function has long been known, the effects of polyamines on learning and memory only recently began to be unraveled. In the present study, we investigated the effect of bilateral infusions of spermidine (0.02-2 nmol), a polyamine agonist, into the CA1 region of the rat dorsal hippocampus on inhibitory avoidance learning 30 min pre-training, immediately post-training, 6 h post-training, or 10 min pre-test. Bilateral microinjections of 0.2 nmol spermidine prolonged step-down latencies compared to the respective control group when administered 30 min pre-training or immediately post-training. These results provide evidence that the modulatory effects of spermidine on the acquisition and/or early consolidation of memory of inhibitory avoidance tasks in the hippocampus occur within a limited time window.     

Perversion – structure or organization?

Abstract

This paper aims to discuss perversion, its implications in the clinical setting, and some of the key concepts around it. First, the etymology of the words “perversion”, “structure”, and “organization” is analyzed. Next follows a discussion on the sexual organization of instincts – from the Unconscious to the Oedipus complex in Freud and Lacan – setting the ground for a disavowal-based theory of perversion. An instructive approach has been chosen so as better to organize the various points presented.

Laender NR et al. Perversion – Struktur oder Organisation?

Der Aufsatz diskutiert die Perversion, ihre Auswirkungen im klinischen Setting und einige Schlüsselkonzepte. Zuerst wird die Herkunft der Wörter Perversion, Struktur und Organisation analysiert. Dann folgt eine Diskussion über die Organisation der Sexualität bzw. der Instinkte – vom Unbewussten bis zum Ödipuskomplex bei Freud und Lacan – wodurch eine Theorie der Perversion auf der Basis von Ablehnung begründet wird. Ein instruktiver Zugang, bei dem die verschiedenen Punkte von Interesse gut strukturiert sind, wurde gewählt.

Laender NR et al . Perversion – organización o estructura?

Este trabajo intenta discutir la perversión, sus implicaciones en la clínica y algunos de los conceptos clave alrededor de la perversión.

Primero, es analizada la etimología de las palabras Perversión, Estructura y Organización. Despúes sigue una discusión sobre la organización sexual de los instintos- desde lo Inconsciente hasta el complejo de Edipo en Freud y Lacan- planteando las bases para una teoría de la negación-desaprobación de la perversión.

Para organizar mejor los varios aspectos presentados se escogió una aproximación instructiva.     

Factor analysis of the Spanish Burnout Inventory among public administration employees

Burnout has been recognized as an important stress‐related problem. Researchers have been troubled by some of the psychometric limitations of the questionnaires developed to evaluate burnout. This study was designed to assess the factor structure of the Spanish Burnout Inventory in a sample of 548 Brazilian public administration employees. This instrument comprises 20 items distributed in four dimensions: enthusiasm toward the job (5 items), psychological exhaustion (4 items), indolence (6 items), and guilt (5 items). The factor structure was examined through confirmatory factor analysis. To assess the factorial validity of the Spanish Burnout Inventory, four alternative models were tested. The four‐factor model obtained an adequate data fit for the sample, χ²(164) = 514.358, p < .001, RMSEA = .062, GFI = .910, NFI = .915, CFI = .940, and AIC = 606.358. The results showed that the four‐model factor of the Spanish Burnout Inventory possesses adequate psychometric properties in the Brazilian cultural context. Implications for future research and practice are also discussed.