The impact of gambling advertising: Problem gamblers report stronger impacts on involvement, knowledge, and awareness than recreational gamblers.

Although there is a general lack of empirical evidence that advertising influences gambling participation, the regulation of gambling advertising is hotly debated among academic researchers, treatment specialists, lobby groups, regulators, and policy makers. This study contributes to the ongoing debate by investigating perceived impacts of gambling advertising in a sample of gamblers drawn from the general population in Norway (n = 6,034). Three dimensions of advertising impacts were identified, representing perceived impacts on (a) gambling-related attitudes, interest, and behavior (‘Involvement’), (b) knowledge about gambling options and providers (‘Knowledge’), and (c) the degree to which people are aware of gambling advertising (‘Awareness’). Overall, impacts were strongest for the ‘Knowledge’ dimension, and, for all three dimensions, the impact increased with level of advertising exposure. Those identified as problem gamblers in the sample (n = 57) reported advertising impacts concerning ‘Involvement’ more than recreational gamblers, and this finding was not attributable to differences in advertising exposure. Additionally, younger gamblers reported stronger impacts on ‘Involvement’ and ‘Knowledge’ but were less likely to agree that they were aware of gambling advertising than older gamblers. Male gamblers were more likely than female gamblers to report stronger impacts on both ‘Involvement’ and ‘Knowledge’. These findings are discussed with regard to existing research on gambling advertising as well as their implications for future research and policy-making

Study addiction - a new area of psychological study: conceptualization, assessment, and preliminary empirical findings

Aims: Recent research has suggested that for some individuals, educational studying may become compulsive and excessive and lead to ‘study addiction’. The present study conceptualized and assessed study addiction within the framework of workaholism, defining it as compulsive over-involvement in studying that interferes with functioning in other domains and that is detrimental for individuals and/or their environment. Methods: The Bergen Study Addiction Scale (BStAS) was tested - reflecting seven core addiction symptoms (salience, mood modification, tolerance, withdrawal, conflict, relapse, and problems) - related to studying. The scale was administered via a cross-sectional survey distributed to Norwegian (n = 218) and Polish (n = 993) students with additional questions concerning demographic variables, study-related variables, health, and personality. Results: A one-factor solution had acceptable fit with the data in both samples and the scale demonstrated good reliability. Scores on BStAS converged with scores on learning engagement. Study addiction (BStAS) was significantly related to specific aspects of studying (longer learning time, lower academic performance), personality traits (higher neuroticism and conscientiousness, lower extroversion), and negative health-related factors (impaired general health, decreased quality of life and sleep quality, higher perceived stress). Conclusions: It is concluded that BStAS has good psychometric properties, making it a promising tool in the assessment of study addiction. Study addiction is related in predictable ways to personality and health variables, as predicted from contemporary workaholism theory and research

John Deere Construction Equipment - Strategic Audit

John Deere construction equipment is an operating segment of the equipment manufacturing giant John Deere Corporation. The company is considered the second largest construction equipment manufacturer in the world. This report seeks to understand the operating environment of John Deere’s construction equipment manufacturing segment, its resources, its competitive advantages, and its future challenges. This analysis uses both PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces analyses to evaluate the external environment. Additionally, strategic recommendations and explanations are offered into how John Deere can effectively navigate the challenges facing the construction equipment manufacturing industry in the near future

Neither Sad nor Strange: Recovering the Logic of Anticruelty Organizations in Gilded Age America

In 1877, the American Humane Association ( AHA ) incorporated as one of the first national organizations dedicated to the protection of animals. Nine years later, it amended its constitution to include the protection of children in its chartered mission. By 1908, there were 354 anticruelty organizations in the United States, 185 of which were, like the AHA, humane societies invested in the welfare of both animals and children (pp. 2-3). As primary source documents reveal, Gilded Age humanitarians viewed the joint pursuit of child and animal protection as entirely sensible (p. 5). One of the Illinois Humane Society\u27s founding directors, for example, professed that the prevention of cruelty to children and to dumb beasts, are part and parcel of the same work .... By midcentury, however, the logic informing Gilded Age anticruelty reform had been lost, and child welfare professionals began to criticize the mergence of child protection with animal protection as an illogical ordering of welfare priorities (p. 5). It is a sad commentary, wrote Dr. Vincent J. Fontana, founder of the Vincent J. Fontana Center for Child Protection in New York City, that it took a society for the prevention of cruelty to animals to protect the first recorded case of a maltreated child. In The Rights of the Defenseless: Protecting Animals and Children in Gilded Age America, Professor Susan J. Pearson5 sets herself the task ofrecovering the now-forgotten logic of anticruelty reform and the development of humane societies in Gilded Age America. Her resulting history demonstrates that the union of child and animal protection was neither sad nor strange, but was instead tightly bound to the crosshatched threads of sentimentalism and liberalism (p. 20). Specifically, Pearson argues that Gilded Age anticruelty reform was a hybrid movement-simultaneously derivative and constitutive of the American state. Drawing on anticruelty reform publications, popular literature, and histories of antebellum and postbellum America, she shows how the rhetorical and institutional innovations of anticruelty reform both shaped and were shaped by an ideology of what she terms sentimental liberalism. By [s]peaking a language of sympathy while deploying legal power, Pearson explains, anticruelty reformers transformed not only sentimentalism, but also the reach and role of the state (p. 13). Although Pearson tags Rights of the Defenseless as an intellectual and cultural history (p. 8), it should also be recognized as a legal history-and an important one at that. Indeed, Rights of the Defenseless is, in many ways, more a history of the transformation of American legal liberalism (albeit one told though the voices and actions of Gilded Age humanitarians) than it is a history of Gilded Age anticruelty reform. Accordingly, this Notice engages Rights of the Defenseless on those terms-that is, as a history of American legal liberalism

Neither Sad nor Strange: Recovering the Logic of Anticruelty Organizations in Gilded Age America

In 1877, the American Humane Association ( AHA ) incorporated as one of the first national organizations dedicated to the protection of animals. Nine years later, it amended its constitution to include the protection of children in its chartered mission. By 1908, there were 354 anticruelty organizations in the United States, 185 of which were, like the AHA, humane societies invested in the welfare of both animals and children (pp. 2-3). As primary source documents reveal, Gilded Age humanitarians viewed the joint pursuit of child and animal protection as entirely sensible (p. 5). One of the Illinois Humane Society\u27s founding directors, for example, professed that the prevention of cruelty to children and to dumb beasts, are part and parcel of the same work .... By midcentury, however, the logic informing Gilded Age anticruelty reform had been lost, and child welfare professionals began to criticize the mergence of child protection with animal protection as an illogical ordering of welfare priorities (p. 5). It is a sad commentary, wrote Dr. Vincent J. Fontana, founder of the Vincent J. Fontana Center for Child Protection in New York City, that it took a society for the prevention of cruelty to animals to protect the first recorded case of a maltreated child. In The Rights of the Defenseless: Protecting Animals and Children in Gilded Age America, Professor Susan J. Pearson5 sets herself the task ofrecovering the now-forgotten logic of anticruelty reform and the development of humane societies in Gilded Age America. Her resulting history demonstrates that the union of child and animal protection was neither sad nor strange, but was instead tightly bound to the crosshatched threads of sentimentalism and liberalism (p. 20). Specifically, Pearson argues that Gilded Age anticruelty reform was a hybrid movement-simultaneously derivative and constitutive of the American state. Drawing on anticruelty reform publications, popular literature, and histories of antebellum and postbellum America, she shows how the rhetorical and institutional innovations of anticruelty reform both shaped and were shaped by an ideology of what she terms sentimental liberalism. By [s]peaking a language of sympathy while deploying legal power, Pearson explains, anticruelty reformers transformed not only sentimentalism, but also the reach and role of the state (p. 13). Although Pearson tags Rights of the Defenseless as an intellectual and cultural history (p. 8), it should also be recognized as a legal history-and an important one at that. Indeed, Rights of the Defenseless is, in many ways, more a history of the transformation of American legal liberalism (albeit one told though the voices and actions of Gilded Age humanitarians) than it is a history of Gilded Age anticruelty reform. Accordingly, this Notice engages Rights of the Defenseless on those terms-that is, as a history of American legal liberalism

The Prevalence of Workaholism: A Survey Study in a Nationally Representative Sample of Norwegian Employees

Workaholism has become an increasingly popular area for empirical study. However, most studies examining the prevalence of workaholism have used non-representative samples and measures with poorly defined cut-off scores. To overcome these methodological limitations, a nationally representative survey among employees in Norway (N = 1,124) was conducted. Questions relating to gender, age, marital status, caretaker responsibility for children, percentage of full-time equivalent, and educational level were asked. Workaholism was assessed by the use of a psychometrically validated instrument (i.e., Bergen Work Addiction Scale). Personality was assessed using the Mini-International Personality Item Pool. Results showed that the prevalence of workaholism was 8.3% (95% CI = 6.7–9.9%). An adjusted logistic regression analysis showed that workaholism was negatively related to age and positively related to the personality dimensions agreeableness, neuroticism, and intellect/imagination. Implications for these findings are discussed

Insomnia – A Heterogenic Disorder Often Comorbid With Psychological and Somatic Disorders and Diseases: A Narrative Review With Focus on Diagnostic and Treatment Challenges

Patients with insomnia complain of problems with sleep onset or sleep maintenance or early morning awakenings, or a combination of these, despite adequate opportunity and circumstances for sleep. In addition, to fulfill the diagnostic criteria for insomnia the complaints need to be associated with negative daytime consequences. For chronic insomnia, the symptoms are required to be present at least 3 days per week for a duration of at least 3 months. Lastly, for insomnia to be defined as a disorder, the sleep complaints and daytime symptoms should not be better explained by another sleep disorder. This criterion represents a diagnostic challenge, since patients suffering from other sleep disorders often complain of insomnia symptoms. For instance, insomnia symptoms are common in e.g., obstructive sleep apnea and circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorders. It may sometimes be difficult to disentangle whether the patient suffers from insomnia disorder or whether the insomnia symptoms are purely due to another sleep disorder. Furthermore, insomnia disorder may be comorbid with other sleep disorders in some patients, e.g., comorbid insomnia and sleep apnea (COMISA). In addition, insomnia disorder is often comorbid with psychological or somatic disorders and diseases. Thus, a thorough assessment is necessary for correct diagnostics. For chronic insomnia disorder, treatment-of-choice is cognitive behavioral therapy, and such treatment is also effective when the insomnia disorder appears comorbid with other diagnoses. Furthermore, studies suggest that insomnia is a heterogenic disorder with many different phenotypes or subtypes. Different insomnia subtypes may respond differently to treatment, but more research on this issue is warranted. Also, the role of comorbidity on treatment outcome is understudied. This review is part of a Research Topic on insomnia launched by Frontiers and focuses on diagnostic and treatment challenges of the disorder. The review aims to stimulate to more research into the bidirectional associations and interactions between insomnia disorder and other sleep, psychological, and somatic disorders/diseases.publishedVersio