Depressive Symptomology, Identity and Religious Practices among Catholics and Evangelicals: Differences between the Mapuche and Non-Indigenous Chilean Population

Background: Chile is a highly religious country. Although a majority of the population describes itself as Catholic, there has been a substantial growth in Evangelism, especially among indigenous people. In this context, the aim of this study is to analyse the relationship between Catholic and Evangelical religiosity in terms of identity and practices and depressive symptoms in the Mapuche and non-indigenous Chilean population. Methods: The study was conducted using secondary data from the Longitudinal Intercultural Relations Study of 2017, estimating linear regressions to explain variations on the PHQ-9 scale between the adult Mapuche and non-indigenous Chilean population by first including the controls variables, followed by religious identification, churchgoing, and prayer. Results: Social support, good health, and age showed a negative association with PHQ-9 in both groups. Being a woman and not having a partner were only positively related with depression in the non-indigenous group. A negative association was found between Evangelical religious identity and depressive symptoms among the Mapuche population, while churchgoing was negatively associated and prayer was positively associated with depression in the non-indigenous group. Conclusions: The findings confirm that religiosity is a protective factor against depressive symptomology in the Chilean population. However, the analysis reveals significant ethnic differences.

Meningococcal Carriage in ‘Men Having Sex With Men’ With Pharyngeal Gonorrhoea

We assessed the characteristics of Neisseria meningitidis pharyngeal carriage in a cohort of ‘men having sex with men’, including patients with pharyngeal Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection. In the period 2017-2019, among all the oropharyngeal samples tested for gonorrhoea from MSM attending a STI Clinic in Bologna (Italy), we randomly selected 244 N. gonorrhoeae-positive samples and 403 negatives (n=647). Pharyngeal specimens were tested for N. meningitidis presence, by the detection of sodC gene. N. meningitidis-positive samples were further grouped by PCR tests for the major invasive genogroups (i.e., A, B, C, W, and Y). A molecular assay, targeting capsule transporter gene, was used to determine meningococcal capsular status. Overall, 75.8% (491/647) of samples tested positive for sodC gene, indicating a pharyngeal meningococcal carriage. Meningococcal colonisation was significantly more frequent in younger subjects (P=0.009), with no association with HIV infection. Non-groupable meningococci represented most of pharyngeal carriages (about 71%). The commonest N. meningitidis serogroup was B (23.6%), followed by C (2.1%), Y (1.8%) and W (1.1%). Meningococci were often characterized by the genetic potential of capsule production. Interestingly, a negative association between N. meningitidis and N. gonorrhoeae was found: pharyngeal gonorrhoea was significantly more present in patients without meningococcal carriage (P=0.03). Although preliminary, our data added knowledge on the epidemiology of meningococcal carriage in MSM communities at high risk of gonococcal infections, gaining new insights into the interactions/dynamics between N. meningitidis and N. gonorrhoeae.

Spanish imperfect subjunctive form –se

This paper analyzes use of and linguistic attitudes toward the Spanish imperfect and pluperfect subjunctive –se form (e.g., tuviese ‘had’ and hubiese tenido ‘had had’, respectively). The study consists of two phases, P1 and P2. P1 is quantitative in nature and focuses on production of the form; P2 is qualitative in nature and centers on linguistic attitudes associated with –se. P1 data come from 24 Spanish speakers and a semi-controlled oral/written interview. P2 data are from 15 Spanish speakers and a questionnaire. Chi-square results were significant for nationality, i.e., Spaniards used the –se form significantly more than Latin Americans. Sex, modality (oral/written), syntactic context, and verb type were all found insignificant. Qualitative comments from P2 suggest an overall negative association with the –se form. A somewhat weak relationship between the form and Spanish nationality emerged from the Latin American cohort, but not strong enough to suggest a definitive stereotype.

Normalized lifespan inequality: disentangling the longevity–lifespan variability nexus

Previous studies have documented a historically strong and negative association between countries’ life expectancy (i.e., average longevity) and length-of-life inequality (i.e., variability in ages at death). The relationship between both variables might be partially explained by life expectancy increasing at a faster pace than maximal length of life, a phenomenon that mechanically compresses the age-at-death distribution and has not been taken into consideration in previous studies. In this paper, we propose a new approach to lifespan inequality measurement that accounts for the (uncertainly) bounded nature of length-of-life. Applying the new approach to the countries of the Human Mortality Database, we observe that the decline in overall lifespan variability typically associated with increases in longevity seems to stop and even reverse at higher levels of life expectancy. This suggests the emergence of worrying ethical dilemmas, whereby higher achievements in longevity would only be possible at the expense of higher lifespan variability.

Adverse Childhood Experiences Are Associated with Reduced Psychological Resilience in Youth: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are presumed to influence internalizing and externalizing behaviors that can significantly debilitate long-term biopsychological development in individuals. Psychological resilience has been shown to effectively mediate the relationship between ACEs and negative health outcomes since individuals with low levels of resilience may have difficulty with bouncing back from toxic exposure to ACEs. Thus, the present systematic review and meta-analysis was aimed toward synthesizing current knowledge of the relationship between ACEs and psychological resilience in youths. Methods: A combination of key words relevant to the present study was searched on the PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, Cochrane, and Google Scholar databases. The results were restricted to English publications and human studies, with subjects ranging between the age of 0 to 35 years. Effect-size measures inclusive of pooled correlation coefficients for correlation analyses and pooled odds ratios for regression analyses, respectively, were calculated using random-effect models to determine the relationship between ACEs and psychological resilience. Results: The searches identified 85 potentially relevant studies. Among them, 76 were excluded due to limited access, irrelevant data, and the fact that the variables of interest were not explicitly measured or disclosed, leaving a final total of nine studies considered valid for the meta-analysis. Findings from correlational meta-analysis (n = 6) revealed a significantly negative association between ACEs and resilience (β = −0.120 [−0.196, −0.043]). The meta-analysis of the studies (n = 3) reporting dichotomous outcomes (ACE ≥ 1 vs. no ACE) indicated that subjects who experienced an ACE were 63% less likely to display high resilience, in comparison to subjects without such experiences. Conclusion: Our results support a negative association between ACEs and psychological resilience and highlight the multiple dimensions that constitute resilience in an ACE-exposure context. These findings may be particularly useful to policy makers and healthcare institutions in terms of helping them devise effective medical interventions and community outreach programs intended to develop resilience in youths, thus reducing health-risk behaviors and negative health outcomes.

Academic procrastination' relation to undesirable behaviours among faculty members from the students' perspective

Background: Academic procrastination had been reported widely to be in association with unwanted behaviours among university students. However, this association was not studied extensively in higher educational institutions. Aim: This research aimed to measure the level of academic procrastination among college students and the unwanted behaviours among faculty members from students' viewpoints. Method: The research sample consisted of 430 students randomly selected for the summer semester 2016/2017 using the descriptive correlation approach. An instrument to measure academic procrastination was developed to achieve the aims of the research. Results: The findings indicated that the level of academic procrastination was medium, whereas unwanted behaviours were high. The findings result showed a negative association between academic procrastination and unwanted behaviours. One of the most dimensions of unwanted behaviours that forecasted academic procrastination is the dimension of managing and organising classrooms. Keywords: Academic procrastination; educational psychology; descriptive approach; university students/Jordan; unwanted behaviours.

Hard Feelings: Predicting Attitudes Toward Former Romantic Partners

Most research on relationship quality addresses ongoing involvements. Research on past relationships is rare. As a first step, Athenstaedt and colleagues (2020) explored attitudes toward former romantic partners in an Austrian sample of heterosexual respondents. They found that men held less negative attitudes than women. In two studies conducted in Germany and the USA, we replicate this gender difference and explore the role of three psychological predictors. Like Athenstaedt et al., we find that the degree of perceived social support before the breakup and continued friendly relations after the breakup have a positive association with ex-partner attitude. Critically, we introduce and corroborate the hypothesis that regret over having started the relationship has a negative association. However, regret also fails to mediate the association between gender and ex-partner attitude. We discuss the practical implications of these findings and note directions for future research.

The Influence of Anaesthetic Choice on Electroconvulsive Therapy Parameters; Etomidate Versus Methohexital

Background Many of the anaesthetic drugs used for electroconvulsive therapy have anticonvulsant properties and may influence efficacy of electroconvulsive therapy. With this study we aim to provide more information on the effect of etomidate and methohexital on seizure duration. We explore the relationship between induction drug, motor and electroencephalography seizure duration. Moreover, we study the relationship of seizure duration and number of therapies. Methods In this retrospective study we collected data from patient records from 2005 until 2016. Inclusion criteria were the use of etomidate and/or methohexital and documentation of dosage, electroconvulsive therapy dosage and seizure duration. Exclusion criteria were missing data on either induction drug, dosage or seizure duration. Results Thirty seven patients were analysed. The mean age was 52 years and seventy six percent were female. Most patients were suffering from affective disorders (81%). Motor and electroencephalography seizure duration were analysed in 679 and 551 electroconvulsive therapies, respectively. Compared to methohexital, motor and electroencephalography seizures under etomidate were 7 and 13 seconds longer, respectively. Furthermore, there was a negative association between seizure duration and number of treatment and a negative association between seizure duration and electroconvulsive therapy dosage. Conclusions This study demonstrates significant longer motor and electroencephalography seizure duration using etomidate compared to methohexital. Etomidate might therefore increase the effectiveness of electroconvulsive therapy. Moreover, we observed a negative association between seizure duration, number of treatment and electroconvulsive therapy dosage. With this study we contribute to the available literature comparing methohexital and etomidate as induction agents for electroconvulsive therapy.

Association of the Meta-Emotion Structure with the Dimensions of Emerging Adulthood Identity Mediated by Mental Health in University Students

Background: Meta-emotion is a crucial developmental task to maintain internal balance, provide compatible relations, and improve mental health. Objectives: The present study aimed to investigate the association of the meta-emotion structure with the dimensions of emerging adulthood identity mediated by mental health in university students. Methods: This descriptive-correlational study was conducted on male and female university students aged 18 - 25 years who were selected from the public universities of Tehran, Iran during 2020 - 2021. The research sample consisted of 178 participants selected via convenience, quota, and nonrandom sampling. Data were collected using Arnett’s inventory of the dimensions of emerging adulthood (IDEA), Goldberg’s general health questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12), and Mitmansgruber’s Meta-Emotion scale (MES). Data analysis was performed using structural equation modeling in the SmartPLS-3 software. Results: The meta-emotion structure had a significant negative association with possibilities/optimism (r = -0.14) and significant positive associations with the components of feeling in-between, identity explorations, self-focus, and possibilities/optimism. Mental health had a negative association with possibilities/optimism (r = -0.17) and positive associations with the other four identity dimensions. In terms of the direct influence coefficients, the meta-emotion structure had a direct and significant influence only on mental health (r = 0.68). Furthermore, mental health had a direct effect only on instability/negativity. Among the identity dimensions of emerging adulthood, mental health had a mediating role only for instability/negativity (β = 0.21; t = 3.23). Conclusions: According to the results and considering the structure of meta-emotion and mental health as an influential factor in characteristics such as instability/negativity among identity dimensions, emphasizing mental health as a mediating factor for the association between meta-emotion and components such as instability/negativity could help acquire a better understanding of the association between these variables.