Manipulation and control in couple relationships. A study of young women

The term gaslighting refers to a typology of psychological abuse that is expressed through acts of manipulation, which tend to control a partner’s mental and affective state. The aim of the present study was to assess the presence of gaslighting behaviour as sustained by a group of young women in their relational experiences as a couple. Moreover, the associations between frequency of gaslighting behaviour and specific maladaptive personality traits, were evaluated. One hundred women, aged from 19 to 30 years (M=22,5; ds=3,14) participated in this research study. Manipulation and/or control behaviour were evaluated by administrating 25 descriptions of three typologies of gaslighter (glamour, good-guy and intimidator) and 20 descriptions of victim’s reactions to manipulation and/or control attempts (Stern, 2007). In order to measure personality traits the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5; Fossati, Borroni, 2015) was administrated, in brief form for participants and informant form for their partners. Results show that the three forms of gaslighting and the reactions to the controlling behaviour sustained are connected to dysfunctional domains of personality. In particular, it was possible to highlight the presence of an association between glamour gaslighting and the domains of negative affect, antagonism, disinhibition and psychoticism, whereas it seems there is no association between glamour gaslighting and the domain of detachment. Furthermore, it is possible to highlight an association between the victim’s reaction to control and dysfunctional domains of personality. Preventive interventions of Intimate Partner Violence should, therefore, take into consideration the variable in personality traits both in abuser and victim

Emissione di sincrotrone e applicazioni astrofisiche

”La radiazione di sincrotrone o luce di sincrotrone è una radiazione elettromagnetica generata da particelle cariche, solitamente elettroni o positroni, che viaggiano a velocità prossime alla velocità della luce e vengono costrette da un campo magnetico a muoversi lungo una traiettoria curva: tanto più elevata è la velocità della particella, tanto minore è la lunghezza d’onda della radiazione emessa e generalmente il picco dell’emissione avviene alle lunghezze dei raggi X” (IUPAC). La tesi è suddivisa in tre parti: nel primo capitolo si tratta lo studio del moto e dell’emissione di una particella in un campo magnetico nei casi in cui si muove a velocità non relativistiche, relativistiche e ultrarelativistiche. In tutti i casi è considerata la radiazione prodotta attraverso la formula di Larmor per la potenza irraggiata, e vengono messi a confronto i casi dei tre regimi di velocità, anche attraverso gli spettri di emissione; nel secondo capitolo si illustrano alcune delle applicazioni del sincrotrone, considerando una sorgente di elettroni relativistici trasparente alla propria radiazione e successivamente ad essa opaca, dunque il budget energetico di una tipica radiosorgente di cui è ignota la composizione del plasma. Si trattano quindi il caso del Synchrotron Self-Compton, e infine l’invecchiamento spettrale e la polarizzazione; nel terzo e ultimo capitolo si mostrano alcuni esempi astrofisici il cui studio sfrutta la radiazione di sincrotrone, in particolare i resti di supernovae, le pulsar e i nuclei galattici attivi, facendo gli esempi di alcuni oggetti di studio importanti

Washing and drying innovative systems for household appliances

As the market penetration of household appliances increases, higher energy efficiency and lower environmental impact are asked for; regulations are in fact encouraging the development of more efficient systems and manufacturers are interested in new technologies in an energy saving and low environmental impact perspective in order to increase their market share. In particular, the present work was focused on household washing and drying system; their market has in fact increased in the past few years and is expected to grow up more in the next years. Several innovative solutions were proposed, studied, experimentally tested and analysed in order to achieve higher energy savings and lower environmental impact. Efforts were done to improve already existing solutions; moreover, alternative technologies and future research perspectives were also analysed

Gaslighting Exposure During Emerging Adulthood: Personality Traits and Vulnerability Paths

Among the many forms of psychological violence, gaslighting is a particularly insidious manipulative behaviour that includes acts aimed at controlling and altering one’s own partner’s sensations, thoughts, actions, affective state, self-perception, and reality-testing. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between the experience of gaslighting and dysfunctional aspects of the partner’s personality. Gaslighter personality facets were assessed using the Personality Inventory for DSM-5–Informant Form–Adult (PID-5-IRF), while gaslighting behaviours were assessed using a 25-item questionnaire, based on the three categories of glamour, good-guy, and intimidator (Stern, 2007). The sample was made up of a group of 177 Italian emerging adults aged between 19 and 26 (49.2% male, 50.8% female; M = 21.88, SD = 1.75), enrolled at University, who participated voluntarily in the research. In fact, none of them received any form of direct or indirect incentive. In our study, we applied a beta regression model mapping the Likert scale into the open interval (0,1). The main results show (a) good-guy gaslighting is positively associated with manipulativeness and negatively associated with deceitfulness; (b) glamour gaslighting has a negative association with separation insecurity and manipulativeness, but it is positively associated with irresponsibility; (c) intimidator gaslighting has a positive association with separation insecurity and distractibility and a negative association with eccentricity and perceptual dysregulation; (d) all three gaslighting categories are negatively associated with anhedonia and impulsivity. Based on what emerged from the data, aspects such as separation insecurity, irresponsibility, and distractibility can be seen as serious risk factors for gaslighting. For this reason, with regard to clinical implications, an early recognition of dysfunctional traits in potential abusers should be fostered in order to protect both potential abusers and their partner from aggressive conduct within an intimate relationship

Nanofluids Application as Nanolubricants in Heat Pumps Systems

In the last years, various applications have been proposed for nanofluids in the Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration (HVACR) field; their use as primary and secondary fluids, also as lubricants, was kept into account to improve the systems performance. The present work was developed to test the applicability of nanofluids as lubricants in the compressors of the heat pump systems, with the purpose to experimentally detect the possible positive effects of nanolubricants. Several nanolubricants, formed by Polyolester (POE) or mineral oil, as base fluid, and titanium oxide (TiO2) or single wall carbon nano-horns (SWCNH), as nanoparticles, were studied in a dedicated test rig. In contrast with the published literature, no improvement was detected using nanofluids instead of commercial oil. All results will be deeply discussed in the paper

Washing and drying innovative systems for household appliances

As the market penetration of household appliances increases, higher energy efficiency and lower environmental impact are asked for; regulations are in fact encouraging the development of more efficient systems and manufacturers are interested in new technologies in an energy saving and low environmental impact perspective in order to increase their market share. In particular, the present work was focused on household washing and drying system; their market has in fact increased in the past few years and is expected to grow up more in the next years. Several innovative solutions were proposed, studied, experimentally tested and analysed in order to achieve higher energy savings and lower environmental impact. Efforts were done to improve already existing solutions; moreover, alternative technologies and future research perspectives were also analysed.Negli ultimi anni è stata osservata una forte crescita del tasso di penetrazione di elettrodomestici nel mercato; conseguentemente si cerca di puntare a una maggiore efficienza energetica e un minor impatto ambientale. Le nuove normative europee vogliono infatti favorire lo sviluppo di sistemi più efficienti e le aziende del settore sono conseguentemente interessate a nuove tecnologie per raggiungere un risparmio energetico maggiore e minimizzare l’impatto ambientale dei propri prodotti al fine di far presa sui clienti e aumentare la loro quota di mercato. In particolare, il presente lavoro si concentra su sistemi domestici di lavaggio e asciugatura; il loro mercato è infatti aumentato negli ultimi anni e si prevede che crescerà ancora nei prossimi anni. Diverse soluzioni innovative sono state proposte e analizzate teoricamente e sperimentalmente per conseguire un maggiore risparmio energetico e minor impatto ambientale

Experimental Analysis of Hydrocarbons as Drop-in Replacement in Household Heat Pump Tumble Dryers

AbstractMainly HFCs are nowadays used as refrigerants in commercial household heat pump tumble dryers; it is however crucial to look for long-term alternatives with low environmental impact. Hydrocarbons are considered a suitable alternative for this application. According to their characteristics and based on theoretical analysis, R290 and R441A were selected as substitutes of R407C in a commercial unit. While maintaining exactly the same components, the compressor was changed to comply with the required heating capacity and the expansion device was modulated to meet proper working conditions. Experimental results confirmed that R290 meets the reference energy performances; at the specific conditions, R441A underperforms R407C, due to increased compressor consumption. Technological focus on components is therefore important when refrigerant replacement takes place