Validation of the Short-Facebook Jealousy Scale among Colombian Men and Women

Social networks, particularly Facebook, influence romantic relationships, as they can generate jealousy and conflict between members of the couple. The Facebook Jealousy Scale (FJS) is an instrument that assesses jealousy about using Facebook, but no similar instrument is available in Colombia. The main aim was to examine the psychometric properties of the FJS in a Colombian sample of 485 men and 727 women. Participants answered the socio-demographic questionnaire, the adaptation of the Facebook Jealousy Scale, Romantic Partner Conflict Scale, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and Romantic Jealousy Scale. The final version of the FJS was made up of 15 items which were distributed across three dimensions: Partner's Activity, Partner's Surveillance, Partner's Romantic and Sexual relationship. Ordinal's alpha values from its three factors ranged between .90 and .95. Concurrent validity was also provided, as the measure was associated with dimensions from partner conflict, self-esteem, and romantic jealousy. An invariance test by gender was also performed, resulting in compliance with metric invariance. Therefore, the FJS is a useful tool for clinicians and researchers who work on issues related to romantic relationships. Research analyzing Facebook jealousy provides an interesting indicator of couple's monitoring and controlling behaviors, which are features of psychological abuse, a subtype of intimate partner violence.

Las redes sociales, particularmente Facebook, influyen en las relaciones sentimentales, ya que pueden generar celos y conflictos entre los miembros de la pareja. La Escala de Celos de Facebook (FJS) es un instrumento que evalúa los celos por el uso de Facebook, y no hay ningún instrumento similar disponible en Colombia. El objetivo principal fue examinar las propiedades psicométricas del FJS en una muestra colombiana de 485 hombres y 727 mujeres. Los participantes completaron un cuestionario sociodemográfico, la adaptación de la Escala de Celos de Facebook, la Escala de Conflicto de Pareja Romántica, la Escala de Autoestima de Rosenberg y la Escala de Celos Románticos. La versión final de la FJS estuvo conformada por 15 ítems que, a su vez, conformaron tres dimensiones: Actividad de la pareja, Vigilancia de la pareja, Relación romántica y sexual de la pareja. Los valores de alfa ordinal de los tres factores oscilaron entre .90 y .95. También se demostró validez concurrente con otras dimensiones relacionadas con conflicto en la pareja, autoestima y celos románticos. El análisis de invarianza según género resultó en un nivel de invarianza métrica. El FJS es una medida que puede ser útil para la práctica clínica y los investigadores que trabajan en temas relacionados con las relaciones románticas. La investigación que analice los celos asociados al Facebook ofrecerá un interesante indicador de la supervisión en el contexto de pareja y las conductas de control, elementos clave del abuso psicológico, un subtipo de la violencia de pareja.

Transphobia and gender identity: social representations of trans women from Brazil and Colombia / Transfobia e identidade de gênero: representações sociais de mulheres trans do Brasil e Colômbia

Abstract The present research aimed to identify and discuss the social representations of trans women related to gender identity and transphobia in Brazil and Colombia. In this study participated 43 Trans women, 22 from Brazil, aged between 18 and 55 years (M=29.09, SD=8.53) and 21 from Colombia, aged between 21 and 41 years (M=28.19, SD=7.63). This study adopted a qualitative approach in which semi-structured interviews were used. The data were analyzed by the Iramuteq software, which identified the social representations in classes. The results showed what the participants understood about transphobia and how they regarded their experiences with this gender identity. The participants presented negative social representations, aiming at their personal experiences related to their social context. Themes related to violence, discrimination, prejudice, denial of rights and family support emerged from both the Brazilian and Colombian sample. Implications for Tran´s quality of life are discussed.

Resumo A presente pesquisa teve como objetivo identificar e discutir as representações sociais de mulheres trans relacionadas à identidade de gênero e transfobia no Brasil e na Colômbia. Neste estudo participaram 43 mulheres trans, 22 do Brasil, com idade entre 18 e 55 anos (M=29,09, DP=8,53) e 21 da Colômbia, com idade entre 21 e 41 anos (M=28,19, DP=7,63). Este estudo adotou uma abordagem qualitativa na qual foram utilizadas entrevistas semiestruturadas. Os dados foram analisados pelo software Iramuteq, que identificou as representações sociais. Os resultados mostraram o que os participantes entenderam sobre transfobia e como eles encararam suas experiências com essa identidade de gênero. Os participantes apresentaram representações sociais negativas, visando suas experiências pessoais relacionadas ao seu contexto social. Temas relacionados à violência, discriminação, preconceito, negação de direitos e apoio familiar emergiram da amostra brasileira e colombiana. Espera-se que este estudo possa contribuir para compreensão deste fenômeno biopsicossocial.

Genotipificación de plasmodium falciparum por PCR múltiple por medio de los genes msp1, msp2 y glurp, en cuatro localidades de Colombia / Genotypic survery of plasmodium falciparum based on the msp1, msp2 and glurp genes by multiplex PCR

Introducción. La diversidad genética de Plasmodium falciparum constituye un obstáculo para el éxito de la terapia antipalúdica, pues le permite al parásito evadir la respuesta inmunitaria del huésped, lo cual genera cambios en su composición antigénica y resistencia a los medicamentos antipalúdicos.Objetivo. Estudiar la diversidad genética de P. falciparum procedente de cuatro localidades colombianas mediante el análisis de los genes polimórficos msp1, msp2 y glurp. Materiales y métodos. Se genotipificaron 81 muestras mediante PCR múltiple de pacientes infectados con P. falciparum, procedentes de Tierralta (Córdoba), Inírida (Guainía), La Carpa (Guaviare) y Casuarito (Vichada).Resultados. Para el gen msp1 se detectó MAD20 en todas las muestras analizadas. Para el gen msp2 se halló con mayor frecuencia la familia alélica IC (96,3%) comparada con FC (4,9%). En ambas familias se evidenció polimorfismo de tamaño, y se encontraron bandas en un rango entre 467 y 513 pares de bases (pb) para IC y entre 286 y 300 pb para FC. Para el gen glurp se detectaron diferentes tamaños de productos de PCR, los cuales se agruparon en cinco genotipos: I (600-699 pb) 2,5%, II (700-799 pb) 19,8%, III (800-899 pb) 72,8%, IV (900-999 pb) 1,2% y V (1.000-1.099 pb) 3,7%.Conclusiones. Nuestros resultados demuestran que el marcador molecular msp1 no proporciona información útil para diferenciar las poblaciones parasitarias de P. falciparum. El gen msp2 es apropiado para evaluar la diversidad genética, pero requiere ensayos más finos que permitan diferenciar claramente el polimorfismo de tamaño en las dos familias. Los resultados obtenidos con el gen glurp evidenciaron una gran diversidad genética en las poblaciones de P. falciparum que circulan en el país y sugieren que este gen puede ser útil para diferenciar nuevas infecciones de infecciones recurrentes o recrudecimientos.

Introduction. The genetic diversity of Plasmodium falciparum has been one of the major obstacles for the success of anti-malaria drug therapy. It provides the parasite an ability to evade the host’s immune response by generating changes in its antigenic composition and resistance to antimalarial drugs.Objective. The genetic diversity of P.falciparum was characterized in 4 Colombian localities through the analysis of polymorphic genes. Materials and methods. Eighty-one samples were obtained from patients with uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria and screened for polymorphic variants of msp1, msp2 (merozoite surface proteins) and glurp (glutamate-rich protein) with a multiplex PCR assay. The geographic regions sampled were Tierralta (Córdoba), in northwestern Colombia and in the Orinoco river watershed of eastern Colombia-- Inírida (Guainía), La Carpa (Guaviare), and Casuarito (Vichada). Results. The MAD20 variant was detected in all samples analyzed for the msp1 gene. For the msp 2 gene, the IC allelic family was found in 96.3% of the samples as compared to 4.9% of the samples with the FC family. Both families showed size polymorphism with bands between 467 and 513 basepairs (bp) for IC and 286 and 300 bp for FC. PCR products of differing sizes were detected for the glurp gene and grouped into 5 size classes: I (600-699 bp) 2.5%, II (700-799 bp) 19.8%, III (800-899 bp) 72.8%, IV (900-999 bp) 1.2% and V (1000-1099 bp) 3.7%.Conclusions. The msp1 molecular marker did not provide information for differentiating P. falciparum parasite populations. The msp 2 gene was more suitable for studying the genetic diversity, however, further studies are required to identify polymorphisms within the two allelic families. The glurp gene showed a great genetic diversity of circulating P. falciparum populations, and suggested that this gene may be useful for distinguishing between recrudescence and reinfection.