Attitudinal Ambivalence towards Turkey’s EU Membership

This article takes a comparative political behaviour approach to examine the multifaceted nature of Turkey's European Union (EU) membership bid from the perspective of the EU citizens. We propose a multidimensional explanation for EU citizens' attitude towards Turkey's membership by referring to the political psychology literature on attitudinal ambivalence. We examine whether EU citizens simultaneously hold multiple and conflicting considerations on Turkey's EU accession bid, and whether this ambivalence has attitudinal consequences. To that end, we use the Eurobarometer 66.1 data set to analyze the EU public attitudes on various aspects of possible Turkish EU membership. The findings show that the EU citizens maintain ambivalent views about Turkish membership across three domain pairs: economy-security, immigration-security and population-culture. The significant impact of these ambivalence domains on increasing support for Turkey's membership to the EU is further discussed in the article

The Effect of Social Networks on the Quality of Political Thinking

In this article we investigate the effect of social networks on the quality of political thinking. First, the article introduces new social network concepts into the literature and develops the corresponding measures. Second, the article explores the quality of political thinking as a concept and develops its measures based on the volume and the causality of thoughts, and their integrative complexity. We make use of a survey to collect information on social networks and the experimental manipulation controls for the effect of policy frames. Our findings consistently show the significant negative impact of cohesive social networks on the quality of policy-relevant thinking. We conclude that close-knit social networks could create social bubbles that would limit how one communicates with others and reasons about politics

Research Methods in Political Psychology

Given the interdisciplinary nature of political psychology research, the methods employed to produce scientific knowledge should be able to answer the questions raised in the discipline. The multitude of methods used in political psychology offers a variety of options for those interested in conducting research in political science. This article explains the basic structure of experimental design, survey research, and content analysis and briefly discusses the recent developments and interest growing on certain methods in the discipline. Each method is discussed in detail to the extent that would be sufficient to understand what one could achieve by using it

Adolesan Çocuklarda Hepatit B Belirteçlerinin İncelenmesi-Düzce Üniversitesi Hastanesi 5 Yıllık Sonuçlar

Amaç: Hepatit B virüsü (HBV), akut ve kronik karaciğer hastalığının ve bunlara bağlı morbidite ve mortalitenin başlıca nedenidir. Ülkemizde 1998 yılında Hepatit B aşısı rutin aşı takvimine alındı. Bu çalışmada, ülkemizde Hepatit B aşısı uygulanmaya başlandıktan sonra doğan çocuklardaki Hepatit B belirteçlerinin değerlendirilmesini amaçladık.Gereç ve Yöntemler: Düzce Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Çocuk Polikliniklerine başvurup HBV seroloji testleri yapılan, rutin aşı takviminde aksama olmayan ve yaşları 10-19 arasında olan 310 çocuğun Hepatit B belirteçleri değerlendirildi. Çocukların tam aşılı sayılabilmeleri için 1999 ve sonrası doğumlu olanlar çalışmaya dahil edildi. Aynı hastanın farklı zamanlarda yapılan değerlendirmeleri çalışma dışı bırakıldı.Bulgular: Çalışmaya 166 (%53,5) erkek ve 144 (%46,5) kız toplam 310 çocuk alındı. Çocukların 192’sinde anti-HBs pozitif (%61,9), 118’inde (%38,1) negatif saptandı. Cinsiyetler açısından anti-HBs ve HBsAg pozitifliği karşılaştırıldığında anlamlı fark bulunmadı. Sonuç: Hepatit B aşısı sonrası bireylerin seropozitiflik durumları üzerine günümüzde fazla araştırma yapılmıyor olsa da çalışmamızda saptanan anti-HBs pozitiflik oranları; geniş bir popülasyonda yeni bir çalışma planlanarak aşılama sonrası anti-HBs düzeyinin değerlendirilmesinin tekrar gündeme gelmesini, belki de kişiden kaynaklanan sigara içme, fazla kilo problemi veya aşıların uygulanması yönünden kaynaklanan aşı transportu, saklama ve uygulama problemleri gibi sorunların ortaya çıkmasını sağlayarak, toplumda saptanan pozitif anti-HBs yüzdesinin istenilen düzeye gelmesini sağlayacaktır.Aim: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is the main cause of acute and chronic liver disease and associated with morbidity and mortality. Hepatitis B vaccine was included in the routine vaccination schedule in 1998 in our country, In this study, we aimed to evaluate the Hepatitis B markers in children born after hepatitis B vaccination was included in vaccination schedule in our country. Material and Methods: Hepatitis B markers of 310 children, between the ages of 10-19 who were admitted to Düzce University Medical Faculty Pediatric Outpatient Clinics, were evaluated. Children born after 1999 were included in the study, so that they can be considered fully vaccinated. Evaluations of the same patient at different times were excluded from the study. Results: A total of 310 children, 166 (53.5%) boys and 144 (46.5%) girls, were included in the study. Anti-HBs was positive in 192 (61.9%) of the children, and negative in 118 (38.1%). When anti-HBs and HBsAg positivity were compared in terms of gender, no significant difference was found. Conclusion: Although there is not much research today on the seropositivity of individuals after hepatitis B vaccine, we hope that the anti-HBs positivity rates found in our study; will lead to plan new studies in a large population about the positivity of anti-HBs detected in the society, with considering the effect of the emergence problems such as smoking, overweight problem or vaccine transport, storage and administration of vaccines on anti-HBs positivity rates, and will ensure that the percentage reaches to desired level

Adrenocortical hormone profiles do not predict the molecular etiology in non-CAH primary adrenal insufficiency

Background: Primary adrenal insufficiency other than congenital adrenal hyperplasia (non-CAH PAI) is very uncommon in children but associated with a variety of molecular defects. Biosynthesis of adrenocortical hormones is reduced although the relation of steroid profiles with underlying molecular etiology is not yet studied. Objective: Investigation of clinical and steroid hormone profiles of a multicenter cohort of children with non-CAH PAI. Design: Patients with CAH, adrenoleukodystrophy, autoimmune adrenal insufficiency or obvious syndromic PAI on clinical and biochemical assessment were excluded. Genetic analysis was performed using either targeted gene panel or whole-exome sequencing. Plasma adrenal steroids were quantified by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and compared to that of controls. Setting: Sixteen tertiary pediatric endocrinology clinics. Patients: Forty-one children (19 females, median age: 3 months, range: 0-8 years) with non-CAH PAI of unknown etiology. Results: A genetic diagnosis was obtained in 29 (68%) patients by targeted gene panel. Further molecular diagnosis could not be achieved by WES. The range of etiologies was: MC2R (n = 6), StAR (n = 6), NNT (n = 3), NR0B1 (n = 3), CYP11A1 (n = 2), MRAP (n = 2), SGPL1 (n = 2), ABCD1 (n = 1), AIRE (n = 1), AAAS (n = 1), HSD3B2 (n = 1). Steroid profiling demonstrated low levels in all adrenocortical steroid hormones irrespective of age and not varied among the genetic etiologies except two patients with new-onset symptoms of PAI due to homozygous c.518T>A(p.Leu173Gln) SGPL1, and hemizygous c.1772G>T(p.Arg591Leu) ABCD1 defects, and another patient with non-classic non-CAH PAI due to homozygous c.1351C>T (p.Arg451Trp) variant in CYP11A1. Compared to age-matched healthy control group in whom steroid hormone concentrations are physiologically low, the patient group had even lower steroid concentrations, most significantly in cortisone, cortisol, and corticosterone (P 95% specificity to segregate non-CAH PAI patients compared to control groups. Conclusion: Adrenocortical hormone profiles are highly sensitive for the diagnosis of non-CAH PAI, while, in contrast to CAH, they are unlikely to point out a specific molecular diagnosis. Targeted gene panel sequencing is an undisputed optimal approach in the molecular diagnosis of non-CAH PAI with low cost and high efficacy, while little additional benefit is expected from whole-exome sequencing. Further progress can be made, mainly by more collaboration and exchanging knowledge for delineation of rare causes of primary adrenal insufficiency

Steroid hormone profiles and molecular diagnostic tools in pediatric patients with non-CAH primary adrenal insufficiency

CONTEXT: There is a significant challenge of attributing specific diagnoses to patients with primary adrenal insufficiency of unknown etiology other than congenital adrenal hyperplasia (non-CAH PAI). Specific diagnoses per se may guide personalized treatment or may illuminate pathophysiology. OBJECTIVE: This work aimed to investigate the efficacy of steroid hormone profiles and high-throughput sequencing methods in establishing the etiology in non-CAH PAI of unknown origin. METHODS: Pediatric patients with non-CAH PAI whose etiology could not be established by clinical and biochemical characteristics were enrolled. Genetic analysis was performed using targeted-gene panel sequencing (TPS) and whole-exome sequencing (WES). Plasma adrenal steroids were quantified by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and compared to that of controls. This study comprised 18 pediatric endocrinology clinics with 41 patients (17 girls, median age: 3 mo, range: 0-8 y) with non-CAH PAI of unknown etiology. RESULTS: A genetic diagnosis was obtained in 29 (70.7%) patients by TPS. Further molecular diagnosis could not be achieved by WES. Compared to a healthy control group, patients showed lower steroid concentrations, most statistically significantly in cortisone, cortisol, and corticosterone (P < .0001, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve: .96, .88, and .87, respectively). Plasma cortisol of less than 4 ng/mL, cortisone of less than 11 ng/mL, and corticosterone of less than 0.11 ng/mL had a greater than 95% specificity to ensure the diagnosis of non-CAH PAI of unknown etiology. CONCLUSION: Steroid hormone profiles are highly sensitive for the diagnosis of non-CAH PAI of unknown etiology, but they are unlikely to point to a specific molecular diagnosis. TPS is an optimal approach in the molecular diagnosis of these patients with high efficacy, whereas little additional benefit is expected from WES