Development and Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Non‐Violent and Violent Offending Behavior Scale (NVOBS)

both male and female participants in general (non‐forensic) samples. Potential items were selected from existing measures. A sample of 653 British university students completed all items, and their responses were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis and validated with confirmatory factor analysis. There were five separate factors (general violence, drug‐related offenses, partner violence, theft, and criminal damage), which were confirmed with acceptable fit indices. The five‐factor model applied to both males and females. Each subscale demonstrated good internal consistency, with alphas for each factor ranging from moderate to good. This new measure is a potentially valuable research tool for investigating people’s involvement in violent and non‐violent offending. The importance of examining the psychometric properties of scales, and confirming the category groupings using CFA of the items is outlined

Testosterone and aggression

In this chapter we have shown that the role of testosterone in modulation of aggression and related behavior is more complex than the simple cause and effect model originally derived from selective animal studies. A broader evolutionarily-based theory (the “Challenge Hypothesis”) provided the basis for considering research that now dates back over 40 years, ranging from the initial correlational studies, to recent studies that involve sophisticated manipulation of testosterone levels, laboratory procedures rooted in experimental social psychology, and brain imaging. Taken together the emerging evidence shows that competitive behavior influences testosterone levels, which in turn influence aggressive behavior, in a complex way that is moderated by individual differences in personality

Biomimetic direction of arrival estimation for resolving front-back confusions in hearing aids

Sound sources at the same angle in front or behind a two-microphone array (e.g., bilateral hearing aids) produce the same time delay and two estimates for the direction of arrival: A front-back confusion. The auditory system can resolve this issue using head movements. To resolve front-back confusion for hearing-aid algorithms, head movement was measured using an inertial sensor. Successive time-delay estimates between the microphones are shifted clockwise and counterclockwise by the head movement between estimates and aggregated in two histograms. The histogram with the largest peak after multiple estimates predicted the correct hemifield for the source, eliminating the front-back confusions

Genes of the serotonergic and dopaminergic pathways and their interaction affect the expression of Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms in Dementia (BPSD).

Although there is evidence for the involvement of genes of serotonergic and dopaminergic systems in the manifestation of the Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms in Dementia (BPSD), genetic association studies are contradictory. We used 1008 probable AD patients from the UK and applied a Multiple Indicators Multiple Causes (MIMIC) approach to investigate the effect of 11 polymorphisms in the serotonergic and dopaminergic systems, on four behavioural sub-phenotypes, namely "psychosis"," moods", "agitation" and "behavioural dyscontrol", as well as on 12 NPI items. Significant findings included the association of DRD1 A48G with "psychosis" (p=0.037), the association of DAT1 VNTR with "agitation" (p=0.006) and the association of DRD4 with "moods" sub-phenotype (p=0.008). In addition, associations were identified between DRD1 A48G and DAT1 VNTR with aberrant motor behaviour (AMB) symptoms (p=0.001 and p=0.015 respectively), between DRD4 and sleep disturbances (p=0.018) and between 5HTTLPR and apathy (p=0.033). Finally, significant interactions were observed between COMT Val158Met and 5HTTLPR with "psychosis" (p=0.026), between HTTLPR and STin2 with "psychosis" (p=0.005), between DAT1 3'UTR VNTR and COMT Val158Met with "agitation" (p=0.0001) and between DAT1 3'UTR VNTR and 5HTTLPR with the "moods" factor (p=0.0027). The complexity of the interrelations between genetic variation, behavioural symptoms and clinical variables was efficiently captured by this MIMIC model

Palaeoecology of Oligo-Miocene macropodoids determined from craniodental and calcaneal data

Analyses of craniodental and calcaneal material of extant macropodoids show that both dietary and locomotor types are statistically distinguishable. Application of the craniodental data to fossil macropodoids from the Oligo-Miocene of South Australia (Lake Eyre Basin) and Queensland (Riversleigh World Heritage Area) shows that these taxa were primarily omnivores or browsers. Specialized folivorous browsers were more prevalent in the Queensland deposits than in those of South Australia, suggesting more mesic conditions in the former. The calcaneal data showed that the Oligo-Miocene taxa clustered with extant generalized hoppers, in contrast to prior speculation that balbarids were quadrupedal rather than bipedal