Psychological and Family Factors Associated with Suicidal Ideation in Pre-Adolescents

To assess the psychological and family factors associated with suicidal ideation in preadolescent children, we studied a sample of 361 students, average age 9 years old. Twogroups were formed, on the basis of the presence (n = 34) or absence (n = 44) of suicidal ideation. Suicidal ideation was assessed with the Children’s Depression Inventory and the Children’s Depression Rating Scale-Revised. Depression, hopelessness, self-esteem, and perceived family environment were compared in both the suicidal ideation and the control groups. Students with suicidal ideation generally presented greater depressive symptoms and hopelessness, and lower self-esteem and family expressiveness, although there weredifferences both between sexes, and when the variable depression was controlled. Identifying these risk factors in pre-adolescents may have an impact on prevention of suicidal behavior at higher risk ages

Very preterm infants in Finland - Use of health care services and economic consequences during the first five years of life

The aim of this thesis was to study the health, the hospitalisations, and the use of communal health care services in very preterm children during the first five years of life. In addition, the effect of very preterm birth and prematurity-related morbidities on the costs of hospitalisations, other health care services and the cost per quality adjusted life years (QALY) were studied. This population-based study included all very preterm children (gestational age (GA) <32 weeks or birth weight<1501g, N=2 064) and full-term controls (GA 37+0−41+6, N=200 609) born in Finland during 2000-2003. The data sources included national register data, costing data from the participating hospitals and parental questionnaires. This study showed that most very preterm infants born in Finland survived without prematurity-related morbidities diagnosed during the first years of life. They required relatively little hospital care after the initial discharge, which accounted for the vast majority of the total four-year hospitalisation costs. However, a minority of children born very preterm later developing morbidities had a long initial length of stay and more re-admissions and outpatient visits during the five-year follow-up period. In particular, the number and costs of non-emergency outpatient visits were considerable in individuals with prematurity-related morbidities. The need and costs of hospitalisations decreased clearly with each follow-up year, even in individuals with morbidities. The health-care related costs during the fifth year of life in children born very preterm without prematurity-related morbidities were close to the costs in infants born healthy at term. The cost per QALY of 19,245 € was at an acceptable level already by four years of age in the very preterm population as a whole. Prematurity-related later morbidities and decreasing GA increased the costs per QALY. As the initial hospital stay accounted for a great majority of the total four-year costs, and the costs of hospitalisation decreased with each follow-up year, the cost per QALY is likely to decrease with age. In conclusion, the majority of costs arising after the initial hospitalisation were associated with morbidities related to prematurity. Therefore offering high-quality neonatal care to prevent later morbidities in very preterm survivors has a long-term impact on the cost per QALY. In addition, this study indicates that when estimating the costs of prematurity after the first year of life, one should calculate not only the hospitalisation costs, but also other costs for social welfare services, primary care, and therapies, as these exceed the hospitalisation costs in very preterm infants during the fifth year of life.

Fractures in older people - incidence, predictors and consequences

In older populations, fractures are common and the consequences of fractures may be serious both for an individual and for society. However, information is scarce about the incidence, predictors and consequences of fractures in population-based unselected cohorts including both men and women and a long follow-up. The objective of this study was to analyse the incidence and predictors of fractures as well as functional decline and excess mortality due to fractures, among 482 men and 695 women aged 65 or older in the municipality of Lieto, Finland from 1991 until 2002. In analyses, Poisson’s, Cox proportional Hazards and Cumulative Logistic regression models were used for the control of several confounding variables. During the 12-year follow-up with a total of 10 040 person-years (PY), 307 (26%) persons sustained altogether 425 fractures of which 77% were sustained by women. The total incidence of fractures was 53.4 per 1000 PY (95% confidence intervals [95% CI]: 47.9 - 59.5) in women and 24.9 per 1000 PY (95% CI: 20.4 - 30.4) in men. The incidence rates of fractures at any sites and hip fractures were associated with increasing age. No significant changes in the ageadjusted incidence rates of fractures were found in either gender during the 12-year follow-up. The predictors of fractures varied by gender. In multivariate analyses, reduced handgrip strength and body mass index (BMI) lower than 30 in women and a large number of depressive symptoms in men were independent predictors of fractures. A compression fracture in one or more thoracic or upper lumbar vertebras on chest radiography at baseline was associated with subsequent fractures in both genders. Lower body fractures independently predicted both short- (0-2 years) and long-term (up to 8 years) functional decline in mobility and activities of daily living (ADL) performance during the 8-year follow-up. Upper body fractures predicted decline in ADL performance during longterm follow-up. In the 12-year follow-up, hip fractures in men (Hazard Ratio [HR] 8.1, 95% CI: 4.4-14.9) and in women (HR 3.0, 95% CI: 1.9-4.9), and fractures at the proximal humerus in men (HR 5.4, 95% CI: 1.6-17.7) were independently associated with excess mortality. In addition, leisure time inactivity in physical exercise predicted independently both functional decline and excess mortality. Fractures are common among older people posing serious individual consequences. Further studies about the effectiveness of preventing falls and fractures as well as improving care and rehabilitation after fractures are needed.

Perheyritysten sukupolvenvaihdoksiin liittyvät inhimilliset seikat reviirikäyttäytymisen näkökulmasta

Tutkimuksen tavoitteena on ymmärtää perheyritysten sukupolvenvaihdoksiin liittyviä inhimillisiä tekijöitä reviirikäyttäytymisen avulla. Tarkasteltavia inhimillisiä seikkoja ovat esimerkiksi osapuolten väliset suhteet, tunteet ja käyttäytyminen. Reviirikäyttäytymisen teorialla on selitetty esimerkiksi ihmisten, ryhmien ja organisaatioiden käyttäytymistä, mutta perheyritysten sukupolvenvaihdoksissa sitä ei ole koskaan aiemmin hyödynnetty. Reviirikäyttäytymisenä pidetään toimintaa, jolla yksilö ilmaisee omistajuuden tunteitaan hänelle tärkeää ja merkityksellistä objektia kohtaan. Tutkimuksen perusteella perheenjäsenten välillä esiintyy reviirikäyttäytymistä. Luopuja ja seuraaja merkitsevät ja puolustavat reviireitään, sillä työtehtävistä ja vastuista joudutaan neuvottelemaan toisen osapuolen kanssa. Tutkimushavainnot selittävät luopujan ja seuraajan reviirikäyttäytymistä, ja auttavat ymmärtämään heidän tunteiden ja käyttäytymisen motiiveja. Lisäksi tutkimus kuvaa ja selittää reviirikäyttäytymisen seurauksia, jotka voivat olla sekä positiivisia että negatiivisia. Tutkimuksen loppuun on koottu neuvoja, joiden avulla perheyritykset pystyvät kohtaamaan sukupolvenvaihdoksiin kuuluvia inhimillisiä haasteita.

Work-related crisis exposure : psychological trauma and PTSD in news journalists

I avhandlingen undersöktes hur journalister själva reagerar efter att ha arbetat med en plötslig krissituation, samt vilka faktorer som kan bidra till en förhöjd risk för allvarliga långsiktiga stressymptom. Temat undersöktes (1) genom att se på hur journalisters tidigare erfarenheter av krisuppdrag och traumatiska upplevelser i privatlivet var relaterade till stressymptom (posttraumatiskt stressyndrom, sekundär traumatisk stress, depression och utmattningssyndrom), och (2) genom att studera riskfaktorer i en identifierad typ av kris, de finländska skolskjutningarna 2007-08. Avhandlingens resultat baserades på enkätsvar från finländska nyhetsjournalister (N = 503) och intervjuer med personer som jobbat på plats vid skolskjutningar (N = 28). En klar majoritet av journalisterna hade inte allvarliga långsiktiga stressymptom vid tiden för undersökningen. De som varit på ett tidigare krisuppdrag där man bevittnat många obehagliga detaljer hade fler allvarliga stressymptom. En annan riskfaktor var att ha ett förflutet med fler traumatiska händelser i privatlivet. Bland de som arbetat med skolskjutningar var starka kortsiktiga reaktioner, t.ex. hjälplöshet och chock, relativt vanliga. Reaktionerna hörde ändå oftast till den normala återhämtningsprocessen, och ledde inte till en långsiktig försämring av måendet. Journalister som i hög grad identifierade sig med krisen, t.ex. personer med egna barn, hade större risk för att drabbas av allvarliga symptom på lång sikt. Detsamma gällde de som på plats upplevt journalistiska etiska dilemman, t.ex. att beordras av överordnade till uppdrag som gick emot egna principer. För att förebygga psykisk stress bland journalister är det viktigt att inom branschen sprida kunskap om stressreaktioner och utveckla rekommendationer för etisk krisjournalistik. Därmed kan journalister få bättre verktyg för att minimera risken att via sitt yrkesutövande orsaka ytterligare skada åt krisdrabbade.

Sexual dysfunction in obese women is more affected by psychological domains than that of non-obese

Abstract PURPOSE: To compare differences in the occurrence and changed domains of sexual dysfunction in obese and non-obese Brazilian women. METHODS: Female Sexual Function Index, based on six domains, to investigate 31 sexual dysfunction incidence for obese compared to 32 non-obese women, was used. Statistical analysis using ANOVA and MANOVA were performed to compare total scores of Female Sexual Function Index among groups and to identify the differences among domains, Student t -test was used. Statistical significant level was established for all tests for p<0.05. RESULTS: No difference in female sexual dysfunction frequency between obese (25.8%) and non-obese women (22.5%) was found. However, an important distinction in which aspects of sexual life were affected was found. While the obese group was impaired in three domains of sexual life (desire, orgasm, and arousal), in the control group five aspects were dysfunctional (desire, orgasm, arousal, pain and lubrication). Future research exploring psychological outcomes in obese females, such as body image and measures of positive and negative effect, might better characterize the female sexual dysfunction in this group. CONCLUSIONS: Obesity does not appear to be an independent factor for allow quality of female sexual life. However, disturbance associated to obesity indicates a low frequency of disorder in physical domains, suggesting that psychological factors seem to be mainly involved in the sexual dysfunction in obese women.

Myyjien organisaatioon sitoutuminen ja esimiehen vaikutus sitoutumiseen. Case: Alko Oy

Tämän tutkielman tavoitteena on kuvata ja ymmärtää myyjien organisaatioon sitoutumista Alko Oy:ssä, sitä kuinka myyjät ovat sitoutuneita organisaatioon ja sitoutumiseen vaikuttavia tekijöitä. Tarkoituksena on selvittää ja ymmärtää esimiehen vaikutusta sitoutumiseen sekä sitä kuinka esimies voi edistää myyjien sitoutumista. Lisäksi tavoitteena on kartoittaa ja ymmärtää sitoutumisen seurauksia. Tutkimuksen teoreettinen viitekehys muodostuu organisaatioon sitoutumisen tutkimuksesta ja johtajuuden tutkimuksesta, erityisesti transformationaalisesta johtajuudesta ja sen vaikutuksesta sitoutumiseen. Tutkimus on luonteeltaan laadullinen ja pääasiallisena tutkimusmetodina on käytetty teemahaastattelua. Tutkimusaineisto kerättiin haastattelemalla 22 myyjää ja seitsemää esimiestä. Haastattelut nauhoitettiin ja litteroitiin. Haastattelujen lisäksi myyjille tehtiin kysely. Aineistoa analysoitiin teemoittain ja empiirisen aineiston analyysin tulkinta perustuu tutkimuksen teoreettiseen viitekehykseen. Tutkimustulosten mukaan myyjien sitoutuminen kohdeorganisaatiossa on hyvällä tai vähintään kohtuullisella tasolla ja se pohjautuu voimakkaimmin affektiiviseen ulottuvuuteen. Lisäksi sitoutuminen perustuu osittain jatkuvuuteen perustuvaan komponenttiin sekä pieneltä osin myös normatiiviseen. Affektiiviseen sitoutumiseen vaikuttavat merkittävimmin työn monipuolisuus, haastavuus ja mielekkyys, onnistumisen ja merkityksellisyyden tunteet sekä ilmapiiri. Jatkuvuuteen perustuvaan sitoutumiseen vaikuttavat eniten palkitseminen ja siihen liittyen osa-aikaisuus, joka jakoi myyjiä kahtia. Lisäksi työn monipuolisuudella, varmuudella sekä työllistymisvaihtoehdoilla ja perhesyillä on vaikutusta jatkuvuusperusteiseen sitoutumiseen. Normatiiviseen sitoutumiseen vaikuttavat voimakkaimmin positiivinen vapaaehtoinen vastavuoroisuus organisaatiota kohtaan sen toimintaan ja tekemiin investointeihin liittyen. Lisäksi normatiiviseen sitoutumiseen vaikuttavat sosialisaatio kasvatuksen myötä ja psykologinen sopimus odotuksineen. Esimiehen vaikutus sitoutumiseen korostuu tuloksissa ja esimiehen toiminnalla on merkittävin vaikutus affektiiviseen sitoutumiseen. Keskeisimpiä esimiehen vaikutuskeinoja myyjien sitoutumiseen ovat vastuun antaminen ja osallistaminen, palaute, avoin vuorovaikutus ja tiedonkulku sekä tasapuolisuus ja oikeudenmukaisuus toiminnassa. Myös esimiehen kannustavuus ja myyjien yksilöllinen huomiointi, osaamisen kehittämisen tukeminen sekä esimerkillinen toiminta ovat keskeisiä. Sitoutumisen seurauksista merkittävimpiä ovat vähäinen vaihtuvuus sekä työsuorituksen ja asiakaspalvelun laatu. Lisäksi organisaatiokansalaisuuskäyttäytymiseen liittyvät seikat, kuten parhaansa tekeminen, joustavuus ja itseohjautuvuus ovat keskeisiä sitoutumisen seurauksia.

Training executive functions in the laboratory and in real life : cognitive consequences of computer-based exercises and bilingualism

The question of the trainability of executive functions and the impact of such training on related cognitive skills has stirred considerable research interest. Despite a number of studies investigating this, the question has not yet been solved. The general aim of this thesis was to investigate two very different types of training of executive functions: laboratory-based computerized training (Studies I-III) and realworld training through bilingualism (Studies IV-V). Bilingualism as a kind of training of executive functions is based on the idea that managing two languages requires executive resources, and previous studies have suggested a bilingual advantage in executive functions. Three executive functions were studied in the present thesis: updating of working memory (WM) contents, inhibition of irrelevant information, and shifting between tasks and mental sets. Studies I-III investigated the effects of computer-based training of WM updating (Study I), inhibition (Study II), and set shifting (Study III) in healthy young adults. All studies showed increased performance on the trained task. More importantly, improvement on an untrained task tapping the trained executive function (near transfer) was seen in Study I and II. None of the three studies showed improvement on untrained tasks tapping some other cognitive function (far transfer) as a result of training. Study I also used PET to investigate the effects of WM updating training on a neurotransmitter closely linked to WM, namely dopamine. The PET results revealed increased striatal dopamine release during WM updating performance as a result of training. Study IV investigated the ability to inhibit task-irrelevant stimuli in bilinguals and monolinguals by using a dichotic listening task. The results showed that the bilinguals exceeded the monolinguals in inhibiting task-irrelevant information. Study V introduced a new, complementary research approach to study the bilingual executive advantage and its underlying mechanisms. To circumvent the methodological problems related to natural groups design, this approach focuses only on bilinguals and examines whether individual differences in bilingual behavior correlate with executive task performances. Using measures that tap the three above-entioned executive functions, the results suggested that more frequent language switching was associated with better set shifting skills, and earlier acquisition of the second language was related to better inhibition skills. In conclusion, the present behavioral results showed that computer-based training of executive functions can improve performance on the trained task and on closely related tasks, but does not yield a more general improvement of cognitive skills. Moreover, the functional neuroimaging results reveal that WM training modulates striatal dopaminergic function, speaking for training-induced neural plasticity in this important neurotransmitter system. With regard to bilingualism, the results provide further support to the idea that bilingualism can enhance executive functions. In addition, the new complementary research approach proposed here provides some clues as to which aspects of everyday bilingual behavior may be related to the advantage in executive functions in bilingual individuals.

The Anchoring Bias of Investors and the 52-Week High Momentum Strategy in the OMX Helsinki Stock Exchange: Psychological Approach to Market Efficiency

The behavioural finance literature expects systematic and significant deviations from efficiency to persist in securities markets due to behavioural and cognitive biases of investors. These behavioural models attempt to explain the coexistence of intermediate-term momentum and long-term reversals in stock returns based on the systematic violations of rational behaviour of investors. The study investigates the anchoring bias of investors and the profitability of the 52-week momentum strategy (GH henceforward). The relatively highly volatile OMX Helsinki stock exchange is a suitable market for examining the momentum effect, since international investors tend to realise their positions first from the furthest security markets by the time of market turbulence. Empirical data is collected from Thomson Reuters Datastream and the OMX Nordic website. The objective of the study is to provide a throughout research by formulating a self-financing GH momentum portfolio. First, the seasonality of the strategy is examined by taking the January effect into account and researching abnormal returns in long-term. The results indicate that the GH strategy is subject to significantly negative revenues in January, but the strategy is not prone to reversals in long-term. Then the predictive proxies of momentum returns are investigated in terms of acquisition prices and 52-week high statistics as anchors. The results show that the acquisition prices do not have explanatory power over the GH strategy’s abnormal returns. Finally, the efficacy of the GH strategy is examined after taking transaction costs into account, finding that the robust abnormal returns remain statistically significant despite the transaction costs. As a conclusion, the relative distance between a stock’s current price and its 52-week high statistic explains the profits of momentum investing to a high degree. The results indicate that intermediateterm momentum and long-term reversals are separate phenomena. This presents a challenge to current behavioural theories, which model these aspects of stock returns as subsequent components of how securities markets respond to relevant information.

Same- and Other-Sex Victimization : Risk Factors, Consequences, and Protection by Peers

Bullying can be viewed as goal-oriented behavior in the strive for dominance and prestige in the peer group (Salmivalli, 2010). To ensure the effectiveness of their power demonstrations, bullies often choose targets from among their vulnerable peers (Salmivalli, 2010; Veenstra et al., 2007). A large number of studies have also shown that victimization has severe consequences for the victims’ psychosocial adjustment (Reijntjes, Kamphuis, Prinzie, & Telch, 2010; Ttofi, Farrington, Lösel, & Loeber, 2011). In this thesis I investigate – based on three empirical studies – whether similar dynamics on the risk factors and consequences apply to same- and other-sex victimization. In the empirical studies, we used the data from the randomized control trial of the KiVa antibullying program for the elementary school grades 4–6 (2007–2008), and for the middle school grades 7–9 (2008–2009). We measured same- and other-sex victimization, and victims’ defending relationships by dyadic questions: “By which classmates are you victimized?” and “By which classmates are you supported, comforted, or defended?” In addition, we used self-reports and peer reports to measure adjustment and social status. The findings imply that other-sex victimization may be challenging for antibullying work. First, although targets of bullying seemed to be selected from among vulnerable peers for the most part, perceived popularity increased the risks of other-sex victimization. Popularity of these victims may falsely lead to an impression that the victims are doing well. Second, the consequences considering victims’ later psychosocial adjustment were alarming concerning girls bullied by boys. Thus, despite the fact that the targets may be perceived as popular, other-sex victimization can have even more severe consequences than same-sex victimization. Third, we found that defending relationships were mostly same-sex relationships, and consequently, we may ask whether defending is effective against other-sex bullies. Finally, the KiVa antibullying program was less effective against other-sex victimization in the adolescent sample. The findings altogether emphasize the importance of taking into account the sex composition of the bully-victim dyad, both considering future research on bullying and in the antibullying work with children and adolescents.

Infant Colic Crying and Gastrointestinal Tract – Causes, Consequences and Cure

Despite over 50 years of investigation, the precise cause of infant colic crying remains unresolved and the long-term consequences unrevealed, and an effective treatment is lacking. Indeed, a more profound understanding of the complex nature of infants’ excessive crying is needed. The purpose of this series of studies was to investigate the association between gut microbiota composition and infant crying, to evaluate the impact of colic crying on children’s later health and to study the possibilities of treating and preventing excessive crying with pro- and prebiotics. The material comprised three on-going, prospective randomized controlled trials of the probiotic Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (ATCC 53103, LGG) or a mixture of prebiotics administered in early infancy. The study populations consisted of term infants (n=89), preterm infants (n=94) and term colic infants (n=30). Early crying was found to be inversely associated with the number of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus. Furthermore, at the age of 13 years functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGID) were manifested more frequently among children with previous colic crying than in those without. In preterm infants pro- and prebiotic supplementation during the first months of life reduced the frequency of excessive crying when compared to placebo. In parallel, probiotic LGG in tandem with a cow’s milk elimination diet and behavioral counseling reduced the daily crying amount among term colic infants when compared to placebo. In conclusion, the composition of the gut microbiota is associated with infant crying and colic, and probiotic LGG might provide a safe and effective treatment or preventive option to alleviate excessive crying in early infancy in term and preterm infants. Furthermore, early colic crying might be associated with the later development of FGID.