Spanish Sample Research Articles

Bacterial Diversity of Sun-Dried Spanish Mackerel in Dalian and Application of Lactobacillus plantarum X23 as a Biopreservative

Sun-dried Spanish mackerel is a common food in Dalian and made by adding salt and sun drying, which has special physical, chemical, and microbiological properties. In this study, the physicochemical properties and microbial composition of commercially available sun-dried Spanish mackerel in Dalian were assessed, and some Lactobacillus strains were screened as a biopreservative for sun-dried Spanish mackerel preparation. The results showed that the total volatile base nitrogen content in the traditional sun-dried Spanish mackerel samples from Dalian was within 30 mg/100 g, the histamine content was 7 to 17 mg/kg, and the dominant bacteria at the genus level were Lactobacillus, Psychrobacter, and Ralstonia. A strain with biopreservative potential was isolated from a sun-dried Spanish mackerel sample, identified as L. plantarum species by 16S rDNA sequencing, and assigned as L. plantarum X23. Fresh Spanish mackerel flesh was treated with 16% brine and L. plantarum X23 at a dose of 107 CFU/mL and then dried in the sun. The sun-dried Spanish mackerel flesh treated with 16% brine and L. plantarum X23 showed a decreased histamine and acid value, increased free amino acid content, and a higher sensory score compared with the sun-dried Spanish mackerel without L. plantarum X23 treatment (P < 0.05). In conclusion, the sun-dried Spanish mackerel purchased from the supermarkets in Dalian were safely edible, and L. plantarum X23 can significantly reduce the content of histamine and putrescine in self-made, low-salt, sun-dried Spanish mackerel and has potential as a biopreservative for sun-dried Spanish mackerel preparation.

P.0564 Active suicidal ideation one year after the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic in a large spanish sample: risk and protective factors

P.0564 Active suicidal ideation one year after the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic in a large spanish sample: risk and protective factors

Unveiling Associations of COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance, Hesitancy, and Resistance: A Cross-Sectional Community-Based Adult Survey.

COVID-19 vaccines are essential to limit and eliminate the infectious disease. This research aims to identify strong vaccination resistance profiles and/or hesitation considering health, psychosocial, and COVID-related variables. A cross-sectional online survey (N = 300) was conducted in the context of strict COVID-related gathering and mobility restrictions (January–March 2021). Data collected were vaccine acceptance, hesitancy and resistance rates, general psychosocial status, and preventive practices and beliefs regarding COVID-19 and its vaccination, among other factors. Logistic regression was applied to a real-world data set and a significant model (χ2 (7, N = 278) = 124.548, p < 0.001) explaining 51.3% (R2 Nagelkerke) of attitudes towards vaccination was obtained, including the following predictors for acceptance: to have greater confidence in the COVID vaccine security (OR = 0.599) and effectiveness (OR = 0.683), older age (OR = 0.952), to be a healthcare professional (OR = 0.363), to have vulnerable individuals in charge (OR = 0.330), and sustain the belief that the vaccine will end the pandemic situation (OR = 0.346) or not being sure but give some credence to that belief (OR = 0.414). Findings could help understand the rate and determinants of COVID-19 vaccine resistance/hesitancy among a Spanish population sample and facilitate multifaceted interventions to enhance vaccine acceptance.

Late-life disability trajectories in Yoruba Nigerians and the Spanish population: a state space model in continuous time

Objectives We compared the trajectory of activities of daily living (ADL) in a nationally representative sample of older Nigerians with their Spanish peers and identified factors to explain country-specific growth models. Methods Data from two household multistage probability samples were used, comprising older adults from Spain (n = 2,011) and Nigeria (n = 1,704). All participants underwent assessment for ADL. Risk factors including sex, household income, urbanicity, years of education, depression, alcohol consumption and smoking were assessed using validated methods. State-space model in continuous time (SSM-CT) methods were used for trajectory comparison. Results Compared with Nigerians (µADL80=0.44, SE = 0.015, p < 0.001), Spanish older adults had higher disability scores (µADL80=1.23, SE = 0.021, p < 0.001). In SSM-CT models, the rate of increase in disability was faster in Nigerians (Nigeria: β = 0.061, p<.01; Spain: β = 0.028, p < 0.010). An increasing course of disability in the Spanish sample was predicted by female sex, lower education and depression diagnosis. Conclusion The rate of increase in disability was faster in older Nigerians living in an economically disadvantaged context.

Measurement Invariance of the Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS) in Peruvian and Spanish Older Adults

Although the Brief Resilient Coping Scale (BRCS) has been validated in some European and American countries, there are no studies that evaluate its factorial invariance among different nations. In this sense, the objective of the study is to evaluate the factorial invariance of the BRCS in samples of older adults in Peru and Spain, using multigroup Confirmatory Factor Analysis. 236 older adults from Peru participated (Mean age = 72.8, SD = 6.90) and 133 older adults from Spain (Mean age = 71, SD = 7). In the Peruvian sample 78.4% were women and 21.6% men; while in the Spanish sample the majority were women (69.9%). The BRCS was scalar invariant but not strictly invariant between Spain and Peru. Our results found invariance of the structure, factor loadings and intercepts in both countries. These results support the use of BRCS in studies that compare the resilience between samples of older adults in both countries, and encourage applied research for the development of resilience in older adults in Spain and Peru.

Segmentation of Potential Fraud Taxpayers and Characterization in Personal Income Tax Using Data Mining Techniques

This paper proposes an analytical framework that combines dimension reduction and data mining techniques to obtain a sample segmentation according to potential fraud probability. In this regard, the purpose of this study is twofold. Firstly, it attempts to determine tax benefits that are more likely to be used by potential fraud taxpayers by means of investigating the Personal Income Tax structure. Secondly, it aims at characterizing through socioeconomic variables the segment profiles of potential fraud taxpayer to offer an audit selection strategy for improving tax compliance and improve tax design. An application to the annual Spanish Personal Income Tax sample designed by the Institute for Fiscal Studies is provided. Results obtained confirm that the combination of data mining techniques proposed offers valuable information to contribute to the study of tax fraud.

Prevalence and morphometric analysis of the retromolar canal in a Spanish population sample: a helical CT scan study.

Background The retromolar canal (RMC) is an anatomical variation of the mandibular canal (MC) whose identification and study should be considered given its implication in the surgical procedures of the retromolar area. The prevalence of the RMC widely varies according to previous studies and may be influenced by the followed study method. This work aimed to evaluate the prevalence of the RMC in a Spanish population sample.Material and Methods For this purpose, 225 CT scan images (with a higher resolution than the cone beam CT used in other previous studies) from the Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valencia were analyzed. The Osirix MD® radiological image analysis system was applied to analyse the dimensions, location in the retromolar area and morphologic characteristics of the RMC by classifying them according to their typology. Furthermore, the relations between the RMC and gender, age and laterality were studied.Results RMC prevalence was 23.1%. No significant relation between the presence of the canal and gender, age or laterality was found. Type Ia was the commonest type with a prevalence of 40.8%.Conclusions Based on the results of this study, the RMC should be considered a frequent anatomical variation whose complete study is very important in daily clinical practice. Key words:Retromolar canal, retromolar foramen, retromolar triangle, mandibular canal, mandibular nerve, inferior alveolar nerve, CT scan, Helical scan.

Real-world treatment patterns and outcomes in platinum-sensitive recurrent high-grade serous ovarian cancer patients.

Aim: To describe the overall cancer-related healthcare utilization patterns, treatment patterns and outcomes in women diagnosed with platinum-sensitive recurrent high-grade serous ovarian cancer. Patients & methods: Subanalysis of the Spanish sample of a retrospective, noninterventional, multinational, observational study. Results:BRCA-mutated patients had better outcomes in terms of progression-free survival and overall survival than patients who were BRCA wild-type. It was observed that patients' treatment outcomes after the first recurrence progressively worsened as the patient underwent subsequent chemotherapy lines. Healthcare resource utilization when accounting for the follow-up time did not substantially differ between BRCA1/2-mutated and BRCA wild-type patients. Conclusion:BRCA1/2 mutation carriers have better treatment outcomes, including longer survival, without a negative impact on the use of healthcare resources.

Unhappy While Depressed: Examining the Dimensionality, Reliability and Validity of the Subjective Happiness Scale in a Spanish Sample of Patients with Depressive Disorders.

Despite the considerable amount of research evidence on the significant role of subjective happiness on mental health, there is no psychometric study of the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) in psychiatric samples. This study was aimed at exploring the psychometric properties of the SHS in a Spanish sample of patients with depressive disorders. Participants were 174 patients with a depressive disorder (70% diagnosed as major depressive disorder) who completed the SHS, the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Self Report (QIDS-SR16), and the EQ-5D Visual Analogue Scale (EQ-5D VAS). Depressive symptoms were also assessed by means of the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS17) and the Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) Scale. Dimensionality, internal consistency reliability, construct validity, and responsiveness to change of the SHS were examined. Confirmatory factor analysis replicated the original one-factor structure of the scale. The SHS exhibited good-to-excellent results for internal consistency (α = 0.83) and for convergent [EQ-5D VAS (r = 0.71)] and divergent [QIDS-SR16 (r = −0.72), HDRS17 (r = −0.60) and CGI-S (r = −0.61)] construct validity. The ability of the SHS to differentiate between depression severity levels as well as its responsiveness to clinical change were both highly satisfactory (p < 0.001 in both cases). The SHS retained the soundness of psychometric properties showed in non-clinical samples in a sample of patients with depressive disorders, which supports its use as a reliable and valid outcome measure in the treatment of such disorders.

Association between antibiotic resistance in intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired infections and excess resource utilization: Evidence from Spain, Italy, and Portugal.

Intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired infections with antibiotic-resistant bacteria have been associated with substantial health and economic costs. Moreover, southern Europe has historically reported high levels of antimicrobial resistance. We estimated the attributable economic burden of ICU-acquired infections due to resistant bacteria based upon hospital excess length of stay (LOS) in a selected sample of southern European countries. We studied a cohort of adult patients admitted to the ICU who developed an ICU-acquired infection related to an invasive procedure in a sample of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese hospitals between 2008 and 2016, using data from The European Surveillance System (TESSy) released by the European Centers for Disease Control (ECDC). We analyzed the association between infections with selected antibiotic-resistant bacteria of public health importance and excess LOS using regression, matching, and time-to-event methods. We controlled for several confounding factors as well as time-dependent biases. We also computed the associated economic burden of excess resource utilization for each selected country. In total, 13,441 patients with at least 1 ICU-acquired infection were included in the analysis: 4,106 patients (30.5%) were infected with antimicrobial-resistant bacteria, whereas 9,335 patients (69.5%) were infected with susceptible bacteria. The unadjusted association between resistance status and excess LOS was 7 days (95% CI, 6.13-7.87; P < .001). Fully adjusted models yielded significantly lower estimates: 2.76 days (95% CI, 1.98-3.54; P < .001) in the regression model, 2.60 days (95% CI, 1.66-3.55; P < .001) in the genetic matching model, and a hazard ratio of 1.15 (95% CI, 1.11-1.19; P < .001) in the adjusted Cox regression model. These estimates, alongside the prevalence of resistance, translated into direct hospitalization attributable costs per ICU-acquired infection of 5,224€ (95% CI, 3,691-6,757) for Spain, 4,461€ (95% CI, 1,948-6,974) for Portugal, and 4,320€ (95% CI, 1,662-6,977) for Italy. ICU-acquired infections associated with antibiotic-resistant bacteria are substantially associated with a 15% increase in excess LOS and resource utilization in 3 southern European countries. However, failure to appropriately control for significant confounders inflates estimates by ∼2.5-fold.

The Fear of Covid-19 Scale (FCV-19S) in Spain: Adaptation and Confirmatory Evidence of Construct and Concurrent Validity

Fear of the coronavirus has important implications on mental health. In western countries, a significant degree of vaccination has been achieved, but in Spain, less than 75% of the population has received both doses. The current situation is still seen as a threat by many people. Therefore, it is important to have reliable and valid measurement instruments to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the population. In this study, the Fear of COVID-19 Scale has been adapted to Spain, and its psychometric properties have been studied in a Spanish sample using Structural Equation Modeling. This methodology allows obtaining more reliable estimates, regardless of the measurement scale of the variables. The unifactorial structure was confirmed. The correlations with Neuroticism were statistically significant, and the concurrent validity structural equation model yielded good fit indices. However, neither age nor belonging to a risk group directly predict fear of the coronavirus in this sample, but gender and neuroticism are direct predictors. Likewise, neuroticism mediates the relationship between age and fear of COVID-19, and between gender and fear of COVID-19. So being young and being a woman show high scores on neuroticism, leading to their most intense fear of COVID-19. With this reliable and valid measurement instrument, it will be possible to assess the degree of fear of the coronavirus in the Spanish population and improve psychological interventions.

The Effects of Social Identity and Emotional Connection on Subjective Well-Being in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic for a Spanish Sample

This study analyzes whether the degree of social identity and the degree of emotional connection influence the subjective well-being of individuals that participated in collective acts of support for health personnel fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic. Our sample was composed of 810 participants who resided in Spain (339 women and 471 men) with an average age of 34.22 (SD = 12.56). All of them frequently participated in the acts of support that took place each day of the lockdown decreed by the National Government on 14 March 2020. The results show that the greater identification with the group (the country) and the greater the emotional connection, the higher the scores obtained in subjective well-being. The results also show that emotional connection had a positive effect on emotional subjective well-being, mediated by the social identity activated in the collective act. The results are interpreted from the perspective of social identity that highlights the role played by social identity in influencing health and subjective well-being.

Sensitivity and specificity of DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorder in a child and adolescent sample

BackgroundControversy exists regarding the DSM-5 criteria for autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Given the mixed results that have been reported, our main aim was to determine DSM-5 sensitivity and specificity in a child and adolescent Spanish sample. As secondary goals, we assessed the diagnostic stability of DSM-IV-TR in DSM-5, and clinical differences between children diagnosed with an ASD or a social (pragmatic) communication disorder (SPCD). MethodsThis study was carried out in 2017, reviewing the medical records of patients evaluated in our service. Items from a parent report measure of ASD symptoms (Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised) were matched to DSM-5 criteria and used to assess the sensitivity and specificity of the DSM-5 criteria and current DSM-IV criteria when compared with clinical diagnoses. ResultsDSM-5 sensitivity ranged from .69 to 1.00, and was higher in females. By age, the DSM-5 and DSM-IV-TR criteria showed similar sensitivity. In the case of intellectual quotient, DSM-5 criteria sensitivity was lower for those in the “low-functioning” category. DSM-5 specificity ranged from .64 to .73, while DSM-5 specificity was similar for all phenotypic subgroups. With respect to stability, 83.3% of autism disorder cases retained a diagnosis of ASD using the DSM-5 criteria. With regard to differences between ASD and SPCD, we found that patients diagnosed with ASD received more pharmacological treatment than those diagnosed with SPCD. ConclusionsFurther research is required to confirm our results. Studies focusing on the SPCD phenotype will be necessary to determine outcome differences with ASD and the most effective diagnostic and therapeutic tools.

Validation of TMMS-24 in Three Spanish-Speaking Countries: Argentina, Ecuador, and Spain.

Emotional intelligence (EI) is a fundamental skill related to different aspects of human life, such as psychological well-being or mood states. The present study has a triple objective: first, to explore the psychometric properties of the TMMS-24 in three Spanish-speaking countries (Argentina, Ecuador, and Spain); second, to examine the relation of EI with mood and avoidance of responsibility; and finally, to analyse the influence of sex, age and national differences on EI. The relevance of this study is given by the need for tools to assess EI in different cultures. A sample of 1048 adults (Mage = 21.11 years, SD = 5.84; 52.3% male) was selected by convenience sampling. The psychometric properties of the TMMS-24 were adequate, and the Spanish sample showed lower levels of EI than the Argentinian and Ecuadorian ones. EI was associated with mood and the avoidance of responsibility, with higher levels in women in all cases. Regarding the national and sex-specific differences, the Spanish sample showed significant differences in attention and repair, with men exhibiting higher scores in attention and women having higher scores in repair. In the Argentinean sample, no significant differences were found, and in the Ecuadorian one, women presented higher scores in attention than men. The TMMS-24 can be considered a useful, practical tool to assess EI in adults in different cultures and with different languages.

Predicting Serial Stranger Rapists: Developing a Statistical Model From Crime Scene Behaviors.

Stranger rapes are the most difficult cases to solve for the police, especially when a serial rapist is involved. Recent research in offender profiling has focused on generating inferences between crime scene variables and offender characteristics to aid the police investigation. This study aims to develop an empirical model to predict a new case of a serial stranger rapist by analyzing a Spanish sample of 231 one-off and 38 serial sexual offenders. A multivariate logistic regression model that included eight significant crime-related variables was able to predict whether an unknown offender is a one-off or serial rapist based only on the victim's account. The predictive validity of the model was tested using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis and the result of AUC value indicated a medium predictive capacity. The final model correctly classifies nearly 80% of serial stranger rapist cases. The implications of these findings for criminal investigation are discussed.

Emotional words in Spanish: Adaptation and cross-cultural differences for the affective norms for English words (ANEW) on a sample of Argentinian adults.

The Affective Norms for English Words (ANEW) are a set of normative emotional ratings for verbal stimuli that have been adapted to many different languages. This article presents the 1034 ANEW words adapted into Rioplatense Spanish, a regional variation of Spanish used in Latin America. A total of 483 volunteers rated three affective (valence, arousal, dominance) and three semantic variables (familiarity, imageability, concreteness). Several objective variables, such as frequency, number of letters, syllable length, and grammatical class were also included. The results showed the typical U-shaped distribution along valence and arousal, as well as strong correlations with other ANEW adaptations. Furthermore, our sample was compared with the European Spanish sample and the original US sample and differences between languages and regional variations were found, stressing the need for culturally-specific resources for experimental research.

Family control and influence on JV investment – the moderating effect of JV type and IC components

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the effect of the nature of ownership and board characteristics on the investment choices in joint ventures (JVs) from the dimensional point of view, controlling for the effect of JV type and other components of intellectual capital.Design/methodology/approachThe authors study a sample of Italian, Spanish, German and French nonfinancial listed firms over the 2010–2018 period, controlling for the fixed effects of the company's sector of operation and the year. The authors also analyze the effect of family control and influence on JV investment size, taking into consideration certain board characteristics, the type of JV, human capital efficiency, structural capital efficiency and capital employed efficiency while also controlling for a firm's profitability and size. To test the hypotheses, GLS panel data was used.FindingsThe results indicate that the size of the investment in JVs is smaller for family firms than for nonfamily businesses. The presence of CEO duality has an opposing effect on the size of the investment in joint ventures as it has a lowering effect in family businesses while it exerts an amplifier influence in nonfamily businesses. Moreover, the type of joint venture has a significant effect for family firms: the choice of a link joint venture reduces the size of the investment. The authors find that human capital efficiency increases JV investment size for all firms.Originality/valueThis study is the first to analyze the effect of the main dimension of socioemotional wealth – family control and influence – on a firm's JV investment size. It controls for the effect of JV type – link or scale – and the interplay of the other IC components.

Comparison of Emotional Behaviour of Spanish, Chilean and England Adolescents, and Their Relationship with Effective Personality.

Analysing the emotional behaviour of adolescents is fundamental because of its relationship with maladaptive behaviour and even possible psychological maladjustments. For this reason, this study had two objectives: to analyse the existence of significant differences in socio-emotional behaviour in English, Spanish, and Chilean adolescents, taking gender into account, and to analyse the relationship between emotional behaviour and the effective personality model in the Spanish and Chilean samples. A total of 2534 adolescents participated (609 English, 1677 Spanish, and 248 Chilean). The Abbreviated Scale of Emotional Behaviour (ECEA_R: aggressive tendency, social reactivity, and social support) and the Effective Personality Questionnaire—Adolescents (CPE-A: academic self-realisation, socio-affective self-realisation, and resolute efficacy) were applied. A MANOVA was carried out to study the differences in adolescents’ socio-emotional behaviour, taking gender and nationality into account, and a correlational analysis was undertaken to explore the relationship between the variables of emotional behaviour (aggressive tendency, social reactivity, and social support) and effective personality (academic self-realisation, socio-affective self-realisation, and resolute efficacy). Regarding the first objective, for aggressive tendency, English male adolescents stood out, followed by Spanish and Chilean male adolescents and females of all nationalities. In terms of social reactivity, female adolescents stood out over male adolescents and, with regard to social support, Spanish adolescents (male and female) stood out over other nationalities, followed by Chilean and English adolescents (males and females). The results of the second objective indicated a negative relationship between aggressive tendency and academic self-realisation, but a positive relationship for social reactivity and social support (only in the Spanish sample) with most of the effective personality factors. The results are relevant for the application of prevention and intervention programs that improve or implement social and affective competencies in adolescents who develop the effective personality construct.

Engaging with customer’s emotions

AbstractInformational-persuasive discourse may be encoded in promotional strategies through which a given product is described in a positive way to persuade potential customers. For this, evaluation may appeal to reason or may tickle emotions (Cook, 2001). This study compares the way in which advertising texts for herbal tea engage with customers’ emotions in English and in Spanish. We examined the strategies of ‘enjoying the experience’ and ‘aesthetic appeal’ from an Appraisal Theory approach (Martin and White, 2005). We categorised these according to the attitude sub-systems of ‘affect’, ‘appreciation’, and ‘judgement’, determined how explicit the evaluation was, and identified gradable resources. Results show that English texts display more ‘affect’-like resources that can awaken a desire in the customer. By contrast, in the Spanish sample ‘appreciation’ resources that evaluate the composition of the product play a greater role. ‘Enjoying the experience’ seems to engage with the customers’ emotions more overtly than ‘aesthetic appeal’.

Improvement of the Quality of Life in Aging by Stimulating Autobiographical Memory.

With notable increases in older adult populations, as well as with the associated cognitive impairments that can accompany aging, there is significant importance in identifying strategies to promote cognitive health. The current study explored the implementation of a positive reminiscence program (REMPOS), a non-pharmacological cognitive therapy that has been previously structured, defined, and tested in a Spanish sample. We sought to improve the quality of life of institutionalized older adults with healthy aging, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer’s disease by utilizing this protocol in these samples. A randomized design with a pre-post measure was conducted over a three-month period. Two types of interventions were used: the experimental groups received REMPOS, and the control groups underwent their regular daily institutional programming with cognitive stimulation techniques. After the intervention, the three experimental groups showed higher cognitive functioning, decreased depressive symptomatology (except for the MCI group) and higher evocation of specific positive memories (except for the MCI group). This study supports the effectiveness of REMPOS and reminiscence therapy, with regard to both cognitive and mood factors in cognitively impaired older adults.