Can Happiness change? An Interdisciplinary, Multi-Method Investigation of the Dynamics of Happiness

None of the major basic questions social sciences are concerned with can satisfyingly be answered from the perspective of one discipline alone. Each of them proposes theories and perspectives that make unique and important contributions. At the same time theoretical perspectives in general inevitably do have their blind spots. This fundamental insight was the reason for us to choose as the motto for the 19th IACCP congress held in Bremen in 2008 “Crossing borders – (Cross-) Cultural Psychology as an Interdisciplinary, Multi-Method Endeavor”. In this chapter we first want to illustrate this motto and our reasons for choosing it by reviewing recent research on one exemplary basic question of the social sciences: Can happiness change? We will cover findings across the social science disciplines in order to illustrate the benefits of interdisciplinary, multi-method investigations. This review will also reveal that the recent evidence violates traditional mono-disciplinary views on the respective question. After that, we will briefly introduce the contributions of this volume

Rendering Borders Obsolete: Cross-Cultural and Cultural Psychology as an Interdisciplinary, Multi-Method Endeavor

A peer-reviewed book based on presentations at the XIX Congress of the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology, 2008, Bremen, Germany. (c) 2011, International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychologyhttps://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/iaccp_proceedings/1003/thumbnail.jp

Shock experiments in range of 10-45 GPa with small multidomain magnetite in porous targets

Peer reviewe

The Values in Crisis Project:A three-wave panel study in Germany and the United Kingdom

This article introduces the data from the Values in Crisis project conducted in Germany and the United Kingdom. The project seized the COVID-19 pandemic as a natural experiment to investigate whether, how and to what extent people’s moral values change as a result of a disruptive event of massive order and global scale. An online panel survey measured individuals’ experiences with COVID-19, moral values, personality traits and social orientations at three different stages throughout the pandemic: at its onset (Wave 1: April–May 2020), one year later amidst the pandemic (Wave 2: February–March 2021), and two years later towards its end (Wave 3: February–April 2022). The samples for Wave 1 were drawn using quota sampling along gender, age group, level of education, and country region for the population aged 16 and above in Germany (NDE,W1 = 2,005), and 18 and above in the UK (NUK,W1 = 2,033). The samples for Wave 2 consist of re-contacted participants at a retention rate of 63.99% for Germany (NDE,W1–2 = 1,283) and 56.57% for the UK (NUK,W1–2 = 1,150). The samples for Wave 3 comprise of re-contacted participants at a retention rate of 43.74% in Germany (NDE,W1–3 = 877) and 37.73% in the UK (NUK,W1–3 = 767) as well as newly recruited participants (NDE,W3 = 381, NUK,W3 = 461). The data can be used for various secondary analyses on the topics covered in the survey.</p

A cosmopolitan temptation

For some, the transnationalization of political action and communicative space in the European Union heralds an emergent cosmopolitan order. Need that be so? There are supranational institutions in the EU as well as transnational political and cultural spaces and cross-border communicative flows. However, the Union's member states remain key controllers of citizenship rights and purveyors of collective identities. And for many purposes they still maintain strongly bounded national public spheres. Because the EU's overall character as a polity remains unresolved, this has consequences for the organization of communicative spaces. The EU is a field of tensions and contradictions that is inescapably rooted in institutional realities. Wishful thinking about cosmopolitanism can get in the way of clear analysis

Pulsatile ex vivo perfusion of human saphenous vein grafts under controlled pressure conditions increases MMP-2 expression

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The use of human saphenous vein grafts (HSVGs) as a bypass conduit is a standard procedure in the treatment of coronary artery disease while their early occlusion remains a major problem.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We have developed an <it>ex vivo </it>perfusion system, which uses standardized and strictly controlled hemodynamic parameters for the pulsatile and non-static perfusion of HSVGs to guarantee a reliable analysis of molecular parameters under different pressure conditions. Cell viability of HSVGs (n = 12) was determined by the metabolic conversion of 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) into a purple formazan dye.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Under physiological flow rates (10 mmHg) HSVGs remained viable for two weeks. Their exposure to arterial conditions (100 mmHg) was possible for one week without important reduction in viability. Baseline expression of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) after venous perfusion (2.2 ± 0.5, n = 5) was strongly up-regulated after exposure to arterial conditions for three days (19.8 ± 4.3) or five days (23.9 ± 6.1, p < 0.05). Zymographic analyses confirmed this increase on the protein level. Our results suggest that expression and activity of MMP-2 are strongly increased after exposure of HSVGs to arterial hemodynamic conditions compared to physiological conditions.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Therefore, our system might be helpful to more precisely understand the molecular mechanisms leading to an early failure of HSVGs.</p

Autosomal dominant gyrate atrophy-like choroidal dystrophy revisited: 45 years follow-up and association with a novel C1QTNF5 missense variant

We present a long-term follow-up in autosomal dominant gyrate atrophy-like choroidal dystrophy (adGALCD) and propose a possible genotype/phenotype correlation. Ophthalmic examination of six patients from two families revealed confluent areas of choroidal atrophy resembling gyrate atrophy, starting in the second decade of life. Progression continued centrally, reaching the fovea at about 60 years of age. Subretinal deposits, retinal pigmentation or choroidal neovascularization as seen in late-onset retinal degeneration (LORD) were not observed. Whole genome sequencing revealed a novel missense variant in the C1QTNF5 gene (p.(Q180E)) which was found in heterozygous state in all affected subjects. Haplotype analysis showed that this variant found in both families is identical by descent. Three-dimensional modeling of the possible supramolecular assemblies of C1QTNF5 revealed that the p.(Q180E) variant led to the destabilization of protein tertiary and quaternary structures, affecting both the stability of the single protomer and the entire globular head, thus exerting detrimental effects on the formation of C1QTNF5 trimeric globular domains and their interaction. In conclusion, we propose that the p.(Q180E) variant causes a specific phenotype, adGALCD, that differs in multiple clinical aspects from LORD. Disruption of optimal cell-adhesion mechanisms is expected when analyzing the effects of the point mutation at the protein level

Decoherence and Entanglement Dynamics of Coupled Qubits

We study the entanglement dynamics and relaxation properties of a system of two interacting qubits in the two cases (I) two independent bosonic baths and (II) one common bath, at temperature T. The entanglement dynamics is studied in terms of the concurrence C (t) between the two spins and of the von Neumann entropy S(t) with respect to the bath, as a function of time. We prove that the system does thermalize. In the case (II) of a single bath, the existence of a decoherence-free (DFS) subspace makes entanglement dynamics very rich. We show that when the system is initially in a state with a component in the DFS the relaxation time is surprisingly long, showing the existence of semi-decoherence free subspaces. The equilibrium state in this case is not the Gibbs state. The entanglement dynamics for the single bath case is also studied as a function of temperature, coupling strength with the environment and strength of tunneling coupling. The case of the mixed state is finally shown and discussed.Comment: improved version with all the details and study in function of temperature, coupling strengths and the study of the mixed state cas