The association between church attendance and psychological health in Northern Ireland : a national representative survey among adults allowing for sex differences and denominational difference

This study extends previous research concerning the association between religion and psychological health in six ways: (1) by focusing clearly on religious attendance (church attendance); (2) by employing a robust measure of psychological distress (GHQ-12); (3) by studying a highly religious culture (Northern Ireland); (4) by taking sex differences into account (male or female); (5) by taking denominational differences into account (Catholic or Protestant); (6) and by obtaining a national representative sample (N = 4,281 adults aged 16 and above). Results from a 2 (sex) by 2 (denomination) ANCOVA demonstrated that Catholics recorded significantly lower levels of psychological health compared to Protestants, and that females showed significantly lower levels of psychological health compared to males. In addition, females reported higher frequency of religious service attendance than males, and Catholics reported higher attendance rates than Protestants. A significant positive association was found between frequency of religious attendance and GHQ-12 scores, and this association was moderated by sex and denomination. In conclusion, the results suggest that there may be sex and denominational differences in further understanding the relationship between frequency of religious attendance and psychological health

The Unintended Effect of Tax Avoidance Crackdown on Corporate Innovation

To constrain the use of intangible assets in tax-motivated income shifting and thus crackdown on corporate tax avoidance, many U.S. state governments adopted addback statutes. Addback statutes require firms to add back intangible-related expenses paid to related parties in other states to the taxable income reported in the state taxable income. The addback reduces the benefits that firms and managers can gain from creating intangible assets such as patents. In this study, we examine the potential unintended effect of addback statutes on corporate innovation. First, we find that the adoption of addback statutes significantly reduces a firm’s innovation, measured by the number of patents or patent citations. Second, the “disappeared patents” resulting from tax avoidance crackdown do not seem to be of lower quality than other patents. Third, after a state adopts an addback statute, a firm with material subsidiaries in that state assigns fewer patents to subsidiaries in Delaware, where income generated by intangible assets is free of state income tax. Finally, affected firms do not have lower innovation prior to the adoption of addback statues. Overall, these findings suggest that the adoption of addback statutes impedes corporate innovation. Our study has important implications for policy makers who are interested in understanding the consequences of policies that constrain tax-motivated income shifting using intangibles and prevent income base erosion

The memory and identity theory of ICD-11 complex posttraumatic stress disorder

The 11th version of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) includes complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) as a separate diagnostic entity alongside posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). ICD-11 CPTSD is defined by six sets of symptoms, three that are shared with PTSD (reexperiencing in the here and now, avoidance, and sense of current threat) and three (affective dysregulation, negative self-concept, and disturbances in relationships) representing pervasive "disturbances in self-organization" (DSO). There is considerable evidence supporting the construct validity of ICD-11 CPTSD, but no theoretical account of its development has thus far been presented. A theory is needed to explain several phenomena that are especially relevant to ICD-11 CPTSD such as the role played by prolonged and repeated trauma exposure, the functional independence between PTSD and DSO symptoms, and diagnostic heterogeneity following trauma exposure. The memory and identity theory of ICD-11 CPTSD states that single and multiple trauma exposure occur in a context of individual vulnerability which interact to give rise to intrusive, sensation-based traumatic memories and negative identities which, together, produce the PTSD and DSO symptoms that define ICD-11 CPTSD. The model emphasizes that the two major and related causal processes of intrusive memories and negative identities exist on a continuum from prereflective experience to full self-awareness. Theoretically derived implications for the assessment and treatment of ICD-11 CPTSD are discussed, as well as areas for future research and model testing. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Measurement of the psychosis continuum: Modelling the frequency and distress of subclinical psychotic experiences

Objective: Dimensional models of psychosis symptom frequency at clinical levels are representative of symptom dimensionality that is inclusive of distress. However, factor models of psychotic-like experiences, or subclinical symptomatology, in the general population have only ever been estimated using information on the frequency of occurrence. To ascertain whether dimensional representations of psychosis at subclinical levels are reflective of clinical manifestations of psychosis, factor models must utilise data that permits the measurement of both frequency and distress of psychosis experiences. Method: Psychotic-like experiences were assessed in a nonclinical sample (N = 462) using the 20 positive items from the CAPE42, which is a self-report questionnaire of psychotic experiences. For each item of the CAPE the frequency and distress ratings were recoded to form composite scores. Seven factor analytic models were specified and tested using confirmatory factor analysis. Results: The five-factor model of Wigman et al. (hallucinations, paranoia, grandiosity, delusions and paranormal beliefs factors) represented the best fitting model for both frequency and composite data. Conclusions: The findings constitute further evidence for a continuum of psychosis within the general population. Future analyses, aimed at delineating the dimensionality of psychosis, must advance towards the inclusion of distress as a central and necessary adjunct to measurement