Psychometric properties of the French version of the Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire

Este estudio instrumental fue diseñado para investigar las propiedades psicométricas de la versión francesa y replicabilidad transcultural del Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire (ZKPQ) en sus factores y facetas. El ZKPQ es un instrumento destinado a evaluar los cinco factores básicos del Alternative Five-Factor Model (AFFM). Los participantes fueron 843 suizos francófonos, principalmente estudiantes universitarios. Obtenidos los factores estos mostraron una fiabilidad entre 0,73 y 0,87, y sus facetas entre 0,57 y 0,77. Las diferencias entre géneros son similares a las informadas en la muestra americana. Las mujeres alcanzaron puntuaciones superiores en N-Anx, y puntuaciones más bajas en ImpSS y Act. El resultado de los análisis factoriales exploratorios respaldó la estructura de cinco factores y sus correspondientes facetas. Las correlaciones entre las escalas sostienen que los cinco factores básicos del AFFM son ortogonales. Los coeficientes de congruencia muestran la elevada eplicabilidad transcultural de los factores y sus facetas. Se puso a prueba el ajuste del modelo en sus factores y facetas mediante análisis factorial confirmatorio. Los resultados indican que la versión en lengua francesa del ZKPQ es un instrumento fiable y válido y posee buena replicabilidad transcultural.

Personality, social values, and marital satisfaction as predictors of parents’ rearing styles

Los estilos de crianza parentales pueden afectar la conducta y socialización de los adolescentes, por lo que es de interés conocer cómo algunas variables psicológicas de los padres se relacionan con los estilos de crianza. Este estudio tiene el objetivo de analizar los estilos de crianza de los padres, valores sociales (prestigio social, orden, benevolencia, y conservadurismo-liberalismo), los cinco grandes factores de personalidad, y la satisfacción de pareja (acuerdo general, afecto, satisfacción, y cohesión) en los padres de adolescentes. Este es un estudio prospectivo basado en método de análisis correlacional. Se encontró que los estilos educativos definidos por el cariño y aceptación se relacionan con los rasgos de personalidad como responsabilidad y estabilidad emocional, alta satisfacción de pareja y preferencia por valores prosociales. Al contrario, los estilos de crianza de sobreprotección y favoritismo se relacionan con baja amabilidad y baja apertura el poco ajuste de pareja con falta de cohesión y valores sociales definidos por falta de benevolencia y preferencia por valores de prestigio social.

Do parents and children know each other? A study about agreement on personality within families

Se estudiaron las relaciones entre autoevaluaciones y heteroevaluaciones de cuestionarios de personalidad en contextos familiares españoles. 336 matrimonios evaluaron la personalidad de uno de sus hijos. Al mismo tiempo, cada hijo se autoevaluaba. Se aplicaron los marcadores de Goldberg. En una segunda muestra, 120 estudiantes universitarios evaluaron la personalidad de ambos padres. Al mismo tiempo, ambos padres se autoevaluaron. Se aplicaron los marcadores de Goldberg y el NEO-PI-R. Se replica el grado de acuerdo encontrado en otras culturas, siendo las correlaciones entre autoevaluaciones y heteroevaluaciones de alrededor de 0.40, y con tamaños del efecto de las diferencias de medias no grandes. Se observa que: 1) los hijos son más acertados que los padres; 2) el grado de acuerdo es más alto para el NEO-PI-R que para los marcadores de Goldberg, especialmente en el factor de Apertura a la Experiencia; y 3) la variable sexo no afectó a los resultados. Se discuten las implicaciones y las limitaciones del presente estudio.

On the origin of the inertia: the modified Newtonian dynamics theory

The sameness between the inertial mass and the gravitational mass is an assumption and not a consequence of the equivalent principle is shown. In the context of the Sciama’s inertia theory, the sameness between the inertial mass and the gravitational mass is discussed and a certain condition which must be experimentally satisfied is given. The inertial force proposed by Sciama, in a simple case, is derived from the Assis’ inertia theory based in the introduction of a Weber type force. The origin of the inertial force is totally justified taking into account that the Weber force is, in fact, an approximation of a simple retarded potential, see [18, 19]. The way how the inertial forces are also derived from some solutions of the general relativistic equations is presented. We wonder if the theory of inertia of Assis is included in the framework of the General Relativity. In the context of the inertia developed in the present paper we establish the relation between the constant acceleration a0 , that appears in the classical Modified Newtonian Dynamics (M0ND) theory, with the Hubble constant H0 , i.e. a0 ≈ cH0 .

Teaching fundamentals of computing theory: a constructivist approach

A Fundamentals of Computing Theory course involves different topics that are core to the Computer Science curricula and whose level of abstraction makes them difficult both to teach and to learn. Such difficulty stems from the complexity of the abstract notions involved and the required mathematical background. Surveys conducted among our students showed that many of them were applying some theoretical concepts mechanically rather than developing significant learning. This paper shows a number of didactic strategies that we introduced in the Fundamentals of Computing Theory curricula to cope with the above problem. The proposed strategies were based on a stronger use of technology and a constructivist approach. The final goal was to promote more significant learning of the course topics.

Personality and job stress: a comparison of direct effects on parenting

The impact of personality and job characteristics on parental rearing styles was compared in 353 employees. Hypotheses concerning the relationships between personality and job variables were formulated in accordance with findings in past research and the Belsky’s model (1984). Structural equation nested models showed that Aggression-hostility, Sociability and job Demand were predictive of Rejection and Emotional Warmth parenting styles, providing support for some of the hypothesized relationships. The findings suggest a well-balanced association of personality variables with both parenting styles: Aggression-Hostility was positively related to Rejection and negatively to Emotional Warmth, whereas Sociability was positively related to Emotional Warmth and negatively related to Rejection. Personality dimensions explained a higher amount of variance in observed parenting styles. However, a model that considered both, personality and job dimensions as antecedent variables of parenting was the best representation of observed data, as both systems play a role in the prediction of parenting behavior.

The five and seven factors personality models: differences and similitude between the TCI-R, NEO-FFI-R and ZKPQ-50-CC

The present study tests the relationships between the three frequently used personality models evaluated by the Temperament Character Inventory-Revised (TCI-R), Neuroticism Extraversion Openness Five Factor Inventory – Revised (NEO-FFI-R) and Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire-50- Cross-Cultural (ZKPQ-50-CC). The results were obtained with a sample of 928 volunteer subjects from the general population aged between 17 and 28 years old. Frequency distributions and alpha reliabilities with the three instruments were acceptable. Correlational and factorial analyses showed that several scales in the three instruments share an appreciable amount of common variance. Five factors emerged from principal components analysis. The first factor was integrated by A (Agreeableness), Co (Cooperativeness) and Agg-Host (Aggressiveness-Hostility), with secondary loadings in C (Conscientiousness) and SD (Self-directiveness) from other factors. The second factor was composed by N (Neuroticism), N-Anx (Neuroticism-Anxiety), HA (Harm Avoidance) and SD (Self-directiveness). The third factor was integrated by Sy (Sociability), E (Extraversion), RD (Reward Dependence), ImpSS (Impulsive Sensation Seeking) and NS (novelty Seeking). The fourth factor was integrated by Ps (Persistence), Act (Activity), and C, whereas the fifth and last factor was composed by O (Openness) and ST (Self- Transcendence). Confirmatory factor analyses indicate that the scales in each model are highly interrelated and define the specified latent dimension well. Similarities and differences between these three instruments are further discussed.

String theory dualities and supergravity divergences

We demonstrate how duality invariance of the low energy expansion of the four-supergraviton amplitude in type II string theory determines the precise coefficients of multiloop logarithmic ultraviolet divergences of maximal supergravity in various dimensions. This is illustrated by the explicit moduli-dependence of terms of the form ¿2k R4, with k ¿ 3, in the effective action. Furthermore, we show that in the supergravity limit the perturbative contributions are swamped by an accumulation of non-perturbative effects of zero-action instantons.

Application of Information Statistical Theory to the Description of the Effect of Heat Conduction on the Chemical Reaction Rate in Gases

The effect of the heat flux on the rate of chemical reaction in dilute gases is shown to be important for reactions characterized by high activation energies and in the presence of very large temperature gradients. This effect, obtained from the second-order terms in the distribution function (similar to those obtained in the Burnett approximation to the solution of the Boltzmann equation), is derived on the basis of information theory. It is shown that the analytical results describing the effect are simpler if the kinetic definition for the nonequilibrium temperature is introduced than if the thermodynamic definition is introduced. The numerical results are nearly the same for both definitions

Friedman's Excess energy and the McMillan-Mayer theory of solutions:Thermodynamics

In his version of the theory of multicomponent systems, Friedman used the analogy which exists between the virial expansion for the osmotic pressure obtained from the McMillan-Mayer (MM) theory of solutions in the grand canonical ensemble and the virial expansion for the pressure of a real gas. For the calculation of the thermodynamic properties of the solution, Friedman proposed a definition for the"excess free energy" that is a reminder of the ancient idea for the"osmotic work". However, the precise meaning to be attached to his free energy is, within other reasons, not well defined because in osmotic equilibrium the solution is not a closed system and for a given process the total amount of solvent in the solution varies. In this paper, an analysis based on thermodynamics is presented in order to obtain the exact and precise definition for Friedman"s excess free energy and its use in the comparison with the experimental data.

Thomas-Fermi theory for atomic nuclei revisited

The recently developed semiclassical variational Wigner-Kirkwood (VWK) approach is applied to finite nuclei using external potentials and self-consistent mean fields derived from Skyrme inter-actions and from relativistic mean field theory. VWK consist s of the Thomas-Fermi part plus a pure, perturbative h 2 correction. In external potentials, VWK passes through the average of the quantal values of the accumulated level density and total en energy as a function of the Fermi energy. However, there is a problem of overbinding when the energy per particle is displayed as a function of the particle number. The situation is analyzed comparing spherical and deformed harmonic oscillator potentials. In the self-consistent case, we show for Skyrme forces that VWK binding energies are very close to those obtained from extended Thomas-Fermi functionals of h 4 order, pointing to the rapid convergence of the VWK theory. This satisfying result, however, does not cure the overbinding problem, i.e., the semiclassical energies show more binding than they should. This feature is more pronounced in the case of Skyrme forces than with the relativistic mean field approach. However, even in the latter case the shell correction energy for e.g.208 Pb turns out to be only ∼ −6 MeV what is about a factor two or three off the generally accepted value. As an adhoc remedy, increasing the kinetic energy by 2.5%, leads to shell correction energies well acceptable throughout the periodic table. The general importance of the present studies for other finite Fermi systems, self-bound or in external potentials, is pointed out.

Nuclear surface properties in relativistic effective field theory

We perform Hartree calculations of symmetric and asymmetric semi-infinite nuclear matter in the framework of relativistic models based on effective hadronic field theories as recently proposed in the literature. In addition to the conventional cubic and quartic scalar self-interactions, the extended models incorporate a quartic vector self-interaction, scalar-vector non-linearities and tensor couplings of the vector mesons. We investigate the implications of these terms on nuclear surface properties such as the surface energy coefficient, surface thickness, surface stiffness coefficient, neutron skin thickness and the spin-orbit force.

From caging to rouse dynamics in polymer melts with intramolecular barriers: a critical test of the mode coupling theory

By means of computer simulations and solution of the equations of the mode coupling theory (MCT),we investigate the role of the intramolecular barriers on several dynamic aspects of nonentangled polymers. The investigated dynamic range extends from the caging regime characteristic of glass-formers to the relaxation of the chain Rouse modes. We review our recent work on this question,provide new results, and critically discuss the limitations of the theory. Solutions of the MCT for the structural relaxation reproduce qualitative trends of simulations for weak and moderate barriers. However, a progressive discrepancy is revealed as the limit of stiff chains is approached. This dis-agreement does not seem related with dynamic heterogeneities, which indeed are not enhanced by increasing barrier strength. It is not connected either with the breakdown of the convolution approximation for three-point static correlations, which retains its validity for stiff chains. These findings suggest the need of an improvement of the MCT equations for polymer melts. Concerning the relaxation of the chain degrees of freedom, MCT provides a microscopic basis for time scales from chain reorientation down to the caging regime. It rationalizes, from first principles, the observed deviations from the Rouse model on increasing the barrier strength. These include anomalous scaling of relaxation times, long-time plateaux, and nonmonotonous wavelength dependence of the mode correlators.

The role of intramolecular barriers on the glass transition of polymers: computer simulations versus mode coupling theory

We present computer simulations of a simple bead-spring model for polymer melts with intramolecular barriers. By systematically tuning the strength of the barriers, we investigate their role on the glass transition. Dynamic observables are analyzed within the framework of the mode coupling theory (MCT). Critical nonergodicity parameters, critical temperatures, and dynamic exponents are obtained from consistent fits of simulation data to MCT asymptotic laws. The so-obtained MCT λ-exponent increases from standard values for fully flexible chains to values close to the upper limit for stiff chains. In analogy with systems exhibiting higher-order MCT transitions, we suggest that the observed large λ-values arise form the interplay between two distinct mechanisms for dynamic arrest: general packing effects and polymer-specific intramolecular barriers. We compare simulation results with numerical solutions of the MCT equations for polymer systems, within the polymer reference interaction site model (PRISM) for static correlations. We verify that the approximations introduced by the PRISM are fulfilled by simulations, with the same quality for all the range of investigated barrier strength. The numerical solutions reproduce the qualitative trends of simulations for the dependence of the nonergodicity parameters and critical temperatures on the barrier strength. In particular, the increase in the barrier strength at fixed density increases the localization length and the critical temperature. However the qualitative agreement between theory and simulation breaks in the limit of stiff chains. We discuss the possible origin of this feature.