Objective. To evaluate quality-of-life (QoL), before and after cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in patients diagnosed with intra-oral injection phobia according to DSM-IV and to compare with the general population. This study also aimed to evaluate if QoL was associated with self-reported injection anxiety, dental anxiety, time since last dental treatment and oral health. Materials and methods. Subjects were 55 patients (mean age 35.5 +/- 12.2, 78.2% women) who participated in a treatment study in which 89% managed an intra-oral injection at 1 year follow-up. The patients completed a set of questionnaires including Quality of Life Inventory (QOLI), Injection Phobia Scale-Anxiety, Dental Anxiety Scale and a single-item question assessing self-perceived oral health. Objective measures of oral health and treatment needs were based on clinical examination. QOLI-scores from a non-clinical sample were used for comparison. Results. Before treatment the general and health specific QoL were lower among intra-oral injection phobics than in the non-clinical sample. At 1 year follow-up the QoL in general had improved significantly and was similar to that of the non-clinical sample. Poor self-reported oral health and long-term avoidance of dental treatment were associated with lower general and health-specific QoL. Self-reported injection anxiety and dental anxiety were not associated with QoL. Conclusions. Patients with intra-oral injection phobia report lower QoL compared with a general population. Phobia treatment seems to increase QoL to normative levels. Self-perceived poor oral health is associated with reduced QoL in these patients.

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of (i) stimulus person's gender, (ii) type of act (neutral or violent), and (iii) retention interval (short or long) on observers' memory of a stimulus person. Participants were presented with one of two acts: neutral (walking around in a store) or violent (robbing a store). The retention interval was 10 minutes or one-three weeks. The dependent variables were questionnaire items concerning the participants' memory of (1) the stimulus person's appearance and (2) the event, and (3) rating scales where the participants were asked to evaluate the stimulus person's aggressiveness, insensitivity, and other personality traits as well as characteristics of the act. Results showed that when the act was violent, and a long retention interval was used, a female, but not a male, stimulus person was evaluated less harshly than with a short retention interval (enhancement of gender stereotype); a stimulus person was seen as behaving in a more masculine way when performing a violent rather than a neutral act; witnessing the violent act resulted in better self-rated memory of the stimulus person; and with increasing retention interval, the violent act was seen as less negative and the neutral act as more negative (regression toward the mean).

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the associations between psychosocial factors and family background and incidence of anorexia nervosa (AN) in a Swedish cohort.

Method: The Stockholm Birth Cohort, SBC (N = 14,294) contains information on social background and general health in males and females, born in Stockholm 1953. Hospitalizations for AN, based on diagnoses from the ICD-8 through ICD-10, were recorded from 1969 to 2002. Cox proportional hazard regression was used to measure the association between psychosocial characteristics and family background and the risk of AN.

Results: Higher maternal education was associated with a higher risk for hospitalization for AN. An increased risk for AN was also found among females who stated that they “often compare their future prospects with others.”

Discussion: Although the study is based on a low number of cases, it confirms earlier findings of higher maternal education among individuals with eating disorders in similar cohorts.

Book description: Is prejudice hard-wired or socially acquired? Is stigmatising the Other inevitable? Do we purposefully draw on stereotypes to provoke prejudice from others? Can we confront and correct our biases? From the judicial system to the marketplace, from women's intentional self-sexualisation to prison exonerees' stigma-by-association, this book offers a compelling and wide-ranging discussion and review of the latest scientific evidence of what prejudice is, how it emerges, what it does, and how the discrimination and stigma that ensue can be reduced.

Nästan 30 år efter det att begreppet flexibilitet i arbetslivet kom i bruk råder det fortfarande stor osäkerhet om vad begreppet innebär och hur vanligt det egentligen är. I artikeln diskuteras flexibilitet utifrån en representativ studie av den svenska arbetskraften. I studien konstateras att både traditionellt organiserade och helt fria arbeten är relativt ovanliga. Däremot är flexibla arbetsvillkor desto mer vanligt förekommande och spridda i varierande grad bland den svenska arbetskraften.

Background

Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) but access to CBT is limited. Internet-based CBT (ICBT) with therapist support is potentially a more accessible treatment. There are no randomized controlled trials testing ICBT for OCD. The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of ICBT for OCD in a randomized controlled trial.

Method

Participants (n=101) diagnosed with OCD were randomized to either 10 weeks of ICBT or to an attention control condition, consisting of online supportive therapy. The primary outcome measure was the Yale–Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) administered by blinded assessors.

Results

Both treatments lead to significant improvements in OCD symptoms, but ICBT resulted in larger improvements than the control condition on the YBOCS, with a significant between-group effect size (Cohen's d) of 1.12 (95% CI 0.69–1.53) at post-treatment. The proportion of participants showing clinically significant improvement was 60% (95% CI 46–72) in the ICBT group compared to 6% (95% CI 1–17) in the control condition. The results were sustained at follow-up.

Conclusions

ICBT is an efficacious treatment for OCD that could substantially increase access to CBT for OCD patients. Replication studies are warranted.

Background: Guided Internet-based cognitive behavior therapy (ICBT) has been tested in many trials and found to be effective in the treatment of anxiety and mood disorders. Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) has also been treated with ICBT, but there are no controlled trials on guided Internet-based psychodynamic treatment (IPDT). Since there is preliminary support for psychodynamic treatment for GAD, we decided to test if a psychodynamically informed self-help treatment could be delivered via the Internet. The aim of the study was to investigate the efficacy of IPDT for GAD and to compare against ICBT and a waiting list control group. Method: A randomized controlled superiority trial with individuals diagnosed with GAD comparing guided ICBT (n = 27) and IPDT (n = 27) against a no treatment waiting list control group (n = 27). The primary outcome measure was the Penn State Worry Questionnaire. Results: While there were no significant between-group differences immediately after treatment on the main outcome measure, both IPDT and ICBT resulted in improvements with moderate to large within-group effect sizes at 3 and 18 months follow-up on the primary measure in the completer analyses. The differences against the control group, although smaller, were still significant for both PDT and CBT when conforming to the criteria of clinically significant improvement. The active treatments did not differ significantly. There was a significant group by time interaction regarding GAD symptoms, but not immediately after treatment. Conclusions: IPDT and ICBT both led to modest symptom reduction in GAD, and more research is needed.

The general aim of this thesis was to extend knowledge of the interplay between self-regulation (SR) skills during childhood in relation to academic achievement and later adult educational and occupational attainment.

Previous research has shown that cool SR (i.e., cognitive) is more closely linked to academic achievement than hot SR (i.e., motivational/emotional). However, studies investigating both cool and hot SR in relation to academic achievement have been restricted to young children. Therefore, Study I assessed cool and hot SR in relation to academic achievement over a longer time period. The results showed that cool SR at age 3 was related to achievement already at age 6. Hot SR at age 3 did not predict achievement until later on in elementary school.

Study II investigated the contribution of interference control and attention skills at age 6 to concurrent and later academic achievement at age 10. As the learning material becomes increasingly more complex throughout elementary school and teachers may give less support, interference control was expected to have a delayed effect on academic achievement relative to attention skills. Results showed that attention skills were related to academic achievement at age 6, whereas interference control only predicted academic achievement at age 10.

Study III investigated task persistence in young adolescence in relation to academic achievement later in school and educational and occupational attainment in midlife. Results showed that task persistence contributed to change in grades between ages 13 and 16. Further, task persistence predicted later educational and occupational attainment (men only). Importantly, individual differences in intelligence, motivation, social background, and later educational attainment did not account for these effects. The findings point to a fundamental role of self-regulation in childhood for successful academic achievement and later attainment in adulthood.

Strävan efter mångfald och representativitet har länge ansetts vara viktig vid antagningen till polisutbildningen, ett av de största och mest omfattande urvalen i Sverige. Det har dock hittills saknats beskrivningar av vilka sökande som går långt i urvalsprocessen, vilka som antas och vilka som påbörjar utbildningen. Likaså har det saknats utförligare beskrivningar av urvalsprocessen.

2007 påbörjades ett flerårigt forsknings- och utvärderingsprojekt Longitudinell validering av polisurvalet. Projektet syftar bland annat till att belysa hur urvalet till den grundläggande polisutbildningen och polisyrket fungerar och hur urvalet skulle kunna förbättras. Rapporten är baserad på data från projektet och har tre syften: 1) att presentera en utförlig beskrivning av polisurvalet och undersökningsgruppen i projektet Longitudinell validering av polisurvalet som underlag för kommande publiceringar från projektet, 2) att presentera demografiska data som kan ligga till grund för bedömningar av hur väl urvalet lever upp till strävan efter mångfald och representativitet samt 3) att belysa undersökningsgruppens representativitet i förhållande till polisstuderande i allmänhet.

Undersökningsgruppen i projektet består av de 1429 sökande som våren 2008 genomförde urvalstest på Pliktverket som en del i ansökningsprocessen till polisutbildningen. Gruppen omfattar tre undergrupper, sökande som genomförde test, de som antogs och de som påbörjade utbildningen hösten 2008. Beskrivningen av undersökningsgruppen omfattar ett flertal demografiska variabler som beskrivs i både text och tabeller. För att underlätta bedömningar av hur väl urvalet lever upp till strävan efter mångfald och representativitet jämförs data för undersökningsgruppen med uppgifter för ett antal relevanta jämförelsegrupper hämtade från nationell statistik. I undersökningsgruppen var kvinnor och sökande med utländsk bakgrund underrepresenterade i förhållande till befolkningen. Den geografiska representationen var god och en hög andel hade arbete som huvudsysselsättning. Jämfört med högskolenybörjare var gruppen äldre, i genomsnitt 26,5 år, samtidigt som färre i jämförbar ålder hade tidigare erfarenhet av högskolestudier. Gruppens högskoleprovsresultat var något under genomsnittet för provtagarna medan föräldrarnas utbildningsnivå var förhållandevis hög. Undersökningsgruppen har också jämförts med två tidigare studier av polisstuderande från läsåret 1995/96 och 2005. Dessa jämförelser visar på att det över tid finns stora likheter mellan de som antagits till polisutbildningen. Avslutningsvis belyser rapporten även ett antal svårigheter som avser mångfald och representativitet vid urval liksom frågor om generaliserbarhet från projektet.

I föreliggande studie har vi riktat fokus på läkaryrket som profession och på sambandet mellan avgränsning av arbetsuppgifter och anspänning och utmattning.

Boken anlägger ett brett perspektiv på individen i arbetslivet som spänner över både arbets- och organisationspsykologi. Författarna tar upp de ramar som modernt arbetsliv skapar och hur individen rör sig innanför dessa. De beskriver arbetets roll i livet, samspelet på arbetsplatsen och vilken betydelse det kan ha för individen. Likaså behandlas fenomen som organisationsförändringar, ledarskap och motivation. Författarna har en gedigen erfarenhet av undervisning och forskning inom ämnet vilket gör boken både pedagogiskt upplagd och uppdaterad inom de senaste rönen. Boken är skriven för studerande i psykologi och beteendevetenskapliga utbildningar samt i företagsekonomi med organisationsinriktning. Boken är även lämplig för HR-specialister, chefer och andra med intresse av hur samspelet mellan individ och organisation bidrar till att skapa hållbara arbetsvillkor och effektiva organisationer.

The present thesis is based on three studies that research different aspects of fine texture perception. The goal is to better understand the mechanisms involved in haptic perception of textures below 200 µm, also known as microtextures. Study I was conducted to establish a friction measurement model and relating the friction measurements to perceived coarseness of fine textures. A set of printing papers was used as stimulus material. In Study II an expanded set, including the set of Study I, was used as stimuli in a multidimensional scaling (MDS) experiment of haptic fine texture perception. Through scaling of perceptual attributes and similarities, a three dimensional space was found to best describe the data and the dimensions were interpreted as rough-smooth, thick-thin and distinct-indistinct. In Study III a series of model surfaces were manufactured with a systematically varied sinusoidal pattern, spanning from 300 nm to 80 µm. As in Study II, a similarity experiment was conducted and a two dimensional space was chosen, the dimensions of which were explained well through friction and the wavelength. Together these three studies form a better picture of fine texture perception. The dimensionality found with paper stimuli was very similar to the corresponding spaces for marcrotextures of everyday materials, even though a different perceptual system is used for fine texture perception. Regardless if the information is coded through the spatial or the vibratory sense, the perception does not seem to differ in dimensionality. Further, the largest among the microtextures seem to have been perceived as carrying spatial information. On the systematically varied, rigid, textures, the MDS space did not come out in a similar fashion to those of everyday materials but instead similar to the physical properties that characterizes the change in the textures. It was further found that the participants in Study III successfully discriminated textures with an amplitude of 13 nm from the unwrinkled surfaces. From these studies the main conclusions are (a) haptically measured friction and surface roughness are important contributors to fine texture perception, (b) even at microscales, spatial information is retrieved haptically, probably through vibrations, and (c) persons can haptically discriminate textures at a nanoscale.

'Soundscape' – the acoustic equivalent of 'Landscape' – is a relatively new area to many. It concerns the acoustic environment as perceived, experienced or understood by people, in context. Current development in soundscape research is directed towards urban planning and design in promotion of sustainable development, health, well-being, and quality of life. Above all, soundscape is about what sounds are appropriate to, or belonging to, a place. There is no one ideal soundscape. To determine which soundscapes are good, we must consider which activities the soundscape may enable at a place. Furthermore, soundscape creates a sense of place, and it is an important aspect of our cultural heritage. For instance, what soundscapes will our generation transfer to the next, and how will this affect sustainability and quality of life in the future? To incorporate soundscape into urban planning and design, we must understand the relationship between sound and human activities in the urban environment. What sounds and human activities are compatible, and which are not? For example, what sounds are compatible with urban street-life, or with a young children’s playground? What sounds promote or impede social interaction in urban open spaces, or what sounds promote or impede tranquillity? In order to advance soundscape research, a coordinated, cooperative and interdisciplinary effort is needed.

In February 2009 the working group ISO/TC 43/SC 1/WG 54 “Perceptual assessment of soundscape quality”, of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), begun preparing the first International Standard on soundscape “ISO 12913-1 Acoustics — Soundscape — Part 1: Definition and conceptual framework”. This paper presents the latest version of the definition of “soundscape” and its conceptual framework. At its current state of development the framework highlights seven general concepts and their relationships: (1) sound sources, (2) acoustic environment, (3) auditory sensations, (4) interpretation of auditory sensations, (5) responses, (6) context, and (7) outcomes. By providing a standard reference, the working group aims at international consensus in order to avoid ambiguity, and to enable conceptual progress in soundscape research. ISO 12913-1 is expected to be published as an International Standard in 2015. Subsequent parts of the ISO 12913 series will deal with minimum reporting requirements in soundscape research, and methods for measuring soundscape quality.

The Swedish Soundscape-Quality Protocol was developed to help non-experts (e.g., officials working for municipalities rather than soundscaperesearchers) to make informed, accurate measurements of soundscape quality. The Protocol has hitherto been used in England, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, and The Netherlands; a Korean version is being developed. Based on field studies – soundwalks in urban residential areas, recreational areas, and parks – the present paper reports on the psychometric properties of the scales of the Protocol. Participants were residents, or visitors to the areas and their results support the reliability and validity of the scales in the Protocol. Because high acoustic quality has a greater effect in visually attractive than in visually poor areas, the Swedish Soundscape-Quality Protocol includes scales for cross-sensory tabulation. These are sound source identification – sounds from humans, nature and technology – attribute scales (e.g., eventful, exciting, pleasant, and calm), overall soundscape quality, and concomitant visual impressions. In brief, the Swedish Soundscape-Quality Protocol is an easy to use and practical tool for measuringsoundscape quality. It has the potential to help operationalize how soundscapes can be measured in “quiet areas” to meet a future guideline value of the World Health Organization.

De flesta barn som kommer i kontakt med rättsväsendet har utsatts för stressfyllda eller traumatiska händelser. Följaktligen är effekten av starka negativa känslor på minnet och berättandet, av både juridiska och kliniska skäl, av stor vikt att undersöka. I ett pågående forskningsprojekt har vi kartlagt de mönster som präglar barns minnen och berättande när de bevittnat dödligt våld, samt olika bakgrundsfaktorer som kan tänkas påverka barnens vittnesmål. Totalt har vi analyserat polisförhör med över 100 barn och ungdomar i åldrarna 3–17 år. Huvudresultaten visar att barn berättar detaljerat om dessa upplevelser i polisförhör, oavsett ålder och relation till gärningsmannen och/eller offret. Därtill visar resultaten att upprepade förhör leder till ett än mer detaljerat berättande. Det finns således skäl till att reflektera över etablerade uppfattningar angående i vilken utsträckning barn är lojala mot sina föräldrar och av den anledningen tiger om det våld de upplevt i hemmet. Barnets vittnesmål är av stor vikt för att få ett bättre underlag i en brottsutredning och för att försäkra barnets rätt till brottsskadeersättning samt för att domstolarna vid straffvärdesbedömningen ska kunna beakta att ett barn bevittnat brottet.

The present study examines prosecutors', child investigators', and plaintiff aids' (i.e., important actors during alleged child sexual abuse [CSA] investigations) beliefs about children's testimonies. More specifically, the aim was to examine whether these experts agree (a) with praxis from, for example, the Supreme Court regarding the use of certain credibility criteria when evaluating the reliability of CSA reports; and/or (b) with findings from research on issues of child testimony. The participants (n = 206) were asked to rate how detailed, consistent, and spontaneous they believe children are in their CSA reports; the effects of exposure to repeated abuse; and to indicate their opinion on the optimal number of child interviews. Due to the low response rate, results can only be discussed in terms of possible indications, however, it is interesting to note that the experts had similar opinions on the issues investigated, opinions that were also rather in line with research findings on children's testimony. Although they receive support from the research, some of these opinions are not in line with recommendations made by the Supreme Court or the Pre-trial Order. More research is needed to further examine: (a) the reliability of the credibility criteria recommended by the Swedish Supreme Court; (b) how frequently the Swedish courts actually refer to these credibility criteria; and (c) different experts' (with different functions in the legal process) opinions on these criteria.

Background: The elimination of malaria in Zanzibar is highly dependent on sustained effective coverage of bed-nets to avoid malaria resurgence. The Health Belief Model (HBM) framework was used to explore the perceptions of malaria and bed-net use after a noticeable reduction in malaria incidence. Methods: Nineteen in-depth interviews were conducted with female and male caretakers of children under five in North A district, Zanzibar. Deductive content analysis was used to identify meaning units that were condensed, coded and assigned to pre-determined elements of the HBM. Results: Awareness of malaria among caretakers was high but the illness was now seen as easily curable and uncommon. In addition to the perceived advantage of providing protection against malaria, bed-nets were also thought to be useful for avoiding mosquito nuisance, especially during the rainy season when the malaria and mosquito burden is high. The discomfort of sleeping under a net during the hot season was the main barrier that interrupted consistent bed-net usage. The main cue to using a bed-net was high mosquito density, and children were prioritized when it came to bed-net usage. Caretakers had high perceived self-efficacy and did not find it difficult to use bed-nets. Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS), which was recognized as an additional means of mosquito prevention, was not identified as an alternative for bed-nets. A barrier to net ownership was the increasingly high cost of bed-nets. Conclusions: Despite the reduction in malaria incidence and the resulting low malaria risk perceptions among caretakers, the benefit of bed-nets as the most proficient protection against mosquito bites upholds their use. This, in combination with the perceived high self-efficacy of caretakers, supports bed-net usage, while seasonality interrupts consistent use. High effective coverage of bed-nets could be further improved by reinforcing the benefits of bed-nets, addressing the seasonal heat barrier by using nets with larger mesh sizes and ensuring high bed-net ownership rates through sustainable and affordable delivery mechanisms.

In an experimental study (N?=?186), we examined the effect of identity (gender versus personal) on participants' self-rated neuroticism and estimates of mean neuroticism for men and women. Self-rated neuroticism was measured before and after the identity salience manipulation. Following self-categorization theory, we predicted that identity salience would affect levels of self-rated neuroticism and the estimates (perceptions) of mean neuroticism for each sex. From a personality perspective, we expected substantial correlations between pre-manipulation and post-manipulation neuroticism scores in both identity conditions. The relation between participants' self-rated neuroticism and their estimates of mean neuroticism for their own sex was also examined. The effect of identity salience was unclear with regard to self-rated neuroticism levels, whereas the manipulation had apparent effects on estimated mean neuroticism levels for men and women. Also, self-rated neuroticism was found to predict estimates of mean neuroticism for men and women in the gender, but not personal, identity condition. Finally, in line with a personality perspective, the relative positions in self-rated neuroticism were highly stable in both conditions. The findings indicate a compatibility of self-categorization theory and personality perspectives and suggest that both are valuable to understand the changeability and stability of the self.

The idea of prejudice as a tendency that can be generalized from one target to another and the personality–prejudice relationship have been widely examined using explicit measures. However, less is known about this tendency and its relation to personality for implicit prejudice measures, like the implicit association test (IAT). Three studies including explicit and corresponding implicit prejudice measures toward various target groups confirmed a generalized factor for both types of measures with a stronger common component for the explicit factor. Personality was significantly related to the explicit measures only. Also, the personality and prejudice measures were unrelated to explicit and implicit attitudes toward an irrelevant target which rules out potential method confound. These results indicate that explicit and implicit prejudice measures tap different psychological constructs relating differently to the individual’s self-reported personality. The findings have implications for the debate on whether IAT scores reflect personally endorsed attitudes.

Although humans can discriminate a huge number of odours, the mechanisms behind the perception of odours are not well understood. The theory of the present essay and our experiments were developed with the view that odours are homogeneous perceptions (as opposed to visual objects that are heterogeneous percepts). Other typical examples of homogeneous perceptions are colours and some emotional states. Thus, through perceptual learning, which is a prerequisite for perceiving, we become aware of and may recognise odours in the environment. Typically, odours are detected at very low concentrations as compared to chemical instruments, the electronic nose inclusive. Four principles of investigating the human world of odour qualities are discussed: (i) classification and sorting according to odour-quality resemblance, (ii) using names and verbal attributes for odour sources, (iii) using odour qualities for a representative set of reference odorants, and (iv) measuring odour quality by similarity scaling of pairs of odorous stimuli. Although a huge number of odours can be discriminated, the quality of odour mixtures is intermediary among the odour qualities of their components. This applies to single chemical compounds or mixtures thereof and for very broadband mixtures like indoor air. Our perceptual world simply consists of a massive amount of odour qualities potentially attributable to sources in the environment. Their organisation is, however, still a mystery.

A bisensory method was developed for determining the psychometric functions and absolute thresholds for odor and sensory irritation of two odorous irritants. Individual and group thresholds for formaldehyde or pyridine were measured for 31 age-matched subjects (18-35 years old). P (50) absolute thresholds were for formaldehyde odor 110 ppb (range 23-505), for pyridine odor 77 ppb (range 20-613), and for pyridine irritation 620 ppb (range 90-3,656); too few subjects' formaldehyde irritation thresholds were possible to determine (human exposures limited to 1 ppm). In spite of large interindividual differences, all thresholds for irritation were higher than for odor. The average slopes of the 62 psychometric functions for odor and the 32 possible for sensory irritation were highest for formaldehyde odor (83% per log ppb) and equal for pyridine odor and irritation (68% per log ppb). The bisensory method for measuring odor and sensory irritation jointly produced detection functions and absolute thresholds compatible with those earlier published; however, a steeper slope for sensory irritation than odor was expected for pyridine. The bisensory method is intended for measuring odor and sensory irritation to broadband mixtures and dynamic exposures, like indoor air.