An Examination of Gender Differences in the Construct Validity of the Silencing the Self Scale

Jack’s (1991) theory of self-silencing was originally designed to explain higher rates of depression in women in comparison to men. However, research finding that men score equal or even higher than women on measures of self-silencing has led theorists to speculate that self-silencing tendencies may be driven by different motivations and have different consequences for women versus men (Jack & Ali, 2010). Using a sample of 247 college students, we examined gender differences in the construct validity of the Silencing the Self Scale (STSS; Jack & Dill, 1992). We hypothesized that women would score higher on the Externalized Self-Perception subscale, but not in the other three subscales. Gender differences in the relationship between the STSS subscales and theoretically relevant constructs were also explored. The results indicated that women on average scored higher than men on the Externalized Self-Perception subscale, whereas men scored higher on the Care as Self-Sacrifice subscale. Further, there was a significant Gender × Care as Self-Sacrifice subscale interaction in the prediction of depression, such that this subscale was negatively correlated to depression in men and uncorrelated in women. These results clarify how self-silencing might translate into different mental health outcomes for women and men. Highlights: As hypothesized, women scored higher on the Externalized Self-Perception subscale of the STSS. * We examined Gender × Subscale interactions in prediction of theoretically-relevant constructs. * The Gender × Care as Self-Sacrifice subscale interaction significantly predicted depression

The structure of Organizational Virtual Social Networks

Organizational virtual social networks (OVSN) reshape social structures due to their ability to strengthen social ties, to change power relations and to enable new forms of cooperation. Research in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) has led to various approaches that analyze the impact of OVSN on organizations in terms of structure and behavior. Our study aims to analyze important features related to the structure of OVSN. It also aims to strengthen a network approach to analyze organizational phenomena such as working groups and connected individuals, as well as the impact of online networks in organizations. This study was based on the lines of approach described by Oinas-Kukkonen et al. (2010) and on the research carried out by Bobsin & Hoppen (2012) to understand the process of structuring OVSN. Our main results are an OVSN structure consisting of actors and roles, interactions, operating elements and articulating goals. We also analyzed some structural elements of networks which may contribute to the development of a network based approach to study organizational phenomena

Project overview and update on WEAVE: the next generation wide-field spectroscopy facility for the William Herschel Telescope

We present an overview of and status report on the WEAVE next-generation spectroscopy facility for the William Herschel Telescope (WHT). WEAVE principally targets optical ground-based follow up of upcoming ground-based (LOFAR) and space-based (Gaia) surveys. WEAVE is a multi-object and multi-IFU facility utilizing a new 2-degree prime focus field of view at the WHT, with a buffered pick-and-place positioner system hosting 1000 multi-object (MOS) fibres, 20 integral field units, or a single large IFU for each observation. The fibres are fed to a single spectrograph, with a pair of 8k(spectral) x 6k (spatial) pixel cameras, located within the WHT GHRIL enclosure on the telescope Nasmyth platform, supporting observations at R~5000 over the full 370-1000nm wavelength range in a single exposure, or a high resolution mode with limited coverage in each arm at R~20000. The project is now in the final design and early procurement phase, with commissioning at the telescope expected in 2017.Comment: 11 pages, 11 Figures, Summary of a presentation to Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation 201

A practical guide to analysing online support forums

As the number of online support forums continues to grow and the amount of user-generated content increases, analysing forum messages can provide researchers and others working in health-related fields with important new insights into the needs, opinions and experiences of individuals who use them. There has been a lack of guidance regarding how to make the best use of user-generated content within forums as a data source in research studies, so this paper explains the practical, ethical and methodological issues associated with this type of research. It describes the benefits of forum research, the organisational structure of forums, how forums are selected for research, approaches to sampling, preparing data for analysis, and methods of analysis that can be used. The decisions that researchers need to make during each stage of the research process are explained, describing the options available and the ethical dilemmas that need to be considered to successfully develop, carry out and complete a research project

Effect of Multivitamin Supplementation on Measles Vaccine Response among HIV-exposed Uninfected Tanzanian Infants.

Immunization and nutritional interventions are mainstays of child health programs in sub-Saharan Africa, yet few published data exist on their interactions. HIV-exposed (but uninfected) infants enrolled in a randomized placebo-controlled trial of multivitamin supplements (vitamins B complex, C, and E) conducted in Tanzania were sampled for an assessment of measles IgG quantity and avidity at 15 to 18 months. Infants were vaccinated between 8.5 and 12 months of age, and all mothers received high-dose multivitamins as the standard of care. Of 201 HIV-exposed infants who were enrolled, 138 (68.7%) were seropositive for measles. There were no effects of infant multivitamin supplementation on measles seroconversion proportions, IgG concentrations, or IgG avidity (P > 0.05). The measles seroconversion proportion was greater for HIV-exposed infants vaccinated at 10 to 11 months of age than for those vaccinated at 8.5 to 10 months (P = 0.032) and greater for infants whose mothers had a CD4 T-cell count of <200 cells/μl than for infants whose mothers had a CD4 T-cell count of >350 cells/μl (P = 0.039). Stunted infants had a significantly decreased IgG quantity compared to nonstunted infants (P = 0.012). As for measles avidity, HIV-exposed infants vaccinated at 10 to 11 months had increased antibody avidity compared to those vaccinated at 8.5 to 10 months (P = 0.031). Maternal CD4 T-cell counts of <200 cells/μl were associated with decreased avidity compared to counts of >350 cells/μl (P = 0.047), as were lower infant height-for-age z-scores (P = 0.016). Supplementation with multivitamins containing B complex, C, and E does not appear to improve measles vaccine responses for HIV-exposed infants. Studies are needed to better characterize the impact of maternal HIV disease severity on the immune system development of HIV-exposed infants and the effect of malnutrition interventions on vaccine responses. (This study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under registration no. NCT00197730.)

Liquid exfoliation of solvent-stabilized few-layer black phosphorus for applications beyond electronics

Few-layer black phosphorus (BP) is a new two-dimensional material which is of great interest for applications, mainly in electronics. However, its lack of environmental stability severely limits its synthesis and processing. Here we demonstrate that high-quality, few-layer BP nanosheets, with controllable size and observable photoluminescence, can be produced in large quantities by liquid phase exfoliation under ambient conditions in solvents such as N-cyclohexyl-2-pyrrolidone (CHP). Nanosheets are surprisingly stable in CHP, probably due to the solvation shell protecting the nanosheets from reacting with water or oxygen. Experiments, supported by simulations, show reactions to occur only at the nanosheet edge, with the rate and extent of the reaction dependent on the water/oxygen content. We demonstrate that liquid-exfoliated BP nanosheets are potentially useful in a range of applications from ultrafast saturable absorbers to gas sensors to fillers for composite reinforcement

Borderline Personality Disorder Symptoms in College Students: The Complex Interplay between Alexithymia, Emotional Dysregulation and Rumination.

Both Emotional Cascade Theory and Linehan's Biosocial Theory suggest dysregulated behaviors associated with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) emerge, in part, because of cycles of rumination, poor emotional recognition and poor emotion regulation. In this study we examined relationships between rumination, alexithymia, and emotion regulation in predicting dysregulated behaviors associated with BPD (e.g. self-harm, substance use, aggression), and explored both indirect and moderating effects among these variables. The sample comprised 2261 college students who completed self-report measures of the aforementioned constructs. BPD symptoms, stress, family psychological illness, and alexithymia exerted direct effects on behaviors. Symptoms had an indirect effect on behaviors through rumination, alexithymia and emotional dysregulation. In addition, the relationship between symptoms and dysregulated behaviors was conditional on level of rumination and alexithymia. Implications for early identification and treatment of BPD and related behaviors in college settings are discussed

Identification of DHX9 as a cell cycle regulated nucleolar recruitment factor for CIZ1

CIP1-interacting zinc finger protein 1 (CIZ1) is a nuclear matrix associated protein that facilitates a number of nuclear functions including initiation of DNA replication, epigenetic maintenance and associates with the inactive X-chromosome. Here, to gain more insight into the protein networks that underpin this diverse functionality, molecular panning and mass spectrometry are used to identify protein interaction partners of CIZ1, and CIZ1 replication domain (CIZ1-RD). STRING analysis of CIZ1 interaction partners identified 2 functional clusters: ribosomal subunits and nucleolar proteins including the DEAD box helicases, DHX9, DDX5 and DDX17. DHX9 shares common functions with CIZ1, including interaction with XIST long-non-coding RNA, epigenetic maintenance and regulation of DNA replication. Functional characterisation of the CIZ1-DHX9 complex showed that CIZ1-DHX9 interact in vitro and dynamically colocalise within the nucleolus from early to mid S-phase. CIZ1-DHX9 nucleolar colocalisation is dependent upon RNA polymerase I activity and is abolished by depletion of DHX9. In addition, depletion of DHX9 reduced cell cycle progression from G1 to S-phase in mouse fibroblasts. The data suggest that DHX9-CIZ1 are required for efficient cell cycle progression at the G1/S transition and that nucleolar recruitment is integral to their mechanism of action