The effects of progressive relaxation on stress and diabetic control

Four insulin-requiring diabetic Ss were followed in single-S designs to measure the impact of progressive muscle relaxation training on blood glucose and stress levels. Measures of blood glucose, stress, activity and caloric intake were taken four times a day, along with a daily measure of anxiety. Two of the 4 Ss showed a significant decrease in blood glucose during treatment periods as compared to baseline measures. Similarly, 2 of the 4 Ss showed a significant decrease in stress levels during treatment. A multiple regression analysis revealed some significant relationships between blood glucose, stress, activity level and caloric intake. The results support previous studies that show relaxation techniques to be a viable aid in establishing greater diabetic control.     

Effects of midbrain central gray lesions on spontaneous and electrically induced aggression in the rat

Large electrolytic lesions were placed in the midbrain central gray of male rats. Their effects on hypothalamically induced aggression, switch-off behaviour, and locomotion were investigated. A number of these animals were also tested for territorial intermale aggression in order to compare electrically induced and spontaneous aggression. Large lesions resulted in an increase of the current threshold to induce aggression by hypo-thalamic stimulation. Smaller, but still quite large, lesions decreased the threshold current for hypothalamic aggression. After the operation a decrease in the threshold for switch-off was present, both in the experimental and the control group. Current thresholds for locomotion were decreased after the lesions only in the experimental group. Spontaneous aggression was temporarily decreased after the lesion. No indication was found that other behavioural elements of the animal were distorted by the lesion. The parallel between the effects on spontaneous and electrically induced aggression makes it attractive to ascribe a role to the neural circuit of hypothalamus and central gray in territorial aggression. However, even with large lesions the animals were still capable of fighting, hence the central gray is not indispensable. An attempt was made to explain the differential effects that differently sized central gray lesions have on hypothalamic aggression.     

Demonstrating detail in investigative interviews—An examination of the DeMo technique

Attaining an uninterrupted free report (FR) is at the heart of best practice investigative interviewing guidance. However, witnesses/victims do not naturally provide detailed accounts. Techniques have been developed to counter-act this, such as a report everything (RE) instruction. This research examined the relative effectiveness of an addition to the RE component, a demonstration of the level of detail, using a behavioural exemplar, by describing an innocuous object; the Demonstration for More detail (DeMo) technique. Participants (N = 61) watched a mock crime video and asked to recall it using one of three instructions: (a) basic FR as the control, (b) RE instruction and (c) RE instruction plus DeMo technique. Participants who were given the DeMo technique recalled more details than both the control and RE groups. Accuracy rates were similarly high across all conditions. The implications of using the DeMo technique within an investigative interview are discussed.     

Effects of deceptive packaging and product involvement on purchase intention: an elaboration likelihood model perspective

From an Elaboration Likelihood Model perspective, it was hypothesized that postexposure awareness of deceptive packaging claims would have a greater negative effect on scores for purchase intention by consumers lowly involved rather than highly involved with a product (n = 40). Undergraduates who were classified as either highly or lowly (ns = 20 and 20) involved with M&Ms examined either a deceptive or non-deceptive package design for M&Ms candy and were subsequently informed of the deception employed in the packaging before finally rating their intention to purchase. As anticipated, highly deceived subjects who were low in involvement rated intention to purchase lower than their highly involved peers. Overall, the results attest to the robustness of the model and suggest that the model has implications beyond advertising effects and into packaging effects.     

The effect of social comparison information on the life satisfaction of frail older persons

In this study, the authors examined the effects of social comparison on the life satisfaction of 455 community-dwelling older persons. These older persons were confronted with a fictitious interview with either an upward or a downward target. After downward comparison, older persons felt more satisfied with their lives than after upward comparison, especially those who had higher levels of frailty. These effects were only found with lower levels of identification. Apparently, downward comparison only serves its self-enhancing function on life satisfaction among frail older persons when they perceive the comparison target as different from themselves.     

Why God Has Left the Netherlands: Explanations for the Decline of Institutional Christianity in the Netherlands Between 1966 and 2015

Why has the Netherlands witnessed such a strong process of secularization? This article examines this process very extensively. Based on modernization theory, it follows several social cultural developments in Dutch society over the last 50 years and distinguishes between effects on the individual level as well as on the level of society. We are able to do so because of rich data availability, derived from micro‐level longitudinal surveys (God in the Netherlands, Social and Cultural Developments in the Netherlands) enriched with macro‐level statistics (Statistics Netherlands). With this integrated approach, we provide explanatory insights into the transition of the Netherlands from a predominant Christian nation to a predominant secular nation. Our analysis clearly shows that macro‐level educational expansion has affected this process of secularization in the Netherlands, supplemented with the increase in social security, as a so‐called cohort effect. Moreover, the long‐term effect of Christian socialization is waning; Dutch people who were raised in a religious way increasingly lapse later in their life.     

Gender differences in a clinical sample of patients with borderline personality disorder

The aim of the study was to investigate gender differences and similarities in patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) with respect to Axis I comorbidity, Axis II comorbidity, general psychopathology (Symptom Checklist 90-Revised), and dimensional personality traits (NEO-Personality-Inventory Revised [NEO-PI-R] and the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Profile Basic questionnaire [DAPP-BQ]). Fifty-seven men and 114 women with BPD were included in the study. Regarding Axis I and II disorders in an exploratory analysis, men with BPD more often fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for binge eating disorder, antisocial personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder, and conduct disorder in childhood, whereas women had higher frequencies of bulimia nervosa, posttraumatic stress disorder, and panic disorder with agoraphobia. After correcting for multiple tests, only the gender differences in narcissistic and antisocial personality disorder remained significant. In the SCL-90-R profile, no significant gender differences could be identified. In the exploratory analysis of the dimensional personality traits, women showed higher rates on the NEO-PI-R main factors (Neuroticism and Agreeableness) compared to men. In the DAPP-BQ profile, men reached higher sores on the main factor, Dissocial Behavior. When correcting for multiple tests, gender differences still existed for Neuroticism and Dissocial Behavior. Our results argue for gender differences in Axis I and II comorbidity and dimensional personality traits in BPD. However, in general, more similarities than differences were shown in this study.