Masculinity-femininity as a national characteristic and its relationship with national agoraphobic fear levels: Fodor's sex role hypothesis revitalized

Hofstede's dimension of national culture termed Masculinity-Femininity [Hofstede (1991). Cultures and organizations: software of the mind. London: McGraw-Hill] is proposed to be of relevance for understanding national-level differences in self-assessed agoraphobic fears. This prediction is based on the classical work of Fodor [Fodor (1974). In: V. Franks & V. Burtle (Eds.), Women in therapy: new psychotherapies for a changing society. New York: Brunner/Mazel]. A unique data set comprising 11 countries (total N = 5491 students) provided the opportunity of scrutinizing this issue. It was hypothesized and found that national Masculinity (the degree to which cultures delineate sex roles, with masculine or tough societies making clearer differentiations between the sexes than feminine or modest societies do) would correlate positively with national agoraphobic fear levels (as assessed with the Fear Survey Schedule-III). Following the correction for sex and age differences across national samples, a significant and large effect-sized national-level (ecological) r = +0.67 (P = 0.01) was found. A highly feminine society such as Sweden had the lowest, whereas the champion among the masculine societies, Japan, had the highest national Agoraphobic fear score. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

The neurodevelopmental hypothesis of schizophrenia: a review of recent developments

The neurodevelopmental hypothesis (NDH) of schizophrenia suggests that a disruption of brain development during early life underlies the later emergence of psychosis during adulthood. The aim of this review is to chart the challenges and subsequent refinements to this hypothesis, with particular reference to the static versus progressive nature of the putative neurobiological processes underlying the NDH. A non-systematic literature review was undertaken, with an emphasis on major review papers relevant to the NDH. Weaknesses in the explanatory power of the NDH have led to a new generation of more refined hypotheses in recent years. In particular, recent versions of the hypothesis have incorporated evidence from structural neuroimaging which suggests changes in brain volumes after the onset of schizophrenia. More detailed models that incorporate progressive neurobiological processes have replaced early versions of the NDH, which were based on a 'static encephalopathy. In addition, recent models have suggested that two or more 'hits' are required over the lifespan rather than only one early-life event. Animal models are providing important insights into the sequelae of disturbed early brain development. The NDH has provided great impetus to the schizophrenia research community. Recent versions of the hypothesis have encouraged more focused and testable hypotheses.

Large size in an island-dwelling bird: intraspecific competition and the Dominance Hypothesis

Differences between island- and mainland-dwelling forms provide several classic ecological puzzles. Why, for instance, are island-dwelling passerine birds consistently larger than their mainland counterparts? We examine the 'Dominance hypothesis', based on intraspecific competition, which states that large size in island passerines evolves through selection for success in agonistic encounters. We use the Heron Island population of Capricorn silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis chlorocephalus), a large-bodied island-dwelling race of white-eye (Zosteropidae), to test three assumptions of this hypothesis; that (i) large size is positively associated with high fitness, (ii) large size is associated with dominance, and (iii) the relationship between size and dominance is particularly pronounced under extreme intraspecific competition. Our results supported the first two of these assumptions, but provided mixed evidence on the third. On balance, we suggest that the Dominance Hypothesis is a plausible mechanism for the evolution of large size of island passerines, but urge further empirical tests on the role of intraspecific competition on oceanic islands versus that on mainlands.

Monarchs across the Pacific: the Columbus hypothesis revisited

The 'Columbus hypothesis' suggests that the annual north-south return migration of Danaus plexippus in North America is a very recently evolved behaviour, less than 200 years old. This hypothesis rests, in part, on an analysis of the 19th century spread of the monarch across the Pacific that assumes a continuous east to west movement and is based predominantly on one publication. We review all the contemporary literature and present new analysis of the data. The movement of the monarch across the Pacific in the second half of the 19th century is best explained by a model which involves no more than three spot introductions, directly or indirectly aided by human movement, followed by natural spread of the monarch across island groups. Contemporary records refer to 'boom' and 'bust' population cycles on newly settled islands, which may have led to high rates of monarch movement. We see no evidence in the records to suggest an east to west sweep by monarch populations as suggested by the Columbus hypothesis. (C) 2004 The Linnean Society of London.

Reappraisal of disparities between osmolality estimates by freezing point depression and vapor pressure deficit methods

As a response to recent expression of concern about possible unreliability of vapor pressure deficit measurements K Kiyosawa, Biophys. Chem. 104 (2003) 171-188), the results of published studies on the temperature dependence of the osmotic pressure of aqueous polyethylene glycol solutions are shown to account for the observed discrepancies between osmolality estimates obtained by freezing point depression and vapor pressure deficit osmometry - the cause of the concern. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The policy and ethical implications of genetic research on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Objective: To review the policy and ethical implications of recent research on the molecular genetics of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Method: MEDLINE and psycINFO database searches were used to identify studies on the genetics of ADHD. The implications of replicated candidate genes are discussed. Results: The findings for most genes have been inconsistent but several studies have implicated the genes in the dopaminergic pathway in the aetiology of ADHD. Conclusions: The current evidence on the genetics of ADHD is insufficient to justify genetic screening tests but it will provide important clues as to the aetiology of ADHD. Genetic information on susceptibility to ADHD has the potential to be abused and to stigmatize individuals. Researchers and clinicians need to be mindful of these issues in interpreting and disseminating the results of genetic studies of ADHD.

Are interactions in Gray's Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory proximal or distal in the prediction of religiosity: a test of the joint subsystems hypothesis

Gray's Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST) consists of the Behavioural Activation System (BAS) which is the basis of Impulsivity, and Behavioural Inhibition System (BIS) which is the basis of Anxiety. In this study, Impulsivity and Anxiety were used as distal predictors of attitudes to religion in the prediction of three religious dependent variables (Church attendance, Amount of prayer, and Importance of church). We hypothesised that Impulsivity would independently predict a Rewarding attitude to the Church and that Anxiety would independently predict an Anxious attitude to the church, and that these attitudes would be proximal predictors of our dependent variables. Moreover, we predicted that interactions between predictors would be proximal. Using structural equation modelling, data from 400 participants supported the hypotheses. We also tested Eysenck's personality scales of Extraversion and Neuroticism and found a key path of the structural equation model to be non-significant. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effect of timing and severity of water deficit on growth, development, yield accumulation and nitrogen fixation of mungbean

Mungbean (Vigna radiata L.), as a dryland grain legume, is exposed to varying timing and severity of water deficit, which results in variability in grain yield, nitrogen accumulation and grain quality. In this field study, mungbean crops were exposed to varying timing and severity of water deficit in order to examine: (1) contribution of the second flush of pods to final grain yield with variable timing of relief from water deficit, (2) the sensitivity to water deficit of the accumulation of biomass and nitrogen (N) and its partitioning to grain, and (3) how the timing of water deficit affects the pattern of harvest index (HI) increase through pod filling. The results showed that the contribution of the second flush to final yield is highly variable (1-56%) and can be considerable, especially where mid-season stress is relieved at early pod filling. The capacity to produce a second flush of pods did not compensate fully for yield reduction due to water stress. Relief from mid-season stress also resulted in continued leaf production, N-2 fixation and vegetative biomass accumulation during pod filling. Despite the wide variation in the degree of change in vegetative biomass and N during pod filling, there were strong relationships between grain yield and net-above-ground biomass at maturity, and grain N and above-ground N at maturity. Only in the extreme situations were HI and nitrogen HI affected noticeably. In those treatments where there was a large second flush of pods, there was a pronounced biphasic pattern to pod number production, with HI also progressing through two distinct phases of increase separated by a plateau. The proportion of grain yield contributed to by biomass produced before pod filling varied from 0 to 61% with the contribution greatest under terminal water deficit. There was a larger effect of water deficit on N accumulation, and hence N-2 fixation, than on biomass accumulation. The study confirmed the applicability of a number of long-standing physiological concepts to the analysis of the effect of water deficit on mungbean, but also highlighted the difficulty of accounting for timing effects of water deficit where second flushes of pods alter canopy development, biomass and yield accumulation, and N dynamics. Crown Copyright (C) 2003 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An investigation of organic factors in the neuropsychological functioning of patients with borderline personality disorder

The hypothesis to be tested in this study was that the cognitive deficits that have been documented in patients with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) are largely the consequence of organic insult, either developmental or acquired. Using a cross-sectional design, 80 subjects (males and females) who met the criteria for BPD participated in the study. They completed a battery of neuropsychological tests and a comprehensive interview assessing organic status as well as measures of the potentially confounding factors of current levels of depression and anxiety. It was expected that BPD-patients with a probable history of organic insult would perform significantly worse than would BPD patients without such a history. Analyses of the results provided partial support for the hypothesis. Subjects with both BPD and a history of organic insult were significantly more impaired on several measures including measures of attention than were BPD only subjects. The results suggested that the impaired cognitive performance of persons diagnosed with BPD may, in part, be attributed to organic factors.

A spatial explanation for synchrony biases in perceptual grouping: Consequences for the temporal-binding hypothesis

If two images are shown in rapid sequential order, they are perceived as a single, fused image. Despite this, recent studies have revealed that fundamental perceptual processes are influenced by extremely brief temporal offsets in stimulus presentation. Some researchers have suggested that this is due to the action of a cortical temporal-binding mechanism, which would serve to keep multiple mental representations of one object distinct from those of other objects. There is now gathering evidence that these studies should be reassessed. This article describes evidence for sensitivity to fixational eye and head movements, which provides a purely spatial explanation for the earlier results. Taken in conjunction with other studies, the work serves to undermine the current body of behavioral evidence for a temporal-binding mechanism.

Attention deficit disorder: not just for children

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has long been described in children who demonstrate developmentally inappropriate symptoms of inattention, impulsivity and motor restlessness. In adults, symptoms are known to persist and the validity of adult ADHD as an entity is now recognized. There is an associated high proportion of other serious psychiatric comorbidities, especially substance abuse, mood and anxiety disorders. Advances have been made into the aetiology and management of ADHD. Many of these focus on the dopamine and noradrenaline pathways.