Perceived behavioural control,subjective norms,attitudes and intention to use condom: A longitudinal cross-lagged design

Based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), the purpose of this investigation was to examine the directionality of the association among condom use, intention, attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control. The present study investigated the nature of these relationships using a longitudinal cross-lagged design applied to data from a cohort of 958 randomly selected Italian adults. Using structural equation modelling, two cross-lagged panel analyses revealed reciprocal relationships between intention and attitudes and between intention and condom use. Contrary to expectations, baseline subjective norms and perceived behavioural control did not predict subsequent intention to use condom when controlled for the autoregressive effect of intention at T1 on the same variable at T2. Also, perceived behavioural control at T1 did not influence condom use at T2 after controlling for the effect of baseline intention. The possibility of reciprocity was also tested for all relations and significant results were found. The moderation effect of perceived behavioural control on the relationship between intention and condom use was not significant. The differences in age, gender and partnership status were taken into account in the analyses.     

A survey of smoking status and cancer risk perceptions among participants attending a hospital-based head and neck screening program

Abstract

Screening for head and neck cancer is underutilized. Given that lack of knowledge of the risk factors may partially account for screening underutilization. we surveyed subjective risk and knowledge of risk factors for head and neck cancer among 124 individuals who attended a free. hospital-based head and neck cancer screening. Few participants were current smokers. Most attendees perceived their risk as similar to others of their age and sex. Personal health habits comprised almost all of the risk-decreasing factors, yet less than half of the risk-increasing factors. generated. Personal habits were less frequently endorsed than factors such as pollution and heredity. Those who mentioned a risk behavior, or a family cancer history, reported higher subjective risk. Those who mentioned a personal health habit reported lower subjective risk. Results highlight needed efforts to increase screening among high-risk individuals through targeted education messages.     

The impact of information about the prevalence of AIDS-Preventive behavior among men and women: The mediating role of social norms

Abstract

The present study was designed to examine the effect of information about the high prevalence of safe sex on condom use intention, and to investigate the possible mediating role of the perceived social norm of friends, and the perceived social norm of future. sexual partners. Participants were provided with gender specific prevalence information, that is with the information that most men have exclusively safe sex, or with the information that most women exclusively engage in safe sexual behavior. The results show some gender differences. Information about the high prevalence of safe sex among men tends to increase women's condom use intention, and this effect seems to be mediated by the paceived social norm of future sexual partners. Men's intention, on the other hand, seems to be unaffected by high prevalence information of safe sex. Implications for research and prevention are discussed     

Differential Development of Learning Strategies on a Pictorial Verbal Learning Test (PVLT) in Primary-School Children

The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that developmental differences exist in the use of learning strategies in primary school children. Serial and subjective clustering in a multitrial Pictorial Verbal Learning Test (PVLT) were compared in 79 children aged 6–12. Correlation analyses indicated that serial clustering yielded better performance when information was presented on the initial trials of the test. Subjective clustering was superior when information was presented repeatedly, i.e., after three or more trials. Analyses of variance indicated that subjective clustering was used more often in older children with repeated presentations. On the other hand, there was no increase in the use of serial clustering with age and with repeated presentations. The findings imply that training in the use of proper strategies could have benefit for children who use an inefficient learning strategy and/or have a learning problem. In addition, they point to the importance of the factor “age” in relation to the way information is presented to children.     

Psychometric Properties of the Locus of Control of Behaviour Scale (LCBS) among Australians Seeking Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) Treatment

Despite a paucity of studies evaluating the psychometric properties of the Locus of Control of Behaviour Scale (LCBS), it continues to be widely used in behavioural research. The present study sought to redress this gap in the literature. The 17‐item LCBS was administered to 373 Australians attending Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) treatment agencies in the northern metropolitan region of Perth. Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted in order to determine which of several plausible measurement models provided the best fit for the data. A unidimensional model, recommended by the authors of the LCBS, and a two‐dimensional (Internal Locus of Control vs External Locus of Control) model provided poor fits. Other multidimensional models, differing only in the dimensionality of the externality factor, were also tested. A multidimensional model consisting of an Internal Locus of Control factor and four component External Locus of Control factors provided the best fit; however, the fit is probably best described as “reasonable” rather than “good.” A subsequent exploratory factor analysis using parallel analysis indicated a cohesive internality factor; however, the externality factor showed a tendency to fragment into smaller components. Results were discussed in terms of the problematic externality factor.     

Perceptions of alcohol risk among people on antiretroviral treatment in South Africa: a qualitative study

This study explored perceptions of alcohol abuse risk among people on antiretroviral treatment (ART) who self-identified as alcohol users. Twenty six people receiving ART from an out-patient setting were interviewed on their alcohol abuse risk perception. Data were thematically analysed. Findings suggest participants developed routines to drink alcohol around the times they took their antiretroviral medications to reduce adverse impact. They also reported alcohol abuse risk reduction strategies such as reducing alcohol use because of the event of an HIV positive diagnosis and/or getting on antiretroviral treatment, and alcohol use reduction following health education or counselling by health care staff. These findings suggest a need for alcohol interventions tailored to ART patients.     

Risk and Protective Factors for Comorbid Posttraumatic Stress Disorder among Homeless Individuals in Treatment for Substance-Related Problems

Homeless individuals undergoing treatment for substance use disorders (SUD) can pose clinical challenges. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms have been observed in the most difficult clients. The study sample consisted of 51 homeless individuals, 9 women and 42 men, undergoing consultation for SUD in Montreal. The mean age was 46 years (SD = 7.19). Of the sample, 49% had a potential PTSD diagnosis. Most participants had the following characteristics: an alcoholic parent, a history of an early trauma, and little social support. The participants with a potential PTSD diagnosis were significantly more likely to have had an alcoholic parent, to have experienced an early trauma, and to use more maladaptive coping strategies. The study results and limits are discussed.     

A behavioural experiment in virtual reality to verify the role of action function in space coding

Neurophysiological data indicate that the reachable peripersonal space and the unreachable extrapersonal space are represented in segregated parietofrontal circuits and that when the unreachable space becomes reachable because of tool use, it is automatically coded by the network selective for peripersonal space. Here we directly tested the role of action's consequences in space coding. Thirty-eight participants bisected lines at either a reachable distance (60 cm) or unreachable distance (120 cm) using either a laser pointer or laser cutter. The laser cutter but not the laser pointer had an action consequence; the line broke into two pieces. The results showed that distance moderated the effect of action. At an unreachable distance, the mean bisection point was closer to the centre when participants used the laser cutter compared to when they used the laser pointer. There were no differences at a reachable distance (60 cm). This result suggests that the space in which the individual may determine a physical consequence is categorized as peripersonal space, independently from its actual distance from the individual's body.     

Self-concept: Psychosis and attraction of new religious movements

Self-concept is both a social product and a social force, and can be defined as the sum total of an individual's thoughts and beliefs regarding themselves, as well as perceptions by others. Such a view is essential for the well being of individuals and allows a person to function well within parameters of the society. When this self-concept starts to change then the individual looks for other pointers to gain a degree of self control back. Such an approach can explain some of the reasons why some individuals with mental illness turn towards new religious movements that may well be extreme. With data from two studies showing that patients with first onset psychosis are likely to change their religion, it is proposed that clinicians and researchers alike be aware of some of these factors.     

A prelearning manipulation falsifies a pure associational deficit account of retrieval shift during skill acquisition

ABSTRACT

Older adults adopt memory-based response strategies during consistent practice more slowly and less completely than younger adults. In two experiments, participants either prelearned all, half, or none of the noun-pair stimuli prior to the completion of a standard noun-pair lookup task. Higher proportions of prelearning generally led to a faster and more complete strategic shift from visual scanning to memory retrieval during the lookup task, and a strong prelearning criterion for all items eliminated the age-related slowing of retrieval shift. However, the 50% prelearned condition resulted in strategy shift that was inconsistent with simple mechanistic associative learning, revealing a strategic set that was retrieval-avoidant in older adults.