Commentary on “Mediation analysis and categorical variables: The final frontier” by Dawn Iacobucci

The commentary discusses several topics in Dr. Iacobucci's article on mediation analysis with categorical variables including the lack of equivalency of mediated effect measures, ab, and c–c′, that are algebraically equivalent in ordinary least squares regression models. The commentary raises the issue of correlated mediation coefficients and presents formulas to include the correlation in the test of significance. References to new developments in causal mediation analysis for categorical variables are given and the importance of programs of research to establish a mediation theory is emphasized.     

Defining the Role of Laboratory Genetic Counselor

An increasing number of genetic counselors are moving into non-clinical roles, where their primary duties do not involve direct patient contact. According to the National Society of Genetic Counselors Professional Status Survey in 2010, 23% of counselors working in non-clinical roles identified laboratory or genetic testing as their primary area of work. Using a survey, we identified 43 genetic counselors who work predominately in laboratory settings. The two primary tasks performed by participants, include acting as a customer liaison (95%) and calling out test results (88%). Nineteen participants (44.2%) also reported spending a considerable amount of time signing reports. The most prevalent areas of job satisfaction were support from laboratory directors (76.8%), autonomy (76.7%), interactions with clinicians (69.7%) and interaction with other genetics counselors (67.5%). This is the first study specifically looking at the roles of laboratory genetic counselors, which is an expanding area of genetic counseling.     

Civilian Response Corps Force Review: The Application of Multi‐Criteria Decision Analysis to Prioritize Skills Required for Future Diplomatic Missions

Created by the State Department's Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization, the Civilian Response Corps (CRC) contains a diverse pool of qualified and ready‐to‐deploy civilian professionals that support conflict prevention and response efforts in countries or regions that are at risk of, are currently in, or are transitioning from conflict or civil strife. As such, it is vital to optimize the CRC's skill groupings to maximize adaptability and responsiveness to highly uncertain and trying political conditions and crises across the globe. The nature of the CRC value proposition is such that determining which skill set compositions deliver the greatest benefit requires a multi‐faceted perspective that looks at a number of attributes and factors, both tangible and intangible. To meet these needs, an organizational decision‐making approach utilizing multi‐criteria decision analysis (MCDA) was applied to ensure that skill‐grouping allocations were determined in a logical and robust manner. The MCDA analysis allowed for a wide range of worldviews and perspectives, drawn from select members of academia and partner agencies of the CRC who provided their expert opinions on the expected demand for skill groupings commonly identified as most necessary in a civilian ‘surge’ capacity. These skills were assessed with reference to a values hierarchy of representative country scenarios, missions and sub‐missions identified by the Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization. Of particular interest was the use of the MCDA method to prioritize CRC skill groupings and to help inform the Department of State's understanding of the ‘ideal’ proportion and types of civilian skills for inclusion in the CRC. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Role of Beliefs in the Relationship Between Health Problems and Posttraumatic Stress in Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Survivors

In addition to the potential for ongoing health concerns, adolescent and young adult (AYA) childhood cancer survivors frequently report posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). The current study examines whether beliefs about health moderate the relationship between the number of health problems and PTSS 2 months later in 140 survivors. Beliefs, as measured by scales of the Health Competence Beliefs Inventory (HCBI), negatively related to PTSS while health problems positively related to PTSS. Three scales of the HCBI-health perceptions, satisfaction with healthcare and cognitive competence—were significant moderators. The relationship between health problems and PTSS was stronger in the presence of less adaptive beliefs. These beliefs represent potentially malleable intervention targets for reducing PTSS in childhood cancer survivors.     

Adult mice maintained on a high-fat diet exhibit object location memory deficits and reduced hippocampal SIRT1 gene expression

Mounting evidence has established that diet-induced obesity (DIO) is associated with deficits in hippocampus-dependent memory. The bulk of research studies dealing with this topic have utilized rats fed a high-fat diet as an experimental model. To date, there has been a paucity of research studies that have established whether the memory deficits exhibited in DIO rats can be recapitulated in mice. Moreover, the majority of experiments that have evaluated memory performance in rodent models of DIO have utilized memory tests that are essentially aversive in nature (i.e., Morris water maze). The current study sought to fill an empirical void by determining if mice maintained on a high-fat diet exhibit deficits in two non-aversive memory paradigms: novel object recognition (NOR) and object location memory (OLM). Here we report that mice fed a high-fat diet over 23 weeks exhibit intact NOR, albeit a marked impairment in hippocampus-dependent OLM. We also determined the existence of corresponding aberrations in gene expression within the hippocampus of DIO mice. DIO mice exhibited significant reductions in both SIRT1 and PP1 mRNA within the hippocampus. Our data suggest that mice maintained on a high-fat diet present with impaired hippocampus-dependent spatial memory and a corresponding alteration in the expression of genes that have been implicated in memory consolidation.     

A comparison of four approaches to account for method effects in latent state-trait analyses

Latent state-trait (LST) analysis is frequently applied in psychological research to determine the degree to which observed scores reflect stable person-specific effects, effects of situations and/or person-situation interactions, and random measurement error. Most LST applications use multiple repeatedly measured observed variables as indicators of latent trait and latent state residual factors. In practice, such indicators often show shared indicator-specific (or method) variance over time. In this article, the authors compare 4 approaches to account for such method effects in LST models and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each approach based on theoretical considerations, simulations, and applications to actual data sets. The simulation study revealed that the LST model with indicator-specific traits (Eid, 1996) and the LST model with M - 1 correlated method factors (Eid, Schneider, & Schwenkmezger, 1999) performed well, whereas the model with M orthogonal method factors used in the early work of Steyer, Ferring, and Schmitt (1992) and the correlated uniqueness approach (Kenny, 1976) showed limitations under conditions of either low or high method-specificity. Recommendations for the choice of an appropriate model are provided.     

Objects with a past: Husserl on “ad-memorizing apperceptions”

In a late notation from 1932, Husserl emphasizes the fact that a broad concept of ??apperception?? should also include, alongside his usual examples, the apprehension of objects as bearers of an individual or inter-subjective past, specifically ??indicated?? with them; thus, he distinguishes between apperceptions ??appresenting?? a simultaneous content (co-presentations), anticipatory apperceptions pointing to future incidents, and retrospective apperceptions referring to ??ad-memorized?? (hinzuerinnert, ad-memoriert) features and events. The latter sort of apperceptions are involved not only in our apprehension of historical traces and relics, but also in that of causal relations, familiar objects, and cultural objects in general. Following several later notations of Husserl concerning the topic of ??apperceptions,?? this paper outlines the specific intentional structure of retrospective or evocative apperceptions, analyzing their various possible forms.     

Patriots in the Making? Migrants, Citizens, and Demos Building in the European Union

Almost 20?years ago, Jürgen Habermas launched the idea of constitutional patriotism as a proposed solution to the tension between citizenship and national identity in the European Union. Since then, constitutional patriotism has remained a key concept in debates on European Union (EU) citizenship and democracy. This article, as so many before it, scrutinizes the meaning and viability of the concept. Unlike most others, however, it focuses less on the content of the concept and more on the subjects to which it is assumed/supposed to apply. I argue, firstly, that constitutional patriotism is not a viable or even desirable ideal for the European demos in its totality. The potential patriots of the EU are not the large majority of European Union citizens who live in their home country but migrants from other member states and nonmember states who are foreigners in their host countries. Secondly and accordingly, I argue that advancing constitutional patriotism means improving the status of foreign nationals in general and third-country nationals in particular. Connecting the acquisition of EU citizenship to domicile as opposed to member state nationality is one venue for such improvement. I discuss what this could imply and defend it as a means of building a truly European demos.