The Bielefeld Longitudinal Study of Adult Twins (BiLSAT)

2012 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 167-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Kandler ◽  
Rainer Riemann ◽  
Frank M. Spinath ◽  
Wiebke Bleidorn ◽  
Wolfgang Thiel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Self Reports ◽  
Current Article ◽  
Individual Variables ◽  
Adult Twins ◽  
Peer Reports ◽  
Future Plans

The Bielefeld Longitudinal Study of Adult Twins (BiLSAT) is a German longitudinal study of monozygotic and dizygotic twins reared together, including more than 1,100 twin pairs aged between 14 and 80 who participated in the first wave. Data were collected at five waves of assessment between 1993 and 2009. Initially, the study focused on genetic and environmental influences on the structure and the development in adult temperament and personality. Today, the study includes a broad range of individual variables, such as personality disorders, major life goals, interests, attitudes, values, life and work satisfaction, and major life events. A special feature of this genetically informative study lies in the multiple-rater approach (i.e., self-reports and peer reports). Longitudinal multiple-rater analyses allow researchers to go beyond the basic nature–nurture decomposition of variance in self-reports examining genetic and environmental influences on stability and change in more accurately measured individual attributes. In the current article, we briefly describe the design and contents of BiLSAT as well as some recent major findings and future plans.

Genetic and environmental influences on sociopolitical attitudes

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 236-249 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward Bell ◽  
Christian Kandler ◽  
Rainer Riemann
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
The Self ◽  
Self Report ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
German Sample ◽  
Self Reports ◽  
Sociopolitical Attitudes ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Peer Reports

A new paradigm has emerged in which both genetic and environmental factors are cited as possible influences on sociopolitical attitudes. Despite the increasing acceptance of this paradigm, several aspects of the approach remain underdeveloped. Specifically, limitations arise from a reliance on a twins-only design, and all previous studies have used self-reports only. There are also questions about the extent to which existing findings generalize cross-culturally. To address those issues, this study examined individual differences in liberalism/conservatism in a German sample that included twins, their parents, and their spouses and incorporated both self- and peer reports. The self-report findings from this extended twin family design were largely consistent with previous research that used that rater perspective, but they provided higher estimates of heritability, shared parental environmental influences, assortative mating, and genotype-environment correlation than the results from peer reports. The implications of these findings for the measurement and understanding of sociopolitical attitudes are explored.

The Social Origins of Depression and the Role of Meaning

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
George W. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Life Events ◽  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Life Event ◽  
The Social ◽  
Role Based

This chapter discusses the role of social factors in ill health, with a particular focus on depression. Major life events increase the risk of most depressive disorders. In a longitudinal study carried out in the early 1980s of 400 mothers in Islington, 1 in 10 developed a depressive disorder within a year, and most of those had a severely threatening life event not long before. This chapter also summarises the three forms of meaning relevant for the aetiology of depression. First, the role-based meanings of severe events relate to traditional anthropological and sociological concerns. Second, the evolutionary-derived meanings show that the experience of humiliation following a severe event is critical in the development of depression. Finally, the memory-linked emotional schemas influence a person's vulnerability to events.

scholarly journals A Longitudinal Study of the Dynamics of Giftedness

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (2/1) ◽  
pp. 5-18
Author(s):  
Diana B. Bogoyavlenskaya
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Field Technique ◽  
Professional Activities ◽  
Mathematical School ◽  
Second Stage ◽  
The Third ◽  
Third Stage

Introduction. The paper presents a longitudinal study nearly a half-century long of the dynamics of giftedness from adolescence to maturity. Giftedness is an individual’s ability for creativity. The current study postulates that personal creative achievements can be predicted and that individuals’ ability to develop activities on their own initiative is the unit of such analysis of creativity. The concept of creativity is revealed through this ability as its mechanism. The ultimate forms of creativity are actions that lose the form of response. Methods. For the purpose of the study, the authors developed a Creative Field technique. This diagnostic tool has certain advantages over other existing tests, as it also measures intelligence according to the learnability criteria. The study was originated in 1970 with a sample comprised of 60 10th grade students of physico-mathematical school № 2 in Moscow. The second stage of the experiment took place in 1976. It employed the new Creative Field technique developed with the use of mathematical content. The third stage of the experiment was conducted during 2002–2003, at which point in time the sample was somewhat reduced due to inaccessibility of a portion of the original participants. The fourth stage of the study of the genesis of giftedness is currently underway (2018-2019). Results and Discussion. The study produced reliable measures of giftedness in adolescence and maturity and analyzed achievements in participants’ professional activities. These results create an objective framework for analyzing the role of the major life events and personality structure in the realization, and either development or regression of giftedness. The results of the experiments confirmed the relevance of the technique and the validity of the method itself. Students, who reached the highest levels of cognition in the experiment, also made significant discoveries in their professional activities. Conclusion. The main conclusions are as follows: (a) The method of Creative Field has predictive value. (b) The theory developed by authors is productive.

scholarly journals Physical Activity Patterns After Retirement: The REGARDS Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 528-529
Author(s):  
Eric Shiroma ◽  
J David Rhodes ◽  
Aleena Bennet ◽  
Monika M Safford ◽  
Leslie MacDonald ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Light Intensity ◽  
Racial Differences ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Accelerometer Data ◽  
Tv Viewing ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life ◽  
Physical Activity Patterns ◽  
Regards Study

Abstract Major life events, such as retirement, may lead to dramatic shifts in physical activity (PA) patterns. However, there are limited empirical data quantifying the magnitude of these changes. Our aims were to objectively measure PA before and after retirement and to describe changes in participation in various types of PA. Participants were employed black and white men and women enrolled in REGARDS (REasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke), a national prospective cohort study (n=581, mean age 64 years, 25% black, 51% women). Participants met inclusion criteria if they retired between their first and second accelerometer wearing (2009-2013 and 2017-2018, respectively) and had valid accelerometer data (>4 days with >10 hours/day pre- and post-retirement). Accelerometer-based PA was categorized into average minutes per day spent in sedentary, light-intensity, and moderate-to-vigorous PA. Participants reported changes (less, same, more) in 12 types of PA. After retirement, participants decreased both sedentary time (by 36.3 minutes/day) and moderate-to-vigorous PA (by 5.6 minutes/day). Conversely, there was an increase in light-intensity PA (+18.1 minutes/day) after retirement. Participants reported changes in their participation level in various PA activities. For example, 41% reported an increased amount of TV viewing, 42% reported less walking, and 31% reported increased participation in volunteer activities. Findings indicate that retirement coincides with a change in the time spent in each intensity category and the time spent across a range of activity types. Further research is warranted to examine how these changes in physical activity patterns influence post-retirement health status.

Comparison of two modes of stress measurement: Daily hassles and uplifts versus major life events

1981 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allen D. Kanner ◽  
James C. Coyne ◽  
Catherine Schaefer ◽  
Richard S. Lazarus
Keyword(s):  
Life Events ◽  
Stress Measurement ◽  
Daily Hassles ◽  
Major Life Events ◽  
Major Life
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