Large Sample Of Participants Research Articles

Do Siblings have a Different Influence on Self-Assessed Family Functioning in Patients with Anorexia and Bulimia Nervosa?

The impact of family factors, particularly the sibling status, on the development and course of eating disorders has been rarely investigated.Therefore, the aimof the present study was to assess a putative association between sibling status and self-rated family dysfunctionality in a large sample of study participants with bulimia nervosa and anorexia nervosa. A total cohort of n = 568 outpatients aged twelve years and older, of whomhalf had the diagnosis of anorexia (n = 288, 50.7 %), was assessed for self-rated family dysfunctionality using the well-validated German General Family Questionnaire (FB-A), while the symptom level (Global Severity Index) was determined using the SCL-90-Rsymptomchecklist. Patientswith anorexiaweremore frequently only children compared to the bulimia group who had generallymore siblings (22.6%vs. 14.4%, p = 0.012). In patients with bulimia nervosa, bivariate analyses revealed a significant positive association between the presence of siblings and the degree of family dysfunctionality (only child: 33.6 ± 17.6, sibling child: 39.3 ± 15.5, p = 0.043). Linear regressionmodels adjusted for age, body-mass index, parents living in separation, and the Global Severity Index (GSI) confirmed a significant association between higher family dysfunctionality as a dependent variable and sibling status (beta = 0.163, 95%confidence interval [CI] = 1.431; 12.774, p = 0.014).No such relationship was found in the anorexia group (p = 0.418).The differential associations between sibling status and self-rated family dysfunctionality found for the two eating-disorder entities may indicate differences in the pathogenesis of anorexia and bulimia nervosa.

Sex difference in trait empathy is encoded in the human anterior insula.

Females are considered the more empathic sex. This conventional view, however, has been challenged in the past few decades with mixed findings. These heterogeneous findings could be caused by the fact that empathy is a complex and multifaceted construct. To clarify whether sex differences exist in certain dimensions of empathy and whether they are associated with specific neural bases, this study measured trait empathy using the interpersonal reactivity index (IRI) and collected brain structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging data in a large sample of healthy participants (206 males vs. 302 females). We found that females scored higher in the personal distress (PD) subscale than males, but they were comparable to males in other IRI subscales. Sex difference in PD was encoded by brain structural (e.g. gray matter volume in left anterior insula [AI]) and functional (e.g. resting-state functional connectivity between left AI and temporoparietal junction/inferior frontal gyrus) characteristics. Notably, the relationship between sex and PD was indirect-only and serially mediated by AI-associated structural and functional characteristics. Altogether, our results suggested that sex difference existed in self-oriented affective empathy (i.e. PD) and highlighted the importance of the AI, both structurally and functionally, in mediating the sex difference in trait empathy.

The medial temporal lobe structure and function support positive affect

Positive affect (PA) is not only associated with individuals' psychological and physical health, but also their cognitive processes. However, whether medial temporal lobe (MTL) and its subfields' volume/functional connectivity can explain individual variability in PA remains understudied. We investigated the morphological (i.e., grey matter volume; GMV) and functional characteristics (i.e., resting-state functional connectivity; rsFC) of PA with a combination of univariate and multivariate pattern analyses (MVPA) using a large sample of participants (n = 321). We simultaneously collected the T1-weighted (n = 321), high-resolution MTL T2-weighted, and resting-state functional imaging data (n = 209). The MTL and its subfields' volumes, including the CA1, CA2+3, DG, and subiculum (SUB), perirhinal cortex (PRC), and parahippocampus (PHC), were extracted using an automatic segmentation of hippocampal subfields (ASHS) software. The morphological results revealed that GMVs in the prefrontal-occipital and limbic (i.e., hippocampus, amygdala, and PHC) systems were associated with variability in PA at the whole-brain level using MVPA but not univariate analysis. Linear regression results further revealed a positive association between the MTL subfields’ GMV, especially for the right PRC, and PA after controlling for several covariates. PRC-seed-based rsFC analyses further revealed that its couplings with the fronto-parietal-occipital system predicted PA in both univariate and MVPA. These findings provide novel insights into the neuroanatomical and functional substrates underlying human PA trait. Findings also suggest critical contributions of the MTL and its subfield of the perirhinal cortex, but not hippocampal subfields, as well as its functional coupling with the fronto-parietal control-system on the formation of PA.

Multiple Motives for Adventure Sport Revisited: A Multi-Activity Investigation

The growing popularity of adventure recreation highlights the need to understand its participants and the individual characteristics of these activities in order to target health and well-being outcomes through adventure leisure pursuits. While exploratory qualitative studies have questioned the centrality of risk and thrill in adventure recreation, these studies often involved small sample sizes and amalgamated diverse adventure activities. The current study investigated adventure recreation motives via semi-structured interviews with a large sample (n = 84) of expert participants across six distinct air, land and water-based adventure activities (e.g., wingsuit BASE jumping, freeriding, downhill mountain biking, big-wave surfing). Seven themes (underpinned by 12 subthemes) emerged during thematic data analysis as key adventure recreation motives: holistic living, emotional diversity, competence, social connectedness, nature experience, agency, and optimal mental states. Although all themes were present across each adventure activity, data illustrated differences in the relative importance of motives across activities. Findings suggested that (1) adventure recreation and associated motives are more heterogeneous than currently conceptualized, and (2) adventure recreation motives should be more broadly conceptualized beyond hedonic motives (e.g., risk and thrill-seeking) to encompass more diverse eudaimonic motives.

Mapping the perception-space of facial expressions in the era of face masks.

With the advent of the severe acute respiratory syndrome-Corona Virus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic, the theme of emotion recognition from facial expressions has become highly relevant due to the widespread use of face masks as one of the main devices imposed to counter the spread of the virus. Unsurprisingly, several studies published in the last 2 years have shown that accuracy in the recognition of basic emotions expressed by faces wearing masks is reduced. However, less is known about the impact that wearing face masks has on the ability to recognize emotions from subtle expressions. Furthermore, even less is known regarding the role of interindividual differences (such as alexithymic and autistic traits) in emotion processing. This study investigated the perception of all the six basic emotions (anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise), both as a function of the face mask and as a function of the facial expressions’ intensity (full vs. subtle) in terms of participants’ uncertainty in their responses, misattribution errors, and perceived intensity. The experiment was conducted online on a large sample of participants (N = 129). Participants completed the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale and the Autistic Spectrum Quotient and then performed an emotion-recognition task that involved face stimuli wearing a mask or not, and displaying full or subtle expressions. Each face stimulus was presented alongside the Geneva Emotion Wheel (GEW), and participants had to indicate what emotion they believed the other person was feeling and its intensity using the GEW. For each combination of our variables, we computed the indices of ‘uncertainty’ (i.e., the spread of responses around the correct emotion category), ‘bias’ (i.e., the systematic errors in recognition), and ‘perceived intensity’ (i.e., the distance from the center of the GEW). We found that face masks increase uncertainty for all facial expressions of emotion, except for fear when intense, and that disgust was systematically confused with anger (i.e., response bias). Furthermore, when faces were covered by the mask, all the emotions were perceived as less intense, and this was particularly evident for subtle expressions. Finally, we did not find any evidence of a relationship between these indices and alexithymic/autistic traits.

Reliability and Validity of the Colombian Version of the Revised Sociosexual Orientation Inventory

Sociosexuality refers to an individual’s disposition to have casual sex without establishing affective bonds and has been widely studied worldwide using the Revised Sociosexual Orientation Inventory (SOI-R; Penke & Asendorpf, 2008). Despite its many validations in different cultural contexts, no psychometric analyses of this instrument have been conducted in Spanish-speaking Latin American countries. To address this gap in the literature, we examined the psychometric properties of the SOI-R in Colombia. In a cross-sectional study with a large sample of participants (N = 812; 64% women), we conducted exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses to identify different factor structures and determine which had the best fit for our sample and examined the reliability of the scale. Results showed that a three-factor structure, with sociosexual behaviors, attitudes, and desire as first-order factors, and global sociosexuality as a second-order factor, had the best fit indexes. Each factor presented good reliability indexes. Replicating already established gender differences, we also found that men scored higher on each factor when compared to women. These findings show that the SOI-R is a reliable and valid instrument to assess sociosexuality in countries where sociosexuality research is underrepresented.

LEXICAL AND SYNTACTIC AMBIGUITY IN THE VACCINE NEWS HEADLINES OF THE STAR

Since the Covid-19 vaccination rollout, the news media has played an essential role in reporting the vaccine-related news to reduce the risk of getting and spreading the Covid-19 disease. However, people nowadays are preoccupied with busy schedules that they just glance at the news headlines and determine what they imply. If a word, phrase, or sentence in the headlines has more than one interpretation, they may misinterpret them and receive the wrong information. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the lexical and syntactic ambiguity in the vaccines headlines of The Star news and to determine how these ambiguities affected the readers’ interpretation of the headlines. After collecting the headlines from The Star news, the definitions of the words and phrases were deduced using Oxford Learner’s Dictionary, while the sentence structures were identified using parsing. A questionnaire was also disseminated to the respondents to obtain different interpretations of the words or sentences. Next, a semi-structured interview was conducted with nine participants from three different educational backgrounds. The interviews were then transcribed and analysed thematically. The findings revealed that the lexical and syntactic ambiguity existed in the vaccine-related news headlines in The Star, with five lexical ambiguities and three syntactic ambiguities. Nonetheless, the participants were not affected by ambiguities because of the context and knowledge of the topic. The research study also posed a few limitations and gaps, where the other considerations and a larger sample of participants could be considered.

The S267F variant of sodium taurocholate co-transporting polypeptide is strongly associated with resistance to chronic hepatitis B and high level of serum total bile acids

Background and aimsThe sodium taurocholate co-transporting polypeptide (NTCP) is a functional receptor for the hepatitis B virus (HBV), and it is critical for bile acid homeostasis. Previous studies of the association between the S267F variant and chronic hepatitis B (CHB) have generated conflicting results. This study analyzed the correlation between the NTCP S267F variant and CHB susceptibility by using a large sample of participants classified by gender and age, and this study also analyzed the relationship between this variant and the level of serum total bile acids. MethodsIn total, 543 patients with CHB and 429 control subjects underwent S267F variant genotyping using SNaPshot technology. Logistic regression was utilized to evaluate any association of the NTCP S267F variant with CHB susceptibility. ResultsThe S267F variant was inversely correlated with the risk of chronic HBV infection in both the dominant model (GG genotype vs. AG genotype: odds ratio (OR) = 0.46, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.30–0.71, P < 0.001) and the allele model (G allele vs. A allele: OR = 0.50, 95% CI 0.33–0.76, P = 0.001), and this correlation was not affected by gender and age stratification. The carriers of the heterozygous NTCP variant exhibited higher total bile acids levels than the carriers of wild-type NTCP, regardless of whether they were control subjects or patients with CHB. Heterozygous carriers exhibited reduced hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positivity rates and had lower ALT, AST, and lg DNA concentrations compared with wild-type carriers in patients with CHB. ConclusionsThe S267F variant of NTCP is a protective factor that reduces the risk of chronic HBV infection and exhibits a higher total bile acids level. Patients with CHB who carry this variant may have a better prognosis than those carrying wild-type NTCP.

Behavioral pre-testing of COVID Tracker, Ireland’s contact-tracing app.

Contact-tracing mobile phone apps can play a role in controlling the spread of COVID-19, but their success hinges on widespread public acceptance, uptake and use, which are difficult for public administrators to foresee. We report on a rapid behavioral pre-test of COVID Tracker, Ireland’s contact-tracing app, prior to its launch. A large sample of participants were randomized to receive different versions of a trial app. They responded to an online survey while downloading and using the app on their phones in real time. Experimental manipulations focused on: (i) the level of privacy assurance provided in the app, (ii) the goal-framing of the purpose of the app and (iii) the structuring of the exposure notification. Almost one in five participants mentioned privacy concerns in relation to their likelihood of downloading the app, but concerns were lower and engagement stronger in a condition that included additional assurances regarding the privacy of users’ data in the app. This finding informed the final version of the app. Overall, our results demonstrate the value and feasibility of pre-testing digital interfaces to improve public administration.

A clinical guide to assessment of navigation impairment: Standardized subjective and objective instruments and normative data

ABSTRACT Objective Problems with finding one’s way around are frequently reported by neurological patients. However, no dedicated standardized tools exist to assess whether such reports indicate navigation impairment or not. We provide a standardized three-step method to assess navigation ability in neurological patients, based on two recently developed diagnostic tools and normative data. The objective of this method is to assess navigation ability in detail, to allow for appropriate rehabilitation training for navigation impairment. Method A population-based sample of 7150 Dutch individuals (age 18–89) filled out the Wayfinding Questionnaire (WQ), to assess their self-reported navigation ability and level of spatial anxiety. Additionally, the participants completed the Leiden Navigation Test (LNT), a brief digital test consisting of five subtasks, assessing distinct domains of navigation ability. Both the WQ and LNT can be found online, free of charge. Results Normative data stratified by gender and age are reported for each of the three subscales of the WQ, and for each of the five subtasks of the LNT. Conclusions Based on performance data of a very large population-based sample of participants, navigation performance of neurological patients with specific navigation complaints can be assessed in three steps. First, we recommend to inquire about potential problems concerning navigation. Next, in case of navigation complaints, the extent of potential navigation impairment can first be measured with the WQ. Lastly, if impaired scores are found, the LNT can provide objective verification of the perceived impairment, as well as insight into which navigation domains are affected. Such insight will allow for prediction of the practical consequences of the impairment and can be used for informed and tailored rehabilitation.

Automated pharyngeal phase detection and bolus localization in videofluoroscopic swallowing study: Killing two birds with one stone?

Background and objectiveThe videofluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS) is a gold-standard imaging technique for assessing swallowing, but analysis and rating of VFSS recordings is time consuming and requires specialized training and expertise. Researchers have recently demonstrated that it is possible to automatically detect the pharyngeal phase of swallowing and to localize the bolus in VFSS recordings via computer vision approaches, fostering the development of novel techniques for automatic VFSS analysis. However, training of algorithms to perform these tasks requires large amounts of annotated data that are seldom available. In this paper, we demonstrate that the challenges of pharyngeal phase detection and bolus localization can be solved together using a single approach. MethodsWe propose a deep-learning framework that jointly tackles pharyngeal phase detection and bolus localization in a weakly-supervised manner, requiring only the initial and final frames of the pharyngeal phase as ground truth annotations for the training. Our approach stems from the observation that bolus presence in the pharynx is the most prominent visual feature upon which to infer whether individual VFSS frames belong to the pharyngeal phase. We conducted extensive experiments with multiple convolutional neural networks (CNNs) on a dataset of 1245 bolus-level clips from 59 healthy subjects. ResultsWe demonstrated that the pharyngeal phase can be detected with an F1-score higher than 0.9. Moreover, by processing the class activation maps of the CNNs, we were able to localize the bolus with promising results, obtaining correlations with ground truth trajectories higher than 0.9, without any manual annotations of bolus location used for training purposes. ConclusionsOnce validated on a larger sample of participants with swallowing disorders, our framework will pave the way for the development of intelligent tools for VFSS analysis to support clinicians in swallowing assessment.

The relationship between spatiotemporal gait parameters and cognitive function in healthy adults: protocol for a cross-sectional study

BackgroundMotor dysfunctions, such as slower walking speed, precede the occurrence of dementia and mild cognitive impairment, suggesting that walking parameters are effective biomarkers for detecting early sub-clinical cognitive risk. It is often also concurrent with self-complained cognitive dysfunction, called motoric cognitive risk (MCR) syndrome. Our preliminary study found several walking parameters, obtained by a three-dimensional motion capture system, to be correlated with computer-based assessments of various cognitive function modalities, although the sample size was small. The Cognitive-Gait (CoGait) Database Project, described in the current protocol, aims to establish a database of multi-dimensional walking and cognitive performance data, collected from a large sample of healthy participants, crucial for detecting early sub-clinical cognitive risk.MethodsWe will recruit healthy volunteers, 20 years or older, without any neurological musculoskeletal or psychiatric disorders. The estimated sample size is 450 participants, including a 10% attrition rate. Using computer-based cognitive assessments, participants will perform six tasks: (i) the simple reaction time task, (ii) Go/No-Go task, (iii) Stroop Color–Word Test, (iv) N-back test, (v) Trail Making Test, and (vi) digit span test. We will also conduct paper-based cognitive assessments such as the Mini-Mental State Examination, Montreal Cognitive Assessment, and the Geriatric Depression Scale-15 for assessing MCR. Gait will be measured through joint kinematics and global positioning in participants’ lower legs while walking at a comfortable and faster pace, using pants with an inertial measurement unit-based three-dimensional motion capture system. Finally, we will establish a prediction model for various cognitive performance modalities based on walking performance.DiscussionThis will be the first study to reveal the relationship between walking and cognitive performance using multi-dimensional data collected from a large sample of healthy adults, from the general population. Despite certain methodological limitations such as the accuracy of measurements, the CoGait database is expected to be the standard value for both walking and cognitive functions, supporting the evaluation of psychomotor function in early sub-clinical cognitive risk identification, including motoric-cognitive risk syndrome.

Exploring what motivates the development of upcycling practices.

Faced with an aggressive production model with the use of resources, initiatives such as upcycling arise that seek to extend the life of products. This paper analyzes the role of individuals’ principles and values as driving factors, something that has not been studied in depth to date. The study is based on a field work in which 830 subjects from 180 countries have participated in a survey, from September 2019 to September 2020. This large sample of participants at the international level is one of the key contributions of the work, since it allows us to contrast conclusions from the few previous works and issue new ones based on the sequence of analysis described below, which broadens the empirical base in this field of study. The data so collected was analysed using the statistical software Stata and estimating standard multiple linear regressions, ordered logit and logit regressions. The findings confirmed the chain of actions - doing, frequency, entrepreneurship - is decisively conditioned by personal values and principles. This sequence of analysis constitutes the main contribution of our work. With regards to entrepreneurship, this work provides evidence that having the intention to start up an upcycling business is more likely when individuals consider upcycling important for them and report themselves as having a high probability of upcycling; but it is less likely among women and the older age groups (more than 55 years old).

Does Resting Motor Threshold correlate with severity of Alzheimer's disease?

Conflicting results have emerged from studies examining the potential of resting motor threshold (RMT) as a neurophysiological marker for Alzheimer's disease (AD) diagnosis and progression. In this study, we estimated the strength of the association between RMT measurements and severity of cognitive impairment in a relatively large sample (N=128) of clinical trial participants with mild (Clinical Dementia Rating - CDR=1) to moderate (CDR=2) AD. RMT for each participant was determined by applying single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation repeated at varying intensities over left and right sides of the primary motor cortex. RMT is the minimum intensity that evoked a visible contralateral involuntary finger twitch and RMT asymmetry is the absolute difference between the left and right RMT measurements. Cognitive impairment was measured with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Alzheimer Disease Assessment Scale - Cognitive (ADAS-Cog) scores. Although the left and right RMT was lower in CDR 2 than in CDR 1 participants, neither RMT nor RMT asymmetry correlated significantly with cognitive test scores. In conclusion, our study in a large sample size does not support the idea that RMT is a sensitive marker of cognitive decline/severity in AD. Clinical Relevance- This study provides evidence that RMT may not be useful for AD progression monitoring.

Stimulus Sampling With 360-Videos: Examining Head Movements, Arousal, Presence, Simulator Sickness, and Preference on a Large Sample of Participants and Videos

As the public use of virtual reality (VR) scales, understanding how users engage across various sources of VR content is critical. 360-video is popular due to its ease of both creation and access. There are, however, few studies of 360-videos, and they suffer from three limitations. First, most studies rely on small and homogeneous samples of participants. Second, they tend to examine only a single 360-video, or a handful of them in a few exceptional cases. Third, very few studies trace participants’ VR use over multiple experiences. The current study examined a large sample of participants (511) and a large set of 360-videos (80). Each participant experienced 5 of the videos, and we tracked head movement in addition to self-report data on presence, arousal, simulator sickness, and future use intention for each video. This design allowed us to answer novel questions relating to individual differences of participants and changes in experience over time, and in general to present results of VR use at a scale not seen before in the literature. Moreover, the results suggest that looking at patterns across stimuli provide unique insights which are missed when looking only within a single piece of content.

Unique prediction of developmental psychopathology from genetic and familial risk.

Early detection is critical for easing the rising burden of psychiatric disorders. However, the specificity of psychopathological measurements and genetic predictors is unclear among youth. We measured associations between genetic risk for psychopathology (polygenic risk scores (PRS) and family history (FH) measures) and a wide range of behavioral measures in a large sample (n = 5,204) of early adolescent participants (9-11 years) from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development StudySM . Associations were measured both with and without accounting for shared variance across measures of genetic risk. When controlling for genetic risk for other psychiatric disorders, polygenic risk for problematic opioid use (POU) is uniquely associated with lower behavioral inhibition. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression (DEP), and attempted suicide (SUIC) PRS shared many significant associations with externalizing, internalizing, and psychosis-related behaviors. However, when accounting for all measures of genetic and familial risk, these PRS also showed clear, unique patterns of association. Polygenic risk for ASD, BIP, and SCZ, and attempted suicide uniquely predicted variability in cognitive performance. FH accounted for unique variability in behavior above and beyond PRS and vice versa, with FH measures explaining a greater proportion of unique variability compared to the PRS. Our results indicate that, among youth, many behaviors show shared genetic influences; however, there is also specificity in the profile of emerging psychopathologies for individuals with high genetic risk for particular disorders. This may be useful for quantifying early, differential risk for psychopathology in development.

A human single-neuron dataset for face perception

The human amygdala and hippocampus have long been associated with face perception. Here, we present a dataset of single-neuron activity in the human amygdala and hippocampus during face perception. We recorded 2082 neurons from the human amygdala and hippocampus when neurosurgical patients with intractable epilepsy performed a one-back task using natural face stimuli, which mimics natural face perception. Specifically, our data include (1) single-neuron activity from the amygdala (996 neurons) and hippocampus (1086 neurons), (2) eye movements (gaze position and pupil), (3) psychological assessment of the patients, and (4) social trait judgment ratings from a subset of patients and a large sample of participants from the general population. Together, our comprehensive dataset with a large population of neurons can facilitate multifaceted investigation of face perception with the highest spatial and temporal resolution currently available in humans.

An examination of relations between baseline pupil measures and cognitive abilities.

Examining individual differences in pupil size and pupillary dynamics have revealed important insights into the nature of individual differences in cognitive abilities like working memory capacity, long-term memory, attention control, and fluid intelligence. These findings are often tied to the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine (LC-NE) system, as this system has a tight temporal correlation with pupil diameter. Some recent research has demonstrated positive correlations between resting pupil size and cognitive ability, specifically fluid intelligence. The present study attempted to replicate such relations. Across three studies, a large sample of participants (N = 845) completed batteries of cognitive ability measures and measures of resting pupil size and pupillary hippus (fluctuations in pupil diameter). The cognitive measures comprised tasks previously used to measure attention control, visual short-term memory capacity, fluid intelligence, working memory capacity, and visuospatial ability. At the factor level, cognitive ability and pupil size correlated near zero. We did observe some limited evidence for a negative correlation between resting pupillary hippus and cognitive ability. Given the null findings in the present data, we encourage further replication of relations between resting pupil measures and cognitive abilities before making any strong theoretical conclusions about such relations.

Diadochokinetic rates in healthy young and elderly Greek-speaking adults: The effect of types of stimuli.

Diadochokinetic rates tasks are frequently used for the assessment of diadochokinesia (DKK) in young and elderly adults. However, there is scarce research on healthy elderly adults over 65 years old, and little is known about the effect of different types of stimuli (non-words/real words) in this specific population. Furthermore, the current research supports significant language variations, highlighting the need for language-specific norms. To investigate the effect of age, gender and type of stimuli (non-words versus real words) in DDK rates in healthy elderly adults of over 65 years of age, and to provide normative data for the Greek language. The participants were 791 healthy monolingual Greek-speaking adults (531 adults, aged 20-39 years; 157 participants aged 65-74 years; and 103 participants aged over 75 years). All participants were monolingual speakers of Greek and had normal hearing acuity, which allowed them to understand and follow instructions. Participants with a medical condition, which would affect DDK rates' performance, were excluded from the study. The time-by-count method was used, and all participants had to repeat as accurately and fast as possible: (1) four disyllabic non-words (/'gaba/, /'taka/, /'kata/, /'baga/); (2) four disyllabic real words (/'kapa/, /'tapa/, /ka'la/, /'paka/); and (3) two trisyllabic non-words (/'pataka/, /'badaga/). All responses were recorded and the speech samples that did not include at least 5 s of correct repetitions were excluded from the analysis. Age affected DDK rates significantly, with older adults achieving slower DDK rates for all speech stimuli (non-words/real words). Gender did not have an effect on the performance of DDK rates. The type of speech stimuli affected DDK rates significantly for all age groups. Analytically, trisyllabic non-word stimuli were articulated more slowly than disyllabic non-word stimuli, and real words were produced faster than non-words. A linear regression analysis revealed that only the repetition of non-words predicted 68.4% of the performance on the repetition of trisyllabic non-words. The above results complement prior research, which supports that real word stimuli yield faster performance than non-word stimuli. Clinicians should keep in mind that age, language and type of stimuli (non-words/real words) affect significantly the performance of DDK rates, as well as the fact that different types of stimuli tap distinct underlying levels of speech. The current research highlights the need for language-specific norms for different populations. What is already known on the subject DDK rates are significantly affected by the types of stimuli and language used. Moreover, the normal ageing process decreases performance in terms of DDK rates, but scarce evidence exists for healthy elderly adults over 65 years old. What this paper adds to existing knowledge Most studies have examined DDK rates in healthy elderly people with restricted samples and using non-word stimuli. The current study administered different types of stimuli (non-words/words) in a large sample of healthy elderly participants. This is also the first study to attempt to provide DDK normative data for this population in the Greek language. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? The results of this study strongly suggest that clinicians should bear in mind the significant impact age and language have on performance in terms of DDK rates, especially when normative data are not available for a certain language or age group. Furthermore, non-word and real-word stimuli cannot be used interchangeably since they tap into distinct underlying levels of speech, thus providing clinicians with useful information about the level of breakdown and the proper treatment plan.

Self-Perceived and Self-Tested Endurance: Associations with Objective Measures.

Use of self-report (questionnaires) is often the most realistic means of screening physical fitness in large participant samples because this method is quicker and cheaper than objective testing. Yet, previous studies have reported equivocal validity to reports of self-perceived fitness. A hybrid self-report variant is the use of self-administered/reported objective measurement. I sought to investigate the relative validity of this variant method compared to self-perception reports. In total 26,452 young Norwegian men and women participated in this study. I collected data during obligatory selection for military conscript service. Approximately half of the participants were asked to rate their endurance level on a five-point Likert scale in an online questionnaire. The other half performed a self-administered 3000m run and reported the result online. Within 18months, all participants completed an objective maximal treadmill test at a conscript selection center. I used Spearman correlations (rs) and analyses of variance (ANOVAs) to investigate the relationships between these two self-report methods and the observed objective treadmill performance. Self-perceived and self-tested endurance were both identically correlated with the other-observed treadmill run for men (rs = 0.59; p < .001) and for women (rs = 0.50, p < .001); and ANOVAs revealed significant effects of self-perceived and self-tested endurance on treadmill run time, with higher self-reported endurance related to higher treadmill run time. In conclusion, self-perceived and self-tested endurance produced the same correlation coefficients with objectively measured treadmill run time. While there was a moderate relationship between self-reported and objectively measured endurance at the group level, there was substantial individual measurement error that should be considered for individual reports.