Integrating open- and closed-ended questions on attitudes towards outgroups with different methods of text analysis.

Researchers in behavioral sciences often use closed-ended questions, forcing participants to express even complex impressions or attitudes through a set of predetermined answers. Even if this has many advantages, people's opinions can be much richer. We argue for assessing them using different methods, including open-ended questions. Manual coding of open-ended answers requires much effort, but automated tools help to analyze them more easily. In order to investigate how attitudes towards outgroups can be assessed and analyzed with different methods, we carried out two representative surveys in Poland. We asked closed- and open-ended questions about what Poland should do regarding the influx of refugees. While the attitudes measured with closed-ended questions were rather negative, those that emerged from open-ended answers were not only richer, but also more positive. Many themes that emerged in the manual coding were also identified in automated text analyses with Meaning Extraction Helper (MEH). Using Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) and Sentiment Analyzer from the Common Language Resources and Technology Infrastructure (CLARIN), we compared the difference between the studies in the emotional tone of the answers. Our research confirms the high usefulness of open-ended questions in surveys and shows how methods of textual data analysis help in understanding people's attitudes towards outgroup members. Based on our methods comparison, researchers can choose a method or combine methods in a way that best fits their needs.

Assessment of Neurocognitive Functions, Olfaction, Taste, Mental, and Psychosocial Health in COVID-19 in Adults: Recommendations for Harmonization of Research and Implications for Clinical Practice.

OBJECTIVE: To propose a set of internationally harmonized procedures and methods for assessing neurocognitive functions, smell, taste, mental, and psychosocial health, and other factors in adults formally diagnosed with COVID-19 (confirmed as SARS-CoV-2 + WHO definition). METHODS: We formed an international and cross-disciplinary NeuroCOVID Neuropsychology Taskforce in April 2020. Seven criteria were used to guide the selection of the recommendations' methods and procedures: (i) Relevance to all COVID-19 illness stages and longitudinal study design; (ii) Standard, cross-culturally valid or widely available instruments; (iii) Coverage of both direct and indirect causes of COVID-19-associated neurological and psychiatric symptoms; (iv) Control of factors specifically pertinent to COVID-19 that may affect neuropsychological performance; (v) Flexibility of administration (telehealth, computerized, remote/online, face to face); (vi) Harmonization for facilitating international research; (vii) Ease of translation to clinical practice. RESULTS: The three proposed levels of harmonization include a screening strategy with telehealth option, a medium-size computerized assessment with an online/remote option, and a comprehensive evaluation with flexible administration. The context in which each harmonization level might be used is described. Issues of assessment timelines, guidance for home/remote assessment to support data fidelity and telehealth considerations, cross-cultural adequacy, norms, and impairment definitions are also described. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed recommendations provide rationale and methodological guidance for neuropsychological research studies and clinical assessment in adults with COVID-19. We expect that the use of the recommendations will facilitate data harmonization and global research. Research implementing the recommendations will be crucial to determine their acceptability, usability, and validity.

Social Perception of Non-Binary Individuals.

People can express their identity in different ways, one of which is through language. Non-binary individuals often speak in a gender-neutral way and use specific language forms. Language use not only reveals their identity but also can shape how others perceive them. The present study's purpose was to analyze how non-binary people are perceived through the language they use. The research was conducted in Polish, a language that is especially challenging for non-binary individuals because it has many gender markers. To avoid using gendered forms, they often use a specific form of passive voice. In an experiment, participants (N = 130, 102 women, 28 men) read a gendered (feminine or masculine) text and a gender-neutral text with passive voice. Most gave a masculine name to the person in the neutral text, but addressed them in a gender-neutral way when asked to react to them in presented scenarios. The gender-neutral text was evaluated as being less comprehensible than the gendered texts, and the non-binary person was rated less competent and colder than a man or a woman and was less socially accepted. Furthermore, the negative evaluation of non-binary people seemed to be attributable to unfamiliarity with gender-neutral language and its lower comprehensibility. More research is needed to understand these perceptions better and to be able to prevent their potential negative consequences.

Generalized anxiety and depressive symptoms in various age groups during the COVID-19 lockdown in Poland. Specific predictors and differences in symptoms severity.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies carried out in different countries have indicated that young adults experienced higher levels of emotional distress, in the form of depressive and anxiety symptoms, than older age groups during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, little is known about which pandemic-related difficulties and factors may contribute to these forms of emotional distress in various age groups. PURPOSE: The aim of the current study was to investigate: (i) differences in levels of depressive and generalized anxiety symptoms in four age groups in the Polish population during the COVID-19 lockdown; (ii) differences in perceived difficulties related to the pandemic in these groups; and (iii) which factors and difficulties related to the pandemic are the best predictors of generalized anxiety and depressive symptoms in various age groups during the COVID-19 lockdown. METHOD: A total of 1115 participants (aged 18-85) took part in the study. The sample was representative of the Polish population in terms of sex, age, and place of residence. Participants completed the following online: the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, a Scale of Perceived Health and Life Risk of COVID-19, a Social Support Scale, and a Scale of Pandemic-Related Difficulties. RESULTS: Younger age groups (18-29 and 30-44) experienced higher levels of depressive and generalized anxiety symptoms than older adults (45-59 and 60-85 years). Household relationship difficulties were among the most significant predictors of depressive and generalized anxiety symptoms in all age groups. Fear and uncertainty related to the spread of the virus was one of the most important predictors of emotional distress in all the groups apart from the adults between 18 and 29 years, whereas difficulties related to external restrictions were one of the most significant predictors of depressive and anxiety symptoms exclusively in the youngest group. CONCLUSIONS: The youngest adults and those experiencing difficulties in relationships among household members are the most vulnerable to depressive and generalized anxiety symptoms during the COVID-19 lockdown. It is important to plan preventive and therapeutic interventions to support these at-risk individuals in dealing with the various challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

[Utility of serum tryptase in Emergency Department patients with possible anaphylaxis].

Background Diagnosing anaphylaxis is often straightforward but can be challenging if the presentation is atypical. In patients with atypical symptoms suspected to be due to an acute allergic reaction, s-tryptase can give additional diagnostic information. Measuring s-tryptase is also helpful in diagnosing mastocytosis. Obtaining s-tryptase levels has been done in the emergency department (ED) at Landspitali since 2011. The aim of this study was to evaluate the benefit of obtaining s-tryptase levels in the ED. Methods With institutional review board approval, all cases where s-tryptase level was obtained in ED patients from 2011-2018 were retrospectively reviewed. A database was collected including information on patient demographics, presenting symptoms, treatment, diagnosis, s-tryptase level and follow up. Results A total of 214 patients had a s-tryptase level measured. Serum tryptase was elevated (>12 µg/L) in 36 cases. Females were 131 and average age 40.6 years. Of the patients, 86.4% had skin or mucosal symptoms, 48.1% cardiovascular symptoms, 49.5% respiratory symptoms and 36.0% had gastrointestinal symptoms. An allergist reviewed 126 returning patients and 65 were considered to have had an episode of anaphylaxis. Of those 65 were 4 patients which did not meet the diagnostic criteria for anaphylaxis but had raised s-tryptase levels. Sensitivity of s-tryptase measurement was 40.9% and specificity 97.1%. Conclusions Obtaining a s-tryptase level from ED patients with possible anaphylaxis seems to be useful in atypical cases. The measurement is specific but not sensitive. No cases of mastocytosis were identified in the patient cohort.

Catching up with wonderful women: The women-are-wonderful effect is smaller in more gender egalitarian societies.

Inequalities between men and women are common and well-documented. Objective indexes show that men are better positioned than women in societal hierarchies-there is no single country in the world without a gender gap. In contrast, researchers have found that the women-are-wonderful effect-that women are evaluated more positively than men overall-is also common. Cross-cultural studies on gender equality reveal that the more gender egalitarian the society is, the less prevalent explicit gender stereotypes are. Yet, because self-reported gender stereotypes may differ from implicit attitudes towards each gender, we reanalysed data collected across 44 cultures, and (a) confirmed that societal gender egalitarianism reduces the women-are-wonderful effect when it is measured more implicitly (i.e. rating the personality of men and women presented in images) and (b) documented that the social perception of men benefits more from gender egalitarianism than that of women.

Social dominance orientation, nonnative accents, and hiring recommendations.

OBJECTIVE: Discrimination against nonnative speakers is widespread and largely socially acceptable. Nonnative speakers are evaluated negatively because accent is a sign that they belong to an outgroup and because understanding their speech requires unusual effort from listeners. The present research investigated intergroup bias, based on stronger support for hierarchical relations between groups (social dominance orientation [SDO]), as a predictor of hiring recommendations of nonnative speakers. METHOD: In an online experiment using an adaptation of the thin-slices methodology, 65 U.S. adults (54% women; 80% White; Mage = 35.91, range = 18-67) heard a recording of a job applicant speaking with an Asian (Mandarin Chinese) or a Latino (Spanish) accent. Participants indicated how likely they would be to recommend hiring the speaker, answered questions about the text, and indicated how difficult it was to understand the applicant. RESULTS: Independent of objective comprehension, participants high in SDO reported that it was more difficult to understand a Latino speaker than an Asian speaker. SDO predicted hiring recommendations of the speakers, but this relationship was mediated by the perception that nonnative speakers were difficult to understand. This effect was stronger for speakers from lower status groups (Latinos relative to Asians) and was not related to objective comprehension. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest a cycle of prejudice toward nonnative speakers: Not only do perceptions of difficulty in understanding cause prejudice toward them, but also prejudice toward low-status groups can lead to perceived difficulty in understanding members of these groups. (PsycINFO Database Record

It is better to smile to women: gender modifies perception of honesty of smiling individuals across cultures.

Social perception studies have revealed that smiling individuals are perceived more favourably on many communion dimensions in comparison to nonsmiling individuals. Research on gender differences in smiling habits showed that women smile more than men. In our study, we investigated this phenomena further and hypothesised that women perceive smiling individuals as more honest than men. An experiment conducted in seven countries (China, Germany, Mexico, Norway, Poland, Republic of South Africa and USA) revealed that gender may influence the perception of honesty in smiling individuals. We compared ratings of honesty made by male and female participants who viewed photos of smiling and nonsmiling people. While men and women did not differ on ratings of honesty in nonsmiling individuals, women assessed smiling individuals as more honest than men did. We discuss these results from a social norms perspective.

Factors associated with prolonged COVID-related PTSD-like symptoms among adults diagnosed with mild COVID-19 in Poland.

COVID-19 has been considered a possible cause of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or similar conditions. However, what specific disease symptoms may contribute most to prolonged PTSD-like symptoms in COVID-19 survivors is unclear. The study aimed to present the factor structure of COVID-19 symptoms and identify which symptoms of COVID-19 best explain the subsequent presence of PTSD-like symptoms in mild COVID-19 survivors. COVID-positive adults (n = 341) completed online self-report scales at the baseline assessment (T1) and after approximately 4 months (T2), including The Patient Health Questionnaire Anxiety-Depression Scale; The Scale of Psychosocial Experience Related to COVID-19, The Primary Care PTSD Screen for DSM-5; and self-designed questionnaires evaluating the severity of COVID-related medical and neurocognitive symptoms and pre-pandemic variables. Exploratory factor analysis revealed five factors of COVID-19 symptoms: flu-like, respiratory, cold, neurological, and neurocognitive. Hierarchical logistic regression showed that besides selected control variables (anxiety and depression, presence of PTSD-like symptoms, COVID-related stigma in T1), neurocognitive symptoms of COVID-19 in T1 but not other symptoms of the disease were a significant predictor of the presence of PTSD-like symptom in T2. Findings suggest a need for a comprehensive neurocognitive assessment of people diagnosed with COVID-19 and prompt interventions targeting the prevention of potential risks for long-term PTSD-like states at the community level.

Factors associated with burnout in Polish healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has placed the healthcare system under substantial strain that has caused elevated psychological distress among healthcare workers (HCWs). Previous studies have found a high prevalence of burnout among HCWs exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and have delineated some associated factors, but further research is needed. Little is known, for example, whether the economic status of HCWs or experiencing negative and positive emotions contribute to burnout. The present study was meant to fill this gap. Methods: A total of 412 HCWs (i.e.: nurses - 47%, physicians-28%, psychologists-14%, and other healthcare professionals-11%), aged 21-69 years (M = 36.63; SD = 11.76) participated in a web-based cross-sectional study. Data was collected from June to November 2020. The participants filled out measures assessing two dimensions of burnout (Exhaustion and Disengagement), depression, generalized anxiety, positive and negative emotions, along with the survey evaluating organizational aspects of their work during the pandemic. Results: Burnout thresholds were met by 54 and 66% of respondents for Disengagement and Exhaustion, respectively, which is high but comparable to levels found in other countries during the pandemic. Similarly to previous work, depression and anxiety were high in HCWs, with 24 % of them being in the risk group for clinical severity of depression and 34% in the risk group for a clinical generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Regression analysis showed that the intensity of negative emotions was the strongest predictor of Exhaustion, whereas the intensity of positive emotions was the strongest predictor of Disengagement. Depression and GAD symptoms were positively related to Exhaustion, and economic status was inversely related to Disengagement. Discussion: These results suggest that distress in HCWs during the pandemic was related to symptoms of burnout, whereas higher income and experiencing positive emotions were associated with reduced burnout levels. Our findings call for the development of burnout intervention programs that could build capacities for dealing with depression and other negative emotions and at the same time teach skills on how to increase positive emotions in HCWs.

Risk of Developing Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in Severe COVID-19 Survivors, Their Families and Frontline Healthcare Workers: What Should Mental Health Specialists Prepare For?

Given the high mortality of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), having severe COVID-19 may be a life-threatening event, especially for individuals at high risk of complications. Therefore, in the article we try to answer two questions that are relevant to public mental health: Can we define groups who are at higher risk of developing pandemic-related PTSD? How can health specialists prepare for it? Given the results of previous research on PTSD in epidemic (e.g., SARS) survivors, we suggest that mental health professionals in countries touched by the pandemic should prepare for an increase in the PTSD prevalence, specifically in: individuals who have had severe COVID-19; family members of these patients and of patients who have died; and frontline healthcare workers witnessing COVID-19 patients' sudden deaths, or numerous life-threatening situations. We postulate that these groups at risk should be routinely screened for PTSD in primary medical and pediatric care. Mental health services should prepare for providing therapeutic interventions for individuals with PTSD in the vulnerable groups, and support to their families, especially children.

Neuropsychological disorders after COVID-19. Urgent need for research and clinical practice.

Purpose: Numerous studies suggest that infection with coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which causes acute respiratory distress syndrome and COVID-19 illness, can lead to changes in the central nervous system (CNS). Consequently, some individuals with SARS-CoV-2 infection may also present the symptoms of neuropsychological disorders. The goals of this literature review is the synthesis of various perspectives and up-to-date scientific knowledge as well as the formulation of initial recommendations for clinical practice. Views: According to current state of knowledge, numerous SARS-CoV-2 infection-specific and nonspecific risk factors exist for brain damage, which might lead to neuropsychological impairments in individuals who have recovered from COVID-19. The emerging evidence suggests significant behavioral and cognitive deficits in COVID-19 survivors, which are present in the early phase after recovery and persist for several months. Neuropsychological disturbances can potentially include a wide spectrum of disorders, yet deficits of attention, memory, executive functions, language and visuospatial orientation are among most commonly identified. The relationship between cognitive impairment, emotional disturbances and severity of COVID-19 symptoms needs to be submitted to further research. Conclusions: The scientific knowledge resulting from neuropsychological empirical studies during the COVID-19 pandemic allows for a postulate of an urgent evidence-based systematic neuropsychological research to be conducted among COVID-19 survivors. More than anything, the recovered individuals must be provided with adequate neuropsychological help in the form of neuropsychological diagnosis, monitoring and rehabilitation.

From discouragement to self-empowerment. Insights from an ethnolinguistic vitality survey among the Kashubs in Poland.

The paper relates the results of an ethnolinguistic vitality (ELV) survey among the Kashubs in Poland. The results reveal two interrelated layers of ELV: (1) an individual ELV reflected in language use and shaped by personal experience, emotions, and language proficiency; (2) a more collective ELV associated with the perception of the group's language strength, its status and utility. The most surprising predictor of linguistic praxis in our study, in addition to language skills, was the positive impact of experienced discouragement on language use. This remained significant when controlling for proficiency. We argue that the correlation between experiencing discouragement and increased language use is best explained by the self-empowerment of speakers who, earlier in their lives, met with negative attitudes toward their heritage language. Rather than succumbing to this discouragement and assimilating to the dominant language, their response was to develop an emotional link to Kashubian and increase their use of this minority language as a conscious act of self-determination and engagement.

Competent and Warm?

Most research on ethnicity has focused on visual cues. However, accents are strong social cues that can match or contradict visual cues. We examined understudied reactions to people whose one cue suggests one ethnicity, whereas the other cue contradicts it. In an experiment conducted in Germany, job candidates spoke with an accent either congruent or incongruent with their (German or Turkish) appearance. Based on ethnolinguistic identity theory, we predicted that accents would be strong cues for categorization and evaluation. Based on expectancy violations theory we expected that incongruent targets would be evaluated more extremely than congruent targets. Both predictions were confirmed: accents strongly influenced perceptions and Turkish-looking German-accented targets were perceived as most competent of all targets (and additionally most warm). The findings show that bringing together visual and auditory information yields a more complete picture of the processes underlying impression formation.

When appearance does not match accent: neural correlates of ethnicity-related expectancy violations.

Most research on ethnicity in neuroscience and social psychology has focused on visual cues. However, accents are central social markers of ethnicity and strongly influence evaluations of others. Here, we examine how varying auditory (vocal accent) and visual (facial appearance) information about others affects neural correlates of ethnicity-related expectancy violations. Participants listened to standard German and Turkish-accented speakers and were subsequently presented with faces whose ethnic appearance was either congruent or incongruent to these voices. We expected that incongruent targets (e.g. German accent/Turkish face) would be paralleled by a more negative N2 event-related brain potential (ERP) component. Results confirmed this, suggesting that incongruence was related to more effortful processing of both Turkish and German target faces. These targets were also subjectively judged as surprising. Additionally, varying lateralization of ERP responses for Turkish and German faces suggests that the underlying neural generators differ, potentially reflecting different emotional reactions to these targets. Behavioral responses showed an effect of violated expectations: German-accented Turkish-looking targets were evaluated as most competent of all targets. We suggest that bringing together neural and behavioral measures of expectancy violations, and using both visual and auditory information, yields a more complete picture of the processes underlying impression formation.

Corrigendum: Marital Satisfaction, Sex, Age, Marriage Duration, Religion, Number of Children, Economic Status, Education, and Collectivistic Values: Data from 33 Countries.

[This corrects the article on p. 1199 in vol. 8, PMID: 28785230.].

The Social Perception of Heroes and Murderers: Effects of Gender-Inclusive Language in Media Reports.

The way media depict women and men can reinforce or diminish gender stereotyping. Which part does language play in this context? Are roles perceived as more gender-balanced when feminine role nouns are used in addition to masculine ones? Research on gender-inclusive language shows that the use of feminine-masculine word pairs tends to increase the visibility of women in various social roles. For example, when speakers of German were asked to name their favorite "heroine or hero in a novel," they listed more female characters than when asked to name their favorite "hero in a novel." The research reported in this article examines how the use of gender-inclusive language in news reports affects readers' own usage of such forms as well as their mental representation of women and men in the respective roles. In the main experiment, German participants (N = 256) read short reports about heroes or murderers which contained either masculine generics or gender-inclusive forms (feminine-masculine word pairs). Gender-inclusive forms enhanced participants' own usage of gender-inclusive language and this resulted in more gender-balanced mental representations of these roles. Reading about "heroines and heroes" made participants assume a higher percentage of women among persons performing heroic acts than reading about "heroes" only, but there was no such effect for murderers. A post-test suggested that this might be due to a higher accessibility of female exemplars in the category heroes than in the category murderers. Importantly, the influence of gender-inclusive language on the perceived percentage of women in a role was mediated by speakers' own usage of inclusive forms. This suggests that people who encounter gender-inclusive forms and are given an opportunity to use them, use them more themselves and in turn have more gender-balanced mental representations of social roles.

Be Careful Where You Smile: Culture Shapes Judgments of Intelligence and Honesty of Smiling Individuals.

Smiling individuals are usually perceived more favorably than non-smiling ones-they are judged as happier, more attractive, competent, and friendly. These seemingly clear and obvious consequences of smiling are assumed to be culturally universal, however most of the psychological research is carried out in WEIRD societies (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic) and the influence of culture on social perception of nonverbal behavior is still understudied. Here we show that a smiling individual may be judged as less intelligent than the same non-smiling individual in cultures low on the GLOBE's uncertainty avoidance dimension. Furthermore, we show that corruption at the societal level may undermine the prosocial perception of smiling-in societies with high corruption indicators, trust toward smiling individuals is reduced. This research fosters understanding of the cultural framework surrounding nonverbal communication processes and reveals that in some cultures smiling may lead to negative attributions.

The Associations of Dyadic Coping and Relationship Satisfaction Vary between and within Nations: A 35-Nation Study.

OBJECTIVE: Theories about how couples help each other to cope with stress, such as the systemic transactional model of dyadic coping, suggest that the cultural context in which couples live influences how their coping behavior affects their relationship satisfaction. In contrast to the theoretical assumptions, a recent meta-analysis provides evidence that neither culture, nor gender, influences the association between dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction, at least based on their samples of couples living in North America and West Europe. Thus, it is an open questions whether the theoretical assumptions of cultural influences are false or whether cultural influences on couple behavior just occur in cultures outside of the Western world. METHOD: In order to examine the cultural influence, using a sample of married individuals (N = 7973) from 35 nations, we used multilevel modeling to test whether the positive association between dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction varies across nations and whether gender might moderate the association. RESULTS: RESULTS reveal that the association between dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction varies between nations. In addition, results show that in some nations the association is higher for men and in other nations it is higher for women. CONCLUSIONS: Cultural and gender differences across the globe influence how couples' coping behavior affects relationship outcomes. This crucial finding indicates that couple relationship education programs and interventions need to be culturally adapted, as skill trainings such as dyadic coping lead to differential effects on relationship satisfaction based on the culture in which couples live.