The Role Of Chronic Stress In Age Gradients Of Preterm Birth Among Racial/ethnic Groups

Recently, chronic stress has drawn great attention as an underlying mechanism of preterm birth (PTB) among racial/ethnic minority women. However, the association between chronic stress and PTB is not clearly understood. In fact, existing chronic stress models do not agree on definitions and assessments of chronic stress, rarely reflect racial/ethnic differences in chronic stress experiences, and overlook the cumulative nature of chronic stress over time. The purpose of this dissertation was to determine if chronic stress before and during pregnancy explains the maternal age-graded PTB risk among four racial/ethnic groups of women (non-Hispanic [N-H] Whites, N-H Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians) in the U.S. Paper 1 is a systematic literature review that identified chronic stressors affecting adverse birth outcomes among the four racial/ethnic groups. Building on findings from Paper 1, Paper 2 examined factor structures of chronic stress unique to the four racial/ethnic groups through exploratory factor analysis. From this analysis, a race/ethnicity-specific composite index of chronic stress was developed as an operational definition of chronic stress for Paper 3. Paper 3 then investigated the moderating effect of maternal age on the chronic stress-PTB relationship stratified by race/ethnicity through logistic regression. Papers 2 and 3 implemented secondary analysis of the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System for Washington State and New York City (2004-2007). Paper 1 found that the extant chronic stress measures tended to be unstandardized, incomprehensive, independent, or universal across race/ethnicity, weakening the accuracy of appraised chronic stress for women in each racial/ethnic group. Paper 2 noted that the four racial/ethnic groups analyzed shared financial hardship, perceived isolation, and physical violence as significant sources of chronic stress, despite intergroup variations particularly in their physical violence experience. Paper 3 observed a maternal age-related increase in PTB (i.e., weathering) among all racial/ethnic groups (except for Asians) with high chronic stress in unadjusted and adjusted models. Experience of race bias exacerbated weathering among racial/ethnic minority women with high chronic stress. This study will contribute to narrowing the racial/ethnic gaps in PTB through elucidating heterogeneity of the chronic stress mechanism among racial/ethnic groups and developing theory-driven, race/ethnicity-specific interventions to prevent exposure to chronic stressors and foster women’s resilience over the life course

Asian/White differences in the relationship of maternal age to low birth weight: Analysis of the PRAMS Survey, 2004–2011

This study aimed to examine (a) maternal age patterns of low birth weight (LBW; birth weight \u3c 2,500 g) for non-Hispanic (N-H) Asian and N-H White women, and (b) Asian–White gaps in LBW risk by maternal age and their mechanisms. Logistic regression analyses were performed on the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System data of N-H Asian and N-H White women who delivered their first singleton birth without birth defects in 13 states between 2004 and 2011. Age- and race/ethnicity-specific LBW risk was estimated, unadjusted and adjusted for maternal risk factors (e.g., marital status, maternal education, pregnancy intention, stress, maternal morbidities, smoking, and prenatal care) and their interactions with maternal age or race/ethnicity. The interaction between maternal age and race/ethnicity was statistically significant (p \u3c .0001) with covariates and interactions held constant. N-H Asian women showed a reverse W-shaped maternal-age pattern of LBW with the highest risk in their late 30s (OR = 1.56, 95% CI [1.26, 1.94]) whereas N-H White women experienced a maternal age-related increase in LBW. N-H Asian women were more likely to deliver LBW infant than their N-H White counterparts between their late 20s and late 30s, with the greatest racial/ethnic gap in their late 20s (OR = 4.19, 95% CI [3.33, 5.29]). Preventive strategies should be developed targeting N-H Asian women aged 25 to 39 years to reduce the Asian–White disparities in LBW. Considering the known maternal risk factors failed to explain such disparities, future research is warranted to explore other risk factors unique to this at-risk population

Emotional Carrying Capacity in Virtual Teams: Developing a Capability to Constructively Share a Range of Emotions

In the present study, we aim to understand the development of emotional carrying capacity in virtual teams and its effects on team performance. Although the team capability enabling team members to share a range of emotions with their teammates in a more constructive manner has been found to promote positive team processes and performance, there is little knowledge about what strengthens this capability. To expand the understanding, we propose a research model to examine the effects of surface acting and deep acting—which are two forms of emotional labor—and team emotional intelligence on emotional carrying capacity. We will investigate those relationships using different task types and communication environments (face-to-face vs. computer-mediated environment). We will conduct a lab experiment with a within-subject design to test the research model and hypotheses. This study will contribute to the literature on virtual teams and high-quality relationships

Obesity, inflammation and colorectal neoplasia

Colorectal cancer is one of the most common cancer in the United States. Several environmental and lifestyle risk factors have been identified for colorectal cancer and adenomas; however, their mechanism of action in colon carcinogenesis remains largely unanswered. Given a wealth of data on the inverse association between non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and colorectal neoplasia, inflammation is a plausible pathway to be studied. In addition, a growing literature has redefined obesity, which has been positively associated with colorectal neoplasia, as a state of low grade systemic inflammation. The goal of this dissertation was to explore the associations between obesity, inflammation and colorectal neoplasia using data from three studies We examined circulating levels of CRP, IL-6, and TNF-[alpha] in relation to risk factors and the prevalence of colorectal adenomas in 873 participants from a colonoscopy-based cross-sectional study. Several known risk factors for colorectal neoplasia were associated with higher levels of inflammatory cytokines such as older age, current smoking, and increasing adiposity. The prevalence of colorectal adenomas was associated with higher concentrations of IL-6 and TNF-[alpha], and to a lesser degree, with CRP. For IL-6, adjusted odds ratios for colorectal adenomas were 1.69 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.13-2.54) for the second highest plasma level, and 1.80 (95% CI: 1.22-2.66) for the highest level compared with the reference level. A similar association was found with TNF-[alpha], with adjusted odds ratios of 1.51 (95% CI: 1.01-2.27) and 1.59 (95% CI: 1.06-2.40), respectively. Our findings suggest that systemic inflammatory cytokines might be involved in the early development of colorectal neoplasia, and suggest that systemic inflammation might mediate the association with obesity and other risk factors. We further investigated whether an inverse associations between NSAIDs and colorectal neoplasia was more pronounced in obese individuals, who presumably have increased levels of circulating inflammatory cytokines compared to non-obese individuals, using the two datasets from 1) a population-based case-control study of distal large bowel cancer (i.e., sigmoid, rectosigmoid and rectal cancer) among whites and African Americans in North Carolina, and 2) a completed randomized controlled trial of aspirin 325 mg daily to prevent colorectal adenomas in patients with a history of colorectal cancer. In the case-control study of distal large bowel cancer, regular NSAID use was inversely associated with distal colorectal cancer in whites, but not in African Americans (for regular vs. non-regular use, whites: OR = 0.51, 95% CI: 0.39-0.66; African Americans: OR = 0.99, 95% CI: 0.60-1.63). Also, there was an elevated risk of incident colorectal adenomas in relation to high BMI in patients with prior colorectal cancer (BMI [greater than or equal to] 30kg/m2: OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 0.90-2.24). However, there is little evidence suggesting a more pronounced inverse association between NSAIDs/aspirin and colorectal neoplasia among obese versus non-obese individuals in either of the two studies

How People Disclose Themselves Differently According To The Strength Of Relationship In SNS?

Self-disclosure is defined as “act of revealing personal information to others” (Archer, 1980, p.183). It plays a key role in development and maintenance of relationships.Since many companies adopt social networking services for their organizational information sharing platform, it is important to identify the process of creating and maintaining social relationship in virtual spaces for successful adoption of SNS. In this research, we identify a self-disclosure as a driving factor for initiating and maintaining online social relationships.This research assumes that the self-disclose strategy adopted by participants in a communication process would be very similar between a face to face communication and a communication through SNS. In addition, this study explores that how the strength of social relationship does affects participants’ self-discloser strategy in SNS.Self-disclosure on SNS is multidimensional and it consists of five dimensions; intent to disclose, amount, the positive-negative nature, the honesty-accuracy, and general depth-control of disclosure. Our research indicates that strength of relationship affect negatively the amount of disclosure on SNS. SNS users, in other words, less reveal themselves in terms of both frequency and duration to other user in strong tie than in weak tie. We found that strength of social ties significantly influenced dimensions of self-disclosure except for the positive-negative nature of disclosure

IFRS adoption and investor perceptions of earnings quality: evidence from Korea

This study examines the consequences of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) adoption in terms of the investor perception of earnings quality in the Korean stock market. Building on evidence from Ecker et al. (2006) suggesting that return-based earnings quality (E-loading), as captured by the sensitivity of stock returns to accounting information risk, accurately represents investor perceptions of earnings information risk, the authors examine whether E-loading is different between the pre- and post-IFRS adoption periods. Using KSE-listed firms from 2006 to 2014, the authors find the evidence that the extent of stock return sensitivity to information risk embedded in financial statements is greater in the period of post-IFRS adoption than in the period of pre-IFRS adoption. This finding indicates that even though accounting-based earnings quality improves after the adoption of IFRS, investors perceive earnings information after the adoption of IFRS as riskier than before. In addition, the difference in investor perception is more pronounced for firms with low accruals quality as captured by discretionary accruals, indicating that the effect of IFRS adoption on return-based earnings quality is distinctive from that on accounting-based earnings quality. The paper contributes to the literature on IFRS by exploring the effect of IFRS adoption through a new perspective on earnings quality in capital market

The Impacts of Platform Quality on Gig Workers’ Autonomy and Job Satisfaction

Gig economy jobs rely heavily on the use of platforms including mobile applications. Even though such platforms are necessary to participate in the gig economy, we know very little about how the quality of these platforms affects gig workers. Drawing from a survey of Uber drivers, in this paper we examine the impacts of platform quality on gig workers’ job autonomy and job satisfaction. Preliminary results suggest that gig workers working in the high quality of platforms are more likely to have greater job autonomy and satisfaction. This study contributes to the literature by identifying platform quality as an important factor of gig workers’ job autonomy and satisfaction and suggesting possible applications of the preliminary findings in future research.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/145612/1/cscwp044-kimA.pd