The Polarizing Effect of Arousal on Negotiation

In this research, we examined the impact of physiological arousal on negotiation outcomes. Conventional wisdom and the prescriptive literature suggest that arousal should be minimized given its negative effect on negotiations, whereas prior research on misattribution of arousal suggests that arousal might polarize outcomes, either negatively or positively. In two experiments, we manipulated arousal and measured its effect on subjective and objective negotiation outcomes. Our results support the polarization effect. When participants had negative prior attitudes toward negotiation, arousal had a detrimental effect on outcomes, whereas when participants had positive prior attitudes toward negotiation, arousal had a beneficial effect on outcomes. These effects occurred because of the construal of arousal as negative or positive affect, respectively. Our findings have important implications not only for negotiation, but also for research on misattribution of arousal, which previously has focused on the target of evaluation, in contrast to the current research, which focused on the critical role of the perceiver

The Impact of Gamma Radiation on Sediment Microbial Processes

Microbial communities have the potential to control the biogeochemical fate of some radionuclides in contaminated land scenarios or in the vicinity of a geological repository for radioactive waste. However, there have been few studies of ionizing radiation effects on microbial communities in sediment systems. Here, acetate and lactate amended sediment microcosms irradiated with gamma radiation at 0.5 or 30 Gy h(−1) for 8 weeks all displayed NO(3)(−) and Fe(III) reduction, although the rate of Fe(III) reduction was decreased in 30-Gy h(−1) treatments. These systems were dominated by fermentation processes. Pyrosequencing indicated that the 30-Gy h(−1) treatment resulted in a community dominated by two Clostridial species. In systems containing no added electron donor, irradiation at either dose rate did not restrict NO(3)(−), Fe(III), or SO(4)(2−) reduction. Rather, Fe(III) reduction was stimulated in the 0.5-Gy h(−1)-treated systems. In irradiated systems, there was a relative increase in the proportion of bacteria capable of Fe(III) reduction, with Geothrix fermentans and Geobacter sp. identified in the 0.5-Gy h(−1) and 30-Gy h(−1) treatments, respectively. These results indicate that biogeochemical processes will likely not be restricted by dose rates in such environments, and electron accepting processes may even be stimulated by radiation

Acid-Suppressing Agents and Risk for Clostridium difficile Infection in Pediatric Patients

Background. Acid-suppressing agents have been associated with increased Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) in adults. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of acid-suppressing therapy with the development of CDI in the pediatric population. Methods. This was a retrospective case-control study. Children aged 1 through 17 years with a positive C difficile polymerase chain reaction (PCR) result obtained between June 1, 2008, and June 1, 2012, were randomly matched to a control population selected from patients with negative PCR. Results. A total of 458 children were included. No difference was observed in acid-suppressive therapy prior to PCR in CDI-positive versus -negative patients (n = 131 [57.2%] vs n = 121 [52.8%], P = .348). Among patients receiving acid-suppressing therapy prior to obtaining a PCR, no difference was observed in proton pump inhibitor use (45% vs 46.3%, P = .843), but histamine-2 receptor antagonist (H2RA) use was greater in the CDI-positive patients (32.8% vs 14.9%, P = .001). Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that H2RA therapy at home (odds ratio = 4.6; 95% confidence interval = 1.5-14.5) was an independent CDI predictor. Conclusion. In this pediatric population, CDI risk in children receiving home acid-suppressive therapy with H2RAs is nearly 4.5 times greater than that of children not receiving H2RA therapy. These results suggest the need for continued monitoring and study of H2RA therapy in children

Measurement of nitrate and nitrite in biopsy-sized muscle samples using HPLC

Studies of rats have indicated that skeletal muscle plays a central role in whole-body nitrate ( NO−3 )/nitrite ( NO−2 )/nitric oxide (NO) metabolism. Extending these results to humans, however, is challenging due to the small size of needle biopsy samples. We therefore developed a method to precisely and accurately quantify NO−3 and NO−2 in biopsy-sized muscle samples. NO−3 and NO−2 were extracted from rat soleus samples using methanol combined with mechanical homogenization + ultrasound, bead beating, pulverization at liquid N2 temperature or pulverization + 0.5% Triton X-100. After centrifugation to remove proteins, NO−3 and NO−2 were measured using HPLC. Mechanical homogenization + ultrasound resulted in the lowest NO−3 content (62 ± 20 pmol/mg), with high variability [coefficient of variation (CV) >50%] across samples from the same muscle. The NO−2 / NO−3 ratio (0.019 ± 0.006) was also elevated, suggestive of NO−3 reduction during tissue processing. Bead beating or pulverization yielded lower NO−2 and slightly higher NO−3 levels, but reproducibility was still poor. Pulverization + 0.5% Triton X-100 provided the highest NO−3 content (124 ± 12 pmol/mg) and lowest NO−2 / NO−3 ratio (0.008 ± 0.001), with the least variability between duplicate samples (CV ~15%). These values are consistent with literature data from larger rat muscle samples analyzed using chemiluminescence. Samples were stable for at least 5 wk at -80°C, provided residual xanthine oxidoreductase activity was blocked using 0.1 mmol/l oxypurinol. We have developed a method capable of measuring NO−3 and NO−2 in <1 mg of muscle. This method should prove highly useful in investigating the role of skeletal muscle in NO−3 / NO−2 /NO metabolism in human health and disease. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Measurement of nitrate and especially nitrite in small, i.e., biopsy-sized, muscle samples is analytically challenging. We have developed a precise, accurate, and convenient method for doing so using an affordable commercial HPLC system

The effects of social fear, maternal warmth, and biological sex on the development of social withdrawal in middle childhood

Research has demonstrated a relation between the social fear aspect of temperament and the development of behavioral withdrawal. However, discontinuity in this pathway exists, indicating that different factors must influence the extent of the effect of this relationship. Maternal behaviors such as warmth and positivity may buffer against the risk of becoming socially withdrawn in middle childhood, and sex may affect the way a caregiver responds to a child when distressed, through differing processes of emotion socialization. The primary goal of the proposed study was to investigate the influence of social fear, maternal warmth, and the sex of the child on the development of childhood behavioral withdrawal. The proposed study examined the effects of social fear at age 2 on behavioral withdrawal at age 7, and specifically assessed the moderating effect of maternal warmth and positivity at age 4 and the sex of the child on this relation. Mother report of social fear, teacher report of withdrawal, and observed maternal warmth during mother-child interaction tasks were utilized in this study. A significant three-way interaction between sex, fear, and warmth was found, upon probing, the interaction was only significant for boys. Further, among boys, the interaction was not significant at low levels of maternal warmth, but achieved trend level significance at high levels of maternal warmth. The implications of these results for the understanding of how behavioral withdrawal develops are discussed

Weight in childhood and its association with social anxiety in adolescence: pathways examining withdrawal and social stress

Evidence from the field of developmental psychopathology suggests that a diathesis-stress model is one effective way to investigate pathways to maladaptive outcomes. Social anxiety, defined as fear experienced during social interaction because of concern of being judged negatively or humiliated by others, is one maladaptive outcome that emerges in adolescence and interferes with adaptive social and academic functioning. Social anxiety is thought to result from a combination of factors, which can include withdrawn behavior and negative social experiences. However, greater weight, traditionally considered a risk factor for physical health problems, also functions as a precipitating factor in childhood for the development of social anxiety in adolescence. The current study used a path analysis to examine the indirect effect of social withdrawal on the association between greater weight at age 10 and increased social anxiety at age 17, and whether this indirect effect was conditional on the child’s self-report of social stress at age 10. Weight was assessed through BMI. Social anxiety was assessed via self-report scores on the MASC Social Anxiety scale. Social withdrawal was assessed through mother report on the CBCL Withdrawn/Depressed scale. Social stress was assessed using the self-report form of the BASC-2 Social Stress scale. Although an indirect effect of BMI on social anxiety was initially found through withdrawal, a multigroup analysis by sex demonstrated that while higher BMI predicted greater social withdrawal for boys, this path was not significant for girls. Differently, while greater withdrawal predicted greater social anxiety for girls, this effect was not found for boys. BMI did not interact with social stress to predict withdrawal for boys or girls, nor did BMI at age 10 predict social anxiety at age 17. Implications for future research examining the role of weight in understanding the development of social anxiety through the social domain are discussed

‘Engage the World’: examining conflicts of engagement in public museums

Public engagement has become a central theme in the mission statements of many cultural institutions, and in scholarly research into museums and heritage. Engagement has emerged as the go-to-it-word for generating, improving or repairing relations between museums and society at large. But engagement is frequently an unexamined term that might embed assumptions and ignore power relationships. This article describes and examines the implications of conflicting and misleading uses of ‘engagement’ in relation to institutional dealings with contested questions about culture and heritage. It considers the development of an exhibition on the Dead Sea Scrolls by the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto in 2009 within the new institutional goal to ‘Engage the World’. The chapter analyses the motivations, processes and decisions deployed by management and staff to ‘Engage the World’, and the degree to which the museum was able to re-think its strategies of public engagement, especially in relation to subjects,issues and publics that were more controversial in nature

Prescription drug monitoring program inquiry in psychiatric assessment: detection of high rates of opioid prescribing to a dual diagnosis population

OBJECTIVE: An epidemic of prescription drug abuse is disproportionately impacting the mentally ill. We examined the utility of a state prescription drug monitoring database for assessing recent controlled substance prescribing to patients presenting for dual diagnosis treatment. METHOD: In a community mental health center that provides integrated dual diagnosis care, we queried the Indiana Scheduled Prescription Electronic Collection and Tracking (INSPECT) system for all cases that were open as of August 2, 2011, and had been practitioner-diagnosed (per DSM-IV criteria) by January 2, 2012. INSPECT provided a record of controlled substance dispensations to each patient; diagnostic evaluation was conducted blind from prescription data compilation covering the prior 12 months. Demographic data, insurance status, and DSM-IV diagnoses were compiled from the clinic's electronic medical record. RESULTS: The sample (N = 201) was 51% female, 56% white, and two-thirds uninsured. Over 80% were dually diagnosed with substance use disorders and psychotic, mood, or anxiety disorders. Nicotine and alcohol disorders were identified in most, with about a third diagnosed with cannabis, cocaine, or opioid disorders. A majority of patients (n = 115) had been prescribed opioids in the prior year, with nearly 1 in 5 prescribed an opioid and benzodiazepine simultaneously. Patients were dispensed a mean of 4 opioid prescriptions and 213 opioid pills. More opioid prescriptions correlated with opioid dependence (OR = 1.08; 95% CI, 1.016-1.145), and more prescribers correlated with personality disorder diagnoses (OR = 1.112; 95% CI, 1.001-1.235). Higher rates and riskier patterns of controlled substance prescribing were identified in patients with Medicaid/Medicare insurance compared to uninsured patients. CONCLUSIONS: Prescription drug monitoring is a powerful tool for assessing addictions and high frequencies of patient exposures to prescribed opioids in a dual diagnosis clinic. Improved prevention and treatment strategies for addictions as facilitated by more research and clinical use of prescription drug monitoring in psychiatric care are warranted

How Will the SCOTUS Affirmative Action Ruling Affect the Integrity of University Leaders?

On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court of the United States (“SCOTUS”) ruled on addressing the legality of race-conscious affirmative action in college admissions programs in Students for Fair Admission, Inc. Based on the ruling, our study examined the literature to answer one research question: How will the SCOTUS affirmative action ruling affect the integrity of university leaders? We now understand how post-affirmative action could affect the integrity of university leaders. We now know more about (1) leaders’ perspectives post-SCOTUS ruling, (2) leaders’ influences on the educational culture, and (3) the effects that leaders’ integrity could have after the SCOTUS Title VI 2023 ruling. We make five conjectures about what we believe will guide university leaders’ integrity post-SCOTUS ruling