Third annual report

A large share of the Director’s time last winter was occupied in work at farmer’s institutes; stock meetings, and horticultural meetings in different parts of the state, and in preparing for the Station work of last summer. We hauled 420 loads of manure last winter from Ames to the poorest parts of the Experiment Station grounds. The sowing of the different kinds of grain and grass seeds was the first field work which was performed last spring. Some of them were sowed early and others late. On a part of the plats they were planted thick and on others thin. And the preparation of the plats for the seeds varied much, as a part of them were plowed nine inches deep; while others were plowed only four inches, and a few of them were only well scratched with cultivators and harrows at seeding time. The number of kinds of grain which we planted were as follows: Oats thirty; spring wheat nine; barley eight; rye two, and field peas two. For the purpose of finding better fodder plants than many of the common kinds if possible, we planted twenty four kinds of field and garden bush beans, and twenty one kinds of peas; but the beaus proved partial failures on account of drouth, and the peas were ruined by rust. We planted five of the best kinds of den? corn and an equal number of varieties of sweet corn; as well as dent and sweet corn which was obtained by crossing kinds which had the most desirable characteristics in 1889 We planted also for trial fifty two kinds of potatoes, and many different varieties of sorghum, sugar beets, mangolds, carrots, tomatoes, etc

Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Paraprofessionals: An Empirical Comparison

This paper provides a comparative description of indigenous and nonindigenous paraprofessionals who were employed in a social service capacity in a large urban setting. Personal interviews were conducted with 88 paraprofessionals employed by the Fulton County Department of Family and Children Servives (Atlanta, Ga.). The primary variables discussed include an assessment of the respondent\u27s background, their present employment situation, experience with and attitudes toward welfare and general attitudinal measures. The results provide a basic demographic profile of the indigenous and non-indigenous paraprofessional and indicate their differing characteristics. Briefly, the indigenous respondents were less anomic, felt more efficacious in terms of helping clients, had a less favorable stance toward welfare, had less training and were considerably more more satisfied with their job than were their non-indigenous counterparts. Additionally, the implications of these findings and considerations which need to be explored in future research are discussed

Are obsessive-compulsive symptoms impulsive, compulsive or both?

BACKGROUND: The relationships between obsessive-compulsive symptoms and distinct forms of impulsivity and compulsivity are unclear. Such examination would be relevant in terms of how best to classify psychiatric disorders and in understanding candidate 'traits' that extend across a continuum between normalcy and clinical disorders. METHOD: 515 young adults (aged 18-29years) completed the Padua Inventory and undertook detailed clinical and neurocognitive assessments. Relationships between obsessive-compulsive symptoms and distinct types of impulsivity and compulsivity were evaluated using linear regression modeling. RESULTS: Obsessive-Compulsive symptoms were significantly predicted by female gender, lower quality of life, psychiatric disorders in general (but not impulse control disorders), and worse extra-dimensional set-shifting. Obsessive-Compulsive symptoms were not significantly predicted by alcohol/nicotine consumption, stop-signal reaction times, or decision-making abilities. CONCLUSION: These data indicate that obsessive-compulsive symptoms are more related to certain forms of compulsivity than to impulsivity. These findings have important implications for diagnostic conceptualizations and neurobiological models.This research was supported by a grant from the National Center for Responsible Gaming to Dr. Grant. Dr. Chamberlain’s involvement in this work was funded by a grant from the Academy of Medical Sciences, UK. Dr. Grant has received research grants from NIMH, National Center for Responsible Gaming, and Forest and Roche Pharmaceuticals Dr. Grant receives yearly compensation from Springer Publishing for acting as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Gambling Studies and has received royalties from Oxford University Press, American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc., Norton Press, and McGraw Hill. Dr. Chamberlain consults for Cambridge Cognition. The other authors have no disclosures.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2016.04.01

Problematic sexual behavior in young adults: Associations across clinical, behavioral, and neurocognitive variables.

A notable number of young adults struggle to control impulsive behavior, resulting in impairment and distress. Assessments of problematic sexual behavior (PSB) have noted clinical differences relative to other populations, but neurocognitive findings have varied. This analysis assesses the clinical presentation and neurocognitive profile of patients with PSB relative to participants without PSB symptoms. A total of 492 participants (18-29) were recruited for a study on impulsivity in young adults. Participants completed diagnostic, self-report, and neurocognitive measures which assessed several cognitive domains. PSB was defined as endorsing fantasies, urges, or sexual behavior that felt out of control or was causing distress. In the sample, 54 (11%) participants reported current PSB. This group was older, reported earlier sexual experiences and alcohol use, and lower quality of life and self-esteem. Comorbidity was greater in the PSB group, particularly for depression and alcohol dependence. The PSB group also showed differences in impulsivity, decision making, spatial working memory, problem solving, and emotional dysregulation. Results suggest associations between PSB psychosocial dysfunction, greater comorbidity, and neurocognitive differences. These associations suggest a more salient impact than typical sexual behavior. Furthermore, this study demonstrated several neurocognitive deficits in the PSB group which have found more mixed support previously.National Center for Responsible Gaming (Centers of Excellence in Gambling Research Grant)This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2016.09.04

Cognitive flexibility correlates with gambling severity in young adults.

Although gambling disorder (GD) is often characterized as a problem of impulsivity, compulsivity has recently been proposed as a potentially important feature of addictive disorders. The present analysis assessed the neurocognitive and clinical relationship between compulsivity on gambling behavior. A sample of 552 non-treatment seeking gamblers age 18-29 was recruited from the community for a study on gambling in young adults. Gambling severity levels included both casual and disordered gamblers. All participants completed the Intra/Extra-Dimensional Set Shift (IED) task, from which the total adjusted errors were correlated with gambling severity measures, and linear regression modeling was used to assess three error measures from the task. The present analysis found significant positive correlations between problems with cognitive flexibility and gambling severity (reflected by the number of DSM-5 criteria, gambling frequency, amount of money lost in the past year, and gambling urge/behavior severity). IED errors also showed a positive correlation with self-reported compulsive behavior scores. A significant correlation was also found between IED errors and non-planning impulsivity from the BIS. Linear regression models based on total IED errors, extra-dimensional (ED) shift errors, or pre-ED shift errors indicated that these factors accounted for a significant portion of the variance noted in several variables. These findings suggest that cognitive flexibility may be an important consideration in the assessment of gamblers. Results from correlational and linear regression analyses support this possibility, but the exact contributions of both impulsivity and cognitive flexibility remain entangled. Future studies will ideally be able to assess the longitudinal relationships between gambling, compulsivity, and impulsivity, helping to clarify the relative contributions of both impulsive and compulsive features.This research was supported by the National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG).This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2016.06.01

White matter tract integrity in treatment-resistant gambling disorder

Background Gambling disorder is a relatively common psychiatric disorder recently re-classified within the DSM-5 under the category of ‘substance-related and addictive disorders’. Aims To compare white matter integrity in patients with gambling disorder with healthy controls; to explore relationships between white matter integrity and disease severity in gambling disorder. Method In total, 16 participants with treatment-resistant gambling disorder and 15 healthy controls underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). White matter integrity was analysed using tract-based spatial statistics. Results Gambling disorder was associated with reduced fractional anisotropy in the corpus callosum and superior longitudinal fasciculus. Fractional anisotropy in distributed white matter tracts elsewhere correlated positively with disease severity. Conclusions Reduced corpus callosum fractional anisotropy is suggestive of disorganised/damaged tracts in patients with gambling disorder, and this may represent a trait/vulnerability marker for the disorder. Future research should explore these measures in a larger sample, ideally incorporating a range of imaging markers (for example functional MRI) and enrolling unaffected first-degree relatives of patients.This research was supported by a grant from the National Center for Responsible Gaming to Dr. Grant, and by a grant from the Academy of Medical Sciences to Dr. Chamberlain (UK). Dr. Grant has received research grants from NIMH, National Center for Responsible Gaming, and Forest and Roche Pharmaceuticals Dr. Grant receives yearly compensation from Springer Publishing for acting as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Gambling Studies and has received royalties from Oxford University Press, American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc., Norton Press, and McGraw Hill. Dr. Chamberlain consults for Cambridge Cognition. Mr. Odlaug has received a research grant from the Trichotillomania Learning Center, consults for H. Lundbeck A/S, and has received royalties from Oxford University Press. Mr. Leppink and Ms. Derbyshire report no conflicts of interest.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the Royal College of Psychiatrists via http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/bjp.bp.115.16550