Not All Fun and Games: Sexism and College Women\u27s Alcohol Consumption

Previous research has suggested that racial discrimination (Pascoe & Smart Richman, 2009) and sexist experiences (Zucker & Landry, 2007) are related to increased alcohol consumption. However, ambivalent sexism theory suggests that there are two forms of sexism (Glick & Fiske, 1996; 1997). While hostile sexism refers to overtly negative attitudes towards women, benevolent sexism refers to positively valenced attitudes towards women that still serve to reaffirm masculine dominance. Therefore, the current studies explore the differential effects of experiencing hostile vs. benevolent sexism on college women\u27s alcohol consumption using correlational (Study 1) and quasi-experimental (Study 2) methodologies. In addition, the current studies examine two potential mediators of these effects: anger (Barreto & Ellemers, 2005) and belongingness need threat (van Beest & Williams, 2006). Finally, stigma consciousness (Pinel, 1999) and collective self-esteem (Luhtanen & Crocker, 1992) are examined as potential moderators. Results of Study 1 suggest that hostile sexism experiences in everyday life are related to decreased alcohol consumption via their effects on anger while benevolent sexism experiences are related to increased alcohol consumption. Results of Study 2 suggest that experiencing either a hostile or a benevolent sexism manipulation is related to increased alcohol consumption that evening compared to the control condition

Cheers to Equality! Both Hostile and Benevolent Sexism Predict Increases in College Women’s Alcohol Consumption

Based on research suggesting that alcohol consumption can be used as a means of coping with negative affect (Cooper et al. 1995), the current study examines sexism as a factor in college women’s alcohol consumption. Despite being more prevalent than hostile sexism, benevolent sexism is often viewed as less sexist (Oswald et al. 2018) and having a less aversive impact on women (Bosson et al. 2010). To increase understanding of the negative effects of both hostile and benevolent sexism, the current study experimentally manipulated sexism during a lab session and measured 176 U.S. college women’s actual alcohol consumption that evening. As predicted, college women who experienced either the hostile or the benevolent sexism condition reported consuming a greater number of alcoholic drinks, and those in the hostile sexism condition were more likely to meet the binge drinking threshold than participants in the control condition. This pattern suggests the importance of examining the unique effects of benevolent sexism in addition to hostile sexism because both may influence women’s behavior even in important health domains. Given the many negative consequences associated with alcohol consumption, our results provide evidence for education on healthy coping mechanisms and interventions to reduce both hostile and benevolent sexism

Drinking to Belong: The Effects of Friendship Interactions on College Student Drinking

Previous research shows that college students consume large quantities of alcohol (Fillmore & Jude, 2011; Wechsler et al., 2002). One theory suggests that this may be a means of regulating negative emotions (Cooper, Frone, Russell, & Mudar, 1995), which may include unmet belongingness needs. However, implicit self-esteem has also been found to affect how people respond to relationship interactions (Longua Peterson & DeHart, 2013). Therefore, the current study examines the moderating influence of implicit self-esteem on the relation between belongingness needs and alcohol consumption among college students. A 2 (belongingness threat condition: threat or control) by continuous (implicit self-esteem) between-participants design was used. Participants (N = 195) were randomly assigned to either the threat or control condition. Analyses revealed that, among students in the friendship threat condition, implicit self-esteem was unrelated to the amount of time students spent drinking with friends or to feelings of acceptance the following day. However, among participants who spent more time drinking with friends, experiencing a friendship threat was related to increased alcohol consumption among students with low implicit self-esteem. Therefore, it seems that participants with low implicit self-esteem may not seek out interactions with friends in response to a friendship threat, but when they do spend more time drinking with friends, they may consume more alcohol

A qualitative exploration of the barriers and facilitators of community pharmacy PrEP delivery for pharmacists and community members

BACKGROUNDOral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) is only available free of charge in the United Kingdom from sexual health clinics. Expanding PrEP delivery to community pharmacies could be an effective way of improving access to PrEP and aligns well with the UK government goals for England to eliminate new cases of HIV by 2030. Using the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, Behaviour (COM-B) Model, the aim of this research was to explore the barriers and facilitators of community pharmacy PrEP delivery, perceived by pharmacists and community members underserved through current delivery models.METHODCommunity members at risk of acquiring HIV but not currently accessing PrEP and community pharmacists were recruited to participate in semi-structured open-ended interviews. Interviews were online, via phone or in person, were audio recorded, fully transcribed, and analysed using thematic analysis, informed by COM-B. RESULTSA total of 17 interviews with pharmacists (pharmacy owners n=7; employed pharmacists n=6; locums n=4) and 24 with community members (Black African women n=6; other women n=2; young adults aged 18- 25-years n=6; trans people n=6; street sex workers n=4) were conducted. Thematic analysis showed barriers include sub-optimal awareness and knowledge of PrEP, perceptions of pharmacist roles in delivering public health services (capability), lack of staff capacity, pharmacy facilities and privacy (opportunity), concern about being seen accessing PrEP from a pharmacy, a preference to access PrEP from a General Practitioner (GP) and a belief that pharmacy PrEP delivery could increase STIs (motivation). Facilitators included improving PrEP education and awareness (capability), the accessibility of pharmacies, being able to deliver PrEP via a patient group directive (PGD) (opportunity), a general preference for pharmacy PrEP and a belief that this model of delivery would be discrete, help decrease stigma and improve access to PrEP, particularly for those who felt uncomfortable accessing PrEP from sexual health clinics (motivation). CONCLUSIONPharmacy PrEP delivery is acceptable to pharmacists and community members but for it to be feasible, results point to the need for a behaviour change intervention incorporating education, training and awareness raising, for both pharmacists and community members to improve access, stimulate patient activation and de-stigmatise HIV and PrEP. <br/

fMRI evidence of ‘mirror’ responses to geometric shapes

Mirror neurons may be a genetic adaptation for social interaction [1]. Alternatively, the associative hypothesis [2], [3] proposes that the development of mirror neurons is driven by sensorimotor learning, and that, given suitable experience, mirror neurons will respond to any stimulus. This hypothesis was tested using fMRI adaptation to index populations of cells with mirror properties. After sensorimotor training, where geometric shapes were paired with hand actions, BOLD response was measured while human participants experienced runs of events in which shape observation alternated with action execution or observation. Adaptation from shapes to action execution, and critically, observation, occurred in ventral premotor cortex (PMv) and inferior parietal lobule (IPL). Adaptation from shapes to execution indicates that neuronal populations responding to the shapes had motor properties, while adaptation to observation demonstrates that these populations had mirror properties. These results indicate that sensorimotor training induced populations of cells with mirror properties in PMv and IPL to respond to the observation of arbitrary shapes. They suggest that the mirror system has not been shaped by evolution to respond in a mirror fashion to biological actions; instead, its development is mediated by stimulus-general processes of learning within a system adapted for visuomotor control

Widespread carbon-bearing materials on near-Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu

(101955) Bennu is a dark asteroid on an Earth-crossing orbit, thought to have assembled from the fragments of an ancient collision. We use spatially-resolved visible and near-infrared spectra of Bennu to investigate its surface properties and composition. In addition to a hydrated phyllosilicate band, we detect a ubiquitous 3.4-micron absorption feature, which we attribute to a mix of organic and carbonate materials. The shape and depth of this absorption feature vary across Bennu’s surface, spanning the range seen among similar main-belt asteroids. Its distribution does not correlate with temperature, reflectance, spectral slope, or hydrated minerals, although some of those characteristics correlate with each other. The deepest 3.4-micron absorptions occur on individual boulders. The variations may be due to differences in abundance, recent exposure, or space weathering

New insights into the classification and nomenclature of cortical GABAergic interneurons.

A systematic classification and accepted nomenclature of neuron types is much needed but is currently lacking. This article describes a possible taxonomical solution for classifying GABAergic interneurons of the cerebral cortex based on a novel, web-based interactive system that allows experts to classify neurons with pre-determined criteria. Using Bayesian analysis and clustering algorithms on the resulting data, we investigated the suitability of several anatomical terms and neuron names for cortical GABAergic interneurons. Moreover, we show that supervised classification models could automatically categorize interneurons in agreement with experts' assignments. These results demonstrate a practical and objective approach to the naming, characterization and classification of neurons based on community consensus

Impact of fatigue as the primary determinant of functional limitations among patients with post-COVID-19 syndrome: a cross-sectional observational study

OBJECTIVES: To describe self-reported characteristics and symptoms of treatment-seeking patients with post-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS). To assess the impact of symptoms on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and patients' ability to work and undertake activities of daily living. DESIGN: Cross-sectional single-arm service evaluation of real-time user data. SETTING: 31 post-COVID-19 clinics in the UK. PARTICIPANTS: 3754 adults diagnosed with PCS in primary or secondary care deemed suitable for rehabilitation. INTERVENTION: Patients using the Living With Covid Recovery digital health intervention registered between 30 November 2020 and 23 March 2022. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was the baseline Work and Social Adjustment Scale (WSAS). WSAS measures the functional limitations of the patient; scores of ≥20 indicate moderately severe limitations. Other symptoms explored included fatigue (Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue), depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-Eight Item Depression Scale), anxiety (Generalised Anxiety Disorder Scale, Seven-Item), breathlessness (Medical Research Council Dyspnoea Scale and Dyspnoea-12), cognitive impairment (Perceived Deficits Questionnaire, Five-Item Version) and HRQoL (EQ-5D). Symptoms and demographic characteristics associated with more severe functional limitations were identified using logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: 3541 (94%) patients were of working age (18-65); mean age (SD) 48 (12) years; 1282 (71%) were female and 89% were white. 51% reported losing ≥1 days from work in the previous 4 weeks; 20% reported being unable to work at all. Mean WSAS score at baseline was 21 (SD 10) with 53% scoring ≥20. Factors associated with WSAS scores of ≥20 were high levels of fatigue, depression and cognitive impairment. Fatigue was found to be the main symptom contributing to a high WSAS score. CONCLUSION: A high proportion of this PCS treatment-seeking population was of working age with over half reporting moderately severe or worse functional limitation. There were substantial impacts on ability to work and activities of daily living in people with PCS. Clinical care and rehabilitation should address the management of fatigue as the dominant symptom explaining variation in functionality