Major depression in the transition to adulthood: Risks and impairments.

An ongoing longitudinal community study (N?=?375) examined childhood risks and later adult impairments associated with 1-year Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (3rd ed., rev.; American Psychiatric Association, 1987) diagnoses of major depression during the transition to adulthood. Risks from birth to age 9 were reported by mothers, participants, and teachers. Teacher-reported hostility at age 6 predicted later depression. At age 9, self-perceptions of anxiety/depression, unpopularity, familial rejection, and abuse were potent risks. For men, neonatal and childhood health problems predicted later depression. For women, risks included family constellation, parental death, and poor academic achievement at age 9. Men and women who were depressed at age 18, age 21, or both demonstrated extensive psychosocial impairments in early adulthood, including poor overall functioning, interpersonal and behavioral problems, low self-esteem, and suicidality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Breaking the mold: The impact of working in a gender-congruent versus gender-incongruent role on self-reported sources of stress, organizational commitment, and health in U.K. universities.

We present an analysis of archive data collected using the ASSET (Cartwright & Cooper, 2002) from a stratified sample of employees (N = 2,005) working in higher education institutions in the United Kingdom in 2003. We hypothesized that employees working in gender-incongruent roles would report higher levels of work-related stress, poorer health, and lower organizational commitment compared with those working in gender-congruent roles. Interpreted in accordance with the role strain hypotheses, we found that women working in gender-incongruent roles reported significantly higher (p > .01) levels of stress, higher levels of minor ill-health problems, and lower levels of perceived commitment from their organizations compared with all other employees. Conversely, men who worked in gender-incongruent roles often reported the lowest levels of stress. The implications of these findings are discussed with reference to women’s progression in U.K. higher education. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Steps toward an evolutionary personality psychology: Individual differences in the social rank domain.

A comprehensive evolutionary personality psychology can be developed by identifying individual differences within each of the evolved systems that regulate social behaviour. We developed a questionnaire measure of social rank style, defined as individual differences in preferred strategies for pursuing, defending, and, when necessary, relinquishing social rank. The 17-item Rank Style with Peers Questionnaire (RSPQ) comprises three nearly independent scales: dominant leadership, coalition-building, and ruthless self-advancement. A series of studies demonstrated that: (a) the RSPQ’s, factor structure is robust; (b) the three rank style variables are not redundant with the five-factor traits or adult attachment styles; (c) they are related in theoretically expected ways to adjustment outcomes, to agentic and communal interpersonal behaviours, and to social reputations; (d) they predict group and individual performance outcomes relevant to organisational psychology; and (e) they are related in theoretically expected ways to psychopathology, including social anxiety disorder and depressive symptoms. Future directions for research on social rank styles and prospects for an evolutionary personality psychology are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comorbid anxiety disorders and treatment of depression in people with multiple sclerosis.

Objective: Anxiety is highly comorbid with depression, but little is known about the impact of anxiety disorders on the effectiveness of empirically supported psychotherapies for depression. We examined such outcomes for people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and depression, with versus without comorbid anxiety disorders. Design: Participants with MS (N = 102) received 16 weeks of telephone-administered psychotherapy for depression and were followed for one year post-treatment. Results: Participants with comorbid anxiety disorders improved to a similar degree during treatment as those without anxiety disorders. Outcomes during follow-up were mixed, and thus we divided the anxiety diagnoses into distress and fear disorders. The distress disorder (GAD) was associated with elevated anxiety symptoms during and after treatment. In contrast, fear disorders (i.e., panic disorder, agoraphobia, social phobia, specific phobia) were linked to depression, specifically during follow-up, across 3 different measures. Conclusions: People with GAD receiving treatment for depression may benefit from additional services targeting anxiety more specifically, while those with comorbid fear disorders may benefit from services targeting maintenance of gains after treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Correction to Kelley and Jouriles (2011).

Reports an error in "An introduction to the special section on U.S. Military operations: Effects on military members' partners and children" by Michelle L. Kelley and Ernest N. Jouriles (Journal of Family Psychology, 2011[Aug], Vol 25[4], 459-460). An author’s name cited in the text and the reference section was misspelled as Knoblock. The correct reference is Knobloch, L. K., & Theiss, J. A. (2011). Depressive symptoms and mechanisms of relational turbulence as predictors of relationship satisfaction among returning service members. Journal of Family Psychology, 25, 470–478. The online versions of this article have been corrected. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 2011-17889-001.) The deployment of U.S. military personnel to global hot spots, whether as combatants or as peacekeepers, has increased attention to the psychological well-being of military personnel and their family members. Despite the growing awareness that deployments have reverberating effects on all family members, theoretical explanations and empirical research on the impact of deployment on couple, family, and child adjustment, factors that serve to protect families from the demands of military employment, and effective methods of treating the mental health needs of military families are needed. The seven papers in this section increase our understanding of how the demands of U.S. military operations impact couples, family functioning, parenting, and child psychological adjustment and provide an additional resource for mental health professionals who work with these families. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Discovery of Adamantyl Ethanone Derivatives as Potent 11β‐Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase Type 1 (11β‐HSD1) Inhibitors

11β‐Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (11β‐HSDs) are key enzymes regulating the pre‐receptor metabolism of glucocorticoid hormones. The modulation of 11β‐HSD type 1 activity with selective inhibitors has beneficial effects on various conditions including insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and obesity. Inhibition of tissue‐specific glucocorticoid action by regulating 11β‐HSD1 constitutes a promising treatment for metabolic and cardiovascular diseases. A series of novel adamantyl ethanone compounds was identified as potent inhibitors of human 11β‐HSD1. The most active compounds identified ( 52 , 62 , 72 , 92 , 103 and 104 ) display potent inhibition of 11β‐HSD1 with IC₅₀ values in the 50–70 nM range. Compound 72 also proved to be metabolically stable when incubated with human liver microsomes. Furthermore, compound 72 showed very weak inhibitory activity for human cytochrome P450 enzymes and is therefore a candidate for in vivo studies. Comparison of the publicly available X‐ray crystal structures of human 11β‐HSD1 led to docking studies of the potent compounds, revealing how these molecules may interact with the enzyme and cofactor.     

Semiautomatic calibration of robot manipulator for visual inspection task

A semiautomatic procedure to calibrate a robot manipulator for improving positioning accuracy is proposed. An error-correcting transformation is estimated using the point-pairs in the theoretical and actual coordinate frames. The theoretical points are obtained using a 3D model of the inspected part, whereas the actual points are derived with image processing and analytic geometry techniques. The estimation of the error-correcting transformation is based on a leastsquare method. Experimental results are described to illustrate the calibration procedure.     

The etiology of computerphobia

Computerphobics, Uncomfortable Computer Users, and Control Group subjects were interviewed on their retrospective computer and mechanical experiences, personality style, and media influence on the development of computer feelings. Results indicated that psychological reactions to early mechanical and computer experiences differed between the three groups with etiological roots of computerphobia evident as early as childhood. Gender and attitude of the technology “introducer” were important in predicting later psychological reactions to computers. Computerphobics appeared to suffer from a more generalized “technophobia” while Uncomfortable Computer Users were apprehensive only about computers. Personality styles differed only slightly between the three groups with Computerphobics being less persistent in problem solving and less likely to seek assistance. Prevention and intervention implications include: effective nonevaluative introduction of technology in the school system by “introducers” who are comfortable and skilled with computer technology; and identification and treatment of current Computerphobics.     

When flattery gets you nowhere: Discounting positive feedback as a relationship maintenance strategy.

Intimates can rely on a number of strategies to protect their relationships from potential threats. In the present article, the authors investigate a new strategy: to discount flattering comments received from an attractive alternative to a dating partner by making a situational attribution. However, the authors did not expect everyone to adopt this strategy, as not everyone is likely sufficiently motivated to override both the tendencies to make dispositional attributions and to accept positive feedback from others. Dating and single participants were informed that an attractive alternative's positive impression of them had been made freely or under constraint. As expected, dating participants in the constraint condition were less likely than were those in the no-constraint condition to believe that the alternative's impression of them was genuine. In contrast, single participants believed that the confederate's impression of them was genuine, irrespective of their experimental condition. Self-esteem further moderated this effect. As hypothesised, only dating participants with low self-esteem were sufficiently motivated to recognise the situational constraint and discount the positive feedback. High self-esteem daters who were less inclined to discount the positive feedback instead protected their relationships by devaluing the alternative's attractiveness compared to singles. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)