Impact of personality on burden of caregivers with aphasia

The relationship between personality and caregiver burden in aphasia is thus far understudied, with most research being qualitative in nature (Gillespie, Murphy, & Place, 2010; Nätterlund, 2009). Further understanding personality could potentially impact the way we assess caregivers and use interventions to support someone with a high score in a personality trait. Using an online platform, this research explored the personality-burden relationship quantitatively using the M5-50 (Mccord, 2002) and the Caregiver Burden Scale (Zarit, Reever, & Bach-Peterson, 1980). Participants included unpaid caregivers of persons with aphasia recruited via paper or electronic invitation and provided to facilitators of aphasia support groups and speech-language pathologists analyzed from a sample of N=78. Data included an overall score of burden and five scores of personality (i.e., extroversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, openness to experience). Pearson correlation was conducted to investigate the relationship between each of the five domains and the caregiver burden score. No statistical associations were observed. Even though it was not significant, the correlation between openness to experience and the caregiver burden score had a medium effect size (Cohen, 1988). Results of this study suggest that there is no relationship between personality and caregiver burden for caregivers of people with aphasia; the sample size and demographics (e.g., those participating in support groups) suggest that there are limited applications of findings to the aphasia caregiver population. Undoubtedly, the unpaid caregiver workforce is critical to managing the long-term consequences on society of stroke and aphasia. Further research needs to be conducted to further investigate personality and caregiver burden in a broader demographic to increase the likelihood of capturing applicable results, such as a longitudinal study database throughout different points in recovery and rehabilitation, as well as capturing those who refused treatment and do not have access to speech language pathologists

Treatment Preference For Major Depressive Disorder

Recent research on treatment preference for individuals with major depressive disorder indicates a three to one ratio of preference for cognitive behavioral therapy over medication. There has been little to no research on treatment preference for exercise. Exercise has the properties of being easily accessible and cost efficient, where other treatments may be costly. The present study investigates treatment preference for major depressive disorder with the inclusion of exercise as one of the treatment options. There was a total of 389 participants who completed a questionnaire that included a scenario of someone who was diagnosed with major depressive disorder, followed by questions with regards to how likely each participant would choose Sertraline, cognitive behavioral therapy, or exercise, and if the participants could only choose one treatment option, which one would they prefer. Results were consistent with previous research where cognitive behavioral therapy was significantly preferred over Sertraline. When exercise was compared to Sertraline, participants significantly preferred exercise over Sertraline. There are implications for future research in relation to treatment preference of exercise for major depressive disorder

William Stringfield’s Amnesty Letters (June 1866)

The letters transcribed are two drafts of the same letter sent from William Williams Stringfield to President Andrew Johnson in June of 1866. They detail Stringfield’s request for amnesty for his crimes of treason during his role as Lieutenant Colonel with the Confederate Army in the Civil War. These letters are stored in the Special Collections department of the Hunter Library at Western Carolina University. The accession number for the manuscripts within the collection are MSS 80-6, and there are entries ranging from 1801 to 1968. The vast range is because there are also materials pertaining to the Stringfield’s parents and children. It includes personal correspondence, diaries and minutes, financial records, legal papers, as well as clippings and scrapbooks. The collection was gifted to Western by Dr. Ricahrd W. Iobst on Oct. 31, 1970

Is The Protection Of Minorities Worth The Suppression Of Speech? The Effects Of Political Correctness On American Universities And College Campuses

This honors thesis is a brief study of the highly politicized debate over political correctness (PC). The study explores, through political and historical lenses, PC’s impact on college and university campuses. Political correctness is argued to be a double-edged sword driven by the competing interests of equal rights and free speech for predominance in institutions of higher education. The intellectual foundations of political correctness are grounded in the theories of postmodernism, deconstruction, and the belief that language is power. Campus speech codes, multicultural studies, and trigger warnings on colleges and universities are tangible byproducts of the PC debate. This thesis affirms the importance of striking a balance between equality and freedom of speech on college and university campuses. Recommendations for how to achieve that balance are provided. The author advocates the need for additional research into the PC movement that goes beyond the current politicized debate

Changes In The Shape Of The Maximal Expiratory Flow-Volume Curve Following Weight Loss In Obese Females

Though the effects of obesity on cardiovascular health are well-studied, less is known in regards to the effect of obesity on the respiratory system. The buildup of fat leads to a decrease in chest well compliance and increase in airway resistance, both of which are determinants to expiratory air flow. Thus, it seems reasonable that following weight loss, the shape of the maximal expiratory flow-volume (MEFV) curve will be altered, indicating an improvement in respiratory function. This project examined the shape of the MEFV curve in obese females before and after completing a weight loss program. We hypothesized that the shape of the MEFV curve in obese females would be altered, as assessed using the beta angle (ß°), flow ratio (FR), slope ratio (SR), and are-under-the-curve (AUC) techniques. A significant difference was observed in SR at 80% and 75% of forced vital capacity, as well as in certain AUC segments. A change in the shape of the MEFV curve occurs following weight loss. These data suggest that obese females may improve their ventilatory reserve for increasing ventilation during exercise as a result of weight loss

Mapping Transgressions: The Road To Privacy

Recent developments in technology, Supreme Court case law, and state legislation have created a conundrum of what used to be a somewhat simple application of the law regarding privacy rights and the Fourth Amendment. Technology may have outpaced jurisprudence in that respect, and thus requires that the Court reevaluate several standards and doctrines established through case law. In particular the Court needs to review the prudence of the “public accessibility” and “reasonable expectation” standards, as well as the necessity of probable cause and search warrants

Examining The Relationship Between Job Search Behaviors And Personality

Employee recruitment is a critical process in which organizations actively utilize recruitment sources in order to attract the best potential candidates to fill open positions. Previous research into recruitment sources have increased significantly in the past several years but have primarily focused on post-hire outcomes. Research on pre-hire outcomes may lend opportunities for corporate recruiters to be able to predict the quality of potential job candidates before being hired. Drawing on the importance of recruitment sources and pre-hire outcomes, this study investigates the possibility of predicting applicant personality traits from their job search strategies. A total of 226 participants completed an online survey that measured both their personality traits and their job search behaviors. Results found that several job search strategies did indeed correlate with certain personality traits but did not support all hypothesized correlations

The Relationship Between Psychopathic Traits and Criminal Success, Criminal Behavior, and Aggression

Researchers have consistently found a strong relationship between criminal behavior and psychopathic traits. However, researchers have yet to investigate potential differences in psychopathic traits among those who engage in criminal behavior and are apprehended by law enforcement versus those who elude arrest while still committing crimes. Given the characteristics associated with primary and secondary psychopathic traits, this thesis had two aims. The first aim was to obtain a better understanding of the potentially differential relations between the psychopathy dimensions and criminal success. The second was to examine the potentially differential relationships between the psychopathy variants and violent crime, non-violent crime, instrumental aggression, and reactive aggression. The results did not support the hypotheses that primary or secondary psychopathic traits relate to criminal success. I predicted that primary traits would be positively and significantly related to self-reported violent crime because of the decreased sensitivity to aversive stimuli (i.e., Low Behavioral Inhibition System) associated with primary traits, while secondary traits would be unrelated to violent crime. Based on prior research, I expected both primary and secondary traits to positively relate to non-violent crimes. The results provided partial support for these hypotheses. Limitations and future directions are discussed

Cultivating Creative Communities: A Survey of Creative Placemaking in North Carolina

In the practice of creative placemaking, arts, artist, and cultural organizations become essential partners with private, public, and non-profit organizations to help promote the character and wellbeing of a neighborhood, town, or city. In North Carolina, creative placemaking is occurring across the state through practices that celebrate the histories of communities, cities, and regions while also creating opportunities for improved livability for citizens and healthier local economies. Through interviews with cultural leaders in the state and research of the projects being executed by HandMade in America in Asheville, the Ashe County Arts Council in West Jefferson, Charlotte’s Arts and Science Council and McColl Center for Art + Innovation, Greensboro’s Elsewhere and Action Greensboro, the Department of Public and Cultural Arts in Chapel Hill, the North Carolina Arts Council in Raleigh, the Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park in Wilson, and the African American Music Trails in Kinston, creative placemaking in North Carolina can be characterized as a diverse practice that engages local communities in order to create distinct visual representations of place that celebrate local heritages while also acknowledging and strengthening communities’ opportunities for economic advancement in coming years

THE IOWA GAMBLING TASK: REAL VERSUS FACSIMILE REWARDS AND PSYCHOPATHY

The Iowa Gambling Task (Bechara, Damasio, Damasio, & Anderson, 1994) has been the foundation of much of the recent research on adaptive decision making in humans. This task was first described by Bechara et al. in their research on patients with ventromedial (VM) lesions. These investigators have found impairments in the decision making processes of those with VM lesions. The Iowa Gambling Task was developed in an attempt to quantify those adaptive decision making deficits and has since been used to study adaptive decision making in those with antisocial and aggressive personalities(Blair, 2004; Blair, Colledge, & Mitchell, 200); substance abusers (Bolla et al., 2002);children and age differences (Garon & Moore, 2004; Kerr & Zelazo, 2004); as well as instrumental and reactive aggression (Berkowitz, 1993, Raine et al., 1998). However,much remains to be understood about this experimental decision making task,specifically, the type of reinforcement provided. Bowman and Turnbull (2003) recently demonstrated that groups receiving real contingencies did not differ from a group that received imagined contingencies. However, we know that antisocial and psychopathic traits are related to both Iowa Gambling Task performance and the perception of positive and negative contingencies. This study examined the differences between real and facsimile reinforcers, while taking the personality of the individual into account. Similar results were found in comparison to Bowman and Turnbull's study in that participants learned the task over trials, however no significant difference was found between real versus facsimile reinforcers. Furthermore, scores on the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale and the M5 domains of Neuroticism, Extroversion, Agreeableness,and Conscientiousness did not result in significant improvement of selections between the facsimile condition and the cash condition