Anger, hostility and aggression : the psychometric capabilities of a revised Buss-Durkee inventory

It would appear that the emotion 'anger* together with hostile attitudes and aggressive behaviors is receiving more attention in the clinical literature. Within clinics, themselves, more programs are being developed to deal with anger and its sequelae. This has lead to the need for psychometric devices to assess anger, etc., more meaningfully. The Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory was originally developed to assess certain aspects of anger but proved to, be psychometrically questionable. This device does, however, present an item pool that makes intuitive sense. The current project, then, did^y in essence: a) rewrite the items such that the behaviors may be ranked on a Likert-type scale (Research work has demonstrated the ambiguity and lack of power of true/false formats), and b) run a preliminary work-up on the revised test using participants from introductory psychology classes. This procedure was conducted in two stages, the first being an item analysis. This was done through a factor analysis; principal component with iteration followed by an oblique rotation. On this basis, factorially pure scales were generated. An analysis of the internal consistency of each new scale was then modified further to assure high homogeneity. Some preliminary validation was then assayed by correlating the scales with a related instrument developed by Novaco. It was expected that 'hostility-related* scales would correlate with this device. The second stage consisted of the revised scales being administered to a new group for cross-validation (that is, a corroborative factor analysis with oblique rotation was conducted). The internal consistency of the scales was analyzed further and an anova was run using the revised scales against gender and a measure developed by Crowne and Marlowe(1960) designed to detect the influence of item endorsement on the basis of social desirability

Genetic diversity and phylogeny of Aedes aegypti, the main arbovirus vector in the Pacific

Background The Pacific region is an area unique in the world, composed of thousands of islands with differing climates and environments. The spreading and establishment of the mosquito Aedes aegypti in these islands might be linked to human migration. Ae. aegypti is the major vector of arboviruses (dengue, chikungunya and Zika viruses) in the region. The intense circulation of these viruses in the Pacific during the last decade led to an increase of vector control measures by local health authorities. The aim of this study is to analyze the genetic relationships among Ae. aegypti populations in this region. Methodology/Principal Finding We studied the genetic variability and population genetics of 270 Ae. aegypti, sampled from 9 locations in New Caledonia, Fiji, Tonga and French Polynesia by analyzing nine microsatellites and two mitochondrial DNA regions (CO1 and ND4). Microsatellite markers revealed heterogeneity in the genetic structure between the western, central and eastern Pacific island countries. The microsatellite markers indicate a statistically moderate differentiation (FST = 0.136; P < = 0.001) in relation to island isolation. A high degree of mixed ancestry can be observed in the most important towns (e.g. Noumea, Suva and Papeete) compared with the most isolated islands (e.g. Ouvea and Vaitahu). Phylogenetic analysis indicated that most of samples are related to Asian and American specimens. Conclusions/Significance Our results suggest a link between human migrations in the Pacific region and the origin of Ae. aegypti populations. The genetic pattern observed might be linked to the island isolation and to the different environmental conditions or ecosystems

Male Mating Competitiveness of a Wolbachia-Introgressed Aedes polynesiensis Strain under Semi-Field Conditions

Aedes polynesiensis is the primary mosquito vector of lymphatic filariasis (LF) in the island nations of the South Pacific. Control of LF in this region of the world is difficult due to the unique biology of the mosquito vector. A proposed method to control LF in the Pacific is through the release of male mosquitoes that are effectively sterile. In order for this approach to be successful, it is critical that the modified male mosquitoes be able to compete with wild type male mosquitoes for female mates. In this study the authors examined the mating competitiveness of modified males under semi-field conditions. Modified males were released into field cages holding field-collected, virgin females and field collected wild type males. The resulting proportion of eggs that hatched was inversely related to the number of modified males released into the cage, which is consistent with the hypothesized competitiveness of modified males against indigenous males. The outcome indicates that mass release of modified A. polynesiensis mosquitoes could result in the suppression of A. polynesiensis populations and supports the continued development of applied strategies for suppression of this important disease vector

Proceedings of the joint WHO/TDR, NIAD, IAEA and Frontis workshop on bridging laboratory and field research for genetic control of disease vectors, Nairobi, Kenya 14-16 July 2004

Contemporary research on genetic control of disease-transmitting insects knows two kinds of scientists: those that work in the laboratory and those known as `field people¿. Over the last decade, both groups seem to have developed differing research priorities, address fundamentally different aspects within the overall discipline of infectious-disease control, and worse, have developed a scientific `language¿ that is no longer understood by the `other¿ party. This gap widens every day, between the North and the South, between ecologists and molecular biologists, geneticists and behaviourists, etc. The need to develop a common research agenda that bridges this gap has been identified as a top priority by all parties involved. Only then shall the goal of developing appropriate genetic-control strategies for vectors of disease become reality. This book is the reflection of a workshop, held in Nairobi (Kenya) in July 2004, that addressed the above issues. It brought together a good representation of both the molecular and ecological research disciplines and, for the first time, included a significant number of researchers from disease-endemic countries. The research agenda presented here will serve the research and science-policy communities alike, and guide sponsoring organizations with the selection of priority areas for research fundin

Identification and characterization of field sites for genetic control of disease vectors

Genetic control of disease vectors consists of a large variety of approaches. Each of these bring along an often-substantial number of prerequisites in order to stand a chance of being successful. Of the large number of trials documented, only few have taken the scale and scope of operation to sustain long-term area-wide benefits. Broadly speaking, two categories of issues will be faced by any genetic control programme when moving from the laboratory to the field: those that relate to biological and/or environmental factors and those that relate to stakeholder power. The ongoing debate on genetically engineered crops has heightened the interest of many (often antagonistic) stakeholders in the possible impact that biotechnological advances may have on society and the environment, which necessitates a much larger impetus towards stakeholder management. Identification of suitable field sites for anticipated genetic-control trials therefore requires a stepwise approach, which is outlined in this chapter. A coordinating entity, consisting of stakeholders from disease-endemic countries (DECs) and (inter)national experts, is urgently needed to provide support to governments in their decision-making process regarding geneticcontrol trials. Such entity should also serve a mediating function between researchers, end-users and influential stakeholders (e.g. press) in order to further the potential of biotechnological developments. Failure to steer this process efficiently may result in substantial opposition and stalling of progress, similar to hindrances experienced with the introduction of transgenic crops in the European Unio

Mathematical modelling of the mosquito Aedes polynesiensis in a heterogeneous environment

Background: The mosquito Aedes polynesiensis inhabits Pacific islands and territories and transmits arboviruses and parasites. In the context of rapid environmental change, understanding the effects of environmental heterogeneity on mosquitoes is crucial. Methods: First, empirical field data and remote sensing data were combined to model spatial heterogeneity in the environmental suitability for Ae. polynesiensis. Second, a model of mosquito population dynamics was applied to predict mosquito distributions over a heterogeneous landscape assuming different dispersal behaviours. Motu Tautau, French Polynesia, was used as a case study of the utility of this methodological approach. Ae. polynesiensis use land crab Cardisoma carnifex burrows for oviposition in French Polynesia; environmental suitability was therefore quantified using C. carnifex burrow density. Results: Micro-regions with large Ae. polynesiensis populations facilitated by high C. carnifex burrow density were accurately captured by our methodology. Preferential dispersal towards oviposition sites promoted larger population sizes than non-preferential dispersal but did not offer greater resilience to environmental change. Reduced environmental suitability for Ae. polynesiensis resulted in spatially non-linear effects upon the mosquito distribution. Conclusions: Environmental change has complex spatial effects upon mosquito populations. Mosquito control strategies must carefully balance spatial effects with net effects