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Assertiveness is a background trait related to the temperament of an individual, thus influencing several aspects of everyday life. Research indicates that both under- and over-assertive behavior may have a negative impact on one's life, whereas the central position, positive assertiveness, seems to be most advantageous. This study utilized the 30-item PASS scale to observe differences in levels of positive assertiveness between students (high school, college, and university) and incarcerated individuals. As hypothesized, the three student groups scored significantly higher on positive assertiveness than the incarcerated group. A discriminant function analysis revealed that PASS could separate the incarcerated group from the student group using the factor scores from the five-factor model with 95.7% accuracy.

The notion of socialization being a relevant and multidimensional construct has been demonstrated by the literature and reinforced in the present study. Socialization can be a difficult process, especially for certain types of people due to their personality and life experiences. Based on inmate research, being negatively labeled by others and internalizing such labels can result in feelings of dissonance in addition to socialization problems. The current study used the 24-item SOC scale to analyze differences in socialization difficulty among four specific groups of participants: the incarcerated, high school, college, and university students. The SOC scale was deemed reliable after yielding a Cronbach's Alpha of 0.831, while the multifaceted nature of socialization difficulty was made clear after conducting a factor analysis that yielded six factors accounting for 49.449% of the variance in the data. As hypothesized, it was found that the incarcerated group had significantly greater socialization difficulty than the three student groups.

There are numerous styles of coping and, according to research, each person employs a different strategy to cope with his or her stress. The purpose of the present study was to analyze the differences in coping behaviors among incarcerated individuals, high school, college, and university students using the COPE scale. Upon conducting a factor analysis, five factors were extracted and their factor scores were used in further discriminant analyses. The analysis of variance results revealed that the incarcerated group scored significantly lower on coping than the student groups, while males and females obtained significantly different scores on the factors of COPE. In addition, the discriminant function analysis differentiated between the incarcerated group and the student groups with 90.4% accuracy. Keywords: coping, incarcerated, stress, Coping is arguably one of the most central components of human experience. That is, every person experiences stressful circumstances, some that are perhaps within one's control and some that are [...]

The conventional dichotomization of sex and gender into male and female has been found to be far from adequate in representing the amount of variance that exists within each biological sex. Expressions of gender and sexuality have gone beyond our imagination as more and more countries are beginning to allow a nonbinary/intersexed option on their passports and birth certificates. This study views both sex and gender not as having distinct entities but as entities that lie on a continuum from most masculine to most feminine. A 6-item 11-point Anima-Animus Continuum Scale was constructed to measure 245 participants' rating of another individual to whom they were very close. This factor-analyzed unidimensional scale which could account for 86% of the variance in the data boasts an internal consistency reliability of 0.964. The study concludes that both gender and sex, which have long been dichotomized, do vary along a continuum. For now, bringing to the fore the concept of a third biological sex seems the most sensible thing to do through official recognition as well as through education. This is a step in the right direction in the study and understanding of who we are.

With the intent of amending the 21-item BDI-II to improve its reliability and validity when administering the scale to nonclinical populations, a survey package consisting of 19 positive items with semantically reflected response options to mirror the negative scenario options in the original BDI-II (excluding items 16 and 18) was created. These 19 items containing BDI-II's reflected response options was administered along side the BDI-II, creating a 40-item package. Factor analyses were performed on the two instruments separately to determine their properties in isolation, and then, considered jointly as a statistically bipolar instrument. Results indicated that nonclinical participants (such as students) endorsed the positively-graded items more frequently than the negative statements in the BDI-II. It was also discovered within the conjoint bipolar scale that a strong underlying factor was highly influential in the composite score, and that this score had a unique property of being normally distributed. It was concluded that these 19 reflected items would be instrumental in reliably placing both clinical and nonclinical populations along the depression-elation continuum when adjunct to the BDI-II.

We present the case of a 99-year-old Caucasian female who was referred for treatment of a painless, 8.0 cm × 7.8 cm exophytic, pedunculated, ulcerated tumor of the left medial canthus. Pathology showed spindled, oval, and polygonal cells with pleomorphic nuclei. Many multinuclear giant cells and mitotic figures were also noted. The tumor was highlighted with CD10, showed focal positivity with actin, desmin, and CD68, and had increased Ki67 immunohistochemical staining. The tumor was negative for pancytokeratin, CK5/6, p63, MART-1/MelanA, S100, Sox10, p40, CD34, and CD23. Based on clinicopathologic correlation, the diagnosis of pleomorphic dermal sarcoma (PDS) was made. Pleomorphic dermal sarcoma (PDS) refers to a deep, histologically high-grade tumor that often resembles other tumors clinically and histologically. As PDS is frequently aggressive and related to adverse outcomes, it is important to recognize its distinguishing features in comparison to other similar entities, including atypical fibroxanthoma (AFX) and pleomorphic leiomyosarcoma (PLMS). To our knowledge, there is only one other reported case in the literature of PDS occurring on the eye. By reviewing and understanding characteristic etiologies, locations of presentation, histopathological features, and management techniques, pathologists can make a more accurate diagnosis and dermatologists can provide more effective patient care in a timely manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most stressful periods of life has been reported to be the time spent in the post secondary education system (Hales, 2009). As a result, researchers are interested in determining the various correlates associated with the successful coping during this time. It has been well established that self-esteem and self-worth are both factors that are correlated with subjective stress. Data collected from 3,018 university students resulted in a more comprehensive self-efficacy scale and a self-worth scale based on one's feelings about what life has brought and how it has impacted us. Four variables (physical health, mental health, stress, and satisfaction with life) were used to gauge the respondent's state of health and stress. This constituted the state scale. Results found that self-efficacy and self-worth are highly correlated at 0.9 and that both of them together could account for 21% of the variance in the state factor.

It is well established in the literature that the years spent in university or college are deemed to be one of the most stressful periods of life (Hales, 2009). As a result, researchers are striving to create inventories to measure stress, isolate the determinants of stress and the psychological and health outcomes. The purpose of the present study was to not only develop a scale which identified those domains which appear to be the sources of stress for college students but also to determine the consequences or outcomes of the experienced stress. The data collected from approximately 1,200 college and university students yielded very interesting results in the form of a two-factor Student Stressors and Emotional Distress Scale (SSEDS) which identified (a) sources of student stress and, (b) outcomes of student stress in the form of emotional disturbances. As with previous studies, the sources of stress include, finances, school, leisure activities, self-image, body image, family, friends, living arrangements and quality of sleep. Emotional outcomes included, tiredness, nervousness, hopelessness, sadness, depression, effort and worthlessness. The psychometric properties of the scale are examined.

While Taiwan developed due to progress toward free trade, slowing growth since the 1990s has revived protectionism as trade agreements falter worldwide. The present study contributes to the ongoing debate examining the short-run income redistribution due to unilateral free trade in an applied specific factors model with 77 industries. The simulations reveal considerable declines in the returns to capital in the import competing industries relative to other industries, a moderate wage increase, and a negligible impact on the price of natural resource inputs. The short-run adjustments to immigration and foreign direct investment are also examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In our day-to-day striving, dissonance litters obstacles along the path of personal development and these obstacles cause pain and hinder growth. An environment that is relatively free from dissonance should foster personal development and enhance growth. The Dissonance Test-Revised (DISS-R), a test derived from second force psychology, was administered to 820 incarcerated adults, high school, college and university students. The results indicated that the incarcerated scored significantly higher than the other three student groups in all of the eight part scores of the test. It is suggested that perhaps DISS-R could be used to identify problems associated with personal growth before they become manifest as something insurmountable. (Contains 2 figures, 1 footnote and 5 tables.)

A 25-item Likert-type survey constructed to measure teachers' attitudes toward mainstreaming was analyzed using item response theory (IRT) and confirmatory factor analysis with responses of 917 Canadian teachers. A three-factor model fit the data well. Both factor scores and IRT scores can be used in discriminant analyses. (SLD)