Job Strain, Workplace Discrimination, and Hypertension Among Older Workers: The Health and Retirement Study

Job strain has been associated with hypertension among younger workers; however, whether this relationship persists among older workers, particularly older racial/ethnic minorities, is unresolved. This study evaluated whether job strain and workplace discrimination are associated with hypertension and poor blood pressure control among older workers and whether these relationships vary by gender and race/ethnicity. Data were drawn from the Health and Retirement Study, and analysis was restricted to employed participants with complete information on job strain and blood pressure (N = 3,794). In adjusted models, high job strain was associated with lower likelihood of hypertension (odds ratio (OR): 0.75, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.63, 0.89) relative to low job strain. Stratified analyses indicated this association was only significant among white (OR: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.58, 0.86) and male (OR: 0.61, 95% CI: 0.47, 0.79) workers. High job strain was not significantly associated with hypertension among African American (OR: 1.14, 95% CI: 0.63, 2.07) or Hispanic (OR: 0.56, 95% CI: 0.29, 1.09) workers. Workplace discrimination was not associated with hypertension among any group. Neither job strain nor discrimination was associated with poor blood pressure control. These findings suggest that persistence in work characterized by high job strain in later life may signal resilience to the influence of work-related stressors on health. Future research efforts should examine the factors that contribute to gender and racial differences in these relationships.     

A Domain Conceptualization of Adolescent Susceptibility to Peer Pressure

This study tested a domain conceptualization of adolescent susceptibility to peer pressure. Using the peer pressure domains identified by Clasen and Brown (1985) , five susceptibility domains were proposed although only four (family involvement, school involvement, peer involvement, and misconduct) were tested. In terms of measurement, cross‐validated results showed that the model with the four domains provided the best fit. In terms of age and sex patterns, the different susceptibilities were characterized by different patterns of age trends and sex differences. In terms of incremental validity, all four susceptibilities predicted behavior in their domains beyond other potential predictors. In terms of relations with a theoretical correlate, the four susceptibilities were differentially related to parental knowledge of adolescents' lives. This overall pattern of results provides converging support for the domain conceptualization.     

Will evolutionary psychology become extinct? Evolutionary psychology as the Leaning Tower of Pisa

ABSTRACT

Evolutionary psychology has as its foundation the classical Darwinian-Wallace theory of evolution. Using this theory as a guideline, evolutionary psychologists have interpreted human behaviors from an adaptationist outlook using a circular logic wherein no matter what the behavior is being looked at it is always given an evolutionary rationale. Additionally, there is much speculation as to evolutionary effects in the past and these speculations are seen as factual. Furthermore, there is evidence that the classical theory is flawed in that the emphasis on adaptation as the basis for evolution is incorrect. In that there is no actual evidence that Natural Selection (i.e., adaptation) has led to speciation. Previous scientists who have criticized the classical theory are cited, who made the case for speciation having occurred through a sudden “saltationist” process rather than the classical gradual process. As such, the author predicts that evolutionary psychology may ultimately become extinct as a subdiscipline.     

Suicidality among homeless people: Testing the mediating effects of self-efficacy and depression

ABSTRACT

This cross-sectional study examined the mediating effect of PTSD on suicide ideation and suicide attempt through two mediators, self-efficacy and depression, among homeless adults. We recruited a non-random, purposive sample of 156 homeless adults from seven homeless people shelters in Kansas. SEM results suggest that self-efficacy and depression were significant mediators between PTSD and suicide ideation, but not between PTSD and suicide attempt. This study’s findings can be used to identify risk factors associated with suicidal behaviors that can be used to design service programs aimed at preventing suicidal ideation and attempt among people who are homeless.     

The longitudinal effects of parental monitoring and self-control on depression in Korean adolescents: A multivariate latent growth approach

The purpose of this study was to examine the longitudinal effects of parental monitoring and self-control on depression. To address this purpose, this study investigated the interrelationships among depression, perceived parental monitoring, and self-control—as well as their developmental changes from the eighth to the twelfth grades—by repeated assessment of 3449 Korean adolescents. The data from Korea Youth Panel Survey (KYPS) of the eighth graders who were followed for five years were analyzed using latent growth modeling. The univariate latent growth models showed that adolescents experience an increase in both parental monitoring and self-control but a decline in depression over the five years. In addition, the multivariate latent growth model suggested that the initial level of parental monitoring had significant effects, both directly and indirectly through self-control, on the initial level of depression. The linear changes in parental monitoring were associated with the linear changes in self-control; likewise, the linear changes in self-control were related to those in depression. These results imply that parental monitoring and self-control need to be emphasized as a strategy in order to prevent or alleviate adolescents' depression.     

基于Fishbein合理行为模型的国家形象对中国消费者购买意向影响研究——以美、德、日、韩四国国家形象为例

本研究对我国消费者进行问卷调查,通过实证分析发现,消费者对国家形象的感知大体上分为四个构面:与中国关系评价、国家发展程度、整体产品评价、整体人民评价,国家形象各构面的组成项目因国家不同而有所差异。本研究将国家形象作为新的变量引入Fishbein模型,发现模型依然与实际数据有着较好的吻合,验证了Fishbein模型具有较好的可扩展性和跨文化适应性。通过模型分析,发现国家形象间接地影响消费者的购买意向,其影响系数因产品类别不同而有所差异,其中国家形象对服装产品的购买意向影响最高,手机产品次之,对汽车产品的购买意向影响最低。     

Attribute Charts for Zero-Inflated Processes

The classical Shewhart c-chart and p-chart which are constructed based on the Poisson and binomial distributions are inappropriate in monitoring zero-inflated counts. They tend to underestimate the dispersion of zero-inflated counts and subsequently lead to higher false alarm rate in detecting out-of-control signals. Another drawback of these charts is that their 3-sigma control limits, evaluated based on the asymptotic normality assumption of the attribute counts, have a systematic negative bias in their coverage probability. We recommend that the zero-inflated models which account for the excess number of zeros should first be fitted to the zero-inflated Poisson and binomial counts. The Poisson parameter λ estimated from a zero-inflated Poisson model is then used to construct a one-sided c-chart with its upper control limit constructed based on the Jeffreys prior interval that provides good coverage probability for λ. Similarly, the binomial parameter p estimated from a zero-inflated binomial model is used to construct a one-sided np-chart with its upper control limit constructed based on the Jeffreys prior interval or Blyth–Still interval of the binomial proportion p. A simple two-of-two control rule is also recommended to improve further on the performance of these two proposed charts.     

Records Properties of Non Stationary Time Series

This article proposes an asymptotic expansion for the Studentized linear discriminant function using two-step monotone missing samples under multivariate normality. The asymptotic expansions related to discriminant function have been obtained for complete data under multivariate normality. The result derived by Anderson (1973 Anderson , T. W. ( 1973 ). An asymptotic expansion of the distribution of the Studentized classification statistic W . The Annals of Statistics 1 : 964 – 972 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) plays an important role in deciding the cut-off point that controls the probabilities of misclassification. This article provides an extension of the result derived by Anderson (1973 Anderson , T. W. ( 1973 ). An asymptotic expansion of the distribution of the Studentized classification statistic W . The Annals of Statistics 1 : 964 – 972 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) in the case of two-step monotone missing samples under multivariate normality. Finally, numerical evaluations by Monte Carlo simulations were also presented.     

A Detrended Range Unit Root (DRUR) Test

We extend the Range Unit Root test in two directions. First, we consider the process with time trend and prove that the modified standardized number of new records converges to a sum of two Rayleigh distributions. Second, more general structures of autocorrelated disturbances are also taken into account. Monte Carlo experiments show the good sample properties of this nonparametric unit root test.