How old was she? The accuracy of assessing the age of adolescents' based on photos

Information on the degree to which individuals can make accurate estimations of someone's age can be of importance in different legal contexts, such as for example child sexual abuse cases in which the victim is an adolescent and asylum procedures. There is, however, a scarcity of studies concerning age estimations conducted with young target persons. Using facial photos of target persons aged 12-18 years, we investigated the effects of gender, age, and ethnicity of both targets (n = 240) and observers (n = 869) on the accuracy of age estimation. We also investigated the effects of targets' facial expressions (neutral or smiling), use of makeup, and photo quality. Participants overestimated the age of the adolescents by, on average, 3.51 years. Participants overestimated the age of young adolescent girls to a greater extent than that of younger boys. Men made larger overestimations than women. Participants also estimated smiling targets as being older than targets with neutral facial expression, and the age of girls with makeup to be older than girls without makeup. Because there was considerable variation in the accuracy of estimations, and overestimates were common, we conclude that the ability of individuals to estimate the age of adolescents is generally low. This might have important legal implications.Peer reviewe

Trait reactance and trust in doctors as predictors of vaccination behavior, vaccine attitudes, and use of complementary and alternative medicine in parents of young children

ObjectiveThe aim of the present study was to investigate whether anti-vaccination attitudes and behavior, and positive attitudes to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), are driven by trait reactance and a distrust in medical doctors.MethodsThe sample consisted of 770 Finnish parents who filled out an online survey. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine if trait reactance plays a role in vaccination decisions, vaccine attitudes, and in the use of CAM, and whether that relationship is mediated by trust in medical doctors.ResultsParents with higher trait reactance had lower trust in doctors, more negative attitudes to vaccines, a higher likelihood of not accepting vaccines for their children and themselves, and a higher likelihood to use CAM treatments that are not included in evidence-based medicine. Our analyses also revealed associations between vaccination behavior and CAM use and vaccine attitudes and CAM use, but there was no support for the previous notion that these associations would be explained by trait reactance and trust in doctors.ConclusionsTaken together, higher trait reactance seems to be relevant for attitudes and behaviors that go against conventional medicine, because trait reactance is connected to a distrust in medical doctors. Our findings also suggest that high trait reactance and low trust in doctors function differently for different people: For some individuals they might be associated with anti-vaccination attitudes and behavior, while for others they might be related to CAM use. We speculate that this is because people differ in what is important to them, leading them to react against different aspects of conventional medicine

Counteracting deceptive responding in the Finnish Investigative Instrument of Child Sexual Abuse (FICSA)

Unfounded child sexual abuse (CSA) allegations take investigative resources from real cases and have detrimental consequences for the people involved. The Finnish Investigative Instrument of Child Sexual Abuse (FICSA) supports investigators by estimating the probability of a CSA allegation being true based on the child's background information. In the current study, we aimed at making FICSA resistant to deception. Two gender-specific questionnaires with FICSA questions and additional "trap" questions were constructed. The trap questions were designed to seem statistically related to CSA although they were not. Combining the answers of 278 real victims and 275 16-year-old students, instructed to simulate being CSA victims, we built a Naive Bayes classifier that successfully separated the two groups (AUC = 0.91 for boys and 0.92 for girls). By identifying false allegations early in the investigation, authorities' resources can be directed towards allegations that are more likely true, effectively helping actual CSA victims

An experimental study using a sexual strategies explanation to reduce homophobia toward gay men among lay people and healthcare professionals in China

IntroductionHomophobic discrimination and stigmatization, especially from healthcare professionals, are important stressors for gay men. Homophobia may be partly rooted in seeing some gay men having casual sex and many sexual partners as a signal of mental problems. Sexual Strategies Theory (SST) suggests that such sexual behavior is a result of different sexual strategies men and women tend to adopt and is unrelated to sexual orientation per se. This study aimed to investigate (1) the effectiveness of providing an SST explanation for gay men’s sexual behavior in reducing homophobia among both lay persons and healthcare professionals; (2) differences in homophobia between healthcare professionals and lay people and also between medical and non-medical professionals.MethodsThe main analyses included 492 heterosexual participants recruited online via Chinese social media and sample services in 2021. Of these, 227 were healthcare professionals (128 medical, 99 non-medical) and 265 were lay people. The participants were randomly assigned into an experimental group given the SST explanation (n = 126), an active control group given a Minority Stress (MS) explanation (n = 184), and a control group (n = 182). After the manipulation, homophobia, knowledge about homosexuality, professional homophobic attitude, gay affirmative practice, and contact with gay men were assessed.ResultsThe results of factor analysis suggested dividing homophobia into Oppressing Homophobia (Oppressing HP) describing believing that gay men should have fewer rights and Pathologizing Homophobia (Pathologizing HP) describing believing that the sexual behavior of gay men is a signal of mental problem. Importantly, the SST explanation reduced Pathologizing HP while the MS explanation reduced Oppressing HP. Healthcare professionals reported more Oppressing HP than lay people, and medical professionals conducted less gay affirmative practice than non-medical professionals.ConclusionAn SST explanation can potentially reduce some aspects of homophobia among both healthcare professionals and lay people. Also, worryingly, Chinese healthcare professionals, especially medical professionals, reported more homophobia than lay individuals

Fearing the Disease or the Vaccine:The Case of COVID-19

As studies indicate that people perceive COVID-19 as a threatening disease, the demand for a vaccine against the disease could be expected to be high. Vaccine safety concerns might nevertheless outweigh the perceived disease risks when an individual decides whether or not to accept the vaccine. We investigated the role of perceived risk of COVID-19 (i.e., perceived likelihood of infection, perceived disease severity, and disease-related worry) and perceived safety of a prospective vaccine against COVID-19 in predicting intentions to accept a COVID-19 vaccine. Three Finnish samples were surveyed: 825 parents of small children, 205 individuals living in an area with suboptimal vaccination coverage, and 1325 Facebook users nationwide. As points of reference, we compared the perceptions of COVID-19 to those of influenza and measles. COVID-19 was perceived as a threatening disease—more so than influenza and measles. The strongest predictor of COVID-19 vaccination intentions was trusting the safety of the potential vaccine. Those perceiving COVID-19 as a severe disease were also slightly more intent on taking a COVID-19 vaccine. Informing the public about the safety of a forthcoming COVID-19 vaccine should be the focus for health authorities aiming to achieve a high vaccine uptake

The Behavioral Immune System and Vaccination Intentions During the Coronavirus Pandemic

The behavioral immune system is considered to be a psychological adaptation that decreases the risk of infection. Research suggests that, in the current environment, this system can produce attitudes with negative health consequences, such as increased vaccine hesitancy. In three studies, we investigated whether two facets of the behavioral immune system—germ aversion (i.e., aversion to potential pathogen transmission) and perceived infectability (i.e., perceived susceptibility to disease)—predicted intentions to accept COVID-19 and influenza vaccination during the pandemic. The behavioral immune system mechanisms were measured before the COVID-19 pandemic in one study, and during the pandemic in two. In contrast to previous research, those with higher germ aversion during the pandemic perceived vaccines to be safer and had higher intentions to accept vaccination. Germ aversion before the pandemic was not associated with vaccination intentions. Individuals who perceived themselves as more susceptible to disease were slightly more willing to accept vaccination. We conjecture that high disease threat reverses the relationship between the behavioral immune system response and vaccination. As the associations were weak, individual differences in germ aversion and perceived infectability are of little practical relevance for vaccine uptake

Unwillingness to engage in behaviors that protect against COVID-19: the role of conspiracy beliefs, trust, and endorsement of complementary and alternative medicine

Background We investigated if people's response to the official recommendations during the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with conspiracy beliefs related to COVID-19, a distrust in the sources providing information on COVID-19, and an endorsement of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Methods The sample consisted of 1325 Finnish adults who filled out an online survey marketed on Facebook. Structural regression analysis was used to investigate whether: 1) conspiracy beliefs, a distrust in information sources, and endorsement of CAM predict people's response to the non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) implemented by the government during the COVID-19 pandemic, and 2) conspiracy beliefs, a distrust in information sources, and endorsement of CAM are related to people's willingness to take a COVID-19 vaccine. Results Individuals with more conspiracy beliefs and a lower trust in information sources were less likely to have a positive response to the NPIs. Individuals with less trust in information sources and more endorsement of CAM were more unwilling to take a COVID-19 vaccine. Distrust in information sources was the strongest and most consistent predictor in all models. Our analyses also revealed that some of the people who respond negatively to the NPIs also have a lower likelihood to take the vaccine. This association was partly related to a lower trust in information sources. Conclusions Distrusting the establishment to provide accurate information, believing in conspiracy theories, and endorsing treatments and substances that are not part of conventional medicine, are all associated with a more negative response to the official guidelines during COVID-19. How people respond to the guidelines, however, is more strongly and consistently related to the degree of trust they feel in the information sources, than to their tendency to hold conspiracy beliefs or endorse CAM. These findings highlight the need for governments and health authorities to create communication strategies that build public trust

Online simulation training of child sexual abuse interviews with feedback improves interview quality in Japanese university students

Although previous research has confirmed the effectiveness of simulated child sexual abuse interviews with feedback, its validation is limited to Western contexts and faceto-face settings. The present study aims to extend this research to non-Western and online/remote training conditions. Thirty-two Japanese undergraduate students were randomly assigned to a control or feedback group. The feedback group conducted a set of six online simulated child sexual abuse interviews while receiving feedback after each interview in an attempt to improve the quality of their questioning style. The feedback consisted of the outcome of the alleged cases and the quality of the questions asked in the interviews. The control group conducted the interviews without feedback. The feedback (vs. control) increased the proportion of recommended questions (first interview: 45%; last interview: 65% vs. first: 43%; last: 42%, respectively) by using fewer not-recommended questions and eliciting fewer incorrect details. Furthermore, only participants in the feedback group (7 out of 17) demonstrated a reliable change in the proportion of recommended questions. The present study explores the efficacy of simulated interview training with avatars in a different cultural setting and in the context of remote administration. The differences between the present study and previous research are discussed in light of cultural and logistical aspects

To which world regions does the valence–dominance model of social perception apply?

Over the past 10 years, Oosterhof and Todorov’s valence–dominance model has emerged as the most prominent account of how people evaluate faces on social dimensions. In this model, two dimensions (valence and dominance) underpin social judgements of faces. Because this model has primarily been developed and tested in Western regions, it is unclear whether these findings apply to other regions. We addressed this question by replicating Oosterhof and Todorov’s methodology across 11 world regions, 41 countries and 11,570 participants. When we used Oosterhof and Todorov’s original analysis strategy, the valence–dominance model generalized across regions. When we used an alternative methodology to allow for correlated dimensions, we observed much less generalization. Collectively, these results suggest that, while the valence–dominance model generalizes very well across regions when dimensions are forced to be orthogonal, regional differences are revealed when we use different extraction methods and correlate and rotate the dimension reduction solution