PERCEPTIONS IN PREDICTING ACTOR AND PARTNER SEXUAL AND RELATIONAL SATISFACTION IN COUPLE RELATIONSHIPS

The present exploration of perceptual accuracy and bias in romantic relationships bridges a gap in the literature on the ability of partners to estimate one another’s level of relational and sexual satisfaction, and its impact on their own and their partner’s level of satisfaction. A sample of 50 couples, recruited internationally, in continuously monogamous relationships of at least six-months in length completed online assessments of their relationship. The degree of accuracy and bias of their perception was established by comparing actor’s estimates of their partner’s satisfaction with the partner’s actual, self-reported satisfaction scores. The actor-partner interdependence model (APIM; Kenny, Kashy, & Cook, 2006) revealed significant partner effects (but no actor effects): the underestimation of perceived partner’s sexual and relational satisfaction predicted an increase in partner’s actual sexual and relational satisfaction. Overestimation of partner’s satisfaction, on the other hand, predicted a decrease in partner’s actual satisfaction. Authors hypothesize that under-perception of partner’s satisfaction motivates corrective relationship behaviors, which, in turn, increases the experience of satisfaction of the relationship partner

Les motifs phraséologiques pour distinguer les genres littéraires. Sur l’exemple des motifs de la communication verbale et non verbale

The present paper is based on the assumption that the language of the novel is characterized by a statistically relevant overrepresentation of certain linguistic units (e.g. lexemes, key words, collocations and colligations, Siepmann 2015). First steps towards checking the validity of this hypothesis had been undertaken in pioneering works in the 1990s/2000s (e.g. Stubbs & Barth 2003). These studies were however limited by the small size of their (exclusively English) corpora. The present study explores the role of some patterns (phraseological motifs) in distinguishing French literary subgenres. It also proposes a case study of some motifs related to the verbal (dire avec sourire ‘to say with a smile’) and non-verbal communication (adresser un sourire ‘to send a smile’). Unlike traditional corpus-stylistic analyses, which frequently focus on the style of a single author, our corpus-driven approach identifies lexico-syntactic constructions in literary genres which are automatically extracted from the corpora.The main purpose is to show the relevance of the notion of phraseological motif (Legallois 2012; Longrée & Mellet 2013; Novakova & Siepmann 2020) for the distinction of literary subgenres. Linking form and meaning, these ‘multidimensional units’ fulfil pragmatic as well as discursive functions.The data has been extracted from large French corpora of the PhraseoRom research project https://phraseorom.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr. They are accessible on http://phraseotext.univ-grenoble-alpes.fr/phraseobase/index.html and contain 1000 novels (published from the 1950s to the present), partitioned into six sub-corpora: general literature (GEN), crime fiction (CRIM), romances (ROM), historical novels (HIST), science fiction (SF) and fantasy (FY).The results of our study reveal some unexpected differences between the literary subgenres: e.g. the motif dire d’une voix ‘to say in a voice’ in HIST compared to GEN. In FY, expressions of verbal communication are related to shouting and screaming. Expressions related to the non-verbal communication (prendre dans ses bras ‘to take in one’s arms’) are specific to ROM, where body language is overrepresented. In SF, there is a very limited number of these types of expressions. More generally, the motifs provide the link between the micro level (phraseological recurrences) and the macro level (the fictional script)

Re-thinking the EU's development paradigm: views from Morocco and Tunisia. EPC Policy Brief, 12 January 2015

A decade of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and the standard model of business as usual remains. Is there a reluctance to take the prevailing development paradigm based on economic growth and question its suitability as a motor for development? Most ENP resources and most tangible results remain within a financial framework, with a concentration on market-driven reforms in relation to economic and social change. On this basis, the current atmosphere represents a historical opportunity for rethinking the EU´s development paradigm fostered in the region. Drawing on extensive field work in Morocco and Tunisia, this policy brief highlights limitations and contradictions of the EU´s socio-economic development policies

Diurnal patterns and relationships between physiological and self-reported stress in patients with epilepsy and psychogenic non-epileptic seizures

Purpose: Patients with epilepsy and those with psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES) experience high levels of stress and stress is one of the most frequently self-identified seizure precipitants. Although stress is a multifaceted phenomenon, few studies have systematically examined its different components in patients with seizures. The aim of this study was therefore to describe diurnal patterns of psychological and physiological measures of stress in patients with epilepsy and patients with PNES, and explore their relationships to each other in order to improve our understanding of the mechanisms underlying stress and seizure occurrence in these patients. Method: A range of stress markers including self-reported stress, salivary cortisol and heart rate variability (HRV) were explored in adult patients with refractory epilepsy (N = 22) and those with PNES (N = 23) undergoing three- to five-day video-telemetry. Results: A diurnal pattern was observed in the physiological measures, characterised by higher levels of physiological arousal in the mornings and lower levels at night in both patients with epilepsy and PNES. The physiological measures (cortisol and HRV) were associated with each other in patients with epilepsy, no close relationship was found with self-reported stress in either of the two patient groups. Conclusion: The findings contribute to and expand on previous studies of the patterns of stress in patients with seizures. The results also indicate a discrepancy between patients’ physiological responses and their subjective stress perceptions, suggesting that simple self-reports cannot be used as a proxy of physiological arousal in patients with seizures and stress. Stress in these patient groups should be studied using a combination of complementary measures

An organometallic compound which exhibits a DNA topology-dependent one-stranded intercalation mode

Understanding how small molecules interact with DNA is essential since it underlies a multitude of pathological conditions and therapeutic interventions. Many different intercalator compounds have been studied because of their activity as mutagens or drugs, but little is known regarding their interaction with nucleosomes, the protein-packaged form of DNA in cells. Here, using crystallographic methods and molecular dynamics simulations, we discovered that adducts formed by [(η⁶-THA)Ru(ethylenediamine)Cl][PF₆] (THA = 5,8,9,10-tetrahydroanthracene; RAED-THA-Cl[PF₆]) in the nucleosome comprise a novel one-stranded intercalation and DNA distortion mode. Conversely, the THA group in fact remains solvent exposed and does not disrupt base stacking in RAED-THA adducts on B-form DNA. This newly observed DNA binding mode and topology dependence may actually be prevalent and should be considered when studying covalently binding intercalating compounds

Cognitive dysfunction in patients with asymptomatic ischaemic disturbances of the cerebral circulation and carotid stenosis

BACKGROUND: Impairment of cognitive function is often present in patients with carotid artery stenosis but the details of this dysfunction have rarely been reported. Our purpose was to elucidate the cognitive dysfunction in patients with Asymptomatic Ischaemic Disturbances of the Cerebral Circulation and unilateral asymptomatic severe carotid stenosis using comprehensive neuropsychological testing, and also to identify the specific underlying clinical and neuroimaging factors.METHODS: We analyzed the results of neuropsychological testing, the clinical history, and MR findings in 10 patients with Asymptomatic Ischaemic Disturbances of the Cerebral Circulation and severe (70-99%) stenosis of the extra cranial internal carotid artery (ICA) on Doppler sonography. Cognitive functions were examined. We excluded patients with Asymptomatic Ischaemic Disturbances of the Cerebral Circulation with contra lateral ICA occlusion or severe stenosis.RESULTS: Our neuropsychological testing revealed obvious cognitive deficits in all patients with Asymptomatic Ischaemic Disturbances of the Cerebral Circulation and unilateral asymptomatic severe ICA stenosis. The mean cognitive score on the memory test was also significantly lower in patients with asymptomatic ICA stenosis and score 3 lesions on MRI than in asymptomatic patients and lesions score 1 on MRI (p<0.05).CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive deficits are common in patients with Asymptomatic Ischaemic Disturbances of the Cerebral Circulation and unilateral asymptomatic severe ICA stenosis. Our findings suggest that an additional mechanism beyond the structural lesion such as chronic hypoperfusion may affect cognitive function in patients with high-grade ICA stenosis

Powerful figures and images: Contribution to Personification of Polis in Hellenistic Art

Anthropomorphic symbol in the visual art was an integral part of ancient Greek culture since beginning. Personification of Hellenistic polis, understood as broad and diverse social, geographic and political phenomenon, can be approached by an analysis of archaeological and written sources. Define polis in miscellaneous Hellenistic society is a complex task, especially when socio-historical context is not directly reflected by individual archaeological finds and detailed historical data. Certain changes within political sphere appeared and status of city-states varied. An effort to restore political sovereignty did not expire entirely, therefore personification of poleis from previous period remained in some cases almost unchanged. Personification of political units in Classical art might be similar, distinct or completely different from Hellenistic depictions. Personification of polis in Classical period reflected not only patriotic stance and civil affiliation, but also the legitimacy of state independence. In this aspect, a connection with art of following period may be seen: reshaping of political propaganda was performed during Hellenistic age. Legitimity of state power and expressive means of fine arts were closely related since Archaic period, which occured later in various forms.