Function Of Personal Characteristics Research Articles

The Effects of Sustained Literacy Engagement on Cognition and Sentence Processing Among Older Adults.

Considerable evidence suggests that language processing depends on memory processes, which are vulnerable to declines with aging. Yet little is known about the effects of language processing in the form of sustained literacy engagement on memory and other aspects of cognition. In the current study, adults (60–79 years of age) were randomly assigned to an 8-week program of leisure reading (n = 38) or to an active puzzle control (n = 38). Relative to the control, the experimental group showed differential improvement in verbal working memory and episodic memory. The experimental group also showed evidence of enhanced conceptual integration in sentence processing. These effects did not vary as a function of personality characteristics (e.g., openness) hypothesized to be compatible with literacy engagement. These findings support the idea that the exercise of cognitive capacities in the context of everyday life may offset age-related impairment in areas of cognition engaged by the activity, regardless of dispositional fit.

Comparing health care use and costs among new Medicaid enrollees before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background and ObjectiveTo characterize health care use and costs among new Medicaid enrollees before and during the COVID pandemic. Results can help Medicaid non-expansion states understand health care use and costs of new enrollees in a period of enrollment growth.Research DesignRetrospective cross-sectional analysis of North Carolina Medicaid claims data (January 1, 2018 - August 31, 2020). We used modified Poisson and ordinary least squares regression analysis to estimate health care use and costs as a function of personal characteristics and enrollment during COVID. Using data on existing enrollees before and during COVID, we projected the extent to which changes in outcomes among new enrollees during COVID were pandemic-related.Subjects340,782 new enrollees pre-COVID (January 2018 – December 2019) and 56,428 new enrollees during COVID (March 2020 – June 2020).MeasuresWe observed new enrollees for 60-days after enrollment to identify emergency department (ED) visits, nonemergent ED visits, primary care visits, potentially-avoidable hospitalizations, dental visits, and health care costs.ResultsNew Medicaid enrollees during COVID were less likely to have an ED visit (-46 % [95 % CI: -48 %, -43 %]), nonemergent ED visit (-52 % [95 % CI: -56 %, -48 %]), potentially-avoidable hospitalization (-52 % [95 % CI: -60 %, -43 %]), primary care visit (-34 % [95 % CI: -36 %, -33 %]), or dental visit (-36 % [95 % CI: -41 %, -30 %]). They were also less likely to incur any health care costs (-29 % [95 % CI: -30 %, -28 %]), and their total costs were 8 % lower [95 % CI: -12 %, -4 %]. Depending on the outcome, COVID explained between 34 % and 100 % of these reductions.ConclusionsNew Medicaid enrollees during COVID used significantly less care than new enrollees pre-COVID. Most of the reduction stems from pandemic-related changes in supply and demand, but the profile of new enrollees before versus during COVID also differed.

Willingness to information security as a function of personality characteristics and threat assessment among adolescents

PurposeThe study focuses on adolescents and the influence the big five great personality traits – extroversion, agreeableness, neuroticism, openness to experiences and conscientiousness – on self-disclosure. These personality traits, combined with the ability to cope with stress, determine the degree of threat felt by an individual towards their information, their evaluation of their personal ability to keep their information secure, and their willingness to secure information.Design/methodology/approachFive questionnaires relating to the big five personality traits, self-disclosure, cognitive assessment, self-efficacy and IS awareness were distributed among 157 adolescents.FindingsReadiness for IS. Furthermore, the study showed that the more ostentatiousness, agreeable, goal oriented and open the subjects are, the lower they will evaluate the threat to their information. A relationship was also revealed between the subjects' agreeableness, goal orientation and their information threat assessment. It was also found that the more extroverted, agreeable, conscientious and the more inclined to self-disclosure, the higher they evaluate their self-ability to handle threats to their information.Originality/valueFor IS behavior to become second nature to adolescents they must first be educated and trained to do so. Knowing what motivates them and, on the other hand, what hinders them, to practice IS can help build training models for teachers which may be adapted according to their personal traits, thus getting the most out of such programs.

Personality, Entrepreneurship Education and Entrepreneurial Intention Among Ghanaian Students

The connection between personality traits, entrepreneurship curriculum and entrepreneurial intention has received inadequate research consideration among students in Africa to inform policies and curriculum development. An explanatory cross-sectional survey of 324 Ghanaian university students was assessed in a path analysis to model entrepreneurial intention as a function of personality characteristics, mediated by entrepreneurship curriculum and moderated by teaching methods, while controlling for age, gender and program of study. There were direct significant effects of entrepreneurial attitude, need for achievement and locus of control on entrepreneurial intention. The conditional effect of teaching method on entrepreneurial attitude was also significant. We found evidence of mediated-moderation for entrepreneurial attitude and intention, with no evidence found for locus of control and need for achievement. We have provided empirical evidence to support the ongoing discussion on the effect of personality traits on entrepreneurial intention to guide the development of policy and curriculum on entrepreneurship education. Implications of our study for extant literature on personality traits-entrepreneurship intention nexus, aspiring student entrepreneurs, university managers, entrepreneurship educators and policy decision makers are accentuated.

Relationships among optimism, pessimism, and posttraumatic growth in the US and Japan: Focusing on varying patterns of perceived stressfulness

Posttraumatic growth (PTG), perceived positive changes resulting from highly stressful life experiences, can vary as a function of personality characteristics. Past research shows mixed findings on the relationship between PTG and optimism. The current study examined how the relationships among optimism, pessimism, and PTG differ across varying patterns of stressfulness in two nations. In a cross-sectional survey, American (n = 464) and Japanese (n = 282) undergraduates identified a highly stressful event they experienced within the past five years and completed a series of questionnaires. Three meaningful clusters (i.e., Recovery, Chronic Stress, and Low Stress) emerged based on retrospective and current reports of stressfulness. Results from multi-group analyses demonstrated that optimism predicted higher PTG among both Americans and Japanese in the Chronic Stress group, but solely among Americans in the Recovery group. Pessimism did not have consistently significant associations across PTG domains for Americans or Japanese in any cluster. Findings suggest that PTG and Recovery are distinct processes; people can experience PTG even in the absence of a Recovery pattern. Furthermore, optimism appears to be a more consistent predictor for Americans than for Japanese, and pessimism does not appear to be influential for PTG in either nation.

Age at death in cohorts of middle-aged men followed-up until nearly extinction: the European areas of the Seven Countries Study

Objectives: To describe age at death (AD) in ten cohorts of middle-aged men followed-up until nearly extinction as a function of personal characteristics measured at baseline.Material and Methods: Cohorts of men aged 40–59 years in five European countries (Finland, the Netherlands, Italy, Serbia, Greece) were examined and then followed-up for mortality during 45 (3 cohorts) or 50 years (7 cohorts). Multiple linear regression (MLR) models were computed with AD as dependent variable and 35 personal characteristics as independent variables.Results: Out of 7047 men, 6798 (96.5%) died in 45–50 years. Average AD was 74.4 (median 75) years. Only five variables were significant in all the five countries when tested by MLR. By pooling together all countries and selecting variables by a stepwise technique, 20 were significant (p < .05): age at entry examination, being married, being a never smoker or an ex-smoker (versus current smokers), forced expiratory volume, high socio-economic status, arm circumference, subscapular skinfold, having moderate or vigorous physical activity (all with a positive relationship with AD); father early mortality, laterality/linearity index, high systolic blood pressure, high serum cholesterol, having a major cardiovascular disease, diabetes or chronic bronchitis (these with a negative relationship), while body mass index, subdivided into four classes, showed a parabolic relationship (versus a reference class). Each factor was associated with a difference of months or a few years to AD, while their combinations were associated with several years of greater or smaller AD.Conclusions: The availability of a relatively small number of risk factors measured in middle-aged men allows making rough estimates of AD as related to all-cause mortality during a follow-up of 50 years. AD is also a valuable metrics to describe past health in nearly extinct populations.Key messagesWe aimed at studying the age at death (AD) of middle-aged men of the European cohorts of the Seven Countries Study, followed-up 45–50 years until nearly extinction, as a function of personal characteristics measured at baseline.Multiple linear regression (MLR) models were computed with AD as dependent variable and 35 personal characteristics or risk factors as independent variables and only five were significant in all individual countries, whereas pooling together all countries, 20 variables were significant as selected by stepwise MLR.Each factor was associated with differences of months or a few years to AD, while their combinations were associated with several years of greater or smaller AD.AD is a valuable metrics to describe past health in nearly extinct populations: it might also be used to communicate years of life gained by preventive measures on modifiable variables.

The food amount rating scale: development, reliability, and validity.

Implied in measures of binge eating is the assumption that individuals agree on what comprises a large amount of food. However, whether individuals estimate food amounts similarly or whether estimation of food amounts varies as a function of personal characteristics is unknown. The Food Amount Rating Scale (FARS) is a standardized set of stimuli for assessing individuals' judgment of food amounts. Two versions of the FARS were developed, and their psychometric properties were assessed. These versions are the same in all respects except that the rater is instructed to rate various food amounts for the average woman on Form W and for the average man on Form M. Content validity was confirmed by 14 researchers and research assistants in the field of eating disorders. The FARS is a 24-item inventory with adequate test-retest reliability (Form W = 0.85; Form M = 0.87) and split-half reliability (Form W = 0.90; Form M = 0.89). Convergent validity is suggested by the finding that ratings for the average woman (Form W) were significantly higher than ratings for the average man (Form M). The FARS is a psychometrically sound tool for use in basic research focused on identifying whether the subjective judgment of food amounts varies as a function of personal characteristics and in clinical research where it may be important to know how individuals judge food amounts.

Time Use by Frail Older People in Different Care Settings

The way in which time is used is an important aspect of the quality of life in long-term care settings. Time budget data for a 24-hour period were contrasted for 123 people living in a nursing home, in an assisted living facility, or in the community with home health services. Results indicate that the days of frail older people are largely spent alone and at home. Obligatory activities account for 38.6% of the day, whereas discretionary activities account for 59.7%. Time spent in activities varies as a function of personal characteristics, environmental context, and social context. Although there are differences across these settings, there are also striking similarities, particularly with respect to social context and satisfaction with the day. These data suggest that there is no one optimal living environment for frail older people and that traditional long-term care environments may be preferable for some.

Motivations to exercise as a function of personality characteristics, age, and gender

The purpose of this study was to investigate the simultaneous influence of age, gender, physical-activity level, and personality factors on the reasons that individuals participate in leisure-time physical activity. In previous research only a few studies have considered potentially influential factors besides gender. Preliminary factor analytic procedures tested the independence of the seven original subscales of the Reasons for Exercise Inventory (REI). Since the fit of the initial model to the data was poor, modifications were made. Regression analyses indicated few age or gender differences in the reasons reported for exercising. Extraversion and neuroticism were, however, positively correlated with several of the REI scales—findings that can be explained theoretically. Results underscore the importance of taking account of individual differences in efforts to understand what motivates individuals to engage in exercise activities.

Transition intensities in the Dutch labour market 1980–85

Using data from a set of retrospective questions from a Dutch national sample on individual labour market experiences in the period 1980–85, a three-state hazard model is estimated. Transitions are analysed between three labour market states: employment, unemployment and the out-of-the labour force, as well as between jobs (job mobility). Allowance is made for time-varying exogenous variables and for duration dependence. The estimated transition rates allow us to predict individual probabilities of participation in the labour force, of unemployment and employment, and to calculate expected lengths of stay in each of these labour market states as a function of personal characteristics and relevant demand conditions.

Learning as a Function of Personality Characteristics: I. Predictors of Serial List Acquisition

The results of learning studies are often unclear because the effects of subjects' personality characteristics on performance are ignored. In the present research, serial list acquisition was predicted by four of Cattell's temperament factors: Premsia (tender-mindedness), Protension (suspiciousness), High Ergic Tension (tenseness), and General Intelligence. These variables accounted for one-third of the variance in serial learning which would otherwise have been unexplained.

Sex-Stereotyped Attitudes of Male and Female Preschool Teachers as a Function of Personality Characteristics

The present study assessed the correlations between the personality characteristics and sex-stereotyped attitudes of 20 male and 20 female preschool teachers and 20 male engineers. Masculine genders held masculine-preferred attitudes toward children while feminine genders held feminine-preferred attitudes toward children.

Prediction of interaction and notably the outcome of persuasion processes in small human groups as a function of personality characteristics of their members

Prediction of interaction and notably the outcome of persuasion processes in small human groups as a function of personality characteristics of their members