Incidence of HIV infection among patients with new-onset psychosis

To assess the frequency of HIV testing and the incidence of HIV infection among patients with new-onset psychosis, the records of 811 patients referred to a military hospital for acute psychosis during a two-year period were reviewed. Records of 518 patients were excluded because they had known chronic psychotic illnesses, repeat admissions for recurrent affective disorders with psychotic features, delirium, dementia, or pre-existing HIV infection. Of the 293 patients with new-onset psychotic illness, 84 percent (N = 246) were tested for HIV antibodies. None were seropositive for HIV. Although patients with new-onset psychosis were commonly assessed for HIV infection to clarify their diagnosis, HIV infection was not associated with new-onset psychosis.     

Content-free speech as a source of information about the speaker.

3groups of 10 Ss each were selected on the basis of their scores on a blood pressure recording and on the basis of a personality score related to high blood pressure. All voice samples were judged on scales labelled "aggressive" and "pleasant." The judgments for all types of information significantly differentiated the voices of the 30 Ss. The group with high blood pressure scores showed a lack of significant verbal-vocal congruence. Judgments of content-free information were related to both the blood pressure measure and the personality measure related to high blood pressure. Judgments of normal information were related only to the personality measure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Vegetables for human consumption as probable source of Toxocara sp. infection in man

Although Toxocara canis life cycle is known, other possible mechanisms dynamically involved in its transmission to man are still ignored. The object of the present investigation was to search the occurrence of Toxocara sp. eggs in vegetables which humans consume. Five hundred and thirty six vegetables from a supply distribution center in Mexico City (Distrito Federal) were examined. Those included 212 carrots, 76 potatoes, 31 radishes, 22 mushrooms, 27 lettuces, 20 sweet potatoes and 66 bundles of spinaches, 32 bundles of salt-worts, 29 bundles of coriander, and 21 bundles of purslane. Each unit or bundle was washed with 50 ml of sterilized water, allowing sedimentation at room temperature for 8 hours. Five ml of sediment were centrifugated at 3,000 r.p.m. for 5 minutes. Sediment was examined in lugol stained fresh plates through light microscopy, which turned to be Toxocara sp. eggs were found only in two vegetables: 1.9% of carrots and 6.5% of radishes. Toxocara sp. eggs were: 66.7% recently emitted and 33.3% embryonated. Other parasite elements were: Ascaris lumbricoides eggs 1.9% in carrots, 2.6% in potatoes, 9.1% in mushrooms, 6.9% in corianders, 20.0% in sweet potatoes and 6.1% in spinachs. Entamoeba histolytica cyts were found in 0.9% of carrots. Soil contamination with Toxocara sp. eggs from parasitized dogs or cats, or with either sewage systems or contaminated water where vegetables for human consumption are grown, play a role as a transmission mechanism must be deeperly studied since 33.3% of Toxocara sp. eggs found contained larvae, potentially infective to man.     

Behavioral anchors as a source of bias in rating.

Behavioral anchors may affect the way that raters process information about ratees, and may in some cases be a source of bias in rating. This study tested the hypothesis that the presence of behavioral anchors that closely matched behaviors actually observed by raters would bias performance ratings. Subjects (N?=?180) viewed videotaped lectures and rated them, using scales that contained examples of either good or bad performance that had actually occurred on the tapes, but that were not representative of the ratee's overall performance. One half of the subjects read the scales before viewing the lectures; the remaining subjects read the scales only after viewing the lectures. There was a significant scale effect, but no Scale?×?Order interaction; ratings were biased in the direction of unrepresentative anchors. These results suggest that behavioral anchors can be a source of bias in ratings and they may lead to biased recall, but they probably do not bias the observation and encoding of ratee behavior. Our results suggest that behaviorally anchored scales are not necessarily more objective or less prone to bias than are scales without behavioral anchors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Distraction as a source of drive in social facilitation research.

Distraction–conflict theory maintains that findings from social facilitation research result from the fact that the presence of others distracts Ss, thereby creating attentional conflict, which in turn produces drive effects. In support of this position, there already is a large amount of data indicating that presenting various forms of distraction during task settings produces drive effects. The present research demonstrated that in a close replication of a social facilitation study by N. B. Cottrell et al (1967), 64 undergraduates showed indications across several measures of being more distracted in audience conditions than when they were alone. Moreover, this effect occurred regardless of whether the audience facilitated (simple) performance of impaired (complex) performance. Results support distraction–conflict theory. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

PCR identification of Trichophyton mentagrophytes var. interdigitale and T. mentagrophytes var. mentagrophytes dermatophytes with a random primer

Dermatophytes are a group of keratinophilic fungi falling within the genera of Epidermophyton, Microsporum and Trichophyton. The genus Trichophyton is particularly important and complex; it comprises at least 15 recognised species. In addition, there are several different variants in the species T. mentagrophytes, which occur both in man and animals. The current methods of determining T. mentagrophytes varieties may require several different culture media and time-consuming procedures, as well as specialist skills. This study used a random primer, 5'-GAGCCCGACT-3', in the arbitrarily primed polymerase chain reaction (AP-PCR) and showed that the two common T. mentagrophytes varieties (var. interdigitale and var. mentagrophytes) can be clearly identified on the basis of their characteristic DNA band patterns. The relative reproducibility, ease of use and precision of this method make the AP-PCR a valuable tool in the laboratory diagnosis of human dermatophytosis.     

Susceptibility to persuasive appeals as a function of source credibility and prior experience with the attitude object.

Two experiments were conducted to assess the susceptibility of attitudes formed by either direct experience (DE) or indirect experience (IE) to proattitudinal or counterattitudinal messages delivered by a highly credible or a less credible source. The results were generally consistent with Fazio and Zanna's (1981) theory of DE and IE attitudes and with predictions derived from Petty and Cacioppo's (1981, 1986) elaboration likelihood model. In Experiment 1, DE attitudes proved to be more resistant to a counterattitudinal appeal than were IE attitudes. Moreover, the final attitudes of DE participants reflected these subjects' cognitive elaborations of the message arguments (i.e., the central route to persuasion), whereas the attitudinal responses of IE participants were affected more by source characteristics (i.e., peripheral cues). In Experiment 2, DE attitudes became more extreme in response to a proattitudinal appeal, but IE attitudes did not. In addition, the polarization shifts shown by DE participants were in keeping with these subjects' predominantly favorable elaborations of the message, whereas the attitudes of IE participants were more closely related to subjects' impressions of the communicator. Thus, DE attitudes were more resistant to attack and, yet, more susceptible to proattitudinal influence than were attitudes originating from IE. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Response biases as a confound to expressed burden among spousal caregivers of suspected dementia patients.

Burden among family caregivers has yet to be adequately assessed relative to social desirability response sets. This study examined the impact of two different response biases relative to expressed burden among spousal caregivers of suspected dementia patients. In addition to individual social desirability, it was hypothesized that a distinct social desirability construct exists as a function of one's perception of self within relationships. As predicted, a significant inverse association was apparent between expressed burden and this systemic response bias (as measured by the Edmonds Marital Conventionality Scale), whereas this association was not apparent with a measure of individual social desirability (the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale). This finding suggests that systemic social desirability may exist as a significant response bias. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Methadone maintenance as a setting for treating drug abusers with HIV infection.

Discusses the role of methadone maintenance treatment in the HIV epidemic. Methadone maintenance is useful in both preventing HIV infection and treating HIV-infected patients. Treatment programs use special techniques (health and psychological services) to cope with the difficulties of these patients. Treatment can be effective and can also provide a platform for delivering medical services to HIV-infected drug abusers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Conditioning of attention as a source of autistic effects in perception.

An experiment and replication are presented to demonstrate the production of autistic effects in a situation creating habitual modes of responding to a problem-solving task. The task was to locate a simple figure within a complex colored figure much like the Gottschaldt Test. The simple figure could be located in 1 of 2 different colored areas within the complex figure. During an intervening training period certain colors were rewarded and other colors punished. The Gottschaldt-like figures were then presented again, and changes in responses were observed. In both experiments Ss showed a significant change toward the rewarded colors, which was explained in terms of subliminal anticipatory responses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pathology of Toxoplasma gondii infection in the nude rat. An experimental model of toxoplasmosis in the immunocompromised host?

Genetically athymic nu/nu (nude) rats, deficient in T cells, die from infection with various Toxoplasma gondii strains, including RH and Prugniaud strains. In contrast, these strains cause chronic infections without apparent symptoms in immunocompetent non-nude rats. We show here that nude rats die in two to three weeks after RH infection and three to four weeks after Prugniaud infection. Histological examination of brains from nude rats at different time points after infection, revealed an absence of lesions after RH strain infection and cysts with usually no inflammation after Prugniaud infection. Lungs from nude rats developed a fibrin alveolitis using either strain, whereas myocarditis with focal areas of necrosis were observed only after Prugniaud infection. Cysts and, in some cases, tachyzoites in the necrotic lesions were easily identifiable. The two strains of T. gondii elicited in nude rats a granulomatous hepatitis that only differed in intensity. Spleen and mesenteric lymph nodes appeared totally non reactive in both cases. This model allows immunological and parasitological studies by comparison with immunocompetent rat infection. Published data concerning toxoplasma pathology in AIDS, therefore, suggest that acute toxoplasma infection in nude rats may be a useful model for studying disseminated forms of toxoplasma infection found in AIDS patients.     

Relational schemas as a source of if–then self-inference procedures.

It is generally accepted that the sense of self is constructed rather than directly perceived or experienced. The hypothesis is advanced here that people's rules of self-inference derive in large part from if–then expectancies about the contingencies of interpersonal interaction; that is, expectancies about how other people will react to one's behaviors. If so, a central type of cognitive structure contributing to self-construal is the relational schema, representing regularities in interaction. Research examining the cognitive representation of interpersonal expectancies, the activation of those representations, and the effects on self-experience is described. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Maternal-fetal disease information as a source of exercise motivation during pregnancy.

Objective: A Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) framework was used to examine whether information about the role of exercise in preventing maternal-fetal disease served as a meaningful source of exercise motivation. Design: Pregnant women (n = 208) were randomly assigned into one of three conditions: PMT, attention control, and noncontact control. Women in the PMT group read a brochure about the benefits of exercise during pregnancy incorporating the major components of PMT; perceived vulnerability (PV), perceived severity (PS), response efficacy (RE), and self-efficacy (SE). Participants in the attention-control condition read a brochure about diet. Following treatment, all participants completed measures of their beliefs toward maternal-fetal disease and exercise, goal intention (GI), and implementation intention (IMI). One week later, a measure of self-reported exercise behavior was collected. Main Outcome Measures: Main outcome measures were PMT variables (PV, PS, RE, and SE), GI, IMI, and follow-up physical activity. Results: Participants assigned to the PMT-present group reported significantly higher PS, RE, SE, GI, and increased exercise behavior. PS, RE, and SE predicted GI, GI predicted IMI, and IMI predicted exercise behavior. Conclusion: Information grounded in PMT is effective in influencing pregnant women’s beliefs and intentions as well as changing their initial behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Visual search performance among persons with schizophrenia as a function of target eccentricity.

The current study investigated one possible mechanism of impaired visual attention among patients with schizophrenia: a reduced visual span. Visual span is the region of the visual field from which one can extract information during a single eye fixation. This study hypothesized that schizophrenia-related visual search impairment is mediated, in part, by a smaller visual span. To test this hypothesis, 23 patients with schizophrenia and 22 healthy controls completed a visual search task where the target was pseudorandomly presented at different distances from the center of the display. Response times were analyzed as a function of search condition (feature vs. conjunctive), display size, and target eccentricity. Consistent with previous reports, patient search times were more adversely affected as the number of search items increased in the conjunctive search condition. It was important however, that patients’ conjunctive search times were also impacted to a greater degree by target eccentricity. Moreover, a significant impairment in patients’ visual search performance was only evident when targets were more eccentric and their performance was more similar to healthy controls when the target was located closer to the center of the search display. These results support the hypothesis that a narrower visual span may underlie impaired visual search performance among patients with schizophrenia. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reading skill as a source of individual differences in the processing of instructional texts.

Evidence was found in support of the hypothesis that skilled readers are more likely than less skilled readers to successfully retrieve an appropriate procedure by reading an instructional text. Subjects completed a standardized reading comprehension test and a test designed to reflect their processing of an instructional text and an example. The instructional text and the example either described the same procedure for answering test items (no conflict) or described different and mutually exclusive procedures (conflict). Subjects who had higher scores on the reading test were more likely to notice the conflict between the instructional text and the example, and those who noticed the conflict were more likely to use the instructional text. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Tapping the grapevine: A closer look at word-of-mouth as a recruitment source.

To advance knowledge of word-of-mouth as a company-independent recruitment source, this study draws on conceptualizations of word-of-mouth in the marketing literature. The sample consisted of 612 potential applicants targeted by the Belgian Defense. Consistent with the recipient–source framework, time spent receiving positive word-of-mouth was determined by the traits of the recipient (extraversion and conscientiousness), the characteristics of the source (perceived expertise), and their mutual relationship (tie strength). Only conscientiousness and source expertise were determinants of receiving negative word-of-mouth. In line with the accessibility–diagnosticity model, receiving positive employment information through word-of-mouth early in the recruitment process was positively associated with perceptual (organizational attractiveness) and behavioral outcomes (actual application decisions), beyond potential applicants' exposure to other recruitment sources. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)