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This study examined if anxiety mediates the relationship between job insecurity and job dissatisfaction by using affective events theory. The moderating effect of psychological capital and perceive...

Effective strategies for the reuse and recycling of in-process prepreg waste are needed to reduce economic and environmental costs. In this paper, we investigate the compression molding of prepreg waste converted into scrap “chips” (or strands). Material is randomly distributed within a lab-scale closed mold and cured with control of temperature and pressure. Material properties and process parameters such as chip geometry, fiber bed reinforcement, resin state, and cure cycle are varied and shown to influence porosity and thickness. These experiments clarify the phenomena governing microstructural quality and identify manufacturing pathways for high-quality parts. In addition, mechanical properties are measured for laminates with high and low defect levels. The study demonstrates the viability of prepreg reuse. Furthermore, the resulting insights provide a basis for practical science-based optimization of the reuse of production prepreg waste.

Healthy sleep is an important factor in predicting longevity, physical health, as well as cognitive functioning. This study examined the psychosocial factors contributing to healthy sleep intention...

This cross-sectional study applied self-determination theory to understand the relationship between coaching behaviors, psychological need satisfaction, and intrinsic motivation among young Chinese athletes from 2 universities in Macao, China (N = 208). In the path model with the demographics adjusted, coaching behaviors (training instruction, democratic behaviors, autocratic behaviors, social support, and positive feedback) and need satisfaction (perceived autonomy, competence, and relatedness) explained 44% of the variance in intrinsic motivation. We also found indirect effects of some coaching behaviors on intrinsic motivation through satisfying the psychological needs. Furthermore, independent self-construal significantly moderated the relationship between perceived relatedness and intrinsic motivation.

Due to the lack of validated assessment tools for motives of non-suicidal self-injury behaviors in the Chinese contexts, this study aims to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Functional Assessment of Self-Mutilation (C-FASM). A total of 345 secondary school students (mean age = 11.41 years), who reported non-suicidal self-injury in the past year, voluntarily participated in the questionnaire survey. Confirmatory factor analysis results supported a second-order model of 4 motivational factors. The overall scale scores had significant correlations with depression, anxiety, impulsiveness, self-esteem, social support, and suicidal ideation. The internal consistency of the scale was also satisfactory. The C-FASM is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing non-suicidal self-injury among nonclinical Chinese adolescents.

The shortage of organs for transplantation in Japan has alerted health professionals to the low organ donation rate among Japanese people. The unique cultural view of death and altruism has been su...

The present study aims to evaluate and refine the Inventory of Gambling Motives, Attitudes and Behaviours (GMAB) specifically designed to assess gambling-related cognitions and behaviours of Chinese gamblers with a random sample of 697 Chinese adults in Macao who were interviewed by telephone. Confirmatory factor analysis generally replicated the basic factor structure of the three domains of GMAB although the removal of several items with low factor loading or cross-loading was suggested. Moreover, the findings supported the addition of another motivational subscale, socialization. The revised version has six subscales of motives (self-worth, monetary gains, sensation seeking, boredom alleviation, learning and socialization), four of attitudes (fate and luck, negative consequences of gambling, techniques and superstition), and five of behaviours (impaired control, gambling involvement, arousal reaction, superstitious behaviour and controlled gambling). The psychometric properties of the revised GMAB (GMA...

This study explored the meaning of sexuality for older Chinese people from diverse backgrounds and the role of traditional Chinese cultural values in shaping sexual expression. A total of 20 Hong Chinese elders were interviewed. Most reported a rigid definition of sexual behaviour, confining it to heterosexual sexual intercourse. Kissing, hugging and caressing were not considered 'sexual', and same-sex relationships were virtually absent from respondents' conceptions of sexuality. Traditional patriarchal values in relation to sexuality prevailed. Men and women attached different meanings to sexuality. Neither believed that sex was enjoyable for women or that women needed sex in the same way as men. Female participants saw sex as part of their responsibility to procreate and to fulfill their husband's needs. Male participants considered sex to be important for fulfilling their physical drives. The lack of an appropriate partner due to widowhood, the partner's physical condition or a poor spousal relationship apparently accounted for the low levels of sexual activity reported by informants.

A total of 979 Chinese college students were recruited in order to examine the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the South Oaks Gambling Screen (C-SOGS). The C-SOGS was internally consistent and correlated with gambling-related problems and negative mental health status. Results of likelihood ratios (LRs) and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve supported the C-SOGS as a valid screening instrument for probable pathological gambling. Using the DSM-IV criteria for pathological gambling, the conventional cut score of 5 on the C-SOGS showed satisfactory sensitivity, specificity and false negative rates. This cut score identified 85% of the true positives and 95% of the true negatives. In general, the C-SOGS overestimated the number of pathological gamblers relative to DSM-IV criteria. Future research on Chinese gambling should build on current empirical work on the SOGS to refine the C-SOGS for use with Chinese populations.

Chinese people are consistently reported to be less likely to commit to posthumous organ donation than the Westerners. This study aims at investigating how death anxiety may hinder them from expressing their willingness to donate organs. Among 290 Hong Kong Chinese adults (age plus or minus 25 years), a higher level of death anxiety was associated with a greater expectation of medical neglect and a lower level of self-efficacy. Moreover, a higher level of death anxiety was also correlated with a lower likelihood of donor card signing and discussion of organ donation. The results of regression analyses suggested a mediating role of self-efficacy on the relationship between death anxiety and these behaviors. That is, death anxiety, by lowering one's perceived self-efficacy, reduces his/her likelihood to sign the donor card or to tell his/her donation decision. Findings suggest that death education program should be included in promotion campaigns for Chinese adults.

Breeding programs can benefit from transfer of a foreign gene from one transgenic plant to commercial cultivars through continuous backcrossing, especially to cultivars in which it is difficult to transfer a foreign gene directly through biotechnology. In this study, two homogeneous transgenic plants, T-28 and T-64 (from Taipei 309), and one homogeneous transgenic plant, N-84 (from Nipponbare), were used as donors of Bar gene. Commercial cultivars, Cypress and Laffite, were used as the recurrent parents. Three to five backcrosses were made using the transgenic plants as donor parents and the commercial cultivars as recurrent parent. The results from selected progeny rows, and two-years of yield tests with selected lines, indicated that the target Bar gene could be transferred to lines from homozygous transformants in 2–3 years of backcrossing, giving lines similar to the recurrent parents in phenotype and yield potential.

This study aims to explore various psychosocial correlates associated with how Chinese react to death and dying. A total of 282 Chinese college students participated in this study. They completed the Death Anxiety Scale, the Revised Death Anxiety Scale, and the Multidimensional Fear of Death Scale, as well as measures on self-efficacy and health locus of control. Results showed that younger as compared with older participants and women as compared with men tended to be more death anxious. Those with low levels of self-efficacy and external health control orientations were more likely to report a high level of death anxiety. Only a weak association was found between internal health locus of control and fear of conscious death. Limitations of the study were also discussed.

Arc-ultrasonic welding technology is one approach for refining the grain structure in titanium alloy welds. This paper reports work in which welds were produced in an α-β titanium alloy under a variety of conditions, including conventional gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) and arc-ultrasonic GTAW. The results show that arc-ultrasonic energy refined β grain structure in the weld metal, and improved the fatigue life of weld joints. Ultrasonic energy enhances fluid flow, reduces temperature gradients, and causes a continual high frequency oscillation in the welding pool. These effects are believed to be responsible for refining the solidification structure and improving the performance of titanium weld joints.

A theoretical investigation of round premixed turbulent jet flames is described, limited to the thin laminar-flamelet regime at neutral preferential diffusion conditions. Flame surface properties were numerically simulated using a statistical time series simulation of unburned gas properties along the flame surface in conjunction with a two-dimensional flame advection and propagation algorithm. Predictions were evaluated using existing tomographic and Rayleigh scattering measurements of flame surface properties and mean unreactedness in round jet flames having burner exit Reynolds numbers in the range 7000-39 200 and turbulence intensities relative to the laminar flame speed in the range 0.4-2.5. Simulated flame properties duplicated measured trends of the variation of flame surface properties and mean unreactedness with distance from the burner exit and relative turbulence intensity. However, effects of turbulence were underestimated—particularly near the flame tip due to the limitations of a tw...

Measurements of mean and fluctuating reaction progress variable and streamwise velocities are reported for turbulent premixed hydrogen/air flames burning at relatively high Reynolds numbers (up to 1800. based on streamwise r.m.s. velocity fluctuations and integral length scales). A round-jet geometry was used with the flame surrounded by a hot combustion-gas environment at atmospheric pressure. Mixing-limited combustion was achieved: values of r.m.s. velocity fluctuations, normalized by the laminar burning velocity (u/SL), exceeded 15 in some instances. Test conditions included fuel-equivalence ratios of 0.3-3.6 and burner exit Reynolds numbers (based on exit diameter) of 7000-40000 with fully-developed turbulent pipe flow at the burner exit. It was found that effects of diffusive-thermal (preferential-diffusion) phenomena were important, for both stable (fuel-equivalence ratios greater than 1.8) and unstable conditions, even at the present high Reynolds numbers; for example, flame surfaces were ...

Infrared and Raman spectra of poly(vinylidene chloride) (PVDC) single crystals are presented. Additionally, we report infrared spectra of a quenched, largely amorphous, sample of PVDC. Our results question the interpretation of previous vibrational studies of PVDC which conclude that the crystalline polymer chain is in the TGTG′ conformation. Strong Raman lines at 688 and 161 cm−1 together with weaker lines at 3000, 345, and 143 cm−1 which are either absent or, at least, extremely weak in the infrared spectrum of the crystalline polymer suggest that a planar 21 helical conformation is more consistant with the vibrational data.