Gender differences and cultural contexts: psychological well-being in cross-national perspective

This study examines gender differences in psychological well-being and its causal factors in 33 countries. Previous studies documented women’s vulnerability in mental health, and according to social role explanations, gender differences in mental health are attributed to gendered socialization and gender roles assigned to men and women. Gender differences in mental health thus should disappear when we see gender-neutral socialization and social roles. I incorporate contextual factors, such as the country-level gender equality and gender norms, and argue that the effects of gender and family-related factors at the individual-level on psychological well-being are conditional on societal-level factors in each country. I hypothesize that gender differences in psychological well-being are smaller in countries with greater gender equality and more egalitarian gender norms. Utilizing data from the 2002 International Social Survey Program and multi-level modeling, I investigate how the contextual factors impact the effects of marriage, employment, and parenthood on psychological well-being for men and women. The results show that gender differences in mental health remain, though it is not as simple as women experiencing lower psychological well-being than men. Women show lower psychological well-being that is related to the extent of family responsibility, and caring roles are negatively associated with women’s psychological well-being more than men’s. Meanwhile, men indicate more stress with work responsibility, and provider roles have more impacts on males than females. I interpret these results to mean that the gendered socialization and gender roles still have strong influences on mental health and these are gender specific. In addition, more significant effects of the country-level variables--both direct and cross-level-- are found for the female sample, and the effects of gender equality and egalitarian gender norms on women’s psychological well-being are mixed. In other words, women in more egalitarian countries are not necessarily better in mental health than those in more traditional countries. These results suggest the polarization of women’s gender role preferences and work orientations, implying that women are more heterogeneous than men not only within country but also between countries

The Spatial Dynamics of High School Dropout: The Case of Rural Louisiana

This study uses data from the Louisiana Department of Education to conduct a spatial analysis of high school dropout. The paper suggests school-level factors influence dropout rates not only within their schools, but also more widely across schools in close proximity. These claims are tested in two distinct ways: (1) by comparing spatial cluster maps of dropout to measures of school processes, effectiveness, and structure and (2) by conducting spatial regression analysis to test whether spatial influences remain after considering school-level predictors of dropout. The findings show school processes, effectiveness, and structure all influence dropout rates. Moreover, findings demonstrate spatial patterns in rural high school dropout in Louisiana, suggesting the mechanisms driving dropout extend beyond the school level. These mechanisms may be related to rural labor market structures. Future research should focus more specifically on the link between shifting rural labor markets and high school outcome

Mutant analyses reveal different functions of fgfr1 in medaka and zebrafish despite conserved ligand–receptor relationships

AbstractMedaka (Oryzias latipes) is a small freshwater teleost that provides an excellent developmental genetic model complementary to zebrafish. Our recent mutagenesis screening using medaka identified headfish (hdf) which is characterized by the absence of trunk and tail structures with nearly normal head including the midbrain–hindbrain boundary (MHB). Positional-candidate cloning revealed that the hdf mutation causes a functionally null form of Fgfr1. The fgfr1hdf is thus the first fgf receptor mutant in fish. Although FGF signaling has been implicated in mesoderm induction, mesoderm is induced normally in the fgfr1hdf mutant, but subsequently, mutant embryos fail to maintain the mesoderm, leading to defects in mesoderm derivatives, especially in trunk and tail. Furthermore, we found that morpholino knockdown of medaka fgf8 resulted in a phenotype identical to the fgfr1hdf mutant, suggesting that like its mouse counterpart, Fgf8 is a major ligand for Fgfr1 in medaka early embryogenesis. Intriguingly, Fgf8 and Fgfr1 in zebrafish are also suggested to form a major ligand–receptor pair, but their function is much diverged, as the zebrafish fgfr1 morphant and zebrafish fgf8 mutant acerebellar (ace) only fail to develop the MHB, but develop nearly unaffected trunk and tail. These results provide evidence that teleost fish have evolved divergent functions of Fgf8–Fgfr1 while maintaining the ligand–receptor relationships. Comparative analysis using different fish is thus invaluable for shedding light on evolutionary diversification of gene function

Optimal waist circumference cut-off points and ability of different metabolic syndrome criteria for predicting diabetes in Japanese men and women: Japan Epidemiology Collaboration on Occupational Health Study

Abstract Background We sought to establish the optimal waist circumference (WC) cut-off point for predicting diabetes mellitus (DM) and to compare the predictive ability of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) criteria of the Joint Interim Statement (JIS) and the Japanese Committee of the Criteria for MetS (JCCMS) for DM in Japanese. Methods Participants of the Japan Epidemiology Collaboration on Occupational Health Study, who were aged 20–69 years and free of DM at baseline (n = 54,980), were followed-up for a maximum of 6 years. Time-dependent receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to determine the optimal cut-off points of WC for predicting DM. Time-dependent sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values for the prediction of DM were compared between the JIS and JCCMS MetS criteria. Results During 234,926 person-years of follow-up, 3180 individuals developed DM. Receiver operating characteristic analysis suggested that the most suitable cut-off point of WC for predicting incident DM was 85 cm for men and 80 cm for women. MetS was associated with 3–4 times increased hazard for developing DM in men and 7–9 times in women. Of the MetS criteria tested, the JIS criteria using our proposed WC cut-off points (85 cm for men and 80 cm for women) had the highest sensitivity (54.5 % for men and 43.5 % for women) for predicting DM. The sensitivity and specificity of the JCCMS MetS criteria were ~37.7 and 98.9 %, respectively. Conclusion Data from the present large cohort of workers suggest that WC cut-offs of 85 cm for men and 80 cm for women may be appropriate for predicting DM for Japanese. The JIS criteria can detect more people who later develop DM than does the JCCMS criteria

ホテイアオイ ノ セイイク ニ トモナウ サイバイエキ ノ ケイタイベツ チッソ ノ キョドウ

It was studied to examine the changes of nitrogen sources in water hyacinth aquatic treatment systems (cultured area ; 0.3m^2,initial value of water hyacinth ; 600g, contacting time ; about 24 hr.). Influent was introduced from outlet of extended-aeration plants. Results in growthing period of water hyacinth (from early summer to fall) are as follows : 1) Total nitrogen was decreased by approximately 4 mg/l (22%) in average. Ammonium nitrogen was decreased by 2.8 mg/l, but decrease of nitrate nitrogen was not seen. 2) In basic water (pH&gnE;6.5 ), decrease of ammonium nitrogen was seen remarkably. Conversely, decrease of nirate was seen slightly in acidic water (pH<6.5) according to t-test (risk rate : 10%). 3) It was suggested that nitrogen sources absorbed by water hyacinth were both ammonium nitrogen and nitrate, but rate of absorption by water hyacinth was depended to pH levels in culture water

ホテイアオイ ノ チッソ ジョキョノウ ニ タイスル カドミウム ノ エイキョウ

It was studied to examine the effects of cadmium for removal of nitrogen by water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) in plastic pots. In results, 1) Cadmium was absorbed by water hyacinth and was accumuiated in root mostly. The amounts of cadmium transfered from root to top were depended on the initial values in water. 2) The capacity for removal of nitrogen was dropped with increse of Cdamounts in water. 3) The growth of water hyacinth was suppressed in existence of cadmium of 0.25-1.00 mg/l

Field Effect of Alcohol, Cigarette Smoking, and Their Cessation on the Development of Multiple Dysplastic Lesions and Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Long-term Multicenter Cohort Study

[Background and Aims] Multiple developments of squamous dysplasia and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in the upper aerodigestive tract have been explained by field cancerization phenomenon and were associated with alcohol and cigarette use. Second primary SCC development after curative treatment impairs patients’ quality of life and survival; however, how these consumption and cessation affect field cancerization is still unknown. [Methods] This is a multicenter cohort study including 331 patients with superficial esophageal SCC (ESCC) treated endoscopically and pooled data from 1022 healthy subjects for comparison. Physiological condition in the background esophageal mucosa was classified into 3 groups based on the number of Lugol-voiding lesions (LVLs) per endoscopic view: grade A, 0; grade B, 1–9; or grade C, ≥10 LVLs. Lifestyle surveys were conducted using a self-administered questionnaire. Patients were counseled on the need for alcohol and smoking cessation by physicians and were endoscopically surveyed every 6 months. [Results] LVL grades were positively associated with alcohol drinking intensity, flushing reactions, smoking, and high-temperature food and were negatively associated with eating green and yellow vegetables and fruit. Second primary ESCC and head/neck SCC were significantly more prevalent in the grade C LVL (cumulative 5-y incidences 47.1%, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 38.0–57.2 and 13.3%, 95% CI = 8.1–21.5, respectively). Alcohol and smoking cessation significantly reduced the development of second primary ESCC (adjusted hazard ratios 0.47, 95% = CI 0.26–0.85 and 0.49, 95% CI = 0.26–0.91, respectively). [Conclusion] Alcohol drinking, smoking, flushing reaction, and high-temperature food were closely associated with field cancerization, and cessation of alcohol and smoking significantly reduced the risk of development of second primary cancer. UMIN Clinical Trials Registry ID:UMIN000001676