Prevalence and correlates of psychopathic traits in the household population of Great Britain

There are no previous surveys of psychopathy and psychopathic traits in representative general population samples using standardized instruments. This study aimed to measure prevalence and correlates of psychopathic traits, based on a two-phase survey using the Psychopathy Checklist: Screening Version (PCL: SV) in 638 individuals, 16-74 years, in households in England, Wales and Scotland. The weighted prevalence of psychopathy was 0.6% (95% CI: 0.2-1.6) at a cut score of 13, similar to the noncriminal/nonpsychiatric sample described in the manual of the PCL: SV. Psychopathy scores correlated with: younger age, male gender; suicide attempts, violent behaviour, imprisonment and homelessness; drug dependence; histrionic, borderline and adult antisocial personality disorders; panic and obsessive-compulsive disorders. This survey demonstrated that, as measured by the PCL: SV, psychopathy is rare, affecting less than 1% of the household population, although it is prevalent among prisoners, homeless persons, and psychiatric admissions. There is a half-normal distribution of psychopathic traits in the general population, with the majority having no traits, a significant proportion with non-zero values, and a severe subgroup of persons with multiple associated social and behavioral problems. This distribution has implications for research into the etiology of psychopathy and its implications for society

You Can Change the World With a Haircut”: Evaluating the Feasibility of a Barber-led Intervention for Men of Black and Ethnic Minority Heritage to Manage High Blood Pressure

Background: People of Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) heritage have a higher-than-average incidence of, and mortality from hypertension and stroke. Therefore, it is important to identify new settings for engaging people at risk of high blood pressure (BP). Aim: This feasibility study aimed to evaluate if barbers in a London borough can support and educate men of BAME heritage to manage their BP. Following UK Medical Research Council guidance, the RE-AIM (reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, maintenance) framework was used to guide study objectives and feasibility outcomes. Methods: We collaborated with 8 barbers who were part of an existing BAME barber network. Barbers were trained online (1.5 h) and face-to-face (3 h) to provide BP healthcare advice and take customers BP readings. Qualitative field notes were collected to assess how best to recruit and train barbers, and to understand how to maintain motivation and retention of barbers. BP readings were recorded between June 2021 and March 2022. Results: Both online and face-to-face training were effective, however, greater focus on how to start conversations about BP with clients was needed. We found that motivation, incentivization and regular contact with barbers were important for recruitment, retention, and sustained BP measurement. Obtaining BP readings was challenging due to client concerns about recording their data and the impracticalities of recording results. We captured 236 BP recordings, of which 39 (16.53%) were over 140/90 mmHg; of these, 5 were over 180/100 mmHg. Conclusion: The combined data showed that educating barbers to take BP readings and deliver healthcare advice about BP is a viable intervention for rollout in a large-scale study. It has demonstrated the need to identify strategies to motivate barbers for sustained recruitment and retention, as well as further efforts to build trust among customers for long-term BP surveillance

Freeze–thaw cycles have minimal effect on the mineralisation of low molecular weight, dissolved organic carbon in Arctic soils

Warmer winters in Arctic regions may melt insulating snow cover and subject soils to more freeze– thaw cycles. The effect of freeze–thaw cycles on the microbial use of low molecular weight, dissolved organic carbon (LMW-DOC) is poorly understood. In this study, soils from the Arctic heath tundra, Arctic meadow tundra and a temperate grassland were frozen to -7.5 C and thawed once and three times. Subsequently, the mineralisation of 3 LMW-DOC substrates types (sugars, amino acids and peptides) was measured over an 8-day period and compared to controls which had not been frozen. This allowed the comparison of freeze–thaw effects between Arctic and temperate soil and between different substrates. The results showed that freeze–thaw cycles had no significant effect on C mineralisation in the Arctic tundra soils. In contrast, for the same intensity freeze–thaw cycles, a significant effect on C mineralisation was observed for all substrate types in the temperate soil although the response was substrate specific. Peptide and amino acid mineralisation were similarly affected by FT, whilst glucose had a different response. Further work is required to fully understand microbial use of LMW-DOC after freeze–thaw, yet these results suggest that relatively short freeze–thaw cycles have little effect on microbial use of LMW-DOC in Arctic tundra soils after thaw

Faster juvenile growth promotes earlier sex change in a protandrous hermaphrodite (barramundi Lates calcarifer)

The relationship between growth and sexual maturation is central to understanding the dynamics of animal populations which exhibit indeterminate growth. In sequential hermaphrodites, which undergo post-maturation sex change, the size and age at which sex change occurs directly affects reproductive output and hence population productivity. However, these traits are often labile, and may be strongly influenced by heterogenous growth and mortality rates. We analysed otolith microstructure of a protandrous (i.e., male-to-female) fish (barramundi Lates calcarifer) to examine growth in relation to individual variation in the timing of sex change. Growth trajectories of individuals with contrasting life histories were examined to elucidate the direction and extent to which growth rate influences the size and age individuals change sex. Then, the relationships between growth rate, maturation schedules and asymptotic maximum size were explored to identify potential trade-offs between age at female maturity and growth potential. Rapid growth was strongly associated with decreased age at sex change, but this was not accompanied by a decrease in size at sex change. Individuals that were caught as large females grew faster than those caught as males, suggesting that fast-growing individuals ultimately obtain higher fitness and therefore make a disproportionate contribution to population fecundity. These results indicate that individual-level variation in maturation schedules is not reflective of trade-offs between growth and reproduction. Rather, we suggest that conditions experienced during the juvenile phase are likely to be a key determinant of post-maturation fitness. These findings highlight the vulnerability of sex-changing species to future environmental change and harvest

Efficacy of social cognition and interaction training in outpatients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: randomized controlled trial

Given the relationship between social cognition and functional outcome in schizophrenia, a number of social cognitive interventions have been developed, including Social Cognition Interaction Training (SCIT), a group-based, comprehensive, manualized intervention. In the current trial, we examined SCIT efficacy as well as potential moderators of treatment effects. Fifty-one outpatients were randomized to SCIT or a wait-list-control (WLC), with assessments of social cognition, neurocognition, self-report, symptoms, and functioning conducted at baseline and end of the active phase. Relative to WLC, we did not find significant improvements for SCIT on neurocognition, social cognition, self-report, or symptoms, though there was a trend-level, medium effect favoring the SCIT condition on interpersonal and instrumental role function. Post-hoc analyses indicated that baseline neurocognition did not impact degree of social cognitive or functional change. Shorter duration of illness was significantly associated with better post-training neurocognition and self-esteem and, at trend-level with better symptoms and social functioning. We discuss the importance of outcome measure selection and the need for continued evaluation of potential treatment moderators in order to better match people to existing treatments. Clinical trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov, Identifier NCT00587561

For richer, for poorer: marriage and casualized sex in East African artisanal mining settlements

Migrants to Tanzania's artisanal gold mining sites seek mineral wealth, which is accompanied by high risks of occupational hazards, economic failure, AIDS and social censure from their home communities. Male miners in these settlements compete to attract newly arrived young women who are perceived to be diverting male material support from older women and children's economic survival. This article explores the dynamics of monogamy, polygamy and promiscuity in the context of rapid occupational change. It shows how a wide spectrum of productive and welfare outcomes is generated through sexual experimentation, which calls into question conventional concepts of prostitution, marriage and gender power relations

A Systematic Literature Review of Animal-Assisted Interventions in Oncology (Part II): Theoretical Mechanisms and Frameworks

Animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) can improve patients’ quality of life as complementary medical treatments. Part I of this 2-paper systematic review focused on the methods and results of cancer-related AAIs; Part II discusses the theories of the field’s investigators. Researchers cite animal personality, physical touch, physical movement, distraction, and increased human interaction as sources of observed positive outcomes. These mechanisms then group under theoretical frameworks such as the social support hypothesis or the human-animal bond concept to fully explain AAI in oncology. The cognitive activation theory of stress, the science of unitary human beings, and the self-object hypothesis are additional frameworks mentioned by some researchers. We also discuss concepts of neurobiological transduction connecting mechanisms to AAI benefits. Future researchers should base study design on theories with testable hypotheses and use consistent terminology to report results. This review aids progress toward a unified theoretical framework and toward more holistic cancer treatments

A Systematic Literature Review of Animal-Assisted Interventions in Oncology (Part I): Methods and Results

Animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) use human-animal interactions to positive effect in various contexts including cancer care. As the first installment of a 2-part series, this systematic literature review focuses on the research methods and quantitative results of AAI studies in oncology. We find methodological consistency in the use of canines as therapy animals, in the types of high-risk patients excluded from studies, and in the infection precautions taken with therapy animals throughout cancer wards. The investigated patient endpoints are not significantly affected by AAI, with the exceptions of improvements in oxygen consumption, quality of life, depression, mood, and satisfaction with therapy. The AAI field in oncology has progressed significantly since its inception and has great potential to positively affect future patient outcomes. To advance the field, future research should consistently improve the methodological design of studies, report data more completely, and focus more on the therapy animal’s well-being

Gut Microbial Stability is Associated with Greater Endurance Performance in Athletes Undertaking Dietary Periodization

Dietary manipulation with high-protein or high-carbohydrate content are frequently employed during elite athletic training, aiming to enhance athletic performance. Such interventions are likely to impact upon gut microbial content. This study explored the impact of acute high-protein or high-carbohydrate diets on measured endurance performance and associated gut microbial community changes. In a cohort of well-matched, highly trained endurance runners, we measured performance outcomes, as well as gut bacterial, viral (FVP), and bacteriophage (IV) communities in a double-blind, repeated-measures design randomized control trial (RCT) to explore the impact of dietary intervention with either high-protein or high-carbohydrate content. High-dietary carbohydrate improved time-trial performance by +6.5% (P < 0.03) and was associated with expansion of Ruminococcus and Collinsella bacterial spp. Conversely, high dietary protein led to a reduction in performance by −23.3% (P = 0.001). This impact was accompanied by significantly reduced diversity (IV: P = 0.04) and altered composition (IV and FVP: P = 0.02) of the gut phageome as well as enrichment of both free and inducible Sk1virus and Leuconostoc bacterial populations. Greatest performance during dietary modification was observed in participants with less substantial shifts in community composition. Gut microbial stability during acute dietary periodization was associated with greater athletic performance in this highly trained, well-matched cohort. Athletes, and those supporting them, should be mindful of the potential consequences of dietary manipulation on gut flora and implications for performance, and periodize appropriately. IMPORTANCE: Dietary periodization is employed to improve endurance exercise performance but may impact on gut microbial communities. Bacteriophage are implicated in bacterial cell homeostasis and have been identified as biomarkers of disequilibrium in the gut ecosystem possibly brought about through dietary periodization. We find high-carbohydrate and high-protein diets to have opposing impacts on endurance performance in highly trained athlete populations. Reduced performance is linked with disturbance of microbial stasis in the gut. We demonstrate bacteriophage communities are the most sensitive component of the gut microbiota to increased gut stress following dietary manipulation. Athletes undertaking dietary periodization should be aware of potential negative impacts of drastic changes to dietary composition on gut microbial stasis and, in turn, endurance performance

Risk factors for acute mental health symptoms and tobacco initiation in Coast Guard Responders to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill

Acute mental health symptoms experienced during oil spill response work are understudied, especially among nonlocal responders. We assessed potential risk factors for acute mental health symptoms and tobacco initiation among U.S. Coast Guard responders to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill who completed a deployment exit survey. Cross-sectional associations among responder characteristics, deployment-related stressors (deployment duration, timing, crude oil exposure, physical symptoms, injuries), and professional help-seeking for stressors experienced with concurrent depression/anxiety and tobacco initiation were examined. Log-binomial regression was used to calculate adjusted prevalence ratios (aPRs) and 95% confidence intervals. Sensitivity analyses excluded responders with a history of mental health conditions using health encounter data from the Military Health System Data Repository. Of the 4,855 responders, 75.5% were deployed from nonlocal/non-Gulf home stations, 5.8% reported concurrent depression and anxiety, and 2.8% reported the initiation of any tobacco product during oil spill response. Self-report of concurrent depression and anxiety was more prevalent among female responders and positively associated with longer deployments, crude oil exposure via inhalation, physical symptoms and injuries, and professional help–seeking during deployment, aPRs = 1.54–6.55. Tobacco initiation was inversely associated with older age and officer rank and positively associated with deployment-related stressors and depression/anxiety during deployment, aPRs = 1.58–4.44. Associations remained robust after excluding responders with a history of mental health– and tobacco–related health encounters up to 3 years before deployment. Depression, anxiety, and tobacco initiation were cross-sectionally associated with oil spill response work experiences among DWH responders, who largely originated outside of the affected community