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PubMed2002

Genetic and environmental influences on problematic masturbatory behavior in children: a study of same-sex twins.

Child sexual behavior problems, such as excessive or public masturbation, are often judged to result from environmental stress or trauma. We studied the relative importance of genetic and environmental factors for problematic masturbatory behavior among nonreferred prepubertal children. All twins born in Sweden in 1985-86 were identified from the Swedish Twin Registry. Parents, mainly mothers, completed Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) ratings (Achenbach, 1991) for 401 monozygotic (MZ) and 248 dizygotic (DZ) same-sex twin pairs (male-male or female-female) at age 7-9 years. Scores of two CBCL items concerning specific sexual behavior problems (Plays with own sex parts in public and Plays with own sex parts too much) were summed and the influence of genetic and environmental factors on variability assessed. The prevalence of problematic child masturbatory behavior was low and associated with other emotional and behavioral problems. The degree of problematic child masturbatory behavior resemblance was higher within MZ twin pairs as compared to DZ same-sex twin pairs. Model fitting indicated that genetic factors substantially influenced the studied behaviors (77%, 95% CI = 9-96%), although family environment also played a role. Our results suggest that hereditary factors should be considered together with stressful experiences such as sexual victimization in the evaluation of elementary school children presenting with problematic masturbatory behaviors. When interpreting the findings, the very brief measure of sexual problem behavior and low statistical power, precluding the analysis of possible coinheritance with other symptoms or disorders, should be borne in mind.

Child↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Influences on fruit and vegetable consumption by low-income black American adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to identify personal, behavioral, and environmental factors influencing fruit and vegetable consumption among 10- to 13-year-old low-income black American youth in the lower Mississippi Delta region. Social Cognitive Theory, along with other theoretical constructs, guided focus group questions and analysis. DESIGN: A qualitative study using focus group methodology. SETTING: Enrichment program of a sports summer camp for low-income youth. PARTICIPANTS: Forty-two adolescents (21 female, 21 male) participated in 6 focus groups. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Personal, behavioral, and environmental influences on fruit and vegetable consumption. ANALYSIS: Content analysis methods were used by 3 independent reviewers to identify themes within the focus group transcripts. Themes were summarized and then categorized into the 3 domains of Social Cognitive Theory. RESULTS: The major themes were taste, availability, extended family influence, visual proof of the benefits of fruit and vegetable consumption, and the need for gender-specific behavioral skills. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: This formative research will aid in the development of a culturally relevant nutrition intervention for low-income black American adolescents in the lower Mississippi Delta region. The results indicate that this group is more likely to respond to interventions that use role models who can provide proof that fruit and vegetable consumption is related to improved health.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

The nature of environmental influences on weight and obesity: a behavior genetic analysis.

The nature of environmental influences on individual differences in weight and obesity is presently unclear. To resolve this issue, behavior genetic studies are reviewed for their relevance to environmental influences on weight and obesity. Results are consistent in suggesting that environmental experiences are important for weight and obesity, although they account for much less variation than do the effects of genes. Furthermore, only environmental experiences that are not shared among family members appear to be important. In contrast, experiences that are shared among family members appear largely irrelevant in determining individual differences in weight and obesity. These conclusions are consistent with a growing body of evidence on the relative unimportance of such shared experiences for many psychological characteristics.

Body Weight↗
PubMed1983

Mortality and economic instability: detailed analyses for Britain and comparative analyses for selected industrialized countries.

This paper discusses a first-stage analysis of the link of unemployment rates, as well as other economic, social and environmental health risk factors, to mortality rates in postwar Britain. The results presented represent part of an international study of the impact of economic change on mortality patterns in industrialized countries. The mortality patterns examined include total and infant mortality and (by cause) cardiovascular (total), cerebrovascular and heart disease, cirrhosis of the liver, and suicide, homicide and motor vehicle accidents. Among the most prominent factors that beneficially influence postwar mortality patterns in England/Wales and Scotland are economic growth and stability and health service availability. A principal detrimental factor to health is a high rate of unemployment. Additional factors that have an adverse influence on mortality rates are cigarette consumption and heavy alcohol use and unusually cold winter temperatures (especially in Scotland). The model of mortality that includes both economic changes and behavioral and environmental risk factors was successfully applied to infant mortality rates in the interwar period. In addition, the "simple" economic change model of mortality (using only economic indicators) was applied to other industrialized countries. In Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Sweden, the simple version of the economic change model could be successfully applied only if the analysis was begun before World War II; for analysis beginning in the postwar era, the more sophisticated economic change model, including behavioral and environmental risk factors, was required. In France, West Germany, Italy, and Spain, by contrast, some success was achieved using the simple economic change model.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Epidemiology of prostatitis.

Prostatitis is the third most important condition of the prostate. Problems in the diagnosis and classification of this condition, however, have hindered epidemiologic research. Consequently, our understanding of the incidence of prostatitis and factors that increase its probability is limited. Recent studies suggest that the prevalence of prostatitis is 5% to 9% among unselected men in the community. Based on estimates from national data, approximately 2 million men in the United States seek treatment for prostatitis each year. A number of recent studies suggest that genetic, behavioral, and environmental factors; age; inflammatory mediators; and oxidative stress may be risk factors for prostatitis. However, findings from most of these studies may at best be considered preliminary because of problems with small sample sizes or lack of generalizability. Nonetheless, these studies suggest hypotheses that should be tested in well-designed population-based studies.

Age Factors↗
PubMed2002

[Sex differences in mortality - time to take a second look].

Ever since mortality has been measured, the existence of a female survival advantage is well known. This topic reached particular interest with the widening of the male-female survival gap during the general decline of mortality in the 20(th) century to an extent of seven years. Only in the last 20 years has a slight narrowing of this gap been observed. The numerous examinations of these sex differences in mortality can be classified into two main explanation categories: the biological and the behavioral or environmental explanations. While in the past, scientists searched for the responsible factors solely in one of these complexes, it is obvious today that the cause of this phenomenon can only be found in a multi-causal context. This article describes the current knowledge and summarizes the most important of them inside the framework of more current research which has enabled researchers to exclude the non-biological factors in comparing female and male survival patterns. Those indicate the existence of a female biological advantage, which however should not exceed a difference of 1-2 years. Consequently, the rest should be due to behavioral and environmental factors. But the additional existence of a cohort effect of people born between 1930 and the mid 1940s with a significant higher male excess mortality often remains unrecognized. This effect could lead again to a widening of this mortality gap in the near future. However, in the long term, we should expect a further decline of sex differences in mortality closer to the biological level due to the continuous approximation of female and male life styles and sex-specific mortality risks.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

The 1985 Upjohn award lecture. Tolerance, learning, and neurochemical adaptation.

Alcohol or drug tolerance has been viewed traditionally as a homeostatic response to a direct chemical action of the agent on the neuron. This concept has undergone major modification as a result of recent observations that behavioral and environmental factors can alter markedly the tolerance developed to the same drug regimen. Obligatory task performance under the influence of the drug, classical conditional stimuli in an environment habitually associated with drug administration, previous exposure to a tolerance-producing regimen, and environmental modification of the expression of the drug's effect can all influence dramatically the degree of tolerance produced by a given dosage. Attempts to identify possible cellular mechanisms of tolerance development are illustrated by a review of studies on the relations between ethanol tolerance and changes in the neuronal membrane Na+ -K+ ATPase and its interaction with ethanol and norepinephrine, hippocampal serotoninergic systems and their interaction with a vasopressin derivative, a membrane-bound calcium- and calmodulin- dependent kinase, and hypothalamic-hypophyseal endorphin-producing systems. None of these studies or other similar ones, whether correlational or interventional in nature, has yet provided full and credible explanations of the effects of behavioral and environmental factors on tolerance development. Finding such explanations is the major current challenge in the neurobiology of tolerance.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed2001

[Eliminating iodine deficiency disorders in Nepal through precede-proceed].

OBJECTIVES: Assess the PRECEDE-PROCEED model's suitability for developing countries. Analyze the Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD) control program in Nepal according to PRECEDE-PROCEED. METHODS: Primary and secondary data analysis within the framework of PRECEDE-PROCEED's first five steps. Key informant interviews. Qualitative data from Nepal's IDD control program participants were assessed according to PRECEDE-PROCEED's third through fifth steps. RESULTS: According to the first and second steps of PRECEDE-PROCEED for social and epidemiological assessment, Nepal's IDD control program needs improvement. Limited data were available for the assessment, making it difficult to execute the first two steps with certainty. Social and epidemiological assessments can be problematic in any developing country since the necessary data are typically not available. Behavioral and environmental assessments (step three) showed that: Most people are unaware of IDD and manage iodized salt poorly. The environment within which iodized salt is managed is insufficient for maintaining proper salt iodination at the consumer level. Educational and ecological assessments (step four) pointed out several problems, including: Inadequate understanding of IDD Incorrect beliefs about refined salt Poor supply of refined salt in markets Weak regulation of non-iodized salt importation and sales Finally, administrative and policy assessments (step five) emphasized the need for an active role of the Salt Trading Corporation in Nepal, with a significant manpower and budget, in improving the IDD program. Data for completing PRECEDE-PROCEED steps three through five were readily available. In addition to providing a framework within which to assess Nepal's IDD control program, the model helped highlight specific action goals for behavioral and environmental objectives (consume more iodized salt, improve quality of salt warehouses and increase iodized salt's market availability). DISCUSSION: Though it was difficult to obtain data for social and epidemiological assessments, the PRECEDE-PROCEED model proved useful in analyzing IDD control in Nepal. The model can comprehensively analyze ongoing interventions and assess the status of various nation-wide health programs, highlighting areas of modification needed to help programs achieve their goals.

Developing Countries↗
PubMed1998

Cancer risk of patients discharged with acute myocardial infarct.

We studied whether common shared environmental or behavioral risk factors, other than tobacco smoking, underlie both atherosclerotic diseases and cancer. We identified a group of 96,891 one-year survivors of acute myocardial infarct through the Danish Hospital Discharge Register between 1977 and 1989. We calculated the incidence of cancer in this group by linking it to the Danish Cancer Registry for the period 1978-1993. There was no consistent excess over the expected figures for any of the categories of cancer not related to tobacco smoking. Specifically, the rates of colorectal cancer in acute myocardial infarct patients were similar to those of the general population, as were the rates for hormone-related cancers, including endometrial and postmenopausal breast cancers. We found a moderate increase in the risk for tobacco-related cancers, which was strongest for patients with early onset of acute myocardial infarct and for female patients. Overall, there do not seem to be major shared environmental or behavioral risk factors for acute myocardial infarct and cancers, except for smoking, and there seems to be no common inherited susceptibility to the development of these diseases.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Analysis of six foraging behaviors as toxicity indicators, using juvenile smallmouth bass exposed to low environmental pH.

Six foraging behaviors were evaluated for use in toxicity bioassays with fishes. Response time and strike frequency were used to measure fish activity, average and longest fixation distance, to measure visual acuity, while prey capture frequency and strike success were used to measure fish coordination and agility. In this study, the feeding behaviors were used to evaluate the effects of chronic exposure to acidic water on juvenile smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieui). Feeding responses to two types of live prey, tubificids and Daphnia magna, were recorded for bass exposed to pH 4.7 and 4.2. Fish held at the lower pH level had significantly lower fixation distances, prey capture success and capture frequencies with both prey types, indicating that high levels of acidity may impair visual acuity, coordination, and agility. The foraging behaviors evaluated herein appear to be useful in toxicity testing because they are easily quantified and indicate changes that may affect growth and survival in long-term exposures.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Behavioral thermoregulation in long-tailed macaques: effect on social preference.

Environmental and behavioral data were collected on a captive group of six long-tailed macaques housed in an outdoor cage to determine whether intragroup spacing behavior would vary in a consistent manner in relation to microclimatic variables. Records were made of ambient temperature, relative humidity, and time of day. Temperature was found to influence proximity between the monkeys. Under cool conditions, the long-tailed macaques of this study increased interindividual body contact, a behavior that lowers the amount of heat lost by radiation. Behavioral thermoregulation exerted a major effect on the expression of social relationships among the individuals. Social preference thresholds that regulate interindividual body contact were dramatically lowered under cool conditions (13-24 degrees C). In contrast, affiliative thresholds for noncontact proximity did not alter as a function of thermal conditions. The effect of temperature on dyadic body contact did not seem to vary with the social characteristics of the dyad. The results support the hypothesis that certain aspects of primate social behavior may also serve some thermoregulatory function.

Acclimatization↗
PubMed1982

Effects of early environmental enrichment upon open-field behavior and timidity in the domestic chick.

Early environmental enrichment was evaluated by its effect on the behavior of 7-day-old male and female domestic chicks in an open field or novel environment and in a hole-in-the-wall test of timidity. The chicks were housed in same-sex groups of 10. The bare environments contained wood litter, food, and water, whereas the enriched boxes also contained various objects. In the open field, immobility was lower while feeding, walking, jumping and vocalization were higher in the enriched birds than in those reared in the bare environment. Enrichment also decreased emergence latencies in the hole-in-the-wall box. The increased stimulation provided by environmental enrichment may decrease fearfulness in subsequent fear-inducing situations and may enhance the ability of animals to adapt to novelty.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Cognitive psychology: mentalistic or behavioristic?

We have examined the question, is modern cognitive psychology a return to classical structural or functional psychology or does it conform to the methodological behaviorism first advocated by John B. Watson? We began with a brief description of the methods and goals of classical psychology, noting that observations of the mental phenomena were made by highly trained observers who were themselves scientists (or at least, scientists-in-training). These scientists were searching for cross-sectional laws that connected mental elements with complex mental phenomena. Among the primitive terms of these psychologists were some that referred to simple mental events. Classical psychologists failed to reach their goals for empirical reasons; their failure was not due to methodological (logical) inadequacies. We examined methodological behaviorism and found it to have two main principles. The first is that the primitive terms of psychology should refer to the simple properties of, and simple relations among, physical objects and events--the same primitives used in the physical sciences. The second is that psychologists should look for process laws that permit the prediction of future behavior given knowledge of the physiological, environmental, and other behavioral variables. Next, we analyzed the activities of cognitive psychologists. We found that they do not treat their subjects as if they were trained observers. Rather, they consistently employ "catch trials" and other checks on the quality of the subjects' observations. We noted that cognitive psychologists could, but usually do not, provide behaviorally and environmentally based "operational definitions" for many of the mentalistic-sounding terms that they introduce into the psychological language. Many of their terms, however, are introduced through the time-honored use of models. That is, they construct models that are only partially interpreted to the empirical world. Some of the concepts in the model remain uninterpreted, and of these, some appear to refer to the mental phenomena that classical psychologists attempted to study and describe. This latter feature is probably what most misleadingly suggests that modern cognitive psychology is a return to classical structural or functional psychology. Finally, we found that cognitive psychology is not, as many believe, a revolution against methodological behaviorism. It is rather a rebellion against the conditioning-based theories that constrained psychologists to the study of the simpler behavioral phenomena.

Behaviorism↗
PubMed2007

Environmental correlates of gambling behavior in urban adolescents.

The present study considered the relation between adolescent gambling behavior and the perceived environment, the component of Jessor and Jessor's (1977) Problem Behavior Theory that assesses the ways that adolescents perceive the attitudes and behaviors of parents and peers. The predominantly African-American sample included 188 sophomores from two urban public high schools. Using the South Oaks Gambling Screen-Revised for Adolescents to assess gambling risk, rates of both at-risk (20.7%) and problem (12.8%) gambling were found to be high. Boys displayed more gambling problems than did girls. The perceived environment accounted for significant variance in gambling problems and frequency, with proximal components displaying stronger relationships than distal components. Perceiving parent gambling and friend models for problem behavior were positively correlated with gambling problems, and friend models were positively related to gambling frequency. Among girls, family support was positively related to gambling problems. Among boys, this relation was negative.

Achievement↗
PubMed1976

Effect of environmental lighting on sexual behavior and testosterone levels of female rats.

The effects of exposure to two different lighting regimes, constant light (LL) and cyclic light (LD) on the sexual performance and serum testosterone concentrations of intact, virgin, female rats was investigated. During copulatory pairing there were significant changes in the sexual performance of both LL and LD rats. Sexual receptivity in the LL females increased as a result of copulatory stimulation, whereas the sexual performance of LD females declined. Throughout copulatory testing the level of sexual receptivity displayed by the LL females was significantly less than that of the LD females. Testosterone levels in acyclic virgin LL rats were significantly lower than the levels in cycling, virgin, LD rats. The implications of these findings were discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Environmental enrichment facilitates foraging behavior.

Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) were tested at 24 months of age after having experienced an outdoor desert environment for one hour each month after weaning, or at 8 months of age after being reared from birth in outsize cages in the laboratory. Both groups of enriched gerbils found food more rapidly than did 24-month-old handled controls, 8-month-old naive gerbils, or 8-month-old gerbils reared in small cages. There were no differences in locomotor activity, in latency to emerge from a small box, or in attention to novel objects or conspecific odors. Efficiency in finding food was not associated with types of food chosen, and the foods selected were not directly related to types of food eaten previously.

Animal Husbandry↗