An Interpersonal Analysis of Pathological Personality Traits in DSM-5

The proposed changes to the personality disorder section of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.) places an increased focus on interpersonal impairment as one of the defining features of personality psychopathology. In addition, a proposed trait model has been offered to provide a means of capturing phenotypic variation on the expression of personality disorder. In this study, the authors subject the proposed DSM-5 traits to interpersonal analysis using the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems–Circumplex scales via the structural summary method for circumplex data. DSM-5 traits were consistently associated with generalized interpersonal dysfunction suggesting that they are maladaptive in nature, the majority of traits demonstrated discriminant validity with prototypical and differentiated interpersonal problem profiles, and conformed well to a priori hypothesized associations. These results are discussed in the context of the DSM-5 proposal and contemporary interpersonal theory, with a particular focus on potential areas for expansion of the DSM-5 trait model

The hierarchical structure of DSM-5 pathological personality traits

A multidimensional trait system has been proposed for representing personality disorder (PD) features in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) to address problematic classification issues such as comorbidity. In this model, which may also assist in providing scaffolding for the underlying structure of major forms of psychopathology more generally, 25 primary traits are organized by 5 higher order dimensions: Negative Affect, Detachment, Antagonism, Disinhibition, and Psychoticism. We examined (a) the generalizability of the structure proposed for DSM-5 PD traits, and (b) the potential for an integrative hierarchy based upon DSM-5 PD traits to represent the dimensions scaffolding psychopathology more generally. A large sample of student participants (N = 2,461) completed the Personality Inventory for DSM-5, which operationalizes the DSM-5 traits. Exploratory factor analysis replicated the initially reported 5-factor structure, as indicated by high factor congruencies. The 2-, 3-, and 4-factor solutions estimated in the hierarchy of the DSM-5 traits bear close resemblance to existing models of common mental disorders, temperament, and personality pathology. Thus, beyond the description of individual differences in personality disorder, the trait dimensions might provide a framework for the metastructure of psychopathology in the DSM-5 and the integration of a number of ostensibly competing models of personality trait covariation

Accountability and rural development partnerships: a study of Objective 5b EAGGF funding in South West England

Author's pre-print version. Final version available online at http://www.sciencedirect.com/Funding for Rural Development Partnerships has signalled a shift in rural policy, towards actively involving the rural population in determining the direction and implementation of change. However, early experience with partnerships has indicated that the funding bodies have retained significant control. One reason for this is that they are constrained by their accountability requirements. Furthermore, with not all members of the partnership accountable to the same degree, the funding bodies bear a significant proportion of the risk of new ventures which can result in conservative decisions. A study of the EAGGF component of an EU Objective 5b Programme in the South West of England highlights the tensions that can arise in a partnership from existing accounting arrangements. The lack of a trusting relationship between state and citizens resulted in excessively formal accountability requirements, creating difficulties for applicants, and producing risk-averse decisions by state administrative bodies. However, the case study demonstrates that through the development of networks, both accountability and thereby project responsibility and risk could be more widely spread, creating opportunities for locally shaped, novel and flexible development

Patient experiences of anxiety, depression and acute pain after surgery: a longitudinal perspective

This study sought to explore the impact of the psychological variables anxiety and depression, on pain experience over time following surgery. Eighty-five women having major gynaecological surgery were assessed for anxiety, depression and pain after surgery. To gain further understanding, 37 patients participated in a semi-structured taped telephone interview 4–6 weeks post-operatively. Pre-operative anxiety was found to be predictive of post-operative anxiety on Day 2, with patients who experienced high levels of anxiety before surgery continuing to feel anxious afterwards. By Day 4 both anxiety and depression scores increased as pain increased and one-third of the sample experienced levels of anxiety in psychiatric proportions whilst under one-third experienced similar levels of depression. These findings have significant implications for the provision of acute pain management after surgery. Future research and those managing acute pain services need to consider the multidimensional effect of acute pain and the interface between primary and secondary care

A mosaic of phytoplankton responses across Patagonia, the SE Pacific and SW Atlantic Ocean to ash deposition and trace metal release from the Calbuco 2015 volcanic eruption

Following the April 2015 eruption of the Calbuco volcano, an extensive ash plume spread across northern Patagonia and into the SE Pacific and SW Atlantic Ocean. Here we report the results of field surveys conducted in the marine region receiving the highest ash load following the eruption (Reloncaví Fjord). The fortuitous location of a long-term monitoring station in Reloncaví Fjord provided data to evaluate inshore phytoplankton bloom dynamics and carbonate chemistry during April–May 2015. Satellite derived chlorophyll-a measurements over the ocean regions affected by the ash plume in May 2015 were obtained to determine the spatial-temporal gradient in offshore phytoplankton response to ash. Additionally, leaching experiments were performed to quantify the release of total alkalinity, trace elements (Fe, Mn, Pb, Co, Cu, Ni and Cd) and major ions (Fl, Cl, SO4, NO3, Li, Na, NH4, K, Mg, Ca) from ash into solution. Within Reloncaví Fjord, integrated peak diatom abundances during the May 2015 austral bloom were higher than usual (up to 1.4 × 1011 cells m−2, integrated to 15 m depth), with the bloom intensity perhaps moderated due to high ash loadings in the two weeks following the eruption. In the offshore SE Pacific, a short duration phytoplankton bloom corresponded closely in space and time to the maximum observed ash plume, potentially in response to Fe-fertilization of a region where phytoplankton growth is typically Fe-limited at this time of year. Conversely, no clear fertilization was found in the area subject to an ash plume over the SW Atlantic where the availability of fixed nitrogen is thought to limit phytoplankton growth which was consistent with no significant release of fixed nitrogen from ash. In addition to release of nanomolar concentrations of dissolved Fe from ash suspended in seawater, it was observed that low loadings (< 5 mg L−1) of freshly deposited ash were an unusually prolific source of Fe(II) into solution (up to 1.0 µmol Fe g−1), suggesting that the release of bioaccessible Fe from ash sources may generally be under-estimated when quantified from aged ash. This release of Fe(II) may make freshly deposited ash an unusually efficient dissolved Fe source with the 18–38 % fraction of dissolved Fe released as Fe(II) from Calbuco ash roughly comparable to literature values for Fe released into seawater from aerosols collected over the Pacific Ocean

The influence of Arctic Fe and Atlantic fixed N on summertime primary production in Fram Strait, North Greenland Sea

Climate change has led to a ~ 40% reduction in summer Arctic sea-ice cover extent since the 1970s. Resultant increases in light availability may enhance phytoplankton production. Direct evidence for factors currently constraining summertime phytoplankton growth in the Arctic region is however lacking. GEOTRACES cruise GN05 conducted a Fram Strait transect from Svalbard to the NE Greenland Shelf in summer 2016, sampling for bioessential trace metals (Fe, Co, Zn, Mn) and macronutrients (N, Si, P) at ~ 79°N. Five bioassay experiments were conducted to establish phytoplankton responses to additions of Fe, N, Fe + N and volcanic dust. Ambient nutrient concentrations suggested N and Fe were deficient in surface seawater relative to typical phytoplankton requirements. A west-to-east trend in the relative deficiency of N and Fe was apparent, with N becoming more deficient towards Greenland and Fe more deficient towards Svalbard. This aligned with phytoplankton responses in bioassay experiments, which showed greatest chlorophyll-a increases in + N treatment near Greenland and + N + Fe near Svalbard. Collectively these results suggest primary N limitation of phytoplankton growth throughout the study region, with conditions potentially approaching secondary Fe limitation in the eastern Fram Strait. We suggest that the supply of Atlantic-derived N and Arctic-derived Fe exerts a strong control on summertime nutrient stoichiometry and resultant limitation patterns across the Fram Strait region.S.K. was financed by GEOMAR and the German Research Foundation (DFG Award Number AC 217/1-1 to E.P.A). T.J.B. acknowledges funding from a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral European Fellowship (OceanLiNES; Project ID 658035). Open Access funding provided by Projekt DEAL

Herschel-ATLAS/GAMA: A difference between star formation rates in strong-line and weak-line radio galaxies

We have constructed a sample of radio-loud objects with optical spectroscopy from the Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA) project over the Herschel Astrophysical Terahertz Large Area Survey (Herschel-ATLAS) Phase 1 fields. Classifying the radio sources in terms of their optical spectra, we find that strong-emission-line sources ('high-excitation radio galaxies') have, on average, a factor of ~4 higher 250-μm Herschel luminosity than weak-line ('lowexcitation') radio galaxies and are also more luminous than magnitude-matched radio-quiet galaxies at the same redshift. Using all five H-ATLAS bands, we show that this difference in luminosity between the emission-line classes arises mostly from a difference in the average dust temperature; strong-emission-line sources tend to have comparable dust masses to, but higher dust temperatures than, radio galaxies with weak emission lines. We interpret this as showing that radio galaxies with strong nuclear emission lines are much more likely to be associated with star formation in their host galaxy, although there is certainly not a one-to-one relationship between star formation and strong-line active galactic nuclei (AGN) activity. The strong-line sources are estimated to have star formation rates at least a factor of 3-4 higher than those in the weak-line objects. Our conclusion is consistent with earlier work, generally carried out using much smaller samples, and reinforces the general picture of high-excitation radio galaxies as being located in lower-mass, less evolved host galaxies than their low-excitation counterparts.Peer reviewe

Progress in achieving quantitative classification of psychopathology

Shortcomings of approaches to classifying psychopathology based on expert consensus have given rise to contemporary efforts to classify psychopathology quantitatively. In this paper, we review progress in achieving a quantitative and empirical classification of psychopathology. A substantial empirical literature indicates that psychopathology is generally more dimensional than categorical. When the discreteness versus continuity of psychopathology is treated as a research question, as opposed to being decided as a matter of tradition, the evidence clearly supports the hypothesis of continuity. In addition, a related body of literature shows how psychopathology dimensions can be arranged in a hierarchy, ranging from very broad "spectrum level" dimensions, to specific and narrow clusters of symptoms. In this way, a quantitative approach solves the "problem of comorbidity" by explicitly modeling patterns of co-occurrence among signs and symptoms within a detailed and variegated hierarchy of dimensional concepts with direct clinical utility. Indeed, extensive evidence pertaining to the dimensional and hierarchical structure of psychopathology has led to the formation of the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) Consortium. This is a group of 70 investigators working together to study empirical classification of psychopathology. In this paper, we describe the aims and current foci of the HiTOP Consortium. These aims pertain to continued research on the empirical organization of psychopathology; the connection between personality and psychopathology; the utility of empirically based psychopathology constructs in both research and the clinic; and the development of novel and comprehensive models and corresponding assessment instruments for psychopathology constructs derived from an empirical approach