Using Health Psychology to Inspire Entrepreneurial Innovation in Dubai

Being an entrepreneur encompasses a number of traits. Used as an “umbrella term,” it constitutes self-motivation, leadership, resilience, proactivity, creativity, and a sense of light-hearted preparation to deal with potential failure in different aspects of the startup. These individual traits are prevalent in most people; however, it is the combination of them, alongside sound physical health and access to social resources that allows an entrepreneur to enjoy success in due time. Psychological theory and practice may inform techniques in developing and facilitating what it takes to succeed as an entrepreneur. Specifically, health psychology explains how individuals' unique biological, psychological, and social factors, as informed by biopsychosocial theory, together produce adaptive or maladaptive behaviors. To translate this for the context of entrepreneurship, only an individual, who is physiologically healthy or otherwise manages their physical condition well, might enjoy entrepreneurial success.

Contextual variability in biopsychosocial pathways to violent offending

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to use data from the Longitudinal Study of Violent Criminal Behavior in the USA to examine case configurations of violent behavior using a biopsychosocial framework. Specifically, the theory posits that arguably all behavior is the result of specific combinations of biopsychological (individual) and sociocultural (environmental) characteristics that are interacting within the individual. With regard to criminal and violent behavior, the theoretical assumption is that this maladaptive behavior is the result of a negative interaction between the biopsychological and sociocultural factors. Design/methodology/approach The study design consists of secondary data analysis. A conjunctive analysis of case configurations was performed using data from the Longitudinal Survey of Violent Criminal Behavior to formally explore the tenets of Cortés and Gatti’s (1972) biopsychosocial theory. Findings The results suggest that there are main effects for ego strength, family problems, family incohesiveness and underachievement as they relate to offending. A possible six-way interaction was also identified within the case configurations that provides empirical support for Cortés and Gatti’s (1972) biopsychosocial theory of deviance. Originality/value The present study contributes to the existing biopsychosocial literature by providing insight on the contextual variability in pathways to violent offending. Specifically, the evidence provided indicates that Cortés and Gatti’s (1972) biopsychosocial theory of deviance can be extended to comparing violent and non-violent offenders. Implications for policy and practice are also discussed.

Neurotransmitter and Neurochemical Factors in Domestic Violence Perpetration: Implications for Theory Development

Research on neurotransmitters and behavior is a vital and expanding area of study. As in other areas of empirical study of domestic violence, this remains an underdeveloped field of inquiry. Although a rigorous literature exists indicating a much broader range of neuropsychological risk factors for violence in general, policies regarding the study and treatment of domestic violence perpetration often disregard or forbid considerations of those factors. This current effort at theory development is a continuation of several prior works where the conceptual and empirical rationale for a broader explanatory theoretical framework for domestic violence perpetration is put forth. In this review, links between neurochemical anomalies, dysfunctional coping, and domestic violence perpetration are reviewed in light of their contribution to a biopsychosocial theory of domestic violence perpetration.

Epidemiology and Phenomenology of Pathological Gambling

Pathological gambling is an impulse control disorder (ICD) characterized by loss of control over gambling behavior. This chapter will describe the illness profile of pathological gambling. As well as summarizing the epidemiological data on the prevalence of pathological gambling and its associated comorbidities, I will also consider (1) the classificatory overlap between pathological gambling, the substance use disorders, and obsessive-compulsive disorder; (2) the emerging evidence for dimensional rather than categorical models of disordered gambling; and (3) some of the sources of hererogeneity among pathological gamblers, including the differences between common games. In the second part of the chapter, I will review several sets of psychological and neurobiological factors that are implicated in the etiology of pathological gambling, including the role of physiological arousal (“excitement”), conditioning influences, cognitive distortions, personality trait variables, and neuropsychological and neuroimaging markers. These mechanisms are often complementary, and a biopsychosocial theory of gambling will incorporate multiple levels of explanation.