Bounded Rationality of \u3cem\u3eHomo Classificus\u3c/em\u3e: The Law and Bioeconomics of Social Norms as Classification

In the New Chicago School ( NCS ) law and economics literature that emerged in the 1990s, social norms play an important function in their dual role as constraints on behavior and as signaling devices. Missing in the NCS social norms literature, however, is any treatment of social norms as classification, a concept which is fundamental to a more complete theory of social norms. In this Article, I show that my early 1980s theory of social norms embedded in the ethnically homogeneous middleman groups ( EHMGs ) clearly falls squarely within the NCS tradition. Since the 1980s, I have extended my law and economics analysis of social norms as classification. The concept of social norms-as-classification is further expanded in a law and bioeconomics of EHMGs as adaptive units viewed from a multilevel evolutionary perspective. The expanded theory of social norms links together the disparate social science disciplines of economics, law, sociology, anthropology, political science, evolutionary psychology and beyond to evolutionary biology and bioeconomics. By providing evidence of EHMGs functioning as adaptive units, I provided a very rare and important empirical example in support of group selection theory in the field of evolutionary biology. The expanded theory of social norms has theoretical and policy implications for understanding minority middleman success in various parts of the world, changing identities and formation of new identities, racial discrimination, racial profiling, ethnic cooperation, interethnic conflict, and international terrorism

Bounded Rationality of \u3cem\u3eHomo Classificus\u3c/em\u3e: The Law and Bioeconomics of Social Norms as Classification

In the New Chicago School ( NCS ) law and economics literature that emerged in the 1990s, social norms play an important function in their dual role as constraints on behavior and as signaling devices. Missing in the NCS social norms literature, however, is any treatment of social norms as classification, a concept which is fundamental to a more complete theory of social norms. In this Article, I show that my early 1980s theory of social norms embedded in the ethnically homogeneous middleman groups ( EHMGs ) clearly falls squarely within the NCS tradition. Since the 1980s, I have extended my law and economics analysis of social norms as classification. The concept of social norms-as-classification is further expanded in a law and bioeconomics of EHMGs as adaptive units viewed from a multilevel evolutionary perspective. The expanded theory of social norms links together the disparate social science disciplines of economics, law, sociology, anthropology, political science, evolutionary psychology and beyond to evolutionary biology and bioeconomics. By providing evidence of EHMGs functioning as adaptive units, I provided a very rare and important empirical example in support of group selection theory in the field of evolutionary biology. The expanded theory of social norms has theoretical and policy implications for understanding minority middleman success in various parts of the world, changing identities and formation of new identities, racial discrimination, racial profiling, ethnic cooperation, interethnic conflict, and international terrorism

Structural alterations in functional neurological disorder and related conditions: A software and hardware problem?

Functional neurological (conversion) disorder (FND) is a condition at the interface of neurology and psychiatry. A “software” vs. “hardware” analogy describes abnormal neurobiological mechanisms occurring in the context of intact macroscopic brain structure. While useful for explanatory and treatment models, this framework may require more nuanced considerations in the context of quantitative structural neuroimaging findings in FND. Moreover, high co-occurrence of FND and somatic symptom disorders (SSD) as defined in DSM-IV (somatization disorder, somatoform pain disorder, and undifferentiated somatoform disorder; referred to as SSD for brevity in this article) raises the possibility of a partially overlapping pathophysiology. In this systematic review, we use a transdiagnostic approach to review and appraise the structural neuroimaging literature in FND and SSD. While larger sample size studies are needed for definitive characterization, this article highlights that individuals with FND and SSD may exhibit sensorimotor, prefrontal, striatal-thalamic, paralimbic, and limbic structural alterations. The structural neuroimaging literature is contextualized within the neurobiology of stress-related neuroplasticity, gender differences, psychiatric comorbidities, and the greater spectrum of functional somatic disorders. Future directions that could accelerate the characterization of the pathophysiology of FND and DSM-5 SSD are outlined, including “disease staging” discussions to contextualize subgroups with or without structural changes. Emerging neuroimaging evidence suggests that some individuals with FND and SSD may have a “software” and “hardware” problem, although if structural alterations are present the neural mechanisms of functional disorders remain distinct from lesional neurological conditions. Furthermore, it remains unclear whether structural alterations relate to predisposing vulnerabilities or consequences of the disorder. Keywords: Conversion disorder, Psychogenic, Neuroimaging, MRI, Functional neurological disorder, Somatic symptom disorde

Evidence of spatial clustering of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia cases in Greater Mexico City: report from the Mexican Inter-Institutional Group for the identification of the causes of childhood leukemia

BackgroundA heterogeneous geographic distribution of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) cases has been described, possibly, related to the presence of different environmental factors. The aim of the present study was to explore the geographical distribution of childhood ALL cases in Greater Mexico City (GMC).MethodsA population-based case-control study was conducted. Children <18 years old, newly diagnosed with ALL and residents of GMC were included. Controls were patients without leukemia recruited from second-level public hospitals, frequency-matched by sex, age, and health institution with the cases. The residence address where the patients lived during the last year before diagnosis (cases) or the interview (controls) was used for geolocation. Kulldorff’s spatial scan statistic was used to detect spatial clusters (SCs). Relative risks (RR), associated p-value and number of cases included for each cluster were obtained.ResultsA total of 1054 cases with ALL were analyzed. Of these, 408 (38.7%) were distributed across eight SCs detected. A relative risk of 1.61 (p<0.0001) was observed for the main cluster. Similar results were noted for the remaining seven ones. Additionally, a proximity between SCs, electrical installations and petrochemical facilities was observed.ConclusionsThe identification of SCs in certain regions of GMC suggest the possible role of environmental factors in the etiology of childhood ALL