The Malay Lexicon Project: A database of lexical statistics for 9,592 words

Malay, a language spoken by 250 million people, has a shallow alphabetic orthography, simple syllable structures, and transparent affixation—characteristics that contrast sharply with those of English. In the present article, we first compare the letter—phoneme and letter—syllable ratios for a sample of alphabetic orthographies to highlight the importance of separating language-specific from language-universal reading processes. Then, in order to develop a better understanding of word recognition in orthographies with more consistent mappings to phonology than English, we compiled a database of lexical variables (letter length, syllable length, phoneme length, morpheme length, word frequency, orthographic and phonological neighborhood sizes, and orthographic and phonological Levenshtein distances) for 9,592 Malay words. Separate hierarchical regression analyses for Malay and English revealed how the consistency of orthography—phonology mappings selectively modulates the effects of different lexical variables on lexical decision and speeded pronunciation performance. The database of lexical and behavioral measures for Malay is available at http://brm.psychonomic-journals.org/content/ supplemental.     

Restlessness and psychomotor agitation after kidney transplantation: their impact on perceived health status

Restlessness and psychomotor agitation are among the causes of morbidity and mortality in different diseases. They are known problems in end-stage renal disease patients but no study has ever evaluated their presence and effects in kidney recipients. This study aimed to explore the presence of restlessness and psychomotor agitation and their relation with morbidity of patients after renal transplantation. Sixty-one subjects were randomly selected from kidney transplant recipients being followed in Baqiyatallah Hospital, Tehran, Iran. Restlessness and psychomotor agitation were determined by Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The correlation of these scores with demographic data, clinical data, sexual function, marital adjustment, quality of life, sleep quality and medical comorbidity of patients was evaluated. The scores of restlessness and psychomotor agitation were significantly correlated with the age at transplantation (r = .269, p = .04 and r = .324, p = .01, respectively), the total score of medical comorbidity (r = .273, p = .02 and r = .257, p = .04, respectively), role limitation due to emotional problems (r = -.26, p = .03 and r = -.25, p = .04, respectively) and mental health (r = -.277, p = .02 and r = -.252, p = .04 respectively). There was no correlation between these symptoms and the gender, marital status, and sexual relationship score of the patients (p > .05). Restlessness and psychomotor agitation are frequent and can impose high degrees of morbidity on renal transplant recipients. Proper management of these problems seems to improve the different aspects of quality of life in these patients.     

A Closer Look at the Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Western Obsession with the Medieval Muslim Theological Obsession with Anthropomorphism

Anthropomorphism is a topic that has attracted much attention from both medieval Muslim theologians and modern Western scholars. By examining the development of the medieval Muslim Rationalist-Traditionalist discourse surrounding this issue, and Western academic discussions of that discourse, I shall attempt to explain why the issue of anthropomorphism has repeatedly dominated discussions on Islamic theology. I will also attempt to show how various associations made with Muslim Rationalism and Traditionalism have influenced Western perceptions of these movements.     

Catching up with wonderful women: The women‐are‐wonderful effect is smaller in more gender egalitarian societies

Inequalities between men and women are common and well‐documented. Objective indexes show that men are better positioned than women in societal hierarchies—there is no single country in the world without a gender gap. In contrast, researchers have found that the women‐are‐wonderful effect—that women are evaluated more positively than men overall—is also common. Cross‐cultural studies on gender equality reveal that the more gender egalitarian the society is, the less prevalent explicit gender stereotypes are. Yet, because self‐reported gender stereotypes may differ from implicit attitudes towards each gender, we reanalysed data collected across 44 cultures, and (a) confirmed that societal gender egalitarianism reduces the women‐are‐wonderful effect when it is measured more implicitly (i.e. rating the personality of men and women presented in images) and (b) documented that the social perception of men benefits more from gender egalitarianism than that of women.     

A Model of Online Protection to Reduce Children’s Online Risk Exposure: Empirical Evidence From Asia

Children are surrounded by a variety of digital media and are exposed to potential risks that come with such easy accessibility. Learning how to be safe online is an important consideration for both children and their caregivers. The present study proposes an integrated model of online safety based on constructs from protection motivation theory and the health belief model, namely perceived severity of (and susceptibility to) risk, online self-efficacy, online privacy concern, and digital literacy. The study comprised a survey conducted among 420 schoolchildren aged 9–16 years. Using partial least squares-structural equation modelling, the results illustrated the presence of a negative effect of ‘perceived severity of online risk’ toward online risks, whereas the effect of ‘digital literacy’ was found to be positive. Children whose perception of online risks was more severe were less exposed to online risks if they had higher ‘online privacy concerns’ than the children with higher ‘digital literacy’ who are more exposed to online risk. Results of the study show that engaging in safe online behaviour requires children to have a high perception regarding severity of online risks as well as knowledge of online privacy concerns. Online risks and opportunities occur in parallel. Consequently, the factors that increase or decrease risk may also increase or decrease the benefits.     

Slowing the Tide of Alcohol Use Disorders

Alcohol use disorders (AUDs)—a spectrum including at-risk drinking, alcohol abuse, dependence, and addiction—is a highly prevalent problem worldwide with a substantial economic impact. The toll of alcohol on individual health and healthcare systems is devastating. Alcohol is estimated to be the fifth leading risk factor for global disability-adjusted life years. Tackling the problem of AUD requires a comprehensive strategy that includes solid action on price, availability, and marketing of alcohol. Restricting or banning alcohol advertising may reduce exposure to the risk posed by alcohol at the individual and general population level. Warning labels about the cancer risks associated with drinking have a high degree of public support and may be an inexpensive and acceptable way to educate the public. Religiosity may reduce risk behaviors and contribute to health decision making related to alcohol use.

     

Christian–Muslim Relations in Sub-Saharan Africa: Problems and Prospects

Christian–Muslim relations, even at the best of times, have always been disturbingly marred by suspicion, accusations and counter-accusations over interpretations of history and experiences. This has been further confounded by the very complex nature of the colonial histories on the African continent, where the destruction of existing civilizations, empires and emperors provided the foundation stones for the establishment of the colonial states that later emerged. The article provides insights into some of the major issues that serve as constraints in Christian–Muslim relations in some of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa. It reviews issues of Christian–Muslim relations against the backdrop of the return of democracy in most of sub-Saharan Africa in the last ten or fifteen years and points out some policy issues that African states will need to address to lay a foundation for dialogue.     

A practice-specificity-based model of arousal for achieving peak performance

The authors propose a practice-specificity-based model of arousal for achieving peak performance. The study included 37 healthy male physical education students whom they randomly assigned to a high-arousal (n = 19) or low-arousal group (n = 18). To manipulate participants' level of arousal, the authors used motivational techniques. They used heart rate and the Sport Competition Anxiety Test (R. Martens, 1977) to measure the level of arousal that participants achieved. At the determined and given arousal state, the 2 groups performed the task (basketball free throws) for 18 sessions. Both groups performed a retention test at the 2 arousal levels immediately after the last exercise session, in the posttest, and after 10 days. Results showed that both groups learned the task similarly and achieved their peak performance at their experienced arousal level. When tested at an arousal level that differed from the one that they experienced throughout practice sessions, participants' performance had deteriorated significantly. Performance of the task seemed to have integrated with the arousal level of the participants during the task learning. The findings of this study suggest a practice-specificity-based explanation for achieving peak performance.     

Religious Commitment,Attitudes Toward Suicide,and Suicidal Behaviors Among College Students of Different Ethnic and Religious Groups in Malaysia

The variation in suicide patterns across ethnic groups with different religious background is a puzzling social phenomenon. This study sought to examine the impact of religious commitment and attitudes toward suicide on suicidal behaviors of college students across major ethnic and religious groups in a multicultural society of Malaysia. A total of 139 college students completed Religious Commitment Inventory-10, Attitudes Toward Suicide Scale, and Suicidal Behavior Questionnaire-Revised. Findings showed significant discrepancies in attitudes toward suicide, but not suicidal behaviors across ethnic and religious groups. Suicide acceptance significantly affected suicidal behaviors as well. Although religious commitment is not associated with suicidal behaviors, its deviation is reflected in students’ acceptance of suicide. Additionally, college students’ suicide risk, lifetime, and recent suicide ideation, as well as their likelihood of future suicide attempt can be associated with their acceptance of suicide. The influence of attitudes toward suicide and religion, therefore, should be taken into consideration while implementing suicide prevention programs as it helps shape the norms about suicide among youths.