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The relationship between attachment, the selfconscious emotions of shame and guilt & problem behavior in adolescents
Get PDFA cross-sectional study was conducted to explore the relationship between attachment, the self-conscious emotions of shame and guilt, and problem behavior in adolescents. The study was performed in clinical adolescents aged 13-18 years (N = 31) who had been in contact with the Child Care and Protection Agency. They completed questionnaires measuring shame and guilt, the quality of the attachment relationship and the extent of problem behavior. Results demonstrated that communication, a positive dimension of attachment, was positively associated with various forms of shame and guilt. It was found that trust in parents and peers was associated with a higher extent of conduct problems and hyperactivity. Results also revealed that guilt (unambiguous) was positively correlated with pro-social behavior. Shame (ambiguous) was positively associated with emotional symptoms. Regression analysis showed that both age and gender accounted for an independent and significant proportion of the variance in children’s problem behavior. Altogether, these results fit with the theory that attachment (in)security is involved in the extent of problem behavior and people’s proneness to experience self-conscious emotions
Associations between lifestyle factors and breast cancer in healthy women and breast cancer survivors and need for ehealth support
Get PDFBreast cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality amongst women and its’ incidence is highest in Western-Europe. Contributing factors are higher levels of obesity and alcohol consumption, and lower levels of physical activity. Literature suggests a poor compliance to health recommendations in both breast cancer survivors and women without history of breast cancer. In the light of breast cancer prevention it is of great importance to improve this adherence and to integrate health education. Ehealth counselling might be a useful medium to obtain this goal. To gain an insight in women’s needs and requirements regarding an eHealth programme, this study used a qualitative research design based on the iChange Model
The dark side of personality and its relationship to aggression
Get PDFAim of the study The main question of this study is whether there is a specific relation between Dark Triad personality traits and proactive and reactive aggression in adolescents between 14 and 19 years old. Design The present study is a cross-sectional correlational study. Methods There were 62 participants in the study, these participants were aged between 14 and 19 years and were all students of a high school in Maastricht. Both boys (n = 22) and girls (n = 40) participated in the study. To answer the main question, the participants of the study completed two questionnaires. First, they completed the Dirty Dozen for Youths (DD-Y), a questionnaire to measure the Dark Triad personality traits. Second, they completed the Child Rating scale for Aggression (CRA), a questionnaire to measure proactive and reactive aggression. Results There was no significant difference between boys and girls on the aggression questionnaire, but there was a significant difference between boys and girls on the subscales psychopathy and Machiavellianism. There was no difference between the participants from different educational levels and there was no relation between age and the different subscales. To find out if the personality trait of the Dark Triad were unique predictors of general aggression, reactive aggression and proactive aggression, a multiple regression analysis was carried out. It was found that Machiavellianism is a unique predictor for general aggression, proactive aggression and reactive aggression and that psychopathy is a unique predictor for aggression in general. Conclusion Because Machiavellianism and psychopathy have proven to be unique predictors of aggression and Machiavellianism is even a specific predictor of proactive and reactive aggression, an intervention to prevent/reduce the development of aggression may be designed. In this way, it can be prevented that the development of the child is disturbed by aggressive behavior. Further research into the role of Machiavellianism in the development of aggression is recommended
Introduction
Get PDFDue to experiences such as the Chernobyl disaster, the asbestos tragedy, various foodscandals and comparable experiences, in modern times technology-based innovationis often associated with risks that are highly uncertain. In other words, there aresuspicions about potential hazards to human health or the environment for which thereis no scientific proof, but which cannot be fully refuted either (Van Asselt & Vos 2006).Following scandals such as the BSE crisis where uncertain risks were initially ignored andgovernments and experts attempted to reassure the public with zero risk statements, thecurrent societal climate in which innovation takes place can be characterized as ‘posttrust’(Löfstedt 2005).Technology-based innovation poses significant challenges to regulators. In the earlystages of the innovation process, when technology could be controlled relatively easily,one does not know enough about harmful consequences to issue regulation, whilst at alater stage, by the time consequences are apparent, control by regulation is expensive anddrastic. This dilemma is referred to as the Collingridge dilemma of control of technology(Collingridge 1980). Furthermore, research into health and environmental impacts usuallylags behind: by the time first insights are available, the research is already outdatedbecause new generations of the technologies are already available (Harremoës et al. 2002)Regulators are foremost confronted with the obstacles to innovation in the contextof trade: the free circulation of innovative products may be blocked by states or tradeblocks for reasons of protection of human or environmental health. Controversiesabout innovation and uncertain risks therefore often have trade consequences. Manyof the complex cases that challenge the EU or the World Trade Organisation (WTO) intheir ambition for further market integration pertain to conflicts about innovation anduncertain risks (Prévost 2014). The question often is how to allow free trade while at thesame time ensuring that the protection of human and environmental health is duly takeninto consideration. Trade conflicts concerning genetically modified organisms (GMOs) andhormones in beef are iconic examples
Risk under construction: The German discourse on the ban of MON810
Get PDFFood crises ranging from BSE to EHEC have time and again demonstrated that uncertainrisks in the area of food safety constitute one of the main societal challenges we arecurrently facing. Their nature as “possible, new, imaginable hazards, with which societyhas no or limited experience” (van Asselt and Vos, 2008) leads to situations in whichtraditional means of science prove to be inadequate for drawing suitable conclusionsinforming how the uncertain risk is to be handled. This challenge is particularly visible inthe regulation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs): they have been characterizedas an uncertain risk and pose questions related to socio- political, economic and culturalconsiderations (Ansell and Vogel, 2006; van Asselt and Vos, 2008)
The validity of single item and domain specific sitting time questionnaires in a student population measured under free-living conditions
Get PDFSedentary time questionnaires provide a low cost, low participant burden way of assessing sedentary behavior, but their subjectivity is questionable. The aim of this study was to assess the validity of sedentary time questionnaires, both single item and domain specific, in a student population under free living conditions with accelerometry as criterion measure.It is hypothesised that both sedentary time questionnaires underestimate the sitting time. Twenty healthy subjects (15 male, 5 female) participated in a one-week observational study under free-living conditions. They wore an accelerometer (activPAL) continuously for 7 consecutive days and afterwards filled in a single item (IPAQ) and a domain specific sedentary time questionnaire (dsSTQ) about the same time period. Spearman correlations were used to assess relative validity and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests and Bland-Altman plots were used to assess absolute agreement between questionnaires and accelerometry. Sitting time was significantly underestimated by the IPAQ and insignificantly overestimated by the dsSTQ compared to accelerometry for the full week average sitting times. Correlations between questionnaires and accelerometry were weak to moderate. For both questionnaires there were large individual differences in estimations compared to accelerometry. The correlation between questionnaire and accelerometer determined sitting events lasting 30 minutes or longer was moderate. The dsSTQ is the more accurate measure of the two questionnaires on sitting time on the population level. However, there were large individual differences in estimations, and thus it does not seem to be a valid, reliable measurement tool for sitting time in small populations and in studies were sitting time is an important outcome. For these studies, accelerometry or more preferably direct observation provides a better estimate of sitting time
The contribution of specific class I and II histone deacetylases in the development of anxietyrelated behavior in a mouse model of prenatal immune challenge
Get PDFSeveral lines of evidence demonstrated that maternal infection during gestation might be an environmental risk factor for offspring to develop mood and anxiety disorders later in life. Previous experiments revealed that anxiety-related behavior, observed after prenatal immune challenge, is associated with increased histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity in adult female mice. Based on these findings, this study aims to investigate which class I and II HDAC isotypes might be involved in the development of the long-lasting consequences of prenatal immune challenge. Therefore, pregnant C57BL/6JRccHsd inbred mice were intravenously injected with poly I:C (5 mg/kg bodyweight) at gestational day (GD) 17 to mimic a viral infection. Brains from adult offspring were homogenized and used for western blotting to analyse the relative protein levels of HDAC1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. Due to a lack of signal in HDAC1, HDAC3 and HDAC5, an irregular signal in HDAC2, and a weak signal in HDAC4 and HDAC6, the quality of the western blots was insufficient for protein quantification. Therefore, no subsequent comparison could be made between mice exposed to prenatal poly I:C and PBS in the current stud
Hoge Raad vs. A-G IJzerman: Is de Bedrijfsopvolgingsregeling in de Successiewet 1956 in Strijd met het Gelijkheidsbeginsel?
Get PDFDe bedrijfsopvolgingsregeling in de Successiewet 1956 (SW) voorziet in een vrijstelling voor ondernemingsvermogen. De SW bevat echter geen soortgelijke vrijstelling voor particulier vermogen. Is dit in strijd met het gelijkheidsbeginsel? De Rechtbank Breda besliste op 13 juli 2012 dat de bedrijfsopvolgingsregeling in strijd is met het gelijkheidsbeginsel. Ten gevolge van de vele bezwaren naar aanleiding van deze uitspraak is vervolgens het massaal bezwaar als bedoeld in artikel 25a AWR toegepast. De Hoge Raad heeft in het kader van dit massaal bezwaar proefprocedures gevoerd, waarbij hij heeft beslist dat de bedrijfsopvolgingsregeling niet in strijd is met het gelijkheidsbeginsel. Advocaat-Generaal (A-G) IJzerman heeft in zijn conclusies bij deze beslissing van de Hoge Raad echter geadviseerd dat de bedrijfsopvolgingsregeling in strijd is met het gelijkheidsbeginsel. Wie heeft ‘gelijk’? Is de bedrijfsopvolgingsregeling in strijd met het gelijkheidsbeginsel of niet
Tax Seminar I on Relevant Issues Related to the Permanent Establishment in the Light of the OECD Model Tax Convention on Income and Capital
Get PDFA tax seminar for students following the LL.M course in International and European Tax Law was held at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences of Maastricht University on 11 December, 2013. The objective of this seminar was to provide the students with additional information and insights on the permanent establishment (PE) concept in preparation for their upcoming exam and, at the same time, give them a deeper understanding of the current developments in this area. Dr Marcel Schaper, assistant professor of law at Maastricht University, welcomed the speakers as well as the participating students and gave a brief introduction to the subject of the seminar. The seminar featured two presentations given by Mr Andreas Perdelwitz, principal research associate in the International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation (IBFD) European Knowledge Group, and Ms Oana Popa, senior research associate in the IBFD.
Syncytial nuclear aggregates as markers for villous maturation in placentas from preterm birth
Get PDFThe syncytiotrophoblast is the multinucleated syncytial layer lining the placental villi. In some areas nuclei form aggregates termed true knots by the process of trophoblast turnover. Thereby, the underlying cytotrophoblast cells proliferate, differentiate and fuse with the overlying synctiotrophoblast cells which have no own generative potency. The nuclei in the syncytiotrophoblast are undergoing apoptosis and form true knots which are shed into the maternal circulation as syncytiotrophoblast microparticles (STBMs). This process ensures that the diffusion distance between maternal and foetal blood is decreased to nourish the growing foetus. Excessive formation of true knots has been reported in placentas of pregnancies complicated by pre-eclampsia. This is a complication of pregnancy characterized by increased maternal blood pressure and induced preterm labour is the only treatment. Pregnancies complicated by chorioamnionitis, a severe inflammation of the foetal membranes due to a bacterial infection, are also at increased risk of preterm labour. The aim of this study is to establish an objective scoring system for placental villous maturation based on true knots, STBMs and syncytial knotting frequency. Our assumption is that the frequency of syncytial knots in placentas complicated by pre-eclampsia are increased. True knots, STBMs and syncytial knotting are assessed by histological examination of placental tissue using a light microscope. In pre-eclamptic placentas the highest numbers of true knots, syncytial knotting and STBMs compared to an idiopathic preterm control group were found. Placentas complicated by chorioamnionitis show a slight decrease of true knots, syncytial knotting and STBMs compared to the idiopathic preterm group and a significant decrease compared to pre-eclamptic placentas. The increase of true knots and syncytial knotting could be a sign for an increased trophoblast turnover during pre-eclampsia. This implies enhanced proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis of the placental epithelium. Chorioamnionitis placentas display lower number of true knots indicating a lower trophoblast turnover which may be part of another anomaly of the placental development. For our scoring system are true knots, STBMs and syncytial knotting convincing markers for analysis of villous maturation in pre-eclampsia. In case of chorioamnionitis other markers may be more useful