The integration of agency and communion in moral personality: Evidence of enlightened self-interest.

Agency and communion are fundamental human motives, often conceptualized as being in tension. This study examines the notion that moral exemplars overcome this tension and adaptively integrate these 2 motives within their personality. Participants were 25 moral exemplars—recipients of a national award for extraordinary volunteerism—and 25 demographically matched comparison participants. Each participant responded to a life review interview and provided a list of personal strivings, which were coded for themes of agency and communion; interviews were also coded for the relationship between agency and communion. Results consistently indicated that exemplars not only had both more agency and communion than did comparison participants but were also more likely to integrate these themes within their personality. Consistent with our claim that enlightened self-interest is driving this phenomenon, this effect was evident only when agency and communion were conceptualized in terms of promoting interests (of the self and others, respectively) and not in terms of psychological distance (from others) and only when the interaction was observed with a person approach and not with the traditional variable approach. After providing a conceptual replication of these results using different measures elicited in different contexts and relying on different coding procedures, we addressed and dismissed various alternative explanations, including chance co-occurrence and generalized complexity. These results provide the first reliable evidence of the integration of motives of agency and communion in moral personality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

H2O2-Diffusion Through Liposomes

The toxicity of H₂O₂ suggests that it readily diffuses through cell membranes. The present paper demonstrates via a chromogenic peroxidase reaction that H₂O₂ can cross the lipid bilayer membrane without affecting the cell wall's integrity. In this demonstration, the chromogen ABTS was encapsulated with horseradish peroxidase into ovolecithin multilamellar liposomes. Upon the addition of dilute H₂O₂, the color was generated exclusively within the intact liposomes. Related results were observed with the AAP/DHBS chromogenic couple; however, this system is complicated by the small holes created by the phenol DHBS in the liposomal wall.     

Can superoxide organic chemistry be observed within the liposomal bilayer?

--2-(Dimethylamino) fluorene (1a) and 5-benzoyloxy-2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-octaethylporphyrin (4) react with superoxide anion radical (generated from KO2/18-crown-6 polyether) in aprotic media. Yet, when incorporated into the lipid bilayer of dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine liposomes, these two substrates are inert to superoxide, generated enzymatically (xanthine oxidase/acetaldehyde) or radiolytically (60Co or 137Cs source/formate solution). On the other hand, 7-acetoxy-4-methylcoumarin (6), which reacts with superoxide in aprotic media yielding the corresponding 4-methylumbelliferone (7), also gives the same product when incorporated within the liposomal bilayer and reacted with radiolytically or enzymatically generated superoxide. In the latter case, the reaction is inhibited by SOD. NMR studies indicate that in contradistinction to the highly lipophilic 1a and 4, which presumably lie well within the lipid bilayer, 7 lies in a highly polar region of the bilayer. These results suggest that superoxide anion does not penetrate deep into the liposomal bilayer; nevertheless, superoxide reactions can, indeed, be observed, provided the active site of the substrate lies at or near the lipid-water interface.     

Reaction of Coumarins with Superoxide Anion Radical (O2): Facile Entry to o-Coumarinic Acid Systems

Coumarins 1–5 were reacted with O₂ in aprotic media. The course of the reaction was followed by using methyl iodide to “Cap” (trap) the oxy-anions generated. Abstraction of the enolic hydrogen (where available) proved to be the most facile process followed by “saponification” of the lactone linkage. The cis-stereochemistry of the original coumarin was maintained allowing easy access to a variety of o-coumarinic acid systems.     

Lithium?Oxygen Electrochemistry in Non-Aqueous Solutions

Pairing lithium and oxygen in aprotic solvents can theoretically lead to one of the most promising electrochemical cells available. If successful, this system could compete with technologies such as the internal combustion engine and provide an energy density that can accommodate electric vehicle demands. However, there are many problems that have inhibited this technology from becoming realistic. One of the main reasons is capacity fading after only a few cycles, which is caused by the instability of electrolyte solutions in the presence of reduced oxygen species like O₂^.− and O₂²⁻. In recent years, using various analytical tools, researchers have been able to isolate the breakdown products arising from the reactions occurring between the aprotic solvent and the reduced oxygen species. Nevertheless, no solvents have yet been found that are fully stable throughout the reduction and oxidation processes. However, an understanding of these decomposition mechanisms can help us in designing new systems that are more stable toward the aggressive conditions taking place in Li O₂ cell operation. This review will include analytical studies on the most widely used solvents in current Li O₂ research.     

Moral personality of brave and caring exemplars.

Two contrasting types of moral exemplars were examined so as to identify personality variables associated with moral action. The sample comprised 50 Canadian awardees for either exceptional bravery or caring, as well as 50 comparison participants. Participants responded to a set of personality questionnaires and a life-review interview. Personality variables were found to substantially augment moral cognition in the prediction of exemplary action. In support of the notion that there is a personological core to the moral domain, it was found that moral exemplars were distinguished from the comparison groups by themes embodied in their life narratives. Specifically, moral exemplars had stronger motivational themes of both agency and communion, were more likely to construe critical life events redemptively, more frequently identified helpers in early life, and reported more secure attachments. Furthermore, the personality of caring exemplars was more nurturant, generative, and optimistic than that of brave exemplars; these somewhat divergent personality profiles imply multiple ideals of moral maturity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reconciling the self and morality: An empirical model of moral centrality development.

Self-interest and moral sensibilities generally compete with one another, but for moral exemplars, this tension appears to not be in play. This study advances the reconciliation model, which explains this anomaly within a developmental framework by positing that the relationship between the self’s interests and moral concerns ideally transforms from one of mutual competition to one of synergy. The degree to which morality is central to an individual’s identity—or moral centrality—was operationalized in terms of values advanced implicitly in self-understanding narratives; a measure was developed and then validated. Participants were 97 university students who responded to a self-understanding interview and to several measures of morally relevant behaviors. Results indicated that communal values (centered on concerns for others) positively predicted and agentic (self-interested) values negatively predicted moral behavior. At the same time, the tendency to coordinate both agentic and communal values within narrative thought segments positively predicted moral behavior, indicating that the 2 motives can be adaptively reconciled. Moral centrality holds considerable promise in explaining moral motivation and its development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)