Personality traits influence the effectiveness of hypomania checklist-32 in screening for bipolar disorder.

Background: It is clinically challenging to distinguish bipolar disorder (BD) from major depressive disorder (MDD) in the early stages. While the hypomania checklist-32 (HCL-32) is a proper auxiliary tool that is useful to differentiate between BD and MDD, there is currently no standard cut-off value. The variations in HCL-32 cut-off values could potentially be influenced by personality traits. Therefore, the aim of this study is to explore the effect of personality traits on the screening performance of HCL-32. Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, 168 patients with BD or MDD were evaluated with the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) and HCL-32. The associations between demographic data, diagnosis and clinical rating scales were analyzed. Results: Diagnosis was not associated with extraversion but was related to neuroticism. HCL-32 scores in typical extraverted patients were higher in contrast to atypical extraverted patients. The best cut-off value for BD recognition of typical and atypical extraversion groups were 15 and 12.5, respectively. In patients with MDD, HCL-32 score of typical neuroticism was higher than the atypical type, but there was no difference in patients with BD. In typical neuroticism, there was no difference in HCL-32 scores between patients with MDD and BD. But among atypical neurotic patients, HCL-32 scores of BD were higher compared to MDD, with a cut-off value of 14.5. Limitations: This study had a small sample size. Conclusion: HCL-32 scores were affected by personality traits, with higher scores for typical extraversion and neuroticism. Clinicians should also consider the patients' personality traits when referring to HCL-32 scores, so as to increase the recognition rate of BD and eliminate false positives.

Oral Health Status of Mothers According to Different Personality Traits and Influence on their Child's Oral Health: A Cross-sectional Survey.

Objective: Oral hygiene practices vary as per different personalities. The objective of this study was to evaluate the oral health status of mothers of various personality traits and its influence on their child's oral health. Materials and methods: The present study was a cross-sectional survey conducted among 450 mothers of 20-40 years having child of 3-7 years. "Eysenck Personality Questionnaire" was given to all the mothers to classify them into four different personality traits, i.e., Extroversion, Neuroticism, Lie scale, and Psychoticism; followed by an assessment of oral health status of both mothers and their child. Collected data were compiled in MS-Excel sheet and subjected to statistical analysis. Results: Results were statistically analyzed with the analysis of variance (ANOVA). For pairwise intergroup multiple comparisons, post hoc Tukey test was applied. Association of child's oral health status with mother's oral health with respect to four different personality traits was done by linear regression analysis. From the present study it was seen that severity of dental caries status was more in psychoticism group as compared to other personality groups (p < 0.05) for mothers as well as children. Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S) was seen to be statistically significant with highest mean in Lie scale group. Conclusion: From the present study, it was concluded that there is a positive correlation with mother's personality traits and oral health status of mothers and their children. How to cite this article: Khobragade VR, Vishwakarma P, Dodamani AS, et al. Oral Health Status of Mothers According to Different Personality Traits and Influence on their Child's Oral Health: A Cross-sectional Survey. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2022;15(3):316-321.

Brain reactivity to emotional stimuli in women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder and related personality characteristics.

AIMS: Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is a psychiatric condition that is associated with the menstrual cycle. Elucidation of the neural regulation mechanisms of brain reactivity to emotional stimuli among women with PMDD may inform PMDD treatment. METHODS: Eighty-six women (42 PMDD, 44 healthy controls) were allocated into two groups (anger-induced group: 23 PMDD vs. 23 controls; depression-induced group: 19 PMDD vs. 21 controls). During the luteal phases of the menstrual cycle, all the women were subjected to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). fMRI resting-state scans were performed before and after the study participants had performed an emotional stimuli task. After the emotional stimuli task, emotional status of the participants were evaluated by Self-Rating Depression Scales (SDS) and Trait Anger Expression Inventory-II (STAXI-II). In addition, all the participants were requested to complete the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) and the Twenty-Item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). RESULTS: Compared to healthy controls, all women with PMDD exhibited significantly high scores in Tas-20 (p<0.001), higher neuroticism and psychoticism scores as well as significantly low extraversion and social desirability scores (p<0.05). Compared to the controls, f-MRI revealed that PMDD women had elevated ReHo in the middle frontal gyrus (BA10), temporal lobe (BA42), left cerebellum (BA37), as well as decreased activation in the precuneus (BA7), superior frontal gyrus (BA8), lobulus paracentralis (BA6), and right cerebellum (BA48) (p<0.05). Moreover, depression stimuli showed that women with PMDD had elevated ReHo levels in the middle frontal gyrus (BA11), the middle gyrus (BA47) and in the cingulate gyrus (BA23) vs. healthy controls (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Women with more neuroticism and psychoticism, less extraversion and social desirability tend to report PMDD symptoms. Women with this condition experience difficulties in regulating emotions during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Abnormal ReHo levels in the precuneus, superior frontal gyrus, lobulus paracentralis, and right cerebellum may contribute to anger dysregulation. Hypoactivation in the middle frontal gyrus, the middle gyrus and the cingulate gyrus may be generally associated with depression dysregulation in PMDD.

Personality Traits Affect the Cost-Effectiveness of Total Knee Arthroplasty.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the clinical benefit and compare the cost-effectiveness of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) in patients with different personality traits. METHODS: The present study was retrospectively conducted from January 2017 to May 2018. A total of 232 patients between 46 and 71 years old who underwent unilateral, primary TKA with the diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis were interviewed. Three types of data were required to compare the cost-effectiveness differences among groups: personality traits, postoperative clinical outcomes about health-related quality of life, and costs associated with TKA. Personality was assessed using the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, functional outcome was assessed through the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) questionnaire, and costs were evaluated. Besides, the marginal cost-effectiveness ratio (MCER) as the primary outcome, which relates the direct costs to the associated patient benefit as assessed by the clinical endpoint ($/quality-adjusted life years [QALY]), was compared among different personality traits. All information for this study was acquired by directly interviewing the patients and reviewing the medical computer records at our hospital. RESULTS: Two hundred and eleven patients completed the final analysis with an average of 24.6 months follow-up postoperatively. The choleric group, sanguine group, melancholic group, and phlegmatic group has 41, 70, 46, and 54 patients, respectively. A statistically significant difference in MECR, QALYs, and postoperative WOMAC existed among different personality traits (all P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in mean age (P = 0.588), body mass index (BMI) (P = 0.790), smoking (P = 0.934), heavy drinking (P = 0.994), chronic comorbidities (all P > 0.05), preoperative albumin <3.5 g/dL (P = 0.991), and American Society of Anaesthesiologists (ASA) score (P = 0.687) among personality traits. More women tend to be melancholic in comparison to other personality traits (P = 0.016). Melancholic patients attested inferiority of TKA compared with other personality traits, who would pay for the same QALYs at the highest costs (P < 0.05). By contrast, sanguine patients have a more cost-effective TKA than other personality traits, as they pay the least money for the same QALYs (P < 0.05). Although phlegmatic and choleric patients seemingly have moderate gains from TKA, in general, the extroversion (measured by the extroversion subscale) and stability (measured by the neuroticism subscale) displayed more pleasurable QALYs in comparison with introversion and instability (P < 0.05). Sensitivity analysis showed that the results mentioned above appeared not to be sensitive when varying key parameters (prosthesis survival and life expectancy) in a one-way sensitivity analysis. Sanguine and melancholic patients still have the lowest and highest MCER in comparison with choleric and phlegmatic traits (P < 0.05). The multivariate logistic regression showed that RA (adjusted OR = 1.3, 95% CI = 1.2-1.4, P < 0.01), ASA Class I-II (adjusted OR = 0.9, 95% CI = 0.8-1.0, P < 0.001), sanguine (adjusted OR = 0.8, 95% CI = 0.7-0.9, P < 0.001) and melancholic (adjusted OR = 1.2, 95% CI = 1.1-1.3, P < 0.001) were significantly associated with MCER. CONCLUSIONS: Before surgery, screening the melancholic patients would significantly reduce the economic burden, avoid unnecessary suffering, and shorten the recovery period.

The relationship between personality traits and BMI categories.

OBJECTIVE: To compare personality traits between average weight, overweight and obese people using Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised-Abbreviated Form (EPQR-A). Study design: Cross-sectional, descriptive study. Place and duration of study: S. B. U Kartal Dr. Lutfi Kirdar Training and Research Hospital Family Medicine Obesity Policlinic and Family Medicine Outpatient Clinics, from November 2018 to January 2019. METHODS: Participants aged between 18 and 65 years (279 female and 150 male) were layered according to Turkish Endocrinology and Metabolism Society (TEMD) Body Mass Index (BMI) categories to compare personality traits between normal weight, overweight and obese people. Each layer was compared to each other in this study. A questionnaire, including socio-demographic form, and EPQR-A Form were applied to the participants. RESULTS: Patients aged between 18 and 65 years (279 female and 150 male) were evaluated according to BMI categories. There was a significant difference in psychoticism score averages by BMI categories (p<0.001). The mean of psychoticism scores showed a V-shaped distribution according to the BMI categories. There were no significant differences between the average scores of neuroticism and extraversion according to BMI categories (p=0.094; p=0.157, respectively). CONCLUSION: There was a significant difference in psychoticism score averages by BMI categories. The mean of psychoticism scores showed a V-shaped distribution according to the BMI categories.

[Correlation between social psychology and personality characteristics and treatment options for adult patients with skeletal malocclusion].

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to explore factors affecting the dental aesthetic social psychology of patients with skeletal malocclusion and to measure the relationship between the objective orthodontic requirements and the subjective treatment requirements of patients. This work provides a reference for doctors to measure patients' orthodontic treatment needs. METHODS: Adult patients with skeletal malocclusion were chosen as the research object. Questionnaire survey was used to analyze factors influencing the psychosocial impact of dental aesthetics questionnaire (PIDAQ), index of orthodontic treatment need (IOTN), and Eysenck personality questionnaire-revised short scale for Chinese (EPQ-RSC). The relationship among PIDAQ, IOTN, EPQ-RSC, and treatment options was also evaluated. RESULTS: Seventy-two valid questionnaires were collected from adult patients with skeletal malocclusion. 1) The PIDAQ scores significantly differed among different occupations (P<0.05) but were not affected by other general conditions such as gender and age. 2) Patients of different dental health component (DHC) grade and ages had different AC self-assessment scores (P<0.01, P<0.05). The AC self-assessment score was positively correlated with the PIDAQ score (P<0.05). 3) Males accounted for a higher proportion of patients who received treatment. Younger patients (18-28 years old) were more likely to receive treat-ment when their own dental aesthetics were poor. People with the higher monthly expenditure accounted for the larger proportion of surgical patients. 4) The PIDAQ score had no significant effects on the choice of opera-tion (P>0.05). People with low educational level were more likely to receive surgery if their psychosocial impacts of dental aes-thetics were serious. 5) The score of psychoticism scale of EPQ-RSC and the educa-tional level had a mutual influence on the PIDAQ score (P<0.01). Moreover, the neuroticism scale and AC self-assessment scores had a mutual influence on the PIDAQ score (P<0.05). However, this study did not find a correlation between personality traits and treatment options. CONCLUSIONS: Many factors, such as personal natural conditions, subjective aesthetic evaluation of teeth, and psychosocial impacts of dental aesthetics, affect patients' treatment options. Personality characteristics can play a certain role in dental aesthetics social psychology.

Correlation between social psychology and personality characteristics and treatment options for adult patients with skeletal malocclusion / 华西口腔医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#This study aims to explore factors affecting the dental aesthetic social psychology of patients with skeletal malocclusion and to measure the relationship between the objective orthodontic requirements and the subjective treatment requirements of patients. This work provides a reference for doctors to measure patients' orthodontic treatment needs.@*METHODS@#Adult patients with skeletal malocclusion were chosen as the research object. Questionnaire survey was used to analyze factors influencing the psychosocial impact of dental aesthetics questionnaire (PIDAQ), index of orthodontic treatment need (IOTN), and Eysenck personality questionnaire-revised short scale for Chinese (EPQ-RSC). The relationship among PIDAQ, IOTN, EPQ-RSC, and treatment options was also evaluated.@*RESULTS@#Seventy-two valid questionnaires were collected from adult patients with skeletal malocclusion. 1) The PIDAQ scores significantly differed among different occupations (P0.05). People with low educational level were more likely to receive surgery if their psychosocial impacts of dental aes-thetics were serious. 5) The score of psychoticism scale of EPQ-RSC and the educa-tional level had a mutual influence on the PIDAQ score (P<0.01). Moreover, the neuroticism scale and AC self-assessment scores had a mutual influence on the PIDAQ score (P<0.05). However, this study did not find a correlation between personality traits and treatment options.@*CONCLUSIONS@#Many factors, such as personal natural conditions, subjective aesthetic evaluation of teeth, and psychosocial impacts of dental aesthetics, affect patients' treatment options. Personality characteristics can play a certain role in dental aesthetics social psychology.

Risk Factors for Difficult Sedation-free Colonoscopy / 胃肠病学

Background: Colonoscopy has been widely applied in clinic because of its value in screening, diagnosis and treatment of colorectal diseases. Discomfort and pain account for a great part of incomplete intubation during sedation-free colonoscopy. Aims: To identify the predictive factors for difficult sedation-free colonoscopy. Methods: Patients aged 18-80 years old undergone sedation-free colonoscopy at the Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University from January to December in 2017 were enrolled. The clinical data and medical history were collected. Each patient completed the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) with the help of nurse before colonoscopy. Sedation-free colonoscopy was performed by experienced endoscopist. The Ottawa bowel preparation scale and Visual Analog Scale were used to evaluate the quality of bowel cleansing and pain during the procedure. Results: The total cecum intubation rate was 97.1% (198/204), and 192 patients completing the EPQ were enrolled for analyses. Twenty-four patients had a difficult colonoscopy (intubation time prolonged to >10 min). By univariate analysis, gender, age, body mass index (BMI), history of surgery, pain level and score of Extraversion-Introversion Scale of EPQ (EPQ-E) were associated with difficulty during colonoscopy (all P<0.05). Multivariate analysis revealed that history of pelvic surgery was a risk factor for difficult colonoscopy (OR=6.833, 95% CI: 2.396-19.488, P<0.001), whereas overweight (OR=0.190, 95% CI: 0.038-0.962, P=0.045) and score of EPQ-E ranged from 8-15 (OR=0.367, 95% CI: 0.150-0.896, P=0.028) were protective factors. Conclusions: History of pelvic surgery, lower BMI and extraversion or introversion personality may increase the difficulty during sedation-free colonoscopy. EPQ-E might be used for selecting candidates of sedation-free colonoscopy when it is performed by an inexperienced endoscopist.

On the Neurobiological Role of Oxidative Stress in Alcohol-Induced Impulsive, Aggressive and Suicidal Behavior.

Objectives: Alcohol abuse is known to result in behavioral impairments (such as increased impulsivity, aggressive, and suicidal behavior), but the neurobiological basis for these behavioral impairments remains unknown. The objective of this review is to propose a neurobiological basis for alcohol-induced aggression, impulsivity, and suicidal behavior. Methods: Search was done by accessing PubMed/Medline, EBSCO, and PsycINFO databases. The search string used was "(Alcohol OR Alcoholism* OR Alcohol Abuse) AND (Behavior* OR Behavioral Impairment or Disorder) AND (Oxidative Stress OR Reactive Oxygen Species)." The electronic databases were searched for titles or abstracts containing these terms in all published articles between January 1, 1960, and May 31, 2019. The search was limited to studies published in English and other languages involving both animal and human subjects. Articles selected included randomized clinical trials (RCTs), observational studies, meta-analyses, and both systemic and narrative reviews, providing both quantitative and qualitative information with a measure of alcohol abuse or alcoholism as an outcome. Exclusion criteria were unpublished data of any form, including conference proceedings and dissertation. New key terms were identified (new term included: "Antioxidants, Neurotransmitters, Dopamine, Serotonin, GABA, Glutamate. Aggression, Impulsivity, Suicidal Behavior, hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, limbic system, psychiatric disorders, PTSD, Anxiety, Depression. These new terms were searched with Alcohol or Alcoholism or Alcohol Abuse and Oxidative Stress separately resulting in the identification of over 3000 articles. 196 were included in this article. Results: Multiple lines of evidence indicate that oxidative stress (OS) plays a critical underlying role in alcohol toxicity and behavioral impairments. Conclusions/Importance: People diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety disorder, depression, and those with a personality high in psychoticism as measured by the P Scale of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, with comorbid alcohol abuse or alcohol use disorder (AUD), may display increased impulsivity, aggression, and suicidal behavior because of the potentiating effect of alcohol-induced OS on their elevated brain oxidative status. Antioxidant therapy should be an integral part of acute alcohol intoxication and AUD treatment. Further research is necessary to fully understand the relationship between OS and alcohol-induced behavioral impairments.

[Psychological factors and penile blood supply in patients with erectile dysfunction].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the psychological factors and blood supply to the penis in ED patients. METHODS: From August to November 2018, we obtained Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90) scores and conducted an Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) investigation among 106 ED patients in our Department of Andrology, followed by the test of intracavernosal injection of the vasoactive agent (ICI-VAA) and color duplex Doppler ultrasonography (CDDU). According to the results of ICI-VAA and CDDU, we divided the patients into a normal and an abnormal group, compared their item and total scores on SCL-90 with the national norm by t-test and analyzed the distribution of personality types in different groups by Chi-square test. RESULTS: The results of ICI-VAA and CDDU showed 42 cases to be normal and the other 64 abnormal. Compared with the normal group, the abnormal cases exhibited significantly decreased peak systolic velocity (PSV) in the left and right corpus cavernosum (ï¼»30.90 ± 6.83ï¼½ vs ï¼»19.39 ± 5.07ï¼½ cm/s, P < 0.01; ï¼»30.74 ± 7.00ï¼½ vs ï¼»18.98 ± 4.57ï¼½ cm/s, P < 0.01), but increased end-diastolic velocity (EDV) in the left corpus cavernosum (ï¼»1.77 ± 2.38ï¼½ vs ï¼»3.21 ± 2.78ï¼½ cm/s, P < 0.01). The ED patients undergoing ICI-VAA and CDDU obtained remarkably higher SCL-90 scores than the national norm on depression (1.70 ± 0.64 vs 1.50 ± 0.59, P < 0.01), anxiety (1.62 ± 0.56 vs 1.39 ± 0.43, P < 0.01), compulsion (1.86 ± 0.61 vs 1.62 ± 0.58, P < 0.01), hostility (1.65 ± 0.66 vs 1.48 ± 0.56, P < 0.01), phobia (1.33 ± 0.45 vs 1.23 ± 0.41, P = 0.02), and psychoticism (1.61 ± 0.55 vs 1.29 ± 0.41, P < 0.01) as well as a higher total score (1.61 ± 0.48 vs 1.44 ± 0.48, P < 0.01). The patients with normal results of CDDU got markedly increased scores on anxiety (1.60 ± 0.53, P < 0.01), compulsion (1.83 ± 0.63, P = 0.02) and psychoticism (1.61 ± 0.48, P < 0.01), and so did those with abnormal results of CDDU on depression (1.73 ± 0.65, P < 0.01), anxiety (1.64 ± 0.59, P < 0.01), compulsion (1.88 ± 0.60, P < 0.01), hostility (1.68 ± 0.75, P < 0.01), phobia (1.35 ± 0.44, P = 0.02), psychoticism (1.61 ± 0.59, P < 0.01) and an increased total score as well (1.63 ± 0.51, P < 0.01). Statistically significant differences were not found in either the item scores or the total score on SCL-90 (P > 0.05), nor in the distribution of the EPQ personality types between the normal and abnormal cases (χ2 = 1.12, P = 0.77). CONCLUSIONS: The personality types of ED patients are mainly phlegmatic and melancholic, and their psychological problems chiefly include depression and anxiety, which are more serious in those with insufficient penile blood supply.

[Personality and psychological characteristics of premature ejaculation patients].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the personality and psychological characteristics of premature ejaculation (PE) patients and the correlation between them two. METHODS: Using Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) and Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90), we conducted an investigation among 94 PE patients seeking medical advice in Drum Tower Hospital from October 2018 to February 2019. RESULTS: The neuroticism score of the PE patients on EPQ was significantly higher than the national norm of adult males (t = 12.010, P < 0.01), and so was their introversion-extroversion score (t = 2.557, P < 0.05), while their concealment score was markedly lower (t = －8.736, P < 0.01). The coercion score of the patients on SCL-90 was remarkably higher than the national norm of adult males (t = 2.787, P < 0.01), and so were their psychosis score (t = 3.944, P < 0.01) and anxiety score (t = 2.512, P < 0.05). There was a significant correlation between the EPQ and SCL-90 scores of the patients. Psychoticism was found highly positively correlated with terror (r = 0.455, P < 0.01), interpersonal relationship (r = 0.295, P < 0.01), hostility (r = 0.375, P < 0.01), psychosis (r = 0.363, P < 0.01), compulsion (r = 0.284, P < 0.01), depression (r = 0.294, P < 0.01), paranoia (r = 0.336, P < 0.01), somatization (r = 0.400, P < 0.01) and anxiety (r = 0.358, P < 0.01), and so was neuroticism with terror (r = 0.466, P < 0.01), interpersonal relationship (r = 0.611, P < 0.01), hostility (r = 0.509, P < 0.01), psychosis (r = 0.593, P < 0.01), compulsion (r = 0.573, P < 0.01), depression (r = 0.560, P < 0.01), paranoia (r = 0.550, P < 0.01), somatization (r = 0.465, P < 0.01) and anxiety (r = 0.572, P < 0.01). Introversion-extroversion, however, was highly negatively correlated with interpersonal relationship (r = －0.226, P < 0.05) and depression (r = －0.228, P < 0.05), and so was concealment with terror (r= － 0.351, P < 0.01), interpersonal relationship (r = －0.433, P < 0.01), hostility (r = －0.347, P < 0.01), psychosis (r = －0.427, P < 0.01), compulsion (r = －0.345, P < 0.01), depression (r = －0.379, P < 0.01) , paranoia (r = －0.393, P < 0.01), somatization (r = －0.204, P < 0.05) and anxiety (r =－0.237, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The personality and psychological status of PE patients are different from those of normal males, and some personality characteristics of the patients are correlated with their psychological status, especially with high neuroticism.

Do Personality Characteristics Constitute the Profile of Burnout-Prone Correctional Officers?

AIM: This study examined the relationship between personality characteristics and burnout syndrome among Bulgarian correctional officers. METHODS: The cross-sectional study took place through individual, voluntary and anonymous interviewing of 307 employees from three district prisons. Maslach burnout inventory, Eysenck personality questionnaire and demographic characteristics were administered. RESULTS: The personality predictors of emotional exhaustion were low emotional stability and low level of dimension extraversion. The predictors of depersonalization were high levels of neuroticism and psychoticism and low level of extraversion. CONCLUSION: This research helps to identify employees who are at risk for developing burnout as a result of their personalities. In Bulgaria, there is still no official information about studies in this area.

Using Item Response Theory for the Development of a New Short Form of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised.

The present work aims at developing a new version of the short form of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised, which includes Psychoticism, Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Lie scales (48 items, 12 per scale). The work consists of two studies. In the first one, an item response theory model was estimated on the responses of 590 individuals to the full-length version of the questionnaire (100 items). The analyses allowed the selection of 48 items well discriminating and distributed along the latent continuum of each trait, and without misfit and differential item functioning. In the second study, the functioning of the new form of the questionnaire was evaluated in a different sample of 300 individuals. Results of the two studies show that reliability of the four scales is better than, or equal to that of the original forms. The new version outperforms the original one in approximating scores of the full-length questionnaire. Moreover, convergent validity coefficients and relations with clinical constructs were consistent with literature.

Personality risk factors of occurrence of female breast cancer: a case-control study in China.

To investigate the association of personality traits with breast cancer risk, a case-control study was conducted from May 2014 to February 2017, in which the case group consisted of 262 women with breast cancer and 262 without (control group). The Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) (88-question Adult Edition) and another self-assessment questionnaire that contained open questions to obtain more specific character traits were used to complete this survey. The results of the E scale showed that 121 women (46.18%) in the case group and 94 women (35.88%) in the control group were extroverted. The results of the N scale showed that 150 women (57.25%) in the case group and 86 women (32.82%) in the control group had unstable personality. Adjusting for other confounding factors, extroversion and unstable personality were risk factors for breast cancer (E scale: OR = 1.70, 95% CI = 1.28-2.15; N scale: OR = 3.18, 95% CI = 1.77-4.91). Personality instability was a higher risk factor than extroversion was. People with unstable personalities were 3.18 times more likely to have breast cancer than were those who had stable personalities. The results of the self-assessment questionnaire suggested that the more frequent character traits mentioned were being concerned over everything, irritable, and perfectionistic, seeking to prevail over others, and being manipulative and oversensitive.

Robust Measurement via A Fused Latent and Graphical Item Response Theory Model.

Item response theory (IRT) plays an important role in psychological and educational measurement. Unlike the classical testing theory, IRT models aggregate the item level information, yielding more accurate measurements. Most IRT models assume local independence, an assumption not likely to be satisfied in practice, especially when the number of items is large. Results in the literature and simulation studies in this paper reveal that misspecifying the local independence assumption may result in inaccurate measurements and differential item functioning. To provide more robust measurements, we propose an integrated approach by adding a graphical component to a multidimensional IRT model that can offset the effect of unknown local dependence. The new model contains a confirmatory latent variable component, which measures the targeted latent traits, and a graphical component, which captures the local dependence. An efficient proximal algorithm is proposed for the parameter estimation and structure learning of the local dependence. This approach can substantially improve the measurement, given no prior information on the local dependence structure. The model can be applied to measure both a unidimensional latent trait and multidimensional latent traits.

Exploratory Item Classification Via Spectral Graph Clustering.

Large-scale assessments are supported by a large item pool. An important task in test development is to assign items into scales that measure different characteristics of individuals, and a popular approach is cluster analysis of items. Classical methods in cluster analysis, such as the hierarchical clustering, K-means method, and latent-class analysis, often induce a high computational overhead and have difficulty handling missing data, especially in the presence of high-dimensional responses. In this article, the authors propose a spectral clustering algorithm for exploratory item cluster analysis. The method is computationally efficient, effective for data with missing or incomplete responses, easy to implement, and often outperforms traditional clustering algorithms in the context of high dimensionality. The spectral clustering algorithm is based on graph theory, a branch of mathematics that studies the properties of graphs. The algorithm first constructs a graph of items, characterizing the similarity structure among items. It then extracts item clusters based on the graphical structure, grouping similar items together. The proposed method is evaluated through simulations and an application to the revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire.

Influence of Eysenckian Personality Traits in Choice of Specialization by Young Omani Doctors.

OBJECTIVES: The role of personality in occupational specialty choices has been explored in many parts of the world. To our knowledge, there is a dearth of such studies in the Arab/Islamic population and Oman is no exception. This study aimed to explore the relationship between personality traits and specialty choice among residents of Oman Medical Specialty Board (OMSB). METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out among Omani resident physicians working under OMSB. The Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised was employed to quantify personality subtypes (e.g., psychoticism, extraversion, and neuroticism). Specialties were categorized as surgical, medical, and diagnostics as per standard of North American medical specialties. A total of 255 residents in 17 medical specialties participated in the study (m = 40.4%; f = 59.6%) of 300 eligible subjects giving a response rate of 85.0%. RESULTS: Respondents who had chosen surgical specialties scored significantly higher on the psychoticism subscale than those who had opted for medical and diagnostic specialties. As for individual specialties, orthopedic respondents had statistically significant higher mean scores on psychoticism and neuroticism compared to radiologists and psychiatrists who scored the lowest in the two personality traits, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study found statistically significant associations between personality traits and choices of specialty by young Omani doctors. We recommend more detailed studies that examine further psychological and cultural variables that are likely to affect the choices of specializations by young Omani professionals in both medical and non-medical fields.

Design, rationale and feasibility of a multidimensional experimental protocol to study early life stress.

There is a rapidly accumulating body of evidence regarding the influential role of early life stress (ELS) upon medical and psychiatric conditions. While self-report instruments, with their intrinsic limitations of recall, remain the primary means of detecting ELS in humans, biological measures are generally limited to a single biological system. This paper describes the design, rationale and feasibility of a study to simultaneously measure neuroendocrine, immune and autonomic nervous system (ANS) responses to psychological and physiological stressors in relation to ELS. Five healthy university students were recruited by advertisement. Exclusion criteria included chronic medical conditions, psychotic disorders, needle phobia, inability to tolerate pain, and those using anti-inflammatory medications. They were clinically interviewed and physiological recordings made over a two-hour period pre, during and post two acute stressors: the cold pressor test and recalling a distressing memory. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and the Parental Bonding Index were utilised to measure ELS. Other psychological measures of mood and personality were also administered. Measurements of heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate, skin conductance, skin blood flow and temporal plasma samples were successfully obtained before, during and after acute stress. Participants reported the extensive psychological and multisystem physiological data collection and stress provocations were tolerable. Most (4/5) participants indicated a willingness to return to repeat the protocol, indicating acceptability. Our protocol is viable and safe in young physically healthy adults and allows us to assess simultaneously neuroendocrine, immune and autonomic nervous system responses to stressors in persons assessed for ELS.

Tabaquismo: su relación con personalidad y variables sociales / Smoking, their relationship to personality and social variables

El tabaquismo es una enfermedad adictiva y crónica la cual se ha asociado a distintos factores. El objetivo fue investigar la asociación entre las características de la personalidad con la condición tabáquica usando el cuestionario de personalidad de Eysenck (EPQ-R) y evaluar las condiciones sociales del individuo y de su entorno que se asocian en esta patología. Se realizó un estudio observacional, analítico y de corte transversal mediante una encuesta auto administrada a 205 personas, hombres y mujeres con una edad promedio de 46 años. Desarrollado en la provincia de Mendoza, Argentina periodo 2013-2015. En nuestras conclusiones destacamos una asociación dentro de las variables sociales entre el nivel de escolaridad más bajo, si fumaba el padre, si fumaban los amigos en la infancia/adolescencia y además si tenían muchos amigos en la infancia con el tabaquismo. Al evaluar los rasgos de la personalidad observamos un mayor número de personas que probaron marihuana con niveles más altos en neuroticismo y en las escalas de mentira. Las personas fumadoras con rasgos de extroversión altos tenían muchos amigos fumadores en la infancia. Analizando la condición tabáquica con personalidad encontramos niveles más altos en neuroticismo en los tabaquistas. Creemos muy importante identificar los rasgos de la personalidad en nuestras poblaciones a fin de definir mejor su implicancia en el comportamiento normal y anormal de la sociedad. Conocer e identificar estas variables predictoras del inicio y mantenimiento del tabaquismo, ayudaría a mejorar las estrategias preventivas y de tratamiento de esta enfermedad pudiendo ser otra herramienta valiosa para tratar esta patología.

Cigarette smoking is an addictive and chronic disease that has been associated to various factors. The objective was to investigate the association between personality characters with a smoking condition using the Eysenck questionnaire (EPQ-R) and to evaluate the social variables that influence this pathology. A descriptive and transversal observational study was performed through a self-administered survey that involved 205 people, men and women with an average of 46 years of age. Realized in the province of Mendoza Argentina during the period of 2013-2015. In our conclusion we wish to outstand within the social variable, an association with the low level of education, if a parent smoked and having friends in their childhood and teenage years related with smoking. When personality features were evaluated, we observed a greater number of people who had tried marihuana with higher levels of neuroticism and in the lying scales. People who smoked, who had high extroversion features, had many smoking friends in their childhood. Analyzing the smoking condition with personality, we found higher levels of neuroticism in actual smokers. We believe it to be very important to identify the personality features in our population, in able to identify its implication in the normal or abnormal behavior of society. Being able to know and identify these predictable variables associated with the initiation and maintained smoking habit, would help better prevention strategies and treatment of this disease, it would be another valuable tool to treat this pathology.

Abnormal default-mode network homogeneity and its correlations with personality in drug-naive somatization disorder at rest.

BACKGROUND: While the default-mode network (DMN) appears to play a crucial role in patients suffering from somatization disorder (SD), the abnormalities of the network homogeneity (NH) of the DMN in SD patients have been poorly explored. The aim of this study is to examine DMN NH using an NH approach in patients suffering from SD at rest and determine its correlations with personality as measured by the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ). METHODS: A total of 25 drug-naive patients with SD and 28 sex-, age-, and education-matched healthy controls underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging scans at rest. The data were analyzed by an automated NH method. RESULTS: Patients showed increased NH in the left superior frontal gyrus and decreased NH in the bilateral precuneus. Moreover, a significantly negative correlation was observed between the NH values in the bilateral precuneus and the EPQ--Neuroticism scores. LIMITATIONS: The present study should be considered preliminary due to a lenient, uncorrected threshold of p<0.01. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that abnormal DMN NH exists in drug-naive SD and further highlight the importance of the DMN in the pathophysiology of SD.