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Headlines decried the fragility of American democracy during the 2020 elections, but extensive institutional structures steered officials in both political parties to certify the results of the election, and independent judges have validated their decisions. Political battles over election laws and procedures are not themselves signs of democracy’s demise, because legal and administrative guardrails contain the degree to which voting rights are threatened. These formidable institutional structures blunted former president Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election and limited the scope and impact of new state legislation to restrict access to voting. The guardrails of elections operated as designed, but Trump’s unfounded charges of fraud coupled with state restrictions are corroding the credibility and fairness of elections. We examine the scope and function of election law and administration to understand how they protected American democracy in the contentious 2020 election.

Blood monocytes/macrophages infiltrate the brain after ischemic stroke and critically influence brain injury and regeneration. We investigated stroke-induced transcriptomic changes of monocytes/macrophages by RNA sequencing profiling, using a mouse model of permanent focal cerebral ischemia. Compared to non-ischemic conditions, brain ischemia induced only moderate genomic changes in blood monocytes, but triggered robust genomic reprogramming in monocytes/macrophages invading the brain. Surprisingly, functional enrichment analysis of the transcriptome of brain macrophages revealed significant overrepresentation of biological processes linked to neurovascular remodeling, such as angiogenesis and axonal regeneration, as early as five days after stroke, suggesting a previously underappreciated role for macrophages in initiating post-stroke brain repair. Upstream Regulator analysis predicted peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) as a master regulator driving the transcriptional reprogramming in post-stroke brain macrophages. Importantly, myeloid cell-specific PPARγ knockout (mKO) mice demonstrated lower post-stroke angiogenesis and neurogenesis than wild-type mice, which correlated significantly with the exacerbation of post-stroke neurological deficits in mKO mice. Collectively, our findings reveal a novel repair-enhancing transcriptome in brain macrophages during post-stroke neurovascular remodeling. As a master switch controlling genomic reprogramming, PPARγ is a rational therapeutic target for promoting and maintaining beneficial macrophage functions, facilitating neurorestoration, and improving long-term functional recovery after ischemic stroke.

The purpose of this study was to describe the current state of psychological wellbeing in gifted and nongifted undergraduate student sample populations and identify undergraduate populations experiencing heightened levels of distress within a large Midwestern public university. Study participants included 641 honors and 386 nonhonors undergraduate students. Each participant completed an electronic survey including a series of 10 measures of psychological adjustment to assess student psychological wellbeing. Significant differences between honors and nonhonors student sample populations were identified. Findings also suggest sophomore students share unique characteristics that may be responsible for lower levels of psychological wellbeing. Potential services that may improve the university undergraduate experience are discussed.

Older employees are increasingly accepting bridge employment, which occurs when older workers take employment for pay after they retire from their main career. This study examined predictors of workers’ decisions to engage in bridge employment versus full retirement and career employment. A national sample of 482 older people in the United States was surveyed regarding various work-related and nonwork related predictors of retirement decisions, and their retirement status was measured 5 years later. In bivariate analyses, both work-related variables (career goal achievement and experienced pressure to retire) and nonwork-related variables (psychological distress and traditional gender role orientation) predicted taking bridge employment, but in multinomial logistic regression, only nonwork variables had unique effects. Few predictors differentiated the bridge employed and fully retired groups. Nonwork variables were salient in making the decision to retire, and bridge employment may be conceptually more similar to full retirement than to career employment.

Exercise-related cognitive errors reflect biased processing of exercise-relevant information. The purpose of this study was to examine whether differences existed between individuals reporting low and high exercise-related cognitive errors on information processed about a relevant exercise decision-making situation. In all, 138 adults completed an online questionnaire. The high exercise-related cognitive error group primarily focused on negative content about the situation compared to the low exercise-related cognitive error group who focused on both positive and negative content. The high exercise-related cognitive error group displayed biased processing of exercise information, as suggested by the cognitive errors model. Future research should examine whether biasing information processing caused by exercise-related cognitive errors can be modified and attenuated.

Background Gallium has demonstrated strong anti-inflammatory activity in numerous animal studies, and has also demonstrated direct antiviral activity against the influenza A H1N1 virus and the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Gallium maltolate (GaM), a small metal-organic coordination complex, has been tested in several Phase 1 clinical trials, in which no dose-limiting or other serious toxicity was reported, even at high daily oral doses for several months at a time. For these reasons, GaM may be considered a potential candidate to treat coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus and can result in severe, sometimes lethal, inflammatory reactions. In this study, we assessed the ability of GaM to inhibit the replication of SARS-CoV-2 in a culture of Vero E6 cells. Methods The efficacy of GaM in inhibiting the replication of SARS-CoV-2 was determined in a screening assay using cultured Vero E6 cells. The cytotoxicity of GaM in uninfected cells was determined using the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) colorimetric assay. Results The results showed that GaM inhibits viral replication in a dose-dependent manner, with the concentration that inhibits replication by 50% (EC50) being about 14 µM. No cytotoxicity was observed at concentrations up to at least 200 µM. Conclusion The in vitro activity of GaM against SARS-CoV-2, together with GaM’s known anti-inflammatory activity, provide justification for testing GaM in COVID-19 patients.

Working mothers are less physically active than working women without children and mothers who do not work. The purpose of this study was to examine concurrent self-regulatory efficacy and barriers to physical activity in a sample of working mothers. Women completed a mixed-methods survey which included measures of physical activity, concurrent self-regulatory efficacy, and barriers. Sufficiently active women experienced significantly greater concurrent self-regulatory efficacy and significantly less barrier limitation and frequency. No significant group differences were found for age, domestic duties performed, and children’s extracurricular activities. Thematic analysis of barriers revealed six themes of common and unique factors, including limited time and family activities.

The constitutive and operational definitions of group cohesion have varied across various disciplines in group dynamics. Recently, it has been suggested that a conceptualization of cohesion proposed by Carron, Widmeyer, and Brawley could have broad research applicability for different types of groups. However, results from a few studies have raised questions about the validity of this suggestion. One reason that these studies did not support the suggestion is that they failed to take into account the varied nature of groups and group cohesiveness. To clarify issues associated with measuring cohesion and testing various research questions, this article provides a general definition of cohesiveness, a discussion of the theoretical implications of that definition, and some suggestions for the conditions and procedures necessary to examine the structure of group cohesion in a variety of group contexts.

Using the criteria established by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the assessment procedures for establishing an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in a previously undiagnosed adjudicated group is detailed. We examined 37 male adolescents adjudicated delinquent for sexual offenses who were sentenced to treatment. Ultimately, 22 (60%) were found to meet the diagnostic criteria for an ASD. All had intelligence quotients in the average range. For the offenders with ASD, we recommend modifying traditional treatment protocols (i.e., relying on individual and group talk therapy) to match their learning styles (e.g., visual learning, modeling with practice, and feedback) and restricting contact with neurotypical sexual offenders to improve therapeutic outcomes. Deterrent programming aimed at bridging the gap between social deficits, Theory of Mind deficits, and sexual knowledge acquisition is discussed.

To test for group differences in growth trajectories in mixed (fixed and random effects) models, researchers frequently interpret the coefficient of Group-by-Time product terms. While this practice is straightforward in linear mixed models, it is less so in generalized linear mixed models. Using both an empirical example and synthetic data, we show that the coefficient of Group-by-Time product terms in a specific class of mixed models—mixed Poisson models for count outcome variables—estimates the group difference in slope as the multiplicative change with respect to the baseline rates, not differences in the predicted rate of change between groups. The latter can be obtained from computing the marginal effect for the expected response with respect to time by group following model estimation. We propose and illustrate the use of marginal effects to test and interpret group differences in rate of change over time following estimation with mixed Poisson regression models.

Although therapeutic recreation (TR) services are provided in many different health and human service sectors, TR struggles with gaining acceptance by other human service fields, demonstrating efficacy of services, and inclusion in various disability policies, specifically within special education. There are many explanations for the underrepresentation such as poor advocacy for TR services, lack of specification in educational policy, and unresolved philosophical differences in the profession. This article provides an overview of the TR profession, the policies that enable the use of TR services, and how TR services can contribute to the educational outcomes of students with disabilities. Recommendations for improving the representation of TR services within special education services are also discussed.

Self-regulatory efficacy (SRE) should influence persistence towards goals. Mothers attempting to exercise while managing work and young children (N = 49, Mage = 35.69, Mchildren = 1.88) were stratified into high or low concurrent SRE groups, then randomized to read a hypothetical scenario detailing numerous or minimal exercise barrier conditions. Consistent with self-efficacy theory, when exercise barriers were numerous, mothers with higher concurrent SRE demonstrated greater persistence towards exercise goals, and perceived concurrent management of exercise with their other valued goals as more positively challenging, than mothers with lower concurrent SRE.

Objective: To investigate social-cognitive and exercise differences in individuals who think positively or negatively about upcoming exercise while engaged in programs of maintenance exercise therapy for cardiovascular disease and other chronic health conditions. Method and Results: Participants ( n = 40) completed measures relative to exercise adherence. MANOVA revealed positive thinkers were significantly higher in exercise frequency, self-regulatory efficacy, positive affect, willingness to adapt and lower in decisional struggle than negative thinkers. Conclusions: Thoughts about exercise therapy are related to social cognitions crucial to motivating self-regulatory actions influencing exercise. Negative thoughts may suggest less ability to adapt to maintenance exercise challenges.

A 43-year-old bodybuilder with a history of anabolic steroid abuse was admitted having been found unresponsive. Examination revealed antecubital fossae contusions but was otherwise unremarkable, as were all initial investigations. Deteriorating Glasgow Coma Score necessitated tracheal intubation. Early attempts at weaning from mechanical ventilation coincided with marked haemodynamic instability and decerebrate posturing to pain with upgoing plantar responses. The patient subsequently became almost completely areflexic, although corneal reflexes were preserved and spontaneous breathing remained. An electroencephalogram showed evidence of a non-specific toxic or metabolic encephalopathy, despite a negative toxicology screen and consistently normal imaging. In the following weeks, a gradual spontaneous improvement occurred. Fourteen weeks after admission, the patient walked out of hospital having made an almost complete recovery. Possible causative factors are discussed, as well as the complications and challenges of managing bodybuilders abusing anabolic agents. These patients require both vigilance and an open mind, as the potential for complications is varied and potentially multi-systemic.

Current methods used in the analysis and interpretation of behavioral data tend to ignore a potentially important explanatory component. That component is the joint variance shared between predictors in explaining variance in the outcome variable. The authors provide an example of joint variance and how it could be interpreted. The authors believe ignoring this component has inhibited development of explanatory theories. The authors discuss a method developed by Mood for calculating joint explanatory variance. This method was initially developed to better interpret the unique effects of predictors on a criterion but can also be used to gain a better understanding of joint effects as well. They reanalyze published data to demonstrate the contribution of this approach in analyzing and interpreting behavioral data. They also provide a method for calculating the significance of joint variance components.

Frédéric Beigbeder’s Windows on the World uses the fictional conceit of a narrator telling events post mortem in order to describe what happened on 11 September 2001. In doing so, he approaches the events using what is culturally known, and attempts to develop a new episteme for these events by means of the known, in distinction to those who might penetrate the Lacanian Real and those recounting the events from an apocalyptic point of view.

In a time characterized by wars, students and employees being shot at their desks, and corporate executives raiding pension funds, aggression has taken on considerable prominence in our society. Aggressive people capture our interest because they are the ones who desire to harm others. Considerable progress has been made in recent years in understanding the aggressive personality. Psychology now has a much better idea of the defensive cognitive processes that aggressive people use to create a false sense of rationality for their aggressive acts. This knowledge of defensive processes was used to design a new measurement system to identify aggressive individuals. The new measurement system is based on a “cover” task in the form of an inductive reasoning problem. The use of reasoning to cover the measurement of aggression is made possible because aggressive people use the illusion of rational analyses to create defenses for their harming of others. The measurement system builds on this process by constructing answers to inductive reasoning problems that are grounded in the same defensive, self-illusionary thinking that aggressive people use to rationalize harming others. Aggressive people tend to be drawn to these answers (the answers in the previous sentence). This is because people who habitually engage in creating falsely rational defenses find reasoning based on the same types of protective thinking to be logically compelling.

This study examined Identity Theory hypotheses about identity—behaviour consistency. Exercise-identity strength and judgments about consistency were hypothesized to relate to perceptions of percent consistency and frequency of vigorous exercise. Identity strength and percent consistency were hypothesized to interact in their relationship with affective reactions to extent of consistency. Measures of exercise-identity strength, perceived consistency, exercise frequency, self-regulatory efficacy and consistency-related affect were completed by 528 exercisers. Exercise-identity strength and consistency judgments related to percent consistency and exercise frequency. Exercise-identity strength and percent consistency interacted in their relationship with consistency-related affect and also were related to self- regulatory efficacy.

Public recreation agencies are challenged to provide a broad range of programs and activities. The administrator plays a key role in decision making within the park and recreation agency. The purpose of this research is to determine how chief administrative officers of local public recreation agencies perceive their role relating to the administration and delivery of public recreation services. Results indicate two independent yet related administrative roles. As administrative roles are better understood, administrators will be more aware of their behavior and subsequently better equipped to address the demands and expectations of operating a recreation system.

The value of computed tomographic (CT) venography in combination with CT pulmonary angiography has been questioned because of the potential dangers of radiation. Accordingly, we retrospectively evaluated the diagnostic yield of 64-detector CT angiography with CT venography. Among patients who routinely underwent CT venography with CT angiography, the CT angiogram showed acute pulmonary embolism (PE) in 206 of 1903 patients (10.8%). A positive CT venogram in a patient with a negative CT angiogram was shown in 25 of 1903 patients (1.3%). Either the CT angiogram or the CT venogram showed venous thromboembolism in 231 of 1903 patients (12.1%). The proportion of patients with venous thromboembolism diagnosed only by a CT venogram was 25 of 231 (10.8%). In conclusion, the proportion of patients with venous thromboembolism diagnosed only by a CT venogram is sufficiently high to merit consideration of its use especially in those at high risk for DVT.

Identity and Self-efficacy Theories were used to examine the relationship between healthy-eater identity, self-efficacy for healthy eating and healthy eating. Measures of healthy-eater identity, perception of healthy eating, nutrition knowledge, self-efficacy for both intake of fruits and vegetables and foods of low nutritional value were completed by 101 university students and staff. Two weeks later, participants recalled recent consumption of (a) fruits and vegetables and (b) foods of low nutritional value. For both eating outcomes, healthy-eater identity was a significant predictor after controlling for nutrition knowledge. The addition of self-efficacy improved prediction in the case of both eating outcomes.

This article reports on a study of the responses of a second-grade class to the page breaks in contemporary picturebooks. In a picturebook, the text and accompanying illustrations are divided into a series of facing pages called openings, and the divisions between the openings are called page breaks or turns. Unlike a novel, in which the page breaks are arbitrary, a picturebook's page breaks have been carefully considered by authors, illustrators, editors, and designers, and thus possess complex semiotic significance. No research exists on children's interpretations of what might have happened from one opening to next, yet this activity is important because children must fill in the natural gaps created by the page breaks to make meaning and to construct a continuous narrative. During a series of readalouds of five picturebooks, the classroom teacher asked the students to speculate on what might have happened “between” the pages. Findings based on qualitative content analysis suggest that, with relatively little teacher direction, there were at least seven ways young children responded to the question of what happens in this liminal space: (1) speculating on actions the characters might have performed; (2) creating imaginary dialogue that might have occurred among characters; (3) creating possible thoughts and feelings of characters; (4) talking about likely changes of setting between page breaks; (5) speculating on the amount of time that might have elapsed between one page opening and the next; (6) hypothesizing about the changes in the reader's perspective from one opening to the next; and (7) observations about the change from one literary genre to another during the page breaks. Findings also suggest that children began to speculate on their own about page breaks, without the stimulus of the teacher's question. More research is clearly indicated in this area for various ages of children and books of differing literary genres in order to build on, refine, and extend our knowledge of the ways children interpret the “space between” the openings of picturebooks. Encouraging children to speculate about page breaks develops inference-making and positions them as co-authors, adding another element to their literary repertoires.

Teachers’ cheating on high-stakes standardized tests is a serious problem for public schools. This study examined the influence of school tenure and policy attitudes about standardized testing on teachers’ decisions to report a peer for violating testing protocol. In sum, 330 Texas school teachers responded to a survey that included a scenario depicting a teacher violating standardized testing protocol. Analysis of variance revealed that teachers with negative and moderate attitudes about standardized testing were less likely to report their peers than were those with positive attitudes about standardized testing. Implications of these findings include the important role that attitudes play in one's decision to report a peer for violating policy. The article concludes with limitations—which include the nonuse of random sampling and the reliance on a vignette rather than an actual situation—as well as directions for future research.

Based upon Identity and Social Cognitive theories, two studies examined reactions to challenges to exercise identity (Study 1) and healthy-eater identity (Study 2). For both studies, participants responded to a perceived challenge relative to the health behavior in terms of affect, intentions, self-regulatory efficacy and generated self-regulatory strategies. High identity participants in both studies showed the theory-based, hypothesized response pattern suggesting they were seeking identity-behavior congruency and this response pattern was stronger than exhibited by moderate identity individuals. Collectively, findings support the compatible use of Identity and Social Cognitive theories in studying identity and suggest that identities may be important in understanding health behavior regulation.

The granting of clinical staff privileges to physicians is a primary mechanism used by institutions to uphold the quality of care. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations requires that the granting of continuing medical staff privileges be based on assessments of applicants against professional criteria specified in the medical staff bylaws. Physicians themselves are thus charged with identifying the criteria that constitute professional competence and with evaluating their peers accordingly. Yet, the process of evaluating physicians' knowledge and competence is often constrained by the evaluator's own knowledge and ability to elicit the appropriate information, problems compounded by the growing number of highly specialized procedures for which privileges are requested.The American College of Cardiology Foundation (ACCF)/American Heart Association (AHA)/American College of Physicians (ACP) Task Force on Clinical Competence and Training was formed in 1998 to develop recommendations for attaining and maintaining the cognitive and technical skills necessary for the competent performance of a specific cardiovascular service, procedure, or technology. These documents are evidence-based, and where evidence is not available, expert opinion is utilized to formulate recommendations. Indications and contraindications for specific services or procedures are not included in the scope of these documents. Recommendations are intended to assist those who must judge the competence of cardiovascular health care providers entering practice for the first time and/or those who are in practice and are undergoing periodic review of their practice expertise. The assessment of competence is complex and multidimensional; therefore, isolated recommendations contained herein may not necessarily be sufficient or appropriate for judging overall competence. The current document addresses competence in vascular imaging for computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) and is authored by representatives of the ACCF, the AHA, the Society of Atherosclerosis Imaging and Prevention (SAIP), the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI), the Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography (SCCT), the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (SCMR), and the Society for Vascular Medicine and Biology (SVMB).The ACCF/AHA/ACP Task Force makes every effort to avoid any actual or potential conflicts of interest that might arise as a result of an outside relationship or a personal interest of a member of the ACCF/AHA/ACP Writing Committee. Specifically, all members of the Writing Committee are asked to provide disclosure statements of all such relationships that might be perceived as real or potential conflicts of interest relevant to the document topic. These are reviewed by the Writing Committee and updated as changes occur. The relationships with industry information for authors and peer reviewers are published in the appendices of the document.

The effects of list-method directed forgetting on recognition memory were explored. In Experiment 1 ( N = 40), observers were instructed to remember words and their type-cases; in Experiment 2 ( N = 80), the instruction was to remember words and their colours. Two lists of 10 words were presented; after the first list, half of the observers ( forget) were instructed to forget that list, and the other half ( remember) were not given the forget instruction. Recognition of items (words) as well as source (encoding list + case/colour) was measured for forget and remember observers. The forget instruction affected case/colour memory more consistently than item and list memory; a multinomial analysis indicated that source information was affected by the forget instructions. The results indicated that recognition of source information may be a more sensitive indicator of forgetting than recognition of items.

Literature suggests that the antecedents of complaining involve more than dissatisfaction alone; several other factors affect consumers' propensity to complain. This study examined the effects of personality and behavioral factors on consumers' propensity to complain. Findings suggest that consumers' locus of control and their price consciousness have a significant impact on their propensity to complain. Theoretical and managerial implications of these findings are discussed in detail.

A commentary on mediation is presented. The commentary begins with a brief history of the author's interest in mediation. This is followed by some ideas about why there continues to be interest among organizational researchers in mediation. Last, comments are offered on the articles that are the center of attraction.

We examined the influence of proxy-assistance on exercisers' social cognitions and behavior. Fifty-six fitness class participants reported preference for proxy-assistance and reacted to exercising in different contexts. A 2 (proxy-led vs self-managed exercise context) by 2 (preferred assistance) MANOVA revealed significant assistance by context interactions for self-regulatory efficacy (SRE) and difficulty. Regarding self-managed exercise, high-assistance individuals expressed lower SRE and higher difficulty. Chi-square analysis revealed that significantly fewer high-assistance participants chose self-managed exercise. A one-way MANOVA on preferred assistance indicated that high-assistance participants were less confident, satisfied and perceived their self-managed exercise as more difficult. Results support Bandura's theorizing that use of a proxy can limit SRE of those preferring the proxy's control of their behavior.

The current article advocates integrating implicit and explicit social cognitions for enhanced personality assessment in organizational contexts (e.g., personnel selection settings). Several methods for measuring implicit cognitions are reviewed, and their strengths and limitations are discussed. The most widely used method for measuring explicit cognitions, the self-report questionnaire, also is described along with its strengths and limitations. Implicit and explicit cognitions then are integrated to form a general model of personality prototypes. The authors describe several mechanisms by which implicit and explicit cognitions may operate (e.g., coact, interact) to predict criteria, depending on the nature of the personality construct assessed and the outcome of interest. These different operations implicate different statistical methodologies. The authors then present specific examples of this integrative procedure for enhancing personality assessment using the construct of achievement motivation. They conclude by discussing how future research could extend and apply this general framework for use with other personality constructs.