Forgiveness in relation to attachment style and consanguine marriage in Iranian married individuals

The aim of this study was to compare forgiveness in secure and insecure Iranian married couples. Whether marriage had occurred within the family (consanguine) or not (non-consanguine) was also considered. 400 married participants completed the Family Forgiveness Scale and the Adult Attachment Questionnaire. Analysis of reported forgiveness within the marital family showed that, although there was no significant difference between secure and insecure participants in overall forgiveness, secure participants rated "reparation" and "resolution" higher, whereas insecure participants rated "realization" and "recognition" higher. Comparing the experience of forgiveness in the family of origin, securely attached couples not only reported significantly more overall forgiveness but reported more "realization" and "resolution" while forgiving. Some interesting sex differences were also found, as individuals in consanguine vs non-consanguine couples differed in mean "recognition" in the forgiveness process.     

The moderating impact of temporal separation on the association between intention and physical activity: a meta-analysis

Previous meta-analyses have estimated that the intention–behaviour association in physical activity (PA) is large in magnitude. However, these prior meta-analyses have also revealed a large degree of heterogeneity, suggesting the presence of moderating variables. This study examines the impact of one such moderator, testing the hypothesis that the magnitude of the association between intention and behaviour decreases as the temporal separation between the two increases. A systematic literature search was used to identify published and unpublished studies that met the inclusion criteria. A random-effects meta-regression was conducted to test the study hypothesis. A total of 78 journal articles and 11 unpublished dissertations were identified, yielding 109 effect sizes. The mean number of weeks between the measurement of intention and behaviour was 5.4 (SD = 6.6, range = .43, 26). The average correlation between intention and behaviour was r = 0.51. In line with theoretical predictions, temporal separation was a significant moderator of the intention–behaviour correlation (B = ?.014, p < .001) and explained 24% of the between-study variance. This result remained unchanged when entered simultaneously with several control variables. The results of this analysis have important implications both for researchers and for intervention designers aiming to increase rates of PA.     

Effects of combined treatment with vitamins C and E on passive avoidance learning and memory in diabetic rats

Learning and memory deficits occur in diabetes mellitus. Although the pathogenesis of cognitive impairment in diabetes has not been fully elucidated, factors such as metabolic impairments, vascular complications and oxidative stress are thought to play possible roles. Here we investigated the effect of chronic treatment with vitamin C (50 mg/kg, p.o), vitamin E (100 mg/kg, p.o) and both together on passive avoidance learning (PAL) and memory in male Wistar control and diabetic rats. Treatments were begun at the onset of hyperglycemia. Passive avoidance learning was assessed 30 days later. Retention was tested 24 h after training. At the end, animals were weighed and blood samples were drawn for plasma glucose measurement. Diabetes caused impairment in acquisition and retrieval processes of PAL and memory. The combination of vitamin C and E improved learning and memory in controls and reversed learning and memory deficits in diabetic rats. Combined treatment also affected the body weight and plasma glucose level of diabetic treated animals compared to untreated diabetic animals. Hypoglycemic effects and antioxidant properties of the vitamins may be involved in the nootropic effect of such treatment. These results show that combined treatment with vitamins C and E improved PAL and memory of control rats. In addition, combined vitamins administration to rats for 30 days from onset of diabetes alleviated the negative influence of diabetes on learning and memory. Therefore, combined vitamins treatment may provide a new potential alternative for prevention of impaired cognitive functions associated with diabetes and may warrant further clinical study.     

Effects of reversible inactivation of locus coeruleus on long-term potentiation in perforant path-DG synapses in rats

The locus coeruleus (LC) is the main source of noradrenergic innervations to the forebrain and the hippocampal formation but does not receive noradrenergic projections itself. Previous studies have suggested that hippocampal neural response is modulated by the noradrenergic pathway and that the experimental activation of the LC can potentiate hippocampal responses. Most studies have suggested that the noradrenergic system has controversial effects on long-term potentiation (LTP) in hippocampal neurons, because its influence on synaptic plasticity in perforant path-DG synapses is ambiguous. The aim of this article was to study the LC's role in baseline activity and LTP in perforant path-DG cells of hippocampus by in vivo LC inactivation. Rats were anesthetized with urethane, and LC was temporarily suppressed by intra-LC injection of lidocaine. Population spike (PS) amplitude and excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) slope in DG were recorded 10 min before and 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, and 120 min after tetanization (400 Hz). Saline or lidocaine was injected during the baseline recording (experiment 1), 5 min before tetanus (experiment 2), and 5 min after tetanus (experiment 3). The results from this study indicated that the LC inactivation has no effect on baseline activity of granular cells or maintenance of LTP after tetanization. Moreover, LC inactivation before tetanus had no effect on LTP induction but decreased PS-LTP amplitude 60 and 120 min after tetanization. Taken together, the LC noradrenergic system likely influences LTP induction in later time periods while it has no effect on LTP in earlier time periods.     

Perfectionism, anger, and anger rumination

Anger and anger rumination are considered to be detrimental to both physical and psychological well being. Furthermore, perfectionism, as a personality construct, seems to be related to various types of maladjustment. Whereas perfectionism has been characterized as being positive when an individual derives pleasure from striving for excellence yet recognizes and accepts individual limitations, it is deemed negative when the individual has unrealistic expectations and is never satisfied with his or her performance. The present study examined whether positive and negative perfectionism was associated with anger and anger rumination. The Farsi version of the Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale and the Farsi version of the Anger Rumination Scale, as well as Spielberger's State-Trait Anger Scale were completed by 384 Iranian students. Results showed that anger and anger rumination were, as expected, associated negatively with positive perfectionism and associated positively with negative perfectionism. Positive perfectionism enables individuals to strive for success in a flexible manner and, thus, to experience satisfaction and pleasure rather than dissatisfaction, frustration, and anger. Conversely, negative perfectionism makes individuals vulnerable to emotional distress such as predisposition to experience anger and anger rumination through setting high standards for performance, overgeneralization of perceived failures, negative self-evaluation, self-blame, and measuring self-worth in terms of unachievable goals of accomplishment and productivity. Hence, perfectionism may be regarded as having both adaptive and maladaptive aspects with regard to health.