Boys’ and Girls’ Relational and Physical Aggression in Nine Countries

Distinguishing between relational and physical aggression has become a key feature of many developmental studies in North America and Western Europe, but very little information is available on relational and physical aggression in more diverse cultural contexts. This study examined the factor structure of, associations between, and gender differences in relational and physical aggression in China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the United States. Children ages 7–10 years (N = 1,410) reported on their relationally and physically aggressive behavior. Relational and physical aggression shared a common factor structure across countries. In all nine countries, relational and physical aggression were significantly correlated (average r = .49). Countries differed in the mean levels of both relational and physical aggression that children reported using and with respect to whether children reported using more physical than relational aggression or more relational than physical aggression. Boys reported being more physically aggressive than girls across all nine countries; no consistent gender differences emerged in relational aggression. Despite mean‐level differences in relational and physical aggression across countries, the findings provided support for cross‐country similarities in associations between relational and physical aggression as well as links between gender and aggression. Aggr. Behav. 38:298‐308, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Does substance abuse contribute to further risk of falls in dementia

This study aimed to predict the risk of falls by focusing on substance abuse in the elderly with dementia. Our national cross-sectional survey included 1210 elderly Malaysian demented subjects. The study identified the effects of age, ethnicity, sex differences, marital status, educational level, and substance abuse on the likelihood of falls in the elderly with dementia. The multivariate logistic regression model was used to analyze data collected from samples. The prevalence of falls was about 17% among subjects and significantly increased with age (p = .006). Furthermore, the results showed that age (OR = 1.03), ethnicity (OR = 1.69), substance abuse (OR = 1.68), and female sex (OR = 1.45) significantly enhanced the risk of falls in respondents (p < .05). Educational level and marital status had no significant effects on the likelihood of falls (p > .05). However, the findings provided evidence of an additional effect of substance abuse on further risk of falls in older adults with dementia.     

Engaging Diasporas: a Fledgling Role of Cluster Organizations

Malaysia is probably one of the most notable countries in Asia affected by the talent mobility. In spite of important implications of the emigration, this issue is not given the due deliberations. Diaspora has taken a central role in the recent talent management policies of Malaysia. A large number of East Asian economies have benefited from the diaspora employed in the large North American and European clusters. This paper highlights the structural obstacles inhibiting brain circulation in Malaysian context. In the light of the review of successful diaspora stories of China, India, Korea, Philippines, and Taiwan, it elaborates what potential role Malaysia’s diaspora can play in the national development. It is suggested that apart from the national level policies, the industrial cluster organizations can assume the role of networking with Malaysian diaspora abroad in order to leverage their skills, contacts, and finances for cluster challenges.     

Differences in spatial visualization as a function of scores on hemisphericity of mathematics teachers.

59 teachers of mathematics were administered the Your Style of Learning and Thinking-Form A and categorized as showing Left (n = 13), Right (n = 12), or Integrated (n = 15) hemisphericity. Rotations scores on the Purdue Spatial Visualization Test were not statistically significant among the three groups.     

On the primacy of the brain

It is well established that emotion is a product of complex interactions among the biological subsystems of the organism. The human nervous system must play a fundamental role in organizing and controlling the manifestation of these interactions. Since emotional disturbance is one of the major phenomena underlying maladaptive behavior, a solid understanding of its nature and mechanisms is essential for enhancing therapeutic practices. Although an increasing number of scholars now advocate the notion of the dependence of emotion on antecedent cognitive processes (e.g., Lazarus, 1982, 1984), and the relevance of both central and peripheral processes of the nervous system to emotional behavior (e.g., Panksepp, 1988; Pribram, 1984), Zajonc (1984) views emotion as independent of cognitive processes. This paper provides a critical evaluation of the basis of Zajonc’s (1984) argument from a neurobiological and psychotherapeutic point of view.     

Acute exposure to a 50 Hz magnetic field impairs consolidation of spatial memory in rats

This study was planned to evaluate the effect of an exposure to magnetic fields on consolidation and retrieval of hippocampus dependent spatial memory using a water maze. In Experiments 1 and 2, rats were trained in a hidden version (spatial) of water maze task with two blocks of four trials. The retention of spatial memory was evaluated 48 h later. Exposure to a 50 Hz 8 mT, but not 2 mT magnetic fields for 20 min immediately after training impaired retention performance. The same time exposure shortly before retention testing had no effect. In Experiment 3, rats were trained in a cued version of water maze with two blocks of four trials. Exposure to magnetic field at 8 mT for 20 min immediately after training did not impair retention performance. These findings indicate that acute exposure to a 50 Hz magnetic field at 8 mT for short time can impair consolidation of spatial memory.     

The Al Qaeda 9/11 instructions: a study in the construction of religious martyrdom

A growing global concern about suicide attacks has led to attempts from various disciplines to understand the psychological profiles of persons willing to commit suicide terrorist attacks. Recent reports have suggested that more powerful explanatory models might be discovered using social psychological concepts, with a shift of focus from the individual to the group within which the individual acts and by which the individual is influenced. This paper attempts to do so by presenting an analysis of the Al Qaeda ‘final instructions’ document, which sheds light on the way members of this group were mobilised towards conducting one of the most devastating assaults in modern history. We discuss the use of religious doctrine and rhetorical devices as a psychological strategy employed by this group to inspire, control and mobilise its members before and during the September 11, 2001, attacks.     

Shyness,Self-regulation,and Cognitive Problem Solving in Typically Developing 4-year-olds: A Pilot Study

Because shy children are at risk for poor academic achievement, it is important to examine factors that contribute to variability in the relation between individual differences in shyness and cognitive functioning before school entry. The authors examined whether on-task facilitative private speech—a proxy of self-regulation—moderated the association between individual differences in shyness and performance on an executive function (EF) task in 52 typically developing 4-year-olds. They found that private speech interacted with shyness to predict performance on the EF task in girls but not in boys. More specifically, shyness was inversely related to EF task performance when girls used low amounts of regulatory private speech, but was positively related to performance when girls used high amounts of regulatory private speech. These preliminary findings are discussed in the context of implications for shy children in educational settings.     

Evaluating the Persian Translation of the National Stressful Events Survey PTSD Short Scale in a Sample of Iranian Earthquake Survivors

In DSM-5, the APA recommended the use of the National Stressful Events Survey PTSD Short Scale, a new self-report scale for PTSD that is brief, consistent with the revised DSM-5 diagnostic criteria, and free of copyright restrictions. The present study examines the psychometric properties of the Persian translation of the scale in a sample of Iranian adults who survived an earthquake. A sample of 600 people was selected through multistage sampling and subsequently completed the scale. Results indicated that the good reliability, one-factor structure, and convergent validity of the scale observed for the original English language scale were replicated. The Persian version of the NSESSS appears to be a valid and reliable measure to assess the symptoms of DSM-5 PTSD and may contribute to increasing efforts to identify and treat PTSD in Iran.