A Genome‐Wide Scan for Eysenckian Personality Dimensions in Adolescent Twin Sibships: Psychoticism,Extraversion, Neuroticism,and Lie

ABSTRACT We report the first genome‐wide scan of adolescent personality. We conducted a genome‐wide scan to detect linkage for measures of adolescent Psychoticism, Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Lie from the Junior Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Data are based on 1,280 genotyped Australian adolescent twins and their siblings. The highest linkage peaks were found on chromosomes 16 and 19 for Neuroticism, on chromosomes 1, 7, 10, 13 m, and 18 for Psychoticism, and on chromosomes 2 and 3 for Extraversion.     

The “Religiously Mediated Change” of 11 Gay Men: A Case of Unexceptional Sublimation

This article addresses the current controversy in churches concerning homosexuality, especially the claim that the sexual orientation of homosexual males may be changed through religious interventions. Following personal accounts of the uses of “religiously mediated change” discourse in discussions of homosexuality in mainstream Protestant churches, the article focuses on the frequently cited article by Pattison and Pattison (1980) that evaluates 11 white males “who claimed to have changed sexual orientation from exclusive homosexuality to exclusive heterosexuality through participation in a Pentecostal church fellowship” (p. 1553). We evaluate the article in terms of its research design, findings, and conclusions; discuss its claim that the men “changed” in light of Freud’s concept of the sublimation of socially unacceptable psychic energies; and assess the Pentecostal church’s contention that homosexuality is an expression of psychological immaturity. We conclude that in light of the fact that the sublimation of sexual desires and impulses is a common experience among men, and homosexuality is not an expression of psychological immaturity, “religiously mediated change” discourse needs to go beyond claiming that change is possible and present a convincing argument that the change, if effected, will have demonstrable benefits to humanity that would not be realizable if the change did not occur.     

Living with Long QT Syndrome: A Qualitative Study of Coping with Increased Risk of Sudden Cardiac Death

Long QT syndrome (LQTS) is a congenital disorder associated with increased risk of sudden cardiac death; LQTS patients and their families are offered diagnostic or predictive genetic testing. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the psychosocial aspects of living with LQTS, to identify LQTS patients’ daily life challenges and coping strategies, and to describe their experiences with healthcare services. In-depth interviews were conducted with seven individuals who had been tested for long QT genetic mutation. Four of these participants had an implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD). The participants reported that early and gradually acquired knowledge of the syndrome was an advantage. They also reported experiencing worries and limitations in daily life, but their main concern was for their children or grandchildren. Healthcare providers’ minimal knowledge of LQTS resulted in uncertainty, misinformation, and even wrong advice regarding treatment. The results suggest that regional centers, with the appropriate expertise, should investigate and counsel LQTS patients and their families.     

Inhibiting your native language: the role of retrieval-induced forgetting during second-language acquisition

After immersion in a foreign language, speakers often have difficulty retrieving native-language words--a phenomenon known as first-language attrition. We propose that first-language attrition arises in part from the suppression of native-language phonology during second-language use, and thus is a case of phonological retrieval-induced forgetting. In two experiments, we investigated this hypothesis by having native English speakers name visual objects in a language they were learning (Spanish). Repeatedly naming the objects in Spanish reduced the accessibility of the corresponding English words, as measured by an independent-probe test of inhibition. The results establish that the phonology of the words was inhibited, as access to the concepts underlying the presented objects was facilitated, not impaired. More asymmetry between English and Spanish fluency was associated with more inhibition for native-language words. This result supports the idea that inhibition plays a functional role in overcoming interference during the early stages of second-language acquisition.     

Toward a New Method of Detecting Deliberately Faked Personality Tests: The use of idiosyncratic item responses

This study presents a new method for developing faking detection scales based on idiosyncratic item‐response patterns. Two scoring schemes based on this approach strongly differentiated between scores obtained under honest vs directed faking conditions in cross‐validation samples (r_pb=.45 and .67). This approach is shown to successfully classify between 20% and 37% of faked personality measures with only a 1% false positive rate in a sample comprised of 56% honest responses. Of equal importance, this method does not result in a scale that meaningfully correlates with personality or cognitive ability tests. This study raises many questions about both the source and generalizabiltiy of the effect. Key directions for future research and improved scale development that may limit or enhance the utility of the idiosyncratic item‐response method are discussed.     

Effects of different substance misuse in genital reflexes of paradoxical sleep deprived male rats

As psychostimulants are widely abused, their neurochemical and behavioral effects have been extensively studied for many years. Our previous data demonstrate that paradoxical sleep deprivation (PSD) enhances drug-induced penile erection and ejaculation. PSD in association to drugs of abuse like cocaine potentiated genital reflexes in male rats. In this sense, the present study investigated if three substances abused by young people--such as Delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabinol (Delta(9)THC), alcohol and caffeine--had any significant effect on the genital reflexes in PSD rats. The results indicated that PSD induced erection in 50% of the rats and 20% ejaculated. In addition, there was no significant alteration in the number of animals exhibiting genital reflexes neither on the frequency of these behaviors when challenged with Delta(9)-THC or alcohol or caffeine after 96 h of PSD. These findings show that Delta(9)THC, alcohol and caffeine when administrated isolated did not produce alterations in genital reflexes in the PSD male rats.     

Socrates and Superiority

I propose an alternative interpretation of the Crito. The arguments that are typically taken to be Socrates' primary arguments against escape are actually supplementary arguments that rely on what I call the Superiority Thesis, the thesis that the state and its citizens are members of a moral hierarchy where those below are tied by bonds of obligation to those above. I provide evidence that Socrates holds this thesis, demonstrate how it resolves a number of apparent difficulties, and show why my interpretation is preferable to competing interpretations.