Sexy and I Know It: Attachment Orientation and Romantic Confidence on Dating Apps

Romantic confidence is central to relationship initiation. Though previous studies have found that anxiously- and avoidantlyattached individuals differ in their romantic self-concept, none have examined these variables in an online dating context. The current study examined the associations between attachment orientation and dating app users' romantic confidence, perceived partner availability, and relationship initiation behaviors on dating apps. A student and nonstudent sample completed an online survey. Contrary to our expectations, attachment anxiety was positively related to romantic confidence on a dating app and perceived partner availability, whereas attachment avoidance was negatively related to these outcomes. These associations persisted after controlling for perceived number of dating app matches

Swiping more, committing less: Unraveling the links among dating app use, dating app success, and intention to commit infidelity

The present study was conducted to explore the cognitive processes linking people\u27s perceptions of their mobile dating app experience and their intention to commit infidelity. Three hundred and ninety-five participants were recruited through a U.S. based university (44.6%) and MTurk (55.4%). Our results indicate that people\u27s perceived success on a dating app was positively associated with their intention to commit infidelity through self-perceived desirability, and negatively associated with their intention to commit infidelity through perceived amount of available partners. These findings are discussed in light of theories of relational investment

Settling down without settling: Perceived changes in partner preferences in response to COVID-19 concern

The goal of this study was to explore the positive association between concern related to COVID-19 and single individuals’ perceived changes to their partner preferences. In addition, we investigated the mediating role of fear of being single. Results indicated that people with greater COVID-19 concern perceived an increase in the importance of stability, family commitment, and physical/social attractiveness, as well as fear of being single. Fear of being single only negatively predicted the importance of physical/social attractiveness, whereas it positively predicted the importance of stability and family commitment. Thus, in most cases, people with a greater concern for COVID-19 perceived themselves to become more selective, even when they exhibit higher levels of fear of being single

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

The Effect of Complex Interventions on Depression and Anxiety in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background Depression and anxiety are very common in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and are associated with excess morbidity and mortality. Patients prefer non-drug treatments and clinical guidelines promote non-pharmacological interventions as first line therapy for depression and anxiety in people with long term conditions. However the comparative effectiveness of psychological and lifestyle interventions among COPD patients is not known. We assessed whether complex psychological and/or lifestyle interventions are effective in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients with COPD. We then determined what types of psychological and lifestyle interventions are most effective. Methods and Findings Systematic review of randomised controlled trials of psychological and/or lifestyle interventions for adults with COPD that measured symptoms of depression and/or anxiety. CENTRAL, Medline, Embase, PsychINFO, CINAHL, ISI Web of Science and Scopus were searched up to April 2012. Meta-analyses using random effects models were undertaken to estimate the average effect of interventions on depression and anxiety. Thirty independent comparisons from 29 randomised controlled trials (n = 2063) were included in the meta-analysis. Overall, psychological and/or lifestyle interventions were associated with small reductions in symptoms of depression (standardised mean difference −0.28, 95% confidence interval −0.41 to −0.14) and anxiety (standardised mean difference −0.23, 95% confidence interval −0.38 to −0.09). Multi-component exercise training was the only intervention subgroup associated with significant treatment effects for depression (standardised mean difference −0.47, 95% confidence interval −0.66 to −0.28), and for anxiety (standardised mean difference −0.45, 95% confidence interval −0.71 to −0.18). Conclusions Complex psychological and/or lifestyle interventions that include an exercise component significantly improve symptoms of depression and anxiety in people with COPD. Furthermore, multi-component exercise training effectively reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression in all people with COPD regardless of severity of depression or anxiety, highlighting the importance of promoting physical activity in this population

A Moderated Mediation Model of Parent–Child Communication, Risk Taking, Alcohol Consumption, and Sexual Experience in Early Adulthood

The relationship between risk-taking personality and health-risk behaviors has been widely established, where people who like to take risks are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors such as having multiple casual partners and having unprotected sex. Drawing on a national U.S. sample from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, the present study examined the relationship between risk-taking personality and sexual experience among adults in early adulthood, and the role of family (parent-child) communication in moderating this relationship. Findings indicated that, for both males and females, the effect of risk taking on sexual experience through alcohol use dissipated at high levels of father-child communication. However, mother-child communication did not have such moderating effects. Implications for the way in which we study parent-child communication are discussed

Why are you cheating on Tinder?: Exploring users’ motives and (dark) personality traits.

We present an exploratory study examining why people in a relationship use Tinder and whether they score higher on certain (dark) personality traits compared to single users and non-users in a committed relationship. Our results indicate that non-single Tinder users differ significantly on nine Tinder motives from single Tinder users. Moreover, non-single Tinder users generally report a higher number of romantic relationships, French kisses, one night stands, and casual sexual relationships with other Tinder users compared to single Tinder users. In terms of (dark) personality traits, non-single Tinder users score significantly lower on Agreeableness and Conscientiousness, and significantly higher on Neuroticism and Psychopathy compared to non-users in a committed relationship. For non-single Tinder users, lower scores on Agreeableness and Neuroticism and higher scores on Psychopathy and Machiavellianism are significantly correlated with the sexual Tinder motive. Additionally, Narcissism and Machiavellianism were positively associated with using Tinder for an ego-boost. Non-single users who reported to have had offline encounters with other Tinder users reported higher scores on Extraversion and Openness to Experience compared to non-single users who never had an offline encounter

A Few Strings Attached: Face Management Strategies for Escalating Casual Sexual Relationships

Broaching the subject of transitioning from a casual relationship to something more serious can be challenging and rife with potential identity threats. These interactions may result in rejection, may threaten one’s independence, and may threaten one’s desire to appear undemanding. This study asked participants to reflect on a time where either they or their casual sexual partner wanted to escalate the relationship into a more committed, romantic relationship. Initiators’ face concern was negatively related to the success of the escalation request, while targets’ perceptions of face management strategies were positively associated with escalation success. Directness was positively associated with escalation request success for targets, but only when face concern was low.</p